Sector/Thematic Studies

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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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Seventh Ghana Economic Update: Price Surge - Unraveling Inflation’s Toll on Poverty and Food Security

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-24) Kwakye, Kwabena Gyan ; Corral Rodas, Paul Andres ; Elmaleh, David ; Sebastian, Ashwini Rekha

Ghana’s economy entered a full-blown crisis in 2022, after having rebounded from the COVID-19 slowdown in 2021. In response to the macroeconomic challenges, the authorities enacted some fiscal adjustment in 2022 but fell short of their consolidation targets; the 2023Q1 fiscal deficit (cash) was within target. Expenditure consolidation and revenue mobilization continued to be hampered by structural constraints. To address these unsustainable domestic and external imbalances, the authorities embarked on a comprehensive debt restructuring operation. Against the backdrop, growth is projected to decelerate further in 2023-24, before picking up in the medium-term. The government has embarked on an ambitious fiscal consolidation plan: however, delivering on it will require addressing long-standing revenue mobilization and budget control weaknesses. In 2023, the authorities intend to finance the fiscal deficit from multilateral (and other official) sources, in the context of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) - supported program, and from the domestic treasury bills (T-bills) market. In addition, leveraging government programs to build up resilience against vulnerability is an imperative and should not be suspended during the crisis. Beefing up the government’s payments through the livelihood empowerment against poverty will be critical. Second, support for food self-sufficiency is needed in Ghana (a goal for many countries now due to the global food crisis), while opening the country to generate more export revenues. The Ghana Tree Crops Diversification Project can serve as a critical puzzle piece of the country’s current challenges. The project will support poverty alleviation while setting the country up to generate more foreign revenues in the medium to long-term.
Gender-Based Violence Country Profile: Honduras

(Washington, DC, 2023-06-01) World Bank

Honduras has a small and informal economy that is predominantly agricultural, but its strategic location, solid industrial base, ample resources, and young population indicate potential for inclusive and resilient economic growth. Despite the growth, Honduras remains one of the poorest and most unequal countries in the region. Honduras has one of the highest rates of violent deaths of women in the world, by 2021, there were reported 318 violent deaths of women. Honduras is both a source and transit country for human trafficking, with women being the most affected by it. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the situation, resulting in an increase in reported cases of domestic and intrafamily violence.
Jobs, Food and Greening: Exploring Implications of the Green Transition for Jobs in the Agri-food System

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-16) Nico, Gianluigi ; Christiaensen, Luc

The agri-food system (AFS) employs about one third of the global workforce and contributes about one third of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This together with its large exposure to the effects of climate change and environmental degradation makes what happens in AFS central to the green transition and its implications for jobs and the structural transformation. Microeconomic evidence suggests that the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices will increase labor requirements, at least in the short run and at lower levels of incomes, when its mechanization is still limited. Econometric macro-model-based simulations suggest however that especially substantial investment in climate friendly agricultural R&D as well as soil and water preserving practices and market integration will more than offset the negative effects of climate change and even accelerate the structural transformation, especially in Sub Saharan Africa. Overall, the findings underscore the tremendous potential of increasing agricultural and climate friendly R&D investment for brokering an environmentally sustainable structural transformation. Repurposing of agriculture’s current US$ 638 billion support package towards supporting more climate friendly practices, including to overcome the time lag between the moment of investment and the realization of the benefits, provides an important policy entry point.
Managing Environmental and Social Risks in Resilient Housing Projects

(Washington, DC, 2022-03) World Bank

Resilient Housing (RH) initiatives are a crucial means of improving access to safe and sanitary housing in urban areas of high vulnerability. These projects make residents safer, healthier, and more secure, and increase the economic inclusion of the world’s poorest populations. They upgrade homes, improve neighborhoods, and change lives. Like all investment projects, RH initiatives carry with them some risks and may impact the lives of community members in the project area. The note briefly introduces RH initiatives, describes their unique approach to project design, and touches on the possible risks occasioned by RH projects. It then explores the many ways in which RH initiatives closely align with the objectives and technical requirements embedded in the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Framework (ESF), which went into effect on October 1, 2018. The ESF lays out a comprehensive approach to identifying and managing environmental and social risks and minimizing potential impacts. The goals and requirements of RH initiatives and the ESF complement one another, and this note will describe how this mutually supportive relationship creates desirable outcomes that achieve the objectives of both, despite occasional trade-offs. Using recent operational experience as a guide to best practices, the note’s final section provides recommendations for Task Team Leaders responsible for managing RH projects on how to apply the ESF to their projects to minimize risk and maximize project impact.
Tunisia Economic Monitor, Winter 2021: Economic Reforms to Navigate Out of the Crisis

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-01-20) World Bank

The Economic Monitor examines four possible factors behind Tunisia’s slow recovery. First, the drop in mobility related to the pandemic may have been more harmful in Tunisia. However, mobility in Tunisia has dropped to a similar extent as other countries and it has now returned to pre-pandemic levels following the acceleration in the vaccination campaign since July. If anything, the mobility drop in Tunisia has resulted in a lower reduction in economic activity than in comparator countries as Algeria and Egypt. Second, it could be that the level of public support to the ailing firms and households may have been particularly low. However, at 2.3 percent of GDP, the Covid-19 stimulus package in 2020 was in the same ballpark as other comparators in the region. Third, the structure of the Tunisian economy, particularly its reliance on tourism, may have exposed it to the negative demand shock more than other countries. Indeed hotels, cafe and restaurant and transport are the sectors which have contracted the most since the start of the pandemic. The losses of these sectors explain a significant portion of the negative effects of the crisis in Tunisia, although they do not fully account for such slow recovery.
Challenges and Potentialities for Implementing Social Protection Responses to Emergency Through Decentralized Administration: Lessons from Brazil’s Auxilio Emergencial

