75916 A REINVIGORATED DRIVE FOR INFRASTRUCTURE nfrastructure is the foundation for development of any country. I Infrastructure is about delivering essential services-water supply, sanitation, energy, roads, and information communications technol- ogy-that people need to maintain a basic standard of living. These serv- ices lead to improvements in health, access to education, economic opportunities, and family income. Yet for millions in many poor countries, these services are still beyond reach. About half of the world's population live below the poverty line, with some 1.1 billion people lacking access to clean water supply. Roughly 2.4 billion live with inadequate sanitation. At the same time, 2 to 3 billion people lack access to modern energy, and roughly 20 percent of rural populations reside more than 2 km from an all-weather road. Infrastructure, an important part of the World Bank's development agenda, is central to the Bank's efforts to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The development community and developing countries recognize the key role that infrastructure plays, both directly and indirectly, in helping to achieve these goals. Infrastructure is essential for growth and poverty reduction. Infrastructure services are key inputs to health and for access to education. And such basic services as water are critical in and of themselves. This publication highlights the many ways in which the Bank's infrastructure activities are helping achieve these goals and more. The World Bank Group has always supported infrastructure. During the 1980s, that support centered more on what could be called the "bricks and mortar" of infrastructure, i.e., the construction of projects. Today, the Bank places a greater emphasis on service delivery, recogniz- the importance of policies ;md institutions, in ;1ddition to financing and nstruction to build sustainable infi-;lstructure. During the 1':)':)( ls, the World Rmk Group reduced its investment lending infrastructure. The expectation wa-; th;lt the private sector would handle brunt of such inve-;tment. Howevn, privatL' financing lc1r intl-;lstructure mmeted t!·om $12H billion in 1':)':)7 to $.'iH billion in 201 l2, making it clear t such reliance on private sector tlnancing \\ ould not be sut1icient. A new lnt]·;lstructure Action PLm, which emphasizes service delivery ng the entire spectrum of public and private involvement, is guiding the nk Croup's activities in int]·;lstructure development. Among other things, pLm envisages the financing of projects at regional, nationaL and -;ub- tional levels. A presentation of the pLm em be found on the Bank's lnt!·a- ucture website at www. worldban k.org/ int!·astructure. We invite you to take a close look at the int!·astructure work we arc doing partnership with client countries and others, ;md how the delivery of these sic services is helping to improve the quality of people\ lives around the rld. Nl'm;lt T. Shatlk Vice Prcsidcntj(,r Infi·astntcturc THll-ld Bank INCREASING EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES n remote rural areas, access to educational opportunities can be I severely limited. Even where there are school buildings, teachers, and books, children are often unable to attend school because they spend many hours every day walking miles to fetch water and firewood for cooking and heating. In addition, many schools lack safe and private sanitation facilities. Proper transportation, electricity, and connectivity through communications networks are essential for many poor children to attain higher levels oflearning and opportunity. Student in classroom in Kampala, Uganda 3 Top: Motorized and non-motorized transport along a rural road in Morocco Above: Taroudant Province girls en route to rural school in Morocco 4 Morocco Rural Roads Extensive socioeconomic surveys carried out in rural Morocco found that providing all-weather road access-and substantially lowering the operating costs for motorized vehicles-generated multiple benefits for people. One benefit: the improved quality of education, as it became eas- ier to recruit and retain qualified teachers, and bring supplies. Women and girls benefited especially from the road improvements. Primary school education enrollments jumped from 28 percent before road improvements to 68 percent afterwards. The new roads made walk- ing or transport to schools more secure and encouraged parents to send their daughters to school. Moreover, by making the delivery of butane more affordable, the improved roads reduced the need for women and girls to collect fire- wood. Having this free time (about two hours daily) opened new oppor- tunities for women and girls-for education, work, and other activities. The impact of electric lighting on education in the Philippines A joint World Bank/Energy Sector Manage- ment Assistance Programme study in the Philippines examined the social and eco- nomic impact of rural electrification. The most important finding was the clear link between electricity and education. Rural households perceived electricity to be impor- tant for children's education because it improved study conditions during the evening. This was borne out by the increased number of hours spent by both children and adults reading in rural homes, where electricity was available. Children from electrified households gained about two years in educational achievement over children from in non- electrified households. Young children in Manilla, Phillipines 5 IMPROVING HEALTH hroughout the world, lack of access to adequate water or safe T sanitation is a key factor in the high levels of morbidity and mortality experienced amongst poor families, especially among children. While there is a clear connection between improved health and investments in water and sanitation, other infrastructure services also have high potential for improving health