World Bank in India Vol 24 / No. 5
June 2022
Connecting villages through Rural Roads in India
Regional Dialogue
08
Projects
13
Publications
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Connecting villages through Rural Roads in India
• Since 2001, India has been constructing all-weather roads and upgrading old ones in rural areas across the country • The World Bank has invested $2.1 billion in the country’s flagship Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, directly benefitting almost 19,000 habitations through 48,000 km of village roads. • These roads have helped boost rural incomes, opened new livelihood opportunities, and made it easier to access markets, hospitals and schools.
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nita Saini teaches science to secondary school students in the small town of Baggad in Jhunjhunu district in India’s desert state of Rajasthan. On Karva Chauth, the day that many married Hindu women traditionally fast for a long life for their husbands, Anita was riding her scooter to school five km away from her home. Wearing a peach silk saree for this special day of fasting, she said that the road, built in 2014, had provided her with a new sense of freedom and purpose. “When there was no road, there were no options. Women like me had to stay home.”
A
Anita belongs to one of the 171,000 habitations that have benefitted from India’s $46-billion rural roads program – the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) – which, since 2001, has been constructing all-weather roads and upgrading old ones in rural areas across the country.
Across the country, the construction and upgrading of rural roads has put once-nondescript villages on the map of the country. They have helped boost family incomes, opened up new opportunities for livelihood and given residents easier access to markets, hospitals and schools, along with a variety of avenues for entertainment.
Access to health and education in Rajasthan In the low-literacy state of Rajasthan, rural roads have enabled school buses to reach far-flung villages, making it easier for children to get to school. Every child is now enrolled in school and many of the youth are pursuing higher studies in towns nearby. Pre-school children too have benefitted. The women who look after the anganwadi centers (a type of rural
When there was no road, there were no options. Women like me had to stay home. Anita Saini, Teacher, Jhunjhunu district, Rajasthan
childcare centre in India) can get to work more easily, enabling them to provide hot meals to the little ones in the afternoons and read or sing songs with them. Health care is also within easier reach. Earlier the sick had to be carried on makeshift beds or on camel carts on rutted dirt roads to the nearest health facility. Now, during an emergency, ambulances can reach right up to village homes to take pregnant women and the elderly to hospitals nearby. In the parched and rocky terrain of Rajasthan, more and more people in small towns now own motorcycles and pick-up vans, enabling them to take up new livelihood opportunities in towns nearby. Greater access to resources has translated into visible changes such as many more brick houses with toilet facilities.
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Increased Access to Markets in Meghalaya In the remote north-eastern state of Meghalaya, the hilly terrain coupled with almost six months of heavy rain made life difficult, especially for rural people. In Rongsa village in the East Garo Hills, where banana, cashew, betelnut and rice cultivation are the primary sources of livelihood, a new road has made it possible for farmers to take their produce to Daranggiri, Asia’s largest banana market 10 km away on the AssamMeghalaya border. Panseng M. Momin, a farmer, says that earlier he needed to walk for hours with the bananas hoisted on his back to reach the market. He could only carry four or five bunches each time. Now a pick-up van transports his entire produce of 300-400 bundles, doubling his weekly income to Rs 1,000-2,000.
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Alternative Livelihoods In Jharkhand, roads have opened new livelihood opportunities for rural youth who were earlier dependent on an erratic agriculture. Young men like Kartik Mohato and Lal Mohan Mohato, along with some 25-30 men from their village, now go on motorcycles and bicycles, or take the bus to work as daily wagers in factories in Jamshedpur 60 kms away.
“When we only had a dirt road in our village, it would become unusable during the rains,” says he used to travel by cycle he says. He had to carry his cycle on their shoulders when the dirt road became slushy with rain water.
