Inclusive Growth

Globally, although growth has lifted millions out of poverty, in many countries growth has existed in parallel with rising inequality and groups of people being left behind. Social discontent arising from the lack of inclusiveness of the growth process has sometimes led to conflicts and violence. Anchored on growth, inclusion, and sustainability, the 2013 World Bank Group Strategy promotes inclusive growth by pursuing the twin goals of eliminating absolute poverty and boosting shared prosperity. Reflecting strong concerns for equity, it embraces policies that enhance equality of opportunity and remove barriers against the often-excluded. The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) has conducted many evaluations that have assessed World Bank Group interventions in various dimensions of growth, inclusion, and sustainability. This report extracts findings and distills lessons from all relevant IEG evaluations completed between FY09 and FY18 to shed light on the nature and results of the Bank Group’s support in key areas of inclusive growth.