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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Valuing Green Infrastructure: A Case Study of the Vakhsh River Basin, Tajikistan

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-09-14) World Bank

This report outlines the main results of a study conducted to assess the potential role of landscape restoration/nature-based solutions/green infrastructure in the Vakhsh River Basin, Tajikistan, to reduce the impacts of soil erosion on the hydropower cascade, increase agricultural productivity, improve livelihoods, and inform about investment opportunities. This assessment finds sediment sources and loadings in the Vakhsh River Basin, considers the potential correlation between soil erosion and sedimentation in hydropower reservoirs, proposes possible and cost-effective landscape restoration measures, and estimates the value of ecosystem services provided. The study also presents recommendations for implementing the proposed interventions for the Vakhsh River Basin and for scaling up to other degraded areas throughout the country.
Climate Resilient Investment in Sub-Saharan Africa Compendium Volume: A Focus on Infrastructure Project Design in Key Sectors

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-09-01) World Bank

This Compendium Volume presents a series of guidance notes and more detailed complementary technical notes that offer practical insights in support of enhancing the climate resilience of infrastructure investment projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. This first introductory chapter starts with an overview of the investment conditions and climatic context in the region, followed by a description of the scope of this Compendium Volume and individual notes, target audiences, and a roadmap for users of the contents covered in this Volume.
Scaling Up Finance for Water: A WBG Strategic Framework and Roadmap for Action

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-08-17) Khemka, Rochi ; Lopez, Patricia ; Jensen, Olivia

Water is a critical natural resource, a global public good, and an essential service. Water security is central for countries to achieve long-term development objectives in the current context of climate change, including protecting infrastructure assets, safeguarding agricultural production, producing sustainable energy, and protecting vulnerable populations. However, water resources are under severe stress and water services delivery is deficient due to underinvestment in the sector. Current levels of global investment in water are inadequate to meet the water sustainable development goals (SDGs) and address climate impacts. Large, coordinated flows of public, concessional, and private capital are needed to compensate for decades of underinvestment in the water sector, and to meet present and future challenges. Governments have a leading role to play in establishing the enabling conditions and necessary reforms to facilitate a greater flow of public and private finance for required water sector investments. International financial institutions and multilateral development banks need to support these efforts, together with other stakeholders, at the country level. The private sector, in addition to being a key user of water resources and a beneficiary of water services, has an important role to play in providing financing, innovative approaches, and expertise, as well as absorbing risk, with aligned incentives for achieving targets and efficiency levels. The World Bank Group recognizes the water-climate-food-energy nexus and the importance of a water secure world for all. The World Bank Group’s scaling up finance for water strategic framework outlines actions and priorities for national governments, the World Bank Group, and other development partners to improve the planning and mobilization of funding and financing for water sector investments, and to promote efficiency in spending. It aims to do so by optimizing the contributions of the public and private sectors and facilitating greater engagement of the private sector in the provision of capital, innovation, and expertise.
Taking Stock, August 2023: Making Public Investment Work for Growth

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-08-10) World Bank

The latest Taking Stock report shows that Vietnam’s economic growth slowed from 8% in 2022 to 3.7% in the first half of 2023. It forecasts a moderate growth of 4.7% in 2023, gradually accelerating to 5.5% in 2024 and 6.0% in 2025. However, the economy faces external and domestic headwinds. Vietnam has ample fiscal space and a proactive fiscal policy supporting short-term demand, removing barriers to the implementation of public investment, and addressing infrastructure constraints can help the economy achieve these targets and promote long-term growth. The report’s special chapter studies Vietnam’s public investment management and how it can contribute to the goal of becoming a high income economy. To harness the power of public investment, the report recommends that Vietnam sustain its level of investment, improve the quality of the proposed project, and address deficiencies in public investment management and inter-governmental fiscal institutions.
Mapping and Valuing Ecosystem Services for Sustainable Landscape Management in Zimbabwe

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-31) World Bank

Productive natural ecosystems are being lost and degraded by poorly planned and managed commercial and small-scale livelihood activities in Zimbabwe, and threats will be further exacerbated by climate change. This report identifies the drivers of ecosystem degradation and assesses the value of ecosystems that are key to Zimbabwe’s sustainable development. It also highlights investments that are necessary to protect the landscape and deliver ecosystem services for sustainable livelihood and climate resilience.
Somalia Climate Risk Review

