World Bank Podcasts

Nigerian star Nneka stops by World Bank headquarters to share her music and talk about women’s rights. For more information go to: http://wrld.bg/PmaXN At 03:49, Nneka performs her song "My Home"

Lever les obstacles au commerce régional pour nourrir l’Afrique de l’Ouest L'insécurité alimentaire, le manque de productivité agricole et les obstacles au commerce en Afrique de l'Ouest, sont des problèmes bien connus. Dans cette région où vivent 300 millions de personnes (soit un tiers de la population du continent), l’agriculture emploie 60 % de la population active Un nouveau rapport de la Banque mondiale, intitulé «Connecter les marchés des produits alimentaires de base et les marchés des intrants en Afrique de l'Ouest », analyse la manière dont les États pourraient développer un marché régional, améliorer la sécurité alimentaire et multiplier les débouchés pour les agriculteurs. Jean Christophe Maur, économiste en chef à la Banque mondiale, est l’un des auteurs de ce rapport : Le rapport est motivé par le fait que lorsqu’on regarde les économies d’Afrique et d’Afrique de l’Ouest en particulier, le secteur agricole est particulièrement important ; je dirais en particulier pour les gens les plus pauvres. Et le problème de l’agriculture en Afrique de l’Ouest, et que l’on voit depuis plusieurs années, est le fait que la productivité n’augmente pas, les agriculteurs sont exposés à divers chocs qui créent une insécurité alimentaire. Et en parallèle de cela, on voit des politiques de gouvernements qui bloquent les échanges de produits alimentaires, qui distordent les marchés et donc qui empêchent les agriculteurs d’avoir un meilleur accès au marché et d’avoir des opportunités qui leur permettraient d’accroître leurs revenus, de les sécuriser, d’ avoir accès à des intrants qui leur permettraient d’augmenter leur production. Le rapport note que malgré leurs engagements en faveur de l’intégration régionale, la plupart des pays de la région continuent pourtant d’appliquer des politiques en faveur de l’autosuffisance nationale, y compris en interdisant les importations de denrées de base provenant des pays voisins. Le riz, le maïs et le manioc constituent la principale source de calories dans les pays côtiers d'Afrique de l'Ouest, tandis que le millet et le sorgho sont d'importantes ressources alimentaires dans les pays du Sahel. Pourtant, selon Jean Christophe Maur, en l’absence de politiques formalisant les échanges intra-régionaux, le commerce de ces produits est essentiellement informel, un fait non sans conséquences Par exemple, ce que l’on a constaté dans le rapport, c’est que le commerce le long des frontières est particulièrement important, même là ou souvent les statistiques officielles ou les études ignorent l’existence de ces flux. Ces échanges sont également ignorés lorsque les politiques agricoles sont discutées et ne sont pas pris en compte. Faute de politiques commerciales régionales adaptées, les agriculteurs d’Afrique de l’Ouest sont donc pénalisés par l’inefficacité des services de transport et d’entreposage, le manque de financement et la fragmentation des chaines logistiques. Le rapport formule des recommandations et constate que la région est idéalement placée pour faciliter et coordonner la mise en œuvre d’un marché régional de denrées de base. Pour lire le rapport et en savoir plus sur l'action de la Banque mondiale en Afrique, rendez-vous à l'adresse www.banquemondiale.org/fr/region/afr

The Nigerian superstar shows his support for gender equality with his new single, ExtraOrdinary.

World Bank Vice President for Africa, Makhtar Diop, discusses the importance of The Bank's support for the development of Ghana's SANKOFA Gas Project.

