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 |

COVID-19 is revealing inequities between and within countries. As it is likely to become endemic, we have to learn to do better and to invest in the evidence needed for learning.

Johannes Hoogeveen, Bilal Malaeb, Lokendra Phadera |

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 |

To ensure that refugees are included in COVID-19 pandemic response and recovery, UNHCR and the World Bank continue to work diligently with host countries.

Filippo Grandi, Axel van Trotsenburg |

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 |

© Sarah Farhat/World Bank One of the encouraging signs that I pick up whenever I travel is the difference that technology is making to the lives of millions of marginalized people. In most cases…

Kristalina Georgieva |

A lack of economic opportunities in countries located closer to the Syrian Arabic Republic is among the factors explaining Daesh recruiting successes   The world has experienced a dramatic…

Mohamed Abdel Jelil, Anne Brockmeyer, Quy-Toan Do |

In April, PovcalNet revised the World Bank’s global and regional poverty estimates from 1981 to 2013. The next major update of global and regional poverty estimates is scheduled for October 2018,…

Christoph Lakner, João Pedro Azevedo, Daniel Gerszon Mahler, Espen Beer Prydz |

In December 2014 and January 2015, I took a leave of absence from the World Bank to volunteer in a UNHCR refugee camp in Iraq. Just a few months before, in October, I attended a TEDx talk (a…

Flavius Mihaies |