Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry or the World Bank Group's activities in the UAE Core Insights - Stakeholders in the UAE have shown an increasingly positive attitude towards the World Bank Group (WBG), with significant improvements in perceptions of its effectiveness and relevance since the FY18 survey [15][19] - Skills development and climate change are identified as top priorities for the WBG's focus in the UAE, with a notable increase in emphasis on health, gender equity, and digital infrastructure compared to previous years [22][23] Summary by Sections Overall Attitudes Toward the World Bank Group - In FY24, stakeholders rated the WBG's effectiveness in helping the UAE achieve development results at 7.9, a significant improvement from FY18 [15][16] - Familiarity with the WBG and its alignment with development priorities also received higher ratings compared to FY18, although these improvements did not reach statistical significance [15][19] World Bank Group's Support for Development Areas - Approximately 50% of respondents identified skills development as the primary area for WBG focus, with climate change increasing in importance by 13% since FY18 [22] - Health, gender equity, and digital infrastructure development have seen a significant rise in priority among stakeholders [23] Effectiveness of the WBG's Sectoral Support - The WBG's support for debt sustainability received the highest effectiveness ratings, followed by agriculture and food security, and health [27][28] - Perceptions of effectiveness have improved across all areas compared to FY18, although these differences did not reach statistical significance [27] World Bank Group's Engagement on the Ground in the UAE - Respondents rated the WBG as a long-term partner and flexible in adapting to changing circumstances, with mean ratings improving since FY18 [32][33] - Collaboration with the federal government was rated as the most effective, with calls for increased collaboration with academia and the private sector [35][38] World Bank Group's Knowledge Work - The WBG's advisory services and knowledge products were considered the most valuable, with 67% of respondents having utilized its knowledge work [43][46] - Satisfaction with the quality of advisory services has increased, with significant improvements noted in the perception of the WBG's contribution to development results [47][49] The Future Role of the World Bank Group in the UAE - Respondents emphasized the need for the WBG to focus on national-level studies, climate change adaptation, and collaboration with various stakeholders to enhance its effectiveness [51][52][53] Communication and Outreach - Direct contact with WBG staff and events were the preferred channels for communication, with 52% of respondents recalling recent interactions with the WBG [58][60] - Economic forecasts and research on human capital and climate change were frequently recalled topics [63][65]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry or the World Bank Group's activities in Saudi Arabia Core Insights - The World Bank Group (WBG) is perceived as a relevant development partner in Saudi Arabia, with stakeholders recognizing its alignment with the country's development priorities and effectiveness in achieving results [18][20][21] - Education is identified as the top priority area for WBG's focus, followed by private sector development and skills development [25][26] - Stakeholders express a desire for increased collaboration between the WBG and the private sector, as well as academia, to enhance development outcomes [36][37] Summary by Sections Overall Attitudes Toward the World Bank Group - Stakeholders generally view the WBG positively regarding its alignment with Saudi Arabia's development priorities and its effectiveness in shaping development policy [18][19] - Familiarity with the WBG is notably low among respondents, indicating a need for improved outreach and communication [21] World Bank Group's Support for Development Areas - Approximately 40% of respondents prioritize education as the key area for WBG's resource allocation, with private sector development and skills development also highlighted [25][26] World Bank Group's Engagement on the Ground in Saudi Arabia - The WBG is seen as a long-term partner, with high ratings for openness and flexibility, but lower ratings for accessibility and responsiveness [29][30] - Collaboration with the national government is perceived as the most effective, while engagement with civil society and media is rated lower [33][34] World Bank Group's Knowledge Work - Advisory services and knowledge products are considered the most valuable contributions of the WBG to Saudi Arabia [41][42] - There is a call for increased availability of advisory services and better alignment of knowledge work with the local context [44][45] The Future Role of the World Bank Group in Saudi Arabia - Respondents suggest that the WBG should focus on key development areas and enhance collaboration with local experts to improve effectiveness [49][50] - Increased engagement with the private sector and civil society is also recommended to foster better partnerships [50] Communication and Outreach - Direct contact with WBG staff and events are preferred channels for communication, with a significant portion of respondents recalling recent information about the WBG through social media [54][56] - The WBG's economic forecasts and research on poverty and human capital are among the most recalled topics [59][60]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry Core Insights - The COVID-19 pandemic has led to approximately 6.88 million reported deaths and 14.83 million excess deaths globally, highlighting the need for effective vaccine communication strategies to address vaccine hesitancy, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) [6][14] - The Alliance