Civil society organisations welcomed many of the findings of the latest installment of the World Bank's World Development Report (WDR) on equity and development. However question marks remain over its historical amnesia and the likelihood that the Bank will practice what it preaches in this instance. The Bank's flagship annual report which was published in September, is divided into three sections: part 1 considers the evidence on inequality of opportunity within and across countries; part 2 asks why equity matters; and part 3 asks how public action can level the playing field.