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Public Administrations are frequently entitled to intervene in building stocks with energy rehabilitation actions. Unfortunately, the monetary budget at their disposal is generally limited and, consequently, a prioritization criterion is needed to optimize its allocation. The classification of the building energy performance is increasingly used by Public Administrations for this purpose. Here we argue that a proper prioritization criterion should depend upon the potential subjects to which the rehabilitated buildings are given back. If the energy rehabilitation is conducted on buildings that will be assigned to new dwellers, it would be preferable to use the energy class – which is based on a standardized energy consumption – because a change of the building users will occur with a consequent plausible change of the building energy usage profile. Instead, if same dwellers will occupy the retrofitted building, a criterion based on a usage profile – that is actually the one established by these occupants – seems to be more appropriate. The priority orders of 23 buildings of the Sicilian stock, obtained using their energy class and real energy consumption, are presented and compared. Results show at which extent these two rankings differ, thus warning Public Administrations about prioritization criteria to adopt.

This comparative analysis examines the enforcement of uncontested monetary claims in the EU-11, as well as in FYR Macedonia (hereinafter "comparator countries"), and outlines options available to policymakers. The users of this analysis will be policymakers in environments that are strained by backlogs of such claims. Primarily, these will be Western Balkans countries, especially those of the former Yugoslavia. The analysis may also benefit policymakers elsewhere who wish to improve enforcement of uncontested claims. When exploring enforcement of uncontested claims, the report gives particular attention to utility bills since they form a significant portion of such claims. Additionally, enforcement of utility bills is a sensitive policy matter due to the social significance of these services. Uncontested claims are enforced in two stages: first, obtaining enforceable title; and second, execution of the enforceable title. In all comparator countries, these two stages are carried out by two different authorities. None of the comparator countries have chosen to combine the two stages. In contrast, in Serbia and in Montenegro these two stages form part of a single enforcement procedure carried out by an enforcement agent.

The main goal of the article is the efficiency justification of energy-efficient house (EEH) from the different points of view: economic, ecological and social. In this case, the EEH under the green economy context was considered by the authors. In addition, according to the Ukrainian ongoing condition, the key preconditions of EEH implementation among the Ukrainian households were allocated. Besides, the main approaches to define EEH are analyzed and systematized by the authors. On this basis, the main bullet points and features of EEH were indicated. The authors determined the EEH opportunities for spreading among the Ukrainian households. It should be noted, that the lack of awareness among the civil society provokes the slow temp of the EEH enlarging in Ukraine. At the same time, the European experience showed that the huge part of their households can be characterized as energy-effective. With the purpose of understand the efficiency of EEH, the authors had estimated the economic benefits of installed solar collector in the household as one of the parts of EEH. According to the results, the authors allocate the restraining factors of the EEH spreading in Ukraine. Thus, the great payback period is one of them. In addition, the high level of the currency rate has negative impact on the payback period. From the other side the continuously increasing of the utility bills have been indicated as a negative stimulate factor. In order to increase the awareness of the EEH benefits under the Ukrainian civil society, the main economic, ecological and social benefits of EEH were systematized by the authors.

The steep decline in the world oil price in the last quarter of 2014 slashed fuel price subsidies. Several governments responded by announcing that they would remove subsidies for one or more fuels and move to market-based pricing with full cost recovery. Other governments took advantage of low world prices to increase taxes and other charges on fuels. However, the decision to move to cost recovery and market prices, ending budgetary support, has not been implemented consistently across countries. Policy announcements have varied in the way they were communicated and the level of detail provided. When petroleum product prices bounced back during the first half of 2015, some reforming governments failed to raise prices correspondingly. Recent experience suggests that regular and frequent price adjustments, however small—as in Jordan and Morocco—help the government and consumers to get accustomed to fluctuations in world fuel prices and exchange rates. By contrast, freezing prices, even for a few months—for socioeconomic considerations or because the needed adjustments are small enough to be absorbed—increases the risk of reversion to ad hoc pricing and price subsidies. The more formally the decision to move to market-based pricing is communicated, the more public new price announcements, and the higher the frequency of price changes, the more likely the implementation of the announced pricing policy reform will be sustained.

