Publication:
The World Bank Group Annual Report 2025

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Published
2025-10-09
ISSN
Date
2025-10-09
Editor(s)
Abstract
The World Bank Group Annual Report 2025 presents on World Bank Group activities in fiscal 2025. The Annual Report is prepared by the Executive Directors of ICSID, IFC, MIGA, and the World Bank (IBRD/IDA) in accordance with the by-laws of the institutions. The President of the World Bank Group and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors submit the Annual Report, together with the accompanying administrative budgets and audited financial statements, to the Board of Governors.
Link to Data Set
Citation
World Bank Group. 2025. The World Bank Group Annual Report 2025. © The World Bank Group. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/43813 License: CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO.
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    World Bank Group Climate Change Action Plan 2021–2025
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-06-22) World Bank Group
    Update 2025: The World Bank Group Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP) has been extended until June 30, 2026, with no other changes. The Climate Change Action Plan 2021–2025 aims to advance the climate change aspects of the WBG’s Green, Resilient, and Inclusive Development (GRID) approach, which pursues poverty eradication and shared prosperity with a sustainability lens. In the Action Plan, we will support countries and private sector clients to maximize the impact of climate finance, aiming for measurable improvements in adaptation and resilience and measurable reductions in GHG emissions. The Action Plan also considers the vital importance of natural capital, biodiversity, and ecosystems services and will increase support for nature-based solutions, given their importance for both mitigation and adaptation. As part of our effort to drive climate action, the WBG has a long-standing record of participating in key partnerships and high-level forums aimed at enhancing global efforts to address climate change. The new Action Plan represents a shift from efforts to “green” projects, to greening entire economies, and from focusing on inputs, to focusing on impacts. It focuses on (i) integrating climate and development; (ii) identifying and prioritizing action on the largest mitigation and adaptation opportunities; and (iii) using those to drive our climate finance and leverage private capital in ways that deliver the most results. That means helping the largest emitters flatten the emissions curve and accelerate the downward trend and ramping up financing on adaptation to help countries and private sector clients prepare for and adapt to climate change while pursuing broader development objectives through the GRID approach.
  • Publication
    IEG Annual Report 2010 : Results and Performance of the World Bank Group, Main Report
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2010) Independent Evaluation Group
    Over the past year, the response to the global financial crisis has continued to dominate development and the work of international institutions, including the World Bank Group. Challenges of poverty and fragile states, environment, and climate change remain daunting. But the manner in which these are best addressed is shifting. The World Bank Group, a crucial partner in the solutions to global development, must adapt to these changes for greater development effectiveness. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) individually face particular challenges in the increasingly multipolar world. But there are opportunities for coordination across the World Bank Group, whether between public and business activities, among sectors, or across macro and micro concerns. Emphasizing these synergies, part one of this joint report discuss recent activities and results of the World Bank Group; part two focuses on select issues in development effectiveness at each institution. A separate volume of this report contains a detailed review and rating of management response and actions regarding recommendations from the Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) from recent years.
  • Publication
    IEG Annual Report 2011 : Results and Performance of the World Bank Group
    (Washington, DC: World Bank Group, 2011) Independent Evaluation Group
    The work of the World Bank Group (WBG) in helping reduce poverty supports four core goals at both global and country levels: expanding economic opportunities, enhancing human development, mitigating socioeconomic and environmental risks, and improving governance and public sector effectiveness. In the first half of the 2000s, developing countries made advances in these areas, leading to a significant reduction in poverty. Historically high economic growth rates as well as improvements in key aspects of human development made the difference. A series of global economic crises as well as natural disasters contributed to setbacks, while global climate change continued to threaten progress. These global shifters need to be confronted by development strategies. Improving governance and public sector effectiveness is key to reducing poverty further. The quality of public sector management also affects the WBGapos;s development effectiveness in countries. WBG-supported country program and project outcomes are lower in countries with poorer quality public sector management, suggesting a need to augment the approach and prioritize engagement in this area. Finally, WBG managementapos;s adoption of recommendations derived from evaluations has increased over time, and both management and Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) have agreed on measures to improve this process.
  • Publication
    World Bank Group Climate Change Action Plan 2021-2025
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-10-05) World Bank Group
    South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. The people of South Asia are living through a "new climate normal," where intensifying heat waves, cyclones, droughts, and floods are testing the limits of governments, businesses, and citizens to adapt. Jacobabad in Pakistan's Sindh province was, this year, the hottest city on the planet with temperatures higher than the human body can handle. In 2020, more than three million people were evacuated to safety from the fury of Super Cyclone Amphan. At the same time, South Asia has an unfinished development agenda with legitimate aspirations to reach middle income status in the foreseeable future, which will include increasing access to energy, increasing rural incomes and managing large scale urbanization, among others. The success with which South Asian countries navigate these development transitions, while also reducing emissions and increasing climate resilience, will determine the region's ability to lift millions from the threat of poverty and vulnerability, and help the world to secure the overall climate transition.
