This paper reports on the microfinance program of Hatton National Bank Limited (HNB), the largest private commercial bank in Sri Lanka. It reviews the experience of HNB, which has initiated a program offering financial services to the poor while continuing its traditional business operations.

A growing body of literature indicates that reducing gender inequalities and increasing women's access to productive resources greatly improves both welfare and economic productivity. Despite recent gains in some areas, significant gender inequalities continue to limit women's capabilities and...

Though Vietnam has made impressive progress in providing widespread access to basic social services, the quantity and quality of the country's social service provision have shown signs of deterioration within the last two decades. This paper examines the changing role of the public sector in...

Despite impressive success in improving living conditions in many Caribbean countries, poverty still persists throughout the region. This study seeks to improve our understanding of poverty in the Caribbean and the current efforts to address it. It analyzes the causes and characteristics of...

Providing universal coverage and barrier-free access to ID systems is one of the three pillars of the Principles on Identification for Sustainable Development and is vital to achieving Target 16.9 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to "provide legal identity for all" by 2030....

This paper examines interventions that seek to address firm-level capabilities and access to markets in an integrated fashion. Examples of such interventions include supplier development programs (linking domestic SMEs in developing countries with large buyers, such as foreign investors that are...