The new loss and damage funding framework under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) emphasises the importance of channelling support through national systems and mechanisms. This approach could prove particularly challenging for African least developed ountries...

The Asian Development Bank has adopted internal practices aligned with its commitment to help its members achieve gender equality. This study analyzes panel data on its staff spanning 2000-2022 to understand gender differences in salaries and career paths of its three staff groups. A...

China's global development finance is undergoing a major transformation. As domestic reforms and borrower debt risks rise, Chinese financial institutions are shifting how they finance projects abroad-especially in Africa, where they've long played a major role. This report explores how China is...

Both World Bank shareholders and the Bank’s management have emphasised the need for large-scale private investment to achieve development and climate goals. For the World Bank Group, this means collaborating more closely between its different institutions, an issue that World Bank President...

The European Union (EU) Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF for Africa) was set up to support the most vulnerable and marginalised people, including refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), migrants and members of host communities. Over the last nine years, it has provided great momentum...

The European Union (EU) Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF for Africa) was set up to support the most vulnerable and marginalised people, including refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), migrants and members of host communities. Over the last nine years, it has provided great momentum...

This study investigates the effectiveness of government expenditure in combating the incidence of poverty in Nigeria from 1981 to 2022, employing a Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) framework. The research analyzes the relationship between poverty incidence and key variables including...

A major policy outcome of the Paris climate treaty is the direct transfer of climate funds to developing countries to enhance renewable energy production. This study considers whether climate-related mitigation finance advances non-hydroelectric power renewable electricity production in...

This paper investigates the role of the New Development Bank (NDB) in challenging global financial hierarchies while fostering an ecological transition. The NDB, established by BRICS, has a mechanism of providing development finance in local currency, which could reduce dependency on core...

This paper rethinks development finance in Tajikistan through the lens of fiscal sociology, arguing that sustained reliance on foreign aid and external borrowing may weaken state-society trust and erode institutional legitimacy. Anchored in the political economy of development finance, the paper...

Talent is one of the world's most valuable resources. Countries that identify and nurture the best minds gain a competitive edge. Those that fail to do so don't just slow their own progress-the world loses out, too. F&D magazine's March issue examines the role of global talent and human capital...

Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) are government-owned entities that play an increasingly important role in supporting private sector projects in developing countries. This paper synthesizes key findings from the academic and grey literature to provide a comprehensive understanding of...

Since there is only one climate, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can qualify as a perfect global public good. As the benefits are global, climate change mitigation cannot be administered solely with the promotion of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as the main...

Remittances are a lifeline for many households in low and middle income countries (LMICs), and have emerged as an important source of external financing for sustainable development. With over 800 million people dependent on remittances worldwide, their importance for developing and least...

This Handbook provides guidance to staff on the IMF's facilities available to countries eligible to obtain concessional financing from the Fund under the PRGT, namely low-income countries (LICs). It updates the previous version of the Handbook that was published in March 2023 by incorporating...

The series of major economic shocks since 2020 has added to longstanding development challenges, with low-income and fragile countries affected the most. The negative economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the spillovers from the war in Ukraine, and the tightening of international financial...

Development outcomes such as job creation, clean energy access, and sustainable agriculture drive a global effort to bolster growth along sustainable and climate-resilient pathways, but significant funding gaps are hampering progress. Results-based climate finance (RBCF) can play an important...

Digital technologies are increasingly important for delivering inclusive, resilient, and high-quality education, yet financing their effective deployment remains a key constraint in many low- and middle-income countries). This paper examines the scale of investment needed to achieve universal...

The World Bank Group strategy emphasizes that private capital is critical for the investments required to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in client countries (World Bank and IMF 2023). A large gap persists between the resources of governments and donors and the investment required...

Ever since their independence, African countries have engaged in a series of treaties creating 8 Regional Economic Communities (RECs) that were (and still are) to pilot this integration starting with a Free Trade Area (FTA) followed by a customs union, a common market, and a monetary union...

In Africa, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face a chronic financing gap that hinders their growth and the continent's economic development. Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) are often seen as a solution to bridge this gap, particularly through indirect support to local banks....

The United Nations financing for development process, including the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Seville in 2025, is an important building block to foster global cooperation amid the current geopolitical tensions and multiple crises that have led to...

The World Bank Group considers itself a "Knowledge Bank." The Bank's knowledge work contributes to development outcomes both by informing clients in various policy and reform areas, and by informing staff and clients on the selection, design, and implementation of lending operations. This...

Can developing economies achieve growth that benefits everyone and protects the planet? This report explores how low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) can achieve inclusive and sustainable economic transformation (ISET) - where economic growth benefits all of society and protects our planet....

Development finance institutions (DFIs) face significant challenges in addressing unmet development needs, particularly in smaller, lower-income countries with few large firms and high investment risks, and in sectors with few private operators. In response, some DFIs, like British International...

The climate change crisis makes Paris Alignment of the transport sector one of the most pressing development challenges. Transport emissions are rising at a higher rate in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) than in high-income countries. However, the current climate finance landscape for...