October 21, 2024 ¡ª Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group launched a set of Global Challenge Programs (GCPs) to help countries tackle key development problems with speed, scale, and impact. The GCPs, a key component of the Better Bank initiative, are bold new programs that bring together the entire World Bank Group (WBG) to more effectively crowd in public and private solutions to support countries respond to global challenges. They go beyond a project-based approach by combining national, regional, and global World Bank Group work into one large program with a focused goal to tackle a difficult global issue. GCPs represent a shift from making small changes to driving large-scale innovation and improvement, thereby focusing on areas where the World Bank Group can make the most difference.
Key Global Challenges: The six GCPs have a clear development objective with line of sight to the WBG Scorecard outcomes. They contribute to the respective Sustainable Development Goals and their potential to deliver at scale all the components of the World Bank Group: IBRD, Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ, IFC and MIGA. They are structured to enable the effective use of both public finances and private capital to address these challenges.
1. Forests for Development, Climate, and Biodiversity: to build a sustainable forest economy in critical forest biomes.
2. Energy Access and Transition: to increase access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy, by scaling up clean energy and phasing down fossil fuel use.
3. Accelerating Digitalization: to advance at scale and enable innovation and adoption of technology.
4. Food and Nutrition Security: to help break the cycle of food and nutrition insecurity by 2030.
5. Enhanced Health Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response: to enhance capacity to prevent and prepare for health emergencies by strengthening health systems at country, regional, and global levels.
6. Fast-Track Water Security and Climate Adaptation: to strengthen water security in client countries through systems change and scaling-up more sustainable water management and disaster risk reduction solutions.
Knowledge, Financing, and Partnerships: By leveraging partnerships, financial resources, and knowledge, the GCPs support new ideas and learning. For example, the Health GCP will maximize impact by collaborating with the Global Fund to strengthen the coordination and financing of local manufacturing of vaccines, which is crucial for timely and effective responses to health emergencies. The Water Security GCP aims to achieve more impactful country-level implementation, especially in FCV contexts, by engaging with UN agencies, civil society organizations, and NGOs. Partners can work with the WBG as one single entity through the GCPs and benefit from potential synergies. Regarding knowledge, the Forest GCP will, for instance, support client data systems and leverage modern digital tools and technologies to create modern interactive knowledge products on various aspects of modern forest management in a climate-smart ecosystem context. The Digital GCP aims to create a dynamic learning environment for sharing knowledge, lessons, and good practices to drive innovation and capacity building through its Platform for Collective Learning.
Design and Implementation: The design of each GCP will be tailored to the nature of the global challenge, countries¡¯ development needs, and the readiness of public and private sector solutions. For example, the Energy Access and Transition GCP supports the WBG goal, in partnership with the AfDB, to connect [300]
million people to electricity in Africa by 2030. The Food Security and Nutrition GCP will focus on known food insecurity hotspots, and promote collective approaches in the social protection, nutrition, and agrifood spaces. Similarly, the Digital GCP will lay digital foundations for and directly contribute to other GCP objectives. Cross-cutting issues that apply to all GCPs will be given emphasis during design and implementation, such as gender equality, inclusion, fragility, conflict and violence, and Mitigation and Adaption. GCPs will offer private sector clients the opportunity to invest in new markets and help maximize financing for development, while leveraging the WBG¡¯s knowledge and tools. For example, the Forest & Biodiversity GCP aims to change how global forest investments are financed. To attract large private investments, the GCP will provide risk-reducing tools like guarantees, along with competitive financing packages and supportive regulatory environments.
GCPs will be delivered through the WBG¡¯s country-based development model as part of each country¡¯s strategic priorities that are planned and programmed in the Country Partnership Frameworks.
Last Updated: Oct 21, 2024