Sources

Author

Faran Abbas

Published

August 7, 2025

This analysis relies on the World Bank’s World Development Indicators (WDI), the primary World Bank collection of development indicators compiled from officially recognized international sources.

Database: World Development Indicators
Publisher: The World Bank Group
Access Method: WDI R package
Coverage: 217 economies, 1,400+ indicators
Time Span: 2000-2023

Economic Growth and Development Indicators

Variable.Name	WDI.Code	Definition	Units	Data.Source
GDP Growth Rate	NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG	Annual percentage growth rate of GDP at market prices based on constant local currency	Annual % change	National accounts data
GNI per Capita	NY.GNP.PCAP.CD	Gross national income per capita in current US dollars using Atlas method	Current US$	World Bank national accounts, OECD
Trade Openness	NE.EXP.GNFS.ZS	Exports of goods and services as percentage of GDP	% of GDP	National accounts, balance of payments
Investment Rate	NE.GDI.TOTL.ZS	Gross capital formation (investment) as percentage of GDP	% of GDP	National accounts data
Consumer Price Index	FP.CPI.TOTL	Consumer price index reflecting changes in cost to average consumer	Index (2010=100)	International Monetary Fund
Unemployment Rate	SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS	Unemployment as percentage of total labor force (modeled ILO estimate)	% of labor force	International Labour Organization

Regional Classifications (7 regions)

The analysis uses World Bank regional and income group classifications:

East Asia & Pacific: China, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, etc.
Europe & Central Asia: Russia, Turkey, Poland, Ukraine, etc.
Latin America & Caribbean: Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, etc.
Middle East & North Africa: Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Morocco, etc.
North America: United States, Canada
South Asia: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, etc.
Sub-Saharan Africa: Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, etc.

Income Classifications (4 groups, FY2024)

Low income: GNI per capita ≤ $1,135
Lower middle income: GNI per capita $1,136 - $4,465
Upper middle income: GNI per capita $4,466 - $13,845
High income: GNI per capita ≥ $13,846

Data Collection Process

Automated Data Retrieval

Code

# R code used for data collection
library(WDI)
library(tidyverse)

# Define indicators to download
indicators <- c(
  "NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG",    # GDP growth (annual %)
  "NY.GNP.PCAP.CD",       # GNI per capita (current US$)  
  "NE.EXP.GNFS.ZS",       # Exports of goods and services (% of GDP)
  "NE.GDI.TOTL.ZS",       # Gross capital formation (% of GDP)
  "FP.CPI.TOTL",          # Consumer prices (index)
  "SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS"        # Unemployment (% of labor force)
)

# Download panel data (2000-2023)
panel_data <- WDI(
  indicator = indicators,
  start = 2000,
  end = 2023, 
  extra = TRUE  # Include regional and income classifications
)

# Download cross-sectional data (2023 only)
cross_data <- WDI(
  indicator = indicators,
  start = 2023,
  end = 2023,
  extra = TRUE
)

Initial Data Assessment

Code

# Examine data structure and coverage
glimpse(panel_data)

# Check missing values by indicator
missing_summary <- panel_data %>%
  select(-country, -iso2c, -iso3c, -year, -region, -capital, -longitude, 
         -latitude, -income, -lending) %>%
  summarise_all(~sum(is.na(.))) %>%
  pivot_longer(everything(), names_to = "indicator", values_to = "missing_values")

Data Coverage by Region and Time Period

region	Countries	Total Observations	Years Covered	Avg Observations per Country	Complete Cases (%)
East Asia & Pacific	24	537	2000 - 2023	22.4	672.3
Europe & Central Asia	47	1097	2000 - 2023	23.3	329.1
Latin America & Caribbean	23	494	2000 - 2023	21.5	730.8
Middle East & North Africa	19	421	2000 - 2023	22.2	857.5
North America	2	48	2000 - 2023	24.0	7520.8
South Asia	8	153	2000 - 2023	19.1	2359.5
Sub-Saharan Africa	41	860	2000 - 2023	21.0	419.8