Uganda’s progress in reducing poverty from 1993 to 2006 is a remarkable story of success that has been well told. The narrative of Uganda’s continued, albeit it slightly slower, progress in reducing poverty since 2006 is less familiar. This was a period in which growth slowed as the gains from reforms years earlier had been fully realized, and weak infrastructure and increasing corruption increasingly constrained private sector competitiveness (World Bank 2015). This report examines Uganda’s progress in reducing poverty, with a specific focus on the period 2006 to 2013.

This study discusses the impact of economic geography and (low) population density on development outcomes in Mali and explores how policies to reduce poverty can be made more effective by taking these two factors into account. The crisis in north Mali which started in 2012 and continues to date has brought questions of economic geography to the center of attention.

Africa's growing demand for food has been met increasingly by imports from the global market. This, coupled with rising global food prices, brings ever-mounting food import bills. In addition, population growth and changing demand patterns will double demands over the next 10 years. Two key issues must be addressed: (a) establishing a consistent and stable policy environment for regional trade in fertilizers; and (b) investing in institutions that reduce the transaction costs of coordination failures.

In sub-Saharan Africa women comprise a large proportion of the agricultural labor force, yet they are consistently found to be less productive than male farmers. The gender gap in agricultural productivity-measured by the value of agricultural produce per unit of cultivated land-ranges from 4-25 percent, depending on the country and the crop.1 The World Bank Africa Gender Innovation Lab, UN Women, and the UNDP-UNEP Poverty-Environment Initiative jointly produced a report to quantify the cost of the gender gap and the potential gains from closing that gap in Malawi, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Agriculture in Tanzania accounts for 28 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employs 80 percent of its labor force. The sector is also an important source of export revenues. The data and findings presented in this report provide a summary of the performance of the agriculture sector in Tanzania using a set of indicators covering six areas.

Because agriculture is the economic backbone of most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia, any meaningful sustainable development program in the continent must therefore be anchored in the sector. The concept for this study on agribusiness indicators was based on the vital role that agribusiness plays in agricultural development. The study focuses on agribusiness indicators (ABI) to identify and isolate the determining factors that lead private investors and other stakeholders to participate in agribusiness and to engage in discourse regarding its development.

This report highlights the great potential of the agribusiness sector in Africa by drawing on experience in Africa as well as other regions. The evidence demonstrates that good policies, a conducive business environment, and strategic support from governments can help agribusiness reach its potential. Africa is now at a crossroads, from which it can take concrete steps to realize its potential or continue to lose competitiveness, missing a major opportunity for increased growth, employment, and food security. The report pursues several lines of analysis.

Mozambique, the only Lusophone country covered in the agribusiness indicators initiative, has had a turbulent history since independence. Civil unrest over some 20 years and frequent drought in southern Mozambique, coupled with floods near the many waterways that transect the country (mainly east-west), have inhibited an agricultural transformation. Even so, Mozambique could be a regional breadbasket. The country has much potentially usable arable land, along with access to river water for irrigation in many agricultural production zones, particularly in central and northern Mozambique.

James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank Group, discussed what the Bank learned in coming to look at the issues of poverty and development. Development requires proper economic policies, but also the essential element of the social aspects and human aspects of society. The Bank’s focus is to think first in terms of poverty—fighting poverty with passion was adopted recently as the first line of our mission statement. Wolfensohn discussed an agenda for action on the issues of inclusion, corruption, transparency, education, knowledge, and private sector environment.

James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank Group, discussed the international development framework; legal and justice system; financial supervision and control at the level of banks, financial markets, capital markets, leasing, and agricultural banks; and social safety net and a social structure to come up with programs for privatization in the former Soviet Union. Governments must be the dominant power in deciding the development agenda. In partnership with a country’s government, the Bank agrees upon a Comprehensive Development Framework.

James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank Group, reassessed the global financial architecture and its impact on Latin America. Latin American countries, being small economies, are very vulnerable to world pressures. After a huge drop in private sector finance, we’re seeing the first signs of return. What we need now is greater transparency and supervision in banking and the private sector—and a better common set of principles and standards. We need decent government, trained government, with capacity at all levels. We need legal systems that work.

Agriculture and agribusiness play an important role in the Zambian economy, contributing around 20 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in recent years and about 12 percent of national export earnings. Agriculture employs nearly 70 percent of the labor force and remains the main source of income and employment for most of the people living in rural areas. The objective of the Zambia agribusiness indicators (ABI) country report is to examine factors that have affected agricultural productivity, market access, and the policy environment for agriculture in Zambia.