The Republic of Belarus relies heavily on natural gas imports to meet domestic energy demand. Energy efficiency (EE) investments can significantly reduce budget outlays in the long-term while also improving the physical assets and quality of energy services. Investments in thermal retrofits of public and residential buildings can result in substantial economic benefits. Recognizing the substantial energy savings potential in the buildings sector, the Government of the Republic of Belarus (GoB) has introduced policies and programs to promote the development of more energy efficient buildings, and the retrofitting of old buildings. The integrated program for design, construction, and renovation of energy-efficient housing in the Republic of Belarus for 2009-2010 and until 2020 sets a national target to reduce specific heat consumption in existing residential buildings by 60 kWh per

This report presents findings from 208 focus group discussions held across 8 countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia between 2013-2014 that examined households experiences with and attitudes to energy tariff reforms. Over the past five years, the World Bank has provided guidance to more than 14 countries in the region on implementing energy subsidy reforms. This work complements a large body of research on the poverty impacts of these reforms. Specifically, it gives voice to poor and middle-income citizens, and presents their perspectives and concerns with regard to rising tariffs and reforms in the energy sector overall. The report argues that by gaining a deeper understanding of the narratives that people attach to energy issues, governments can design better mitigation policies to address the reforms adverse impacts; better communication campaigns to convey the rationale of reforms to the public; and institute stronger accountability measures to help citizens protect their rights as consumers. This report examines poverty and social impacts of energy tariff reforms in the ECA region from citizens perspectives. It aims to complement previously collected quantitative data on distributional impacts of reforms, and contribute to the design of socially sustainable energy policies and effective mitigation measures. It presents qualitative research findings that highlight: (i) factors affecting household vulnerability to energy tariff increases; (ii) insights into how households cope with increasing energy prices; (iii) experiences with and perceptions of energy sector institutions and, more specifically, interactions with energy service providers; (iv) experiences with social assistance programs and overall attitudes toward measures that make energy more affordable; and (v) consumer attitudes toward energy sector reforms overall.

This toolkit aims to help World Bank task teams working on energy subsidy and tariff reforms to develop qualitative analysis tools. The tools that are described in this document can help task teams to better understand and address social and political challenges related to these reforms, including impacts of reforms and political economy constraints. This toolkit shares lessons and research tools developed during analyses of energy tariff and subsidy reforms in ECA. In FY13-FY14 alone, the World Bank has been involved in providing guidance to over fourteen countries in the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region on these reforms. World Bank assistance to ECA countries ranges from advice on the design of energy sector policies to understanding and mitigating poverty and social impacts. This toolkit presents a practical guide to applying the two sets of tools described above. Chapter two presents a brief overview of the types of social and political challenges in energy tariff reforms that motivate the use of qualitative and stakeholder or political economy assessments. Chapter three provides a step-by-step guide to conducting qualitative assessments and stakeholder analyses of energy tariff reforms based on the ECA experience. Annex one contains Terms of Reference (TORs) for all analytical tools described in the Toolkit. Annex two provides a reference table to case studies of PEAs of energy subsidy and tariff reforms conducted by the World Bank.

Since the 1990s, most states in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) have embarked on energy sector reforms. These have included removing subsidies, which has resulted in increased end-user costs for energy. The research presented here comprises an integral part of a set of qualitative studies on poverty and social impacts of energy subsidy reforms. In particular, it examines what it means for energy subsidy reforms to be more gender sensitive. The purpose of this research is to illustrate the extent to which energy subsidy reforms in the ECA region differently impact men and women. Prior global studies on gender and energy suggest that men and women have different priorities when it comes to energy use; that the reforms may have unequal effects on their well-being; that they face different challenges in interacting with energy providers or social assistance institutions; and may have different views on and knowledge of policy reforms. The target audience for this study is development practitioners, public officials, and civil society actors involved in social sustainability and the communications aspects of energy reform policies.

European Commission This chapter highlights the growing global and European financial inclusion agenda and provides a brief assessment of vulnerability and labor market outcomes for Roma in Eastern Europe. Financial inclusion is considered by many to be among the main instruments to improve welfare, especially among the poor, which need financial services as much as, if not more, than non-poor, to reduce vulnerability and improve self-employment. Following a brief description of the main data sources used in the analysis, the chapter highlights the very high levels of vulnerability and exclusion among Roma in Eastern Europe and the poor labor market outcomes by any measure, including extremely low employment rates and high informality. Against this background, the following chapters assess financial exclusion among Roma, and self-employment levels and (credit) barriers to starting businesses. The final chapter highlights international experiences promoting comprehensive, incremental approaches to financial inclusion.

