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Latin America & Caribbean

An Inconvenient Truth for Latin America

Submitted by Otaviano Canuto on Wed, 07/20/2011 - 10:05

The causes and effects of climate change are better known today than ever before. Whether it is world leaders meeting to discuss climate policy in Cancun or Copenhagen, Al Gore reminding movie-goers of an “Inconvenient Truth,” or private companies offering an ever-growing array of “green” products, the issue of climate change has permeated our global consciousness.

However, what may be less well understood are the negative welfare effects that climate variability and change can have, particularly in the developing world. While everyone is impacted by climbing temperatures, rising water levels, and increased incidence of flooding and drought, it is the poor who suffer the most, and whose natural, physical, financial, human, social, and cultural livelihood assets are most impacted. To make matters worse, the effects of climate change are exacerbated by a myriad of other issues, from land scarcity, to poor health, to lack of education—all factors which undermine a person’s ability to cope and adapt to a changing climate.

As argued by Dorte Verner in the newest edition of the World Bank’s Economic Premise research series, climate change is taking place and gathering speed in Latin America and the Caribbean—and this can have huge consequences for the region’s poor. From the Andes to the Amazon, from Panama to Patagonia, the region as a whole may soon suffer from increasing temperatures, rising sea levels, higher incidence of drought and flooding, and more intense extreme weather events such as hurricanes.

Frontiers in Development Policy: the Role of Macro-Prudential Policies

Submitted by Derek Chen on Tue, 02/15/2011 - 11:53

The devastating impact of the global financial crisis, which consequently turned into a global economic crisis, created a consensus that pre-crisis financial regulation didn’t take the “Big Picture” of the system as a whole sufficiently into account. As a result, according to the views of many, supervisors in many markets “missed the forest for the tress”. In other words, among other mistakes, they did not take into account the macro-prudential aspects of regulation, which was not the focus of many authorities.

Looking ahead, fixing the fragilities in the global financial system is a key priority. For this reason, the World Bank Institute organized a session on “"Frontiers in Development Policy: the Role of Macro-Prudential Policies"” held in conjunction with the 12th Annual Conference of the Global Development Network, “Financing Development in a Post-Crisis World: The Need for a Fresh Look” which took place in Bogotá, Colombia, January 13 to 15, 2011.

This session focused on macro-prudential policies, which relate to the use of prudential tools to promote the stability of the financial system as a whole, not just that of individual institutions. These policies deal with the intersection of the real economy and the financial sector, providing a birds-eye view of the entire system. In our interconnected, interdependent and highly globalized world, these policies will and has become increasingly important, both in steering the global economy out of the crisis, in moving toward new sources of growth, and averting the next financial crisis.

The session provided an introduction to the basics of macro prudential policies, as well as the critical issues currently being discussed in the financial system policymaking circles. The key takeaways are as follows:

Brazil Announces Phase Two of the Growth Acceleration Program

Submitted by Ihssane Loudiyi on Tue, 03/30/2010 - 08:38

(All credits go to SECOM for this information)


President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announces US$ 526 billion in public and private investments over 2011-2014

Yesterday, Brazil launched phase two of the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC 2), announcing estimated investments of US$ 526 billion (R$ 958.9 billion) for the period from 2011 to 2014. PAC 2 includes new investment projects for the periods 2011 to 2014 and post-2014, as well as projects initiated during PAC 1 with activities that will conclude after 2010. For the period following 2014, the estimated investment is US$ 346.4 billion (R$ 631.6 billion). The two periods combined reach an amount of US$ 872.3 billion (R$ 1.59 trillion).

PAC is a strategic investment program that combines management initiatives and public works. In its first phase, launched in 2007, the program called for investments of US$ 349 billion (R$ 638 billion), of which 63.3% has been applied.

Similar to the first phase of the program, PAC 2 focuses on investments in the areas of logistics, energy and social development, organized under six major initiatives: Better Cities (urban infrastructure); Bringing Citizenship to the Community (safety and social inclusion); My House, My Life (housing); Water and Light for All (sanitation and access to electricity); Energy (renewable energy, oil and gas); and Transportation (highways, railways, airports).

