Thailand is widely considered progressive among developing and middle-income countriesregarding the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or intersex (LGBTI) people. Yet,a growing body of research shows they still experience discrimination, limited job and housingopportunities, and...

One important barrier to insurance markets that are more inclusive is the necessity to better understand the needs of low-income and other un- and underserved populations. These people are not currently clients of insurers and are difficult for insurers to reach through normal operations. As a...

To better assess the water-energy nexus challenge in China, the Thirsty Energy initiative engaged the China Institute for Water Resources (IWHR) and Hydropower Research under the auspices of the Ministry of Water Resources and the Institute of Energy, Environment, and Economy of Tsinghua...

This report is presenting the key findings of the Energy Efficiency Transformation in Astana and Almaty study, a project financed by the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) - a multi-donor technical assistance trust fund administered by the World Bank. The study is...

Since its adoption in December 2015 by the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21), within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), 175 countries to date have ratified the Paris Agreement. These countries have made commitments Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), in...

Despite significant progress since gaining independence in 2002, Timor-Leste’s economy is still struggling with declining oil revenues and slowing economic growth, while access to improved basic services is still low and vulnerability to natural disasters remain high. In that context,...

This Good Practice Handbook is designed to provide guidance to practitioners on taking rigorous and consistent approaches to assess hydropower project impacts on downstream river ecosystems and people, and determine their Environmental Flows (EFlows) commitments. The Handbook outlines a good...

The conflict inflicted by ISIS has forced over 5 million ordinary Iraqis to flee their homes, left schools destroyed and hospitals dysfunctional. Seven governorates have been fiercely affected while the entire country felt the shockwaves. During these times of despair, our neighbors and the...

The Financial Sector’s Cybersecurity: Regulation and Supervision identifies prevalent concepts and practices and presents them in a way for financial sector authorities to consider and apply to their respective jurisdictions. Starting with the debate of whether cyber-specific regulations are...

Overall, the investment climate seems to have deteriorated in Lao PDR between 2012 and 2016. In the 2012 survey, not one area of the investment climate was identified as a serious problem by more than 20 percent of firms. In the 2016 survey, there were six areas where more than 20 percent of...