Emerging economies confront unprecedented challenges mobilizing finance for green industrial transitions while maintaining development trajectories. This paper examines implementation effectiveness across India, South Africa, Brazil, and Indonesia-major economies representing diverse political...

This study analyzes the empirical link between German bilateral development finance and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) at the sub-national (ADM2) level. We construct a unique dataset by merging geo-referenced development aid projects - implemented by KfW Development Bank - over more than two...

Development finance institutions mobilize over $250 billion annually through blended finance operations, yet practitioners lack a unified framework to evaluate its catalytic effect and for choosing among instruments. I develop a model of investment multipliers under two canonical market...

This paper introduces the African Debt Database (ADD) - a new, comprehensive dataset that traces both domestic and external debt instruments at a granular level. The main innovation is a detailed mapping of Africa's domestic debt markets, drawing on rich, new data extracted from government...

We review the literature on the political economy of foreign aid, examining the geopolitical returns generated by Official Development Assistance (ODA). Our paper identifies conditions under which donors are able to influence political and economic outcomes in recipient countries, shape their...

Women entrepreneurs in rural South Africa face structural and socio-cultural barriers in accessing funding. This study investigated how existing financial structures and support programs influence the sustainability and growth of female-owned businesses in rural areas. Using bibliometric...

The African Development Fund (ADF) is much less active than the World Bank's IDA in Africa. This predominance of the IDA is only found in Africa. In fact, disbursements by other major regional banks exceed those of the World Bank in their respective regions (Central America and the Caribbean,...

For more than five decades, the World Bank’s premier annual publication on debt, now titled the International Debt Report (IDR), along with the associated International Debt Statistics (IDS) database, has helped shape policies in development finance by sharing timely and comprehensive external...

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....

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...

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...

Since the beginning of US President Donald Trump’s second term in early 2025, not only US development policy but the entire international development cooperation landscape has fundamentally changed. The United States – previously by far the leading actor in global development cooperation –...

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...