Within reach: Navigating the political economy of decarbonization

Many companies in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) are now climate-gender-1140x500_1140x500prioritizing climate action and advancing gender inclusiveness. However, there are still too few bringing these two goals together in an integrated, comprehensive, and strategic way.

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World Bank Group Guarantee Platform Goes Live

Platform will revolutionize the landscape of development financing

WASHINGTON, July 1, 2024 – Starting today, the World Bank Group (WBG) guarantee platform is open for business. The platform, housed at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), brings together products and experts from the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MIGA for simplicity, efficiency, and speed. It aims to boost WBG annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.

WBG Guarantees will serve as a one-stop-shop for all WBG guarantee business, providing the best guarantee solutions for clients to meet project needs and development priorities. WBG clients can now choose from a simplified market-friendly menu of guarantee options. The platform will provide three types of coverages: credit guarantees for loans to the public or private sector; trade finance guarantees for trade finance projects involving public entities; and political risk insurance against non-commercial risks for private sector projects or public-private partnerships.

MIGA is excited to host and begin the operationalization of the guarantee platform. This marks a pivotal moment in our commitment to sustainable economic development,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA Executive Vice President“We aim to leverage the World Bank Group’s collective expertise and knowledge of guarantee business to usher the WBG into a new era of partnership with the private sector, catalyzing foreign investment in emerging markets and developing economies.” 

A major priority during the WBG’s recent evolution process was enabling and catalyzing private capital flows, underscoring the effectiveness of guarantees. The G20 Independent Expert Group’s report on Strengthening Multilateral Development Banks called for expanded use of guarantees to mitigate risk and unlock private finance. And the Private Sector Investment Lab, launched by the WBG in June 2023 to identify barriers and solutions for private sector investment in emerging markets, provided specific guidance on using guarantee instruments.

The platform’s transformative solution is set to revolutionize the landscape of development financing, revitalizing the role of guarantees in development and aligning with the overall effort to mobilize private capital for development. It complements the World Bank’s country-level support in creating an environment supportive to private capital mobilization. This collaboration is supported by IFC’s advisory and financial instruments to enhance private sector engagement with country clients.

The new platform introduces a scalable model, prioritizing high-impact projects, thereby optimizing resource allocation, and facilitating growth. Leveraging the collective expertise of the WBG, the platform will drive impactful solutions across diverse sectors, including energy access, pandemic preparedness, and climate action. Through collaborative efforts and innovative financing systems, the platform is set to drive sustainable development and promote inclusive growth worldwide.

In fiscal year 2024, the World Bank Group issued approximately $10.3 billion in new guarantees using products that will be part of the platform: $8.2 billion from MIGA, $1.4 billion from IFC, and nearly $700 million from the World Bank.

About World Bank Group Guarantees

Initiated in 2024, World Bank Group Guarantees consolidates all guarantee products and experts from across the World Bank Group institutions at MIGA. It provides a simplified and comprehensive menu of guarantee solutions, enabling clients to select the instrument that best suits their needs. The platform streamlines processes, removes redundancies, and provides greater accessibility by de-risking investments in developing countries. Its goal is to boost the WBG’s annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.

For more information about the guarantee platform, please visit: https://www.worldbank.org/wbgguarantees

Stay updated and follow us at https://twitter.com/MIGA and https://www.linkedin.com/company/wb-miga

Contact:

In Washington:  Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922 or ehowton@worldbankgroup.org

Introducing Digital Water: Leading the way on utility innovation

Utilities around the world are looking to innovate digital solutions. To respond to this, the Valencia-5611-Sarah-Daggett-World-Bank_1140x500World Bank Water Global Practice has created a new knowledge and technical assistance platform called “Digital Water,” to transform water and supply and sanitation utilities into smart-enabled organizations. Digital Water offers digital maturity assessments, trainings, and knowledge products to support specific project components and help operators modernize and improve their performance.

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Nine key facts about poverty and inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean

Our goal at the World Bank is to end poverty on a livable planet. As part of that mission, it is shutterstock-1766368556-1critical that we understand both the current state and evolution of the associated challenges, so as to inform policies that raise the standard of living of people in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), where poverty and inequality impact millions. Our new Regional Poverty and Inequality Update leverages the latest data and provides an in-depth analysis of these critical challenges within LAC. It offers detailed insights about the evolving landscape of poverty and inequality that can guide informed decisions for future action.

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New Country Policy and Institutional Assessment Report for Africa Highlights Best Practices to Support African Businesses

Accra, July 16, 2024—The annual Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) for Africa confirms that countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) weathered 2023 relatively well thanks to credible economic and social policy reforms. In particular, governments and central banks have started to shift attention from weathering global shocks to building credibility, capacity, and transparency.

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Developing countries need more support to navigate growing turbulence in global trade

The benefits of international trade for developing countries are well established. Over the Aid4Trade-shipping-containers-by-GreenOak-s-Images_1140x500past 30 years, low- and middle-income countries doubled their share of global exports to 30 percent. Over the same period, the share of the world’s population living in extreme poverty declined dramatically — from 47 percent to just 10 percent. One billion people climbed out of poverty.

