With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), world leaders made a bold pledge in 2015 to leave no one behind on the path of development by 2030. Half-way to the target date, some 22 countries…

Samuel Kofi Tetteh Baah, Christoph Lakner, Umar Serajuddin |

As we marked World Poverty Day on October 17th, a blog published recently by World Bank staff highlights that poverty has finally receded to pre-COVID pandemic levels, which in essence means we…

Nadir Mohammed, Laura Moreno Herrera, Salman Zaidi |

As we keep hearing the term “inflation” in the news every day, it’s worth revisiting what that really means for MENA countries. Here are four policies that tackle high inflation and low growth…

Nadir Mohammed, Kevin Carey, Johannes Hoogeveen, Gladys Lopez-Acevedo |

The COVID-19 pandemic created a huge crisis, but also an opportunity for MENA countries to build more adaptive, resilient, inclusive social protection systems. There are many lessons to draw from…

Ferid Belhaj |

From public transit quality to land use patterns, there are many factors that may impact people's ability to access essential services like healthcare or education. A new World Bank study…

Aiga Stokenberga, Karla Dominguez Gonzalez |

Debt relief is needed now to stop the pandemic denying more children a basic education, with girls most at risk.

David Malpass |

The Middle East and North African countries cannot wait until the end of the pandemic to begin rebuilding the post-COVID region.

Ferid Belhaj, Nadir Mohammed |

A typical day for Samuel – a fruit stand vendor in Nairobi, Kenya – would start at 6 am, buying fruits from the wholesale market and selling them at a street corner of a bustling commercial area.…

Melis Guven, Himanshi Jain, Jehan Arulpragasam, Iffath Sharif |

Also available in: Français | Español  | العربية | Русский Many of today’s increasingly complex development challenges, from rapid urban expansion to climate change, disaster resilience, and…

Klaus Deininger |