As the second largest African oil producer, Angola had unsustainable government expenditures in effect until 2014 due to the drop in international oil prices. The Government responded with a comprehensive reform program including the gradual elimination of most fuel subsidies and an extension of...

The three countries covered in this first report, Mali, Chad and Niger, share a number of common characteristics and face a similar set of challenges, which provides the foundation for this joint-review approach. All three are low-income landlocked economies. Each relies heavily on the...

Guinea is a country with a rich historical legacy, abundant natural resources, a privileged geographical location - and a rapidly growing population. A successful political transition and the emergence of a vibrant civil society have helped to ensure ethnic peace and the absence of civil wars in...

This document presents the Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) for the Republic of Burundi (Burundi). The SCD identifies the key challenges and opportunities for Burundi to accelerate progress in poverty reduction and shared prosperity in a sustainable manner, while acknowledging: (i) the need...

This poverty diagnostic documents changes in welfare and living standards in the West Bank and Gaza over the period 2011 to 2017. Since the last poverty assessment for these territories, in 2011, the economic constraints facing them have worsened. The 2011 poverty assessment covered the period...

Macroeconomic management in Chad, Mali and Niger needs to account for a number of specific parameters. Very rapid population growth exerts immense pressure on the demand for education and health services. Economic activity and prices are strongly influenced by climatic variations, and exports...

Global growth is broadly stable but downside risks from rising trade tensions are increasing.A weakening recovery in trade and manufacturing activities is weighing down global growth. Global goods trade has decelerated more rapidly than expected. U.S. tariff s and the retaliatoryresponses of its...

This Systematic Country Diagnostic is the result of a diagnostic exercise conducted by World Bank staff. It was prepared to inform the strategic dialogue between the Government of the Central African Republic (CAR) and the World Bank about priority areas for World Bank Group engagement. This...

This report examines progress and challenges in reducing poverty in Lesotho. Lesotho's poverty rate is lower today than it was 15 years ago. However, with a poverty rate of 49.7 percent in 2017, poverty remains widespread. Economic vulnerability is high, with more than 75 percent of the...

Lebanon is in Crisis. While it is too early to gauge the economic impact of recent events, it is important to note that even prior to the eruption of the demonstrations, the World Bank projected a small recession in 2019; we now estimate that the recession will be deeper. There has been an...