South-South Trade through Value-Added Glasses
Using gross figures of exports and imports to approach the contribution of trade to economic growth and a country’s resource allocation may be misleading. Products often cross borders more…
Finance as an Economic Cholesterol
First appeared at World Bank Growth and Crisis blog A country’s income depends on its accumulated wealth and how efficiently and innovatively this wealth is employed to produce goods and services.…
Development Banks and Post-Crisis Blues in Investment Finance
International long-term private finance to developing countries has changed dramatically in the wake of the global financial crisis. Caught in “post-crisis blues”, as my World Bank colleagues Jeff Chelsky,…
What It Takes for Trade to Reduce Poverty in Africa
Despite tremendous progress in poverty reduction over the last two decades, poverty still persists. Along with South Asia, Africa is a region where large numbers of people continue to live…
Fiscal Policy Redux
As part of their response to negative shocks coming from advanced economies after the Lehman Brothers’ collapse in 2008, most developing countries resorted to countercyclical fiscal policy. Such a…
Gender equality and economic growth: A framework for policy analysis
Vox EU Reducing gender inequity will require a wide range of policies. This column describes a framework for quantifying the growth effects of gender policies in developing economies and,…
Truck mechanics at the port in Tema, Ghana, June 16, 2006. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst)
Trade: The World Is Not Flat Yet
Thomas Friedman’s bestseller The World Is Flat highlights the strong forces pushing the world towards a single economic platform. The technology-fueled globalization in the provision of services, and the widespread organization…
Gender Equality Pays Off in Brazil
Brazil’s success in reducing poverty and income inequality has been widely reported in recent years. What is less known is that there has also been progress in lessening gender inequality in…
Mobilizing Development via Mobile Phones
I'm sure I'm not the only one who uses my mobile phone for almost everything but to make a call. Thanks to technological advances and the explosion of social…
In Times of Consecutive Crises, Is Fiscal Policy the Answer?
In recent weeks, fiscal policy – once the domain of policy wonks – has become part of dinner-table conversations. As Washington attempts to put its fiscal house in order,…
Where Rubber Hits the Road: Reforming Public Sector Management
In practice, theory is something else. I've already heard variants of this expression in several countries and languages. Very often from people referring to the gap between abstract, generic…
Beyond 2015: The Future of Development Goals
Beyond 2015: The Future of Development Goals New Delhi | October 18, 2012 Remarks to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's 4th World Forum Remarks to the 4th…
Connecting Wagons: Why and How to Help Lagging Regions Catch Up
If it weren't for the economic performance of China, Brazil and other emerging markets, the global economic slump following the 2008 financial crisis would have been much worse. Not…
Natural wealth: Is it a blessing or a curse?
Using data series recently released by the World Bank (2011) on natural capital and other forms of countries’ wealth, this column revisits some of the conclusions reached in the…
Fiscal Policy for Shared Prosperity
As part of their response to negative shocks coming from advanced economies after Lehman's collapse in 2008, most developing countries resorted to countercyclical fiscal policy. Such a policy choice…