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Community Participation One of the project’s most important innovations is the promotion of people’s participation at every stage of road construction, from planning to monitoring and audit. The World Bank has introduced a ‘Transect Walk’ approach where local community representatives are consulted to identify where a road should be built in their area. This unique feature brings transparency into the process of planning and construction and promotes the inclusion of those affected by the project. Further, under the Bank funding, the project has piloted adoption of innovative contracts that engage
World Bank Support
local community and women self-help groups for maintenance of rural roads. This has shown positive results in community engagement especially in the states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Meghalaya. Many other states are now scaling up this pilot. To ensure greater transparency, a web-based monitoring and evaluation system provides a centralized database which gives detailed information on all PMGSY projects, their procurement status, finances and progress in construction. It also allows for managers to better plan and implement their work, while ensuring compliance with the World Bank's safeguard standards.
To support the government’s vision
The project focused on connecting villages in
to build rural infrastructure, improve
the nine states of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
livelihoods, and bring access to health and
Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand,
education to the remotest corners of the
Meghalaya, Tripura and Punjab and funded
country, the World Bank has so far invested the construction of 48,000 km of village roads, $2.1 billion under the Rural Roads Project.
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directly benefiting almost 19,000 habitations.
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Multimedia
India’s Rural Roads Program Brings Villages Closer
Education and health services closer home
Rural roads lead to path of prosperity
Village roads bring women freedom and choice
Village roads have brought schools closer for boys and girls. Pregnant women and sick people can access healthcare services that now come to their doorstep.
Villagers are travelling to other towns and big cities for newer livelihood opportunities. Ease of access to newer markets have helped boost family incomes
More women and girls in villages are going to schools, accessing healthcare facilities and becoming financially independent.
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Regional Dialogue Connecting Across Borders: South Asia’s Digital Opportunity An intense tropical storm in 1999 caught the Indian state of Odisha by surprise, killing more than 10,000 people, and tearing down homes and public infrastructure. Over the next decade, the Odisha government invested in weather forecast data, early warning systems reliant on digital technologies, and disaster response measures. When another such cyclone hit in 2013, the state was better prepared with early response, reducing fatalities to 38. This example illustrates one of the many ways digital technologies can transform lives and livelihoods by changing how people, businesses, and government’s function and interact. In South Asia, digital transformation is stirring growth across sectors, but the progress is uneven, with emerging risks and challenges. How do we address these challenges to effectively tap digital opportunities, and create a robust digital economy, both at the country and regional level?
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The 10th OneSouthAsia Conversation, Connecting across Borders: South Asia’s Digital Opportunity, explored some of these questions with panelists from Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. The conversation built on the key messages of a recent report, South Asia's Digital Opportunity: Accelerating Growth, Transforming Lives, which lists three core thematic areas for South Asia’s digital approach: prioritizing inclusion, strengthening institutions, and fostering trust in digital economy. The report also recommends greater regional coordination in three priority areas: i) cross-border connectivity and data infrastructure, ii) an enabling environment for cross-border data flows, and iii) integrated cross-border payment systems.
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Digital Gaps The South Asia digital story is a paradox. While the region is brimming with opportunities, the gaps in digital access and usage are sobering. The region has the highest percentage— 61 percent — of people living within the range of a broadband network, but do not use the internet. Vivien Foster, chief economist for the World Bank’s infrastructure vice-presidency, explained that the gaps are largely due to lack of affordable internet access and adequate digital skills in the region. There are other dimensions of digital divides— gender, urban-rural, and intersectionality with other forms of marginalization.
Helani Galpaya, chief executive officer of Sri Lanka-based LIRNEasia, a digital policy research center, highlighted that lack of awareness and relevance of internet are other factors that considerably impact usage. “When we asked the unconnected why they do not use the internet, the top two responses were: I do not know what the internet is, and I do not know if I need it,” said Galpaya, adding that COVID-19 addressed the salience issue to some extent. Largely driven by need during the pandemic lockdowns, over 130 million individuals in South Asia used the internet for the first time between 2020, and first two quarters of 2021, she added.