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Why global growth is tepid, but commodity prices remain high

Global economic growth this year and next is expected to be nearly half a percentage point finance-payments-bening-coins-1140x500_1140x500slower than the average in the half decade before the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet average commodity prices in 2024-2025 are predicted to remain close to 40 percent above 2015-2019 levels (Figure 1).

Prices of energy and food commodities, for instance, are expected to moderate but remain about 40 and 30 percent above their 2015-2019 averages, respectively. Base metals prices are set to rise slightly this year and next, averaging roughly 40 percent higher than in 2015-2019. 

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World Bank Group Guarantee Platform Goes Live

Platform will revolutionize the landscape of development financing

WASHINGTON, July 1, 2024 – Starting today, the World Bank Group (WBG) guarantee platform is open for business. The platform, housed at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), brings together products and experts from the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MIGA for simplicity, efficiency, and speed. It aims to boost WBG annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.

WBG Guarantees will serve as a one-stop-shop for all WBG guarantee business, providing the best guarantee solutions for clients to meet project needs and development priorities. WBG clients can now choose from a simplified market-friendly menu of guarantee options. The platform will provide three types of coverages: credit guarantees for loans to the public or private sector; trade finance guarantees for trade finance projects involving public entities; and political risk insurance against non-commercial risks for private sector projects or public-private partnerships.

MIGA is excited to host and begin the operationalization of the guarantee platform. This marks a pivotal moment in our commitment to sustainable economic development,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA Executive Vice President“We aim to leverage the World Bank Group’s collective expertise and knowledge of guarantee business to usher the WBG into a new era of partnership with the private sector, catalyzing foreign investment in emerging markets and developing economies.” 

A major priority during the WBG’s recent evolution process was enabling and catalyzing private capital flows, underscoring the effectiveness of guarantees. The G20 Independent Expert Group’s report on Strengthening Multilateral Development Banks called for expanded use of guarantees to mitigate risk and unlock private finance. And the Private Sector Investment Lab, launched by the WBG in June 2023 to identify barriers and solutions for private sector investment in emerging markets, provided specific guidance on using guarantee instruments.

The platform’s transformative solution is set to revolutionize the landscape of development financing, revitalizing the role of guarantees in development and aligning with the overall effort to mobilize private capital for development. It complements the World Bank’s country-level support in creating an environment supportive to private capital mobilization. This collaboration is supported by IFC’s advisory and financial instruments to enhance private sector engagement with country clients.

The new platform introduces a scalable model, prioritizing high-impact projects, thereby optimizing resource allocation, and facilitating growth. Leveraging the collective expertise of the WBG, the platform will drive impactful solutions across diverse sectors, including energy access, pandemic preparedness, and climate action. Through collaborative efforts and innovative financing systems, the platform is set to drive sustainable development and promote inclusive growth worldwide.

In fiscal year 2024, the World Bank Group issued approximately $10.3 billion in new guarantees using products that will be part of the platform: $8.2 billion from MIGA, $1.4 billion from IFC, and nearly $700 million from the World Bank.

About World Bank Group Guarantees

Initiated in 2024, World Bank Group Guarantees consolidates all guarantee products and experts from across the World Bank Group institutions at MIGA. It provides a simplified and comprehensive menu of guarantee solutions, enabling clients to select the instrument that best suits their needs. The platform streamlines processes, removes redundancies, and provides greater accessibility by de-risking investments in developing countries. Its goal is to boost the WBG’s annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.

For more information about the guarantee platform, please visit: https://www.worldbank.org/wbgguarantees

Stay updated and follow us at https://twitter.com/MIGA and https://www.linkedin.com/company/wb-miga

Contact:

In Washington:  Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922 or ehowton@worldbankgroup.org

USAID SUMMER WEBINAR SERIES

THE WORK WITH USAID SUMMER WEBINAR SERIES

Next week, on July 16 – 17, USAID will host a Summer Webinar Series to dive deeper into different approaches to partnering with USAID. The webinar series will be held in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, Ukrainian, and Russian and will be hosted by USAID’s Industry Liaison.

Day 1: Tuesday, July 16

  • Working with USAID 101: 9:00 – 9:55 a.m. ET
  • Understanding USAID’s Priorities – Deep Dive into Country Development Cooperation Strategies: 10:00 – 10:55 a.m. ET
  • Registering to Work with USAID as a Non-U.S.-Based Entity: 11:00 – 11:55 a.m. ET
  • Partnering with USAID as a Private Sector Entity: 12:00 – 12:55 p.m. ET
  • Working with USAID in Humanitarian Response: 1:00 – 1:55 p.m. ET

Day 2: Wednesday, July 17

  • Opportunities for Local Entities to Work with USAID: 9:00 – 9:55 a.m. ET
  • The Development Innovation Ventures Program: 10:00 – 10:55 a.m. ET
  • Faith-Based Partnerships with USAID: 11:00 -11:55 a.m. ET
  • Working with USAID as a U.S. Small Business: 12:00 – 12:55 p.m. ET
  • Registering to Work with USAID as a U.S.-Based Entity: 1:00 – 1:55 p.m. ET

Please register for the webinar sessions you are interested in attending. You can also indicate if you would like to listen to a session in one of the languages above. After you register, our team will send you links to attend. 

Register Here