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World Bank manga

2 July 2007 | Humour

Teaming up with a leading manga publisher (for those of you not down with the youf, manga are Japanese-style graphic novels), the Bank has launched a new series of comic books, each highlighting a key development issue. The stories follow the adventures of 15-year-old Rei “who discovers that the only way to become a true warrior is to understand the challenges facing the poor and disadvantaged people he befriends along the way”. In the third episode, “Rei’s latest training mission takes him to an island paradise complete with coral reefs, fluorescent fish, and pristine beaches. There he befriends an aged fisherman with nothing to catch… What is the secret behind the Lagoon of the Vanishing Fish?” Ah yes, it’s the tailings from a World Bank-funded gold mine.