Driven by population growth,
urbanization, and increased income, the demand for
animal-source food products in developing countries is
rapidly increasing. Livestock, which already constitutes 30
percent of the agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in
the developing world, and about 40 percent of the global
agricultural GDP, is one of the fastest-growing subsectors
in agriculture. Growing demand presents real opportunities

This quick note is to provide the reader
with a perspective on how the World Bank Group has been
challenged by and has responded to recent global crises.
However, at this historical moment, one cannot begin to
write of global or regional issues without noting the
momentous events that are now sweeping across the Arab
World. Every country is different, but common themes are
emerging. The youth's messages are loud and clear: they

India faces a turbulent water future and
the current water development and management system is not
sustainable.Unless dramatic changes are made and made soon
in the way in which government manages water, India will
have neither the cash to maintain and build new
infrastructure, nor the water required for the economy and
for people. This Report examines the evolution of the
management of India's waters, describes the

Western and Central Africa have lengthy
experience with public-private partnerships (PPPs), both for
water supply and for combined power and water supply
utilities. Cote d'Ivoire's successful PPP dates
from 1959, and, over the last two decades, as many as 15 out
of 23 countries in the region have experimented with PPPs.
Eleven PPPs are studied here, and detailed performance
indicators are reported for six large cases-Cote

This report is organized around three
thematic chapters. Chapter one looks at the contribution of
the environment and tourism sector to the Namibian economy
as well as at some key achievements and challenges. Chapter
two describes the policy and legislative framework, and the
institutional analysis of the environment and tourism
sector. Chapter three examines the financing of the sector
and some key budget management issues. And finally in

The Government of Bangladesh has
requested the World Bank to provide further assistance to
the livestock and dairy sectors. During a mission of the
Sector Manager of Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) of
the South Asia region of the World Bank to Bangladesh in
November 2008, the Secretary of the Ministry of Livestock
and Fisheries (MOFL) of the former Caretaker Government of
Bangladesh (BD) requested the Sector Manager for assistance

The Strategic Environmental and Social
Assessment (SESA) of the mining sector in Sierra Leone was
undertaken in response to the Government of Sierra
Leone's (GOSL) request for assistance in developing its
minerals policy. The SESA will help meet long-term country
development by integrating environmental and social
considerations in mining sector reforms. The crucial aspect
of the SESA process is that the environmental and social

This report brings together lessons from previous studies, supplemented by new analysis. It frames the challenges facing the rural and agri-food sector in the Western Balkans to illustrate the directions for policies, now and in the future. Part one looks at the characteristics of the rural and agri-food sector today, its potential and its obstacles. Part two looks at the future of the agri-food sector and rural space.

The overall objective of the
Comprehensive Assessment of the Agricultural Sector (CAAS)
is to provide an evidence base to enable appropriate
strategic policy responses by the Government of Liberia
(GoL) and its development partners in order to maximize the
contribution of the agriculture sector to the
Government's overarching policy objectives. Given the
strong relationship between growth in agricultural

Climate change is a serious
environmental challenge that could undermine the drive for
sustainable development. Since the industrial revolution,
the mean surface temperature of earth has increased an
average of 1degree celsius per century due to the
accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Furthermore, most of this change has occurred in the past 30
to 40 years, and the rate of increase is accelerating, with

Several studies addressing the supply
and demand for food in China suggest that the nation can
largely meet its needs in the coming decades. However,
these studies do not consider the effects of climate change.
This paper examines whether near future expected changes in
climate are likely to alter this picture. The authors
analyze the effect of temperature and precipitation on net
crop revenues using a cross section consisting of both

Large increases in international food
prices in 2007 and early 2008 have become a key concern for
policy makers in East Asia. The increases are likely to have
a significant impact on the living standards of many,
particularly the poor. By March 2008, dollar nominated world
food prices were more than two and a half times higher than
in early 2002. Almost three quarters of this increase
occurred since the start of 2007, and about half since the