91 percent of males in the world and 84 percent of females are literate.
80 percent of all children in the world are immunized against measles.
Burundi has the highest rate of female participation in the labor force with 93 %
Netherlands has the greatest proportion of internet users in the world with 89% while Iraq, has the smallest proportion with barely one-tenth of one percent.
Cambodia has the lowest debt service ratio of just less than one percent. Uruguay the highest with more than 87 %.
But the WDI is more than a source for quiz questions. It is a rich source of data and information about the world and its people, economies, and the environment and their state of development.
In more than 80 tables, the WDI provides hundreds of indicators covering 153 countries. Each table is matched by a detailed discussion of the meaning, the strengths and, most importantly, the weaknesses of the data.
The WDI is produced each year by the World Bank’s Development Data Group. The team does not work alone but relies on an extensive network of international and national partners and non-governmental and private organizations as well as many colleagues in the Bank.
As the popularity of the WDI has been growing considerably, the team keeps on improving the quality, relevance, and ease of data access to meet the growing demand and expectations.
“We are very proud of the WDI,” says Shaida Badiee, Director of the World Bank's Development Data Group. “It is a collective effort – everyone pitches in to bring it all together. It is at the heart of what we do.”
The WDI not just one book. Every year the WDI starts life as a database. Small databases on specific topics are reviewed, verified, and combined.
These databases come together, slowly, over the months leading to each publication until the final database – more than 800 indicators for 209 countries, 18 aggregate groups, and for up to 40 years – is ready.
After an extensive Bankwide review, this is then the WDI database made available to more than 16 million registered subscribers of the WDI Online and in the WDI CD-ROM. This database is the base for a wide range of products.
“We try to meet the needs of our many users: policy makers, journalists, businesses, students, and the public at large,” says Eric Swanson, Program Manager who leads the WDI work. “We package the information in useful and accessible ways: in print, on the Web, and as a CD-ROM.”
The database is also the source for the Little Data Books (Little Data Book, the Little Green Data Book, the Little Data Book on External Debt, Little Data Book on ICT, Little Data Book, Little Data Book on PSD, and Little Data Book on Gender), and numerous Web applications.
The print version of the WDI – a handy reference to keep at your desk – is available through the Publications web page.
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