This regional study encompasses three
Central American countries: Nicaragua, Guatemala and
Honduras. The focus of this report is Guatemala. The study
is motivated by several factors: First is the recognition
that sub-national regions are becoming increasingly
heterogeneous, and economically differentiated as part of
ongoing processes of development and diversification, with
some areas advancing, and others being left behind. Second

The review focuses on development and
the environment in Yemen, particularly analyzing the
environment resource base, where renewable fresh water is
scarce, mainly ground water, and its over exploitation is
one of the country's major environmental problems.
Fisheries resources are also important, while oil and gas
are significant resources contributing to some eighty five
percent of Yemen's export revenues. Environmental

Reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse gases that affect climate change is one of
the key challenges facing the international community. The
Bank's Prototype Carbon Fund (PCF) provides a framework
for action, learning, and research to demonstrate how
greenhouse gas emission reduction transactions can
contribute to sustainable development, while lowering the
costs of compliance with the Kyoto Protocol-the 1997

About 50 countries have prepared interim
and full Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs). In this
context, this paper examines Millennium Development Goal
(MDG)7: Ensuring Environmental Sustainability, its targets
and indicators, and responds to three questions: To what
extent do PRSPs define and adopt targets and indicators that
align with those of MDG7? To what extent do the available
data allow tracking of progress with respect to MDG7? When

The report assesses the main factors
which constrain the sustainable development of the Gezira
Scheme (GS), to develop medium, to long term plans,
including short-term actions, to address those constrains.
The GS, is described as a large and complex enterprise,
because although it is one the world's largest
irrigation systems, it has become one of the least
efficient, irrespective of the fact that it uses thirty five

This social assessment (SA) is part of
the Sanliurfa and Harran On-farm Development Project in
Turkey, and aims at identifying an appropriate mix of
project inputs to reduce poverty. The objectives of the SA
are to understand the impact of rapid agricultural
modernization on various social groups, according to
ownership criteria, and gender issues, and, to learn how
those benefiting from irrigation, assess the quality of

The aim of this study is to improve
understanding of how biological resource conservation
concerns can be better incorporated into projects and
programs that primarily address the objective of rural
development rather than environmental conservation. A
multi-disciplinary study team was assembled and six
background papers produced, along with the main overview
paper. The six papers were on: 1) measuring biodiversity,

The intensive development of tourism in
the Gulf of Aqaba presents both an opportunity and a dilemma
for Egypt. Intensive tourism, if left unmanaged, can inflict
irreversible damage on coral reef and desert ecosystems and
curtail the area's economic potential. Together with
current projections for a rapid expansion of the tourism
base in the Aqaba coast, degradation from mounting
recreational activities give rise to serious concerns about

The World Bank research program seeks to
improve the design of Bank-financed projects, and programs
to increase the effectiveness of aid, and improve
recognition of emerging problems, in a responsive manner to
crises. Moreover, this program supports policy-oriented
research in developing, and transition economies, by
assisting in the development of research capacity in member
countries, as well as improving the Bank's own advisory

Bringing the United States and major
developing countries to control their greenhouse gas
emissions will be the key challenge for the international
climate regime beyond the Kyoto Protocol. But in the current
quantity-based coordination, large uncertainties surrounding
future emissions and future abatement opportunities make the
costs of any commitment very difficult to assess ex ante,
hence a strong risk that the negotiation will be stalled.

Regulatory reform in all its
aspects--deregulation, re-regulation, simplification, and
building new institutional capacities for developing and
applying high quality market rules--should be integrated
throughout Mauritania's efforts to generate the growth
and market development needed to combat poverty, improve
standards of living, and lay the foundation for a
sustainable development. This report identifies practical

Substantial improvement has been done by
the Bank in its environmental performance since 1987. The
Bank focused on the environment as a new area of activity,
and it has sought to mitigate the negative environmental
effects of its development interventions. The Bank's
participation in the 1992 United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development, and the 1992 World Development
Report on the environment, demonstrated the Bank's