Sector/Thematic Studies

6,688 items available

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http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2110

Economic and Sectoral Work are original analytic reports authored by the World Bank and intended to influence programs and policy in client countries. They convey Bank-endorsed recommendations and represent the formal opinion of a World Bank unit on the topic. This set includes the sectoral and thematic studies which are not Core Diagnostic Studies. Other analytic and advisory activities (AAA), including technical assistance studies, are included in these sectoral/thematic collections.

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Plastic Waste in Road Construction: A Path Worth Paving? Application of Dry Process in South Asia

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-24) Patil, Pawan ; Stankevich, Natalya ; Tsydenova, Nina ; Diana, Zoie

As global plastic waste continues to grow, the global community is coalescing to reduce plastic waste. Some stakeholders are also exploring new options to use plastic waste as partial substitute for raw material. The use of plastic waste as a bitumen modifier in road construction, referred to here as ‘plastic roads’, is one option being explored. We reviewed the scientific literature, news articles, and patents; conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis; and interviewed representatives from private companies and independent, scientific researchers to determine the existing knowledge gaps regarding the (1) technology feasibility, including engineering performance; (2) environmental issues; (3) occupational health; (4) economic viability; and (5) industry standards surrounding plastic roads. We found that many companies are starting to implement or pilot this technology worldwide though key gaps in engineering performance, such as cracking resistance, remain. The environmental issues reviewed also have research gaps, including the generation of hazardous air pollutants during production; microplastics and nanoplastics generation during use; and leaching of additives from plastic waste during use. Industry standards for the use of plastic waste in road construction are lacking. In addition, there is prevailing uncertainty in the economic viability of the technology. As a result of these key research gaps, the Ways Forward section presents a roadmap for short- and longterm research priorities.
Egypt - The First Sovereign Green Bond in the Middle East and North Africa: Case Study

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-11-01) World Bank

Sustainable debt is loan or bond financing that helps mitigate or address a specific environmental or social concern or achieve positive environmental or social outcomes. The term environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, often used interchangeably with sustainable investing, denotes an investment approach wherein investors apply nonfinancial factors related to ESG issues in their investment analysis to identify risks and opportunities. The practice of ESG investing began in the 1960s as socially responsible investing, with investors excluding stocks or entire industries from their portfolios to avoid investing in morally questionable businesses. In recent years, ESG investing has garnered tremendous interest because of the recognition of environmental and social risks to the global economy; the urgency that the Paris Agreement and the 2030 agenda for sustainable development have created; and the resulting impetus to finance initiatives that help limit global warming, environmental degradation, and various social problems. Investors use a variety of strategies, including negative or exclusionary screening, positive screening, integration of ESG considerations, thematic and impact investing, and active ownership and stewardship, to incorporate ESG considerations into their investment processes. Climate change, resource scarcity, and demographic and social change feature prominently in several investment strategies. Impact investments are often made to address challenges in sectors such as sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, conservation, microfinance, and affordable and accessible basic services, including housing, health care, and education.
Working for Inclusion: Economic Inclusion in Contexts of Forced Displacement

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-06-15) Heisey, Janet ; Sánchez, Inés Arévalo ; Bernagros, Alexi

Since 2012, the number of forcibly displaced people has more than doubled, reaching 89.3 million by the end of 2021. Ongoing conflicts, including the war in Ukraine, will result in even larger numbers of forcibly displaced people. The economic and human development impacts of forcible displacement present challenges for the people who have been displaced, the communities that host them, and governments that receive them. Governments, humanitarian organizations, and others are using economic inclusion programs as one strategy to increase income and assets and build the resilience of displaced people and host populations living in poverty. An estimated 95 economic inclusion programs are underway in contexts of forced displacement in 45 countries, more than half led by governments. This note examines the experience of economic inclusion programs that serve forcibly displaced people, including internally displaced people, refugees, and their host communities. It also examines the emerging lessons learned in program design and delivery based on new data on the footprint of economic inclusion programs and a review of evidence on forced displacement and economic inclusion programming.
Plastic Waste: A Journey Down the Indus River Basin in Pakistan

