In this context, Bhutan can become wealthier through accelerating both domestic and foreign investment, as well as signing investment treaties. These investments could provide not just capital but also bring necessary skills, knowledge and ideas, and help the country move beyond hydropower....

This note looks at the experience countries have had in introducing reforms that improved the business environment. Instead of examining what was done (that is, the content of reforms), the focus is placed on how reform programs came to be successful. The note aims to provide an overview of...

The war in Ukraine is causing an enormous humanitarian crisis. More than 12 million people are estimated to have been displaced and more than 13 million need urgent humanitarian assistance. Ukraine's economy is being devastated. Trauma suffered by the population will have enduring consequences....

Global growth prospects have deteriorated significantly since the beginning of the year, raising the specter of global recession. This paper relies on insights gleaned from previous global recessions to analyze the recent evolution of economic activity and policies and presents plausible...

This note shows that based on headcount poverty rates, at the household level, households with elderly members are roughly equally poor to non-elderly households, though with variation when using more detailed compositions, and the elderly are less poor than children in 98 percent of the...

Bangladesh's export growth has been remarkable. Bangladesh aims to generate USD 54.1 billion in export earnings by FY2020, a significant increase over the USD 35 billion earned in FY2015-16. The leading sector, textiles and apparels, usually referred to as ready-made garments (RMG), has created...

In the coming decades, climate change will force cities to grapple with new operating conditions to construct and maintain key urban infrastructure. Strategies for covering the costs of climate-resilient upgrades will vary by locale, reflecting differing market, regulatory, and policy...

Over the last decades, the government of Brazil has developed a risk management strategy with the goal of reducing the volatility of cash flow in the agricultural sector and the vulnerability of the less privileged stakeholders in the rural areas (that is, family farmers). Setting up a...

COVID-19 not only represents a worldwide public health emergency but has become an international economic crisis that could surpass the global financial crisis of 2008-09. Right now, containment and mitigation measures are necessary to limit the spread of the virus and save lives. However, they...