The World Bank has a long history of investing in China's technical and vocational education and training (TVET), dating back to the 1963 Higher Education Project, which benefited selected tertiary TVET programs in project schools. The initial World Bank projects for TVET in China were designed mostly on the national level, supporting selected institutions in multiple provinces. Starting in 2006, based on strong analytical work and increased demand from various provinces, the World Bank began a direct policy dialogue with interested provinces, and in turn started supporting provincial level...

Most Sub-Saharan African countries try to promote rural electrification through both centralized and decentralized approaches. This guide focuses on the decentralized approach, providing practical guidance on how small power producers and mini-grid operators can deliver both electrification and renewable energy in rural areas. It describes four basic types of on- and off-grid small power producers, as well as several hybrid combinations that are emerging in Africa and elsewhere. The guide highlights the ground-level regulatory and policy questions that must be answered by electricity...

For the past two decades, Africa has experienced strong economic growth. However, high levels of chronic poverty persist, with poor households exposed to frequent shocks and a widening gap between income groups in terms of human capital outcomes and access to basic services. By providing regular, reliable support to poor and vulnerable households and by helping individuals invest in productive activities, targeted interventions such as safety nets have shown to help reduce poverty, reverse the trend of increasing inequality, and build household resilience. In the wake of the global economic...

Crime and violence inflict high costs on the private sector--costs that are rising globally, according to the World Bank's Enterprise Surveys, discussions with chambers and associations, and the Bank's Country Partnership Strategies, which reference the losses in terms of gross domestic product (GDP). In Latin America and the Caribbean, for example, losses due to crime and violence have been estimated at 9 percent of GDP in Honduras, 7.7 percent in El Salvador, and 3.6 percent in Costa Rica. In sectors such as clothing assembly, international purchasers can shift know-how and capital quickly...

Vietnam has attained a strong record of economic growth and poverty reduction since the adoption of market-based economic reforms and pro-poor policies starting in the mid-1980s. Much of this achievement was driven by an untapped, rapidly-growing labor force and the enablement of greater labor participation in higher-productivity sectors of the economy. Yet, as Vietnam has restructured its economic activity towards manufacturing, more mechanized primary sector production and, increasingly, services, and as the labor force is projected to expand at a markedly lower rate than before, finding...

Like many of its Southeast Asian neighbors, Vietnam faces the twin challenges of sustaining economic growth and protecting the environment. On the one hand, the impressive poverty reduction and growth performance attained over the past 25 years is now challenged by slower global and domestic growth, more intense international competition for foreign direct investment, and the need to drive domestic productivity improvements. On the other, Vietnam's vast natural resources--as represented by two major river deltas, a long coast line, and a multitude of rivers and canals--and the large portion...

Just as the steam engine was the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution, today, broadband Internet is seen as critical to the transition of knowledge-intensive economies across the world. As a general purpose technology, broadband Internet is considered a fundamental driver of economic growth and social development, releasing the innovative potential and energy of previously disenfranchised members of the population. Many of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) now recognize that broadband Internet is crucial to their efforts to reduce poverty and create job...

Problem-driven political economy analysis holds considerable promise for development practitioners seeking to identify policies and strategies that are most likely to deliver solutions for difficult development challenges. This volume takes stock of the World Bank's experiences applying this approach. The eight good practice cases presented in this volume illustrate recent Bank achievements. Problem-Driven Political Economy Analysis: The World Bank's Experience shows how political economy analysis can be applied to specific development challenges from different sectors, highlights the range...

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is becoming increasingly critical to the economies of developing countries, in part due to a major expansion in the scope of global value chains (GVCs), whereby lead firms outsource parts of their production and services activities across complex international networks. FDI delivers important contributions including investment, employment, and foreign exchange. However, it is FDI's spillover potential--the productivity gain that may result from the diffusion of knowledge and technology from foreign investors to local firms and workers--that is perhaps its most...

What steps are needed to enable the domestic private sector to expand its role in the provision of safe water and improved sanitation to the poor in developing countries? Is an expanded role constrained because of limited market potential, are business models unable to support an expansion of supply, or do government policy and the broader climate for investment inhibit enterprises? Tapping the Markets: Opportunities for Domestic Investments in Water and Sanitation for the Poor presents the results of a detailed examination of market opportunities for the domestic private sector in the...