Agricultural growth rates in the Latin
America and the Caribbean (LAC) region have been much slower
than the rest of the developing world. In the regions of
East Asia, South Asia and Middle East and North Africa, the
annual growth of agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
in 1980-2004 exceeded 3 percent, while growth in Sub-
Saharan Africa averaged almost 3 percent. This paper
attempts to present an overview of the agricultural sector

This report investigates Egypt's
regional economic growth, explores the causes for
geographically unbalanced development, and proposes policy
options to make unbalanced growth compatible with inclusive
development. In Egypt, despite rapid progress in most
welfare indicators in lagging regions, there are still
substantial gaps in consumption and opportunities between
growth poles and the rest of the country. This report's

In 2009 the Gabonese authorities defined
a new vision whose strategic guidelines are detailed in an
operational plan, the strategic plan for an emerging Gabon
(PSGE) whose goal is to turn Gabon into an emerging country
within one generation. PSGE includes an ambitious public
investment program to develop basic infrastructure and to
create the necessary economic environment for the emergence
of a diversified economy. The major challenge for PSGE, and

Much of the rural poor -- who are
growing in number -- are concentrated in ecologically
fragile and remote areas. The key ecological scarcity
problem facing such poor households is a vicious cycle of
declining livelihoods, increased ecological degradation and
loss of resource commons, and declining ecosystem services
on which the poor depend. In addition, developing economies
with high concentrations of their populations on fragile

This paper is one of a series of
analytical studies commissioned by the World Bank's
Africa Region and Water Anchor which are intended to
identify and address the future challenges of urban water
supply, sanitation and flood management in Sub-Saharan
Africa's (SSA) cities and towns. Following the terms of
reference for the assignment, and as indicated by its title,
the paper is directed at understanding and describing the

The objective of the Nepal Investment Climate Assessment (ICA) is to evaluate the investment climate in Nepal in all its dimensions and promote policies to strengthen the private sector. The investment climate is made up of many dimensions that shape the opportunities for investments, employment creation, and growth of private firms. Such dimensions include factor markets, product markets, infrastructure services, and the macroeconomic, legal, regulatory, and institutional framework.

This Joint Social and Economic
Assessment (JSEA) has been prepared in response to a request
from the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation
(MoPIC), and was undertaken jointly by the World Bank, the
United Nations, the European Union, and the Islamic
Development Bank. The JSEA's main purpose is to assess
the social and economic impact of the crisis in Yemen, and
to identify challenges and key priorities for early

Interest in farmland is rising. And,
given commodity price volatility, growing human and
environmental pressures, and worries about food security,
this interest will increase, especially in the developing
world. One of the highest development priorities in the
world must be to improve smallholder agricultural
productivity, especially in Africa. Smallholder productivity
is essential for reducing poverty and hunger, and more and

Today, 370 million people live in cities
in earthquake prone areas and 310 million in cities with
high probability of tropical cyclones. By 2050, these
numbers are likely to more than double. Mortality risk
therefore is highly concentrated in many of the world s
cities and economic risk even more so. This paper discusses
what sets hazard risk in urban areas apart, provides
estimates of valuation of hazard risk, and discusses

The report is divided into two volumes.
The first volume includes the fundamental content of the
report. It is organized as follows. Chapter one provides a
conceptual framework to analyze risk and vulnerability and
provides a definition of social protection. Chapter two
assesses the main risks faced by the Malagasy population as
well as its vulnerability profile. Chapter three reviews
Madagascar's social protection policies, the

Poor rural women in the developing world
spend considerable time collecting water. How then do they
respond to improved access to water infrastructure? Does it
increase their participation in income earning market-based
activities? Does it improve the health and education
outcomes of their children? To help address these questions,
a new approach for dealing with the endogeneity of
infrastructure placement in cross-sectional surveys is

In 2006, the government approved a
national livestock policy based on the premise that the
livestock industry has an important role to play in building
a strong national economy and in the process, reducing
inequalities among Tanzanians by increasing their incomes
and employment opportunities. This report presents an
analysis of rural livelihoods in Tanzania, with particular
emphasis on the livestock sub-sector, smallholder