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-25) World Bank

Somalia’s natural and human geography is shaped by its harsh climate. Lying at the eastern extremity of the Sahel, Somalia has an arid to semi-arid climate. The country is in the midst of a prolonged and complex climate disaster, which shows little sign of abating. It has recently endured its longest drought in four decades, now punctuated with renewed flooding. This Climate Risk Review aims to systematically summarize existing knowledge on Somalia’s climate risks in an accessible and standardized form. It has developed a set of semiquantitative metrics to summarize and compare risks. It contains four chapters: Chapter 1: Climate Overview outlines Somalia’s climate context and how it shapes natural and human geography and rural production systems, as well as briefly summarizes current climate policies. Chapter 2: Climate Change, Conflict, and Social Risks examines the interaction between climate, armed conflict, and social risks, both to better understand the wider context of vulnerability and to identify particularly harmful interactions. Chapter 3: Risk Summaries inventories the major biophysical climate risks across five areas: climate disasters, agriculture and livestock, natural resources, health, and infrastructure and services. For each risk, it collates current information and indicates how ongoing climate change will likely affect the intensity of that risk in future. Chapter 4: Prioritizing Adaptation Action recaps the overall findings across different risks and links these to the broader development agenda within Somalia. It identifies broad priorities and approaches for climate action in relation to policies and institutions, physical investments, and knowledge. This information is complemented by a more systematic review of adaptation options across different sectors in the report’s appendix. The report is intended as a reference resource and basis for informing further analytical work. The investments and actions it highlights need to be supported by new and detailed analytical work to identify the most efficient interventions and the institutional steps needed to support them.
Sailing Rough Seas: Accelerating Growth and Fostering Resilience to Climate Change in Cabo Verde

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-20) World Bank

Cabo Verde is a young, small, and vibrant island nation with an open economy. Rising above its daunting geographical challenges and limited endowments, the country is a story of economic success. Reforms to the rule of law and the market have prompted significant economic and social progress since the country’s independence from Portugal in 1975, leading to democratic and macro-economic stability. Its robust, albeit highly volatile, economic growth has been driven by tourism, remittances, and foreign direct investment, enabled by structural reforms and social and political stability. Despite remarkable social and economic progress, Cabo Verde’s development model has been showing signs of fatigue since the 2008 global financial crisis. To guide Cabo Verde in meeting these challenges, this Country Economic Memorandum (CEM) contains two modules: (1) empowering complementary engines of growth; and (2) fostering the resilience of growth to disaster and climate-related shocks. The CEM benchmarks Cabo Verde’s performance against other Small Island Developing States (SIDS), structural peers (Samoa, São Tomé and Principe, and Vanuatu), and aspirational peers (Mauritius, Seychelles, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Lucia). Structural peers are countries that share similar economic characteristics and endowments, while aspirational peers are countries that have been able to grow faster and more sustainably than Cabo Verde, despite sharing similar structural conditions (Annex 1).
Climate-Related Shocks and Fiscal Sustainability: Potential Impacts and Policy Options

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-20) World Bank

Real GDP expanded by 17.7 percent in 2022, with per capita incomes surpassing the pre-pandemic levels. On the supply side, accommodation, transport, and commerce explained 60 percent of growth. On the demand side, exports (mainly tourism) and private consumption accounted for growth. The rebound in economic activity in 2022 was accompanied by a reduction in poverty (0.8 percentage points), despite the spike in inflation. Headline inflation reached 7.9 percent (y/y) in December 2022 after inflationary pressures emerged in 2021, fueled by high international oil and food prices and global supply chain disruptions due to the war in Ukraine. Higher food prices and low agricultural production, driven by the five year long drought, intensified food insecurity.
Algeria Economic Update, Spring 2023: Winds Remain Favorable

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-26) World Bank

This Algeria Economic Update reports on the main recent economic developments and policies. It places them in a global and longer-term context and assesses the implications of these developments and policy changes for Algeria’s economic prospects. The report is intended for a broad audience, including policymakers, business leaders, financial market participants, and the community of analysts and professionals working in/on Algeria. The report is divided into two chapters. Chapter 1 presents macroeconomic developments in Algeria over the year 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, while Chapter 2 describes the short- and medium-term outlook for the Algerian economy.
Improving Building-Level Thermal Comfort and Indoor Air Quality in South Asia: Energy-Efficient and Cost-Effective Interventions for a Changing Climate

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-12) World Bank

This report provides evidence-based guidance on cost-effective and energy-efficient cooling and ventilation interventions to improve building-level thermal comfort and indoor air quality for a changing climate in South Asia. It focuses on Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan but also covers all the countries in the region, including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. After an introduction, the report analyzes local climates and air quality issues, building types, and occupant behavior, as well as available passive and active interventions and their relevance in the region, before concluding with a set of recommendations for all building types. The report also identifies additional recommendations specific to residential and commercial buildings, along with policy and country-specific recommendations.