(Washington, DC, 2022-06) World Bank

The perennial presence of plastic waste in the Indus River and its tributaries is a recent addition to the already extensive list of threats to water quality, ecological health, and environmental sustainability in Pakistan. While there is some information available, although insufficient, both on surface water resources as well as on solid waste management (SWM) in Pakistan, the intersection of the two remains grossly under-studied in research circles and underrepresented on policy forums. This study delineates the interface between land based plastic waste and the Indus River system with the objective of raising plastics-in-rivers as a major policy and developmental issue, and providing a starting point for researchers, policy makers, and development and environmental professionals to expand the agenda of SWM to include protection of rivers. It is the first study of its kind in Pakistan and uses a combination of active sampling of floating waste at key sites in the Indus River system, passive sampling of waste dumped along the banks at those sites, consultations with key stakeholders in the sector, and a review of relevant policies, laws, and literature.
Rapid Urban Growth in Flood Zones: Global Evidence since 1985

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-04) Rentschler, Jun ; Avner, Paolo ; Marconcini, Mattia ; Su, Rui ; Strano, Emanuele ; Hallegatte, Stephane ; Bernard, Louise ; Riom, Capucine

As countries rapidly urbanize, settlements are expanding into hazardous flood zones. This study provides a global analysis of spatial urbanization patterns and the evolution of flood exposure between 1985 and 2015. Using high-resolution annual data, it shows that settlements across the world grew by 85 percent to over 1.28 million square kilometers. In the same period, settlements exposed to the highest flood hazard level increased by 122 percent. In many regions, risky growth is outpacing safe growth, particularly in East Asia, where high-risk settlements have expanded 60 percent faster than safe ones. Developing countries are driving the recent growth of flood exposure: 36,500 square kilometers of settlements were built in the world’s highest-risk zones since 1985–82 percent of which are in low- and middle-income countries. In comparison, recent growth in high-income countries has been relatively slow and safe. These results document a divergence in countries’ exposure to flood hazards. Rather than adapting their exposure to climatic hazards, many countries are actively increasing their exposure.
Transport and Logistics: Myanmar Infrastructure Monitoring

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-03-31) World Bank

Transport and logistics services in Myanmar have been substantially hit by the impacts of the February 2021 coup and the surge in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases. Logistics companies have been affected by rising fuel prices, border closures, and a shortage of shipping containers. While the initial effects after the military coup on the transport sector were extremely severe, there have been signs of some recovery of transport services since May 2021. Public transport in Yangon experienced a significant reduction in passenger demand in early months after the coup, subsequently recovering some ground by December 2021. Higher fuel prices and currency liquidity shortages significantly increased the cost of inland transport services. Transportation and logistics services are expected to be severely impacted by continuing high fuel prices, mobility constrains, political instability, and evolution of the pandemic. The export and import via container are expected to recover gradually due to agricultural and garment industry-led demand. However, improvement of exports and imports in the medium term is uncertain given the complexity of trade relations with international trade partners. In addition to effects of the coup and political conflicts, risks related to the pandemic will also significantly impact logistics supply chains and mobility in the near to mid-term.
Yokohama Urban Design Sketchbook: Translating a Community-Led Vision into Practice

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-03-10) Miki-Imoto, Haruka ; Shkabatur, Jennifer ; Noda, Tsuneo

Pioneered in Yokohama City, Japan, the Yokohama Urban Design Sketchbook (YUDS) is a citizen engagement and co-creation methodology for urban design at the neighborhood level. It leverages cross-sectional sketches and drawings to translate citizens' visions and ideas of urban areas into concrete proposals of urban design. YUDS also develops interest among the community on urban areas and it enhances community engagement in broader urban planning and municipal processes. Based on the experience of Yokohama City, the YUDS methodology has been successfully piloted and tested in two distinct urban contexts: in Panama City, Panama, in April 2019, and in Barranquilla, Colombia, in February 2020. The YUDS methodology consists of structured participatory workshops, in which participants collaboratively produce sketches that reflect their urban vision. The uniqueness of the methodology derives from the use of cross-sectional sketches, a simple yet powerful tool that overcomes barriers of communication and encourages consensus among participants regard-less of their language, generation, or social position. The most significant feature of YUDS is the use of schematic representations by the use of cross-sectional sketches. This approach is different from traditional urban design methodologies, which typically rely on photography, maps, and bird's-eye view illustrations.The implementation of the YUDS methodology requires careful planning and dedication of time and resources. Workshops require the preparation of urban design materials and their simplification for nonprofessional participants. The methodology also works best when a municipal champion is committed to the process, and when university researchers and students are closely engaged in the preparation and implementation of each workshop.
A Study of Road Safety Lead Agencies in Africa

