WASHINGTON, May 27, 2026, Municipalities and waste management companies can use digital tools to improve service reliability, reduce operating costs, strengthen recycling systems, and make better investment decisions, according to a new World Bank Group report, Waste, Reimagined: Practical Guidance for Digitalizing Waste Management.
Continue readingTowards Better Air Quality in Egypt
THE CHALLENGE
In Cairo, every September, families close their windows, parents worry about their children’s coughs, and outdoor workers brace themselves for weeks of heavy haze and burning smells. The annual Black Cloud season, stretching from September to December, had become part of life in Egypt’s capital. During this season, emissions from open burning of rice stubble routinely adds to those from solid waste burning, transportation, and industry, driving air pollution to dangerous levels.
Continue readingUnlocking Global International Financial Institution Opportunities: How RVO and the Washington Embassy Support Dutch Business
Dutch entrepreneurs looking to expand globally through International Financial Institutions (IFIs), the strategic partnership between the RVO Team International Organisations (TIO) and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Washington D.C. (WAS) offers a vital support network. TIO serves as the primary point of contact for initial advice on a wide range of institutions—including the IADB, ADB, AfDB, and UN—while the WAS team specializes in providing in-depth guidance for DC-based organizations like the World Bank Group and IADB. Together, they ensure that the Dutch private sector is well-positioned to navigate the complex landscape of international procurement and partnership.
Continue readingSmall AI, Big Impact for Local Communities
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World Bank Group to Double Guarantees for Africa to Catalyze Investment, Create Jobs
Washington, May 19, 2026—The World Bank Group Guarantee Platform, housed at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), aims to more than double its annual issuance of guarantees in Africa to $6.4 billion by 2030, aiming to improve the lives of around 190 million people over the next four years alone.
Continue readingFaced with global shocks, protect investments that drive growth and jobs
The global economy is entering another period of heightened stress. Geopolitical tensions, policy uncertainty, climate risks, and rapid technological change are making policy decisions more complex—and consequential.

Nature isn’t the alternative to modern technology. It is technology
Technology is often celebrated as an engine of growth and development, conjuring images of advanced machinery, artificial intelligence, and cutting-edge innovation. Nature, by contrast, is too often considered as something separate from technology, or even something to be protected from or balanced against it. But this framing misses a deeper truth. Nature is ancient intelligence. It is the original AI.

As Aid Shrinks, Jobs Become Central to Self-reliance for Host Communities and Refugees in Kenya
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- In Kenya, poverty and joblessness remain entrenched among host communities and refugees, especially in camps, while humanitarian assistance has declined.
- Jobs are disappearing in labor markets shared by host communities and refugees: refugee employment has collapsed, while host communities face persistently weak job prospects.
- The Shirika Plan is a historic opportunity, but self-reliance will remain out of reach without jobs. Success hinges on enabling work through enhanced mobility, private investment, and targeted, shock responsive support.
Joint Statement by Seven Multilateral Development Banks Pledging Support to Address Impacts of the Middle East Conflict
PARIS, May 18, 2026—The signatory Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) are responding to requests for support from countries and clients to help address the heterogeneous and compound impacts from the conflict in the Middle East, including disruptions to energy and fertilizer markets and trade routes, with spillover effects on inflation, food security, jobs, fiscal and external balances, and financing conditions.

World Bank Supports Energy Transition and Job Creation in Brazil’s Northeast Region
WASHINGTON, DC, May 15, 2026 — The World Bank’s Board of Directors has approved a new project to catalyze investment in low-carbon industrial commodities, clean fuels, and enabling infrastructure in industrial and energy value chains in the Northeast region of Brazil, paving the way for increased competitiveness and employment.
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