4 key facts about forests and food: our experts weigh in

Forests and food are interconnected. As the world accelerates towards a food transition that delivers better, more sustainable outcomes for people and the planet, we must recognize that forests, woodlands, and landscapes are critical to this transition, but also to wider sustainable development goals. Investments in forests are investments in local communities, national economies, and our planet. We spoke to two of our forestry and agriculture experts on the topic.

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Global Digital Summit 2025 – Digital Pathways for All 

In case you missed it, here is the event replay for Global Digital Summit 2025 – Digital Pathways for All which took place on March 18, 2025.     The 2025 Global Digital Summit: ‘Digital Pathways for All’ has now concluded. Recordings of all public sessions are available in four languages on worldbank.org/live and on the World Bank Group social media channels. #WBGDigitalSummit   If you like this content, make sure to sign up for our email updates! We hope to see you again soon,     World Bank Live Development Events Brought to You Live  

REPLAY

Is Artificial Intelligence the future of farming? Exploring opportunities and challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa

Across Sub-Saharan Africa, a quiet revolution is underway. Smallholder farmers are increasingly leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI), once a futuristic concept, to transform agriculture. AI now plays a crucial role in addressing the region’s most pressing challenges: food insecurity, environmental degradation, and economic inequality. 

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Rethinking water security in a water-insecure world

“Every time disaster strikes, you rush to bring relief. Why don’t you do more to prevent it?”

The words came from a teenage girl standing amid the devastation of the Odisha Super Cyclone in Eastern India in 1999. At the time, I was a member of the Indian Administrative Service, coordinating relief efforts 48 hours after the storm. Her question cut through the chaos and would shape my life’s work. Relief was necessary, but the real solution lies in building strong, adaptive water systems.

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The world is facing a looming jobs crisis. Cities can help

Over the next decade, an unprecedented 1.2 billion young people in the Global South will become working-age adults. However, the job market in these countries is projected to create only 420 million jobs, leaving nearly 800 million people without a clear path to prosperity.

That’s why the World Bank is doubling down on job creation and employment as not just the byproduct of our projects, but the explicit aim of them. Looking to the future, it is clear that urban development will play a key role in that process.

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Empowering Women Tech Entrepreneurs in Georgia Unleashes Innovation

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • Women in Georgia’s technology sector face the same market challenges as men in launching startups but must also contend with preconceived notions of “acceptable” women’s work, and these biases can impact access to funding, mentorship, and networking.
  • The World Bank has helped the country address this gap by providing training and mentorship opportunities to thousands of entrepreneurs, over half of them women.
  • GENIE Program graduates—like Nato Toronjadze, founder and CEO of Bizon, and Ana Robakidze, founder and CEO of Theneo—despite the challenges, have turned their innovative ideas into successful ventures that are creating jobs and boosting growth.

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World Bank Group’s Global Digital Summit 2025- #WBGDigitalSummit

World Bank Group staff are invited to the Global Digital Summit 2025, our second annual gathering of top tech leaders and digital pioneers from government, the private sector, academia, and the development community. Under the theme “Digital Pathways for All,” the Summit will explore cutting-edge topics like AI and emerging technologies, showcasing how digitalization can bridge gaps, drive innovation, and create economic opportunities worldwide. 

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Financing Shortfalls Hinder Road Safety Progress in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

MARRAKECH, February 18, 2025 – Road safety financing faces a critical shortfall, hindering progress toward halving global road traffic fatalities and injuries by 2030. Each year, road crashes claim an estimated 1.19 million lives, leave countless others with permanent disabilities, and impose significant economic costs.

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Securing water in an uncertain world: The power of multi-stakeholder action

The most pressing global risks over the next decade are environmental—and all closely linked to water. Extreme weather, biodiversity loss, critical changes to Earth’s systems, and natural resource shortages top the list of concerns, according to the World Economic Forum Global Risk Report 2025. These risks underscore the need for long-term strategies to safeguard ecosystems, secure resources, and build resilience.

Yet, these risks do not exist in isolation. Misinformation and disinformation rank among the most pressing short-term risks, eroding trust in governance and complicating efforts to address shared crises. Water management is no exception—securing water is not just about scarcity, pollution, or infrastructure, but about governance and cooperation. The challenge lies not only in ensuring water access but in aligning efforts across users, providers, and regulators, to manage it effectively.

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