Future growth must be greener growth - but the transition to a new economy must be just and the global community needs to transform the scale of finance available to make the leap. Shareholders, clients, and partners want Multilateral Financial Institutions to do more for global public goods, notably climate change, which is one of the defining challenges of our time. Roughly US$2.5 trillion of additional financing is needed every year until 2030 to both reach the Paris climate goals and achieve the SDG’s. Both the World Bank and IMF have responded. Last year saw the World Bank Group surge a record $31.7 billion in financing to help countries address climate change and it is currently in a consultative process to an Evolutionary Roadmap to better address the scale of development challenges, including climate change, while the IMF signed its first country deals for the new Resilience and Sustainability Trust. Now, as we look ahead to COP28, a critical milestone for mobilising new green finance, what do we know about the opportunities and challenges on the route to net zero, and what are the options for reform, locally, regionally and globally? Also, how does nature play a role in the climate agenda? How is the Bank supporting green and blue interventions, and what tangible results have they had so far?

As the world is still coping with the effects of the COVID-19, conflict and climate change, it is clear that to reinforce the global framework for preparedness, there is a need to increase funding to safeguard the lives and livelihoods of people the world over, ensure a more efficient global health architecture and avoid food shortages in the future. Multilateral institutions like the World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Trade Organization, the World Bank Group, the IMF, as well as many civil society organizations such as UNITE, have had to collaborate to find practical and timely mechanisms to minimize the impact these crises. This led, for example, to a partnership of different organizations, under the auspices of the WHO, working together towards the promotion of a stronger global health architecture. Similar mechanisms are in place and working hard to deal with the other crises afflicting humanity. What can be done to speed up and scale up delivery, to reduce the suffering particularly of the poorest and most vulnerable people? Parliamentarians play an important role in holding their governments accountable and pushing for the application of important resolutions at a global level. This session will convene a panel discussion to understand the parliamentary perspective on the way forward to ensure effective commitments from Member States to global funding mechanisms with a special focus on preparedness to deal with the multiple crises facing the world today.

World leaders promised to deliver quality education for all by 2030 and we know that investment in education and training is mission critical if the Global South is to reap the potential of its "demographic dividend". Most poorer countries have growing working age populations, with people under age 25 projected to make up 90% of the prime-age workforce in 2050. However, 40% of low- and lower-middle income nations were forced to slash spending on the education needed to unlock that potential in young people. As many as 78 million are now out of school all together – and 73 million young people are out of work: six million more than before the pandemic. In fact, learning interruptions owing to school closures risk today’s generation of students losing the equivalent of 14% of today’s global GDP in lifetime earnings, if left unaddressed. Globally, this generation of students risks losing $21 trillion in potential lifetime earnings, which could mean lower productivity, greater inequality, and risks of social unrest for decades to come. So, how do leaders make the trade-offs needed to invest in the next generation, on whom will we soon rely?

As global challenges multiply and trade-offs get tougher, it becomes ever more essential for governments, politicians, public civil servants, and parliamentarians to enhance good governance and fight corruption. Effective institutions are needed to ensure transparency and accountability, economic stability, public safety measures, delivery of public goods and services, and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Without transparency and accountability, countries risk facing growing inequalities, increased poverty, and lack of public trust. Furthermore, they are essential in reinforcing fiscal sustainability, accelerating digital governance, improving service delivery, resource mobilization and debt management. These ideals have long been championed the World Bank Group. The IMF completed earlier this month the review of its Framework for Enhanced Engagement on Governance. Few countries are navigating these challenges as dramatically as Ukraine, which provides a powerful lens through which to consider lessons for politicians and policymakers everywhere who are wrestling with the task of building good governance and rebuilding economies for new times. This session will also look at lessons learned from other countries that have undergone post-conflict reforms and have succeeded in building robust and accountable institutions. The event is organized jointly with the European Parliament Liaison Office in Washington DC.

