This paper shows that Eastern Orthodox believers are less happy compared with Catholics and Protestants using data covering more than 100 countries around the world. Consistent with the happiness results, the paper also finds that relative to Catholics, Protestants, and non-believers, those of...

Libya's economic stability should be a priority for the international community. Although the private sector is an integral part of the Libyan economy, limited systematic information is available on how the prolonged conflict in Libya affected the private sector and the implications for a...

The formal private sector in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) economies needs to play a critical role for the overall economic transformation of the region. Creating a conducive environment for private sector development depends on a sound understanding of the performance of private...

This report, developed for policy makers and sector development partners, highlights the manner in which the domestic private sector is successfully participating in the delivery of water and sanitation services in Niger. It outlines the factors for success as well as the challenges that need to...

This note explores the Bangladesh experience in implementing the widespread use of a private operator model for building and operating rural piped water schemes. Since the early 1990s, the World Bank has, through a series of development projects, designed, piloted, and attempted to scale up use...

Shifting Kenya's private sector into higher gear: a trade and competitiveness agenda' was born out of the World Bank's Trade and Competitiveness (T&C) Global Practice recent stock taking of its work in Kenya. This was part of a Programmatic Approach that aimed to organize T&C's knowledge,...

After nearly two decades of strong economic growth, in 2005 the economy was in difficulties. The loss of trade preferences in textiles in 2005, the anticipation of prospective reform to the European Union's sugar protocol for 2006-10, and higher international oil prices had contributed to a...

Despite significant government investments in the public education system, population growth and migration have led to an undersupply of school places, especially in urban centers, leading to an increase in private education enrollments in Ghana. Ghana has nearly doubled enrollment at the...

Smallholder farmers in developing countries face tough challenges to their productivity, growth, and sustainability-including lack of access to affordable financial products, limited knowledge of high-quality inputs, low usage of technology and market data, and poor market links across the value...