On the Agenda / Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

A close up ground view of crops: Smallholder farmers produce one-third of the world’s food but face challenges they can't solve alone.

Industry government collaboration on agritech can empower global agriculture

Government, smallholder farmers and other actors cannot work in silos to improve agricultural productivity and ensure a food-secure future.

Abhay Pareek and Drishti Kumar

April 23, 2024

Emerging Technologies

How will conversational computing change our work and lives?

Conversastional Computing is allowing for personalized digital assistants managing daily tasks - but we must also consider privacy, bias and other ethical concerns.

Thong Nguyen

April 23, 2024

APRIL 18, 2024 - WASHINGTON DC., 2024 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings. Transforming Challenge into Action: Expanding Health Coverage for All.The World Bank Group has announced an ambitious plan to support countries in delivering quality, affordable health services to 1.5 billion people by 2030. Health care is an investment, not an expense. Affordable accessible health care can unlock human capital and economic dividends for countries. Speakers: Ajay Banga, President, World Bank Group; Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization; Shunâichi Suzuki, Minister of Finance, Japan; Mohamed Maait Minister of Finance, Arab Republic of Egypt; Dr. Muhammad Pate, Minister of Health, Nigeria; Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Finance, Indonesia; Joanne Carter, Executive Director, RESULTS; Lamia Tazi, CEO, Sothema; Senait Fisseha, Vice President of Global Programs, The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation; Shakuntala Santhiran, International broadcast journalist and Moderator. Photo: Grant Ellis / World Bank

Financial and Monetary Systems

What just happened at the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings?

The World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund held their annual Spring Meetings from 15-20 April in Washington DC. Here's what you need to know.

Kate Whiting

April 23, 2024

Trade and Investment

World merchandise trade rebound, and other global trade stories to read this month

Top trade stories: Global trade to rebound in 2024; EU-US trade meeting takes place; Luxury good exports surpass agriculture in France.

Matthew Stephenson

April 23, 2024

Nature and Biodiversity

The planet’s outlook is in our hands. Which future will we incentivize?

Governments spend $1.8 trillion on harmful subsidies - the Kunming-Montreal Framework targets phasing out $500 billion of these by 2030, advocating for biodiversity conservation.

Carlos Correa

April 22, 2024

Flag hanging to one side fo the image: With major powers and the UN unable to prevent or end many wars, maybe this is the moment for middle powers.

Global Cooperation

Why it's time for 'middle powers' to step up on geopolitics

With major powers and the United Nations unable to prevent or end many wars, maybe this is the moment for middle powers.

Robin Pomeroy and Sophia Akram

April 22, 2024

An aerial view of a construction site with a crane: A revolution could be upon us involving the recycling of scrap metal.

Energy Transition

Why recycling metal is an opportunity too good to waste

Recycling energy-transition metals from battery, electric vehicles and renewable energy products offers abundant growth potential.

Nick Pickens and Julian Kettle

April 22, 2024

Shot of a group of business colleagues meeting in the boardroom: Business leaders must ask the right questions when using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in the boardroom.

Emerging Technologies

CEOs and CFOs, take note: The 3 pillars of successful GenAI adoption

Successful implementation of GenAI hinges on three main factors: financial value to the organization, availability of key data and impact on the workforce.

Kalin Anev Janse and José Parra Moyano

April 22, 2024

The Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center is pictured in Los Angeles, California.

Cybersecurity

These sectors are top targets for cybercrime, and other cybersecurity news to know this month

Critical infrastructure is the main target of cybercriminals; Apple upgrades to quantum-proof encryption; Millions of telco customers affected by web leak.

Akshay Joshi

April 22, 2024

Nature and Biodiversity

Earth Day 2024: These 4 innovators have big ideas for developing a sustainable plastics ecosystem

As the world marks Earth Day 2024, leaders of companies driving innovation in the plastics sector share their ideas on reducing plastic production and waste.

Simon Torkington

April 22, 2024

A beach ball of planet Earth on a field of grass, celebrating Earth Day

Health and Healthcare Systems

This Earth Day we consider the impact of climate change on human health

By highlighting how climate change impacts health this Earth Day we can look to safeguard people's wellbeing and preserve the beauty of life on Earth.

Shyam Bishen and Annika Green

April 22, 2024

Memory chips, collected from discarded electronic items, are pictured at Dowa Holdings Co's Eco-System Recycling Co, a recycling plant, in Honjo, north of Tokyo March 28, 2008. Thinking of throwing out your old cell phone? Think again. Maybe you should mine it first for gold, silver, copper and a host of other metals embedded in the electronics -- many of which are enjoying near-record prices. It's called "urban mining", scavenging through the scrap metal in old electronic products in search of such gems as iridium and gold, and it is a growth industry around the world as metal prices skyrocket. Picture taken March 28, 2008. To match feature JAPAN-METALS/RECYCLING. REUTERS/Yuriko Nakao (JAPAN)

Circular Economy

Circularity of critical metals in the energy transition: What we can learn from platinum group metals

The energy transition relies on renewable technologies that rely on critical minerals. Here's what we can learn about circularity from platinum group metals.

Margery Ryan and Anis Nassar

April 22, 2024

valuable papers, charts and diagrams - a collage illustrating the health of an economy

Economic Growth

How can we bridge the gap between economic fact and economic sentiment? A new report sheds light

The Human Development Report considers why there is a gap between data showing improving economic conditions and negative perceptions about the economy.

Pedro Conceição

April 22, 2024

Garbage is pictured at a polluted beach on the banks of Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil March 16, 2022. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes

Nature and Biodiversity

Earth Day: We are almost certainly all eating plastics, says report, and other nature and climate stories you need to read this week

Also this week: a new report says the climate crisis could see the global economy facing a $38 trillion annual bill by 2050. #nature #climatechange #earthday

Johnny Wood

April 22, 2024

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