Construction work has begun on the Niš-Dimitrovgrad railway section near the Serbian city of Pirot. The project involves the reconstruction and modernisation of an existing unelectrified single-track railway line from Sićevo to Dimitrovgrad and the construction of the northern rail bypass around the city of Niš, as well as electrification and signalling work on both stretches. As part of the EU Economic and Investment Plan, the overall modernisation of up to 104 km of railway lines will result in shorter journey times and improved safety and regional connectivity, while enabling a gradual shift to more environmentally friendly transportation options.

One World Media announced the longlist of selected stories for all its 15 award categories, including the Women’s solutions reporting award, supported by the European Investment Bank.

As Advisor and a member of the IED leadership team, you will (i) provide advice and guidance on a wide range of strategic, policy, and operational matters, including guidance on methods and approaches for complex evaluations; (ii) oversee department management and backroom support including sharing of knowledge and oversight on the planning, development, and monitoring of IED’s operations and resources.

Duties and Accountabilities

The Manager of IEGFS reports to the IEGSP Director and is a member of IEGSP Leadership Team as well as of IEG’s Extended Leadership Team (ELT). The Manager is accountable for performing the responsibilities, modeling the behaviors, and maintaining the technical competencies listed below. Accountability means being answerable for managing quality, risks, results, institutional initiatives, and compliance with WBG policies and procedures. 

The position of Senior/Principal Evaluation Specialist, based at AsDB Headquarters in Manila, is assigned to the Thematic and Country Division (IETC) within the Independent Evaluation Department.

Working Paper No. 2024/062

Technical Assistance Report No. 2024/025

The economy had a slight contraction in 2023, due to multiple consecutive shocks, while inflation decelerated rapidly. Economic growth declined to -0.6 percent in 2023, due to climate-related shocks and social turmoil. Inflation is converging towards the target thanks to the BCRP’s decisive monetary policy tightening. Strong supervision maintained financial stability. The fiscal position remained strong, although the fiscal deficit (of the non-financial public sector) reached 2.8 percent of GDP (above the fiscal rule target of 2.4 percent of GDP), reflecting a shortfall in tax revenues due to the economic slowdown. Led by sizable import compression and better terms of trade, the current account registered a surplus of 0.6 percent of GDP. International reserves remain at a comfortable level of about 28 percent of GDP.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team, led by Ruben Atoyan, visited Kigali from March 11– March 22, 2024, to discuss the authorities’ policy priorities and progress on reforms within the context of the third reviews of Rwanda’s Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI) and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), and the first review of the Stand-by Credit Facility (SCF) arrangement. Consideration by the Board is tentatively scheduled for May 2024.

Remarks by the Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva at the China Development Forum, March 24, 2024, Beijing