Table ofContents Executive Summary4 RSR Phase One: Crisis Response Through Catalytic Action9 RSR Phase Two: Expand Social Protection and Advance Labor Market Inclusion Strong Foundations for Effective Social Protection Systems11 Boost Women’s Access to Jobs13 Investments That Empower Youth20 Introduction The Rapid Social Response (RSR) Trust Fund has its roots in the Food and Energy PriceCrisis of 2007-8, which was followed immediately by the “Great Recession” of 2008-9. These days it has become very difficult…. I used to have threemeals each day, but now I am hardly managing a meal each These crises seem a long time ago, and from an age when we were still surprised byshocks. Estimates of impact vary considerably over time and across sources, but it’sgenerally accepted that some 100 million people suffered the effects of the price crisis,and roughly 64 million from the subsequent financial crisis. Casual wage workers, In response to these crises, and with the understanding that the global communityneeded to be more agile and faster in providing assistance, the World Bank created theVulnerability Financing Facility, to streamline crisis support to the poor and vulnerableand to provide a broad range of technical and financial assistance to low-income Since then the RSR has undergone significant changes, moving from rapid reactionassistance in times of crisis to investing in national systems to strengthen domesticsocial safety nets, and then to programs to enhance productivity and employment to This report provides a brief overview of the achievements of the Rapid Social ResponseMulti-Donor Trust Fund (RSR) in the fifteen years from its inception during the globalfinancial crisis of 2008/9 to its closing in 2024. Over these fifteen years, the RSRawarded $149.8 million in 420 grants to World Bank teams. These teams represent Today, the development community is facing significant challenges as traditional donorsscale back their engagement and budgets become ever tighter. This places even greater The World Bank’s goal of reaching 500 million people with social protection andemployment support by 2030, including at least 250 million women and girls, and itsfocus on jobs and employment, call for innovation and expansion in programming—we To better respond to new challenges and adapt to the new donor environment, our TrustFund and Partnerships program has been relaunched as the Social Protection Response It shifted from crisis response to strengthening long-term systems—helping countriesprepare for future shocks, build flexibility into responses and financing, and invest inresilience at the household, community, and national levels. It also worked to overcomestructural barriers to economic inclusion so that more people can access jobs, services, RSR has changed both what the World Bank does to promote social protection andemployment, and how the Bank works to achieve these goals. The RSR has truly been a collective effort involving hundreds of people and organisations aroundthe world. We would like to acknowledge all those who made the RSR and its activities possible,including our clients, donors, recipient World Bank teams, and many others. First and foremost We also want to show our appreciation for the World Bank staff who made the RSR and itsachievements possible. This includes the Global Director for the Social Protection and LaborPractice, Iffath Sharif, her predecessors Robert Holzmann, Arup Banerjee, Michal Rutkowski, andtheir teams. The RSR has benefited enormously from the dedicated and creative managementprovided by Hideki Mori, Sandor Sipos, and Mattias Lundberg, and their teams, without whom theRSR would not have succeeded: Adea Kryeziu, Afrah Al-Ahmadi, Alessandra Heinemann, Helena This report has benefited greatly from the inputs of many staff and consultants, including CallistusAkachabwon Agbaam, Vanessa Co, Steve Commins, Barsha Dharel, Rebecca Holmes. Design and layout Throughout these difficult times the RSR enabled nearly100 countries to build, strengthen, and scale up systemsthat protect vulnerable populations and promoteresilience. Through 21 funding rounds and 420 grants, theprogram catalyzed more than $17 billion in operational Executive Summary Crisis Response and System Reform:15 Years of RSR Impact Over the past 15 years, the Rapid Social Response (RSR)program has helped countries build social protectionsystems to confront some of the most pressingdevelopment challenges of our time. The RSR was initially The RSR evolved through three strategic phases. Phase Idelivered rapid crisis assistance in response to the 2009financial crisis. Phase II focused on building resilientsystems and provided grants to support innovativeactivities targeting women and girls, nutrition, youth,conflict, COVID-19, and disaster risk management. InPhase III, the RSR was restructured into an Umbrella At the same time, surging food and fuel prices slashed realincomes and pushed an additiona