Without risk, there’s little reward. This is the gist of dozens of quotes attributable to such 
notable figures as John F. Kennedy and Yo-Yo Ma, Paulo Coelho and Rihanna. Their maxims on life hold true for markets. For as long as there has been society, risk-sharing has been an essential clause in the social contract. However, in the present period of rapid and fundamental change, this question continues to demand the attention of policy makers.
Tag Archives: World Bank Group
eC2: CGAP Women in social commerce in Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Pakistan: Personas, opportunities, and financial inclusion insights
Deadline: 14-Oct-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) 
CGAP is exploring womens engagement in social commerce to understand potential implications for financial inclusion and to capture opportunities and build resilience. CGAP seeks a vendor to conceptualize and execute a blend of quantitative and qualitative research and data analysis in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, focusing on women who engage in this phenomenon. The selected firm will identify and describe the distinct personas of those who buy, sell, and play other supporting functions in social commerce; prioritize a smaller group of personas according to CGAPs research agenda and hypotheses; and identify their motivations, needs, and behaviors and explore critical questions related to livelihoods and financial inclusion. The deliverables include a report, narrative and presentation on the personas and findings for each country as well as an overarching analysis, videos on the priority segments in each country, report on the role of financial services to meet women’s needs.
eC2:Resource Efficiency Benchmarking of Red Meat Abattoirs in South Africa
Deadline: 03-Oct-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) 
International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group (WBG), launched the Agri-processing Resource Efficiency (APRE) Project that has two core components:(1) provide advisory and implementation support to agri-processing companies on water efficiency measures, develop and disseminate replicable solutions and best practices together with sector aggregators; and
(2) work with public/private stakeholders in three localities on specific policy/regulatory measures to support water efficiency, convening public-private dialogues to reach consensus on them. Red meat processing is one of the priority subsectors for engaging under the first component of APRE program. IFC is seeking a consulting firm to help with the resource efficiency benchmarking of the red meat abattoirs in South Africa that aims to assess the gaps in the efficiency of the use of resources, with focus on water, and identify areas for improvements in performance and sustainability.
World Bank Group activities to address climate and environmental challenges
Next week, I’ll attend the climate summit hosted by the United Nations as part of the 74th session of the General Assembly. A range of environmental challenges—including pollution, the degradation of forests and biodiversity, marine plastics, and extreme weather events—are putting sustainable economic growth and inclusive development at risk. While international discussions have a place in looking for results, one of the great strengths of the World Bank Group is in partnering with countries to find local solutions and deliver good outcomes.
eC2: Update delineation and characterization of the groundwater bodies at risk, including pressure and risks, and perform status assessment
Deadline: 07-Oct-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)
The assignment envisages the following activities with regard to the 93 Ground Water Bodies (GWBs)in Bulgaria identified in the River Basin Management Plans (2016-2021) as not being in good status (63) or to be at risk of not achieving good qualitative or good chemical status (30): the implementation of the updated methodologies/approaches and delineation of the groundwater bodies, updating the characterization of GWB,
determining the background level concentration (BGL) and threshold values (TV) for contaminants in the GWB, evaluating the pressures and risks for the quantitative and chemical status applicable to the GWBs and identifying the trends, and finally evaluating the quantitative and chemical status of the GWB.
eC2: Indonesia Coastal Fisheries Initiative – Challenge Fund
Deadline: 08-Oct-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.) 
Specifically, by time of close, the contracted organization will have:
1) Developed an investment package, a report outlining a set of well-defined investment project proposals;
2) Completed a series of analysis to validate the technical, legal, and social feasibility of the proposed investments; including estimates of the financial return from undertaking the investments, and appraisal of social and environmental impacts as well as their mitigation measures (using the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Framework);
3) Conducted concrete preparatory actions that increase the chance of success (or reduce the risks) of the proposed fishery investment package, such as capacity-building of stakeholders, strategy development, or certification audits, in preparation for the implementation of activities in the proposed investment package;
4) Have in-principle agreements with potential investors and donors to undertake the financing of the project proposals.
eC2:Renewable Energy Competitive Bidding Strategy
Deadline: 07-Oct-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)
Scope of Work
The assignment has four components:
(i) Develop RE Competitive Bidding Strategy, including volume and timeline recommendations, type of bidding, roles of key agencies, and ensuring maximum economic benefit over the long-term;
(ii) Procurement Framework for Competitive Bidding, including consideration of qualification requirements, winner selection process, and sellers liabilities;
(iii) Stakeholder Consultations and Capacity Building, including regular workshops, briefings, and other engagement to ensure that all key federal and provincial agencies, and private sector developers and investors, are consulted regularly;
(iv) RE Competitive Bidding Action Plan, including a capacity assessment of key agencies, communication strategy, and immediate next steps for implementation.
eC2: SWPN Water Stewardship Project Pipeline
Deadline: 30-Sep-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)
The selected firm will be expected to constitute a multi-disciplinary team to undertake the following key tasks as agreed during a clarification session:
Preparation of a report giving an overview of global water stewardship practices that drive collective action partnerships. Review the publicly available information on corporate water stewardship and other initiatives that are currently being implemented in South Africa or have been implemented over the past 10 years.
Arrange and facilitate a multi-stakeholder process to develop a comprehensive list of corporate water stewardship activities and initiatives relevant to the South African water sector. From the list of projects select a minimum of 10 unique/ novel corporate water stewardship responses applicable to closing the water gap in South Africa.
Better together: Finance and health ministers can deliver a win-win for their countries
This blog is part of a series on Universal Health Coverage (UHC). The series 
includes contributions from external bloggers and reflects their view. Follow the conversation on Twitter #HealthForAll
The G-20’s recent call for finance and health ministries to collaborate in pushing toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is both overdue and welcome. Without such collaboration, the necessary decisions cannot be made for raising substantial resources and spending them effectively. But it is also a collaboration that holds promise for preventing much of the disease and death that is looming on the horizon, especially in today’s middle- and low-income countries. Everyone wins when countries can generate more health for the money —an effort that demands joint action by the people who raise funds and those who spend it. Countries also get a win-win from raising taxes on harmful products like tobacco, alcohol, and sugary beverages by preventing unnecessary disease and by raising revenues.
You, Me and (Big) Data!
Have you noticed the large number of digital trails that are left behind in your browser 
and 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
Netherlands for the World Bank 
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