Less than half of EU member states that operate passenger railways offer services with commercial speeds over 200km/h. Nearly a third of passenger railway routes in the EU between medium or large…

Shomik Mehndiratta, Daniel Pulido, Luis C. Blancas, Victor Aragones, Mercedes Gutierrez |

Despite a steady increase in Albania's agricultural output over the past several decades, the country continues to trail behind its neighbors. The seemingly obvious obstacles preventing…

Fernando Blanco, Laureta Qorlazja |

The impacts of COVID-19 and consequent supply chain disruptions have driven some companies to bring supply chains closer to production. The global automotive industry is an example. This is an…

Niharika Sachdeva, Fernando Blanco, Emmanuel Pouliquen, Turhan Semizer |

To protect vulnerable populations and promote economic growth, policymakers in the Western Balkans should take into account the heterogeneity of inflation rates experienced by different households…

Anna Fruttero, Leonardo Lucchetti, Carlos Ospino, Zurab Sajaia |

For the Western Balkan countries, aspirations to join the EU mean urgency to align with the bloc’s climate and environmental policy acquis. All six countries—Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,…

Anita Hafner, Marissa Santikarn |

For millennia, the Black Sea has supported economic and human development in the region, and today more than 160 million people living in Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova, Russia, Türkiye, and Ukraine…

Paola Agostini, Eolina Petrova Milova, Sameer Akbar |

The Balkans often evoke images of conflict and fragmentation. But on the digital front, countries across Southeast Europe are working together to build robust broadband network connecting millions…

Natalija Gelvanovska-Garcia |

Blog about how the global crises and uncertainty are testing the economic resilience of the Western Balkans. And what the governments across the region should consider in order to build greater…

Sanja Madzarevic-Sujster, Richard Record, Natasha Rovo |

To build on the Utility of the Future program, the World Bank, in partnership with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), is establishing the Utility of the Future Center of…

Karin Gallandat, Sven Schlumpberger, Federico Perez Penalosa, Camilo Lombana Cordoba |

The Western Balkan countries need to remain vigilant about the impact of climate change on their financial sectors by prioritizing green taxonomies, promoting prudential management of climate and…

Jane Hwang, Ismael Ahmad Fontan, Alper Oguz, Vahe Vardanyan |