Sustainability of growth is a challenge in many countries.

Many countries are already seizing opportunities to move ahead on the knowledge economy (KE), and are seeking new and innovative ways of boosting their growth and competitiveness. A knowledge economy is one that has the policies, institutions, and capabilities in place to make effective use of knowledge to further its economic and social development. It is not the domain of only the few that have moved ahead; developing countries must exploit the opportunities presented by the global knowledge revolution to reduce poverty and promote economic and social development. By building on their strengths and by planning appropriate investments in human capital, effective institutions, relevant technologies, and innovative and competitive enterprises, they too can capitalize on the knowledge era and make the transition to the KE. 

The World Bank Institute’s (WBI) Knowledge for Development (K4D) program designed a broad-based learning course which would allow  participants to engage in a process of developing coherent KE strategies in their countries. The main aim of this course was to have a broad discussion with a wide range of stakeholders from government, private sector, and civil society on how countries can leverage their potential to further compete in the global KE, and identify appropriate processes and policies that can help them achieve their goals. The course focused on policy strategies, concrete case studies, exchange of experiences, and analytical tools that can help to benchmark progress on the KE.