The World Bank

Weekly Update: ➡️ 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆’𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱: Currently, 1 in 10 people live in countries experiencing severe water shortages. As we marked #WorldWaterDay, we explored key solutions for a water-secure future. ➡️ 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗹𝗹: Globally, 2.6 billion people remain offline. With a digital transformation rapidly underway, here’s how The World Bank Group is working to ensure that no one is left behind. ➡️ 𝗙𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗹: Smart policies and investments start with the right data. Explore our new Human Capital Data Portal, a one-stop resource for comprehensive insights on education, health, and much more. ➡️ 𝗘𝗴𝘆𝗽𝘁: 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻’𝘀 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Closing the employment gap between women and men in Egypt could boost the economy by around 56%. Read more about what is needed to expand women’s opportunities in the private sector.

#GEP2025 presents the first systematic review of the performance of developing economies since the dawn of the century—and assesses their prospects for the next 25 years. As we look toward 2025-26, global growth is expected to stabilize at 2.7% annually. Yet, this highlights a critical challenge: the global economy is settling into a low-growth trajectory, raising concerns about its ability to support sustained economic progress. What does this mean for developing economies? Dive into the findings and insights from the 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱. ➡️http://wrld.bg/U7e050UHSEe

Our series "Since You Asked" explores what you need to know about The World Bank, including questions like: How do guarantees help investors in fragile markets? Through the World Bank Group Guarantee Platform, we unlock investment where it's needed most. Here’s how guarantees work ⬇️

Efficient capital markets drive economic growth by providing firms with broader, cheaper, and longer-term funding through debt and equity. However, in low- and middle-income countries, capital markets lag behind, forcing firms to rely on bank financing or retained earnings, leading to greater financial constraints than in high-income countries. The report, 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝗺 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝗼𝘄- 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲-𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀, reveals how firms in these economies are increasingly tapping into capital markets—unlocking productivity, hiring more workers, and expanding operations. 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲: 🔹 The gap in capital market access between low/middle-income and high-income countries is narrowing. 🔹 Firms using capital markets tend to be smaller, younger, and more productive. 🔹 The report analyzes data from 80,000 firms across 147 economies, offering insights for policymakers, investors, and economists. Read more: http://wrld.bg/3EgN50Vq1Q4 #Finance #EconomicGrowth #EmergingMarkets #EconomicDevelopment #BusinessGrowth #PrivateSectorDevelopment IFC - International Finance Corporation

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗔𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝗼𝗯𝘀? Youth unemployment is rising, even among college graduates. Over the next decade, 1.2B young people in the Global South will reach working age. Yan Liu and Christine Zhenwei Qiang share their insights on AI’s impact on the future of work.

Ajay at The Economic Club of Washington, D.C. highlighted The World Bank Group's focus on #job creation. 🔗 http://wrld.bg/f4RR50Vma6W

Air pollution claims over 5.7 million lives each year, with 95% of those occurring in low- and middle-income countries. It also results in economic losses equivalent to nearly 5% of global GDP. The new World Bank report, "𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗲𝘁,” highlights that targeted policies, better governance and management of data, as well as mobilizing both public and private financing, can help us achieve cleaner air and healthier economies. 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀: 🔹 𝗔𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 (𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗱𝗼𝗼𝗿) 𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝟱.𝟳 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿. Its economic costs are estimated at nearly 5 percent of global GDP, accruing not only from poor health outcomes and the death burden, but also from productivity loss and cognitive impacts, which can span generations. 🔹 𝗡𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘁𝘆-𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 exceeding guideline values, but the burden is highest in low- and middle-income countries, where low incomes and limited access to healthcare compound impacts and exacerbate existing inequalities across and within national boundaries. Taking a “business as usual” approach will only worsen these impacts. 🔹 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵. This report shows that halving the number of people exposed to PM2.5 concentrations above 25 µg/m3 globally by 2040 is feasible and affordable. Because air pollution stems largely from anthropogenic sources, effective policies can reduce it. Heating, cooking, transportation, agriculture, and waste are key sectors requiring integrated policies. Read more: http://wrld.bg/5xEP50Vq15f

Despite significant decreases in child stunting over the past decades, a staggering 148 million children worldwide are still stunted. At the same time almost half of adults globally are obese or overweight. The report 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 offers an updated strategy for financing and implementing nutrition interventions globally. It builds upon the 2017 Investment Framework for Nutrition, while providing policy guidance and operational recommendations for country-level implementation. 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲: 🔹Urgency of Nutrition Investments – With only six years left until 2030, global nutrition challenges remain pressing amid multiple crises. 🔹Progress and Gaps – While child stunting has declined by 44% since 1990, progress is insufficient, with persistent challenges such as increasing anemia rates, stagnation in child undernutrition indicators, and rising obesity rates. 🔹Financial Needs and Economic Benefits – An additional $13 billion per year is required to scale up nutrition interventions, primarily in South Asia (34% of needs) and Sub-Saharan Africa (26%). These investments yield high economic returns and must be supported by policies shaping consumer health behaviors. 🔹Innovative Financing Solutions – Bridging the funding gap requires new financing mechanisms, including responsible private sector engagement and improved efficiency in existing financing. 🔹 A renewed global commitment is essential to mobilize financial resources and drive nutrition-positive investments, ultimately improving health, human capital, economic growth, and sustainability. Read more: http://wrld.bg/U5eg50Vpinx  #HumanCapital #FoodSecurity #Nutrition #EconomicGrowth #InvestInNutrition

The G20 has laid a bold vision for multilateral development banks: to be "better, bigger, and more effective" in driving sustainable development. To meet their targets, MDBs need to be clear-eyed about the obstacles holding back private capital from entering emerging markets, including risks.   But how risky are such investments? Building on data from the Global Emerging Markets Risk Database (#GEMs) report, IFC - International Finance Corporation VPs Susan Lund and Federico Galizia challenge the long-standing assumption in global finance that emerging markets are too risky.   Read more ⬇️

How can we ensure AI advancements have a truly global impact? According to Anna Bjerde , Managing Director of Operations at The World Bank, we have to address "the fundamentals." "We still have so many people around the world who actually do not have access to broadband internet." Addressing this issue will go a long way toward making AI technology available on a global scale. What are the other "fundamentals" we should be taking into consideration? Share your thoughts in the comments.