South Asia has the highest percentage of 61% people living within the range of a broadband network, but not
In India, while 80% of the population has a
financial account, less
than 6% have used a mobile phone or the Internet, to access it in the last year.
using the internet.
MOBILE NETWORK COVERAGE AND USAGE GAPS BY COUNTRY Connected
Usage Gap
Coverage Gap
100 80 60 40 20 0
Afghanistan
Nepal
Pakistan
Bhutan
Sri Lanka
Bangladesh
India
Maldives
Source: South Asia’s Digital Opportunity: Accelerating Growth, Transforming Lives. 2022
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Digital identity as an enabler, but with protection Digital identity is a key enabler to ensuring access, inclusion, and trust. Pramod Varma, the chief architect of Aadhaar, India’s 12-digital unique identification number, shared the India-experience where digital identity has been the key to enabling ownership of individual data, and to accessing benefit delivery systems, financial services, and markets. Access and ownership aspects are complemented by trust. “While ensuring inclusion, we also made sure that our Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture (DEPA) falls into place. This outlines a techno-legal approach to individual data ownership in India,” said Varma. While South Asia countries are working on digital identities, only three out of the eight countries (India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) have made progress on
"Foundational digital identity is one of the key enablers of inclusion, trust, and equity in India. It empowers people to own their individual assets, data, and credentials and gives them access to financial and economic opportunities in addition to Government benefits delivery. For enabling equitable access to economic opportunities in the domains of commerce, mobility, and jobs, India is creating decentralized networks instead of centralized platforms via interoperable open protocols. These advances made in India are being replicated elsewhere in South Asia and India is ready to share its experience and technology." Pramod Verma, Chief Architect, Aadhaar and India Stack
setting up a fully digital identity system that enables secure authentication for online service delivery and transactions.2 Other countries are following up close. “Bhutan is developing a national digital identity system where we want to ensure that individuals have control over their own data,” said Jigme Tenzing, who is the director for Bhutan’s Information Technology and Telecom department. Being a late starter, Bhutan has the advantage to reflect on the challenges other nations have encountered, he added. The benefits of digital identity and digitalization are not limited to a nation-wide approach but can be scaled to cross-border data flows, cross-border payments, and access to markets and service. “Before that happens, the countries need to have their own techno-legal and institutional frameworks in place to ensure proper protection and trust,” emphasized Varma.
Digital financial services India’s Unified Payment Interface (UPI) is a real time payment system that facilitates interbank peerto-peer and peer-to-merchant payments. Varma highlighted that it is an open-source protocol, available for free for global public good. “If any South Asian country adopt this architecture, and sets up a UPI switch at their end, it instantly becomes interoperable across countries with the same interface, helping quick cross-border payments and transactions,” he explained.
Bhutan was the first country in the region to adopt the UPI architecture, followed by Nepal.
2 South Asia's Digital Opportunity: Accelerating Growth, Transforming Lives. 2022
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Bhutan was the first country in the region to adopt the UPI architecture, followed by Nepal. “Majority of trade for Bhutan is with India, and ever since we have connected with India on UPI initiative, the fees for transfer of funds have reduced, and convenience for people on both sides has enhanced,” said Tenzing.
Cross-border infrastructure access Land-locked countries like Nepal, and Bhutan have their share of challenges. Broadband costs are high, access is restricted and often not as reliable. In Bhutan, internet users have increased from 73 percent in 2016 to 100 percent at present, but mostly via mobile devices and networks. “During COVID, we saw that mobile internet was not ideally suited to meet the requirements of home-based work, virtual classrooms, and for us the costs of broadband are
high,” explained Tenzin, adding that they are working with neighbors like Bangladesh and India on alternate broadband connections and to improve reliability of access. In Nepal, despite limited broadband access, the pandemic forced a giant leap toward digitalization. “During the pandemic, fixed broadband penetration doubled, online payments soared by 400 percent, e-commerce quadrupled,” said Sewa Pathak, chief executive officer of Vianet, an internet service provider in Nepal. The country’s digital demands are on the rise, but internet access is still restricted due to high costs and reliance on neighbors. “Stronger cross -border links with India could be instrumental in accelerating access and infrastructure,” said Pathak, adding that India’s heavy investments in telecom development in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar had already benefitted bordering rural areas of Nepal, which earlier had no access.
