Publication: World Bank Group Support for Small and Medium Enterprises: A Synthesis of Evaluative Findings
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2019-09-16
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2019-10-16
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World Bank Group strategy continues to position SMEs as key vehicles to promote employment, value chain development, economic and social inclusion, and resilience in the face of fragility and conflict. This note synthesizes findings regarding SMEs and SME support from recent IEG evaluations, independent evaluations by other MDBs, and relevant World Bank Group research.
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“Independent Evaluation Group. 2019. World Bank Group Support for Small and Medium Enterprises: A Synthesis of Evaluative Findings. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32536 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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Targeted support for SMEs is a big business for the World Bank Group, averaging around $3 billion a year in commitments, expenditures, and gross exposure over the 2006-12 periods. In the context of broader reforms, targeted small and medium-size enterprise (TSME) support can be a powerful tool and, given the size of the recent program, it is vital for the World Bank Group to use it effectively. Targeting SMEs is not an end in itself, but a means to create economies that can employ more people and create more opportunity for citizens to achieve prosperity. A thriving and growing SME sector is associated with rapidly growing economies. IEG s review of the SIP suggests that although it has high relevance, it is of doubtful efficacy and efficiency. MIGA s regular portfolio of TSME projects performs worse than other financial sector guarantees, and there is no evidence to determine their impact on SMEs. The viability and sustainability of SMEs investments, whether through SIP or the wholesale approach, could not be ascertained because of the lack of information on results and performance.Publication World Bank Group Support for Innovation and Entrepreneurship : An Independent Evaluation(World Bank Group, Washington, DC, 2013-09)World Bank Group management welcomes Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) review of innovation and entrepreneurship. The global financial crisis required developing economies to actively seek new sources of economic growth. Natural resource-intensive economies are pursuing new ways to diversify their productive capacity to build resilience to commodity cycles. Middle-income countries (MICs) are looking for ways to escape the middle-income trap. A number of developmental challenges, from climate adaptation to food security and health, require new, efficient technological solutions adapted to developing countries' needs. 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The IFC strategy in place since 2001 focuses on: (i) providing financial support to MSMEs through financial intermediaries; and (ii) providing non-financial, indirect, institution-building support to MSMEs through project-development facilities co-financed by donors. In addition, IFC's corporate strategies focus on supporting private sector development in frontier countries (characterized by high risk or low income), in response to their relatively lower private capital inflows and less developed banking systems, as compared with medium (or low) risk middle-income countries. The objective of this study, therefore, is to evaluate the confluence of these two institutional strategic priorities (support for MSMEs through financial intermediaries, and support to enterprises in frontier countries) as well as to provide recommendations on how the strategy to support MSMEs through financial intermediaries in frontier countries can be improved to enhance its development impacts. 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But SMEs also face many challenges in day-to-day operations and to grow. This note is a report back on the state of the credit gap for MSMEs with this new and updated data, while providing additional focus on the sizable informal enterprise sector in the developing world. In addition, this report examines various operational challenges that small and informal firms face, and some formalization obstacles they often cite as the primary reasons for not registering their business. A framework to differentiate the informal sector is offered, with the intention of segmenting the vast landscape of informal firms some of which exist today due to opportunistic behavior, while others are just trying to survive and to better design specific interventions depending on the stage of development and the willingness of the firm to register its business. The rest of this report is organized as follows. 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Addressing issues of recurring conflict and political violence and helping build legitimate and accountable state institutions are central to the Bank Group's poverty reduction mission. This evaluation assesses the relevance and effectiveness of World Bank Group country strategies and assistance programs to FCS. The operationalization of the World Development Report 2011: Conflict, Security, and Development (2011 WDR) is also assessed, to see how the framework has been reflected in subsequent analytical work, country assistance strategies, and the assistance programs. The evaluation framework was derived from the concepts and priorities articulated in recent WDRs, policy papers, and progress reports issued by Bank Group management, to draw lessons from FCS. The framework is organized around the three major themes emerging from the 2011 WDR: building state capacity, building capacity of citizens, and promoting inclusive growth and jobs. The evaluation focuses on International Development Association (IDA)-only countries, which are deemed to have certain characteristics such as very low average income and no access to private finance, making them eligible for special finance tools and programs. As the benchmark for measuring results, Bank Group performance is evaluated in 33 fragile and conflict-affected states against that of 31 IDA-only countries that have never been on the FCS list. Six new country case studies; analyses of Bank Group portfolios; human resources and budget data; secondary analysis of IEG evaluations; background studies including those on aid flows, gender, private sector development, and jobs; and surveys of Bank Group staffs and stakeholders are also included in the evaluation.
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The CPPI is not about comparing one port against another, but about understanding changes in performance over time. Ports that improved their scores often did so by reducing time at anchor, optimizing berth operations, investing in digital tools, and strengthening coordination across logistics partners. The evidence confirms that improvements are possible across ports of all sizes, and that rising scores are linked to deliberate actions to minimize time in port relative to containers moved. By consolidating five years of results, this edition transforms the CPPI into a long-term reference point. It shows how global crises have affected shipping, how different regions have adapted, and what lessons can be drawn for future resilience. 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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.Publication Global Economic Prospects, January 2025(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-01-16)Global growth is expected to hold steady at 2.7 percent in 2025-26. However, the global economy appears to be settling at a low growth rate that will be insufficient to foster sustained economic development—with the possibility of further headwinds from heightened policy uncertainty and adverse trade policy shifts, geopolitical tensions, persistent inflation, and climate-related natural disasters. Against this backdrop, emerging market and developing economies are set to enter the second quarter of the twenty-first century with per capita incomes on a trajectory that implies substantially slower catch-up toward advanced-economy living standards than they previously experienced. Without course corrections, most low-income countries are unlikely to graduate to middle-income status by the middle of the century. 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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.