Much of the world’s built environment is found in urban areas, and cities are thought to be responsible for up to 70 percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and up to 80 percent of primary energy demand. Most of the energy consumed in the world fuels urban industry, powers urban homes and offices, and moves people within and between cities. This paper is about climate change mitigation in cities, and will primarily look at how local authorities can provide a higher quality of life for their citizens while at the same time achieving higher resource efficiency. It will also look at how climate change mitigation measures could help boost local employment and drive economic growth. The focus will be on buildings (residential, commercial, and office), public services infrastructure (water, sewage, solid waste management, and public lighting), and urban form. Other topics of interest in this respect, such as transport and industrial production will be discussed tangentially in relation to the other topics (e.g. urban form influences and is influenced by transport patterns and strategies).

Upgrading infrastructure plays a critical role in the Republic of Congo's quest to diversify its economy and reduce poverty. It is also an important source of growth on its own. A cross-country statistical analysis conducted for this report shows that infrastructure contributed one-half of one percentage point to the Republic of Congo's per capita gross domestic product (GDP) growth annually from 2001 to 2006. However, if the country's infrastructure could be improved to the level seen in Mauritius, the leading country in Sub-Saharan Africa, it could contribute more than 3 percentage points to annual per capita growth. The Republic of Congo's power infrastructure is inadequate and inefficiently operated. The country lags well behind peer countries in generation capacity and electrification. The parts of the population not served by the grid face exorbitant costs. The government has responded to these issues with an ambitious investment plan. However, if new assets are to operate effectively, major inefficiencies in the power utility will also need to be addressed. The utility's transmission and distribution losses are 47 percent, more than double best-practice benchmarks, while the cost of overstaffing is 30 percent of utility revenue. Tariffs recover barely half the cost of service provision, even though full cost recovery will be affordable to the population. In the information and communication technology (ICT) sector, the Republic of Congo has made good progress in developing its mobile telephony market in recent years, with high levels of signal coverage. The cost of international connectivity is currently high, but it should fall once the country connects to the international submarine cable and completes its domestic fiber optic network. On the other hand, the physically dilapidated and financially depleted condition of the fixed-line telephone operator is becoming a constraint to raising Internet penetration. The Republic of Congo performs relatively well on service coverage in the water and sanitation sector. The country's access statistics are substantially ahead of those in its peer group, particularly with regard to piped water, stand-posts, and improved latrines. However, access to services is much greater in urban areas than in rural areas. Furthermore, under-pricing of water has hurt the financial soundness of the water utility, even though analysis suggests that cost recovery tariffs would be affordable to consumers.

The Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD) has gathered and analyzed extensive data on infrastructure in more than 40 Sub-Saharan countries, including Angola. The results have been presented in reports covering different areas of infrastructure-information and communication technology (ICT), irrigation, power, transport, water and sanitation-and different policy areas, including investment needs, fiscal costs, and sector performance. This report presents the key AICD findings for Angola, allowing the country's infrastructure situation to be benchmarked against that of its African peers. Given that Angola is a low-income resource-rich country, two sets of African benchmarks will be used to evaluate Angola's situation: fragile low-income countries and resource-rich countries. Detailed comparisons will also be made with immediate regional neighbors in the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Several methodological issues should be borne in mind. First, because of the cross-country nature of data collection, a time lag is inevitable. The period covered by the AICD for Angola runs from 2005 to 2009. But financial data for comparator countries typically cover an earlier period, 2001-06, and are averaged to smooth out fluctuations, while technical data are reported for 2006. In recent years, Angola's economy has been among the fastest growing in Africa. Looking ahead, the country's gross development product (GDP) is projected to rise by 6.5 percent in 2011, with oil-sector growth of 3.8 percent and nonoil- sector growth of 8.1 percent (IMF 2011). A 27-year war that ended in 2002 ravaged the country and destroyed most of its economic infrastructure. Many roads, rails, and bridges were mined and obliterated; surviving infrastructure is dilapidated after years of neglect.

Sri Lanka's population is still largely rural, nearly 85 percent lives outside of cities. There will probably be rural-to-urban migration in the future, which represents a potential opportunity to m-money providers. People working in cities often wish to repatriate their savings to their rural families conveniently and at a low cost. Income is fairly evenly spread across Sri Lanka s provinces, with the exception of the Western Province where Colombo, the largest city, is situated. Its GDP per capita places Sri Lanka near the average of comparable Southeast Asian countries. Malaysia is clearly an outlier with a considerably higher GDP per capita, but Sri Lanka s GDP is higher than that of the Philippines, where m-money has taken off dramatically. Poverty is less of a problem in Sri Lanka relative to countries like Bangladesh or Cambodia, where GDP per capita is much lower. The key point is that Sri Lanka is at a different stage in its economic development and is unlikely to have the same socioeconomic conditions that made m-money in Kenya accelerate so rapidly.

The Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD) has gathered and analyzed extensive data on infrastructure in more than 40 Sub-Saharan countries, including Cape Verde. The results have been presented in reports covering several sectors—ICT, irrigation, power, transport, water and sanitation— and various policy areas, including investment needs, fiscal costs, and sector performance. This report presents the key AICD findings for Cape Verde, allowing the country’s infrastructure situation to be benchmarked against that of its African peers. Given that Cape Verde is a relatively well- off middle-income country, its performance will be benchmarked against that of other middle-income countries in Africa. Detailed comparisons will also be made with immediate regional neighbors in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and where relevant, with other island states that face a similar set of infrastructure challenges.

Infrastructure contributed just over one percentage point to Ghana's improved per capita growth performance during the 2000s, though unreliable power supplies held growth back by 0.5 percentage points. Raising the country's infrastructure endowment to that of the region's middle-income countries could boost annual growth by more than 2.7 percentage points. Today, Ghana has a very advanced infrastructure platform when compared with other low-income countries in Africa. But as the country approaches the middle-income threshold, it will need to focus on upgrading its infrastructure indicators in line with this benchmark. The Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD) has gathered and analyzed extensive data on infrastructure in more than 40 Sub-Saharan countries, including Ghana. The results have been presented in reports covering different areas of infrastructure, including ICT, irrigation, power, transport, water, and sanitation, and different policy areas, including investment needs, fiscal costs, and sector performance. This report presents the key AICD findings for Ghana and allows the country's infrastructure situation to be benchmarked against its African peers. Given that Ghana is a relatively well-off low-income country well on its way to reaching middle-income status, two sets of African benchmarks will be used to evaluate Ghana's situation. Detailed comparisons will also be made with immediate regional neighbors in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). As on the rest of the continent, West Africa's growth performance improved markedly in the 2000s. The overall improvement in per capita growth rates has been estimated at around 2 percent, of which 1.1 percent is attributable to better structural policies and 0.9 percent to improved infrastructure. During the five years from 2003 to 2007, Ghana's economy grew at an average annual rate of 5.6 percent, which accelerated to 7.3 percent in 2009. Ghana's infrastructure improvements added just over one percentage point to the per capita growth rate for the period 2003 to 2007.

This study is a product of the Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD), a project designed to expand the world's knowledge of physical infrastructure in Africa. Infrastructure contributed 1.8 percentage points to Cote d'Ivoire's annual per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in the mid-2000. Raising the country's infrastructure endowment to that of the region's middle-income countries could boost annual growth by a further two percentage points per capita. Cote d'Ivoire made major strides with respect to infrastructure during the 1990s. As a result, the country has broad-reaching national backbones in the road, energy, and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sectors, and relatively high levels of household coverage for utility services. However, much ground was lost to conflict in the mid-2000s. Very little investment has taken place in the last fifteen years, leading to recent power shortages, the deterioration of the road network, and the deceleration of progress on safe water access. Cote d'Ivoire's most pressing challenge will be to regain the financial equilibrium needed to restore a reliable energy supply. Reestablishing the prominence of Abidjan's port will require investments in terminal capacity, as well as road and rail infrastructure upgrades on hinterland linkages. The underfunding of road maintenance must also be addressed. Another challenge lies in sanitation, as it is currently unlikely that the country will meet the associated millennium development goal. This report presents the key AICD findings for Cote d'Ivoire, allowing the country's infrastructure situation to be benchmarked against that of its African peers. A social and economic crisis in Cote d'Ivoire has crippled its growth trajectory, which had been that of a middle-income country. It will therefore be compared to low-income countries (fragile and non-fragile groups) and middle-income countries, as well as immediate regional neighbors in West Africa. The study presented several methodological issues.

