The Caribbean is among the world' most urbanised regions‚Äîan advantage for positive economic growth. As such, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) has kick started a consultative process that will build its capacity to implement more interventions in the regional urban sector. The Bank' Board of Directors has committed USD510,000 for the development of a CDB Urban Sector Policy, Strategy and Operational Guidelines‚Äîa process that will include engagement with stakeholders in its 19 Borrowing Member Countries (BMCs) and an assessment of the Caribbean Region' challenges and opportunities in the urban sector. “We know that there is a close correlation between the wealth of nations and their level of urbanisation. By beginning this process, we lay a path for driving sustainable, inclusive growth through urban development, and for positioning our cities and towns as hubs for efficient transport systems and communication, and the best cultural, educational and health facilities," said Daniel Best, Director of Projects, CDB. The technical assistance is designed to help the Bank: determine priority areas of intervention in the urban sector and the appropriate approaches for delivering financing for such interventions; establish an implementation strategy and improve the monitoring and evaluation framework of interventions by CDB; better support its BMCs in the implementation of policies, strategies, projects and programmes geared towards addressing their respective urban challenges; and better align its Urban Policy to appropriate Poverty Reduction Strategies, social protection frameworks, Caribbean-specific Sustainable Development Goals, and targets and indicators, as well as its policies and strategies adopted on Disaster Risk Management and Gender and Governance. With this alignment, CDB will be better positioned to provide a more effective response to poverty, deprivation, vulnerability, gender inequality and economic stagnation, through improved urban development and support services. Through the project, CDB will work with its BMCs to identify the key issues that are expected to confront the urban sector over the medium to long term. This process aims to define the Bank' role in addressing those issues. CDB' Urban Sector Policy and Strategy, and operational guidelines for the implementation of the strategy are scheduled for completion in 2018.