Food insecurity caused by fragility, lack of agricultural progress and trade barriers in West Africa is a well-documented concern. A 2012 World Bank report, Africa Can Help Feed Africa showed that increasing the supply of food staples could be improved by better connecting African markets to each other. That report called for a stronger focus on removing trade barriers and building on the forces of regional integration. Now, World Bank Analysts have taken those concepts further. A new report, Connecting Food Staples and Input Markets in West Africa: A Regional Trade Agenda for ECOWAS Countries explores how West African governments can build an integrated, regional trade market for food staples. World Bank Senior economist, and author of the Report, Jean Christophe Maur: “There is actually very active trade in most products, whereas people often tend to focus only on a subset of products. Trade along borders is particularly important for instance. West Africa’s 2011 population of 342 million is expected to increase to 516 million by 2030 and to 815 million by 2050. The region is already home to a third of the African continents population and to some of its most vulnerable countries. World Bank Senior Economist and co-author, John Keyser: “Crop yields in West Africa are some of the lowest in the world. West Africa has a very quick – rapidly growing population, particularly in the urban areas, and it is not able to feed itself. It is heavily dependent on food imports. With greater productivity of the farmland, West Africa could certainly do a better job of feeding itself and through regional trade and trade with neighbours.” Michigan State University Professor Emeritus, John Staatz, an Agricultural Economist and African Studies expert, says it’s important for West African governments to think about how to make the whole region competitive to take advantage of the growth potential. “You’re not just dealing with a small local market. West Africa now part of a global economy, it has to deal with global competition. For example, there are imports of chicken coming in from Brazil, the other big global players. And to be globally competitive, you need to get these kinds of efficiencies that allow that huge market in West Africa to be accessed by all the farmers and actors in West Africa. There are great growth potentials for agriculture in West Africa, but achieving them is going to require greater regional integration.” Staple foods are the main source of calories in Sub-Saharan Africa, and in West Africa. In West Africa, staple foods like rice maize and cassava, provide the main source of calories in coastal countries, with millet and sorghum being an important source of food in Sahelian countries. However, trade in these foods is informal and therefore more fragile. Ben Shepard, co-author of the report: “A lot of the distribution happens very locally, so it’s not just people going into grocery stores as people going to local markets and things like that. And definitely, they would expect to see a difference if the sorts of policies that we look at in the book are implemented. We see a lot of scope in the book for win-win solutions, so what we call a win-win is where both producers and consumers win from a particular reform. So just to think of one example, improving post-harvest treatment, is a way in which to reduce losses. So that’s good for producers, in that they are getting more of their products to market and obviously getting better income. It is also good for consumers, because it reduces the gap between the farm gate price and the price that they pay in their market. So it means that you can have these kinds of scenarios where both sets of people stand to gain from a particular policy reform. Same thing with access to finance that can help improve efficiency in the value chain and that can be beneficial for producers and consumers.”

Muhammad Yunus (Organization Leader),Microfinance (Industry),World Bank Group (Organization),Nobel Prize (Award),Nobel Peace Prize (Award Category),social business,Social Enterprise (Organization Type),access to finance,finance,financial inclusion In the world of microfinance, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus is a rock star. He was the founder of the Grameen Bank that provides small, low-cost loans to people seeking to pull themselves out of poverty. Join the World Bank Group's Pabsy Pabalan and get his insight into what it takes to succeed. #PabsyLive THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS WERE ANSWERED AND DISCUSSED: 00:19 What gave you the idea to start Grameen Bank? 02:02: So you mentioned that you approached banks. What did they tell you? I mean what reason did they give that they don’t lend money to the poor? 02:35 Let's imagine that I was one of Grameen Bank’s clients and I have a loan. What mindset do I need for myself to succeed? 03:41 You talked about young people being job creators instead of being job seekers. I grew up thinking that’s easier said than done and I am sure I am not the only one. What can we do to change this kind of thinking?

http://wrld.bg/OOeEo: The coffee rust fungus, also known as “La Roya,” is destroying coffee farms across Central America. How is this affecting farmers? What are the ways large global coffee buyers are adapting to changes in their supply chains? Pabsy Pabalan speaks to Craig Russell, Starbucks Executive Vice President for Global Coffee, and Amy Obregon, a Nicaraguan coffee farmer. The International Finance Corporation, Ecom, Starbucks, and Inter-American Development Bank are coming together to help Nicaraguan farmers combat coffee rust disease. For more information on the La Roya Coffee Project visit http://wrld.bg/OOeEo

Poland’s development experience over the past few decades can provide many lessons for countries seeking to determine their own transition paths. On 22-23 June, 2015, development professionals from Poland and the Eastern Partnership countries got together in Tbilisi, Georgia to exchange ideas, knowledge and experiences. Anna Kowalczyk asks attendees what they think countries can learn from Poland.

A new report shows that populations across Europe and Central Asia are aging, but people are not living longer. What does that mean for health, education, and pension systems? And what are the opportunities of aging societies? Pabsy Pabalan finds some answers in an interview with Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief Economist for Europe and Central Asia. #PabsyLive

Celebrated Swedish statistician Hans Rosling visits the World Bank and tells Pabsy Pabalan that he supports the Bank’s open data policy; believes statistics represent stories about people and that his favorite number is zero. Then he pulls out some dollar bills and things get even more interesting. #PabsyLive

Did you know that in the next decade many of the world’s largest cities will be in Africa? But water, air and indoor pollution are killing urban residents, and the poor suffer most. Watch what’s happening in Lagos, Nigeria and how life could be changed for the better.

