Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

The World Bank’s Power Sector Chapter of the Public Expenditure Report was presented in Bishkek to describe the sector’s significant growth potential and the range of financial and operational challenges to the sector’s development.

More than one million poor people will benefit from the Rio Grande do Norte: Regional and Governance Project, funded by a US$ 360 million loan approved by the World Bank Board of Directors. The Project will support the RN State Government, located in the Northeast of Brazil, in poverty reduction and a shared prosperity agenda, combining investments which favor economically inclusive growth, poverty reduction, and broad-based human development.

Swift and positive actions taken by the Government have successfully steered Rwanda towards a steady growth and positive outlook, says the Fourth Edition of the Rwanda Economic Update.

Norway is better placed to cope with population ageing than most other countries. But it could still do more to improve incentives and opportunities for people to stay working longer which would help ensure the country’s long-term future, according to a new OECD report.

Resilient domestic demand will allow the Malaysian economy to recover from a slow first quarter in 2013, says a new World Bank report. GDP is expected to grow by 5.1% for both 2013 and 2014, driven by higher consumer and business spending.

The Republic of Belarus and the World Bank signed the Loan Agreement for a USD90 million additional financing for an Energy Efficiency Project, following the loan’s approval by the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on June 6, 2013. The Loan Agreement was signed by Mr. Victor V. Nazarenko, Chairman of State Committee for Standardization of the Republic of Belarus, and Mr. Qimiao Fan, World Bank Regional Director for Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine.

In a massive boost to British businesses, the UK’s export credit agency, UK Export Finance (UKEF), has announced that it will guarantee $700 million (£450 million) of finance to British companies bidding for contracts on a new $19 billion (£12 billion) petrochemical facility in Saudi Arabia.

Iran is stepping in to help Syria stabilize the value of its currency, which has been dropping sharply since U.S. President Barack Obama decided to start giving weapons to the anti-government rebels.

The current Polish framework for fighting foreign bribery is still inadequate to fully meet foreign bribery risks resulting from Poland’s growing economy, says a new OECD report.

At the G8 Summit in Britain, President Barack Obama and European leaders announced the start of an effort to reach what is being called the biggest trade deal in history. Officials are focusing on regional trade agreements because the long effort to reach a new global trade deal is stalled.