In 2021-2023, Tel Aviv University Regional Cyber Resilience Lab (TAU RCRL) provided customized and practical roadmaps for improvement in four sectors across 11 countries in Asia and Africa. 

Seeking to advance and mainstream cyber resilience in support of sustainable development and capacity building in critical sectors of the economy, the World Bank Digital Development (DD) team, in collaboration with Tel Aviv University’s Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center (TAU ICRC) and Regional Cyber Resilience Lab (RCRL), developed the new Sectoral Cybersecurity Maturity Model. 

#	Region	Country		Sector		Year
1	West Africa	Benin			Financial	2022-2023
2	West Africa	Burkina Faso			Financial	2022-2023
3	West Africa	Côte D'Ivoire			Financial	2022-2023
4	West Africa	Guinea-Bissau			Financial	2022-2023
5	West Africa	Mali			Financial	2022-2023
6	West Africa	Niger			Financial	2022-2023
7	West Africa	Senegal			Financial	2022-2023
8	West Africa	Togo			Financial	2022-2023
9	Europe	Georgia			Healthcare	2022-2023
10	West Africa	Sierra Leone			Telecommunications	2023
11	Central Asia	Tajikistan			Electricity	2023

Our work allowed the World Bank to assess sector-level cybersecurity capabilities and better manage the risks by providing tailored and actionable‎ recommendations for Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP). Integrating sector-level cybersecurity strengthens the cyber resilience of the sector, which is vital for reaping the benefits of digital transformation, driving inclusive growth, and contributing to achieving the specific SDGs. 

Sector Capacity Maturity Model 

The World Bank, the premier MDB managing a portfolio of over US$80 billion and with US$30+ billion of disbursements for global development projects annually, has appreciated the importance of digital resilience quality for sustainable development. The World Bank seeks ways to integrate cybersecurity into their infrastructure projects in the beneficiary countries and better manage cyber risks to their debt portfolio. Therefore, the World Bank contracted Tel Aviv University to develop a unique Sectoral Cybersecurity Maturity Model (SCMM).

The SCMM will be a key tool in the World Bank's project cycle, supporting their efforts in cybersecurity. The SCMM is the primary tool of the new CIP Toolkit that will be used throughout the World Bank’s project cycle. 

With the support of TAU RCRL the World Bank held a presentation and training session at the World Bank Office in Washington, D.C. on June 21, 2023, 1818 H St NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA - MC-C2-350 & via Zoom Seminar on Securing Critical Infrastructure (worldbank.org)

Rapid digital transformation of critical infrastructure (CI) sectors (e.g., finance, energy, health, transport, telecom) has also introduced new cybersecurity risks that can undermine the safety, security, and resilience of these sectors and the continuous and reliable delivery of essential services. The combination of increased digital dependency and its related risks to CIs requires governments to strengthen their institutional, regulatory, and operational capacity and adopt policies, strategies, and technical measures to improve the cybersecurity and resilience of their critical sectors. 

The event started with opening remarks by a senior government counterpart from Sierra Leone, where there have been significant efforts to increase the country’s cybersecurity and resilience, and a keynote address on the importance of protecting critical infrastructure from cyber security-related risks. This was followed by a panel of senior cybersecurity experts from partner organizations who will discuss available approaches, tools, and mechanisms to support critical infrastructure protection (CIP) and share insights, challenges, lessons, and recommendations on cyber-capacity building. The event aims to catalyze knowledge partnerships and operational engagements to scale up critical infrastructure protection (CIP) efforts and investments.

The seminar was attended by approx. 160 people. This seminar is part of the World Bank’s ongoing Cyber Resilience Event Series. The SCMM is the primary tool of the new CIP Toolkit that will be used throughout the World Bank’s project cycle, supporting its efforts in cybersecurity.‎ 

Presentations Cyber Week, Scaling up Cyber Capacity Building: The Sectoral Approach to Critical Infrastructure Protection

Following the World Bank training, RCRL and the World Bank presented the sectoral cybersecurity capacity approach at the Cyber Week, 2023, at the event called Scaling up Cyber Capacity Building:Scaling up Cyber Capacity Building: The Sectoral Approach to Critical Infrastructure Protection, on Wednesday, June 28th, 2023 in Buchman Law Faculty-Hoofien Hall (105)

On June 28, 2023, the SCMM was presented by:

• Dr. Lior Tabansky, Head of research development, Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center, Tel Aviv University, Head, Regional Cyber Resilience Lab, Tel Aviv University, and by
• Hagai Mei Zahav, Senior Cybersecurity Specialist, Digital Development Global Practice with the World Bank

at Cyber Week, 2023 in Tel Aviv. The event welcomed about 50 selected industry experts related to the project and was welcomed by the audience. 

The document is available at The World Bank’s Website and the recording of it is available on YouTube with the photos in the Gallery | Cyber Week 2023 | Cyber Week 2023 (tau.ac.il) 

Tel Aviv University Regional Cyber Resilience Laboratory Collaborations in Global Sector Cybersecurity 

We suggest elaborating on cooperation opportunities on sectoral cyber assessments, and framework development that may help optimize efforts and investments in digital transformation. We suggest you contact us for further details! 

To find out more about PROGRESS and see how you can benefit, please contact Lior Tabansky