Liberia's status as a fragile state is deeply rooted in the political and economic exclusion practiced by the country's founders. Although they constituted just 5 percent of the population, freed American slaves and their descendants dominated the country's intellectual and ruling class from...

Favorable global economic conditions supported a turnaround in economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2017, easing pressure on weak policy frameworks. Output growth rebounded to an estimated 2.6 percent after decelerating to 1.5 percent in 2016 amid challenging external and domestic...

The Afghanistan Development Update is a twice-annual publication providing analysis of recent developments and presenting the World Bank team's most-recent macroeconomic projections. The August 2018 edition focuses on the state of the economy in the context of upcoming elections, and the...

The World Bank Group has developed a new Strategy focusing on the ambitious goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity in a sustainable manner. It is committed to helping countries reach these goals with proven solutions that integrate the WBG's development knowledge and...

This paper is a contribution to United Nation (UN)-led efforts to articulate a post-2015 development framework, building on the Millennium Declaration and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It focuses on the challenge of financing development goals and complements the extensive work conducted...

Protracted crises in urban contexts of the Middle East and North Africa region present a growing challenge for water supply and sanitation (WSS) service providers and, in turn, the governments and international organizations that support them. The protracted nature of crisis in countries...

To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, development institutions will need to leverage an unprecedented amount of private sector capital. This is more pressing in the current context as COVID-19 recoveries will require mobilizing both public and private sources in the short...

This policy note outlines options for aid coordination and delivery in Yemen. It draws on a vast amount of experiences and lessons learned from post-conflict recovery and peace building processes both in Yemen and elsewhere over the past decade.Its central message is that timely international...

There have been substantial improvements in development outcomes in Afghanistan since 2001, particularly in terms of improved access to basic services such as water, sanitation, and electricity, and increased human development in education and health. However, some gains are now being eroded due...

Today's global challenges are bigger, more complex, and more intertwined than ever before, from the relentless grip of poverty and stubborn persistence of inequality to the devastations caused by climate disasters, fragility, pandemics, and conflicts. Financing and investments alone cannot solve...