(World Bank, Brasilia, 2022-01) Lara de Arruda, Pedro ; Lazarotto de Andrade, Marina ; Falcao, Tiago ; Teixeira Barbosa, Diana ; Morgandi, Matteo

With the advent of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Brazil has come out with one of the fastest and most generous social protection responses globally. Auxilio Emergencial (AE’s) operation is in contrast to that of regular social protection programs due to its highly centralized setup with limited formal involvement of subnational governments. Therefore, this analysis aims at understanding some core reasons why this happened and what were the main implications of this centralized operation to the program. The text also describes measures that were enacted to mitigate challenges due to the exclusion of subnational governments from the operation of AE and discusses the extent to which these can integrate traditional decentralization mechanisms of regular programs in the future and further improve the sectoral case management capacity at large. This paper is structured in seven chapters. Chapter one is introduction, chapter two presents a conceptual framework describing main forms of decentralization and discussing their adequacy to different contexts and traditional functions of the social protection sector. Chapter three presents an overview of AE highlighting its centralized setup and already discussing some main reasons why traditional decentralization mechanisms, such as the unified social assistance system (SUAS), were not formal members of the program. Chapter four discusses legacies of SUAS historical support to social protection in Brazil and how these have contributed to AE even if the system was not formally involved in the program. Chapter five describes some main challenges faced by AE and that can arguably have been mitigated had SUAS and or other subnational governments been part of its formal operation. Chapter six considers how SUAS and decentralized forms of social protection were nevertheless relevant as complementary measures to that provided by AE. Finally, chapter seven concludes by summarizing some core lessons learned for engaging decentralized mechanisms in emergency responses in the future.
Kazakhstan Economic Update, Winter 2021/2022: Economic Recovery during Challenging Times

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-12-22) World Bank

After suffering a pandemic-driven slump in 2020, Kazakhstan’s economic recovery is on track, having sustained quarterly growth throughout Q3 2021. Reduced COVID-19 cases and the loosening of mobility restrictions support business activities and maintain the rebound in consumer demand. However, annual inflation surged to the highest recorded level since 2016, driven mostly by food price inflation and large-scale disruptions in global supply chains, eroding purchasing power, particularly for lower-income households. We project real GDP growth in the 3.5-4.0 percent range in 2022, although the economy will remain below the pre-pandemic baseline path for the entire forecast horizon. Growth will be supported by robust domestic activity, a supportive fiscal stance, and further progress in vaccination. Despite the improving economic outlook, downside risks remain. The risk of another potential COVID-19 outbreak cannot be ruled out. Rising inflation is another concern and would require a tighter monetary stance, potentially affecting domestic borrowing conditions. Volatile prices and uncertainty over the scale of demand growth for oil are other risks that could weaken the current account and pressure the exchange rate.
Malaysia Economic Monitor, December 2021: Staying Afloat

(World Bank, Kuala Lumpur, 2021-12-22) World Bank

Following the surge in COVID-19 infections in Q3 2021, Malaysia is gradually emerging from the worst wave of the pandemic. As a result, the Malaysian economy is expected to be on a recovery path next year. In the near-term, it is key to ensure that targeted support measures remain in place. The Malaysia Economic Monitor (MEM) consists of two parts. Part 1 presents a review of recent economic developments and a macroeconomic outlook. Part 2 focuses on a selected special topic that is key to Malaysia’s medium-term development prospects and to the achievement of shared prosperity.
Uganda Economic Update, 18th Edition, December 2021: Putting Women at the Center of Uganda’s Economic Revival

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-12) World Bank

Uganda’s economy was recovering well, up until the second wave of COVID-19 infections and subsequent lockdown in mid-2021. Since then, activity has rebounded – much like after the first lockdown – but the country is likely to still face a stop-start recovery until there is wider coverage of the COVID-19 vaccine. Notwithstanding this recovery, there has been a rise in poverty and – with the shift back to agriculture for some workers – an increase in household vulnerabilities. We have also seen a widening of inequalities, which have been most severe in the education sector, where schools have now been fully or partially closed for longer than any other country in the world. As a result, Uganda has a long way to go in its quest to build-back-better. Eighteenth Uganda Economic Update includes the special topic of Putting Women at the Center of Uganda’s Economic Revival. In line with the structure of earlier editions of the Uganda Economic Update series, this report reviews recent economic developments – with particular attention paid to the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic – provides an outlook for the macro-economy, and then delves into the special topic.
How COVID-19 Continues to Affect Livelihoods in Kenya: Rapid Response Phone Survey Rounds 1 to 5

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-10-16) Pape, Utz ; Delius, Antonia

Understanding the socioeconomic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is important to inform policy responses. The arrival of COVID-19 disrupted lives across all countries and communities, creating unprecedented challenges. As of August 2021, there have been more than 200 million cases globally, with more than 4 million deaths. Throughout the pandemic, governments have adopted measures to curb the spread of the virus, which inadvertently resulted in socioeconomic impacts. To shape and accelerate the recovery, it is important to better understand the implications of the pandemic and its associated restrictions. The strict containment measures that were put in place in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya had negative socioeconomic impacts. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya in March 2020, a range of containment measures were introduced by the Government of Kenya (GoK). These included the promotion of social distancing practices, restrictions on public gatherings, night curfews, shutting down learning institutions, and limits on public transport passenger capacities. Despite this, the number of cases reached 200,000 in August 2021, with more than 4,000 deaths. People were facing job losses, rising food insecurity, and worsening health and education outcomes. Understanding and quantifying the repercussions of the pandemic, particularly on different sub-groups of the population, can help to inform policies and improve targeting.