“I consider PAC 2 as a portfolio of projects that the next administration can build from rather than starting from scratch, as there is no time to lose,” said President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva during the announcement of the program.

PAC 2 Initiative in Detail...

My Own View on Women

Submitted by Otaviano Canuto on Tue, 03/09/2010 - 09:51

On Monday, the world marked International Women’s Day. As a husband and father of strong, wonderful women, I am always very much aware of the occasion. But as the Vice President responsible for the gender portfolio at the World Bank, women’s day became a powerful reminder of all the things we still need to do in the quest for gender equality.

Women earn some 22% less in salary than their male counterparts, and their access to credit is limited. In Africa, for instance, women receive 1% of total credit going to agriculture though they represent a majority of workers in the sector. In addition, women’s risk of dying from maternal causes in developing countries is 13 times higher than in industrialized nations.

The Bank has done its share in trying to overcome these problems, but we haven’t always been a shining example. It took us 33 years from our creation to appoint a Women in Development Adviser. Twenty years after that, Jim Wolfensohn gave his first major speech as Bank president at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, and proposed universal primary education for girls and boys by 2010. Finally, we established a Director position for Gender and we adopted a gender strategy in 2001.

Brazil Still on the Fast Track for Growth

Submitted by Ihssane Loudiyi on Mon, 02/22/2010 - 18:00

(Thanks and credits for sharing this information go to the Brazilian Secretariat of Social Communication - SECOM)

Brazil Positioned to Defeat Extreme Poverty by 2016

A new study indicates that Brazil has the historic opportunity to eradicate extreme poverty by 2016 and achieve the lowest rate of income inequality since the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) began tracking such data in 1960. To achieve these results, the country needs to maintain the pace of social development achieved in the last five years, according to a study carried out by the Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), released Tuesday, January 12, 2010 in São Paulo.

The IPEA document, entitled Poverty, inequality, and public policy (Portuguese only), shows that from 2003-2008 the national rate of extreme poverty (defined by IPEA as the proportion of the population earning one-quarter of the minimum wage or less) fell an average of 2.1% each year. Absolute poverty (the proportion of the population earning one-half of the minimum wage or less) fell an average of 3.1% each year.

Brazil Fights Hunger & Illiteracy

Submitted by Ihssane Loudiyi on Fri, 11/13/2009 - 18:57

(Thanks and credits for sharing this information go to the Brazilian Secretariat of Social Communication - SECOM)

 

Social development and progress continue to stay strong in Brazil:

 

With one of the world’s largest populations, Brazil’s government has invested heavily in programs to eliminate poverty and hunger and improve access to services and opportunities in low-income communities. These efforts and their success to date earned Brazil’s President Lula UNESCO’s prestigious Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize in July, and Brazil’s Minister of Social Development the World Future Council’s Future Policy Award just a few weeks ago.

 

Detailed information can be found below.

Survey Results: Brazil Stays Strong in the face of the Crisis

Submitted by Ihssane Loudiyi on Wed, 10/14/2009 - 12:38

(Thanks and Credits for this information go to the Brazilian Secretariat of Social Communication - SECOM)

Brazil is one of the world's fastest growing economies. An annual socioeconomic survey of over 150,000 households conducted by the Brazilian Government showed notable advances in housing, employment, education, access to services and a drop in income concentration among Brazilians for the year 2008 compared to the year 2007. The findings of this report, released on September 18, 2009, indicate that, thanks to major government investments in infrastructure, education, and local development, Brazil’s citizens have prospered alongside the booming economy.

According to the National Survey by Household Sampling (PNAD), conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), Brazil saw an increase in the home ownership rate, formal jobs and income for workers, and home access to sewerage, telephone and Internet systems.

In 2008, the number of employed workers in Brazil was 2.8% higher than that of 2007, and totaled 92.4 million people.  This increase came largely from the construction sector, with growth of 14.1% that generated 900,000 new jobs across the country.  34.5% of employed Brazilians in 2008 were under formal contract employment, receiving all rights and benefits granted by law. This is an increase of 2.1 million people, from a 33.1% rate in 2007.  This increase resulted in a 5.9% increase in the number of Social Security taxpayers in 2008 as compared to 2007.