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Regional institutions and cooperation Connectivity is one part of the problem. For stronger regional digital economy, South Asian countries needs robust institutions, protection frameworks, and regulations. The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which governs how personal data of individuals may be processed and transferred, is a good precedent, but with challenges for South Asia. “Implementation of these regulations requires data protection authority with the right skills, sufficient resources, and independence, which is a challenge for resource-constraint countries in South Asia,” explained Galpaya.
But there is an opportunity to harmonize these regulations across all South Asian countries and pool legal-technical skills. This will not only save resources, but strengthen enforcement when countries work as a bloc. While concerted government and policy actions could be slow moving, peer-to peer networks could facilitate these collaborations. Varma emphasized that institutions are not limited to the governments, but there are opensource foundations, non-profits, and network facilitating organizations that are playing a significant role in setting up collaborative efforts. Cecile Fruman, the World Bank’s director of regional integration and engagement in South Asia, said robust institutions will require strong public-private partnerships, and should be able to convey the voices of the consumers and the industry.
"While there are ongoing initiatives and engagements to coordinate on specific digital activities among countries in South Asia, there is huge potential to collaborate through regional institutions and groupings in ways that would unlock secure and seamless flows of money, data, and ideas." Cecile Fruman, Director, Regional Integration and Engagement, South Asia, World Bank
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Projects World Bank Approves $47 Million Program to Strengthen India’s Public Sector Capability The Public Service Capability Enhancement Project will support the Government of India's Mission Karmayogi, a national program to build civil service capacity. The Bank’s financing aims to support the Government’s objectives of enhancing the functional and behavioral competencies of approximately four million civil servants. It will focus on three components: the development and implementation of competency frameworks; the development of an integrated learning platform; and program monitoring, evaluation, and management. The $47 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a final maturity of 11 years, including a grace period of 4.5 years.
World Bank Approves $245 million to Enable Indian Railways Carry More Freight, Reduce GHG Emissions The Rail Logistics Project will support India’s efforts to modernize its rail freight and logistics infrastructure. The project, will help India shift more traffic from road to rail, making transport—both freight and passenger—more efficient and, reduce millions of tons of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) each year. The project will also incentivize more private sector investment in the rail sector. The project will also strengthen India’s multimodal transport hubs and terminals, by improving rail links with ports and inland gateways, and strengthening building first and last mile connectivity to railways. A major focus of the project will be on harnessing commercial financing by engaging the private sector, and developing customeroriented approaches. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) together will support DFCCIL access commercial sources of finance. The $245 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a maturity of 22 years, including a grace period of 7 years.
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World Bank Approves $162 Million To Strengthen Social Protection Systems for People with Disabilities in Tamil Nadu The RIGHTS: Inclusion, Accessibility and Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities in Tamil Nadu Project will strengthen the social protection systems and capability of the State of Tamil Nadu to promote inclusion, accessibility, and opportunities for persons with disabilities, especially women and youth. RIGHTS is the first World Bank Group-financed operation in the South Asia Region that exclusively focuses on people with disabilities, with its innovative approaches to specialized training and access to employment among others, it could serve as a model for future engagement for the Bank. The project aims to help the Sate improve the management and care of persons with disabilities by supporting the development of a centralized registry of persons with disabilities including the issuance of disability certificates, setting up social care service centers, providing mobile outreach of therapy services, improving access to public infrastructure, and identifying job opportunities particularly for women and youth, among others. The $162 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a maturity of 24 years, including a grace period of six years.
