This note is part of the April 2024 release of the latest country-level Learning Poverty estimates. The document details country-level changes to the underlying data used to produce the April 2024 Learning Poverty release and builds on the changes documented in the technical note accompanying...

As more and more countries both developed and developing have become interested in collecting information on student learning, there has been a concomitant growth in the demand for strong student assessment systems. The World Bank is at the forefront of efforts to support developing countries in...

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of what matters most for building a more effective student assessment system. The focus is on systems for assessing student learning and achievement at the primary and secondary levels. The paper extracts principles and guidelines from...

Cabo Verde has focused on increasing student learning outcomes by improving the quality of education in the country. An effective student assessment system is an important component of efforts to improve education quality and learning outcomes because it provides the necessary information to...

The debate on whether natural disasters cause significant macroeconomic impacts and indeed hinder development is ongoing. Most analyses along these lines have focused on impacts on gross domestic product. This paper looks beyond this standard national accounting aggregate, and examines whether...

East Asia has experienced a dramatic decrease in output growth volatility over the past 20 years. This is good news, as output growth volatility affects poor households because of coping strategies that have long-term, harmful consequences, and the overall economy through its negative impact on...

This paper analyzes the drivers and consequences of sudden stops of capital flows. It focuses on the impact of external vulnerability on the depth and length of sudden stop crises. The authors analyze 43 developing and developed countries between 1993 and 2006. They find evidence that external...

This paper analyzes the impact of banking crises on manufacturing exports exploiting the fact that sectors differ in their needs for external financing. Relying on data from 23 banking crises episodes involving both developed and developing countries during the period 1980-2000 the authors...