This note will examine the distributional and efficiency issues associated with the fiscal response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis in Da Nang city and nationally in Vietnam. More specifically, we look at the social assistance (cash transfer) programs. Did these programs efficiently reach...

The national economy of Vietnam was affected by the April 2020 lockdown meant to contain the domestic spread of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) virus and subsequent outbreaks in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City. Nevertheless, the economy showed exceptional resilience. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew by...

This note analyzes the short-term effects of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) shock during the first year of the crisis and presents alternative medium-term recovery scenarios. It asks a set of questions, and in answering those questions, provides policy suggestions for the Vietnamese...

The objective of this public expenditure review (PER) is to provide the government with options for fiscal consolidation and support macroeconomic stability in the medium-term. This PER addresses the broad topic of expenditure efficiency and examines options for expenditure rationalization to...

The outbreak was declared a pandemic by the WHO on March 11 and the epicenter of the crisis has moved from China and Korea to the US and Western Europe. Infections are also increasing at a rapid pace in WBG client countries, with large uncertainty about the extent to which many countries are...

The fall 2021 issue of the Iraq Economic Monitor provides an in-depth review of the latest macroeconomic and policy developments amidst a global recovery in international oil markets and as COVID-19 restrictions begin to ease. As a result, the monitor finds that the economic prospects for Iraq...

Recognizing the severity of the crisis, the GoI devised a national reform plan (the white paper) that sets out a old blueprint of structural reforms to achieve sustainable medium-term growth through economic diversification and boosting private sector growth and private sector job creation. The...

The Iraq Economic Monitor provides an update on key economic developments and policies over the previous six months and presents findings from recent World Bank work on Iraq, placing them in a longer-term and global context and assessing the implications of these developments and other changes...