World Bank Group Scorecard: five takeaways from the 2026 Annual Meeting data update

What does a global average reveal — and what does it hide? What does “progress” mean when you’re living in a place shaped by fragility, conflict, or violence (FCV)1? For some, it’s a child well-nourished today with a promise of a healthier tomorrow, a family turning on a tap and seeing clean water, or parents finding a job that brings stability. For others, it’s simply a safe night’s sleep after being forced from home. Behind every statistic is a human story — one of struggle, hope, and resilience. 1. Child stunting: A heavier burden in fragile settings Are children receiving what they need for a healthier future? Progress in reducing child stunting — a condition in which children’s height is below the expected range for their age — has stalled across countries supported by the World Bank2, with the share affected rising from 24.5% in 2020 to 25.3% in 2024. Of the 150 million children under five who are stunted worldwide in 2024, 99% lived in these economies. In economies affected by FCV, where one in three children is affected, compared with one in four across other developing economies overall. Nearly half were affected in Niger (48.3%), Papua New Guinea (47.6%), and the Republic of Yemen (47.4%). Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia together accounted for 27 million stunted children — more than one in six worldwide. Progress in India and Pakistan helped reduce the global total, many vulnerable settings continued to fall behind. 2. Water, sanitation, and hygiene: Basic services remain beyond reach for many Can families access the basic services they need every day? Good nutrition is essential, but daily well-being depends on much more. Access to basic water, sanitation, and handwashing facilities is essential for health and well-being, yet major gaps remain, particularly in FCV economies. In 2024, 90% of people in IBRD and IDA countries had access to basic drinking water, compared with 71% in FCV economies (figure below, Scene 1). Disparities were even greater for sanitation and handwashing, where access reached only 47% and 39%, respectively. Looking more closely, however, outcomes vary considerably across FCV economies. A small group of FCV economies in the IBRD category recorded rates above 96% for all three services (figure below, Scene 2). By contrast, many other FCV economies, most of which belong to the IDA group, continue, to face substantial deficits, despite steady progress over the past 25 years (figure below, Scene 3). 3. Employment: Fewer workers earn wages or salaries Work is another everyday dimension—how do people earn a living? Wage and salaried employment — employees in paid employment jobs — remains less common in economies affected by fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV). In 2025, only about 23% of workers in FCV economies supported by the World Bank were in wage or salaried employment, compared with 47% across IBRD and IDA economies overall. But the picture varies considerably across FCV economies. In IBRD FCV economies, 61% of workers held wage or salaried jobs, compared with 19% in IDA FCV economies. Individual economies also show considerable variation within these groups, reflecting differences in their labor markets. Overall, the data highlight how many workers in FCV economies rely on other forms of employment, including self-employment and contributing family work. 4. Poverty: Declining rates, but a widening gap How many people live below the poverty line1? In 2024, 38.9% of the people in FCV economies lived on less than US$3.00 a day, compared with 10.1% globally. At the US$8.30 threshold, the figures were 81.1% and 46.2%, respectively. Poverty has declined in FCV economies. Between 2001 and 2024, the share living below US$3.00-day fell from 48.7% to 38.9%--a reduction of about one-fifth. Over the same period, the global rate fell by more than 70%, from 35.3% to 10.1%. Progress occurred, but at a much slower pace. The gap between FCV economies and the global rate widened. 5. Forced displacement: A recent decline after years of growth How many people have been forced from their homes? Following a steady increase for more than a decade, the population living in FCV economies reached 69.7 million in 2024 before declining to 61.9 million in 2025, a decrease of 7.7 million people (11.1%). Despite this decline, the number of people affected remains nearly 3.7 times its 2010 level of 16.8 million. The long-term increase is pronounced in IDA economies, whose FCV population grew from 12.4 million to 53.7 million between 2010 and 2025. Large increases were recorded in economies, including Sudan, Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ukraine, reflecting how conflict, instability, and displacement have become increasingly concentrated in high-impact crises. Looking beyond the average Together, these five measures reveal a recurring pattern: development gains remain uneven, with substantial challenges in fragile and conflict-affected settings. Global averages remain useful. But understanding progress also means asking where gains are slower, where gaps are widening, and whose circumstances remain obscured by the headline numbers. Explore the World Bank Group Scorecard and World Development Indicators to look beyond global averages and examine where progress is advancing — and where the largest gaps remain. Learn more about the World Bank Group’s response in its FCV Strategy 2026–2030. Table 1 summarizes the data updates for the Client Context and Vision indicators. Table 1. Summary of Data Updates for Vision and Client Context Indicators of the World Bank Group Scorecard. Note: Aggregates were updated to reflect FY27 World Bank classifications. The World Bank Group Scorecard is accessible via this page. The data can be further studied using the World Bank Group Scorecard Explorer. A The term country, used interchangeably with economy, does not imply political independence but refers to any territory for which authorities report separate social or economic statistics. 1 Fragility, Conflict, and Violence (FCV) situations include countries where at least 20% of the population lives in areas with high conflict-related fatalities during a reference period. More information is available at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/fragilityconflictviolence/brief/classification-of-fragile-and-conflict-affected-situations 2 The World Bank comprises the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). To “end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet,” the IBRD offers financial products and policy advice mainly to middle-income countries, while the IDA provides grants and low-interest loans to low-income countries. https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/annual-report/world-bank 3 Poverty rates are not reported for years with less than 50% survey coverage of the relevant population. For global estimates, survey coverage must be at least 50% of the world population and at least 50% of the population living in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Acknowledgements: We thank our colleagues and collaborators for their valuable feedback and support. We are grateful to Samuel Kofi Tetteh Baah (DECDA) and Christoph Lakner (DECDA) for their contributions.