  • Publication
    World Bank Group Strategy for Fragility, Conflict, and Violence 2020–2025
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-02-27) World Bank Group
    By 2030, more than half of the world’s extreme poor will live in countries characterized by fragility, conflict, and violence. Preventing and mitigating fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV) is central to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the World Bank Group’s (WBG) twin goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. The objective of the FCV Strategy is to enhance the WBG’s effectiveness to support countries in addressing the drivers and impacts of FCV and strengthening their resilience, especially for the most vulnerable and marginalized populations.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    Reboot Development: The Economics of a Livable Planet
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-09-01) Damania, Richard; Ebadi, Ebad; Mayr, Kentaro; Russ, Jason; Zaveri, Esha
    “Reboot Development: The Economics of a Livable Planet” explores how the foundational natural endowments of land, air, and water—long taken for granted—are under growing threat, putting at risk the very progress they helped create. For generations, natural resources have powered development, supporting health, food, energy, and economic opportunity. Today, strains on these resources are intensifying. This report argues that failing to maintain a livable planet is not merely a distant environmental concern, but a present economic threat. Drawing on new data, the report shows that over 90 percent of the world is exposed to poor air quality, degraded land, or water stress. Loss of forests cuts rainfall, dries soils, and worsens droughts, costing billions of dollars. The nitrogen paradox emerges—fertilizers boost yields but overuse in some regions harms crops and ecosystems. Meanwhile, air and water pollution silently damage health, productivity, and cognition, sapping human potential. The report warns that these hidden costs are too large to ignore. Yet the message is not one of constraint but of possibility. Nature, when wisely stewarded, can drive growth, create jobs, and build resilience. The report shows that more efficient resource use—like better nitrogen management and forest restoration—yields benefits that far exceed the costs. It also urges a shift to cleaner sectors and producing “better things,” noting that these provide new sources of growth, creating more jobs per dollar invested. The findings are clear: Investing in nature is not only good for the planet, it is smart development.
  • Publication
    The Global Findex Database 2025: Connectivity and Financial Inclusion in the Digital Economy
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-16) Klapper, Leora; Singer, Dorothe; Starita, Laura; Norris, Alexandra
    The Global Findex 2025 reveals how mobile technology is equipping more adults around the world to own and use financial accounts to save formally, access credit, make and receive digital payments, and pursue opportunities. Including the inaugural Global Findex Digital Connectivity Tracker, this fifth edition of Global Findex presents new insights on the interactions among mobile phone ownership, internet use, and financial inclusion. The Global Findex is the world’s most comprehensive database on digital and financial inclusion. It is also the only global source of comparable demand-side data, allowing cross-country analysis of how adults access and use mobile phones, the internet, and financial accounts to reach digital information and resources, save, borrow, make payments, and manage their financial health. Data for the Global Findex 2025 were collected from nationally representative surveys of about 145,000 adults in 141 economies. The latest edition follows the 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021 editions and includes new series measuring mobile phone ownership and internet use, digital safety, and frequency of transactions using financial services. The Global Findex 2025 is an indispensable resource for policy makers in the fields of digital connectivity and financial inclusion, as well as for practitioners, researchers, and development professionals.
  • Publication
    Global Economic Prospects, June 2025
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-06-10) World Bank
    The global economy is facing another substantial headwind, emanating largely from an increase in trade tensions and heightened global policy uncertainty. For emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), the ability to boost job creation and reduce extreme poverty has declined. Key downside risks include a further escalation of trade barriers and continued policy uncertainty. These challenges are exacerbated by subdued foreign direct investment into EMDEs. Global cooperation is needed to restore a more stable international trade environment and scale up support for vulnerable countries grappling with conflict, debt burdens, and climate change. Domestic policy action is also critical to contain inflation risks and strengthen fiscal resilience. To accelerate job creation and long-term growth, structural reforms must focus on raising institutional quality, attracting private investment, and strengthening human capital and labor markets. Countries in fragile and conflict situations face daunting development challenges that will require tailored domestic policy reforms and well-coordinated multilateral support.
  • Publication
    Digital Progress and Trends Report 2025: Strengthening AI Foundations
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-24) World Bank
    The recent rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) has outpaced society’s ability to fully grasp its implications. Unlike technological shifts that have unfolded over decades, AI’s integration is accelerating at an unprecedented speed and scale. Along with AI’s immense opportunities come new responsibilities—especially for ethical deployment, accountability, and alignment with human values—that have few precedents in previous technology revolutions. This 2025 edition of the "Digital Progress and Trends Report (DPTR)" explores how low- and middle-income countries can harness AI to drive inclusive and sustainable development—and avoid being left behind. The report explains what makes AI different from earlier general-purpose technologies and why it matters for development. It introduces the 4Cs, the foundations essential for AI adoption, adaptation, and innovation: connectivity (infrastructure), compute (processing power), context (training data, algorithms, and applications), and competency (digital skills). Drawing on rich, novel data sets, this DPTR benchmarks countries across the 4Cs, analyzes supply and demand dynamics, and identifies market failures and externalities where policy action is urgently needed. This report emphasizes the need for global coordination and targeted interventions to close the widening AI gaps, where resource constraints threaten to exacerbate inequality. Policy insights will help governments unlock AI’s potential while navigating its risks.
  • Publication
    Business Ready 2024
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-03) World Bank
    Business Ready (B-READY) is a new World Bank Group corporate flagship report that evaluates the business and investment climate worldwide. It replaces and improves upon the Doing Business project. B-READY provides a comprehensive data set and description of the factors that strengthen the private sector, not only by advancing the interests of individual firms but also by elevating the interests of workers, consumers, potential new enterprises, and the natural environment. This 2024 report introduces a new analytical framework that benchmarks economies based on three pillars: Regulatory Framework, Public Services, and Operational Efficiency. The analysis centers on 10 topics essential for private sector development that correspond to various stages of the life cycle of a firm. The report also offers insights into three cross-cutting themes that are relevant for modern economies: digital adoption, environmental sustainability, and gender. B-READY draws on a robust data collection process that includes specially tailored expert questionnaires and firm-level surveys. The 2024 report, which covers 50 economies, serves as the first in a series that will expand in geographical coverage and refine its methodology over time, supporting reform advocacy, policy guidance, and further analysis and research.