Browsing by Author "The World Bank"

Now showing 1 - 20 of 30
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    Agricultural Innovation Systems: An Investment Sourcebook
    The World Bank (Washington, D.C.: The World Bank, 2012)
    Consensus is developing about what is meant by “innovation” and “innovation system”. The agricultural innovation system (AIS) approach has evolved from a concept into an entire subdiscipline, with principles of analysis and action; yet no detailed blueprint exists for making agricultural innovation happen at a given time, in a given place, for a given result. This sourcebook draws on the emerging principles of AIS analysis and action to help to identify, design, and implement the investments, approaches, and complementary interventions that appear most likely to strengthen innovation systems and promote agricultural innovation and equitable growth. This overview begins with a discussion of why innovation is vital to agricultural development, how innovation occurs, and why complementary investments are needed to develop the capacity and enabling environment for agricultural innovation. It concludes with details on the sourcebook’s structure, a summary of the themes covered in each module, and a discussion of the cross-cutting themes treated throughout the sourcebook (excerpt from Sourcebook overview and user guide).
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    Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park Conservation
    The World Bank; Uganda's Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife, and Antiquities (2007-07-13)
    Uganda's Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park protect some of the most biologically diverse tropical forests in East Africa. Both parks conserve rare and dwindling Afromontane and Afro-alpine. Mgahinga represents the Ugandan share of the Virungas Volcanoes range and is contiguous with the Virungas National Park in the Republic of Congo and Parc National des Volcans in Rwanda. Up to fifty mountain gorillas use Mgahinga for part of the year. It is also home to numerous other rare mammals and eleven regionally endemic bird species. Bwindi is particularly rich in biodiversity. It contains at least 120 species of mammals, including ten primates and half the world's population of 600 mountain gorillas. Bwindi also holds forests that are rich in tree, butterfly, vertebrate, invertebrate, reptile, amphibian, and bird species. The two parks serve as important water catchments and sources of forest products for local communities.
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    Can programs of payments for environmental services help preserve wildlife?
    Pagiola, Stefano (2003)
    This presentation explains the concept of payments for environmental services (PES) and gives examples of already-implemented PES initiatives. Developing a PES project requires (1) understanding the science and economics involved, (2) developing a mechanism to capture the benefits, and (3) paying the service providers. Using water services as an illustration of this process, Pagiola presents myths and facts about the hydrological effects of forests and the factors involved in developing a successful program of payments for water services. He then addresses the question of how a PES mechanism may be applied to protecting endangered species, distinguishing between different threats to wildlife conservation that would or would not be effectively addressed by PES. It is important to understand the underlying science, such as charateristics of the threatened species, characteristics of access, and the economics of the species. Pagiola describes what a program of payment for wildlife conservation might look like, then explores the many limitations and challenges that remain.
  • Ecomarkets Project for Costa Rica
    Costa Rican Ministry of Environment and Energy (2007-02-15)
    The Costa Rican Government, the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility developed a partnership to improve sustainable forest management practices on privately owned small parcels of land. It will conserve biodiversity, improve water quality irrigation, and add to carbon sequestration. Approximately US$49 million in loans from the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility are available for the project.
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    El Salvador environmental services project
    GEF; The World Bank (2007-02-16)
    Pilot project that will attempt to shift current land uses to those which promote conservation and sustainability by "facilitating the interaction between the users of environmental services (buyers) and the producers of such goods." This will be done in a payment for environmental services framework for agroforestry, forest management and conservation, reforestation, afforestation, and sustainable agricultural production practices. In addition, the project will work to strengthen the support for environmental service markets.
  • Gender and agricultural livelihoods: Strengthening governance
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, D.C.: The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines the necessity for good governance and gender sensitivity within agricultural practices and institutions. While efforts to reform are taking place in the public sector, rural areas and specifically rural women still face barriers in representing their interests effectively. Methods to achieve good governance include quality agricultural policies, inputs and support; transparency and minimized corruption; and the existence of a just legal system. This issue is expanded upon in the following Thematic Notes: Gender in Policy-Making Processes; Institutionalizing Gender in the Agriculture Sector; Decentralization and Community-Driven Development; and Gender, Self-Help Groups, and Farmer Organizations in the Agricultural Sector. Specific cases from Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Cote d'Ivoire, and Sri Lanka are also examined.
  • Gender and agricultural markets
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, DC: The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines the traditional division of labor within agricultural markets, where women farmers are primarily responsible for subsistence and household crop production while male farmers dominate the commercial sector. Challenging these gendered roles by increasing women farmers' access to resources and market opportunities has strong positive effects on household food security, health, and education. Also, the formation of women's groups helps women become active in decision making processes, but larger policies and provisions are often necessary to support them and help them maintain control over important economic assets. These issues are expanded upon in the following Thematic Notes: Strengthening the Business Environment; Capacity Development for Small-Scale Women Entrepreneurs; Collective Action and Market Linkages; and Supporting Agricultural Value-Adding Strategies. Specific cases from Bangladesh and Andhra Pradesh, India are also examined.
  • Gender and food security
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, D.C: The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines the critical role that women play in food production and agricultural development. Women consistently have less access than men to resources and opportunities throughout the production chain. By removing such inequalities and incorporating women in decision making processes, food and nutritional security can be achieved and agricultural, economic, and social development enhanced.
  • Gender and forestry
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, DC: The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines how people in developing countries depend on agroforestry and forest products as a source of production and income. Climate change is rapidly altering the role of forests in societies and the physical characteristics of and problems that affect forests. In order to utilize and protect the forestry sector effectively, differences in how men and women use forests must be understood. This issue is expanded upon in the following Thematic Notes: Forests as Safety Nets: Gender, Strengthening Rights, and Reducing Vulnerability; and Agroforestry Landscapes: Gendered Space, Knowledge, and Practice. A specific case from Uganda is also examined.
