Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

To mark the first International Equal Pay Day, the Equal Pay International Coalition (EPIC) called all leaders to take necessary steps to ensure pay equity is at the heart of COVID-19 recovery efforts worldwide.  Led by the OECD, ILO and UN Women, EPIC brings together a diverse set of actors and expertise to support governments, employers, workers, and their organisations to make concrete and co-ordinated progress to achieve equal pay for women and men everywhere.

COVID-19 containment measures weighed heavily on economic activity in the second quarter of 2020, with unprecedented falls in real gross domestic product (GDP) in most G20 countries. For the G20 area as a whole, GDP dropped by a record (minus) 6.9%, significantly larger than the (minus) 1.6% recorded in the first quarter of 2009 at the height of the financial crisis.

* Aggregate PLN 85 million loan (approx. €20 million) to two city housing companies for the construction and renovation of social and affordable housing units.

* The aim is to regenerate the historic part of the city, encourage a social mix and promote innovative energy-efficient solutions in parts of the housing stock.

* The operation is backed by EFSI and partly benefits from the Natural Capital Financing Facility.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand and the World Bank jointly organized an online knowledge sharing seminar on Sustainable Investments and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) as part of SEC’s efforts to promote the development of sustainable capital markets and green​ing the financial system in Thailand.

The OECD area unemployment rate fell to 7.7% in July 2020, from 8.0% in June, but remained 2.5 percentage points above the rate in February, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the labour market. The monthly fall for the OECD as a whole masks strong regional differences.

Countries need to work together to defend the ocean from a steady rise in temperature, pollution and overfishing that threatens its ability to continue supporting marine life and providing food and income to billions of people, according to a new OECD report.

The Government of Nepal and the World Bank signed, on September 4, a financing agreement for an additional grant of US$10.85 million to the School Sector Development Program (SSDP) to maintain access to basic education and continued learning for children amid the COVID-19 crisis.

The World Bank Board of Directors recently approved a US$75 million development policy operation for Madagascar to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

The World Bank Board of Executive Directors recently approved an $86 million credit for the Malawi government to increase access to financial services and promote the entrepreneurship and capabilities of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Malawi, including addressing the negative economic effects of COVID-19 (coronavirus).