An economy is stronger when all citizens can contribute equally – closing the gender employment gap alone would raise GDP per capital by nearly 20% on average. Gender equality can also accelerate progress towards other development goals, including addressing food insecurity, climate change, and conflict and fragility. Yet gender gaps in labour force participation average 30% worldwide and have remained stagnant over the last three decades, and, at the current pace, it will take another 50 years to close the legal gender gap. The IMF gender strategy aims at mainstreaming gender with the recognition that reducing gender disparities goes hand-in-hand with higher economic growth, greater economic stability and resilience, and lower income inequality, while recognising that macroeconomic, structural, and financial policies can support efficient and inclusive outcomes and equitably benefit women, girls, and the society in general. The World Bank Group launched a year-long #AccelerateEquality initiative in 2022, exploring the progress made and lessons learned throughout the last decade in closing gender gaps and promoting girls’ and women's empowerment. The lessons learned from this year-long initiative will inform the update to the World Bank Group Gender Strategy, to be introduced in 2024. Additionally, after nine years of the Women, Business and the Law report, stakeholders are proposing ways in which the recommendations can be turned into legislative action leading to gender-specific impacts.

Countries are still dealing with Covid, climate change continue to reverberate, poverty is rising, low-income developing countries are faced with highest debts in decades, inflation is ongoing, and Russia’s war continue to devastate Ukraine’s economy. What is the latest on global outlook? How will the economic outlook for 2023 shape a world of tougher challenges and tougher trade-offs?

High inflation and rising food prices pose a challenge to economies across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where growth is expected to slow in the coming year. The Office of the Chief Economist for the Middle East and North Africa Region will deliver a presentation on the most recent Middle East and North Africa Economic Update (launched on April 6, 2023). The presentation will focus on the region’s economic prospects and the impact of rising food prices. The latest MENA Economic Update “Altered Destinies: The Long-Term Effects of Rising Prices and Food Insecurity in the Middle East and North Africa” looks in depth at how even temporary increases in the price of food can have lasting impacts across generations in terms of education, health and future income prospects. The report also discusses short and long-term policies and actions that could help in a region where the state of child nutrition and health were inadequate even before the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Growth across Sub-Saharan Africa remains sluggish, dragged down by uncertainty in the global economy, the underperformance of the continent’s largest economies, high inflation, and a sharp deceleration of investment growth – and is insufficient to reduce extreme poverty. In the face of dampened growth prospects and rising debt levels, African governments must sharpen their focus on macroeconomic stability, domestic revenue mobilization, debt reduction, and productive investments. In a time of energy transition and rising demand for metals and minerals, resource-rich governments have an opportunity to better leverage natural resources to finance their public programs, diversify their economy, and expand energy access, as laid out in the latest Africa’s Pulse publication.

Open to all registered MPs age 40 and under – WB HQ MC 13-301 The fourth annual Global Young MP Initiative meeting will focus on the World Bank Environmental and Social Framework (ESF), which supports green, resilient and inclusive development through a rigorous set of standards that strengthen protections for people and the environment, making important advances in areas such as labour, inclusion and non-discrimination, gender, climate change, biodiversity, transparency, accountability, community health and safety, and stakeholder engagement. Legislators 40 and under are important stakeholders to engage on the ESF as their generations will see the long-term consequences of decisions made today. Participating MPs will be encouraged to bring examples of ideas and best practices in environmental and social policies to the meeting for an interactive and productive session. The Global Young MP Initiative convenes legislators aged 40 and under from around the world to learn about the most pressing development challenges and to share strategies for overcoming them. Young parliamentarians are uniquely positioned to lend a youth perspective and voice to the many intractable issues impacting their generation, invigorating policy discussions, and implementing pioneering solutions. Through conversations with World Bank management, practical exercises with their global peers, and access to a diverse array of development knowledge, the initiative represents a unique opportunity for networking, collaboration, and progress.