Economics & Development

Argentina is undergoing a period of moderate growth with inflation easing from recent highs, an improving external position marked by gradually stronger reserves and a near-balanced current account, a declining public debt burden, and a narrowed fiscal deficit, while agriculture, industry, and services remain the principal drivers of economic activity. In the coming years, the Bank will focus on sustaining macroeconomic stabilization and disinflation, strengthening public financial management and debt management, and deepening financial intermediation to expand access to credit and support private sector development. Support will prioritize measures to enhance export competitiveness and integration into global markets, improve the investment climate to catalyze private investment, and raise productivity and job creation across agriculture, industry, and services. The program will also emphasize trade facilitation and logistics, innovation and skills to upgrade firm capabilities, and institutional and regulatory reforms that bolster transparency and resilience to external shocks, thereby reinforcing a stable foundation for inclusive and sustainable growth.

Ratings of the East-West Highway Corridor Improvement Project for Georgia were as follows: outcome was moderately satisfactory, Bank performance was moderately satisfactory, and monitoring and evaluation quality was modest. Lessons learned indicate that for technically complex infrastructure, dynamic and adaptive implementation support is as important as thorough preparation; recommendations are to resource project management adequately, ensure early identification and escalation of issues, and include contractual provisions that require robust implementation planning and enable timely remedies for weak consultant and contractor performance. Programmatic, long-term sector engagement proved more effective than standalone operations in achieving institutional and policy outcomes; future projects should align with national strategies, build on prior analytical and capacity work, and be sequenced to pave the way for subsequent investments to sustain reforms across agencies such as the Roads Department (RD) and the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development (MESD). Large, complex works require explicit recognition of residual uncertainty and built-in flexibility; contracts and schedules should incorporate realistic timelines, contingencies, and allowances for geotechnical and climate risks, with early access to specialized expertise in areas such as tunneling and slope stabilization. Good quality at entry remains critical; future operations should strengthen detailed design, climate and geotechnical risk screening, and supervision arrangements, while maintaining continuous, inclusive stakeholder engagement to reduce downstream risks and enhance acceptance. Supervision effectiveness depends on capable engineers and transparent accountability; therefore, selection of supervision consultants should be based on proven track records, with clear performance benchmarks and mechanisms for open communication so advice is acted upon before problems escalate, thereby safeguarding implementation efficiency and timely delivery.

Ratings of the Burundi Landscape Restoration and Resilience Project for Burundi were as follows: outcome was satisfactory; Bank performance was satisfactory; monitoring and evaluation quality was high. Lessons learned indicate that land certification is foundational for landscape restoration because it reduces disputes, builds trust, and unlocks investment in sustainable land management; this should be institutionalized early, integrated with community planning, and accompanied by sustained sensitization on women’s land rights to align practice with legal equality, thereby improving access to credit and gender inclusion. Community-driven approaches are vital in fragility, conflict, and violence settings; participatory planning for land certification and livelihoods, active inclusion of women and Batwa communities, and support for savings groups, livestock, seeds, and beekeeping strengthened ownership, productivity, and social cohesion; linking beneficiaries to markets and strengthening full value chains from production to sales are essential for durable income gains. Retaining experienced staff from prior operations and maintaining a skilled core team accelerates mobilization and delivery; continuity, adaptable design, and empowered local partners sustained implementation during shocks such as the pandemic; future projects should prioritize funding to build and retain core teams, preserve institutional knowledge, and systematically develop local partners to enhance resilience and reduce implementation risk. Community-driven, bottom-up engagement should remain central in fragile contexts, with a continued emphasis on community voice and local institutions as drivers of resilience and sustained outcomes. Nature-based solutions are viable and scalable in low-capacity contexts; Soil and Water Bioengineering (SWBE), including terracing and revegetation, reduced erosion cost-effectively, achieved high plant survival, and can be replicated across similar landscapes, with minor technical constraints addressed through local expertise. Climate and carbon co-benefits should be systematically integrated by explicitly setting carbon and resilience objectives at design, quantifying benefits using tools such as the Ex-Ante Carbon Balance Tool, and aligning with national climate commitments to facilitate access to climate finance and global partnerships.

This report comes at a critical moment in the development of our nation, as South Sudan continues to experience rapid urban growth in a context marked by fragility, displacement, climate vulnerability, weak infrastructure, and institutional constraints. The Review provides a timely, evidence based assessment of the country’s urban development challenges and opportunities, and offers a practical pathway for strengthening our cities and towns as engines of recovery, resilience, and inclusive growth.

Second Additional Financing for Tarbela Fourth Extension Hydropower Project for Pakistan has the development objectives of facilitating a sustainable expansion of electricity generation capacity by completing the Tarbela Fifth Extension Hydropower Project to ensure safe operation of Tunnel 5 and the Tarbela Reservoir, reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels, improving system reliability and affordability, and enhancing energy security. Component A: Construction of Powerhouse and Modification to Tunnel 5 will complete civil works for a 1,530 megawatt powerhouse on Tunnel 5, a raised intake to sustain releases despite reservoir sedimentation, the connection tunnel and vertical shaft between the raised intake and Tunnel 5, tailrace culvert and outflow canal, and rehabilitation or replacement of low-level intake and low-level outlet gates to ensure safe commissioning and long-term operations under seasonal reservoir level constraints. Component B: Power Units, Switchyard, Transmission Line, and Ancillary Equipment will deliver turbines, generators, transformers, and auxiliaries, construct the Tarbela 5 switchyard, and provide interconnection with existing switchyards to enable commissioning under alternative evacuation paths; Sub-component B1 and Sub-component B2 will install the electro-mechanical equipment and associated electrical connections, while Sub-component B3.1 will complete the 500 kilovolt double-circuit Tarbela transmission line from the Tarbela 5 switchyard to the Islamabad West Substation to evacuate the full plant output, and Sub-component B3.2 will implement the Environmental Action Plan and Social Action Plan for the transmission line. Component C: Social Action and Environmental Management Plans, Dam Monitoring and Surveillance will finance land and resettlement compensation for legacy cases and for the transmission line, implement the Social Action Plan and Environmental Management Plan for the hydropower component, and strengthen dam safety and monitoring systems, including continued operation of instruments and surveillance protocols. Component D: Construction Supervision, Monitoring and Evaluation will provide continuous construction management and implementation support through the Tarbela 5 Project Implementation Consultant and an Independent Panel of Experts, and carry out independent monitoring and evaluation of project impacts, social development activities, grievance redress, resettlement actions including the Resettlement Claims Commission, and occupational health and safety. Component E: Project Management Support, Capacity Building of the Water and Power Development Authority, Technical Assistance, Training, and Future Project Preparation will support the Project Management Unit including the Environmental and Social Management Unit, advisory and training services, strategic studies and preparation of future hydropower schemes in the Tarbela Complex and the lower Indus, and gender-focused actions aligned with the WePOWER Pakistan National Chapter to improve recruitment, retention, and professional development of women in technical roles through outreach, internships, training, facilities, and policy enhancements. The additional financing will use existing implementation, fiduciary, and environmental and social instruments, and will prioritize timely commissioning of the powerhouse, completion of the raised intake, and sustained benefit sharing with local communities.

This document relates to the IFC Project Number 48242.