World Bank Approves Additional Financing of $250 Million to Mitigate Covid-19 Learning Losses in Gujarat The Gujarat Outcomes for Accelerated Learning (GOAL) program aims to improve education results for children across the state of Gujarat. This financing will benefit an additional 3,000 schools that have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The financing complements the original loan of $500 million, which was approved by the World Bank Board in March 2021, and is in line with the Bank’s Rapid Response Framework that seeks to: • • • • •
Reach every child and retain them in schools Assess learning levels regularly Prioritize teaching the fundamentals Increase catch up learning Develop psychosocial health for students and teachers
The $250 million variable spread loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a final maturity of 16 years including a grace period of 5.5 years.
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World Bank Approves $150 Million to Help India’s Fisheries Sector Recover from Post-Pandemic Shocks The Fisheries Sector COVID-19 Recovery Project of India’s fisheries sector. In 2020-21 the sector saw losses of about $5.5 billion and fish production fell almost 40 percent in one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. India’s fisheries sector currently employs about 12 million people directly and another 13 million through associated activities. The Project will complement the Government of India’s Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, which aims to transform the sector in a sustainable manner by introducing modern practices, improving access to finance and making it more climate-resilient. The project will also help improve the sector’s risk management capability against future shocks and losses by facilitating access to insurance. Microenterprises that adopt
energy-efficient and good aquaculture practices, including using legal and non-destructive technologies and those owned by women, will be especially incentivized. To discourage overexploitation of ecological resources, the project will provide performance grants. These grants will be provided to microenterprises that create jobs by reengaging in production and distribution after the pandemic. Similar grants will also be offered to microenterprises that use effective climate-resilience measures. The $150 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development has a repayment term of 18.5 years including a grace period of 5 years.
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Some recent
Blogs A greener future: Thoughts on India’s proposed battery swapping policy India considers e-mobility and clean energy generation mission critical for its 2070 Net Zero target. Battery swapping is emerging as a cost, time, and space efficient solution for two and three wheelers.
Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/greener-future-thoughts-indias-proposed-battery-swapping-policy
India seeks to arrest its alarming decline in groundwater India is the largest user of groundwater globally and almost two-thirds - 63 percent - of India’s districts are threatened by falling groundwater levels. The Government of India's landmark groundwater program, the Atal Bhujal Yojna, is trying to arrest this precipitous decline.
Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/india-seeks-arrest-its-alarming-decline-groundwater
Parking and congestion charges: Are we sitting on a gold mine? In cities around the world, the scales are still tipped heavily in favor of private cars. Take parking policy, for instance. The idea of charging motorists for using roads is even less common, even in the developed world. When governments let motorists drive or park for free while transferring the cost to taxpayers and society at large, they are, in fact, subsidizing car use. Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/transport/parking-and-congestion-charges-are-we-sitting-gold-mine
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World Bank in India
Let’s be at the helm of road safety with helmets Two-wheeler crashes account for the highest death rate around the world, compared to other road traffic crashes. The situation is particularly alarming in South Asia, where motorized two-wheelers account for up to 70% of total vehicles and are also 30 times more prone to crashes compared to cars on a per km travelled basis.
Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/lets-be-helm-road-safety-helmets
An adjustment to global poverty lines In fall 2022, the World Bank will switch to using the 2017 PPPs for its global poverty numbers. This follows the 2020 release of a new set of PPPs based on prices collected in 2017 by the International Comparison Program. As a result, the international poverty line will be $2.15. This means that everyone living on less than this amount per day will be considered in extreme poverty. Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/voices/adjustment-global-poverty-lines
COVID-19 quietens, South Asia faces stronger headwinds and shifting risks As the COVID-19 pandemic quietens, South Asian economies, left fragile and uneven in their recovery, are facing renewed headwinds : high inflation, rising fiscal deficits, and deteriorating current account balances are disrupting growth. As South Asia charts a new way forward to address rising inequality, accommodate energy transition, and unleash new growth potential, an essential part of the economic recovery lies in reshaping norms to make the economies more conducive to growth and progress. Read more : https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/covid-19-quietens-south-asia-faces-stronger-headwinds-and-shifting-risks
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From the Archives
1980s
Following global oil shocks, as India sought indigenous sources of energy, the World Bank supported the development of oil and gas extraction facilities at Bombay High and the Cambay Basin, and assisted with the exploration of hydrocarbon reserves in the Krishna Godavari Delta. With the advent of containerized cargo, projects also supported the development of India’s largest container port at Nhava Sheva near Mumbai.
