The World Bank has a multibillion-dollar pipeline of projects. Each year, new deals are added, while others are completed or chalked off. We reviewed the data to understand what’s happening this time.
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I heard it on the pipeline
Currently, the bank has 408 projects in its portfolio classified as being in the early stages of development. Not all of these have costs attached yet, but those that do are worth almost $288 billion — with $226 billion accounted for by projects that are new to the pipeline this year.
It’s a lot of money. Read our analysis to find out which projects are on the slate, and what sectors and geographies they show the World Bank is focused on.
Read: What's in the World Bank's $226 billion project pipeline? (Pro)
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Funding activity
We publish tenders, grants, and other funding announcements on our Funding Platform. Here are some of the ones that have been viewed the most in the past 10 days.
The African Development Bank has approved a $10 million contribution to support growing climate businesses in Africa.
Italian development agency AICS is seeking proposals focused on ending AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced a €25 million ($27.4 million) loan to reduce carbon emissions and increase renewable energy use in Turkey.
USAID has said it will provide $280 million to boost life-saving food assistance and aid the continuity of humanitarian projects in Afghanistan.
The World Bank is inviting eligible firms to propose financial measures to improve SENELEC’s performance in Senegal.
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Jobs go at INGOs
In the last few days, news has broken that both Save the Children and the International Rescue Committee — two of the world’s largest INGOs — plan to make hundreds of redundancies.
It follows on the heels of layoffs at the Red Cross last year, and it comes alongside rumors that other major organizations are also cutting staff.
Insiders say that the cuts are the result of shortages in unrestricted funding, coupled with a sudden drop in overall humanitarian funding — potentially a result of a $7 billion cut from the United States last year.
But both organizations have also come in for sharp criticism for not seeing the changes coming and adjusting their models.
Exclusive: IRC poised to shed 1 in 9 UK staff amid funding crisis
Red flags at White Ribbon
Some months ago, Devex wrote what seemed an uncontroversial story about White Ribbon Alliance, a Washington-based INGO with a network of national alliances worldwide, which was sunsetting its U.S. operation to transfer power to local organizations.
But we received a surprising response. Members of other White Ribbon Alliances in Kenya and India got in touch to tell us that they disputed this version of events. Instead, we heard, there was a bitter dispute over who controlled the White Ribbon movement. Was power really being transferred to the global south or was it being taken away?
ICYMI: A global north-south battle over a maternal health alliance (Pro)
Party lines
The chief of party role is a crucial one in development, akin to the CEO of a development project. My colleague Genevieve Anne Gregorio researched this position across different organizations and found out the typical salary and which organizations are most likely to be hiring.
Read: The top development employers hiring for chief of party roles (Career)
Read: What you can expect to earn as a chief of party (Career)
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About the author
David Ainsworth@daveainsworth4
David Ainsworth is business editor at Devex, where he writes about finance and funding issues for development institutions. He was previously a senior writer and editor for magazines specializing in nonprofits in the U.K. and worked as a policy and communications specialist in the nonprofit sector for a number of years. His team specializes in understanding reports and data and what it teaches us about how development functions.
