This report summarizes the findings of an allocative efficiency study of Romania's Tuberculosis (TB) response, which was conducted using the Optima-TB model. The analysis was conducted to support Romania in its decision-making on strategic TB investments during the current National Strategic...

Protecting healthcare workers and patients is critical to reduce the spread of the disease. In this brief we highlight three urgent actions : Distribution of infection prevention and control (IPC) policies and guidelines to all health facilities; Manufacturing and distribution of IPC supplies to...

The selection of resources and platforms that you will find here has been elaborated in order to facilitate the rapid identification of helpful technological solutions that could be used to support remote learning. The resource list is regularly curated and organized by the World Bank's Edtech team

Maintaining trade flows as much as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic will be crucial in providing access to essential food and medical items and in limiting negative impacts on jobs and poverty. Some countries are closing border crossings and implementing protectionist measures such as...

Experience from previous global and food crises provides some guidance for appropriate trade responses during the crisis and those that are likely to undermine effective national and global responses. However, the speed, scale and nature of this crisis are unprecedented which requires thinking...

Countries in Africa should strive to maintain trade flows during the crisis to secure access to medical goods and services, and food and other essential items such as farm inputs. This requires keeping borders open to the largest extent possible and avoiding measures such as export bans or...

Before the outbreak of the global novel coronavirus pandemic, the world was already dealing with a learning crisis, as evidenced by high levels of Learning Poverty. With the spread of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), among many disruptions to normal life, 160 countries have mandated temporary...

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has imposed a heavy toll on economies worldwide, nearly halting economic activity. Although most firms should be viable when economic activity resumes, cash flows have collapsed, possibly triggering inefficient bankruptcies with long-term detrimental effects....

Experiences from previous pandemics and large-scale shocks show that these crises often affect men and women differently. Specifically, the effectiveness of policy actions and the prevention of costly reversals in the progress achieved towards greater gender equality will crucially depend on how...

Maintaining trade flows as much as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic will be crucial in providing access to essential food and health supplies and in limiting the negative impacts on jobs and poverty. The implementation of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement...