Accelerating Development: Ideas for Impact
An AI-powered, expert-led podcast on cutting-edge policy solutions for today’s biggest development challenges, direct from our global research network. It offers insights from the World Bank Institute for Economic Development. Listeners can also access other language versions via the Podbean network.
Episodes
Episode 47 The Foundations: Are Governments Measuring What Matters?
Nearly 70% of the indicators used to assess public financial management reforms in Malawi measured changes in form—not whether the system actually worked. This episode, the second on the series from The Government Analytics Handbook, explores how misleading metrics can create an illusion of success and even harmful incentives. Learn how balanced data, qualitative evidence, leadership, and strong r
Episode 46 The Overview: Unlocking the Data Governments Already Have
$10 billion in annual savings. A potential 40% increase in tax revenue. A 32% greater chance of completing public projects. This episode explores how governments can unlock these gains by using the administrative data they already collect. Drawing on *The Government Analytics Handbook*, it examines how analytics can improve management, strengthen public services, identify fiscal risks, and turn ex
Episode 45 Can South Asia Stay as the World’s Fastest-Growing Region?
South Asia remains the world’s fastest-growing region, but growth is expected to slow from 7.0 percent in 2025 to 6.3 percent in 2026 as global energy disruptions create new pressures. This episode explores how trade reforms and industrial policy could shape the region’s next phase of growth. From India’s new trade agreements and Sri Lanka’s tariff reforms to targeted industrial policies, AI-relat
Episode 44 AI Is Ready—but Are Developing Countries? Insights from the World Development Report 2026
Nearly 1/3 of rural schools in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa lack reliable electricity, while more than two-thirds lack consistent internet access. This episode explores what developing countries need to turn AI’s potential into inclusive growth. Drawing on the World Development Report 2026, it examines why infrastructure, skills, data, and institutions matter—and how governments can act as enablers
Episode 43 Monitoring, Managing, and Markets: Tools for Clean Air - Managing
Only 20 percent of monitored days met the WHO’s PM2.5 guideline—and children’s exposure varied sharply across cities, schools, homes, and commutes. This episode explores how personal sensors, GPS tracking, and socioeconomic data can reveal the hidden geography of air pollution. From paved school grounds that reduced exposure by 37.2 percent to the complex relationship between pollution and wealth,
Episode 42 Less Than a Dollar, Lasting Change: Building Growth Mindsets in Indonesia
For just $0.69 per student, a six-session program reached more than 2,000 schools in Indonesia. While it did not raise national exam scores, it strengthened students’ belief in effort, improved self-management habits, and created a more supportive classroom climate—especially in lower-performing schools. It also unexpectedly shifted teachers’ views of failure as a learning opportunity. This episod
Episode 41 The Institutions Behind the Switch: Who Keeps the Lights On in Africa?
Can countries escape the debt trap? As global growth slows to 2.5% and government debt in developing economies has climbed from under 40% to over 70% of GDP since 2010, policymakers face increasingly difficult choices. This episode explores the findings of the latest Global Economic Prospects, June 2026 report, examining why borrowing becomes more expensive as debt rises, how commodity-dependent e
Episode 40 Can Countries Escape the Debt Trap? Lessons from the Latest Global Outlook
Can countries escape the debt trap? As global growth slows to 2.5% and government debt in developing economies has climbed from under 40% to over 70% of GDP since 2010, policymakers face increasingly difficult choices. This episode explores the findings of the latest Global Economic Prospects, June 2026 report, examining why borrowing becomes more expensive as debt rises, how commodity-dependent e
Episode 39 How a WhatsApp Game Helped People Resist Health Misinformation
Health misinformation is now ranked among the world's 32 most severe global risks, with an estimated economic cost of US$78 billion in 2019. But what if governments could help people recognize misleading information before they encounter it? In this episode, we explore a randomized study from Jordan that tested a WhatsApp chatbot game designed to build resistance to health misinformation. We discu
Episode 38 The Next Growth Model: How East Asia Can Thrive in an AI-Driven World
Global private investment in generative AI reached $34 billion in 2024, while AI-related exports account for 34% of GDP in Malaysia and 32% in Viet Nam. Yet growth in East Asia and Pacific is projected to slow from 5.0% in 2025 to 4.2% in 2026.
In this episode, we explore how one of the world's most dynamic regions can sustain growth in an era of slowing productivity, rising trade uncertainty, and
Episode 37 When One Shipping Route Stops: The Global Shock Behind Rising Prices and Slower Growth
What happens when a single shipping route that carries a large share of the world's energy supply suddenly stops functioning? In March 2026, global oil supply fell by an estimated 10 million barrels per day—roughly one-tenth of world consumption—the largest oil supply shock on record.
This episode examines how that disruption is projected to push commodity prices up 16 percent in 2026, slow growth
Episode 36 The Return of Industrial Policy: What's Driving the Surge in Europe and Central Asia?
Europe and Central Asia has announced more than 2,600 industrial policies since 2009 — more than one new intervention every day for sixteen years. But have these policies actually delivered stronger growth, resilience, and diversification? In this episode, we unpack the findings of the World Bank’s Spring 2026 Europe and Central Asia Economic Update. From slowing growth and persistent inflation to
Episode 35 WDR2025 Mini Series: 3 How Do Standards Help Us Breathe Cleaner Air?
Ninety-nine percent of people worldwide breathe air that fails to meet safety standards. In this episode of the World Development Report 2025: Standards for Development mini series, we explore why standards alone are not enough—and what happens when enforcement, data, and capacity fall short.
Drawing on Chapters 6–8, the episode unpacks the “compliance gap,” where strict rules exist on paper but
Episode 34 Can Standards Make—or Break—Firms and Services?
47% fewer fatalities—just by using a simple surgical checklist. In this second episode of the World Development Report 2025: Standards for Development (WDR25) mini series, we explore how standards can make—or break—firms and the delivery of essential services. Drawing on Chapters 4 and 5 of the WDR25 report, we examine how the rise of technical regulations—now covering nearly 90% of global trade—h
Episode 33 How Can Standards Unlock or Block Development?
Two hundred thousand euros—sometimes more than a firm’s entire annual revenue—just to meet international standards. In this third episode of the World Development Report 2025: Standards for Development (WDR25) mni series, we explore how standards can either unlock growth or become costly barriers to trade.
Drawing on Chapters 1–3 of the WDR25 report, we unpack the “vicious circle of low quality,
Episode 32 From Dialogue to Direction: AGORA 2025 on Rethinking Agriculture as a System in Africa
Africa imports $70–80 billion of food each year—even for products it could often produce competitively. This episode revisits dialogues held at AGORA 2025 to explore why. We examine a key shift: viewing agriculture not as a sector, but as a system shaped by markets, infrastructure, technology, finance, institutions and people. The discussion highlights the “hidden middle”—where much of the value a
Episode 31 From Dialogue to Direction: What AGORA 2025 Revealed About Africa’s Energy Future
Over 600 million people in Africa still lack access to electricity—but as discussions at AGORA 2025 made clear, access alone is no longer enough. This episode reflects on key conversations from the inaugural Africa Growth and Opportunity: Research in Action (AGORA 2025) conference, where policymakers, researchers, and practitioners examined what it truly takes to power growth.
At AGORA 25, partic
Episode 30 The Jobs Reinvention in Europe and Central Asia
By 2050, Europe and Central Asia will lose 17 million workers from its workforce — yet productivity growth has been stalled since 2008. This episode unpacks the demographic cliff threatening the region's prosperity and asks: how do you grow an economy when your labor force is shrinking? We explore why young SMEs generate nearly 40% of new jobs despite employing only 14% of workers, how an overqual
Episode 29 From Bananas and Pineapples to iPhones: A New Framework for Industrial Policy
Low-income countries target an average of 13 industries in their development plans—compared with just 5 in high-income economies. Yet many lack the fiscal space for large subsidies.
In this episode we explore what’s new about industrial policy today. Rather than trying to “pick winners,” the emerging framework focuses on matching policy tools to a country’s fiscal space, market size, and institu
Episode 28 Research Currents: Africa’s Energy – 1 When the Lights Stay Off
Over 90% of people in Sub-Saharan Africa live within reach of electricity infrastructure—yet many homes remain dark. Why? Because access depends on more than just building the grid. This episode, the first in the three-part series “Research Currents: Africa’s Energy,”
explores new research on why investment does not always translate into real electricity use. Evidence from Togo, Rwanda, Kenya, and
Episode 27 Monitoring, Managing, and Markets: Tools for Clean Air - 1 Monitoring
This episode is the first in the three-part series “Monitoring, Managing, and Markets: Tools for Clean Air.”
Over 90% of the global population lives in places where air pollution exceeds safe guidelines—and one in nine deaths worldwide is linked to polluted air. Yet pollution often remains invisible.
In this episode, we explore why monitoring is the foundation of effective clean air policy. Evid
Episode 26 Unlocking Growth by Closing Gender Gaps: Insights from Women, Business and the Law 2026
Only 58% of women participate in the labor force vs. 76% of men—and no economy grants women the full set of legal rights measured today. In this episode, we unpack Women, Business and the Law 2026 and the growing “implementation gap” between laws on paper and reality on the ground. From safety and childcare to credit and political representation, we explore why closing gender gaps could raise glob
Episode 25 One Apple, Fifteen Rules: How Agrifood Standards Shape Markets
Nearly 90% of global trade is affected by non-tariff measures. Exporters face an average of more than 15 distinct compliance requirements per shipment.
What looks like a simple apple on a grocery shelf is governed by a dense web of agrifood standards—covering safety limits, labeling, audits, and certification. As tariffs decline, these standards increasingly determine who can access global market
Episode 24 Rethinking Growth: How Investing in Education Lifted the World’s Poorest
45% of global growth. Nearly 60% of income gains for the poorest. 📊
What if education has been one of the most powerful forces reshaping the global economy? This episode explores new evidence from Distributional Growth Accounting: Education and the Reduction of Global Poverty, 1980–2019, showing that schooling explains roughly one-third of the decline in extreme poverty worldwide. We unpack how e
Episode 23 Can Frontier Markets Deliver Jobs in Time for the World’s Next 2.6 Billion People?
1.8 billion people today—and 2.6 billion by 2050. Frontier Market Economies are countries that sit between low-income and emerging markets: more developed than the poorest economies, with some access to global financial markets, but still facing significant structural constraints. This episode dives into the world’s biggest jobs challenge, unpacking why slowing investment, volatile capital flows,
Episode 22 Resilient on the Surface, Fragile Underneath: Inside the Global Growth Downshift
Global growth looks resilient—but is it? In 2025, global GDP grew 2.7%, yet 1 in 4 developing countries is poorer than before the pandemic. This episode looks beyond the headlines to uncover a slowing global economy, deepening divergence, rising debt, and the race to create jobs for 1.2 billion young people. We explore why fiscal rules and private investment may be the difference between a tempora
Episode 21 Sixty Dollars a Barrel: Turning a Global Oversupply into a Policy Opportunity
$60 a barrel. A 2.7 million-barrel-per-day surplus. The global oil market is heading into one of its biggest oversupply moments outside major crises. This episode unpacks what falling energy prices really mean for development—why cheaper oil can create fiscal space, support disinflation, and open opportunities to reform subsidies and invest in growth, while history warns against trying to control
Episode 20 The Power of Standards: Why a Metal Box, a Checklist, and a Plug Socket Can Change an Economy
📦 A metal box boosted trade by 1,240%.
🩺 A simple checklist cut surgical deaths by 47%.
🔌 A plug that fits a socket keeps economies running.
