The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
This report analyses progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Asia and the Pacific and its five subregions. It also examines inequalities and vulnerabilities among different population groups. It assesses gaps which must be closed to achieve the goals by 2030 and leave no one behind. This assessment is …
Two years have passed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the economic fall-out is still being felt all around the globe, its impacts are not fully captured. In particular, the accelerated digital transformation, with digital solutions developed and used to facilitate economic and social activities from a distance, …
One of the key questions posed in the research within the Rebuild project is to understand how COVID-19 exacerbated pre-existing vulnerabilities for women in the urban informal economy. The backdrop of the pandemic has exposed many layers of social disenfranchisement and vulnerabilities. Situate vulnerabilities fundamentally within the context of historical …
Around 2.4 billion women of working age are not afforded equal economic opportunity and 178 countries maintain legal barriers that prevent their full economic participation, according to this new report by the World Bank. In 86 countries, women face some form of job restriction and 95 countries do not guarantee …
Tanzania has made important achievements in expanding women’s economic opportunities over the past 20 years. The female labor-force participation rate rose from 67% in 2000 to 80% in 2019, well above the average of 63% for Sub-Saharan Africa and among the highest rates on the continent. In addition, more Tanzanian …
The Government of Telangana publishes the Socio Economic Outlook (SEO) annually and tables it in the State Legislature during the budget session. It presents the socio-economic performance of the State across various sectors and recognises the specific gaps and challenges to initiate appropriate action. It also presents the information on …
High income inequality can engender a wide range of negative impacts. It can harm child development, increase ill-health and mortality, limit the status of women, generate distrust in government, exacerbate levels of violence and social unrest, slow the pace of poverty reduction and hinder economic growth. The Asia-Pacific region is …
The 2020 African Sustainable Development Report is the fourth in a series of reports dating back to 2017. These reports have sought to assess the progress and ongoing challenges faced by African States in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) included in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development …
Global Population Growth and Sustainable Development probes the linkages between global population growth and the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The report examines how the current rapid growth of the human population is a consequence of the demographic transition from high to low levels of mortality and …
Africa’s rural population continues to expand rapidly and labor productivity in agriculture and many rural off farm activities remains low. This paper uses the lens of a dual economy and the associated patterns of agricultural, rural, and structural transformation to review the evolution of Africa’s rural employment and its inclusiveness. …
The Progressing National SDGs Implementation report provides an independent analysis of reporting by United Nations Member States to the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). Supported by a coalition of civil society organizations from around the world and prepared by Cooperation Canada, the report examines the status of 2030 …
World Development Report 2022: Finance for an Equitable Recovery examines the central role of finance in the economic recovery from COVID-19. Based on an in-depth look at the consequences of the crisis most likely to affect low- and middle-income economies, it advocates a set of policies and measures to mitigate …
As Uganda builds back from the COVID-19 shock, the Ugandan government is strengthening its commitment to a more gender-inclusive and sustainable economy. This report supports these efforts by describing the gendered impacts of COVID-19 and provides recommendations for Ugandan policy makers and World Bank Group operations to ensure women’s participation …
Sub-Saharan Africa represents only a small share of global production and trade while hosting half of the extreme poor worldwide. To catch up with the rest of the world, the continent has no alternative: it must undertake reforms to scale up its supply capacity while better linking its production and …
The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed millions into poverty in East Africa, and worsened inequality. The economic crisis continues, due to the obscene global vaccine inequality, which means that only 4% of East African citizens had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, compared with 71% in high-income countries by mid-January2022. Many East …
According to latest data from the OECD and the IEA, government support for the production and use of fossil fuels across 81 major economies totalled USD 351 billion in 2020, amounting to USD 183 billion across 50 OECD, G20, and Eastern Partnership economies. While the difficulty of reform is evident …
Digital Senegal for Inclusive Growth explores possible solutions for a more intensive use of digital technologies, especially by small and medium enterprises, to increase their productivity and create more quality jobs. The report will contribute to helping women and young people in particular to gain access to decent work and …
For the most part, small food manufacturers were allowed to remain open during the COVID-19 crisis to ensure food security, but their operations were nonetheless hampered from a range of perspectives. The aim of this report is, first, to analyse how small food manufacturers were impacted by the fall-out from …
It is widely recognized that periods of crisis affect men and women differently, mediated by their access to resources and information, as well as social and institutional structures that may systematically disadvantage women from being able to access relief, institutional support, and rehabilitation. To capture the gendered impacts of the …
Unsustainable consumption, driven by the increasing extraction of raw materials, manufacturing, and production, is contributing to environmental degradation and the acceleration of climate change. In developing Asia, consumption trends will continue to rise as populations and economies grow. Shifting from the current “take–make–dispose” linear consumption pattern to a more circular …
