As part of the World Bank Group, IFC's overriding objective is to help reduce poverty and support sustainable development in developing countries. IFC pursues this mission by supporting the private se
The Berlin Workshop Series 2007 presents selected papers from discussions held September 12-13, 2005, at the eighth annual forum co-hosted by InWEnt and the World Bank in preparation for the Bank's 'W
By integrating their poverty reduction strategies (PRSs), national budgets, and the corresponding reporting processes, low-income countries can strengthen domestic accountability and the implementatio
The World Bank Group is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. Its focus is on helping the poorest people in the poorest countries by using its
Since the mid-1990s, Bangladesh's banking sector has grown considerably. Despite the boom and the government's efforts to increase access in rural areas, rural financial markets have shrunk in relativ
Written for those involved in ensuring the elimination of stigma and inequity in access to care for those with HIV/AIDS, this gives specific examples of laws and regulations and practical advice. Its
Far reaching macro-economic and structural reforms combined with increases in government spending have been the primary drivers of Tanzania's growth acceleration. As growth in government spending slow
'Celebrating Reform 2007' features successful reforms in the 10 areas covered in the 'Doing Business' reports. These cases studies span the globe—from Serbia to El Salvador, from Egypt to Nigeria—and
'Higher Education Financing in the New EU Member States' summarizes the experiences to date of the new EU countries (the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slov
Following the transition from central planning toward market-based economies, the formerly communist states of Central and Eastern Europe introduced a number of reforms in the finance, management, and
Vocational education is often ignored during discussions of secondary education reform even though it accounts for between 25 percent and 79 percent of upper secondary enrollment in the former central
This study analyzes the performance of social assistance and family benefit programs in eight new member states of the European Union from the perspective of fiscal impact and effectiveness. It is bas
This book is a peer review of journals addressing the issue of the impact of development communication in a number of development projects and programs. It provides an overview of this discipline and
This title outlines a number of practical initiatives to strengthen the role of development communication in infrastructure projects. The authors aim to facilitate better quality projects and to build
'Female Genital Cutting, Women's Health, and Development' provides a comprehensive understanding of the issue of femal genital mutiliation/cutting—scope, challenges, opportunities, best practices, and
This volume, from the Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) of the World Bank, details how governments in developing countries can strengthen their monitoring and evaluation systems and capacities. It sy
'Healthy Development: The World Bank Strategy for Health, Nutrition, and Population Results' updates the Bank's contribution to improving health outcomes, including the 2015 Millennium Development Goa
2006 proved to be a record year in foreign investment in power projects, albeit in only a small number of countries. In the meantime, firms who write insurance against political upheavals and terroris
This book brings together the latest thinking about poverty dynamics from diverse analytic traditions. While covering a vast body of conceptual and empirical knowledge about economic and social mobili
This book brings together the latest thinking about poverty dynamics from diverse analytic traditions. While covering a vast body of conceptual and empirical knowledge about economic and social mobili
This annual report, prepared by the staff of the World Bank Group, investigates the regulations that affect business activity both positively and negatively. It presents quantitative indicators on bus
This volume reports the results of a study, jointly sponsored by the World Bank Institute and Harvard U., on social health insurance (SHI). The study sought to identify the best ways of designing and
'Financial Sector Dimensions of the Colombian Pension System' provides an assessment of the funded pension system and the quality of the regulatory framework for both accumulation and payout phase. It
This paper provides an assessment of the Polish funded pension system and the quality of the regulatory framework for the accumulation phase. There are two elements that distinguish the Polish pensio
From the World Bank Institute's Knowledge for Development (K4D) program (launched in 1999), this volume presents analytical work and research on the knowledge economy in client countries. Using case s
'South-South Migration and Remittances' reports on preliminary results from an ongoing effort to improve data on bilateral migration stocks. It sets out some working hypotheses on the determinants and
Large regional disparities in labor market indicators exist in Central Europe and the Baltic region. Such disparities appear to be persistent over time indicating, in part, a lack of flexibility in th
This volume analyzes the causes for informality in Latin America--the flawed relationship between citizens and their state shown in things like unprotected workers and underpayment of taxes--as well a
Water in the Middle East and North Africa region is a source of major social and economic problems stemming from scarcity, variability, unreliable services, and environmental damage. The situation is
Although the importance of infrastructure sectors in achieving economic growth and poverty reduction is well established, raising debt and equity capital for infrastructure development and service pro
The world's demand for food is expected to double within the next 50 years, while the natural resources that sustain agriculture will become increasingly scarce, degraded, and vulnerable to the effect
There is an emerging consensus in Papua New Guinea (PNG)—both at the governmental level and among civil society more generally—that human development outcomes are far less than provision of basic serv
'Language, Literacy, and Learning in Primary Schools' is a synthesis of the findings arising from four years of policy research and development in Nigeria's primary schools that focused on the gap bet
Middle income countries (MICs) are facing rapidly evolving development challenges as their economist mature and integrate into the global economy. As a group, the 86 MICs account for about one-fifth o
Although host governments and investors may share one common objective—the desire for projects to generate high levels of revenue—their other goals are not entirely aligned. Host governments aim to ma
Regional economic development is an interest of policymakers throughout the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region. One of its principal aims is to reduce poverty in lagging regions by stimulating local
All development is ultimately about change, and this requires communication interventions. Communication must be framed in an integral 'two-way' process that involves stakeholders, accounts for their
This report assesses the status and practice of higher education quality assurance in Sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on degree-granting tertiary institutions. A main finding is that structured national-
'Investor Protection and Corporate Governance' analyzes the impact of corporate governance on firm performance and valuation. Using unique datasets gathered at the firm-level—the first such data in th
This book discusses the issues and steps involved in building a lifelong learning system in China, including: a coherent policy framework, a sound incentive and institutional framework, a sound regula