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-02-22) Mitullah, Winnie ; Small, Martin ; Azzouzi, Mustapha

This study of road safety lead agencies (RSLAs) in Africa takes place at an important time when serious injuries on roads are at the centre of discussions on sustainable development. RSLAs in Africa are considered to be critical vehicles for responding to road safety challenges, although how well they do this remains largely unknown. In literature, their functionality, complexity and autonomy has widely been assessed. However, there is limited attempt to link the management capacity of RSLAs to the observed road safety outcomes such as serious injuries and fatality reduction or reduction in the cost of road traffic crashes. Consequently, there is limited evidence as to whether or not lead agencies in Africa are achieving the intended goals of improving road safety status. This study sought to better understand these difficulties and the potential steps to success for RSLAs in Africa. It was commissioned by the African Development Bank and the World Bank and focuses on sixteen African countries. It is part of a global study of road safety lead agencies being undertaken by the World Health Organisation. The study is structured into four sections. Section 2 describes the two-phase methodology–desk study and preparation of the research instruments, data collection and analysis. This is followed in Section 3 by a discussion of the concept of lead agency, which lays the ground for presentation of the study results regarding lead agency performance in Section 4. Section 5 identifies lessons from the study and makes recommendations to improve lead agency performance.
Economic Shocks and Human Trafficking Risks: Evidence from IOM’s Victims of Human Trafficking Database

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-02-18) World Bank ; International Organization for Migration

The report focuses on risk factors that are expected to increase the vulnerability to human trafficking from and within origin countries such as economic shocks, measured by large, discrete changes to export commodity prices and to GDP. It also explores the role that institutions play through enforcing the rule of law, providing access to justice, and implementing anti-trafficking policies, as protective factors that could weaken the link between economic shocks and an increase in human trafficking. The analysis verifies that economic shocks are significant risk factors that increase vulnerability to human trafficking. In origin countries, economic vulnerabilities, especially those caused by global commodity price shocks, are strongly positively correlated with observed cases of trafficking. For instance, the economic shock produced by a typical decrease in export commodity prices is associated with an increase in the number of detected victims of trafficking of around 12 percent. The analysis suggests that good governance institutions and particularly a commitment to the rule of law and access to justice as well as stricter anti-trafficking policies and social assistance can have a limiting effect on the number of observed cases of trafficking following economic shocks.
Air Quality Deep Dive - Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland and Romania: Sustainable Cities Implementation Framework

(Washington, DC, 2022-02) World Bank

The World Bank is developing a Sustainable Cities Implementation Framework for Europe and Central Asia to inform World Bank and other development partners’ ongoing support to national and sub-national authorities in pursuit of Sustainable Cities. As part of this work, preliminary assessments were conducted in four countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland and Romania), which identified the need for deep dive analytics on three topics (Air Quality, Spatial Form and Solid Waste Management). This report explores air quality challenges in urban areas, focusing on existing data, identifying contributing factors to poor air quality, and providing recommendations (implementation support areas) to improve air quality in Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland and Romania. Air pollution has a major impact on the sustainability of an urban area. It is a significant cause of premature death and morbidity, representing the single, largest environmental health risk in Europe. People in the larger cities tend to be exposed to higher levels of nitrogen dioxide due to emissions from road traffic. In central and eastern Europe, air quality is poor in many areas, especially in urban settings, and the burning of solid fuels for domestic heating and in industry results in public exposure to the highest concentrations of particulate matter and polycyclic hydrocarbons.