“Did you ask mom first? Did you ask dad at all?” As an American with Gambian parents, I heard these two statements every time I wanted to do anything when I was a child. It was standard. Now that…

New Zealand’s success story is often told in terms of its lamb, wool, kiwifruit and agricultural exports. But our country’s greatest asset has always been our people who have been equipped to do…

As the Malagasy government finalizes its “Plan émergence” to generate high, sustainable and more inclusive growth, it faces a crucial question: how will it finance the associated scaling up of…

As we look back at the four years spent in the Maghreb and Malta, as Country Director Marie Francoise-Nelly would like to share some reflections on her work there with the World Bank.

Madagascar's tax collection as a share of GDP is just under 11 percent. Poor compliance by citizens who owe taxes remains a major reason for low tax collection. Mobile text reminders had a…

Computer science is a superpower. With coding knowledge, a little funding, a few laptops and their creative brains, a small team of African developers could create the next big thing. Why not? A…

In nearly 20 years, the majority children entering in primary school around the world today will likely work as adults in jobs that do not exist yet. If Africa fails to prepare our youth, we will…

Last October, I participated in End Poverty Day (EPD)  from the Zambia Country Office, where I had the opportunity to exchange with a host of young brilliant minds from Zambia and around the…

When it comes to improving portfolio performance, the Maghreb Country Management Unit (CMU) has found a solution that worked well: Partnering with the Government counterparts to form a strong…

As the world rushes to reduce the negative impacts of climate change, ambitious sub-national actors are rising to the fore. The recent One Planet Summit exemplifies this trend. Earlier this month…