g20

Cross-border spillover effects of the G20 financial regulatory reforms: results from a pilot survey

After the global financial crisis, the G20 set out on an ambitious financial regulatory reform agenda to strengthen the global financial system. With any type of regulatory framework, incentives are created. While these reforms will ultimately contribute to greater financial stability there is a risk that regulations will have unintended consequences and spillover effects by reducing the incentives to lend to countries with emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) where financing is critical to achieving the SGDs.

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has been actively working to improve the evidence on any adverse effects of the post global crisis financial regulatory reforms. The World Bank works closely with the FSB to ensure the voice of developing countries are represented in these discussions. To complement the FSB’s efforts, our team conducted qualitative surveys in seven EMDEs that focused on the adverse impact of spillover effects that may take place in individual countries that are not required to implement the reforms themselves.

Farewell 2017; Hello to More and Better Infrastructure in 2018

Photo: auphoto / Shutterstock.com

As Washington, D.C.’s infrastructure braces for its first winter freeze and 2017 draws to a close, this feels like the right moment for a recap on what the year has brought us in terms of closing the infrastructure gap across emerging markets and developing economies; policy directions within and outside of the World Bank Group; new instruments, tools, and resources; and—the proof in the pudding—actual investment levels.

There may not be one blog that can capture all of those themes in detail, but here is a brief overview of what 2017 has meant and what is on the docket for 2018 and beyond.

Coming together is the way forward: Maximizing Finance for Development

Also available in: Español

Those following the discussions during the IMF and World Bank Group Annual Meetings held in Washington last week will have noticed that our approach toward international economic development is changing in a major way—and, I believe, for the better.

Saturday’s panel discussion on Maximizing Finance for Development set the context that many in the development community now know well, but bears repeating: It will take not billions, but many trillions of dollars to meet rising aspirations for better infrastructure, health and education. Specifically, we are talking about $4 trillion every year needed to meet the Sustainable Development Goals to which the international community agreed in September 2015.

Four policy approaches to support job creation through Global Value Chains

Mexico created over 60,000 jobs between 1993 to 2000 upgrading the apparel value chain from assembly to direct distribution to customers. *(Photo: Maria Fleischmann / World Bank)*

As we discussed in our previous post, Global Value Chains can lead to the creation of more, inclusive and better jobs. GVCs can be a win-win for firms that create better jobs while they enjoy greater efficiency, productivity, and profits. However, there is a potential trade-off between increasing competitiveness and job creation, and the exact nature of positive labor market outcomes depends on several parameters. Given the cross-border (and, therefore, multiple jurisdictive) nature of GVCs, national policy choices to strengthen positive labor outcomes are limited. However, national governments can make policy decisions to facilitate GVC participation that is commensurate with positive labor market outcomes.

Global Value Chains: a way to create more, better and inclusive jobs

Global Value Chains are a win-win for firms that enjoy greater efficiency, productivity, and profits while they create better jobs *(Photo by Jonathan Ernst / World Bank)*

Global Value Chains (GVC) are significant vehicles of job creation, employing around 17 million people worldwide and carrying a share of 60 percent of global trade. As globalization increases, GVCs are becoming more relevant in international production, trade, and investments. And Global Value Chains also have an important effect on job creation, and these jobs usually have higher wages and better working conditions. Global Value Chains can become a win-win for firms, which enjoy greater efficiency, productivity, and profits while they create better jobs. Here are some revealing facts about the potential of GVCs to create more and better jobs.

The care economy: A powerful entry point for increasing female employment

The burden of childcare and elderly care falls disproportionately on women — Access to affordable childcare is critical to increase female labor participation because the burden of childcare and elderly care falls disproportionately on women. *Photo: Rama George-Alleyne / World Bank*

Promoting female labor force participation and the quality of women’s employment was one of the main topics of the latest G20 Ministers of Labor meeting, as we explained in this blog. The solutions to reducing labor gender gaps across the world lie in many corners, but a well-functioning care economy is especially crucial. Nowadays, the burden of childcare and elderly care almost always falls disproportionately on women: Married women spend 14 to 42 percent of their non-leisure time on childcare, compared with 1 to 20 percent for married men. And changing demographics, aging societies, and declining fertility rates also make the burden of elderly care a growing challenge.

Three policies to promote a more inclusive future of work

Even if the technologies are available, businesses and individuals often lack the necessary skills to use them. And these skill gaps exist at multiple levels.
*(Photo: Arne Hoel/World Bank)*

As we explained in previous posts, digital technologies present both threats and opportunities for the employment agenda in developing countries. Yet many countries lack the means to take full advantage of these opportunities, because of limited access to technology, a lack of skills, and the absence of a broad enabling environment, the so-called “analog” complements.

The Future of Work: The number of jobs is not the only thing at stake

Photo of computer lab. Technology is a great job-creating machine. But will these new jobs be better or worse? — Technology is a great job-creating machine. But will these new jobs be better or worse? (Photo: John Hogg / World Bank)

Most of the discussion about the future of work focuses on how many jobs robots will take from humans. But this is just a (small) part of the change to come. As we explained in our previous blog, technology is reshaping the world of work not only by automating production but also by facilitating connectivity and innovation. The changes that digital technology is introducing in the price of capital versus labor, the costs of transacting, the economies of scale, and the speed of innovation bring significant effects in three dimensions: the quantity, the quality, and the distribution of jobs. Let’s see them in detail.

Can technology reshape the world of work for developing countries?

Automation, connectivity, and innovation will together determine how world of work will look in both developed and developing countries. (Photo: Sarah Farhat / World Bank)

The Future of Work was not only the first topic of this year’s G20 Labor and Employment Ministerial Meeting, it's also white hot in today’s blogosphere. Yet most pieces portray a developed world perspective with an emphasis on robots, and how they are taking the jobs away, and skills development as the key policy response. But what does the rapid technological change mean for global poverty and inequality? How does it affect the world of work in developing countries?

A perspective on jobs from the G20

Factory workers in Ghana — When talking about the Future of Work, it is important to go beyond discussing robots and changes in employer-worker relationships; these might not be the primary labor market problem that low-income countries face. *(Photo: Dominic Chavez/World Bank)*

On May 18-19, the G20 Ministers of Labor met in Bad Neuenahr, Germany to discuss and adopt their annual Labor and Employment Ministerial Meeting (LEMM) Declaration advocating for "an integrated set of policies that places people and jobs at center stage." In this, the meeting did not shy away from some of the more thorny issues to reach the overarching goal of fostering "inclusive growth and a global economy that works for everyone." It focused on the much-feared future-of-work, the longstanding challenge of more and better employment for women, better integration of recognized migrants and refugees in domestic labor markets, and ensuring decent work in the international supply chains.

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