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World Bank in India
t Project n e m p lo e shore Dev ff O h ig H Bombay
lion
$150 mil
1977
1981 2 0 t c je o r pment P
re Develo o h s ff O h ig Bombay H
K
odavari rishna - G
Petroleum
ct 1983 je o r P n io t Explora
Project m u le o r t e ay Basin P
Camb
leum
K
avari Petro d o G a n rish a Port v e h S a v a Nh
lion
$400 mil
lion
$165 mil
1984
ct 1983 je o r P n io Explorat 1984
illion
$242.50 m
illion
$165.5 m
lion
$250 mil
Project
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Publications South Asia Economic Focus: Spring 2022
Reshaping Norms A New Way Forward
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he uneven recovery from the pandemic has left countries in South Asia with multiple policy challenges, exacerbated by the impact of the war in Ukraine. While several countries are navigating rising inflation and growing difficulties to finance fiscal deficits and trade deficits, the region must also chart a new way forward to address rising inequality, accommodate an energy transition, and unleash new growth potential. To reshape their economies, the region cannot avoid redesigning tax systems, increasing competition, and challenging vested interests and existing gender norms. This issue of the South Asia Economic Focus describes recent economic developments, analyzes the economic impact on South Asia of the war in Ukraine, presents growth forecasts, provides risk scenarios, and concludes that reshaping economies goes hand in hand with reshaping norms. For Report click here
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World Bank in India
Global Economic Prospects June 2022
Stagflation Risk Rises Amid Sharp Slowdown in Growth
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ussia’s invasion of Ukraine and its effects on commodity markets, supply chains, inflation, and financial conditions have steepened the slowdown in global growth. One key risk to the outlook is the possibility of high global inflation accompanied by tepid growth, reminiscent of the stagflation of the 1970s. This could eventually result in a sharp tightening of monetary policy in advanced economies, which could lead to financial stress in some emerging market and developing economies. A forceful and wide-ranging policy response is required to boost growth, bolster macroeconomic frameworks, reduce financial vulnerabilities For Report click here
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he report, looks at the opportunities and challenges related to digitalizing the economies, societies and governments of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The report finds that while some countries are benefiting from expanded access to services and markets, new jobs, innovation, reduced transaction costs and a better quality of life due to increased digitalization, its full game-changing potential remains untapped. A concrete, comprehensive approach to digitalization can help advance South Asia’s green, resilient and inclusive development.
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For Report click here
World Bank in India
Working Paper Series — India WPS10039
The Impact of Lifting Firing Restrictions on Firms: Evidence from a State-Level Labor Law Amendment Sarur Chaudhary and Siddharth Sharma In 2014, the Indian state of Rajasthan amended labor laws to increase employment flexibility in firms. The most discussed of the amendments lifted the requirement for government approval for retrenching regular workers in medium-size factories. This paper finds that the amendment reduced the implicit regulatory cost of labor in firms, but there is no discernible impact on their total employment and output
paper also discusses demand-side subsidies for mortgages in India and identifies opportunities to improve the targeting of the program. WPS10031
Housing Demand and Affordability in India: Implications for Housing Policy Nadeem M. Karmali and Xinyu Weng The focus of this paper is on the demand for housing in urban India. The analysis also provides guidelines to improve the targeting of housing programs and highlights the methodological challenges in measuring housing affordability in developing countries.
