-
Viewpoint: The World Bank: Why It Is Still Needed and Why It Still Disappoints
The decade or two after WW2 saw many of the world’s poorest countries gain their independence from Colonial rule, and they were hoping to rapidly become less poor. Economics taught policy makers in those countries that a higher investment rate is crucial to assuring faster economic growth. Being a poor country makes it harder to finance the required investments from domestic savings. Yet rich countries should have ample savings available that might be profitably diverted to this task. In an ideal world, global capital markets could be expected to bridge the gap. But 70 years ago those markets were thin and/or not trusted as a source of finance.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Tags
- lending
-
World’s First Malaria Vaccine Moves Closer to Use in Africa
The world's first malaria vaccine, made by GlaxoSmithKline, could be approved by international regulators for use in Africa from October after final trial data showed it offered partial protection for up to four years.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
Ugandan MPs Ask Government for Greater Mobile Money Regulation
Members of Parliament grilled Information, Communication Technology (ICT) state minister, Nyombi Thembo over lack of a law to regulate mobile money services and safeguard clients’ money.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- regulations
-
Brazilians Spraying and Praying for Dengue Vaccine Breakthrough
A cup of cloves, a half-liter of alcohol and a dollop of body oil: You won't find this homemade mosquito repellent in Brazilian drugstores, but the recipe went viral after a worried sanitarian posted a cell phone video on Facebook last week.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- Latin America
-
OPINION: Protecting pregnant women from malaria – a missed ‘quick win’
In the eight years since we commemorated the first World Malaria Day, millions of women and children have continued to die from a disease that is both preventable and treatable. Malaria takes the lives of more than 1,200 children under the age of 5 every day – the staggering equivalent of 50 children every hour.
- Categories
- Health Care
-
To get people to build toilets, turn to subsidies
The one public bathroom in Ponkrum collapsed a few years ago. An effort to build a new one yielded a large pit that is used for trash, not defecation. For the people living in the small village near the Ghanian coast, there is no other option than going out in the open.
- Categories
- Education, Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- public health
-
I’m seeing the most progress in Bihar, says Melinda Gates
At a time when foreign-funded NGOs are under the government's scanner, Melinda Gates, Padma Bhushan awardee and co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, says NGO activism is needed for society to thrive. She was speaking to Sagarika Ghose of The Times of India.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- South Asia
-
How ‘financial savvy’ can prevent future pandemics
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa highlighted not only the weakness of health systems, but also the lack of dialogue between global health professionals, risk analysts and private sector actors, according to World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.
- Categories
- Education, Health Care