Global Economic Prospects: World Bank

In News

Recently, the World Bank has released its June 2021 Global Economic Prospects Report.

Major Findings 

  • Indian scenario 
    • India’s economy is expected to grow at 8.3% for Fiscal Year 2021-22.
      • This rate, however, masked the damage caused by the “enormous” second wave of COVID-19.
    • For FY 2022-23 growth is expected to slow to 7.5% as a result of the pandemic’s lingering effects on the balance sheets of households, companies and banks and possibly low levels of consumer confidence and heightened uncertainty around job and incomes.
  • Global Scenario 
    • The world economy is expected to expand 5.6% , the fastest post-recession growth rate in eighty years, but global output will still be 2% below pre-pandemic projections by year-end.

                                              Image Courtesy :BS

  Issues /Challenges

  • Progress in vaccination has been slow, and the largest economies, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, have vaccinated only a small fraction of their populations.
  • COVID-19 cases have surged in South Asia and the situation in India has been particularly difficult. 
  •  The effects of the pandemic have reversed poverty reduction gains and aggravated insecurity and other long-standing challenges.

 

Initiatives Taken by India

 

Conclusion and Way Forward 

  • Globally coordinated efforts are essential to accelerate vaccine distribution and debt relief, particularly for low-income countries.
  • As the health crisis eases, policymakers will need to address the pandemic’s lasting effects and take steps to spur green, resilient, and inclusive growth while safeguarding macroeconomic stability.
  • There is a need to spend higher spending on infrastructure, rural development, and health.

 

World Bank

  • It traces its origin to the  Bretton Woods Conference, officially known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, was a gathering of delegates from 44 nations that met from July 1 to 22, 1944 in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire (USA), to agree upon a series of new rules for international financial and monetary order after the conclusion of World War II.
  • The two major accomplishments of the conference were the creation of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
  • The World Bank Group is an international partnership comprising 189 countries and five constituent institutions that works towards eradicating poverty and creating prosperity. 
  • The five development institutions under the World Bank Group are:
    • International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
    • International Development Association (IDA)
    • International Finance Corporation (IFC)
    • Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA)
    • International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)
  • Reports and Publication 
    • Ease of Doing Business   
    • World Development Report 
    • Global Economic Prospects  

 

Source :TH