for Health Online (AHO) and the World Bank's Mind, Behavior, and Development (eMBeD) Unit developed a global research program leveraging social media and behavioral science to diagnose barriers to vaccine uptake and promote effective communication strategies [7][21] - The program reached 230,000 respondents across 25 countries, supporting an estimated $700 million in World Bank vaccine operations [8][65] Summary by Sections Executive Summary - The pandemic exacerbated global inequalities and vaccine hesitancy was a major driver of disparities in vaccine coverage, especially in LMICs [6][14] - The AHO and World Bank's program aimed to address these issues through innovative social media strategies and behavioral insights [7][21] Project Overview - The research program launched in January 2021 with a budget of $2 million, focusing on understanding and tackling vaccine hesitancy [23] - Key activities included rapid diagnostics, message testing, and capacity building for behaviorally informed communications [24][25] Impacts - The project achieved significant impacts, with 91% of World Bank project leads finding the support effective and 82% indicating a likelihood to apply behavioral insights in future projects [9][67] - The use of social media for data collection proved to be fast and economical, with Facebook data showing comparable results to other survey modalities [10][83] Lessons Learned - Social media can facilitate rapid data collection and testing, providing valuable insights for policymakers [83] - Chatbots enhance engagement and improve survey completion rates, demonstrating the potential for interactive interventions [85] Recommendations for Future Projects - Investment in digital tools and continuous training for governments is crucial to enhance the effectiveness of health communication strategies [99][100] - Future projects should prioritize adaptive risk communication strategies and preemptive approaches to misinformation [101][102] Next Steps - The report suggests developing AI-powered tools for personalized guidance in Social and Behavioral Change Communication (SBCC) interventions [110]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry Core Insights - The value of a statistical life (VSL) is crucial for cost-benefit analysis (CBA) in road safety and socio-economic cost calculations of road crashes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where specific VSL estimates are often lacking [2][9] - A new value transfer approach is proposed to estimate VSL in countries without specific data, utilizing income elasticities to adapt VSL estimates from other countries [5][12] - The study emphasizes the need for more VSL research in LMICs, highlighting the limited number of existing studies [5][31] Summary by Sections Methodology - A unit value transfer approach is utilized, determining a base VSL from 32 countries to estimate VSL in other nations based on income per capita [3][4] - The resulting VSL transfer functions are defined for LMIC and high-income countries (HIC), with specific equations relating VSL to Gross National Income (GNI) per capita [4][31] Results - The VSL for LMIC ranges from approximately 22,000 USD to 1.1 million USD, while for HIC it ranges from 1.2 million USD to 4.8 million USD [4][25] - The mean VSL is reported as 2.6 million USD, with significant variation observed between LMIC and HIC [23][28] Recommendations - The report recommends applying the new VSL transfer approach for CBA in countries lacking appropriate country-specific VSL, and suggests developing transfer functions for non-fatal injuries [5][33] - Future research should focus on increasing the number of VSL studies in LMIC, particularly in low-income countries [31][35]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry under review Core Insights - The Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) has made significant progress in developing its statistical infrastructure, with an overall Statistical Performance Indicator (SPI) score of 65.1 in 2023, up from 47.7 in 2016, indicating a 36.58% improvement [12][13] - Key priorities for SIB include developing the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS), integrating administrative data, and addressing resource constraints to enhance its capacity as a data producer and coordinator [10][31] Summary by Sections National Context - Belize's NSS is evaluated using the World Bank's SPI, which assesses data use, services, products, sources, and infrastructure, with scores ranging from 0 to 100 [11] - Belize's SPI score of 65.1 indicates substantial progress, nearing the average of other countries in the LAC region but still below upper middle-income countries [12] Findings - The SIB's self-assessment revealed a moderate performance across most components of the Global SNA, with a score of 2.85 out of 4 [21] - The strongest area identified was human resources, while data collection and openness were the weakest [21] Data Producers - SIB produces 50% of relevant statistical data, excelling in censuses and surveys but lacking in administrative data integration [22][24] - Recent innovations in poverty statistics have improved data collection frequency [25] Coordinators - SIB has the authority to coordinate the NSS but lacks a standardized mechanism for data collection across agencies [27] - The NSDS is being developed to address coordination gaps [27] Promoters of Data Use - SIB publishes statistics on various sectors, including poverty and health, but lacks comprehensive analysis on business activities and national accounts [28] Capacity - SIB demonstrates strong capacity in human resources and data dissemination, but there is room for improvement in public data access [29][30] Priorities - Key priorities include finalizing the NSDS, integrating administrative data, and ensuring personnel and infrastructure needs are met [31] Conclusion