WPS10038
The Growth and Performance of Affordable Housing Finance Lenders in India Nadeem M. Karmali and Guillermo J. Rodriguez Ruiz Anecdotal studies have highlighted the recent rapid growth of so-called affordable housing finance companies across India. These new lenders are reported to be using a high-touch approach common to microfinance to provide mortgages to households that are newer to credit, have irregular incomes, and live in smaller urban centers. The
WPS9994
Poverty in India Has Declined over the Last Decade But Not As Much As Previously Thought Sutirtha Sinha Roy and Roy van der Weide This paper sheds light on how poverty and inequality have evolved since 2011 using a new household panel survey, the Consumer Pyramids Household Survey conducted by a private data company.
South Asia Publications Humanitarian and Social Protection Linkages with Examples from South Asia
Toward Safer and More Productive Migration for South Asia
Steen Lau Jorgensen and Maria Virginia Ceretti
S. Amer Ahmed and Laurent Bossavie
Traditionally social protection (SP) and humanitarian programs were quite distinct in their objectives, scope, and operations. The analysis shows how programs apply a ‘mix and match’ approach building on factors such as political will, technical capacity, and alignment of objectives across implementing agencies, donors, and the government.
International migration for temporary employment is key to South Asia’s development path, in terms of both jobs and remittance flows. The book provides policy options to address information gaps on employment opportunities overseas at the departure stage, to prepare migrants adequately for their experience overseas, to diversify destinations and occupations abroad, and to maximize the benefits of return migration.
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Other Publications Women, Business, and the Law 2022 Amid ongoing development challenges that disproportionately affect women, this report identifies barriers to women’s economic participation and encourages the reform of discriminatory laws. This year, the study also includes preliminary findings and analysis of pilot data collected on the provision of childcare and the implementation of the law.
Enhancing Debt Transparency by Strengthening Public Debt Transaction Disclosure Practices Susan Maslen and Cigdem Aslan Improving debt transparency is critical for promoting debt sustainability and creditworthiness assessments, increasing the accuracy of public debt information, and protecting the interests of a diverse range of stakeholders. The discussion in this paper reveals issues that arise from confidentiality and disclosure practices among lenders and borrowers; and highlights how these issues cause information asymmetries and undermine the interests of stakeholders.
The Long Shadow of Informality : Challenges and Policies Franziska Ohnsorge and Shu Yu A large percentage of workers and firms operate in the informal economy, outside the line of sight of governments in emerging markets and developing economies. Widespread informality may hold back the recovery in these economies from the deep recessions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study is the first comprehensive analysis of the extent of informality and its implications for a durable economic recovery and for long-term development.
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State and Trends of Carbon Pricing 2022 This report provides an up-to-date overview of existing and emerging carbon pricing instruments around the world, including international, national, and subnational initiatives. It also investigates trends surrounding the development and implementation of carbon pricing instruments and how they could accelerate the delivery of long-term mitigation goals.
Using Data Analytics in Public Procurement Operational Options and a Guiding Framework The world spent $11 trillion on public procurement in 2018, amounting to 12 percent of global GDP (Bosio et al. 2022). This paper highlights the successful approaches and good practices of previous PDA work and provide useful resources to World Bank teams with country engagements relating to public procurement. Possibly interesting to a broader audience, an analytical framework is also discussed to guide the application of data analytics tools in public procurement, data sources, the open government agenda, and data standards.
Innovations in Tax Compliance: Building Trust, Navigating Politics, and Tailoring Reform Roel Dom, Anna Custers, Stephen Davenport, and Wilson Prichard The Report takes a fresh look at tax reform. The authors draw on recent research and experience for their new conceptual framework to guide more effective approaches to reform. Building on the achievements of recent decades, they argue for a greater emphasis on the overlapping goals of building trust, navigating political resistance, and tailoring reform to unique local contexts, an emphasis achieved by identifying the most binding constraints on reform.
