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Model Nagar Raj Bill: Taking Democracy to the Grassroots

Participation of citizen in local governance is a key component for good governance. It extends the citizens’ role beyond that of a voter . It ensures a more equal distribution of power and resources...

by Kedar Diwan | On 21 Feb 2021

eSS Sunday Edit: Humanities and the Public Good

Constitutions and founding principles, including our own, were drafted by those who studied Humanities and its cognate fields, which helped them see far into the future. The plan and vision remains, a...

by Pramod K. Nayar | On 07 Jan 2021

It is not enough to have a strong govt; you need a strong country

While the govt has done many things right, it has also made mistakes that have weakened India. It should acknowledge challenges, reverse economic slide, and build national cohesion.

by T.N. Ninan | On 27 Jul 2020

Weekend Ruminations: Advice for shoot-from-the-hip nationalists: Take aim before firing

It's all good to be tactical - keep China out of strategic markets; hit back in the same coin if it looks to keep India's key sectors out - but don't shoot yourself in the foot.

by T.N. Ninan | On 21 Jun 2020

Inter-Governmental Fiscal Transfers in the Presence of Revenue Uncertainty: The Case of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India

A comprehensive multistage Value Added Tax (VAT) system, viz., Goods and Services Tax (GST), is introduced in India since 1 July 2017. GST encompasses various taxes from Union and State indirect tax b...

by Sacchidananda Mukherjee | On 02 Apr 2019

Environmental Governance and Environmental Performance

Along with the continuous development of the global economy, environmental deterioration has been widely recognized as a pressing issue nowadays, bringing environmental governance to the forefront of...

by Chun-Ping Chang | On 28 Mar 2019

The case of the spurious drug kingpin: Shifting pills in Chennai

The public lecture by Dr. Sarah Hodges, organised by the Forum for Medical Ethics Society with the Centre for Law and Society, School of Law, and Constitutional Governance, Centre for Public Health, S...

by Sarah Hodges | On 22 Mar 2019

Readiness of National Statistical Systems in Asia and the Pacific for Leveraging Big Data to Monitor the SDGs

In September 2015, the world committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which have broad and interconnected social, economic, social, econo...

by Jose Ramon Albert | On 20 Mar 2019

Services and Manufacturing in Global Value Chains: Is the Dstinction Obsolete?

This paper introduces a taxonomy of service activities in GVCs and describes the main statistical challenges in assessing the contribution of manufacturing and services to output, value added, or trad...

by Sébastien Miroudot | On 07 Mar 2019

Rebalancing the Economy and Reforming the Fiscal System of the People’s Republic of China

The goal of the note is to lay out and discuss a package of reforms that could be consistent with the objectives of the government. The fiscal instruments that we consider here include the division of...

by Roy Bahl | On 07 Mar 2019

Innovation, Efficiency and Inclusion: Integration of Digital Technologies in the Indian Microfinance Sector

This paper explores how these mechanisms - innovation, inclusion and efficiency – have been integral to microfinance operations in the past, and how innovations in digital technology may be yet anothe...

by Saon Ray | On 04 Feb 2019

The Business of Greening: Policy Measures for Green Business Development in Asia

The paper reviews green markets, technologies, and practices with a focus on developing Asian countries, and offers a set of policy options to enable governments and development finance institutions t...

by Daniele Ponzi | On 29 Jan 2019

Impact of Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers on Gender Equality in India: An Empirical Analysis

Intergovernmental fiscal transfers (IGFT) are, in theory, neither good nor bad for tackling gender inequalities. Fiscal federalism with asymmetry in revenue and expenditure assignments inevitably lead...

by Janet G. Stotsky | On 14 Jan 2019

Industrialization of Developing Countries in a Multicountry, Multisector Capital Accumulation Model

This paper shows that industrialization of developing countries, defined as start of production of investment goods, happens when their share in global production exceeds the global demand for consump...

by Tadateru Hayashi | On 02 Jan 2019

Services Policies and Manufacturing Exports

This paper uses a structural gravity model to show the effects of services policies on manufacturing exports. Whereas the previous literature has focused on indirect effects of policies—flowing throug...

by Ben Shepherd | On 28 Dec 2018

Competition in Two Sided Markets with Congestion

This paper analyses competition in a two sided market with congestion. The existing literature’s pricing mechanisms of two-sided markets has concluded that pricing mechanism depends on the following t...

by Swapnil Sharma | On 27 Dec 2018

The Impact of Trade Conflict on Developing Asia

This paper analyzes the effects of the current trade conflict on developing Asia using the Asian Development Bank’s Multiregional Input–Output Table (MRIOT), allowing us to calculate the impact on ind...

by Abdul Abiad | On 21 Dec 2018

Role of Bank Lending in Financing Green Projects: A Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium Approach

This paper develops an environmental dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (E-DSGE) model with heterogeneous production sectors. In particular, the model comprises some low-carbon emission firms that...

by Maria Teresa Punzi | On 19 Oct 2018

Duration of Export Relationships of Philippine MSMEs

The study examines the survivability of Philippines MSMEs' exports to select countries. The analysis is based on the survival analysis model of Besedeš and Prusa (2006a; 2006b) and Besedeš and Prusa (...

by Mark Edison Bautista | On 20 Sep 2018

Risk Management in Maldives: Sharing Practical Experience and Lessons Learned

Risk management is a systematic approach to determine which goods and passengers need to be examined in detail when entering a country. It involves (i) collecting, storing, and analyzing data to und...

by Asian Development Bank | On 19 Sep 2018

Is Employment Globalizing?

The paper investigates the claim that national labor markets have become more globally interconnected in recent decades. It is done so by deriving estimates over time of three different notions of int...

by Liming Chen | On 10 Sep 2018

Strengthening India’s External Intelligence Infrastructure: An Assessment .

This paper outlines a number of points, which would help to develop a more superior external intelligence infrastructure. In absence of a national security strategy (NSS), the task of intelligence age...

by Shantanu K. Bansal | On 04 Sep 2018

Impure Impact Giving: Theory and Evidence

The paper presents a new model of charitable giving where individuals regard out-of-pocket donations and the matches they induce as different. The paper shows that match-price elasticities combine con...

by Daniel M. Hungerman | On 01 Sep 2018

Investing in Health Security for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific: Managing Health Threats Through Regional and Intersectoral Cooperation

Asia is a hot spot for emerging and reemerging infectious diseases, including those with pandemic potential. At the same time, the region is grappling with growing antimicrobial resistance and the hea...

by Megan Counahan | On 24 Aug 2018

Financing Solar Photovoltaic Transition: From Utility to Residential Market Adoption in Emerging Economies

This paper examines the advantages and disadvantages of different financial schemes for introducing PV facilities in terms of the suitability of funding vehicles and investment mechanisms. Given the p...

by Ranaporn Tantiwechwuttikul | On 13 Aug 2018

Determinants of Public–Private Partnerships in Infrastructure in Asia: Implications for Capital Market Development

This study attempts to understand the role of greater access to finance, i.e., stocks, bonds, and bank loans, in public–private partnership (PPP) investment in developing countries. Most developing co...

by Suk Hyun | On 10 Aug 2018

Review of High-Value Agriculture in the Philippines with Comprehensive Subsectoral Focus: Livestock Industries

The main objective of this paper is to review the status and performance of the Philippine livestock sector. This review provides discourse on the livestock subsector’s performance over the years, and...

by Sonny N. Domingo | On 05 Jul 2018

Welfare Issues in Price Control on Occasions of Calamities, Emergencies, and Like Occurrences

This study focuses on the implications of RA7581 during disaster events, and answer issues on the effects of price control on consumer protection and local economic recovery as well as provides discou...

by Sonny N. Domingo | On 05 Jul 2018

Assessment of the BUB Program: Improving Access of Local Communities to Basic Services and Strengthening Social Capital

The Aquino administration through the Human Development and Poverty Reduction Cluster (HDPRC) and Good Governance and Anti-Corruption Cluster (GGACC) launched the Bottom-up Budgeting (BUB) exercise in...

by Rosario G. Manasan | On 05 Jul 2018

The Structure of Origin-Based Social Network and Its Influence on Migration Diffusion: The Case of a Migrant-Sending Village in the Philippines

This study seeks to examine the structure of migration networks in a migrant-sending in the Philippines and to relate this to the diffusion of migration behavior in the village over time. Such socio-h...

by Aubrey D. Tabuga | On 29 Jun 2018

Results of the Assessment of the Motor Vehicle User’s Charge Utilization in the Philippines

This paper finds that transparency and efficiency in collection should be improved through automation and accurate recording. Project identification and investment programming must also adhere to the...

by Sheilah G. Napalang | On 29 Jun 2018

Measuring Transboundary Water Cooperation: Learning from the Past to Inform the Sustainable Development Goals

This paper mines relevant past work to generate guidance for monitoring the proposed SDG target related to transboundary water cooperation. Potential measures of water cooperation were identified, fil...

by Davison Saruchera | On 27 Jun 2018

Assessing Public Expenditure Efficiency at Indian States

This paper attempts to understand what drives the public expenditure efficiency among the States. For this, it looks at the role of economic growth as well as quality of governance. The results of inp...

by Ranjan Kumar Mohanty | On 20 Jun 2018

Stock Market Trading in the Aftermath of an Accounting Scandal

This paper studies the impact of fraud revelation on trading behaviour of investors. It ask, if investors with direct exposure to stock market fraud (treated investors) are more likely to cash out of...

by Renuka Sane | On 20 Jun 2018

The Rise of Government-Funded Health Insurance in India

India has experienced a remarkable proliferation of 48 Government Funded Health Insurance Schemes (GFHIS) from 1997 to 2018. The paper places the rise of this policy pathway in historical perspective....

by Ila Patnaik | On 15 Jun 2018

The Impact of Monetary and Tax Policy on Income Inequality in Japan

This paper assesses the effects of the most recent monetary policy behavior of the Bank of Japan (BOJ) (in particular, zero interest rate policy and negative interest rate policy) and Japanese tax pol...

by Farhad Taghizadeh-Hesary | On 09 Jun 2018

Estimating Elasticity of Transport Fuel Demand in Pakistan

This study investigates the fuel demand elasticities separately for petrol, diesel, and CNG using data from July 2004 to June 2015 for Pakistan. The results show that fuel demands are generally (own...

by Muhammad Omer | On 06 Jun 2018

Determinants of Dividends among Indian Firms—An Empirical Study

The study aims to understand the determinants of dividend trends of Indian firms. The study was based on a sample of 31,234 firms representing 15 different industry sectors. Construction materials...

by | On 31 May 2018

R&D Spillovers and R&D Intensity: A Study of Electronic Goods Sector in India

This paper attempts to analyze the determinants of inter - firm differences in R&D intensity at the five digit level of industries belonging to the Electronics Goods Sector in In dia. Empirica...

by Narayanan K | On 14 May 2018

Goods and Services Tax (GST)

India introduced the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 1 July 2017 after a decade of preparation. Ideally, GST should reduce tax driving the market by enabling businesses to invest, reflecting...

by Parthasarathi Shome | On 07 May 2018

The Role of Plant-Breeding R&D in Tractor Adoption among Smallholders in Asia: Insights from Nepal Terai

Combining agricultural census data from Nepal from 2001 and 2011 with various spatial agroclimatic data, we show that increase in yield potentials due to the introduction of high-yield technologies ...

by Hiroyuki Takeshima | On 27 Apr 2018

Revisiting Rates of Return to Agricultural R&D Investment

This study proposes the use of partial least squares to determine the key parameters of the perpetual inventory method model of capital stock as a new approach to calculate research and development (R...

by Alejandro Nin Pratt | On 13 Apr 2018

Social Interactions and Stigmatized Behavior: “Donating” Blood Plasma in Rural China

Despite the resultant disutility, some people, in particular, the poor, are engaged in behaviors that carry social stigma. Empirical studies on stigmatized behavior are rare, largely due to the form...

by Xi Chen | On 12 Apr 2018

Operating Performance of Initial Public Offering Firms after Issue in India – A Revisit

The paper examines how the operating performance of the Indian firms changed after their initial public offerings. It is found that the operating performance does not deteriorate post IPOs, if a per...

by Avdhesh Kumar Shukla | On 09 Apr 2018

MGNREGS: POLITICAL ECONOMY, LOCAL GOVERNANCE AND ASSET CREATION IN SOUTH INDIA

MGNREGS, the premier centrally-sponsored national rural livelihood scheme, is one of the most elaborately designed and implemented public workfare programmes in India. While a large number of studi...

by Vinoj Abraham | On 05 Apr 2018

Informality, Governance and Growth

This paper develops a growth framework of a typical developing and democratic setting with formal and informal sectors, which faces trade-off of redistribution through either direct subsidy or strat...

by Dibyendu Maiti | On 05 Apr 2018

Field Visit on Springs and Springshed Management for Reviving Drying Springs

There is increasing evidence of drying springs, decreasing spring discharge, and deteriorating spring water quality in many parts of the HKH.

by International Centre Mountain Development | On 04 Apr 2018

A Comparison of Global Governance Across Sectors: Global Health, Trade and Multilateral Development Finance

To what extent do the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and the World Bank remain central today and how much influence do they still wield in shaping the global agenda? While...

by | On 30 Mar 2018

Money, Income, Prices, and Causality in Pakistan: A Trivariate Analysis

The report says that there has been a long debate in economics regarding the role of money in an economy particularly in the determination of income and prices.

by Fazal Hussain | On 27 Mar 2018

Policy Brief on Foreign Direct Investments (FDI)

In addition good and effective governance is also reflected in the quality of physical infrastructure like roads, electricity availability, ports and transport.

by Forum for Knowledge Sharing | On 27 Mar 2018

Tribute: Death of a Physicist: Stephen Hawking 1942 - 2018

Stephen William Hawking, physicist, born January 8, 1942, died on March 14, 2018, aged 76. By the time he was 21 he was diagnosed to be suffering from an unspecified incurable disease, later identif...

by S Srinivasan | On 19 Mar 2018

India: the next superpower ?: The Untold Story of India's Economy

As India looks towards further liberalisation, it must fi rst prepare its economic institutions by re-orienting them from managing the economy to regulating the economy. Without an enhancement of re...

by | On 16 Mar 2018

Managing Financial Globalization: Insights from the Recent Literature

This paper seeks to draw lessons for developing countries based on a survey of the recent literature on financial globalization. First, while capital account openness holds promises (by potentially lo...

by Shang-Jin Wei | On 10 Mar 2018

Population Pressure on Land in Kerala

The paper examines how Kerala, a demographically and socially well advanced state in India, responded to the high population pressure during the 30 year period from 1975-76 to 2005-06.

by N. Ajith Kumar | On 07 Mar 2018

SAARC Food Bank (SFB) Institutional Architecture and Issues of Operationalisation

In view of the need for an appropriate institutional architecture to address the food security concerns in South Asia, issues of proper operationalisation of the SAARC Food Bank (SFB) have assumed cr...

by | On 06 Mar 2018

Sticky Expectations and Consumption Dynamics

Macroeconomic models often invoke consumption “habits” to explain the substantial persistence of aggregate consumption growth. But a large literature has found no evidence of habits in microeconomic d...

by Christopher D. Carroll | On 05 Mar 2018

Trade with Correlation

The paper develops a trade model in which productivity—the result of a country’s ability to adopt global technologies—presents an arbitrary pattern of spatial correlation. The model generates the full...

by Nelson Lind | On 05 Mar 2018

Social Rewards and the Design of Voluntary Incentive Mechanism for Biodiversity Protection on Farmland

The paper examines how endogenous social preferences could affect economic incentive design to encourage biodiversity protection on private land. A 'green' farmer may enjoy esteem from leading by exam...

by Rupayan Pal | On 22 Feb 2018

The Growth Slowdown and the Working of Inflation Targeting in India

The paper presents a variety of indicators to show that demand constrained output during the period of growth slowdown 2011-17. It also draws on research to show the macroeconomic structure of the eco...

by Ashima Goyal | On 22 Feb 2018

India and the Artificial Intelligence Revolution

Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have stimulated fervent interest from both the private sector and governments across the globe, as the possibility of mass-produced consumer product m...

by | On 21 Feb 2018

What Evidence Exists for Initiatives to Reduce Risk and Incidence of Sexual Violence in Armed Conflict and Other Humanitarian Crises? A Systematic Review

This systematic paper aimed to canvas the extent and impact of initiatives to reduce incidence, risk and harm from sexual violence in conflict, post-conflict and other humanitarian crises, in low and...

by Jo Spangaro | On 20 Feb 2018

Performance and Challenges of the UN Human Rights Council : An NGOs’ View

The current dynamic within the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) has driven the Council in certain cases to function more closely in accordance with normative standards, as well as with the reality on t...

by | On 12 Feb 2018

Governance Dilemmas of Sustainable Cities

This paper aims to scrutinize the dilemmas involved in governing sustainable cities, and it offers a suggestion for how the challenge might be addressed.

by Joakim Öjendal | On 08 Feb 2018

Proceedings of the Workshop: State of the Art of Local Governance - Challenges for the Next Decade

The discussions in the workshop ranged from scrutinizing overall models of governance via technical and administrative applications to philosophical debates about the core values of democracy

by Bent Jörgensen | On 07 Feb 2018

Decentralizing for Development: The Developmental Potential of Local Autonomy and the Limits of Politics Driven Decentralization Reforms

This paper points at the missing link between decentralization and local development in so many countries whose decentralization reforms are driven by political rather than developmental goals.

by Leena Avonius | On 07 Feb 2018

BMC Budget 2018: Budget Estimates E

The estimates of income, receipts and expenditure for the financial year 2018-19 with respect to the budget “E” (Primary Education) Fund Code – 30, as required under the provisions of section 126C...

by Ajoy Mehta | On 05 Feb 2018

Kerala Budget 2018-19

Budget speech of Finance Minister of Kerala.

by T.M. Thomas Issac | On 05 Feb 2018

Financing Small and Medium Towns: An Action Research Study from Bemetara Town in India

This research project studied the emerging challenges of small and medium towns in India to improve their finances and provide good services to their inhabitants.

by Yogesh Kumar | On 02 Feb 2018

Union Budget 2018: Budget Speech

Speech of Arun Jaitley, Minister of Finance on February 1, 2018

by Arun Jaitley | On 01 Feb 2018

Economic Survey 2017: Volume II: Chapter 6: External Sector

India’s external sector continued to be resilient and strong in 2017-18 so far, with the Balance of Payments situation continuing to be comfortable with the Current Account Deficit at 1.8 percent of ...

by Arun Jaitley | On 31 Jan 2018

Economic Survey 2017: Volume II: Chapter 3: Monetary Management and Financial Intermediation

During 2017-18 (till January), monetary policy remained steady with only one policy rate cut in August. As the Y-o-Y effect of demonetisation wore off, the growth rate of both Currency in Circulatio...

by Arun Jaitley | On 31 Jan 2018

Economic Survey 2017: Volume I: Chapter 9: Ease of Doing Business’ Next Frontier: Timely Justice

The government’s efforts to make business and commerce easy have been widely acknowledged. The next frontier on the ease of doing business is addressing pendency, delays and backlogs in the appellat...

by Arun Jaitley | On 31 Jan 2018

Economic Survey 2017: Volume I, Chapter 5: Is there a “Late Converger Stall” in Economic Development? Can India Escape it?

