Author Archives: NL4WorldBank

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About NL4WorldBank

The World Bank Team at the Royal Netherlands Embassy tweets about news related to Dutch organizations interested in working with the #WorldBank. #NL4WorldBank

Global trade has remained resilient so far, but a sharp slowdown is underway

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As we cross the halfway point of 2025, mounting headwinds are slowing down global trade. A decade-long rise in trade restrictions has been supercharged by sharp tariff hikes and retaliatory measures from major economies over the past three months. Although some of these measures have since been rolled back and fresh negotiations are underway, businesses are still navigating choppy waters—including elevated policy uncertainty, stretched supply chains, and the ever-present threat of new barriers. In the face of this, we explore how these headwinds will likely reshape trade growth this year and next, identify the most critical risks ahead, and highlight the bright spots that could help steady the ship.

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World Bank Opens 2026 Funding Year with GBP 1.5 Billion 5-Year Benchmark

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WASHINGTON, D.C., July 7, 2025 – The World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, IBRD, Aaa/AAA) today priced a 5-year British pound sterling (GBP) benchmark maturing in October 2030. The Sustainable Development Bond raised GBP 1.5 billion from investors globally to support the financing of the World Bank’s sustainable development activities in member countries. 

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When we know we’re seen: How transparency nudges outcomes at the World Bank Group

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Jorge Luis Borges once imagined an infinite library, a space housing every book ever written and every book that could ever be written. A man wanders through this library in search of truth, only to increasingly lose his way. Until one day, he discovers a cracked mirror behind a forgotten shelf and ultimately finds himself. He realizes that true insight emerges from self-reflection.

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The world needs radical debt transparency

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Over the past two decades, many developing countries have made remarkable progress in reducing poverty, expanding access to education and health care, and investing in infrastructure. These gains were the result of sound national policies and coordinated efforts by the international community, often financed through responsible borrowing.

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Fragile and Conflict-Affected Situations: Intertwined Crises, Multiple Vulnerabilities

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Economies in fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCS) are burdened by weak institutions and are particularly vulnerable to overlapping shocks—including conflict, natural disasters, commodity price swings, and global downturns. Nearly three-quarters of FCS economies have remained classified as such for over a decade, highlighting the persistence of their challenges and underlying fragility. Limited fiscal space further constrains these economies from responding to shocks and investing in essential services such as education, health, and infrastructure.

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World Bank Group, IAEA Formalize Partnership to Collaborate on Nuclear Energy for Development

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PARIS, June 26, 2025—The World Bank Group and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sealed an agreement today to work together to support the safe, secure and responsible use of nuclear energy in developing countries. The partnership agreement, signed by World Bank Group President Ajay Banga and IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, formalizes multiple engagements between the two institutions over the last year, and marks the World Bank Group’s first concrete step to reengage with nuclear power in decades.

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Slovenia Increases Contribution to World Bank’s IDA by 30%

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The Radical Debt Transparency report—an update to 2021’s Debt Transparency in Developing Countries—shows that despite significant improvements in recent years, major debt transparency deficiencies continue to plague many developing countries. As the global financing environment tightens, several governments are turning to off-budget and increasingly complex debt instruments such as collateralized loans, private placements, and central bank swaps, that risk giving rise to new hidden debts. Gaps in legislative frameworks, institutional fragmentation, and limited oversight can contribute to debt reporting challenges, as seen in recent experiences. Transparency in debt restructuring processes also remains uneven. This report calls for a radical shift toward debt transparency as critical to debt sustainability, urging legislative reforms, stronger oversight of unconventional debt, broader loan-level reporting, and greater use of automation and reconciliation tools.

REPORT

How AI can support anticipatory action to address forced displacement

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Refugee crises are often seen as unpredictable emergencies.  In a context of acute suffering, assistance is often rushed to those who have just fled conflict and violence and delivered within the communities that receive them. But what if refugee movements could be forecasted? What if hosting countries and their partners had the time to prepare for large inflows of people?  With more than 122 million forcibly displaced people worldwide — double that of ten years earlier — these questions are pressing.

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Power More With Less: Scaling Up Energy Efficiency for Growth and Energy Security

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Energy efficiency is a transformative, low-cost solution that can fast-track access to affordable and secure energy and boost economic growth. Amid soaring power demand, driven in part by air conditioners, heavy industry, and, increasingly, data centers needed to power artificial intelligence, energy efficiency can help countries avoid overspending on new energy infrastructure, importing fuels, and taking on more debt for their energy sectors.  

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Foreign Direct Investment in Retreat: Policies to Turn the Tide

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Foreign direct investment (FDI)—an important source of external financing for emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs)—has weakened since the global financial crisis, heightening the challenges of filling vast infrastructure gaps, reducing poverty, creating new jobs, and addressing climate change. This study provides a broad perspective on the evolution of FDI inflows to EMDEs since 2000, including patterns across regions and changes in sectoral composition.

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