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From Low to High Inflation: Implications for Emerging Market and Developing Economies Ayhan Kose There have been intense debates about the global consequences of rising inflation. This report sheds light on these debates (i) analyzes the expected increase in near-term inflation, in part due to the supply shocks associated with the invasion of Ukraine; (ii) compares current inflation prospects with developments during the Great Inflation of the 1970s; and (iii) explores the resulting policy challenges for emerging market and developing economies.
Place, Productivity, and Prosperity: Revisiting Spatially Targeted Policies for Regional Development Arti Grover, Somik V. Lall, and William F. Maloney This book develops a framework for thinking through such spatially targeted policies and assessing their social value, while presenting new evidence on key empirical issues.
Getting Down to Earth: Are Satellites Reliable for Measuring Air Pollutants That Cause Mortality in Low- and Middle-Income Countries? World Bank Outdoor air pollution accounts for an estimated 4.2 million deaths worldwide, caused predominantly by exposure to fine aerosols. This report investigates the performance of satellites for predicting outdoor concentrations of PM2.5, the most harmful air pollutant to human health, in lowand middle-income countries.
The Global Health Cost of PM2.5 Air Pollution: A Case for Action Beyond 2021 World Bank This report estimates the global, regional, and national costs of health damage from exposure to PM2.5 ambient and household air pollution in 2019. While recognizing the various costs of air pollution to society, this report focuses on the cost of morbidity and premature death from air pollution, the world's leading environmental health risk.
The Changing Wealth of Nations 2021: Managing Assets for the Future
Skilled Migration: A Sign of Europe's Divide or Integration?
World Bank
Laurent Bossavie, Daniel Garrote Sanchez, Mattia Makovec, and Caglar Ozden
'The Changing Wealth of Nations 2021' covers national wealth for countries as the sum of produced capital, natural capital, net foreign assets, and human capital overall as well as by gender and type of employment.
This book examines the migration trends, drivers, and impacts among skilled workers within the European Union. It assesses the economic benefits and costs of skilled migration in the short and long term and formulates policy recommendations to address the costs that migration induces while maximizing its benefits.
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Insuring Nature's Survival : The Role of Insurance in Meeting the Financial Need to Preserve Biodiversity Samantha Cook This paper explores how and to what extent insurance can play a role in meeting the increasing financial needs to protect biodiversity. It outlines how the insurance sector, as underwriters, may impact and protect against biodiversity risks, leveraging approaches to climate change and catastrophe risk to highlight key opportunities and challenges that exist for insurance-based solutions for biodiversity.
Financing Solutions to Reduce Natural Gas Flaring and Methane Emissions Gianni Lorenzato, Silvana Tordo, Berend van den Bergand et.al. This book aims to create awareness of the business case for reducing gas flaring and methane emissions. It focuses on midsized flares that collectively
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represent 58 percent of the global flare volumes. These flares are typically too small to be prioritized by oil companies but still allow for profitable monetization.
Commodity Markets Outlook, April 2022: The Impact of the War in Ukraine on Commodity Markets - Special Focus The war in Ukraine has caused major supply disruptions and led to a major shock to commodity markets. The war has led to significant disruptions to the production and trade of commodities for which Russia and Ukraine are key exporters. Policymakers can better mitigate the impact of higher prices on low-income households through targeted measures, including cash transfers. However, the uncertainties for food supply availability stemming from the war are high, and low-income countries may have urgent needs for international assistance for a prolonged period.
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School Is Closed: Simulating the Long-Term Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic–Related School Disruptions in Kuwait Simon Bilo, Mohamed Ihsan Ajwad, Ebtesam AlAnsari and et.al. WPS10034
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Fathoming Shipping Costs: An Exploration of Recent Literature, Data, and Patterns Adina Ardelean, Volodymyr Lugovskyy, Alexandre Skiba and et.al.
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Effectiveness of Government Support for the Private Sector during the COVID-19 Crisis: Evidence from El Salvador and Georgia
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Estimating a Poverty Trend for Nigeria between 2009 and 2019
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