The first order fact about the developing world today is that this is an era of unprecedented prosperity. And that is true about India too which has been one of the most dynamic economic performers...

by Arun Jaitley | On 31 Jan 2018

Social Infrastructure: Way Forward

The tenth chapter of Economic Survey 2018 has sown that investments in social infrastructure and human development has paid off well. The policies and schemes have also been mentioned in detail. The g...

by Lakshmi Priya | On 31 Jan 2018

Trade in Intermediate Goods: Implications for Productivity and Welfare in Korea

The paper find technical changes and the degree of inefficiency are related with the magnitude of multipliers, but we leave a fundamental identification problem to future research.

by Kim Gui | On 30 Jan 2018

A New, Exciting Bird’s-Eye View of the Indian Economy Through the GST

Data on the international exports of states (the first in India’s history) suggests a strong correlation between export performance and states’ standard of living. India’s exports are unusual in tha...

by Arun Jaitley | On 30 Jan 2018

Determinants and Consequences of Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from the Revision of the Company Act in India

The paper also indicate that the revision is effective to increase the eligible firms' profits by 3.5 percent, compared to the ineligible firms.

by Lee Woong | On 30 Jan 2018

Two Decades of OPCW

This issue brief takes a broad overview of the journey of CWC and OPCW during the last two decades.

by Ajey Lele | On 17 Jan 2018

Impact Assessment Study of Digital Saksharta Abhiyan

An "Impact Assessment Study of the Digital Saksharta Abhiyan under National Digital Literacy Mission” was initiated in November 2016 by Centre for Innovations in Public Systems (CIPS), Hyderabad, Te...

by Centre for Innovations in Public System | On 16 Jan 2018

Selection, Firm Turnover, and Productivity Growth: Do Emerging Cities Speed up the Process?

This paper identifies and estimates the impact of firm entry and exit on plant-level productivity in Ethiopia as part of a selection mechanism that might be driving aggregate productivity growth in ci...

by Patricia Jones | On 16 Jan 2018

Can We Measure the Power of the Grabbing Hand?: A Comparative Analysis of Different Indicators of Corruption

This paper critically reviews the strengths and weaknesses of various objective and subjective indicators of corruption.

by Alexander Hamilton | On 15 Jan 2018

Exploring the Relationship Between Geographical Indications and Traditional Knowledge

The case studies undertaken mainly from India revealed that a large number of local and village communities and also from backward communities are involved in the production of the GIs products.

by N. Gopalakrishnan | On 28 Dec 2017

Cities and Entrepreneurs over Time: Like a Horse and Carriage?

This paper explores the co-evolution of entrepreneurship and cities. First, it provides a stylized model of development wherein the rise of cities (urbanisation) is the outcome of the activities of en...

by Wim Naudé | On 15 Dec 2017

Ethnic fragmentation and School Provision in India

In this paper, we study the impact of ethnic fragmentation on the provision of private and public schools, separately. The distinction is made because the two types of schools have different objective...

by Bharti Nandwani | On 13 Dec 2017

Getting the Right Teachers into the Right Schools: Managing India’s Teacher Workforce

This study comes at a pertinent moment in the history of education in India, when there is a lot of pressure to improve the quality of schools and ensure that children learn. The Right to Education (R...

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 08 Dec 2017

Informal Economy Budget Analysis in Philippines and Quezon City

The study says that the poverty reduction targets in the Philippines were incorporated for the first time in the 1987–1992 Development Plan and, after that, anti-poverty became the centerpiece program...

by Francie Lund | On 07 Dec 2017

Globalisation, Democratic Decentralisation and Social Secutiy in India

This paper examines the role of democratic decentralisation in promoting inclusive governance (responsive, efficient equitable) and social security in the context of globalisation. Firstly, the paper...

by | On 07 Dec 2017

Scheduled Castes, Legitimacy and Local Governance: Continuing Social Exclusion in Panchayats

People of the Scheduled Castes have a long history of being discriminated against, exploited, and placed at the bottom of caste society. The panchayati raj, after the enactment of the 73rd Constitutio...

by | On 07 Dec 2017

Monetary Policy and Credit Demand in India and Some EMEs

Impact of changes in policy rate of interest on demand for bank credit is examined for seven emerging market economies including India for the period 2002 to 2010. Panel data techniques are used after...

by | On 01 Dec 2017

Adverse Welfare Shocks and Pro-Environmental Behaviour: Evidence from the Global Economic Crisis

This paper examines the effects of the 2008–09 global economic crisis on people’s pro-environmental behaviour and willingness to pay for climate change mitigation. The paper hypothesise that the crisi...

by Artjoms Ivlevs | On 28 Nov 2017

Inequality, Good Governance and Endemic Corruption

Can a society suffering contests between rich and poor achieve good governance in the face of endemic corruption? The paper examines a stylized poor state with weak institutions in which a “culture of...

by Gil S. Epstein | On 21 Nov 2017

Electronic filing System, Bureaucratic Efficiency and Public Service Delivery: Evidence from Bangladesh

A look into the effect of an e-Governance initiative in Bangladesh is on efficiency in the public sector. The electronic Filing (e-Filing) system was introduced to all the Deputy Commissioners' (DC)...

by Wahid Abdallah | On 15 Nov 2017

Price Discovery in some Primary Commodity Markets in India

With the onset of wide-ranging economic reforms in India in 1991, agents have been exposed to increased price risk in commodity markets. Futures markets are one important instrument for reducing price...

by Raushan Kumar | On 07 Nov 2017

From reference levels to results reporting: REDD+ under the UNFCCC

This report will also summarize experiences with the technical assessment process as of early 2017 and offer an overview of initial REDD+ results reporting and technical analyses of those reports.

by Food and Agricultural Organization [FAO] | On 31 Oct 2017

Daily Stock Market Movements: From the Lens of News and Events

This study analyzes the effect of daily movements in KSE-100 Index due to different policies announced as well as incidents/events happened in the country.

by Shahid Raza | On 31 Oct 2017

Governance Interventions in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Countries

The paper reviews an emerging body of literature on the design and evaluation of current or recent governance interventions in countries with ongoing violent conflict, recovering from conflict or at s...

by Patricia Justino | On 31 Oct 2017

Data Ecosystems for Sustainable Development: The Africa Data Revolution Report 2016

This report aims to serve as the foundation upon which the nations can create data eco-systems to serve developmental aims.

by Aritra Chakrabarty | On 26 Oct 2017

Internet Governance and Developing Countries: Implications for India

The internet has created a one world of information and commerce. According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) nearly 40 per cent of the world population is currently using the Interne...

by Research and Information System for Developing Countries | On 05 Oct 2017

Universalizing Elementary Education in India

Despite the promise in the Constitution of India (1950) to establish universal elementary education within a decade, for many years this goal received neither the attention of politicians nor the reso...

by United Nations (UN) | On 03 Oct 2017

Federalism: Prospects for the Philippines

The paper aims to consider potential benefits of federalism to the Philippines within the context of two major development constraints, namely, weak economic growth and poverty.

by Romulo Miral Jr | On 03 Oct 2017

The Political Historiography of Modern Gujarat

The focus of this paper is on the political history of modern Gujarat, which has been an intriguing one. The paper identifies and discusses in the broad landscape of Gujarat’s politics three notable d...

by Tannen Neil Lincoln | On 14 Sep 2017

State Intervention: A Gift or Threat to India’s Sugarcane Sector?

This paper examines the nature, changes and factors responsible for issues and problems faced by the sugarcane growers and sugar mills in India. This paper is based on the latest available secondary d...

by Abnave Vikas B. | On 12 Sep 2017

Strengthening India’s External Intelligence Infrastructure: An Assessment

This paper attempts to outline a number of points, which would help to develop a more superior external intelligence infrastructure.

by Shantanu Bansal | On 28 Aug 2017

Indian Labour Market and Position of Women: Gender Pay Gap in the Indian Formal Sector.

This paper quantifies the magnitude of gender-based disparities that women face in the organized sector of the Indian Labour Market.

by Biju Varkkey | On 21 Aug 2017

Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in South Asia

The report, Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in South Asia- Evidence for Interventions in the Health Sector, Women’s Collectives and Local Governance Mechanisms, is based on a systemic review of l...

by Rohini Prabha Pande | On 18 Aug 2017

Public Procurement in India: Assessment of Institutional Mechanism, Challenges, and Reforms

The present study assesses the public procurement system and recent reform initiatives in India and outlines the need for changes in the institutional frameworks.

by Bhabesh Hazarika | On 09 Aug 2017

A Political Economy Analysis of the Southeast Asian Haze and Some Solutions

This paper studies the political economy of the Southeast Asian haze and discusses the obstacles that, unless overcome, could prevent a permanent and effective solution to this transboundary pollution...

by Parkash Chander | On 08 Aug 2017

An Approach to Forest and Conservation Policy in Southeast Asia

Forest and conservation policy in Southeast Asia is now at yet another crossroads. Despite decades of efforts, the challenges ahead remain formidable. These challenges include: (i) continued deforesta...

by Gary Bull | On 08 Aug 2017

Report of the Working Group on Resolution Regime for Financial Institutions

The report narrates the recent global financial crisis demonstrated the shortcomings of the frameworks to handle the failure of large and systemically important financial institutions, also known as “...

by Reserve Bank of India RBI | On 08 Aug 2017

Making Women Count for Peace: Gender, Empowerment and Conflict in South Asia

With a focus on Northeast Indian experiences and a comparative look at Nepal, this project addresses the role of women in local governance and politics, particularly within the context of peace and se...

by Calcutta Group | On 04 Aug 2017

Comments of the Reserve Bank of India on A New Capital Adequacy Framework

The report narrates that the Accord provided a framework for a fair and reasonable degree of consistency in the application of capital standards in different countries, on a shared definition of capit...

by Reserve Bank of India RBI | On 03 Aug 2017

Balance of Payments Manual for India

The report says that the BoP, thus, includes all transactions showing: (a) transactions in goods, services and income between an economy and the rest of the world, (b) changes of ownership and other c...

by Reserve Bank of India RBI | On 03 Aug 2017

Can Bihar Break the Clientelist Trap? The Political Effects of Programmatic Development Policy

It is widely recognized that politics affects policy-making, but there is little knowledge about how politics can be made more conducive to effective governance. This study reverses the relationship...

by Jonathan Phillips | On 02 Aug 2017

Parents’ Perceptions of the Singapore Primary School System

In 2016, the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) conducted a Survey on Parental Perceptions of Education with 1,500 citizen and PR parents to obtain a quantitative picture of sentiments towards Singapor...

by Mathew Mathews | On 01 Aug 2017

The Economic Impacts of the Clean Power Plan: How Studies of the Same Regulation can Produce such Different Results

The main objective of the paper is to of add clarity to the debate over the economic effects of regulations like the CPP. It is shown that studies of the same regulation using similar methodologies c...

by Noah Kaufman | On 28 Jul 2017

Developing a Biomedical R&D and Innovation Landscape for India: A Scoping Study

WHO SEARO has sought to fulfill its vision of building a national level biomedical R&D and innovation observatory. In this report we have focused on the feasibility of establishing a national observat...

by | On 27 Jul 2017

Localising the gender equality goal through urban planning tools in South Asia

This paper also highlights the need for a coordinated approach to SDG implementation by demonstrating the case of gender equality and urban planning.

by Shrimoyee Bhattacharya | On 26 Jul 2017

Stock Market Participation in the Aftermath of an Accounting Scandal

This paper studies the impact on investor behaviour of fraud revelation. The paper ask if investors with direct exposure to stock market fraud (treated investors) are more likely to decrease their par...

by Renuka Sane | On 22 Jul 2017

Making Money Work: Financing a Sustainable Future in Asia and the Pacific

This report explores some of the ways forward. It highlights not just the need to inject more money into investments that contribute to sustainable development, but also to attract funds toward them—t...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 21 Jul 2017

Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2015 Supplement: Growth Prospects Soften for Developing Asia

The growth forecast for developing countries in Asia in 2015 is cut to 6.1% from 6.3%, amidst slower-than-expected economic activity in the United States and the People’s Republic of China.

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 21 Jul 2017

Renewable Energy Developments and Potential in the Greater Mekong Subregion

Renewable energy is a challenge, but also an opportunity for new industries, employment, and new ways to reduce dependency on fuel imports, provide electricity to poor remote areas, reduce air polluti...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 18 Jul 2017

Harmonization and Standardization of Bond Market Infrastructures in ASEAN+3: ASEAN+3 Bond Market Forum Sub-Forum 2 Phase 3 Report

This report is an outcome of Phase 3 discussions under the ASEAN+3 Bond Market Forum Sub-Forum 2, which have focused on making bond market infrastructures in the region more inter-operable through the...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 11 Jul 2017

Financial Soundness Indicators for Financial Sector Stability in Viet Nam

The results of this study can be used to strengthen the institutional and statistical capacities of Viet Nam to routinely collect, compile, analyze, and disseminate internationally comparable FSIs tha...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 07 Jul 2017

Fossil Fuel Subsidies in Indonesia: Trends, Impacts, and Reforms

This study measures the size of fossil fuel subsidies such as underpricing of petroleum products and electricity, tax exemptions, and subsidized credit; examines the potential economic, energy, and en...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 04 Jul 2017

