This note is part of a series of notes that explore new trends and developments in Fintech and analyze their potential relevance for WBG activities. The note discusses how new technology can make insurance more inclusive and hold the potential to overcome barriers to inclusive insurance when...

Worldwide, approximately 781 million adults are unable to read or write in any language. While adult literacy rates have increased significantly over the past several decades, recent progress largely reflects a more-educated younger generation replacing a less-education older generation. The...

This report is based on a study of the costs and savings of retail payments in Albania using a methodology (A Practical Guide for Measuring Retail Payment Costs) developed by the World Bank’s Payment Systems Development Group, part of the Financial Inclusion, Infrastructure, and Access at the...

This diagnostic report was prepared by the World Bank to support its water sector dialogue with the Government of Romania. It aims to provide stakeholders, especially from the Romanian Government and the European Commission, with a comprehensive stock-taking of the situation in the Romanian...

This study analyses the tax systems of five OECS countries (Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines). Taxes on tobacco, and therefore cigarette prices, vary widely across the five countries, and smuggling and tax evasion are genuine risks....

Global growth continued its 2017 momentum in early 2018. Global growth reached a stronger than- expected 3 percent in 2017 — a notable recovery from a post-crisis low of 2.4 percent in 2016. It is currently expected to peak at 3.1 percent in 2018. Recoveries in investment, manufacturing, and...

Agriculture accounts for 70 percent of employment, overwhelmingly on small farms; occupies half of all land area, and provides half of all exports and one-quarter of GDP in Uganda. It is considered a leading sector for future economic growth and economic inclusion in the current National...

As a country with one of the highest male smoking rates and one of the lowest cigarette prices in the world, Korea has prioritized many tobacco control efforts, including bans on smoking in public places, regulations on tobacco advertising, and public education about the harms of tobacco use....

Lao PDR’s GDP growth slightly decelerated to 6.9 percent in 2017, but remained robust. The economy is expected to further ease to 6.7 percent in 2018. Recent expansion of labor-intensive industries (agriculture, manufacturing and services) and robust remittances inflows are expected to...

Albania’s labor markets improved between 2014 and 2016 where more people than before found jobs and unemployment rates fell. However, many challenges remain to channel the jobless into jobs. Efficient and effective public employment services aimed at fostering successful job matching can make...