Infrastructure improvements contributed 0.6 percentage points to the annual per capita growth of Zambia's gross domestic product (GDP) over the past decade, mostly because of the exponential growth of information and communication technology (ICT) services. Poor performance of the power sector reduced the per capita growth rate by 0.1 percentage point. Simulations suggest that if Zambia's infrastructure platform could be improved to the level of the African leader, Mauritius, per capita growth rates could increase by two percentage points per year. Zambia's high generation capacity and relatively high power consumption are accompanied by fewer power outages than its neighbors. But Zambia's power sector is primarily oriented toward the mining industry, while household electrification, at 20 percent, is about half that in other resource-rich countries. Zambia's power tariffs are among the lowest in Africa and are less than half the level needed to accelerate electrification and keep pace with mining sector demands. Meeting future power demands and raising electrification rates will be difficult without increasing power tariffs. Zambia's infrastructure situation is more hopeful than that of many other African countries. Infrastructure spending needs, though large, are not beyond the realm of possibility, and Zambia's resource wealth and relatively well-off population provide a more solid financing basis than is available to many other countries. Zambia's infrastructure funding gap, though substantial, can be dramatically reduced through measures to stem inefficiencies and lower costs.

The Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD) has gathered and analyzed extensive data on infrastructure in around 40 Sub-Saharan countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The results have been presented in reports covering different areas of infrastructure ICT, irrigation, power, transport, water and sanitation and different policy areas, including investment needs, fiscal costs, and sector performance. This report presents the key AICD findings for the DRC, allowing the country's infrastructure situation to be benchmarked against that of its African peers. Given that the DRC is a fragile state trying to catch up with other low-income countries (LICs) in the region, both fragile-state and LIC African benchmarks will be used to evaluate the DRC's situation. Detailed comparisons will also be made with immediate regional neighbors in Central Africa. Several methodological issues should be borne in mind. First, because of the cross-country nature of data collection, a time lag is inevitable. The period covered by the AICD runs from 2001 to 2006. Most technical data presented are for 2006 (or the most recent year available), while financial data are typically averaged over the available period to smooth out the effect of short-term fluctuations. Second, in order to make comparisons across countries, indicators had to be standardized to place the analysis on a consistent basis. This means that some of the indicators presented here may be slightly different from those that are routinely reported and discussed at the country level. During the period from 2001 to 2005, per capita economic growth in DRC was on average 2.1 percent higher than during the period from 1991 to 1995. Despite this improvement, growth levels, which oscillated between 4 and 8 percent in the early 2000s, still fell short of the sustained 7 percent per year needed to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Improved telecommunications infrastructure has been the main driver of this change, contributing 1.1 percentage points to the country's per capita growth rate. Deficiencies in power infrastructure, on the other hand, held back per capita growth by 0.25 percentage point over this period.

Infrastructure contributed 1.2 percentage points to the annual per capita growth of Malawi's gross domestic product (GDP) over the past decade, thanks mainly to the revolution in information and communication technology (ICT). Raising the country's infrastructure endowment to that of the region's middle-income countries could further boost annual growth by 3.5 percentage points per capita. Today, Malawi's basic infrastructure indicators look relatively good when compared with other low-income countries in Africa, although the performance of that infrastructure could be significantly improved. Malawi is one of the few African countries to have already reached the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for water, almost a decade ahead of the target. The private sector has made Global Management System (GSM) telephone signals widely available without public subsidy. A substantial road investment program has raised the average condition of the country's road network, and a foundation for institutional reform has been laid in the ICT, power, and road transport sectors. Even if those inefficiencies could be eliminated, Malawi will still face an infrastructure funding gap of almost $300 million a year. This could be lessened to $100 million by engaging in regional trade of electricity, using lower-cost supply modalities in water supply and sanitation, and adopting appropriate technologies for road sector development. As long as efficiency gains are captured and spending sustained at the levels of the recent past, the country's infrastructure targets could be reached within 16 years.