FDI drops and MIGA innovates

IFC Insights

Stormy Waters for Business in Emerging Markets

As the sun set on the Landwasser valley in eastern Switzerland and this year’s World Econonomic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, government, business, and civil society leaders from across the globe headed home to promote the forum’s mandate of bold collective action to address ongoing crises.

Continue reading

FDI drops and MIGA innovates

As investment into developing nations drops, MIGA innovates. miga_hero.jpg

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development recently reported that global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows dropped by almost a third in the second quarter of 2022, with flows to several emerging regions down significantly and flows to Africa near zero. The outlook for FDI next year is gloomy at best.

Continue reading

COVID vaccines: Why we must succeed in every country

The COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, and vaccines remain our most important tool for vaccines_herohelping every country overcome it and get on the path to recovery. 

Since February, much of the world’s attention has shifted to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the risks it poses to global supplies of food and energy.  And the war is coming on top of many other crises – climate change, conflict in many other places, record numbers of refugees, and a rise in poverty for the first time in decades. But even among these daunting global challenges, COVID has particularly far-ranging health, social, and economic impacts, especially for the poorest countries and most vulnerable people.  

Continue reading

Spring Meetings 2022

Conflict, COVID and climate change have combined to create unprecedented challenges for developing countries. At these Spring Meetings – taking place in the shadow of war in Ukraine – the World Bank Group will convene leaders, experts and activists to discuss the impact of these global shocks on the most vulnerable communities.

Spring Meetings Program

1440x150-V1

Continue reading

Solidarity with the poorest countries: A renewed commitment to recovery

axel_socialA few weeks ago, the international community agreed to a record $93 billion financing package for the world’s poorest countries.   This support will be delivered through the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) over the next three years, starting in July. 

Continue reading

Climate change and poverty: the perfect storm

We often hear that climate change disproportionately impacts the poor and the scenariosfarming_in_haiti._world_bank_eng are worrisome. For example, climate change will lead to up to a 300 % increase in extreme poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) by 2030. 

Beneath this alarming headline, we know that climate-related losses will fluctuate across time and geographies. Impacts on people will be as varied and specific as household income sources and consumption patterns.

Continue reading

How the World Bank Delivered COVID Vaccines in East Asia and the Pacific

 

STORY HIGHLIGHTSVaccine-Story-1

  • The World Bank has provided US$1.44 billion to support the purchase and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, tests, and treatments in the East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region, especially for the poor and vulnerable.
  • Strong partnerships and flexible financing approaches have helped countries ramp up their vaccination programs while investing in health, education, and social protection to ensure a more resilient future.
  • Based on the current pace of vaccination and availability of vaccines to EAP countries, most will achieve at least 70% coverage by mid-2022.

We are losing a generation: The devastating impacts of COVID-19

Governments across the globe will spend about $5 trillion on K-12 education this year.  Butindermit_lead unless they get all children and young people back to school, keep them in class, and recover the central elements of learning, this generation could lose twice or three times that amount in earning losses.

The first impact was the millions of lives lost due to the disease caused by the COVID 19 virus. The second was the human suffering caused by job instability and poverty. The third is on children and youth who should have been in school but were told to stay at home.

Continue reading

IDA: Stepping Up

Taking the pulse of business: COVID recovery and policy implications

As the global economy gradually finds its way out of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are reminded each day of the fragility of recovery  – threatened by new variants, outbreaks, and case spikes. It’s also a recovery that is uneven and unequal. Many low- and middle-income countries continue to face high levels of transmission as well as bottlenecks to vaccination, which contribute to business activity remaining below pre-pandemic levels.

Continue reading