  • Gender and natural resources management
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, D.C; The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines the role that women play in the management and conservation of natural resources. Impoverished individuals living in rural areas are directly affected by environmental degradation because they depend on natural resources as sources of food and income. Utilizing the unique perspectives and skills women possess in strategies of natural resource management reduces time and labor spent on subsistence and can allow more time for crop production for profit, child care, etc. However such practices are not possible without secure land rights and access to resources to implement policies of environmental management and conservation. This issue is expanded upon in the following Thematic Notes: Gender and Biodiversity; Gender Dimensions of Climate Change; Gender and Bioenergy; Gender and Natural Disasters; and Gender Dimensions of Land and Water Degradation and Desertification. A specific case from India is also examined.
  • Gender in Agriculture
    IFAD; Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank (Washington DC: The World Bank, 2009)
  • Gender in crop agriculture
    Food and Agriculture Organization; The World Bank; IFAD (Washington, D.C.: The World Bank Group, 2008)
    This is a module in the "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook" published by the World Bank, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development. This module examines the role of gender in crop agriculture as an essential component of development and poverty reduction. Gender is an integral aspect of crop agriculture because women's roles in crop production and household subsistence, as well as their knowledge of complex production systems are often unrecognized. Differences between women and men exist in terms of the types and management of crops, knowledge, and access to information and markets. These issues are expanded upon in the following Thematic Notes: Gender and Soil Productivity Management; Gender in Seed Production and Distribution; and Gender and Crop Protection.
  • A guide to world resources 2002-2004: Decisions for the earth: Balance, voice, and power
    World Resources Institute (Washington, D.C.: World Resources Institute, 2002)
    This report discusses explores environmental governance, which is the processing of how we make environmental decisions and who makes them. How we decide and who gets to decide often determines what we decide. The report explores how citizens, government managers, and business owners can foster better environmental decisions that meet the needs of both ecosystems and people with equity and balance.
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    Information for development program (infoDev) annual report 2003
    The World Bank (Washington, D.C.: World Bank, 2003-01-01)
    In the past eight years, the infoDev program has funded more than 400 projects designed to harness the power of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to combat poverty and promote sustainable development. These projects highly diverse in geographic and thematic focus, as well as in the type of technologies employed provide a rich store of experience on what does (and does not) work in using ICTs for development. The projects offer a valuable resource to infoDev in its growing effort to building and share rigorous, field-tested knowledge on the opportunities that ICTs present and the challenges facing their effective and affordable deployment in developing countries.
  • Kenya agricultural productivity and sustainable land management
    The World Bank; GEF (Global Environmental Facility) (2007-02-16)
    Rural producers in Kenya are often using less than optimal land and practices for environmental protection. This project will attempt to increase the productivity for those producers while maintaining these environmentally critical areas. In order to accomplish this, the project will have the following outputs:
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    The Little Green Data Book 2004
    The World Bank (Washington, D.C.: The World Bank, 2004)
    This book details indicators for each country in the world, such as indicators in agriculture (land area, irrigated land, etc), forests (forest area), biodiversity, energy, emissions & pollution, water & sanitation, and national accounting aggregates.
  • Mainstreaming market-based instruments for environmental management project
    The World Bank; GEF (Global Environmental Facility) (2007-02-19)
    This Costa Rican project looks to improve environmental services through scaling up the payments for environmental services system. This will be done by developing sustainable financing mechanisms, expanding the National Forestry Financing Fund into the Payment for Environmental Services (PSA) Program, and encouraging small to medium land owners efforts to join the PSA program.
  • Mexico environmental services project
    Comisión Nacional Forestal (CONAFOR) (2007-02-16)
    The Mexico Environmental Services Project aims to improve water quality, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration from areas with globally significant biodiversity. Eight pilot sites will be chosen to overlap with existing high-priority biodiversity conservation areas. The project objectives will be met through "(i) strengthening the capacity of CONAFOR, INE, community associations, and NGOs to increase flexibility and improve efficiency of existing service provision to support long-term development of the PSAH program in Mexico; (ii) establishing sustainable long-term financing mechanisms including an endowment fund for biodiversity conservation; (iii) establishing legal, institutional, and financial arrangements to pilot market-based mechanisms for payment for environmental services, (iv) documenting links between land use changes, water services improvements, and biodiversity conservation, and (v) defining good practices to replicate, scale up, and sustain programs based on PES markets." (excerpt from Project Executive Summary)
  • Namibia Community Based Natural Resources Management
    World Wildlife Fund (WWF) (2007-07-27)
    The Namibian Community-Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) program is currently in its third phase of USAID funding. It has been designed to develop local community conservation groups that manage their local natural resources in ways to generate income by the creation of local conservancies. Perhaps the most successful conservancy in Namibia is the Torra conservancy which was the first conservancy to become financially self sufficient. Torra has established a variety of sustainable hunting and ecotourism activities that proved to be profitable. In 2003, they distributed funds equaling half the average annual incomes to its members. Other financial assistance has been distributed to community project such as school assistance, ambulance purchasing, and other social projects. In addition to the typical ecotourism activities that most conservancies conduct as payment for environmental services activities, several conservancies are providing cash compensations for livestock being killed by predators.
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    Panama: Second rural poverty and natural resource management project
    The World Bank; Government of Panama (2007-07-23)
    The project aims to reduce rural poverty and improve natural resource conservation and management by