Fossil Fuel Subsidies in Thailand: Trends, Impacts, and Reforms

This study measures the size of fossil fuel subsidies such as tax breaks for diesel and natural gas, market price support for natural gas for vehicles, and free electricity for low-income consumers as...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 04 Jul 2017

GST in India: A Key Tax Reform

GST is one of the most crucial tax reforms in India which has been long pending. It was supposed to be implemented from April 2010, but due to political issues and conflicting interests of various s...

by Monika Sehrawat | On 03 Jul 2017

Travel Demand Management Options in Beijing

This study is part of the Asian Development Bank’s initiative to support greener and more sustainable transport systems that are convenient and lessen carbon dioxide emissions. Read how congestion cha...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 03 Jul 2017

Roadmap for Carbon Capture and Storage Demonstration and Deployment in the People’s Republic of China

This report is an assessment of the potential, the barriers and the challenges in demonstrating and deploying Carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the People's Republic of China. It identifies unique l...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 26 Jun 2017

Addressing Climate Change Risks, Disasters, and Adaptation in the People’s Republic of China

This study informs decision makers regarding major climate change risks to development and provides feasible policy recommendations for consideration to increase resilience and reduce vulnerability in...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 22 Jun 2017

Innovative Strategies in Higher Education for Accelerated Human Resource Development in South Asia: Nepal

The report herein provide in-depth analysis of the state of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and higher education in Nepal.

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 19 Jun 2017

Southeast Asia and the Economics of Global Climate Stabilization - Report

The paper suggests that the impacts of climate change in Southeast Asia may be larger than previously estimated, possibly reaching 11% of gross domestic product by 2100.

by David Raitzer | On 19 Jun 2017

Wok Bung Wantaim: Using Subnational Government Partnerships to Improve Infrastructure Implementation in Papua New Guinea

This report examines how existing implementation structures established under ADB and National Government investment programs could be used to channel subnational government resources toward priority...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 15 Jun 2017

Emissions Trading Schemes and Their Linking: Challenges and Opportunities in Asia and the Pacific

The report as that there are currently 17 emissions trading systems (ETS) in place in four continents and account for nearly 40% of global gross domestic product. In Asia and the Pacific region, there...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 12 Jun 2017

From Toilets to Rivers: Experiences, New Opportunities, and Innovative Solutions: Volume 2

The project briefs are culled from case studies of good practices, new approaches, and working models on sanitation and wastewater management from different countries, and demonstrate solution options...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 05 Jun 2017

Asian Development Outlook 2016 Supplement: Asia's Growth Prospects Undimmed by Brexit Vote

Growth in Central Asia is weaker than predicted, while expansion in the Pacific is now expected to be a touch higher. Forecasts are unchanged for East, South, and Southeast Asia. While the Brexit vote...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 02 Jun 2017

Vital Stats Overview of Road Accidents in India

The report narrates that in 2015, there were about five lakh road accidents in India, which killed about 1.5 lakh people and injured about five lakh people. India, as a signatory to the Brasilia decla...

by Prachee Mishra | On 30 May 2017

Asia Bond Monitor - September 2016

The report notes that yields for 2-year and 10-year local currency government bonds in emerging East Asia were mostly lower between 1 June and 15 August and stock markets in the region recorded gains...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 23 May 2017

Risk Financing for Rural Climate Resilience in the Greater Mekong Subregion

This report presents the findings of a climate risk financing study conducted by the GMS Core Environment Program in 28 rural communities in Cambodia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, and Viet Na...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 22 May 2017

Uncovering Heterogeneity in the Relationship between Competition, Corporate Governance and Firm Performance using Quantile Regression on Indian Data

This paper investigates the relation between product market competition, corporate governance and firm performance in Indian manufacturing industries covering the period 2005-2015. Evidence suggests t...

by Indrani Chakraborty | On 19 May 2017

Analysis of Simultaneous Elections : The "What", "Why" and "How"

This paper narrates that elections impact everyone in the entire country – citizens, businesses, administrative machinery, constitutional institutions, political parties, leaders and so on. Eventual i...

by Bibek Debroy | On 18 May 2017

Monitoring Universal Health Coverage in the Western Pacific: Framework, Indicators, and Dashboard

The report narrates that the SDGs are integrated and indivisible with a clear focus on equity, including equity focused monitoring and evaluation (M&E), to ensure not only that the targets are being m...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 15 May 2017

Toward a National Eco-Compensation Regulation in the People’s Republic of China

The study recognized the need for consideration of numerous issues when developing ecocompensation regulations. These include (i) provision of guidance for determining the ecocompensation rate; (ii) e...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 11 May 2017

Meeting Asia's Infrastructure Needs

This report updates by presenting infrastructure investment needs for all 45 DMCs from 2016 to 2030, the final year of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Two sets of estimates are pre...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 05 May 2017

The Emerging Indonesian Data Center Market And Energy Efficiency Opportunities

This study contributes to a growing body of research demonstrating that adoption of internationally available and well-proven energy efficiency measures can improve the effectiveness, sustainability...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 04 May 2017

The Comply-or-Explain Approach for Enforcing Governance Norms Subrata Sarkar

In recent years the comply-or-explain approach for enforcing corporate governance norms has gained ground in regulatory parlance. The comply-or-explain approach has the advantage of tailoring govern...

by Subrata Sarkar | On 04 May 2017

Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) Modelling :Theory And Practice

In recent years DSGE (dynamic stochastic general equilibrium) models have come to play an increasing role in central banks, as an aid in the formulation of monetary policy (and increasingly after th...

by DILIP NACHANE | On 04 May 2017

Compliance in Letter and Compliance in Spirit? - Evidence from Board and Audit Committee Meetings in India

This paper analyzes two notions of compliance, 'compliance in letter' and 'compliance in spirit', using data on Board and Audit Committee meetings from India under its Clause 49 corporate governance ...

by Subrata Sarkar | On 03 May 2017

Space India 2.0 Commerce, Policy, Security and Governance Perspectives

This book addresses many of these prevalent policy issues and suggests measures to address them from the varied perspectives of space commerce, space policy, space security, global governance, and in...

by | On 14 Apr 2017

Goods and Services Tax in India: An Opportunities and Challenges

Value added tax was first introduced by Maurice Laure, a French economist, in 1954. The tax was designed such that the burden is borne by the final consumer. Since VAT can be applied on goods as well...

by | On 13 Apr 2017

Haryana Budget : 2017-18

Haryana Budget presented by Hon'ble Minister Capt. Abhimanyu.

by Haryana Government | On 07 Mar 2017

Promotion Incentives in the Public Sector: Evidence from Chinese Schools

We provide evidence that promotion incentives influence the effort of public employees by studying China’s system of promotions for teachers. Predictions from a tournament model of promotion are teste...

by | On 06 Mar 2017

Kerala Budget 2017-18

Kerala budget presented by Hon.Finance Minister Thomas Issac.

by T.M. Thomas Issac | On 06 Mar 2017

Poverty Targeting Through Public Goods

In national accounts, government expenditures are used to measure the value of public spending. These expenditures grossly overestimate the value of services received by Indian households because th...

by Anders Kjelsrud | On 01 Mar 2017

Anger Management: Aggression and Punishment in the Provision of Public Goods

The ability to punish free-riders can increase the provision of public goods. However, sometimes the benefit of increased public good provision is outweighed by the costs of punishments. One reason a...

by | On 21 Feb 2017

Development Planning and 'Urban' Context: Reflections on the Indian Scene

Through a broad portrayal of character of its development, changing urban patterns, nature of urban economic structure and contents of urban development policies, this paper takes a political econom...

by Biswaroop Das | On 17 Feb 2017

Union Budget: A Window of Opportunity for Our Children?