This episode unpacks the World Development Report 2025’s idea of standards as the “invisible infrastructure” behind growth, trust, and public goods. From global trade and FDI to healthcare, education, air quality, and AI, we explore how getting the rules rig
Episode 19 One Reform Won’t Do It: The Surprising Power of Policy Packages to Spark Growth
Investment accelerations can lift output growth to nearly 6% a year and cut poverty rates by 0.5 percentage points annually—but they’ve become far rarer. This episode uncovers why single reforms no longer spark growth and how coordinated policy packages—combining fiscal stability, openness, and strong institutions—dramatically raise the odds of both public and private investment takeoff. Learn how
Episode 18 Rethinking Resilience: Why Households Are the Real Engine of Climate Adaptation
Can a simple bank account offer better protection than a sea wall? This episode challenges the top-down view of climate resilience, arguing that the most effective path to climate resilience starts with people - and it begins with economic growth . We explore why a 10% rise in GDP saves millions, how "ambiguity aversion" paralyzes decision-making, and the surprising ways government safety nets can
Episode 17 Engineering an Economic Miracle: A Roadmap for Ukraine's Recovery
Ukraine's recovery requires more than rebuilding bridges; it demands a restart of the economic engine itself. This episode explores how Ukraine can replicate West Germany's post-war "Wirtschaftswunder" (economic miracle) to break out of a low-dynamism trap. We diagnose why top firms control over 50% of sales without innovating and how "power without performance" is stifling growth. Discover why si
Episode 16 Breaking the Cycle: Conflict, Poverty, and a Path to Economic Recovery
By 2030, nearly 60% of the world's extreme poor will live in 39 specific economies. What do they have in common? They are all trapped in a vicious cycle of fragility and conflict. This episode breaks down the devastating human and economic costs, showing how high-intensity conflict can wipe out 20% of GDP and decimate the industrial sector. But the situation is not hopeless. We explore a blueprint
Episode 15 The Silent Majority Awakens: Unlocking Collective Action for a Greener Future
Most people care deeply about climate change—but many don’t realize that almost everyone else does too. This episode explores the hidden behavioral forces shaping the green transition, from “pluralistic ignorance” that keeps people silent to the power of social norms that spark collective change. Discover how revealing shared concern can turn quiet belief into bold action, building the foundation
Episode 14 The Gender Dividend: How Equality Fuels Economic Transformation
What if equality isn’t just the right thing to do—but the most effective path to growth? This episode explores new evidence from the African Center for Economic Transformation showing how closing gender gaps in access to land, finance, and care work drives productivity and resilience across economies. From rural farms to national policy, we uncover how empowering women unleashes a powerful “gender
Episode 13 Turning the Tide: How to Revive Global Investment in a Fragmented World
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is drying up, and the implications are global. This episode unpacks the World Bank’s report Foreign Direct Investment in Retreat: Policies to Turn the Tide, revealing why capital flows to developing countries have fallen to half their 2008 peak. We explore how trade openness, stronger institutions, and human capital can turn every investment dollar into growth—and w
Episode 12 The Psychology of Paying Taxes: How the Nudge, Budge and Trudge Create Big Revenue
Why do people pay taxes? The answer is more complex than just laws and penalties. This episode dives into the behavioral science behind tax compliance, revealing how governments can achieve staggering results without new legislation. We break down three key strategies: the "nudge" targeting individual choices, the "budge" that shifts societal culture, and the "trudge" that focuses on motivating th
Episode 11 (Researchers edition). Tracking Inclusion: How Mobile Tech is Shaping Financial Access
Financial inclusion is a cornerstone of development, and since 2011, the Global Findex Database has been the definitive source of data on the ways in which adults around the world access and use financial services. The 2025 edition introduces a new component that measures access to and use of mobile technology. Combined with financial inclusion data, it offers a holistic view of how mobile infrast
Episode 11 Tracking Inclusion: How Mobile Tech is Shaping Financial Access
Financial inclusion is a cornerstone of development, and since 2011, the Global Findex Database has been the definitive source of data on the ways in which adults around the world access and use financial services. The 2025 edition introduces a new component that measures access to and use of mobile technology. Combined with financial inclusion data, it offers a holistic view of how mobile infrast
Episode 10 (Researchers edition). Beyond Borders: Rethinking Migration for Global Development
