WASHINGTON, JULY 16, 2026 — South Africa’s efforts to modernize critical infrastructure and unlock job creation by tackling long-standing bottlenecks in electricity, freight transport, and water and sanitation services, got a boost with support from the World Bank Group. Reforms supported by the new financing are expected to help create the equivalent of...
Global trade tensions have become a significant source of risk for firms with cross-border business. This post looks at corporate loans and survey data on bank lending conditions to examine how banks have adjusted their lending policies in response.Changes in global trade policies and heightened trade tensions pose a challenge for euro area firms, particul...
As prepared for deliveryA Changing WorldThank you. It is a pleasure to be here at the Atlantic Council.The global economy is changing in profound ways. Over the past several years, we have lived through a rapid succession of major shocks—the pandemic, a cost-of-living crisis, escalating trade frictions, and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. Global infl...
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today received a delegation from the South Asia Regional Parliamentary Forum (SARPF) for Climate, Energy and Environment at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. They exchanged views on regional cooperation in climate action, energy transition, climate finance, and sustainable development, and discussed op...
The UNDP Resident Representative, Ms. Nwanne Vwede-Obahor (second left), is joined by youth showcasing their handmade craft products at an exhibition in JinjaUNDPDear Young Person,Today, as we commemorate World Youth Skills Day 2026, I write to you with immense hope, admiration, and confidence in your ability to shape Uganda's future.This year's th...
The 10 selected innovators of the 2025 Circular Solutions Innovation Challenge during the awarding on 3 June 2026.Innovation is essential to making circular economy work at the local level. Cities face different waste, livelihood, tourism, sanitation, and resource challenges, and they need practical solutions that can be tested, adapted, and scaled in real...
Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala called on WTO members to make simultaneous progress on reforming the organization as well as on outstanding negotiating topics, urging delegations to "collectively advance the two sides of the same coin". She made her remarks at a 14-15 July General Council meeting where she reviewed work undertaken since the ...
Montevideo, Uruguay, 14 July 2026 – On his mission to Latin America, the Director General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Gerd Müller visited Uruguay. He participated in the opening of the national Industry Week and launch of Uruguay’s new Industrial Policy 2050 alongside the Secretary of the Presidency, Alejandro Sánc...
Pilot to take place at the ECB and several Eurosystem national central banks to test digital euro functionalitiesOver 50 applications received, reflecting strong market interest and engagementSelected participants span a broad range of business models and sizes and offer broad geographical coverageThe European Central Bank (ECB) has selected 36 payment ser...
On 14 July 2026, South Africa notified the WTO's Committee on Safeguards regarding the initiation on 10 July 2026 of a safeguard investigation on certain cold-rolled products of iron and steel imported into the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).In the notification South Africa indicated, among other things, as follows:"Interested parties must ...
