International Women’s Day 2022—Accelerate Equality: Experience the Impact When you Break the Bias

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On the occasion of International Women’s Day 2022, we at the World Bank Group will220x220-East Asia Pacific Gender celebrate women’s achievements and contributions with a series of events and engagements – we look forward to your participation!

The UN theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow, recognizing the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, to build a more sustainable future for all.”  

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World Bank Mobilizes an Emergency Financing Package of over $700 million for Ukraine

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WASHINGTON, March 7, 2022—The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved a supplemental budget support package for Ukraine, called Financing of Recovery from Economic Emergency in Ukraine – or FREE Ukraine – for $489 million. The package approved by the Board consists of a supplemental loan for $350 million and guarantees in the amount of $139 million and is also mobilizing grant financing of $134 million and parallel financing of $100 million, resulting in total mobilized support of $723 million. The fast-disbursing support will help the government provide critical services to Ukrainian people, including wages for hospital workers, pensions for the elderly, and social programs for the vulnerable.

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eC2: Support Develop Operational Guidelines for an agency specializing in Public Land Monetization

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Deadline: 21-Mar-2022 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

World Bank, South Africa 2007.

The consulting firm/company will have a proven track record of providing across-the-board advisory and/or operational support to a public land and building monetization organization in India and overseas. The consulting firm/company is expected to provide intellectual leadership to the technical report and its related activities.

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World Bank Group Stands with Ukraine and its People

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Prepares to support countries in the region affected by the conflict World Bank building

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24, 2022—David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, today released the following statement: 

“The World Bank Group is horrified by the shocking violence and loss of life as a result of the events unfolding in Ukraine. We are a long-standing partner of Ukraine and stand with its people at this critical moment.

Today, I discussed the situation with our Board of Directors and have mobilized our Global Crisis Risk Platform to accelerate coordination across the World Bank Group.

The devastating developments in Ukraine will have far-reaching economic and social impacts. We are coordinating closely with the IMF to assess these costs.

When I met with President Zelenskyy in Munich on Saturday, I reaffirmed the World Bank Group’s strong support and commitment to the people of Ukraine and the region.

We stand ready to provide immediate support to Ukraine and are preparing options for such support, including fast-disbursing financing. Alongside development partners, the World Bank Group will use all our financing and technical support tools for rapid response.

The World Bank Group is also in active dialogue to support neighboring countries and people that may be affected by this conflict and will make additional resources available.”

Prepares to support countries in the region affected by the conflict 

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24, 2022—David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, today released the following statement: 

“The World Bank Group is horrified by the shocking violence and loss of life as a result of the events unfolding in Ukraine. We are a long-standing partner of Ukraine and stand with its people at this critical moment.

Today, I discussed the situation with our Board of Directors and have mobilized our Global Crisis Risk Platform to accelerate coordination across the World Bank Group.

The devastating developments in Ukraine will have far-reaching economic and social impacts. We are coordinating closely with the IMF to assess these costs.

When I met with President Zelenskyy in Munich on Saturday, I reaffirmed the World Bank Group’s strong support and commitment to the people of Ukraine and the region.

We stand ready to provide immediate support to Ukraine and are preparing options for such support, including fast-disbursing financing. Alongside development partners, the World Bank Group will use all our financing and technical support tools for rapid response.

The World Bank Group is also in active dialogue to support neighboring countries and people that may be affected by this conflict and will make additional resources available.”

An Accessible Future for Persons with Disabilities

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120 kilometers south of Kigali, in a remote part of Southern Rwanda’s Huye District, dl1b0245wb-iei-rwanda-1-900x1350 lies the G.S. Kabuga school.  

Warm sunshine—with the occasional drizzle of rain—greets students as they trickle into class on a Monday morning. Led by their class prefect and teacher, the kids assume their seats inside a spacious classroom with two large blackboards on opposing flanks. One learner, a wheelchair user, rolls up alongside a bench and shuffles in alongside a classmate. 

“Children with disabilities are just like other children,” remarks Brother Jovite Sindayigaya, headmaster at the school. “The country needs them and so does the world in general. I get happiness from seeing them succeed.” 

G.S. Kabuga is one of 3,388 schools in Rwanda that have benefitted from reconstruction and refurbishment efforts, funded by the government of Rwanda and the World Bank, with technical assistance provided by the Bank’s Inclusive Education Initiative. In the span of just one year, 22,505 classrooms across all 30 districts of Rwanda were built or refurbished with some accessibility features for learners with disabilities.

FULL ARTICLE

Addressing fragility is critical for development

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The outlook for people in developing countries remains grim.  The COVID-19 pandemic anddm_fcv_blog_feb_17_1140 related shutdowns are challenging the effectiveness of civil and institutional structures around the world and adding to fragility and violence, resulting in interrelated crises for foreign policy, development, and economics.

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What You Need to Know About Oceans and Climate Change

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Oceans play a critical role in regulating the climate, but how healthy are our oceans todayClimate-Explainer-Series-banner and what kind of impact is climate change having? We sat down with Charlotte De Fontaubert, Global Lead for the Blue Economy at the World Bank, to learn about the state of our oceans and what the World Bank is doing to help keep them healthy and productive.

 

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The Fragility Forum 2022 is committed to peace and development in the midst of new and intensifying crisis

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Over the last two years the world has been on edge, with serious implications for the mostshutterstock_648806605_blog_resized fragile economies.

Since the last Fragility Forum in 2020 and in a year dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, peace and development around the world have faced massive setbacks from Asia to Africa to Latin America.  Fragility and conflict risks are also on the rise in middle-income countries. Our most recent economic forecast indicates that, by 2023, the output of fragile and conflict-affected countries will be 7.5 percent below pre-pandemic levels. This is well below prospects in emerging and developing countries at large. For the most vulnerable, this means food insecurity, extreme poverty, loss of human capital and fewer economic opportunities in addition to the threat of violence and forced displacement.

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eC2: Analysis of energy efficient cold chains for Agriculture in Guatemala

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Deadline: LM2109_F_TBP_ColdChain-800px 28-Feb-2022 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

The objective of the study is to provide an in-depth analysis and diagnostic to identify gaps (e.g. strategy gaps, types of investments needed and agro-logistics inclusion) and opportunities in cold-chain infrastructure on the agricultural sector in Guatemala, including investment, technology and spatial gaps, energy savings and GHG reduction potential, and refrigerants used in the cold-chain, identifying opportunities to fill these gaps within the recently approved Responding to COVID-19: Modern and Resilient Agri-Food Value Chains projects. The analysis will further assess opportunities for reducing food losses through adopting improved, efficient cooling technologies, as well as for investment in improved cooling technologies, also based on national and regional policies related to cold chain logistics.

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