# This Week in Global Dev: #141: Inside the World Bank Spring Meetings

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/devex-podcasts-65118/this-week-in-global-dev-141-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/devex-podcasts-65118/this-week-in-global-dev-141-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings.md
Podcast: [Devex Podcasts](https://stenobird.com/podcast/devex-podcasts-65118)
Published: 2026-04-17T08:22:30+00:00
Episode link: https://soundcloud.com/devex-intl/inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings
Audio file: https://feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/2304223706-devex-intl-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/devex-podcasts-65118/episodes/this-week-in-global-dev-141-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings
Duration seconds: 1625

## Resource

Against the backdrop of the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings, Devex reporters Adva Saldinger, Michael Igoe, and Ayenat Mersie dissect the stories they’ve been hearing on the ground this week. That includes the latest OECD figures showing a staggering 25% drop in official development assistance, the ripple effects of the conflict in the Middle East, and a newfound focus on rebuilding public consensus. The discussion also looks at the World Bank’s bold new “sector-first” strategy, highlighted by the launch of Water Forward — an ambitious initiative aiming to provide one billion people with access to clean water through country-led compacts. The return of African trade corridors enters the discussion as well, along with the International Monetary Fund’s scramble for concessional funding. To dig into these stories, listen to this episode of This Week in Global Development.

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/devex-podcasts-65118/episodes/this-week-in-global-dev-141-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/devex-podcasts-65118/this-week-in-global-dev-141-inside-the-world-bank-spring-meetings.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.