Online Media Briefing Center (OMBC) news for accredited journalists
Highlights
The world’s 26 poorest economies—home to about 40 percent of all people who live on less than $2.15 a day—are deeper in debt than at any time since 2006 and increasingly vulnerable to natural disasters and other shocks, new analysis from the World Bank shows. Yet international aid as a share of their GDP has dwindled to a two-decade low, forcing many to obtain financing on punishing terms.
Here are the latest bi-annual regional economic updates to explore the macro development trends in Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.
Domestic food price inflation remains high in many low- and middle-income countries. Inflation higher than 5% is experienced in 77.3% of low-income countries (18.2 percentage points higher since the last Update on June 27, 2024), 54.3% of lower-middle-income countries (8.7 percentage points lower), 44% of upper-middle-income countries (8.0 percentage points higher), and 10.7% of high-income countries (0.2 percentage points lower).
Demonstrating the country’s continued dedication to global development, Denmark’s pledge of DKK 3,300 million represents a 40% increase compared to the previous IDA replenishment cycle.
This cooperation will allow a scaling up of support to countries to prevent, detect and respond to public health threats through the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST), the WBG’s financial and technical support, and WHO’s technical expertise and in-country capabilities.
Economies do better at enacting regulations to improve the national business climate than they do in providing the public services needed to secure actual progress, according to the World Bank Group’s new Business Ready report.
This two-day Chatham House Rules event will bring together a small and diverse group of global thinkers—including individuals prominent in the fields of history, international relations, political science, finance, and business—at the location of the 1944 United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference (the “Bretton Woods Conference”).
The World Bank Group delivered a record $42.6 billion in climate finance in fiscal year 2024—which covers July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024—supporting efforts to end poverty on a livable planet, investing in cleaner energy, more resilient communities, and stronger economies. This is a 10% increase in climate finance compared to the previous year.