in remote or vulnerable com- munities. In Rajasthan, India, with better roads and transport, the pro- portion of pregnant women traveling to Zanana Hospital from more than 100 km away to give birth almost doubled. Before the improved roads, many women were unable to make the long and arduous journeys necessary to get to hospital, often giving birth at home without adequate medical care. In many communities millions of poor people rely on firewood or dry dung cakes to fuel primitive cooking fires. The smoke produced by these fuels is deadly-the second largest cause of ill health in poor com- munities after a lack of clean water. Researchers have found that women and children have two to four times higher exposure levels to air pollu- tion from wood and charcoal smoke than men, and are twice as likely to suffer from respiratory infections. The World Bank is addressing this problem by supporting the provision of modern energy services, such as electricity improved stoves, kerosene, LPG, and gel-fuel as a substitute for these traditional fuels. Mother with baby, Rajasthan, India 6 Female employee and customers of the telephone store, at the female-dominated " ladies Corner" enterprise area, in Bangladesh 8 GENERATING INCOME, EMPLOYMENT, AND GROWTH nvestments in infrastructure services play an important role in sup- I porting the development of small businesses and community-based initiatives, leading to direct increases in income for poor communi- ties and households. The introduction of telephones in rural Thailand allows farmers to check prices in Bangkok regularly, which has signifi- cantly expanded their profits-doubling some farm incomes. In Botswana and Zimbabwe, rural surveys suggest that areas with telephone access experience more entrepreneurial activity than those without access.And in rural Bangladesh, one survey found that introducing a tele- phone line reduced the amount of management travel, thus cutting such associated travel costs as gasoline and salaries by a factor 13 times the installation cost. After the completion of networked water and sanitation services in Ahmedabad, India, women living and working in a slum area called "Sin- heswari Nagar" increased their daily profits from vegetable vending at about Rs50 (US$1) per day. These services also resulted in incidences of disease falling by 7 5 percent. Meanwhile in Bangladesh, the Grameen Phone network, which is putting mobile telephones in the hands of women villager operators who sell services, is generating net incomes of $624 per operator. Bangladesh's GDP per capita, by comparison, is $262. The International Finance Corporation (IF C), which is part of the World Bank Group, is an investor in Grameen Phone. Very poor households participating in a solar lantern project in India have increased their income by 10 rupees per day from small cottage industries which they handle at night. 9 GETTING GOODS TO MARKETS ... or remote rural communities, infrastructure is the lifeline that F connects them to the wider world of opportunities. Transport helps bring rural produce to urban markets. Affordable public transportation makes it possible for poor people to find jobs in nearby market towns. Telecommunications can also connect buyers and sellers cheaply and reliably, while energy powers the factories and the rural enterprises where people work. In Ecuador, rural communities have low telecommunications coverage (1.6 main telephone lines per 100 inhabi- tants), and 25 percent of the rural population has no access to electrici- ty. A World Bank-supported rural electrification project in Ecuador is helping to improve living standards and broaden opportunities by link- ing poor communities to telecommunications, electricity, the Internet, and business services. The project addresses policy and regulatory con- straints and supports the provision of infrastructure directly. ... CONNECTING COMMUNITIES TOTHEWORLDAROUNDTHEM IMPROVING THE LIVES OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN round the globe, women and children bear the brunt of the A burden of poverty in rural and urban areas. They spend valuable tim e away from productive, educational, or other activities as they walk long distances to fetch water and firewood. In South Mrica alone, it is estimated that women walk the equivalent of 319 times around the earth's equator (or 16 times to the moon and back) each day to fetch water. Targeted infrastructure interventions aimed at providing safe water to h ouseholds directly benefit women and children, and can also provide the means for women and disempowered groups within society to mobilize their collective resources to achieve wider develop- ment objectives . .. .>< c ., "' ~' [ :::; e, ., .. c "iii' <( Two girls study in the community school in Una in the state of Bahia, Brazil 12 Sudha, Master Hand Pump M echanic, Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu "Being a hand pump mechanic is even better than being a gram panchayat president because our skills will last while the job of president will not." Sudha, who comes from a very poor family, seized the opportunity to train as a hand pump mechanic. She wanted to improve the lot of village women like hers~lf because broken village pumps necessitate long walks to fetch water and take a tremendous toll on time and health. After taking an inten- sive training program, she became a master mechanic, charging the full market rate for her work. Sudha notes, "The extra money has enabled me to pay for the education of my daughter as well as my son... something I definitely would not have considered before." Women around water pump in India 13 BUILDING ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND POLICIES oor communities are most at risk from the damaging effects of P environmental degradation. In rural areas, the natural environ- ment lies at the heart of local