In the context of social sector and particularly for children, the Union Budgets have disappointed the marginalized community and the Union Budget 2017-18 further pushed its children to the peripher...

by HAQ Centre for Child Rights HAQCRC | On 06 Feb 2017

‘GOING DARK’ in India: The Legal and Security Dimensions of Encryption

Encrypting communications enhances privacy and the security of information services. This, in turn, incentivises innovation in the ICT sector and contributes significantly to the growth of the interne...

by | On 02 Feb 2017

Debating the World in the Asian Century

As Asia finds itself in the limelight, whether in terms of major power relations, rising insecurity and potential for conflict, or economic governance, it is worth asking, even before broaching the re...

by | On 02 Feb 2017

Bangalore’s Tragedy – A Dead City with Unabated, Unplanned and Untenable Urbanization

Bangalore has been experiencing unprecedented rapid urbanization and sprawl in recent times due to adoption of concentrated developmental path with impetus on industrialization for the economic develo...

by | On 31 Jan 2017

Safety of Women in Public Spaces in Delhi: Governance and Budgetary Challenges

The study attempts to highlight some of the major hurdles in Delhi’s governance and fiscal policy in ensuring the safety of women in public spaces. Though violence against women is widespread and oc...

by Kanika Kaul | On 27 Jan 2017

The Influence of Gender Budgeting in Indian States on Gender Inequality and Fiscal Spending

This study investigates the effect of gender budgeting in India on gender inequality and fiscal spending. Gender budgeting is an approach to budgeting in which governments use fiscal policies and ad...

by Janet G Stotsky | On 23 Jan 2017

Dealing with GST in the Union Budget 2017

Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a harmonized tax regime and it can curb black money through practicing clean "invoices" to redeem input credit. In the Union Budget 2017, central government may announc...

by Lekha Chakraborty | On 23 Jan 2017

Escalating Pollution Threats in Urbanising Indian Cities

Rapid urbanisation with an increase in urban population from 28.3% (in 1950) to 50% (in 2010) is witnessed in megacities in India. Urbanisation is one of the demographic issues in the 21st century and...

by Bharath H. Aithal | On 16 Jan 2017

The Costs of Climate Change Impacts for India: A Preliminary Analysis

Climate change mitigation is a global challenge, however its impact will be varied across regions and temperature zones. Small island states will be hit the hardest with sea level rise. In bigger coun...

by | On 28 Dec 2016

Impact of Climate Change on Rainfed Agriculture in India: A Case Study of Dharwad

The impact of climate change is studied in many aspects in different locations in the country and it is concluded that there is high impact on agriculture compared to any other sector in the country....

by | On 28 Dec 2016

Plan vs. Performance Winter Session – November 16 to December 16, 2016

This note lists the legislative business planned by Parliament and compares it with the actual performance during Winter Session 2016.

by Kusum Malik | On 19 Dec 2016

The Changing Contours of Inter group Disparities and the Role of Preferential Policies in a Globalizing World: Evidence from India

How persistent are traditional socioeconomic hierarchies in the face of marketization, significant structural shifts in the economy, and increased political representation of lower-ranked groups, and...

by Ashwini Deshpande | On 15 Dec 2016

Challenges to the Role of Private Participation in Public Transportation: A Case of Kerala’s Private Buses

The State of Kerala in 2012 through a notification stopped issuing new permits to inter-district buses in Kerala while exempting state run Kerala State Transport Corporation. This was the beginning...

by Madhu Sivaraman | On 28 Nov 2016

Shortfall in Pulses

At a macro level the demand for pulses has declined across income groups and region types and the diet has diversified towards sourcing protein from processed foods and livestock. And yet, there is su...

by Aritra Chakrabarty | On 21 Nov 2016

Parliament Session Alert Winter Session: November 16 – December 16, 2016

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will meet for the Winter Session between November 16 and December 16, 2016. There will be a total of 22 sittings. The agenda for legislation includes ten Bills for consider...

by Kusum Malik | On 14 Nov 2016

A Stagnant Agriculture in Kerala: The Role of the State

The paper shows that disincentives generated by the successive governments in Kerala through imposing artificial barriers on the freedom of farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs resulted in the coll...

by Lekshmi R Nair | On 08 Nov 2016

The Sustainable Development Goals 2016

This inaugural report on the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a first accounting of where the world stands at the start of our collective journey to 2030. The report analyses selected in...

by | On 03 Nov 2016

Investment Pattern of Youth in India with Particular Reference to Mumbai

This study examines the savings and investment pattern of select college going students (Age: 17-25 years) in the city of Mumbai who has just begun to earn. The study also looks into the basic financi...

by | On 25 Oct 2016

Water, Megacities and Global Change

Numerous studies have explored urban growth and the emergence of the megapolitan phenomenon through increasing growth in the number of cities with over 10 million inhabitants. Similarly, the processes...

by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultura [UNESCO] | On 19 Oct 2016

On Measuring Uncertainty: Snakes and Ladders

The Global Crisis demonstrated to the world that Ratings Agencies had misled the public about the stability of financial institutions. The Finance literature had decided that it was impossible to have...

by | On 18 Oct 2016

Climate Change Impact, Adaptation and Mitigation in Agriculture: Methodology for Assessment and Application

Climatic changes and increasing climatic variability are likely to aggravate the problem of future food security by exerting pressure on agriculture. However, there are lot of uncertainties about the...

by | On 17 Oct 2016

Gender Quotas: Challenging the Boards, Performance, and the Stock Market

Comparing before and after the reform within firms, we find that quotas are associated with a higher share of female board directors, higher levels of education of board members, and a lower share of...

by | On 12 Oct 2016

MGNREGS: Political Economy, Local Governance and Asset Creation in South India

MGNREGS, the premier centrally-sponsored national rural livelihood scheme, is one of the most elaborately designed and implemented public workfare programmes in India. While a large number of studi...

by Vinoj Abraham | On 10 Oct 2016

Glimpsing the End of Economic History? Unconditional Convergence and the Missing Middle Income Trap

This paper suggests a reinterpretation of global growth—encompassing notions of unconditional convergence and the middle income trap—in the past 50 years through the lens of growth theory. Two modes o...

by Sutirtha Roy | On 10 Oct 2016

Why Musahars Vote ?