In this episode, we explore key insights from the World Bank World Development Report 2023: Migrants, Refugees, and Societies. With over 184 million people living outside their country of nationality—nearly half in low- and middle-income countries—the report highlights how migration, if managed well, can be a positive force for development, bringing benefits for migrants as well as origin and dest
Episode 10 Beyond Borders: Rethinking Migration for Global Development
In this episode, we explore key insights from the World Bank World Development Report 2023: Migrants, Refugees, and Societies. With over 184 million people living outside their country of nationality—nearly half in low- and middle-income countries—the report highlights how migration, if managed well, can be a positive force for development, bringing benefits for migrants as well as origin and dest
Episode 9 (Researchers edition). Global Economic Prospects: How to accelerate growth
Rising trade tensions and ongoing policy uncertainty are threatening to slow global growth to its weakest pace since 2008—outside of outright global recessions. In this episode, we unpack why growth forecasts have dropped for nearly 70% of economies worldwide, spanning all regions and income levels. Join us for an in-depth look at the policies, priorities, and practical actions that countries can
Episode 9 Global Economic Prospects: How to accelerate growth
Rising trade tensions and ongoing policy uncertainty are threatening to slow global growth to its weakest pace since 2008—outside of outright global recessions. In this episode, we unpack why growth forecasts have dropped for nearly 70% of economies worldwide, spanning all regions and income levels. Join us for an in-depth look at the policies, priorities, and practical actions that countries can
Episode 8 (Researchers edition). From Bytes to Better Lives: Unlocking the Power of Data for Development
In this episode, we dive into the World Development Report 2021: Data for Better Lives and explore data's potential to drive development and improve lives. Join us as we unpack the report’s call for a new social contract on data to boost innovation and inclusion, protect privacy and trust, and ensure that the benefits of data are shared equitably. Generated with AI using wondercraft.ai and guided
Episode 8 From Bytes to Better Lives: Unlocking the Power of Data for Development
In this episode, we dive into the World Development Report 2021: Data for Better Lives and explore data's potential to drive development and improve lives. Join us as we unpack the report’s call for a new social contract on data to boost innovation and inclusion, protect privacy and trust, and ensure that the benefits of data are shared equitably. Generated with AI using wondercraft.ai and guided
Episode 7 (Researchers edition). Global Value Chains, a powerful driver for economic progress
"Accelerating Development" embarks on a comprehensive deep dive into Global Value Chains (GVCs), exploring their profound impact on global economies and development. We discuss how GVCs have historically fueled economic progress and poverty reduction, demonstrating a significantly more powerful effect on per capita income growth compared to traditional trade, driven by hyper-specialization and dur
Episode 7 Global Value Chains, a powerful driver for economic progress
"Accelerating Development" embarks on a comprehensive deep dive into Global Value Chains (GVCs), exploring their profound impact on global economies and development. We discuss how GVCs have historically fueled economic progress and poverty reduction, demonstrating a significantly more powerful effect on per capita income growth compared to traditional trade, driven by hyper-specialization and dur
Episode 6 (Researchers Edition): Mind, Method & Meta-Analysis: Behavioral Nudges for COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake
The COVID-19 pandemic tested public health communication like never before. While providing information is crucial, does it always translate into action? In this episode of “Accelerating Development,” we delve into a groundbreaking World Bank meta-analysis on COVID-19 vaccination intentions. Drawing on insights from the 2015 World Development Report "Mind, Society, and Behavior," we examine how be
Episode 6 Mind, Method & Meta-Analysis: Behavioral Nudges for COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake
The COVID-19 pandemic tested public health communication like never before. While providing information is crucial, does it always translate into action? In this episode of “Accelerating Development,” we delve into a groundbreaking World Bank meta-analysis on COVID-19 vaccination intentions. Drawing on insights from the 2015 World Development Report "Mind, Society, and Behavior," we examine how be
Episode 5 (Researchers edition). International Debt Report
The world's poorest nations are grappling with an unprecedented debt crisis. In this episode of "Accelerating Development," we delve into the World Bank's International Debt Report 2024. Join us as we explore the record $1.1 trillion external debt burden facing IDA-eligible countries and the complex factors driving this surge, from pandemic aftershocks to rising global interest rates.
