Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on December 21, approved a $100 million loan to increase income generating opportunities for poor farmers in China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, through the establishment of cooperatives and partnerships with agribusiness enterprises in agriculture value chains and rural tourism.

Between 1997 and 2009 for every percentage point of economic growth in Mozambique, poverty fell by only 0.26 percentage points in the country, roughly half of what is observed in the sub-Saharan Africa region, reveals the latest World Bank publication on poverty and its causes in Mozambique. The publication titled 'Accelerating Poverty Reduction in Mozambique: Challenges and Opportunities' also concludes that poverty has declined more slowly since 2003, having fallen by only 4 percentage points to reach 52 percent in 2009.

The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors on December 20, approved US$1 billion in a development policy finance operation for Egypt to support the Government’s economic reforms program across key economic areas. This is the Second Fiscal Consolidation, Sustainable Energy, and Competitiveness Programmatic Development Policy Financing (DPF).

The World Bank Group has endorsed a new US$1.485 billion package to support reforms to improve public service delivery and transparency, stimulate private sector growth and support job creation. Iraq continues to face a large humanitarian crisis with 10 million people, over one quarter of the population, estimated to be in need of assistance, of which 3.4 million are internally displaced people and 240,000 refugees.

The United States has maintained foreign aid volumes through the aftermath of the global economic crisis and has visibly improved the focus and effectiveness of its development assistance. These trends should be maintained and reforms to the U.S. Agency for International Development should be consolidated, according to a new OECD Review.

On December 16, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund completed the sixth review of Burkina Faso’s economic performance under a three-year program supported by the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) . The decision enables the disbursement of the equivalent of SDR 4.47 million (about US$6 million), bringing total disbursements to the equivalent of SDR 51.17 million (about US$68.6 million).

Malaysia's economy remains resilient to external headwinds, with GDP growth projected around 4.2 percent in 2016 and 4.3 percent in 2017, according to new economic analysis from the World Bank. This outlook reflects a gradual slowdown in the growth of consumer spending and investment, as the global economic growth and commodity prices remain subdued, and as households adjust to moderating job prospects and fiscal consolidation.

Thailand’s economy is expected to grow at 3.1 percent in 2016 and 3.2 percent in 2017, up from 2.8 percent last year, according to the 2016 Thailand Economic Monitor released by the World Bank, on December 19.

The World Bank has upgraded its economic outlook for the Philippines for 2016-2018 as part of its quarterly forecast exercise, considering recent trends.

A coalition of more than 60 donor and borrower governments, on December 15, agreed to ratchet up the fight against extreme poverty with a record $75 billion commitment for the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries.