Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Serkan Arslanalp visited Pohnpei from November 10‒16, 2016, to review economic developments in advance of discussions for the 2017 Article IV consultations (expected to take place during the summer of 2017).

MEPs have fought for and obtained better support for unemployed youngsters and additional funds to boost key initiatives supporting SMEs, transport infrastructure projects, research and Erasmus+ student mobility. The provisional deal on the EU Budget 2017 with the Council was reached in the early hours of Thursday. After Budget MEPs and Council have formally endorsed the agreement, the new EU budget will be voted in plenary in December.

At least 16,500 farming families will be supported to increase agricultural productivity, reduce post-harvest loss and increase marketed production, under a $21 million project agreed to by the Government of Timor-Leste and the World Bank, on November 16.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Ricardo Velloso visited Luanda from November 3-16, 2016, to conduct discussions for the 2016 Article IV consultation.

The World Bank Board of Executive Directors, on November 15, approved US$ 71 million IBRD financing for the Integrated Urban and Tourism Development Project in Albania. The project will help create jobs, increase incomes, and support local economic development in selected areas in the south of Albania, well-known as a key tourism destination with significant potential for growth. The project aims to improve urban infrastructure, enhance tourism assets, and strengthen the capacity of institutions to support tourism at local level.

A team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), led by Geoff Gottlieb, visited Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) from November 3 to 14 to conduct discussions on the Article IV review of the Macao SAR economy.

Development projects supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in the Philippines have contributed to improving rural livelihoods and empowering the rural poor, according to the findings of a new evaluation report presented in Manila on Nov 15.

The impact of extreme natural disasters is equivalent to a global $520 billion loss in annual consumption, and forces some 26 million people into poverty each year, a new report from the World Bank and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) reveals.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved on November 14, on a lapse of time basis, the removal of the remedial measures applied to Zimbabwe that had been in place because of the member’s overdue financial obligations to the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT), effective November 14, 2016.

Bangladesh can become an export powerhouse at the level of its East Asian neighbors by improving its business competitiveness and trade regime, which will help firms compete globally, says a new World Bank Group report launched jointly with the Policy Research Institute in Dhaka, on November 14.