"We are thankful to everyone around the world who spent the time to share their thoughts with us in multiple languages. You raised important concerns, including the fact that the poorest people least responsible for climate change are often the most severely affected by it."

The rapid digital transformation underway in many emerging markets has the potential to have an equally transformative impact for entrepreneurs. However, critical gaps in access to the internet and mobile phones can limit the ability to work in tech-enabled jobs or to compete as entrepreneurs. This event draws on recent IFC research on the rise of e-commerce in Africa and Southeast Asia and opportunities for further growth by exploring more inclusive practices. It will cover two key topics:

Ukraine registered its first case of COVID-19 in early March 2020. The sample had been sent to a laboratory in Kyiv from a city in the Chernivtsi region, roughly 500 km from the Ukrainian capital. “At that time, it was only possible to analyze a SARS-CoV-2 sample at our laboratory. On the evening of March 2, 2020, we confirmed a positive case from Chernivtsi region. We immediately informed the World Health Organization,” said Iryna Demchyshyna, who is the head of the virology laboratory at the State Institution ‘Public Health Center’ in Kyiv.

Ten days later, the Government of Ukraine would impose a national quarantine in an attempt to contain the pandemic. As the number of cases rose across Ukraine, the country’s healthcare system confronted significant shortages of essential supplies, such as masks, respirators, rapid tests, hospital beds, and medical oxygen.

The World Bank Group’s flagship international development podcast takes a deep dive into a new analysis of informal work around the globe – and its relationship to economic inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic. ###

Give us 20 minutes, and we’ll take you on a journey around the world of international development in this flagship podcast from the World Bank Group. Everyday World Bank researchers and staffers are working to address the biggest international problems – everything from poverty to climate change, education to nutrition, and a whole lot more. Through conversations focused on revealing the latest data, the best research, and the solutions making the world a better place, let hosts Paul Blake and Raka Banerjee introduce you to the folks working to make the world a better place.

Pressures of the COVID-19 crisis prompted IDA to accelerate financing commitments last year and launch an early replenishment. This made for a moment of much-needed international solidarity in support of the poorest countries’ needs. Photo: World Bank

Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: The World Bank Group is closely monitoring COVID-19 developments. The safety of our current and prospective staff is our highest priority. As of now, YPP recruitment processes are ongoing and will be modified to virtual platforms. Candidates will receive related updates as the process moves along.

Please note: the review process for World Bank and MIGA candidates is delayed, with the onboarding of all successful candidates still scheduled for September 2021. Virtual interviews are currently underway through the month of June.

PROGRAM UPDATE: The World Bank and IFC have merged their respective Young Professionals Programs into one World Bank Group Young Professionals Program (WBG YPP).

The new program is now accepting applications on behalf of three institutions (the World Bank, IFC and MIGA).  Building on the rich legacy of its predecessor programs, the WBG YPP will recruit and...

As of June 2, 2021, the World Bank Board approved operations to support vaccine rollout in 25 countries amounting to $2.4 billion.  See the latest project financing, project documents and procurement information in the list below. More information will be shared here as it becomes available. We expect to reach 50 countries amounting to $4 billion by end June 2021. 

Through this, the World Bank Group is working with partners on the largest vaccination effort in history to stop the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 2, 2020, at the initial COVID-19 response phase, the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved a $6 billion Global COVID-19 Response Program (also called the COVID-19 Strategic Preparedness and Response Program, or SPRP). The program has reached over 100 countries with emergency operations to prevent, detect, and respond to COVID-19 and strengthen systems for public health preparedness. The timing of potential vaccine...

BAGRAMI DISTRICT, Kabul Province—On a sunny June afternoon in Qale Ahmad Khan village, the streets were deserted, unusual in Bagrami district, which is located just a short 30-minute car ride from downtown Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital and most populous city.

The silence is only interrupted by a lone sweet seller whose calls from his bicycle draws a few children from their homes into the street to buy a treat from their favorite traveling salesman.

Usually, on any given summer day, the streets would be busy with life—grocers hawking ripe melons, motorbikes and cars shuttling to and from Kabul city.

But in the summer of 2020, silence had fallen over Bagrami district, as it had in villages and cities around the world. Storefronts shuttered and families remained at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While local lockdowns have been vital to stem the spread of the virus, they have had far-reaching social and economic consequences.

In Qale Ahmad...

In this podcast series, host Roumeen Islam of the World Bank chats with global experts on how countries can put policies in place to raise standards of living — sustainably. How do you get people to cooperate when needed, while they compete and innovate? How do technology and policy work together for better lives — both richer and more equitable? Find out how! Subscribe to "Tell Me How: The Infrastructure Podcast Series" and get insights you can act on.

Listen for free on your favorite platforms: Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean, and Spotify

"We are at a unique moment at which putting a price on carbon can power a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable post-pandemic recovery and help set countries on a low-carbon growth path."

Imagine a world where farms grow nutritious food and raise healthy livestock without harming the environment. Where every village, town and city are powered by clean energy and cities have safe, affordable, and non-polluting transit systems. Where people have jobs that drive the sustainable growth story of the future. This world is within our reach, but only if we confront the challenges we face today.

Over the past year, COVID-19 devastated communities, slowed economies and pushed millions of people into poverty. Meanwhile, the climate crisis continued unabated, with 2020 among the hottest years on record.

The World Bank Group is increasing its financing to help countries address the pandemic and climate change -- because a sustainable future depends on the decisions countries make today.

The mountain ranges of the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, and the Karakoram span 2,400 kilometers across six nations and contain 60,000 km² of ice – storing more water than anywhere besides the Arctic and Antarctic. Climate change and air pollution are speeding up the melting of the Himalayan glaciers, jeopardizing the lives and livelihoods of 750 million people who rely on the water?from these glaciers and snows.

Melting glaciers and loss of seasonal snow pose significant risks not just to the people who live at their foot but to the stability of water resources in the South Asia region more broadly. The impacts will only get worse unless greater efforts are made to curb black carbon deposits from factories, fires, and vehicles that are accelerating melting. Our expert panel will discuss challenges and solutions to address glacier melt, improve water and energy security, and air quality, and thus...

We are living through historical hardships that will shape centuries to come. Most of our past plans are scrapped, we witness the plight of many as businesses go under, families fall apart, loved ones pass away. Yet there is a single threat that puts humanity and their future in great jeopardy, the second lost generation.

On March 11 the first case in my country was announced. A couple of days later, every academic institution was shut. We were thrown completely off-guard into a whole new world of video conference software, online assignments, and connection problems. As a Turkish high schooler; a bewilderingly diverse country where the Orient and the Occident (and naturally their problems) meet, I have observed the points in which schools and governments excelled at or failed spectacularly.

Additionally, during my daily correspondences, I have also listened to the problems of my friends from various spots in the world, thus I dare to speak out on behalf...