Netherlands for the World Bank

Your guide to the World Bank Group

Netherlands for the World Bank

AI’s impact on jobs may be smaller in developing countries

Artificial intelligence is transforming the global workforce, but its impact may not affect all regions equally. Much of the conversation about AI and jobs focuses on high-income countries—where the technology threatens to reshape entire industries. But what will AI mean for workers in developing nations, who constitute 80 percent of the global workforce?

To better understand AI’s labor market impact in the developing world, in a recent paper we analyzed data from 25 countries, covering a population of 3.5 billion people. For workers in those countries, we assessed the level of AI exposure, which captures to what extent their jobs could be performed using AI. Our findings suggest that AI’s effects on jobs will be more gradual in the Global South, particularly in low-income countries.

Continue reading

International Day of Education 2025: Digital solutions for equitable education systems

The 2025 International Day of Education inspires reflectionson the power of education to equip individuals and communities navigate, understand and influence technological advancement. This year the focus is “AI and Education: Preserving Agency in a World of Automation.”

Continue reading

Educating for the present and the future: using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address the learning crisis

Can Artificial Intelligence (IA) help address massive education gaps? The answer is a cautious EducacionTecnolog-aLAC 1140x500and optimistic yes. 1.8 billion students in the world should receive a good education. However, half of them do not achieve basic reading and numeracy skills needed for life.

Continue reading

Tipping the scales: AI’s dual impact on developing nations

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming our world, and its potential to reshape development, especially in emerging markets and developing economies, is nothing short of revolutionary. But this isn’t just about getting AI to help with scheduling or recipe recommendations, it’s about real change, real challenges, and monumental opportunities.

Continue reading

We need to change the way we support refugees – now !

We are at a pivotal moment in shaping the future of education. The potential for generative AI to improve teaching efficiency and enhance teacher effectiveness is immense.  It’s a potential that is in the process of being realized in small classrooms and large educational systems alike.

Teachers are arguably the most important school-based determinant of whether and how much students learn. Given this complex and important job, how can generative AI-driven technologies help teachers, and what policy measures should be prioritized to harness the potential of the technology?

Continue reading

AI and climate: Tackling challenges and embracing change with a people-centered approach

In May 2023, a World Bank team visited Secunda, a South African town defined by Sasol’sadobestock_654567898_blog.png unique commercial coal-to-liquids facility, to participate in a workshop on just green transition in Mpumalanga’s coal-rich region. During the workshop, diverse voices from community leaders and global experts discussed the monumental challenges of a green transition, a conversation echoing far beyond the borders of this small town. 

Continue reading

How AI can help developing countries rebuild after the pandemic

Technology has been a lifeline to developing countries during the COVID-19 crisis, helping to ug-business owner uses her phone for mobile banking-Anna Koblanck IFCmaintain essential services and keep companies in business. It has also offered a glimpse of a brighter future, one in which gains in income and employment are driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence.

Even before the pandemic, commercial uses for AI were expanding rapidly in emerging markets, in fields ranging from manufacturing and energy to education and financial services. The necessary lockdowns and travel restrictions imposed by countries have accelerated that trend. Companies like Clinicas de Azucar in Mexico are using AI to analyze data and improve health outcomes for thousands of at-risk diabetic patients. In India, 1mg uses AI to help customers compare prices for medical services from different labs.

Continue reading

Jobs, Skills, and the Potential of AI in Kenya

One of the advantages of artificial intelligence (AI) is that it can help us carry out tasks untitledfaster and with fewer errors than humans. I wanted to test this on analyzing labor market demand and skills gaps. So, earlier this year, I partnered with Headai, a Finnish company, to apply an AI-enabled labor market assessment tool in Kenya.  We used the tool to analyze: (a) online job advertisements from select online job portals in Kenya and (b) computer science curricula from the University of Nairobi and Moi University to identify the gaps between what the labor market is looking for and what the university curriculum is providing.

World Bank blogs

Continue reading

You, Me and (Big) Data!

Have you noticed the large number of digital trails that are left behind in your browser shutterstock_758285764and social media? Have you ever received an offer for a product or service that you were just thinking of?  A friend of mine was researching about a critical illness and looking for insurance plans on the internet at the same time, and she started receiving ads to secure “the right spot” in a graveyard! Continue reading