• Basic profile of early childbirth in the Democratic Republic of Congo
    Measures of early childbirth are high in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The share of women ages 18-22 who had a child before 18 is 25.6 percent and it has decreased only slightly over time. The...
    Type: Brief Report#: 105919 Date: March 1, 2016 Author: Male,Chata ; Wodon,Quentin T.
  • As good as the company they keep? : improving farmers’ social networks
    Extension services have a history of being relatively expensive and not always effective. At the same time, studies show that informal social networks can be very beneficial in helping increase productivity....
    Type: Brief Report#: 103850 Date: March 1, 2016 Author: Leonard,Kenneth ; Vasilaky,Kathryn
  • Tanzania agricultural sector risk assessment
    Despite Tanzania’s comparative advantage in the production of many crops (cashew nuts, coffee, cotton, tea, tobacco, maize, and rice, for example) and the relative abundance of natural resources, 38 percent...
    Type: Brief Report#: 104092 Date: March 1, 2016 Author: Arce,Carlos Enrique ; Caballero-Ceruti,Jorge
  • Lessons learned from poverty mapping in the European Union
    The Poverty Mapping in the European Union (EU) project, an initiative of the World Bank and European Commission (EC) in cooperation with EU member states, has developed a set of high-resolution poverty...
    Type: Brief Report#: 104007 Date: March 1, 2016
  • Pinpointing poverty in Hungary
    Rates of poverty and social exclusion vary widely across European Union (EU) member states, and there is also a high degree of variability in living standards within member states. The European Commission...
    Type: Brief Report#: 104010 Date: March 1, 2016
  • Senegal - Do hygiene and handwashing make for better brain development?
    Poor hygiene is a particular problem when it comes to children because they are more susceptible to diarrhea and repeated or severe episodes can harm their health and development. Every year, 800,000 children...
    Type: Brief Report#: 104787 Date: March 1, 2016 Author: Marcus,Aliza ; Berman,Daphna
  • Basic profile of child marriage in Malawi
    Measures of child marriage are high in Malawi. The share of women ages 18-22 who married as children is 45.9 percent. It has declined over time. The share of girls marrying very early, before the age of...
    Type: Brief Report#: 106386 Date: March 1, 2016 Author: Male,Chata ; Wodon,Quentin T.
  • Armenia's Monthly Economic Developments
    This brief gives highlights and a brief summary of Armenia's Monthly Economic Developments. GDP growth slowed to 3.0 percent in 2015 in light of the weakening external conditions. The resulting fiscal...
    Type: Brief Report#: 180903 Date: February 29, 2016 Author: World Bank
  • Women’s First Potato Chips Enterprise Tastes Success in Bamyan Province
    An all-women enterprise in Bamyan Province is finding success in the potato chip business, supplying to schools as well providing employment to women. It is one of many small enterprises across the country...
    Type: Brief Report#: 179397 Date: February 23, 2016 Author: World Bank
  • Bringing Paved Roads to the Hinterland
    Extreme poverty is a predominantly rural phenomenon, and the poor quality of roads linking remote areas to market centers is one of its distinguishing features. The time and cost of moving goods over poor...
    Type: Brief Report#: 166415 Date: February 18, 2016
  • Native Forests: Fell Less to Live Better
    Approximately 11 percent of Argentine territory is covered in native forests, equivalent to some 31 million hectares. Of these, two thirds are found in the Chaco ecoregion. However, deforestation in the...
    Type: Brief Report#: 179535 Date: February 18, 2016 Author: World Bank
  • Africa Far from Sustainable Energy for All, But Showing Signs of Progress
    This story highlights the Africa’s rate of electricity access rose from 32 percent in 2010 to 35 percent in 2012, but while 25 million people a year got access, electrification is barely keeping pace with...
    Type: Brief Report#: 166659 Date: February 17, 2016
  • Water Management Improves Crop Quality in Bamyan Province
    Improved water management as a result of the construction of standardized irrigation canals is leading to better crop yield and quality in Bamyan Province. The project to standardize canals is one of 13...
    Type: Brief Report#: 179360 Date: February 17, 2016 Author: World Bank
  • Pakistani Youth See Opportunity in a Globalized Economy
    This brief describes an interactive held at the Institute of Business Administration in Karachi between World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and more than 400 students on February 10, 2016. The purpose was...
    Type: Brief Report#: 179135 Date: February 10, 2016 Author: World Bank
  • West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program
    In Africa, agriculture accounts for employment and gross domestic product (GDP), but poverty remains high in rural areas where most of the population depends on agriculture to make a living. By raising...
    Type: Brief Report#: 166341 Date: February 10, 2016
  • Poverty and welfare in Sri Lanka : recent progress and remaining challenges
    The poverty assessment (PA) is a key instrument of the World Bank’s country engagement strategy. This is designed to assess the extent and causes of poverty in Sri Lanka and to propose a strategy to ameliorate...
    Type: Brief Report#: 103936 Date: February 5, 2016
  • Will the Digital Revolution Help or Hurt Employment?
    What will technological change deliver in the coming decades? Higher unemployment? Or a wealth of new job opportunities? And what can one do to determine the outcome? Technological change in any given...
    Type: Brief Report#: 166372 Date: February 4, 2016
  • FAQ - World Bank Group Support for Water and Sanitation Solutions
    The World Bank Group is committed to eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 and boosting shared prosperity by focusing on the bottom 40 percent. Expanding access to clean water and basic sanitation services...
    Type: Brief Report#: 166441 Date: February 3, 2016
  • Expanding financial inclusion through better credit reporting
    A credit reporting system is an integral part of a well-functioning credit market. It reduces information asymmetries and helps increase access to credit. It also improves borrower discipline, lowers interest...
    Type: Brief Report#: 105114 Date: February 1, 2016 Author: Chavez Sanchez,Edgar Ivan ; Zand Yazdani,Yasmin ; Jiang,Nan
  • SABER - Engaging the private sector
    An education system is composed of all the learning opportunities that are available in a society, including those provided by government schools as well as those offered by a diverse range of providers...
    Type: Brief Report#: 115382 Date: February 1, 2016
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