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Integrating Climate Action into Public Investment Management: Lessons from Argentina, Costa Rica, and Colombia
Get PDFClimate change poses economic, social, and environmental challenges affecting millions of people in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region. However, LAC governments have limited institutional and financial capacity to face these challenges. In this regard, a priority aspect is to incorporate climate change criteria into public investment management (PIM). This document analyzes the initiatives implemented by the governments of Argentina, Costa Rica, and Colombia to incorporate climate criteria in PIM and seeks to systematize the lessons learned. The analysis of these cases reveals progress in planning and integration of climate criteria as well as persistent challenges in coordination between entities, project evaluation and selection, budgeting, and risk management. It also highlights the need for standardized information at the project level and regulatory adjustments to facilitate the inclusion of climate criteria in the project cycle. The integration of climate action into public investment systems of the region is a gradual process that requires coordination, information, and regulatory adjustments to achieve climate-resilient investments
Economics of Electricity Losses in Latin America and the Caribbean
No full textDespite significant progress and reforms in Latin America and the Caribbean, the electricity markets continue to face substantial inefficiencies. One of the most concerning and persistent indicators is the high level of electricity losses, which generate social, environmental, and economic costs. These losses adversely impact the quality of electrical services, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable segments of the population. Furthermore, they jeopardize the sustainability of the electric sector, which is crucial for bridging investment gaps in infrastructure and facilitating the energy transition. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of the magnitude and causes of these losses within the region, proposing policy options based on regional experiences. We hope that the analyses and policy implications presented herein will contribute to effectively tackling the issue of losses while fostering discussions aimed at achieving an efficient, equitable, and sustainable regional electricity market
Barriers or Enablers? Towards Trade-Compatible Technical Measures in Latin America and the Caribbean
Get PDFAs tariffs have progressively declined over time, technical measures have become relatively more important as potential barriers to international trade. But technical measures are less visible than tariff rates, and their effects on trade are more difficult to quantify and understand. This report presents detailed information on the prevalence of technical measures in Latin America and the Caribbean, examines their relationship with international trade, and discusses the main policy issues that countries in the region should consider to ensure that the use of technical measures is compatible with a modern trade and integration agenda
Tech Report: RPA
Get PDFThe scalability of RPA allows companies to adjust their robotic workforce according to fluctuating demands, improving not only operational efficiency but also employee satisfaction and strategic focus. With applications ranging from data processing and verification to supply chain management, RPA has become a transformative tool in sectors such as banking, retail, customer support, and human resources management, demonstrating its potential to optimize processes and improve decision-making across a wide range of industries. The adoption of RPA in Latin America, partly driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlights its role in accelerated digital transformation, focusing on business continuity, risk reduction, and knowledge generation. Financial institutions and retail companies, in particular, have adopted RPA to enhance operational efficiency and customer service, with successful use cases showing significant time and cost savings, as well as improvements in customer experience
Research Insights: Does Adopting Digital Payment for Cash Transfers Improve the Financial Inclusion and Financial Well-Being of Low-Income Households?
Get PDFSwitching from cash to direct deposits of recurrent government benefits into digital bank accounts reduces disbursement errors and increases access to benefits among eligible beneficiaries. Switching to direct deposits increases ownership of bank accounts, demand for formal loans, and ownership of loans from commercial banks among individuals without a financial history. Individuals without a financial history are less responsive to government encouragement to switch to direct deposits, even though adopting the technology has large potential benefits. There is no evidence of substantial or significant effects on savings, spending, trust in financial institutions, and other measures of financial well-being
Risk Mitigation Mechanisms for Local Investment: The Role of Subnational Development Banks
No full textSubnational development banks (SDBs) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) provide financing to regional and local governments, subnational entities, and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), but generally lack information about how they can support the transition toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and environmental sustainability. This document describes how SDBs can support blended financing arrangements that combine both public and private resources, leveraging their comparative advantage in mitigating the high risks that private lenders perceive of working with actors at the subnational level. The document provides illustrative cases from both regional and international contexts of how public development banks can mobilize private capital for local economic development. It concludes with strategic recommendations for SDBs to increase sustainable financing for a just urban and territorial transition and for the Alliance of Subnational Development Banks in Latin America and the Caribbean as a platform to foster a regional dialogue that can increase financial innovation across the region
Research Insights: Can Governance Factors Explain Persistent Inequality in Latin America?
Get PDFGovernance factors on both the demand side (e.g., low voter trust) and supply side (e.g., vote buying) have limited the extent of redistributive policies in Latin America. Countries with stronger democracies have adopted more redistributive policies, even though post-tax inequality remains high in all the regions democracies. Electoral participation has risen in the more democratic countries, while economically motivated protests have increased in weakly institutionalized settings
wX Insights 2024: The Rise of Women STEMpreneurs in Latin America and the Caribbean: Reducing the Gap in Access to Capital
No full textThis edition of the wX Insights report focuses on the gap in access to institutional capital faced by women STEMpreneurs in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Through surveys of women entrepreneurs and interviews with a select group of women STEMpreneurs and investors from venture capital funds, information was collected about the profiles of STEMpreneurs and their companies in LAC; the expectations and experience of STEMpreneurs in terms of raising capital; the perception of STEMpreneurs and investors about the factors that contribute to capital raising. Additionally, the report presents an analysis of the best practices adopted by entrepreneurs who have managed to raise capital and by venture capital (VC) funds that have invested in companies led by women. The study presents the following structure: Profile of women STEMpreneurs and their companies Key learnings from women STEMpreneurs Key learnings from VC investors Recommendations for women entrepreneurs and investor
Gender and Racial Differences in the Earnings Penalty of Working from Home before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Get PDFWe investigate differences in earnings penalties associated with working from home (WFH) between groups of gender and race before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Using a large and nationally representative longitudinal dataset, we show that the earnings penalty associated with WFH diminished for White and Black men during the pandemic while remaining high for White and Black women. We further examine three mechanisms explaining these changes: i) the equilibrium between supply and demand, as more women than men transitioned to WFH during the pandemic; ii) labor productivity, as the effective working hours of Black women were more affected by WFH; and ii) visibility and promotion, as White women became less likely than White men to be promoted when WFH during the pandemic
Enforcement Spillovers under Different Networks: The Case of Quotas for Persons with Disabilities in Brazil
Get PDFThis study examines labor law enforcement spillovers in Brazil\u27s highly informal economy, focusing on disability quota enforcement for formal firms. New inspection procedures increased compliance through heightened inspections and fines, boosting disability hiring. We investigate spillover effects across various firm networks: neighborhood, ownership, and human resources specialists. Results show that spillovers can have up to twice the impact on disability employment compared to direct fines. These findings highlight the potential for targeted enforcement strategies to amplify policy effectiveness beyond directly affected firms even in developing economies characterized by low compliance with employment laws