Jobs and Growth

Over the next decade, 1.2 billion young people in developing countries will reach working age. Without swift action, many could struggle to find jobs or clear paths to employment. Acting now can spark private sector-driven growth that creates productive jobs, supports decent livelihoods, and strengthens communities against future shocks.

When more people have steady, better-paid jobs, they spend more, businesses grow, and economies expand. Better jobs, particularly in formal firms that use technology and capital, also build skills and raise productivity. As workers move from subsistence activities to higher-value wage jobs, the economy produces more with the same effort. This structural transformation is key to lasting growth.

Economic growth, in turn, creates even more and better jobs. Rising demand leads businesses to expand and hire. New firms emerge, successful firms grow, and innovation improves efficiency. Investments in equipment, technology, and training help raise job quality and wages. Trade and participation in global value chains amplify these effects by connecting more people and ideas across markets.

Good jobs are how families benefit from growth. Steady employment helps people meet basic needs, invest in education and health, and build resilience.

To make this happen, countries need a competitive and predictable business environment where firms can enter, invest, and innovate. Better trade links and connectivity also matter. At the same time, workers must be supported to move up the “jobs ladder” through stronger skills systems, good health, and fewer barriers—especially for women and young people.

Together, these efforts create a powerful cycle of better jobs, faster growth—boosting productivity, inclusion, and resilience.

At the World Bank Group, jobs are at the heart of our mission. Creating more and better-paid jobs is now an explicit goal across everything we do, and we work with countries through the full life cycle of job creation.

In addition to supporting essential services such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure—which helps prepare people for the jobs of tomorrow and build the foundations for broad-based growth—we work with governments to improve business policies and regulations. This helps create an environment in which the private sector can thrive and generate jobs across sectors.

Our analysis and reports identify where private-sector-led growth can take off, and what is holding it back. These insights guide our financing and can also help governments design reforms that unlock investment and expand opportunities.

The World Bank Group’s on-the-ground presence, private sector know-how, and financing tools help companies of all sizes grow and hire. Through business accelerators, for example, we support young entrepreneurs to test new ideas and bring solutions to market. More broadly, our debt and equity financing, risk-sharing and guarantees, and tailored skills programs help micro, small, and medium enterprises—as well as larger companies—take advantage of a more business-friendly environment.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Low- and middle-income countries, small island states, and countries affected by fragility and conflict face very different jobs challenges, so we adapt our support to each context.

We also mobilize global knowledge to improve policies. The Country Growth and Jobs Report, launched in 2025, puts jobs at the center of country-level analyses and recommendations, helping governments identify not just how to grow faster but how to create more and better-paid jobs. Its findings feed into World Bank Country Partnership Frameworks (CPFs), which shape our work with each country.

Our cutting-edge research and partnerships further examine how megatrends—such as climate change, demographic shifts, and technological change—offer challenges and opportunities for job creation in developing countries.

Fiscal Policy and Growth

Poverty reduction, social equity, and sustainable growth are only possible with sound monetary and fiscal policies. The World Bank supports countries in the design and implementation of economic reforms to strengthen macroeconomic stability.

Explore our Fiscal Policy and Growth Investments