Economics & Development

The guidance for resilient housing is intended to help Maldivians make their homes stronger and safer against disasters and climate change; more sustainable, with lower electricity costs and greener materials; and healthier and more comfortable to live in. The recommendations in this guidance are based on the Maldives building codes and standards, as well as international standards (ASCE 7, British Standards, Eurocodes) where necessary to fill any gaps in provisions in the Maldives documents. The disaster- and climate-resilience aspects that are considered include: natural and climate hazards: including strong wind storms; flooding due to heavy rainfall, sea surge and sea level rise; temperature rise; seismic hazard; and eergy- and water efficiency: including reducing emissions and costs by maximizing natural ventilation, natural light, passive cooling, and thermal mass, and optimizing building orientation, shading, and the sustainability of materials used for construction.

Ratings of the BR Espirito Santo Integrated Sustainable Water Management Project for Brazil were as follows: outcome was satisfactory, Bank performance was satisfactory, and M&E quality was modest. Lessons and recommendations are as follows: Sewerage work contracts should systematically include financing for household connections, including intra-domiciliary piping, paired with strong social outreach to maximize take-up, and this approach should be supported by a robust monitoring and evaluation system to track connections and service use. Protecting upstream water sources to improve downstream availability and quality is essential for integrated water management and requires coordinated policies, institutions, regulations, and financial incentives across sectors and levels of government, with active engagement of diverse stakeholders in rural and urban areas. Multisectoral operations demand rigorous upfront planning, continuous institutional strengthening, and project management anchored at a sufficiently high level with strong decision-maker backing, while relying on dedicated, full-time teams to drive timely execution and results. Successful delivery of simultaneous infrastructure contracts, including those based on FIDIC, requires specialized, dedicated implementation teams with strong technical, contractual, environmental, and social capacities. When substantial implementation delays arise, teams should promptly reassess and update technical documentation—such as terms of reference, designs, and feasibility studies—to prevent cascading technical, financial, and scheduling impacts.