World Bank Group Launches Worldwide Consultations on Future Strategy for Fragility

The World Bank Group today announced the launch of global consultations to inform the development of its first formal strategy for Fragility, Conflict and Violence (FCV). Consultations will be held in more than 30 countries, covering all World Bank Group regions, between April and June 2019, with a final strategy expected in November.

The consultations will focus on gathering perspectives in countries faced with diverse FCV challenges, as well as in countries that support World Bank Group programs in FCV settings. They will aim to capture lessons learned and best practices for reducing fragility, conflict and violence and promoting peace and prosperity. Inputs gathered from representatives of government, civil society organizations, international partners, the private sector and others, will be integrated into a comprehensive operational strategy focused on addressing the drivers of fragility and maximizing the World Bank Group’s support for affected people and communities.

The development of a World Bank Group FCV strategy comes at a pivotal time: By 2030, at least half of the world’s poor will live in fragile and conflict-affected settings. The strategy will therefore support the World Bank Group’s goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. The strategy is being developed jointly by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the World Bank. It will cover the period from 2020 to 2025.

“To achieve our goal of ending extreme poverty, we must focus on people living in countries that suffer from conflict and fragility,” said World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva. “Our new strategy aims to address the underlying causes of fragility and invest in the long-term development that helps create the conditions for peace and prosperity”.

The consultations will be conducted in two phases: From April to June 2019, stakeholders will be asked to provide feedback on the FCV strategy concept through face-to-face meetings and by completing an online questionnaire. From August to September 2019, a draft of the proposed FCV strategy will be shared online for feedback. Throughout the process, the public is invited to share questions and comments by email and via social media channels, using the hashtag #fragility2stability.

“The FCV strategy will be an opportunity for the World Bank Group to build upon progress made in fragile and conflict-affected settings, to leverage our comparative advantage as a development actor and to scale up our partnerships so we can maximize our collective impact on the ground,” said Franck Bousquet, Senior Director of the World Bank’s Fragility, Conflict & Violence (FCV) Group, which is leading the strategy development process.

The FCV strategy concept note, along with the consultation plan, countries for consultation, schedule, feedback summaries and other relevant information, will be available on a dedicated website: worldbank.org/fcvconsultations

For questions, or to share your views directly, please email FCVConsultations@worldbank.org.