Episode 5 International Debt Report
The world's poorest nations are grappling with an unprecedented debt crisis. In this episode of "Accelerating Development," we delve into the World Bank's International Debt Report 2024. Join us as we explore the record $1.1 trillion external debt burden facing IDA-eligible countries and the complex factors driving this surge, from pandemic aftershocks to rising global interest rates.
Episode 4 (Researchers edition). The Changing Nature of Work
The world of work is undergoing a rapid transformation, driven by technology and globalization. While this brings new opportunities, it also presents significant challenges. In this episode of “Accelerating Development”, tune in to unpack the World Development Report 2019: The Changing Nature of Work and explore how firms, workers, and societies are adapting. We delve into the skills needed for th
Episode 4 The Changing Nature of Work
The world of work is undergoing a rapid transformation, driven by technology and globalization. While this brings new opportunities, it also presents significant challenges. In this episode of “Accelerating Development”, tune in to unpack the World Development Report 2019: The Changing Nature of Work and explore how firms, workers, and societies are adapting. We delve into the skills needed for th
Episode 3 (Researchers edition). Are we Business Ready? Rethinking the Real Barriers to Growth
Many countries have business-friendly laws on paper. But what happens when the public services meant to support them fall short? In this episode of “Accelerating Development”, tune in to unpack the World Bank’s Business Ready 2024 report and examine the often-overlooked gap between legislation and implementation. From underpowered tax portals to fragmented border systems, we ask whether firm resil
Episode 3 Are we Business Ready? Rethinking the Real Barriers to Growth
Many countries have business-friendly laws on paper. But what happens when the public services meant to support them fall short? In this episode of “Accelerating Development”, tune in to unpack the World Bank’s Business Ready 2024 report and examine the often-overlooked gap between legislation and implementation. From underpowered tax portals to fragmented border systems, we ask whether firm resil
Episode 2 (Researchers edition). From Investment to Innovation: How to Escape the Middle-Income Trap
How can countries avoid the “middle-income trap” and reach high-income status? In this episode, we unpack the World Development Report 2024, which outlines strategies for countries to shift to high-income status. Tune in for sharp insights on how nations can compete, innovate, and level the playing field to drive long-term prosperity. Generated with AI and guided by experts.
Episode 2 From Investment to Innovation: How to Escape the Middle-Income Trap
How can countries avoid the “middle-income trap” and reach high-income status? In this episode, we unpack the World Development Report 2024, which outlines strategies for countries to shift to high-income status. Tune in for sharp insights on how nations can compete, innovate, and level the playing field to drive long-term prosperity. Generated with AI and guided by experts.
Episode 1 (Researchers edition). Empowering women: How to turbocharge global growth.
Countries have made enormous progress in recent decades dismantling laws that discriminate against women, but to this day, no country has achieved true equality of opportunity. According to the World Bank 2024 Women, Business and the Law report, countries can unlock the full potential of their population by embracing legal gender equality. Closing the gender gap in employment and entrepreneurship
Episode 1 Empowering women: How to turbocharge global growth.
Countries have made enormous progress in recent decades dismantling laws that discriminate against women, but to this day, no country has achieved true equality of opportunity. According to the World Bank 2024 Women, Business and the Law report, countries can unlock the full potential of their population by embracing legal gender equality. Closing the gender gap in employment and entrepreneurship
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