Online Media Briefing Center (OMBC) news for accredited journalists
The World Bank Group has completed an early assessment of the physical damage. It puts the cost in terms of buildings and infrastructure, the narrow cost, at roughly $60 billion and does not include the growing economic costs to Ukraine’s economy. Ukraine’s government and state-owned enterprises face a large non-military fiscal deficit and debt burden.
The World Bank Group has announced that over the coming weeks it will be discussing with its Governors and Board of Executive Directors a 15-month crisis response financing package of around $170 billion to help countries address multiple overlapping crises.
Satellite data compiled and analyzed for GGFR’s 2022 Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report shows that 144 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas was flared at upstream oil and gas facilities last year. Ten oil-producing and flaring countries accounted for three-quarters of all gas flaring, seven of which—Russia, Iraq, Iran, the United States, Venezuela, Algeria, and Nigeria—have remained the top seven consistently over the last ten years.
Within nine months of Churchill’s speech here, the World Bank made its first loan to rebuild Europe. We hope to do the same for Ukraine. Today, I also want to bring acute attention to the world’s overlapping development crises. People in developing countries are suffering from severe reversals in poverty, health, and education; from a loss of access to food, fertilizer, and fuel; and, perhaps worst of all, from inequality and significantly diminished prospects for personal advancement and growth.
Remittances are expected to reach $630 billion in 2022, with record amounts flowing into Ukraine. While officially recorded remittance flows to low- and middle-income countries are expected to increase by 4.2 percent, economies dependent on flows from Russia will see major declines.
COVID-19 and its consequences remain ever present. The World Bank Group is working hard to support developing countries with their health programs. To fight COVID-19, we are still providing surge financing, including for vaccines and deployment. Through our long-term programs, we’re working to build stronger health systems and preparedness through dependable financing. We have a $30 billion health portfolio in over 100 countries.