production. And it is often poor families in these areas that bear the burden of water-borne disease and air pollution. In urban communities poor families are forced to reside in areas that are virtually untenable--and lack an adequate voice in decision mak- ing. These communities usually endure the accumulation of solid and liq- uid wastes, are often subject to unpredictable natural disasters, such as floods and landslides, and suffer the most from air pollution from dust and vehicular emissions. Well designed projects can provide the right policy environment to mitigate these ill effects and give poor people a voice in determining appropriate approaches to environmental management. Local initiatives and the environment in Morocco Sidi Bernoussi, an industrial zone in a suburb of Casablanca, is home to about 600 enterprises. Energy audits found that considerable energy was wasted through poor equipment and unmetered consumption in the slums that sprawled throughout the park. The local industrial association and the dwellers, with assistance from the Energy Sector Management Assistance Programme, came up with a community-oriented energy saving project where some of the energy savings would be credited to an environmental trust fund for relocating all 1,000 households living in the park. The concept, combing social, environmental, and energy aspects, has considerable potential for replica- tion in other communities. The World Bank is supporting this project through a grant from the Global Environmental Facility. 14 15 INTEGRATING THE URBAN POOR INTO THE CITY unicipal services often bypass illegal and informal settle- M ments, providing services to a very small percentage of the urban population. Because of this, poor people often resort to informal solutions, connecting to electricity grids illegally, or relying on the private sector for their water or transport needs. Improving the overall delivery of municipal services (electricity, water, sanitation, public transport, and telecommunications) and creating formal links to small- scale private providers of service can improve the quality of service to people in poor communities while building a strong link between them and the city. When this is done well, those residing in informal settlements can participate more actively in the life of the city, facilitating a process of legalization and enabling them to influence decisions that affect them. The improved levels of participation have a corresponding impact on the economic life of the city. Infrastructure Upgrading in Ghana's Cities Upgrading projects in Ghana's cities over a period of 15 years improved the living conditions of almost half a million poor people living in an area of approximately 800 hectares. The provision of low-income settlements with basic infrastructure and services contributed to a healthier environ- ment and the development of small businesses. Suame Magazine in the city of Kumasi is called the "Mechanicsville" of Ghana. It is a densely populated area where informal mechanics and motor fitters have set up shop. The winding streets of Suame Magazine were previously dusty and pothole- ridden. The area also lacked running water or proper sanitation facilities, and flooding was a regular problem. Yet, this area housed about 60,000 workers who worked in difficult con- I6 c: ., ., ~ c: ~ EE t:a. .. 0 ~~ OGI .o .Q c: ::J .. '""" 0.. ~ o=> .,_e> 0 c: .. ~ ~..§ :.:0 .9.! .~ 0 c: ::J ::;; ~ .,., ~ c: c: EE t: a. .. 0 .I I a. a; ., > Cl ., .o .Q c: ::J .. '""" 0.. ~ o=> .,_e> .. ~ ~ ..; 0 c: =o .9.! .~ 0 c: ::J ' A street in an area ::;; of Sao Paulo, Brazil before and after urban development upgrading ditions, providing much needed automotive services to Kumasi and sur- rounding areas. The upgrading of Suame M agazine has improved the sanitary condi- tions of these workers tremendously. It has also given a huge boost to business, as the earlier pothole-ridden, dusty streets have since given way to well paved roads. The mechanics can now rely on electricity to oper- ate heavy-duty equipment. As a result of the upgrading, the area now draws workers from other parts of the country in search of work or seek- ing to learn an automotive trade. I7 "How electricity changed my life." Upali, from Soraborawewa Mahiyangana in Uva Province of Sri Lanka, was appalled when his daughter asked him why they didn't have electric- ity at home like her school friends. "I was worried. I don't have that kind of money," says Upali, looking back at difficult times. Upali was able to obtain a loan from SEEDS (Sarvodaya Economic Enterprise Development Services (Guarantee] Ltd.) to invest in a solar panel. Despite restrictions, the organization was able to work out a com- promise solution that allowed Upali to install the panel on his grocery store, thereby increasing his income. "That was the turning point of my life... .. Now I could save some money for the future and spend some for my children's books and other needs" Solar power allows child to study at home 18 How improved urban transport saves time Rosa Guevara, a middle-aged woman from a poor neighborhood in north ern Bogota, understands the difference saving a few hours can make. She was laid off as a dressmaker four years ago and now supports her fam- ily by working from home, making uniforms for high schools. But as Guevara rides the new Transmilenio bus system, she is surprisingly upbeat. The US$428 million system of articulated buses, with declicated bus lanes and automatic ticketing that went into use in January 2001, is not only far safer and cleaner than the old-smoke belching buses, the seamstress now saves two hours in transport time on her trips into the city center to buy cloth and thread. "I can make 1Q--12 uniforms in those hours," she said. "That's a lot of money for me." Tram in Bulgaria I9 Village shop at dusk lit by solar lamps, Sri Lanka 20