This report is based on a field study of
two large settlements, Satghara (a census town) and
Bhagwatipur (a rural cluster with 10,000 plus population) in
the Madhubani district of Bihar. The study explores the
social dynamics of the rural non-farm economy by empirically
mapping non-farm occupations in both the settlements. It
examines the dynamics of caste, community, and gender within
the social organization of the non-farm economy in terms of

The world's urban population is
expected to increase by about 2.7 billion by
2050.Virtually all of the increased population
will be in developing countries, leading to massive needs
for new and improved housing and urban infrastructures
(UNDESA 2012). The planning and design of these new
developments will reshape or create new urban landscapes
with significant implications for energy consumption,

Convenient access to safe water is
central to human health and development. Water-borne disease
remains a major cause of mortality and morbidity in the
world, much of which could be eliminated by a combination of
better water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH). The WHO
estimates that around 502 000 deaths a year in low and
middle income countries from diarrheal disease are
attributable to unsafe water, and that over 1 000 children

This paper presents trends in monetary
and nonmonetary dimensions of wellbeing in Ethiopia using
data from the Household Consumption and Expenditure and
Welfare Monitoring surveys implemented in 2000, 2005, and
2011. The paper provides evidence on changes in overlapping
deprivations using a non-index approach to multidimensional
poverty. It assesses the performance of various dimensions
in education, health, and living standards, taking one

Iraq appears to have firmly entered the
ranks of upper middle-income countries in 2012, having
experienced strong economic growth following the
establishment of a civilian elected government in 2005-06.
In 2012 the years of growth culminated in a per capita GDP
of 2472 constant 2005 US$. This three-volume poverty and
inclusion assessment provides the first in-depth analysis of
Iraq's economic and social development during the

Sustainable development goals (SDGs)
placed access to basic services at the center of
international development in 2016-2030. Out of 17 goals,
five address the access of poor people to basic services: to
health in SDG3, to education in SDG4, and SDG5, to water and
sanitation in SDG6, to energy in SDG7, and to urban services
in SDG11. The mutually reinforcing relationship between
electricity access, economic development, and poverty

El Salvador is the smallest country in
Central America, and one of the most densely populated in
the world. El Salvador is among the countries most affected
by weather-related events and other hazards, incurring
annual losses of around 2.5 percent of GDP. Worldwide, it
ranks second highest for risk exposure to two or more
hazards and highest for the total population at a relatively
high risk of mortality. Furthermore, climate change is

In the past decade, Latin America and
the Caribbean has achieved impressive social and economic
successes. For the first time in history, more people are in
the middle class than in poverty. Inequality, although still
high, declined markedly. Growth, jobs and effective social
programs have transformed the lives of millions. In a
striking departure from the crisis-prone Latin America of
the past, the region has shown it is better prepared to

This Country Partnership Framework (CPF)
presents the World Bank Group (WBG) program for Côte
d’Ivoire (CIV) during the period FY16-FY19. The CPF comes at
an opportune moment to accelerate and scale up the WBG
engagement. The program will take advantage of CIV’s current
climate of renewed stability to modernize the economy and
eliminate long-standing disparities aggravated by a decade
of multifaceted crisis, during which the World Bank Group

In the 20th Century, Brazil rapidly
urbanized and is now not only an urban nation but a
metropolitan one. Brazils sprawling regioes metropolitanas
(metropolitan regions, or RMs, which are municipal clusters)
are now home to almost 50 million people and much of the
countrys economic vitality. The RM spatial level and its
supporting governmental institutions have thus become
critical to Brazils future development. While challenges

The Country Opinion Survey in Côte
d’Ivoire assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in gaining a
better understanding of how stakeholders in Côte d’Ivoire
perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic
feedback from national and local governments,
multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the
private sector, and civil society in Côte d’Ivoire on 1)
their views regarding the general environment in Côte

Myanmar is a country in transition with
great regional diversity. It is still a relatively young
country with the highest share of its population at active
working age. Myanmar’s more pressing needs are the
following: a) reducing the incidence of poverty and
improving human development outcomes, with a particular
emphasis on reaching the poor and vulnerable. Children from
poor families fare worse when it comes to nutrition, and