DHAKA, July 16, 2025—The World Bank Vice President for South Asia, Johannes Zutt, concluded his first official visit to Bangladesh today, reaffirming the World Bank’s continued commitment to help the country address its development priorities and to support the people of Bangladesh.
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Poised to thrive: Empowering women with skills and jobs in South Asia
Sangay Choden, in her own words, displayed much Tha Dhantse—a Bhutanese concept of having the courage to do the right thing with integrity and loyalty. Choden was the first female science graduate in her family and now handles complex power projects with ease as the manager with the Bhutan Power Corporation Limited. She has climbed mountains, both literally and metaphorically, she says.
Continue readingRaising female employment in South Asia, one step at a time
South Asia’s female labor force participation today remains among the lowest in the world: More than 400 million working-age women in the region are outside of the labor force, which constitutes a significant output loss. South Asia’s working women face supply-side and demand-side obstacles, as well as unfavorable social norms.
Continue readingRethinking social protection in South Asia: Toward progressive universalism
In recent years, South Asia has been beset with an unprecedented combination of negative 
shocks. In Sri Lanka, an economic crisis on the heels of COVID-19 pushed approximately 3 million people into poverty. In Pakistan, the devastating 2022 floods – a direct result of the country’s vulnerability to climate change – left between 8.4 million and 9.1 million more people in poverty. These impacts have been further amplified by the global fuel and food crises in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. And they hit hard those who are already the most vulnerable –women, youth and children.
Building resilience in South Asia
Despite Strong Growth, South Asia Remains Vulnerable to Shocks
WASHINGTON, April 2, 2024—Growth in South Asia is expected to be strong at 6.0% in 2024, driven mainly by robust growth in India and recoveries in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. But persistent structural challenges threaten to undermine sustained growth, hindering the region’s ability to create jobs and respond to climate shocks, says the World Bank in its twice-a-year regional outlook.
Continue readingStriving for Clean Air in South Asia: Effective Regional Responses to End Air Pollution
Six reasons why remittances soared in South Asia during COVID-19
Remittance flows are a major source of income for all countries in South Asia, larger than all 
other capital inflows combined. Remittances seem to have been even more essential during the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing by 5.2 percent in 2020 in South Asia. But this was somewhat surprising because household surveys globally showed remittances falling, especially in the second quarter of 2020.
Turning the Tide on Marine Plastics in South Asia
South Asia is the third largest contributor to global plastic waste. It generates 334 million metric
tons of solid waste every year. Nearly 70-80% of this waste ends up in the ocean 12% is plastic. On current trends, if no action is taken, the amount of mismanaged waste (including plastic) across South Asia is projected to double to 661 million tons by 2050, adversely affecting the region’s ocean ecosystems, livelihoods, human health, and sustainable development more broadly. COVID-19 has further exacerbated plastic pollution, with increased demand for single-use plastic and pressure on solid waste management systems.
Event Link
eC2: Baseline Assessment for Plastic Debris flowing into Rivers and Seas of South Asia
Deadline: 01-Sep-2020 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)
The primary objective of this Consultancy is to take stock of baseline information for plastic waste leakage into rivers and seas to build a more harmonized regional monitoring, management, and policy framework for plastic waste reduction and enable a more circular economy model for plastics in the South Asia Region. The proposed assignment will document the current status of plastic pollution and its value chain (e.g. hotspots for marine plastic debris, waste composition, material flow of waste plastics), regulatory gap analysis, and identification of relevant stakeholders involved in the life-cycle of plastic and their needs, and possible recycling technology and innovations, etc.
Netherlands for the World Bank 
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