and Action Plan - To enhance its role, SIB must build on existing structures and implement strategic actions derived from the assessment [32] Priority Actions for Improvement - Develop and validate the NSDS, leverage technology for data generation, and onboard additional human resources to improve data collection coordination [33][34]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the public procurement industry Core Insights - The report highlights significant variations in public procurement practices across 50 economies, emphasizing the importance of regulatory frameworks and digital procurement in fostering competition and efficiency [1][2][3] - It identifies that good practices in public procurement can be adopted regardless of an economy's income level, with notable examples from both high-income and low-income economies [18][19] - The average Composite Procurement Category score across the 50 economies is 51.1 points, indicating a broad presence of procurement rules but also shared challenges in improving procurement systems [18][19] Summary by Sections Regulatory Framework - The Regulatory Framework pillar has a mean score of 51 points, indicating that while many economies have adopted good regulatory practices, there is still a struggle to design targeted policies to attract new suppliers [22][23] - Greece and North Macedonia lead in this pillar, showcasing that even lower-income economies can strengthen their regulatory frameworks [22][23] Public Services - The Public Services pillar shows the largest score dispersion, with a min-max range of 90 points, primarily due to uneven adoption of digital procurement processes [35][36] - Approximately 70% of economies have implemented a centralized e-procurement portal, but the sophistication of these systems varies significantly [36][37] Operational Efficiency - The Operational Efficiency pillar has the highest average score at 60.4 points, reflecting that governments have focused on streamlining internal processes rather than enhancing public-facing services [38][39] - Georgia ranks highest in this pillar with a score of 96 points, demonstrating effective operational practices across various income levels [39][40]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry Core Insights - Bangladesh could see 13.3 million internal climate migrants by 2050, representing 37% of all South Asian climate migrants [9] - The Government of Bangladesh and the World Bank are committed to managing climate migration, which requires actionable steps [9] - There are significant knowledge and data gaps regarding the gender-climate-migration nexus in Bangladesh [9] Summary by Sections I. Snapshot of Findings and Recommendations - Bangladesh is projected to have 13.3 million internal climate migrants by 2050, making up 37% of South Asian climate migrants [9] - The Government of Bangladesh has prioritized managing climate migration and developing climate-migrant-friendly cities [9] - The World Bank has increased investments to address the climate crisis, but more efforts are needed to support the Government of Bangladesh [9] - There are gaps in knowledge and data regarding the gender impacts of climate migration [9] II. Gender and Climate Migration in Bangladesh - Climate change is a significant driver of internal migration in Bangladesh, with projections indicating that climate migration will outpace other forms of migration by 2050 [14] - The report emphasizes the need to understand gender dynamics in climate migration to address climate change and urbanization effectively [14] III. Exploring Evidence from Southwestern Bangladesh - Women left behind by migrating male family members face increased risks of gender-based violence and economic vulnerability [46][58] - Climate migration impacts women's health, with left-behind women experiencing additional burdens and health risks [48] - Economic outcomes for women are adversely affected, with significant gender gaps in income and employment opportunities [57][65] IV. Government Efforts to Address Climate Migration - The Government of Bangladesh has identified climate migration as a critical issue requiring urgent action from development partners [32] - Key plans include managing climate migration and addressing gender considerations in social protection and urban development [9] V. The World Bank's Response to the Climate Crisis and Gender Equality - The World Bank aims to enhance its operations by focusing on the gendered impacts of climate migration [30] - The report highlights the need for further research and data collection on women's experiences with climate migration [30] VI. Conclusion and Recommendations - Recommendations include expanding the knowledge base on climate migration's effects on women, ensuring gender considerations in policies, and enhancing women's leadership in climate migration discussions [11][13]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the childcare industry in Honduras Core Insights - In Honduras, less than 25% of children under primary-school age attend formal childcare and preschool services, indicating a significant gap in early childhood education access [3][6] - The country has the second-highest gender gap in labor force participation in Latin America, with a 35.4 percentage point difference between men and women, primarily due to household and care responsibilities [3][5] - Enhancing institutional coordination, expanding quality childcare supply, and securing financial support for vulnerable households are essential for improving women's labor market outcomes [3][4] Summary by Sections Key Messages - Only 1.2% of children aged 0-2 and 37.9% of children aged 3-5 attend formal childcare programs [6] - The lack of regulatory frameworks for early childhood services complicates the provision of quality childcare [3][4] - Addressing childcare needs is crucial for improving women's