Inputs to the IDA21 Regional Forum for Europe and Central Asia

The International Development Association (IDA)—the World Bank’s arm that works in low- and lower-middle-income countries—is one of the largest sources of development assistance for the world’s poorest countries. It is also a crucial tool for resource-constrained governments to borrow on affordable terms compared to other creditors.

The Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors (GCSPF) and the Social Security Campaign provided comments and inputs (download pdf file) to the IDA21 Regional Forum for Europe and Central Asia to ensure that IDA21 is ambitious to tackle inequality and support recipient countries’ efforts to invest in universal, rights-aligned public systems of education and health care that ensure the availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality of these services. 

The forum aims to:

• Inform civil societies in Western Europe and in the Europe and Central Asia region about the proposed strategic directions for IDA21, and obtain feedback and input to shape the IDA21 package.
• Update civil societies on how the reforms at the World Bank Group are informing the IDA21 policy directions and the implications on IDA countries.
• Empower civil societies with key IDA information for your IDA21 advocacy work.

The World Bank Vice President of Development Finance, Akihiko Nishio, will lead the forum. The event will be hosted by the World Bank Country Office in Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and will also provide a time for reflection on the country’s successful rebuilding and its journey to achieving IDA-donor status, in 2023, with support from global partnerships and IDA. The Forum will take place on July 24, 2024 from 1 p.m. Central Europe Time.