Online Media Briefing Center (OMBC) news for accredited journalists
Highlights
Expanded ambition and partnership with the G20 Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty to reach at least 500 million people in need
The World Bank Group today unveiled a comprehensive package of initiatives to address urgent poverty and hunger, and enable vulnerable people to increase earnings, enhance resilience against climate shocks, and promote empowerment for women and girls.
The United States pledged up to $667 million, and Germany pledged $54 million to the Pandemic Fund as it works towards raising at least $2 billion to meet strong demand from low- and middle-income countries.
The Bank and the Fund are pleased to announce the formation of a group of external advisors to help guide the exercise, comprising Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Finance of Indonesia; Patrick Achi, former Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire; and Mark Malloch Brown, former Deputy Secretary-General of the UN.
Domestic food price inflation remains high in many low- and middle-income countries. Inflation higher than 5% is experienced in 59.1% of low-income countries (no change since the last update on May 30, 2024), 63% of lower-middle-income countries (no change), 36% of upper-middle-income countries (5.0 percentage points higher), and 10.9 percent of high-income countries (3.6 percentage points lower).
The annual Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) for Africa confirms that countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) weathered 2023 relatively well thanks to credible economic and social policy reforms. In particular, governments and central banks have started to shift attention from weathering global shocks to building credibility, capacity, and transparency.
The platform, housed at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), brings together products and experts from the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MIGA for simplicity, efficiency, and speed. It aims to boost WBG annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.
The modest 0.7% growth rate reflects large variances in regional growth, but remittances remained a crucial source of external finance for developing countries in 2023, bolstering the current accounts of several countries grappling with food insecurity and debt issues.
The Academy encompasses all three Bank Group institutions—the World Bank, IFC (International Finance Corporation), and MIGA—in one platform and will help ensure that the best global knowledge is driving development, informing projects that can be scaled and replicated, and influencing global conversations.
