Development banks pivot strategies as global volatility deepens

About this episode

The episode discusses the evolving strategies of development banks in response to global volatility, with a focus on Ukraine and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

At this year’s annual meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Riga, Latvia, discussions centered on a critical structural shift : what development finance should look like in an age of persistent volatility. Ukraine is increasingly shaping the answer, as the bank’s sustained financing during the war emerges as a potential blueprint for future conflicts. We were also on the ground for the World Bank Fragility Forum, an event uniting global stakeholders to address the challenges of operating in areas experiencing fragility, conflict, and violence. The deteriorating situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo emerged as a central discussion point. Highlighting the complexity of aid delivery in active conflict zones, the governor of the DRC’s South Kivu province issued a stark call to withhold funding for development projects until baseline peace and stability are secured. Examining the Trump administration’s “America First” foreign policy, we also contemplate how to ensure that domestic resource mobilization becomes an effective way to increase development finance . To dig into these stories and others, Senior Editor Rumbi Chakamba sits down with…

People in this episode

Host: Rumbi Chakamba

Guests: Anna Gawel, Jesse Chase-Lubitz

Topics covered

• development finance
• global volatility
• conflict zones
• aid delivery
• foreign policy
• domestic resource mobilization

Keywords

• development banks
• global development
• financial strategies
• Ukraine
• Democratic Republic of Congo
• aid delivery
• conflict
• foreign policy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, World Bank

Places: Riga, Latvia, Ukraine, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Kivu

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