Annual Investment Meeting (AIM), Ministry of Economy, United Arab Emirates, 2015

AIM 2015, which was held from 30 March – 1 April at the Dubai international Convention and Exhibition Center, focused on ‘Sustainable Development through FDI Induced Innovation and Technology Transfer’. This was an important gathering of some of the world’s

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World Bank Group Increased Support for Reforms to Accelerate Economic Growth

Annette Dixon, new Vice President of World Bank Group’s South Asia Region made an introductory visit to Pakistan from April 1 to 4, 2015. She called upon Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and met with the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and

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Marina Silva: Insistence That May Yet Pay Off

Brazil may not yet be ready for her, but Marina Silva is the name to watch. The former senator for Acre, a small state in the western part of the Amazonian rainforest, and presidential candidate for the Socialist Party, Marina

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Government of India and World Bank Sign $500 Million Agreement to Improve Access to Finance for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

The Government of India and the World Bank today signed a $500 million loan agreement for the MSME Growth Innovation and Inclusive Finance Project to improve access to finance for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) working in the manufacturing

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UN Trade Report Calls on Governments to Improve Environment for E-Commerce

The scope for developing countries to participate in and benefit from e-commerce is expanding, according to a new United Nations report released today, with improved connectivity, new e-commerce applications, platforms and payment solutions, and the emergence of local e-commerce companies

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Peter Carington: The Sole Survivor of a Bygone Era

The first casualty of the 1982 Falklands War, and one of the last scions of the empire-building Eton / Sandhurst generation, Lord Peter Carrington played a major – if not always visible – role in British conservative politics between 1946

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UN Spotlights Key Role of Evaluation in New Development Agenda

Evaluation will become more necessary for the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals, a United Nations body said today, as it launched a new publication highlighting the critical role of assessment in enhancing the UN’s effectiveness, cultivating change and empowering nations. “We

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Seven Days of Mourning for Lee Kuan Yew, Architect of Modern Singapore

Singapore is now mourning its founding father, Lee Kuan Yew who died from pneumonia on March 23rd, aged 91 years.  This towering giant of the region ruled his country for three decades overseeing the country’s independence from Britain (1963), its

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The Renewable Electricity Grid: The Future Is Now

New World Bank report finds that with the right policies and investments, countries can integrate high levels of variable renewable energy such as solar and wind into their power grids without compromising the reliability or affordability of electricity Together with

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Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz: A Pragmatist Claiming Centre Stage

It is a long lane that has no turning. The life of Mauritanian president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is marked by quite a few abrupt twists and turns. In August 2008, Mr Abdel Aziz masterminded the military coup that toppled

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