Virtual Book Launch - Africa’s Urbanisation Dynamics 2022: The Economic Power of Africa’s Cities

What:       Virtual book launch     
Who:        Sahel and West Africa Club, African Development Bank, and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
When:      26 April 2022 12.00 – 13.00 GMT (Abidjan)
                14.00 – 15.00 GMT+2 (Paris & Johannesburg) / 15.00 – 16.00 GMT +3 (Addis Ababa)
Where:     Virtual – Click here to Register

Africa must prepare for the inevitability of a global food crisis says African Development Bank President, Akinwumi Adesina

African Development Bank Group President Dr Akinwumi Adesina says “Africa must prepare for the inevitability of a global food crisis.” He was speaking about Africa’s priorities, as a guest at the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center on Friday.
Fielding questions from the Council’s Africa Center Chair, Ambassador Rama Yade; Senior Fellow Aubrey Hruby; and Washington/UN correspondent for Jeune Afrique and The Africa Report, Julian Pecquet, the Bank chief called for an increased sense of urgency amid what he described as a once-in-a-century convergence of global challenges for Africa.

Nepal: Integrated Urban Development Project

The project was aimed at addressing critical urban environmental issues and improving basic service delivery by providing populations in selected municipalities with better access to municipal infrastructure and services. Its objective was to improve basic urban service provision in four growing municipalities of Dharan, Janakpur, Nepalgunj, and Siddharthanagar, through essential infrastructure investments in urban water supply and sanitation, urban solid waste management (SWM), and urban road sectors.

People’s Republic of China: Guiyang Integrated Water Resources Management (Sector) Project

The project was to finance a slice of the 2006–2020 Master Plan, a medium-term investment plan for Guiyang Municipality. The project was to focus its activities on five segments of the plan: (i) urban water supply; (ii) rural water supply and irrigation; (iii) irrigation system rehabilitation; (iv) soil and water conservation; and (v) small water storage structures.
This report validates the completion report's assessment of the project. IED overall assessment: Less than successful.

Lao People’s Democratic Republic: Secondary Education Sector Development Program

The program comprised a policy-based loan (PBL) and a project grant. It was aligned with the government’s Education Sector Development Framework (ESDF) approved in 2009. It combined national reforms with a focus on targeted investments in 30 poor and educationally disadvantaged districts with a majority of ethnic students. The expected impact was improved educational attainment in Lao PDR, and the outcome was enhanced equity, quality, and efficiency of secondary education in the country.

People’s Republic of China: Forestry and Ecological Restoration Project in Three Northwest Provinces

The project's strategy was to support the implementation of recent collective forest tenure reforms, and assist in converting land and labor resources into higher-value and more sustainable tree crop production systems using integrated ecosystem management (IEM) approaches. It was to be implemented in Gansu, Shaanxi, and Xinjiang where forest degradation had been reducing economic and ecological tree crops.
This report validates the completion report's assessment of the project. IED overall assessment: Successful.

Evaluation of ADB Support for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program, 2011–2022

ONGOING EVALUATION. This evaluation will assess the performance and results of Asian Development Bank (ADB) support for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Program during 2011–2022. The evaluation will assess both ADB support for the functioning of the CAREC Program, mainly the role of the CAREC Secretariat, and ADB financing of CAREC operations.

Kazakhstan: Supporting Resilience of Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises Finance Project

The project provided local currency credit to sustain MSME operations during the economic slowdown. It provided funds for working capital and investments to support financial inclusion, especially outside the two major cities of Almaty and Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) and improve access to finance for women-owned businesses. 
This report validates the completion report's assessment of the project. IED overall assessment: Successful.

One World Media unveils the longlist of selected stories for its awards, including EIB’s sponsored ‘Women’s solutions reporting’ award

Selected from a record-breaking 600+ entries across 101 countries, One World Media announced the longlists in all its 15 awards categories. Journalists and filmmakers from around the world shared their greatest human stories of hope, courage, struggle, triumph. From Mongolia to Bhutan, Paraguay to the Solomon Islands, the quality and diversity of the entries this year was very impressive.