How does generative AI affect real workplace productivity? This column reports results from an experiment at the National Bank of Slovakia, where staff were randomly assigned GPT-4o access while completing routine and non-routine tasks. The model improved output quality by up to 44% and cut completion time by 21%, with the largest gains on non-routine, […]
In their recent blog Can Africa Claim the 21st Century?, Andrew Dabalen and Chorching Goh rightly highlight Africa’s moment of opportunity: a convergence of global attention, demographic momentum, and natural resource wealth. But whether this century can truly be Africa’s depends on whether its cities are able to generate enough good jobs to employ its growing population. […]
Although the source and duration of the destruction differ, wars and natural disasters disrupt economies in similar ways. This column examines the effects of natural disasters and the impact of government rebuilding policies by focusing on the impacts of Hurricane Maria, which struck Puerto Rico in 2017. The findings underscore how the scale and design […]
According to the UNDP’s Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), the Republic of Chad has a poverty score of 0.517. But what does this number mean? Is it a good score or a bad one? If you have no clue, you aren’t alone. While the concept of poverty is easy to grasp, quantifying it is actually pretty hard. […]
The EU and the US have taken starkly different approaches to the regulation of new monies issued using distributed ledger technology. The current US administration prefers dollar-backed stablecoins, with the aim to reinforce dollar dominance worldwide. This column argues that dollar-pegged stablecoins pose a risk for the EU, but the current legal framework can ensure […]
Over the past two decades, many developing countries have made remarkable progress in reducing poverty, expanding access to education and health care, and investing in infrastructure. These gains were the result of sound national policies and coordinated efforts by the international community, often financed through responsible borrowing. But the road ahead looks more precarious. Debt […]
Despite a succession of shocks since 2020, the global economy has held up remarkably well—so far. But the margin for error is dwindling. Total global debt is now nearly 25 percent higher than it was on the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic, when it already was at an all-time high. This overhang could undercut all economies’ ability to shield […]
The World Bank’s metals and minerals price index edged up by 3 percent in May, partially recovering from an 8 percent plunge in April that had erased gains from early 2025. Metal prices have recently been shaped by rising global economic uncertainty and intensifying trade tensions. Prices are expected to decline through 2025 and 2026, […]
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles can use either fossil fuels or electricity and offer potential emission reductions, depending on the driver’s usage. This column examines how access to charging at home influences the share of driving that employees with company cars in Germany do using electricity. Access to home charging reduces the users’ fossil fuel consumption […]
Generally speaking, political instability, armed conflicts, and low population density create significant challenges to collecting, accessing, and disseminating quality data. This is especially true in central Sahel countries (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, and Niger), which are relatively vast with low population densities, ranging from 65 inhabitants per km² in Burkina Faso to 14 inhabitants per km² in […]
