In India, women’s self-help groups combat the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic

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Meeting the shortfall in masks, sanitizers and protective equipmentSHG-Didis-Fight-Corona-India-2

Now, more than ever, these women – many of whom escaped poverty through the SHG route and know what it is like to be destitute and poor – are living up to their motto of self-help and solidarity.

Groups across the country are working furiously to make up the shortfall of masks and personal protective equipment (PPE). In Odisha, for instance, poor rural women who were once engaged in stitching school uniforms are sewing masks instead. Over the past couple of weeks, these women have produced more than 1 million cotton masks, helping equip police personnel and health workers, while earning something for themselves.

All told, more than 19 million masks have been produced by some 20,000 SHGs across 27 Indian states, in addition to over 100,000 liters of sanitizer and nearly 50,000 liters of hand wash. Since production is decentralized, these items have reached widely-dispersed populations without the need for complex logistics and transportation.

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eC2: UNDERSTANDING AND STRENGTHENING GENDER EQUITY IN LAND AND FOREST TENURE IN REDD+

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Deadline: 04-May-2020 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) Forestry

To enable capacity building of FCPF countries to mainstream gender in Emission Reductions Programs and REDD+ strategies, the World Bank Sustainable Climate Change Fund Management (SCCFM) unit is launching a study which is focused on understanding constraints and opportunities in legal and policy environments in each of the seventeen FCPF Carbon Fund countries and jurisdictions that affect womens land and forest tenure and their ability to exercise their rights in existing statutory and customary systems, how these rights can be affected by the Carbon Fund programs (Benefit Sharing Plans, Emission Reductions Programs), and what specifically is needed to protect and even strengthen these rights. The study is expected to provide practical recommendations on approaches for enhancing womens land and forest tenure rights within the REDD+ and FCPF context, at both the country level and project-specific jurisdiction level. It is expected that specific recommendations on required legislative changes and other recommendations, including on tools required to address these issues effectively in Carbon Fund countries and programs will be developed.

The study is expected to be conducted in 17 countries with ‘deep dives’ in at least 8 countries with field work (depending on the COVID 19 cicrcumstances).

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Webinar April 23, 2020 | 9am EST: Launch of Aqueduct Floods: The Future of Flooding: Explore Risks and Opportunities (by WRI/World Bank/NL Embassy)

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Flooding is among the most serious and dangerous of all global risks, causing loss of life and damage to property, livelihoods and economies. Climate change is expected to intensify flooding in the coming decades, while economic growth and urbanization place more people and property in flood-prone areas. Despite these dangers, flood risks are often underestimated and poorly managed due to lack of transparent, accurate data on current levels of flood protection, both in developing and developed countries.

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World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings 2020: Development Committee Communiqué

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1. The Development Committee met virtually today, April 17, 2020. index

2. Our meeting occurred at a time of unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its devastating effects are being felt across the globe as the human and economic toll continues to rise. We express our sympathy to those affected and offer our support and solidarity to those working on the front lines fighting the pandemic.

3. The COVID-19 pandemic underscores that the development community increasingly faces global challenges requiring decisive, collective action and innovation. Multilateral cooperation is needed to contain the pandemic and mitigate its health, social, and economic consequences. The World Bank Group (WBG) is uniquely positioned to tackle these complex issues and to play a leading role via its lending, investments, knowledge, and convening capacity.

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Procurement Training #2

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The Private Sector Liaisons are proud to present the second (2) of four (4) World Bank procurement i-love-procurement2training webinars.

World Bank troubleshooting procurement webinar provides information about the troubleshooting process for projects tendered by the client countries of the World Bank Group. The presenter is Marghoob Bin Hussein Senior Procurement Specialist.

We encourage you to view the recording of the webinar here: https://1930181.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/1_bbk9429j

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eC2: Womens solutions for conservation and sustainable development in the Amazon

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Deadline:  07-May-2020 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)Senegal-Woman-at-Well-800

The Amazon Sustainable Landscapes (ASL) Program is commissioning a study that will design a strategy to improve gender sensitive conservation and sustainable development interventions in the Amazon. This study will be based on an analysis of existing gender gaps in the region, focusing on successful cases to be identified in the Amazon regions in Brazil, Colombia and Peru, where women have improved gender balance in: participation and decision making, access and control over natural resources, and/or access to socioeconomic benefits from natural resources. The study will highlight key barriers faced by women, explain the gender gaps, and identify the strategies to overcome them. In addition to individual interviews and focus groups with the women involved in the case studies and relevant institutions, the process will include workshops to discuss themes of common interest. The study will conclude with recommendations to improve gender sensitive conservation and sustainable development.

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COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Drives Sub-Saharan Africa Toward First Recession in 25 Years

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WASHINGTON, April 9, 2020—Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa has been significantly shutterstock_1649775301impacted by the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and is forecast to fall sharply from 2.4% in 2019 to -2.1 to -5.1% in 2020, the first recession in the region over the past 25 years, according to the latest Africa’s Pulse, the World Bank’s twice-yearly economic update for the region.

“The COVID-19 pandemic is testing the limits of societies and economies across the world, and African countries are likely to be hit particularly hard,” said Hafez Ghanem, World Bank Vice President for Africa. “We are rallying all possible resources to help countries meet people’s immediate health and survival needs while also safeguarding livelihoods and jobs in the longer term – including calling for a standstill on official bilateral debt service payments which would free up funds for strengthening health systems to deal with COVID 19 and save lives, social safety nets to save livelihoods and help workers who lose jobs, support to small and medium enterprises, and food security.”

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eC2: Coastal modeling and assessment of potential solutions for coastal defenses and adaptation measures at priority sites in Seychelles

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Deadline: 29-Apr-2020 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

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The World Bank is providing technical support to the Government of Seychelles to build capacity for coastal management. In the current consultancy, the World Bank is seeking support for developing coastal modeling studies and analysis of solutions for priority sites that are part of the Seychelles Coastal Management Plan’s implementation agenda including training and capacity building at the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change. The consultancy will focus on up to five sites selected from the a comprehensive list of priorities sites. The final selection of sites will be discussed and confirmed with the Bank and Government. For these sites, the consultancy has three main objectives: i) review, gap analysis and survey of existing data, ii) modeling of historic erosion and flooding and the impact of the recent storms for the selected sites and iii) an assessment of potential solutions and design options that address the coastal impacts studied at the sites.

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Europe and Central Asia: Health Systems, Safety Nets, and Support to Businesses All Critical to Protecting Lives and Livelihoods

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WASHINGTON, 8 April 2020 – Decisive policy measures that prioritize investments in medical-appointment-doctor-healthcare-clinic-health-hospital-medicine[7]health care systems and provide safety nets for people, especially the most vulnerable, are critical to mitigating the impacts of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic in Europe and Central Asia, says the Spring 2020 Economic Update for the region.

In addition, countries in the region can help sustain economic activity by supporting the private sector with temporary business credits, tax cuts, or tax payment deferrals. Small and medium enterprises that are impacted could benefit significantly from targeted government subsidies.

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