labor market participation [3] Context - Investment in early childhood development positively affects cognitive and socioemotional growth, with access to childcare linked to increased female labor force participation [4] The Problem - Women in Honduras disproportionately bear the burden of household and care responsibilities, with 49% identifying housework as their main activity [8][9] - The absence of a consistent regulatory framework hampers the mapping of childcare supply, leading to gaps in service provision [8] The Evidence - Three main issues identified: lack of regulation and funding for formal childcare services, impact of social norms on childcare responsibilities, and lack of awareness about formal childcare benefits [22] - Public investment in early childhood was only 1% of GDP in 2014, with limited resources allocated compared to other age groups [24] Policy Recommendations - Strengthening institutional coordination for early childhood education is vital [42] - Reconsidering employer-mandated childcare provisions to promote co-responsibility between parents [42] - Encouraging neighborhood or family crèches as a viable option for enhancing mothers' employment opportunities [42]

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the agricultural sector in Eastern India, but it suggests potential productivity gains through optimized fertilizer use, indicating a positive outlook for agricultural investments [5][15]. Core Insights - The report highlights that rebalancing fertilizer use, specifically increasing the potassium-to-nitrogen (K-to-N) ratio, can lead to significant yield improvements, estimating a 4.8% increase in yields if the K-to-N ratio is doubled while keeping expenditure constant [5][14][54]. - The study emphasizes the importance of balanced fertilizer application for enhancing agricultural productivity, particularly in rice cultivation in Eastern India, where current practices show a significant imbalance favoring nitrogen [11][30]. - The findings suggest that knowledge constraints among farmers regarding the benefits of potassium fertilizers are a major barrier to achieving optimal fertilizer use, indicating a need for educational interventions [63][64]. Summary by Sections Introduction - The introduction discusses the role of inorganic fertilizers in improving agricultural productivity and the negative consequences of over-reliance on nitrogen fertilizers, including environmental degradation and reduced future productivity [10][27]. Data - The analysis utilizes detailed farmer-level surveys from rice fields in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha, focusing on the application rates of different fertilizers and their impact on yields [19][22]. Empirical Strategy - The report employs a two-stage least squares (2SLS) approach to estimate the causal impact of K-to-N ratios on agricultural output, using geographical variations in fertilizer supply chains as instruments [37][50]. Results - The results indicate that a one-standard-deviation increase in the K-to-N ratio can lead to a 16% increase in rice yields, significantly higher than estimates derived from ordinary least squares (OLS) methods [53][54]. - While yield increases are evident, the report notes that the impact on farmer revenue is less clear, potentially due to measurement errors and market dynamics affecting prices [55][56]. Conclusion - The conclusion underscores the potential for policy interventions aimed at optimizing fertilizer use to enhance agricultural productivity, suggesting that improving farmers' knowledge about nutrient diversity could be a cost-effective strategy [64][65].

Investment Rating - The report does not explicitly provide an investment rating for the industry Core Insights - Jobs are a primary mechanism for poverty reduction in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), accounting for two-thirds of the decline during the last period of rapid progress (2009-14) [4] - LAC generated approximately 27 million net new jobs over the past decade, with job growth rates comparable to other world regions [4][30] - The labor market is expected to become less dynamic in 2025 due to downgraded economic growth projections [7] Trends and Projections - The labor market performance in LAC has mirrored the region's business cycle, with employment growth stabilizing at around 2 percent year-over-year since Q3 2023 [5][6] - Job creation is projected to decline slightly to 1.6 percent year-to-year in 2025, down from about 2 percent in 2024 [7] - Youth unemployment fell by more than 5 percentage points since 2016, primarily due to growth in salaried jobs in the private sector [4][38] Labor Market Structure - The working-age employment rate increased by 1.3 percentage points to 58.9 percent in 2024, while unemployment dropped from 8.5 to 6.2 percent [37] - Youth unemployment remained high at 14 percent in 2024, more than double the overall unemployment rate [38] - Labor informality remains a significant challenge, with informality rates declining to 42.1 percent of workers by 2024 [52][53] Labor Incomes - Labor market incomes exhibited limited gains with an annualized growth of 0.3 percent from 2016 to 2019, while post-pandemic recovery saw earnings rise by at least 3 percent across most socioeconomic groups in 2024 [61][62] - Gender earnings disparities persisted, with women earning on average about 22 percent less than men [62][63] - The LAC region is among the most unequal globally, with significant labor market disparities driving this inequality [69] Sectoral Reallocations - Structural transformation in LAC has been slow, with inconsistent reallocation of workers toward higher-productivity sectors [90] - Employment has shifted toward higher-productivity sectors like transportation and finance in some countries, while others have seen increases in low-productivity sectors [91][93]