Economics & Development

This document summarizes 19 Access to Information (ATI) requests received by the World Bank in September 2026. The requests cover a wide range of topics, including access to procurement, supervision, implementation, and archival records related to World Bank projects; operational guidance and institutional frameworks; historical research papers and studies; records management and project appraisal documents; information on budget integration and grievance mechanisms; economic and sector work studies; project-related photographs; and records concerning sanctions, climate risk reports, and historical World Bank research activities. The requests reflect interest in both contemporary and archival World Bank information across multiple sectors and regions.

Uzbekistan Financial Sector Reform Project for Uzbekistan had development objectives to support the authorities in restructuring and privatizing state-owned banks, increasing financial resilience to disasters, and expanding finance for exporting micro, small, and medium enterprises. The project was dropped due to government-wide administrative reforms starting in late 2022 that repeatedly altered institutional mandates and implementation arrangements, including shifting responsibility for state-owned bank reform and the Project Implementation Unit between agencies before returning to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and abolishing or reorganizing counterparts for insurance and export finance. These changes, combined with delayed restoration of implementation authority and frequent turnover among senior decision-makers, disrupted continuity, slowed approvals, and weakened institutional ownership. The breadth and complexity of the operation further increased its vulnerability as the remaining implementation period narrowed, leading to a restructuring in June 2025 that focused solely on state-owned bank reform while cancelling the disaster risk finance and export finance components. Despite this narrowed scope, key procurement packages were not authorized and substantive implementation did not advance, leaving no credible path to achieving results within the time available. The World Bank recommended full cancellation in late 2025, and the government requested cancellation of the remaining balance in early 2026, with total disbursement of approximately 1.5 percent of the original credit by closure.

Labor regulations in Mauritius overall are characterized by a comprehensive and well-developed legal framework. This note adopts the analytical framework of the World Development Report, which recognizes that labor regulations vary considerably across countries and that there is no single optimal regulatory model. Labor regulation involves a trade-off: overly lax regulation can leave workers - particularly low-wage workers - vulnerable to inadequate protection and bargaining power, while overly stringent regulation can hinder firm dynamism by increasing labor and compliance costs and reducing firms’ ability to adjust their workforce in response to changing economic conditions. Guided by this framework, the note reviews the main components of Mauritius’ labor regulatory framework, including the Workers’ Rights Act 2019 and the Remuneration Orders. The Workers’ Rights Act governs individual employment relationships, including contracts, working conditions, termination, and protections against discrimination and harassment, while the Remuneration Orders establish legally binding minimum wages that vary by sector, occupation, tenure, and other attributes. The note benchmarks these provisions against international labor standards and peer countries to identify areas where regulations are overly restrictive or insufficiently protective. Where data permit, the review is complemented by survey evidence and interpreted alongside the broader empirical literature to provide indicative insights into how labor regulations may affect labor market outcomes.

This project paper seeks approval of a US$1.34 million grant from the Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response Trust Fund for the Georgia: Enhancing Early Warning Systems by Using Genomic Surveillance and One Health Approach Project. The development objective is to strengthen Georgia's laboratory and operational capacity for early warning system (EWS) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance in human and animal health through a One Health approach. The project will finance laboratory equipment, wastewater monitoring systems, and surveillance vehicles to enhance genomic surveillance, microbial testing, and disease monitoring capabilities of key public health, agriculture, and food safety agencies. It will also support project management and coordination activities. The project is expected to improve pandemic preparedness, strengthen integrated disease surveillance, enhance laboratory capacity, and contribute to a more resilient public health system serving Georgia's population.