Sub-Saharan Africa is home to over 50 million pastoralists. Helping pastoralists and agro-pastoralists by increasing access to productive assets, services and markets is key to ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity. The Regional Sahel Pastoralism Support Project – or PRAPS - has been designed to address the development needs of pastoralists across the Sahel in Sub-Saharan Africa. It aims to tackle the most important challenges faced by pastoralists: drought, animal diseases, climate change, conflicts and dwindling access to land and water resources. The PRAPS project is a collaboration between six Sahelian countries: Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal under the regional coordinating umbrella of the CILSS -the permanent Interstate Committee for Drought control in the Sahel- and overall political guidance from ECOWAS and WAEMU. Aminata Mbengue Ndiaye, Minister of Agriculture and Animal Health, Senegal: "The regional pastoralism support project is an initiative that grew out of a high-level meeting held on pastoralism in the Sahel, in Nouakchott; I think it was in October 2013. And it was a meeting chaired by President Abdel Aziz of Mauritania with the President of Chad, Mr. Idriss Déby and myself; I represented the head of State of Senegal, President Macky Sall. Therefore it was really a meeting which has allowed us to examine the details of pastoralism in the Sahel with all the problems it entails, such as the impact on the lives of pastoralists, on the herd, but also on all the environment; in any case, to the lives of pastoralists." The hallmark of PRAPS is its innovative, multi-sectoral, holistic approach to implementing solutions benefiting pastoralists, including pastoral crisis management. It brings together the private sector, pastoral organizations, national stakeholders, regional and international institutions, advanced research institutes and other development partners. Dr Djimé ADOUM Executive Secretary, CILSS: "What is happening with pastoralism for the longest time, is that it really lacks resources, access to markets, support services, so with the advent of the PRAPS, which will open up opportunities to get a lot more partners involved in this, we should be able to implement and expand on the initial projects to cover a wide area in Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly ECOWAS region and linking it back to the Nouakchott Declaration, improving the revenue of the Pastoralists by 30 percent in five years should be an achievable goal." Aminata Mbengue Ndiaye, Minister of Agriculture and Animal Health, Senegal: "This project will have a major impact on people's lives because if already in the field, for example , if I take animal health, if it allows them to keep their livestock , livestock will no longer die because he has not been vaccinated. From the point of view of nutrition also, the improvement of nutrition for children, pregnant women, nursing women, also there the project will play an important role with the milk that will be produced , with equally the surplus production of meat and all that in any case, constitute the major themes that are essential for the population. I believe that if the project did not come, people will continue to live the same life conditions but I think with the training that will be given, the income will be improved, it is a fundamental change that we will observed in these areas and I think it's not very far." The fresh approach is also about generating consistent data, expanding knowledge-sharing and engaging with communities for achieving maximum development impact in the Sahel.

L’Afrique subsaharienne abrite plus de 50 millions d’éleveurs nomades. Pour pouvoir mettre fin à la pauvreté et promouvoir une prospérité partagée, il est donc essentiel de venir en aide à ces pasteurs, en élargissant leur accès à des biens productifs et aux marchés.Le Projet régional d’appui au pastoralisme au Sahel, ou PRAPS, a précisément été conçu pour répondre aux besoins de développement des pasteurs du Sahel. Il vise à remédier aux principales difficultés que rencontrent ces éleveurs : la sècheresse, les maladies animales, le changement climatique, les conflits, l’amenuisement des pâturages et des sources d’eau. Le PRAPS associe six pays du Sahel : le Burkina Faso, le Mali, la Mauritanie, le Niger, le Sénégal et le Tchad. Il est coordonné à l’échelle régionale par le CILSS, le Comité permanent inter-États de lutte contre la sécheresse dans le Sahel, sous la direction politique de la CEDEAO et de l’UEMOA. S. E. Madame Aminata Mbengue Ndiaye Ministre de l’Elevage et des Productions Animales > La grande caractéristique du PRAPS est de promouvoir une réponse novatrice, multisectorielle et globale aux problèmes du pastoralisme, qui porte notamment sur la gestion des crises. Le projet rassemble le secteur privé, les organisations pastorales et les parties prenantes nationales, ainsi que des institutions régionales et internationales, des centres de recherche et d’autres partenaires de développement. Djimé ADOUM secrétaire exécutif du CILSS > Avec cette nouvelle approche, il s’agit aussi de produire des données cohérentes, de développer le partage des connaissances et d’agir auprès des communautés afin d’avoir une incidence maximale sur le développement au Sahel.

Pensri sells food on the side of the road in Bangkok, and Francesca is a nurse in Santiago. A generation ago both women were suffering from pollution-related illnesses, but now they’re healthy thanks in part to bold moves to clean up their cities. Listen how Thailand and Chile are leading the way in pollution abatement, improving lives and economies. Other large cities are being urged to adopt some of the same methods. For more information visit: http://www.worldbank.org/pollution

Le Tchad vient d’atteindre le point d'achèvement de l'initiative en faveur des pays pauvres très endettés (initiative PPTE), mécanisme international d'allégement de la dette ciblant les pays les plus pauvres. En conséquence, le FMI et la Banque mondiale ont annoncé un allégement de la dette de 1,1 milliard de dollars en faveur du Tchad. Le Tchad est le 36e pays à atteindre le point d’achèvement de l’initiative PPTE, initiative lancée en 1996 par l’IMF et la Banque mondiale dans le but de ramener l'endettement des pays pauvres à un niveau considéré comme soutenable. En atteignant le point d’achèvement de l’initiative PPTE, le Tchad entre dans une nouvelle ère de développement. Kordjé Bedoumra, le ministre tchadien des finances et du budget, nous explique pourquoi.