The most popular imagery that the 16th Lok Sabha election campaign projected was of good governance and development. What does this mean for communities that lie on the margins of body politics? Are...

by Shilp Shikha Singh | On 05 Oct 2016

A Study of Government Urdu Primary Schools in Bengaluru

This study provides an overview of Urdu-medium primary schools in the Bengaluru urban district of Karnataka in India. Akshara’s research examined access to government-run Urdu-medium schools and iss...

by Divya Vishawanath | On 23 Sep 2016

How do Gender Approaches improve Climate Compatible Development? Lessons from India

Although evidence shows that women are both victims of climate change and important contributors of knowledge and skills in disaster risk, adaptation and mitigation strategies, the gender perspective...

by | On 23 Sep 2016

A Vision for the Least Developed Countries Fund in a Post-Paris Climate Regime

The 48 Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are the only country grouping to have a dedicated article in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Article 4.9 commits all parties to the conv...

by | On 22 Sep 2016

Making Pulses Affordable Again: Policy Options from the Farm to Retail in India

Rising prices and declining consumption of pulses cause concern in terms of both nutrition and food inflation in India. This paper outlines policy strategies to increase the availability of pulses at...

by P.K. Joshi | On 16 Sep 2016

School Feeding and Learning Achievement: Evidence from India’s Midday Meal Program

We study the effect of the world’s largest school feeding program on children’s learning outcomes. Staggered implementation across different states of a 2001 Indian Supreme Court Directive mandating t...

by | On 30 Aug 2016

Urban Governance for Adaptation: Assessing Climate Change Resilience in Ten Asian Cities

This paper examines how to manage urban climate-related impacts by promoting planned and autonomous adaptation to improve climate change resilience. An analytical framework is developed by combining u...

by | On 29 Aug 2016

The Integration of China and India into the World Economy: A Comparison

China and India have successfully integrated into the world economy. Once specialised in textiles, they have developed new export-oriented sectors linked to the information and communication technolog...

by | On 24 Aug 2016

Combating Haze: Holding One’s Breath A Year On

Indonesia’s efforts to combat forest fires have thus far shown some signs of progress. Doubts over Indonesia’s commitment and the effectiveness of its measures however seem to remain.

by | On 19 Aug 2016

Revisiting the Tax Compliance Problem using Prospect Theory

The paper presents a model for tax compliance based on prospect theory wherein an individual makes the decision whether to file, and declare a certain amount of income, or to not file based on a set...

by R.Kavita Rao | On 17 Aug 2016

Vital Stats: Parliament during Monsoon Session 2016

The Monsoon Session of Parliament concluded on August 12, 2016. The session had 20 sittings, during which various Bills were passed, including a Constitutional Amendment Bill enabling the levy of a G...

by Kusum Malik | On 16 Aug 2016

Brain Drain Versus Brain Gain: The Study of Remittances in Southeast Asia and Promoting Knowledge Exchange Through Diasporas

The study attempts to identify the macroeconomic determinants of remittance inflows in South Asian countries. It uses additively separable utility function as theoretical framework and the Arellano-Bo...

by | On 16 Aug 2016

Feeding Climate Change: What the Paris Agreement Means for Food and Beverage Companies

This paper presents new data commissioned from the research consultancy CE Delft on the greenhouse gas emissions footprints and water scarcity footprints of major food commodities. The data demonstrat...

by Oxfam International | On 16 Aug 2016

Migration Patterns and Challenges for Indians Seeking Work Abroad: A Special Focus on South India

This research concentrates mainly on out-migration in an analysis of primary and secondary sources available with government agencies such as the Emigration Division, the Ministry of Labour (Union Gov...

by | On 12 Aug 2016

Public Expenditure, Governance and Human Development: A Case of Madhya Pradesh

This paper examines the link between quality of governance, public expenditure and human development outcomes in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The role of governance is measured in five dimensions: Pol...

by N R Bhanumurthy | On 12 Aug 2016

Implementation of Maternity Benefit Act

Women’s ties with pregnancy and child rearing and the failure of employers and policymakers to deal consistently with this issue exacerbate the difficulties women face in the economy. Women continue t...

by | On 12 Aug 2016

Gender in Medical Education: Perceptions of Medical Educators

Over the last few decades, systematic critiques of medicine and public health curricula in India have highlighted many lapses in the inclusion of social determinants of health in medical education. ...

by Priya John | On 09 Aug 2016

GST in India: Chasing a Mirage or Reality?

India is moving towards introducing a Goods and Services Tax (GST). The GST would be a multistage comprehensive value added tax (VAT) encompassing both goods and services. Given the federal structur...

by Sacchidananda Mukherjee | On 09 Aug 2016

China and Socialist Countries: Role Change and Role Continuity

This paper analyses changes in China’s relations with socialist countries. It uses Chinese academic publications to add an inside-out perspective to the interpretation of Chinese foreign policy and ou...

by | On 05 Aug 2016

Goods and Services Tax in India Taking Stock and Setting Expectations

The spread of Value Added Tax (VAT) or Goods and Services Tax (GST) system of Indirect taxes across the globe is showing an increasing trend with more than 160 countries, including 33 of the 34 member...

by | On 05 Aug 2016

GST in India: A Big Leap in the Indirect Taxation System

The replacement of the Central excise duty of the government of India by Central Value Added Tax (CENVAT) and sales tax system of the State governments by the VAT marked a major mile stone in the refo...

by | On 05 Aug 2016

First Discussion Paper on Goods and Services Tax in India

If the Value Added Tax (VAT) is considered to be a major improvement over the pre-existing Central excise duty at the national level and the sales tax system at the State level, then the Goods and Ser...

by Government of India | On 05 Aug 2016

Bringing Real Market Participants' Real Preferences into the Lab: An Experiment that Changed the Course Allocation Mechanism at Wharton

This paper reports on an experimental test of a new market design that is attractive in theory but makes the common and potentially unrealistic assumption that “agents report their type”; that is, tha...

by Eric Budish | On 27 Jul 2016

Designing the Green Climate Fund: Issues for Consideration

At the 16th session of Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the COP adopted decisions in which it decided to establish a Green Climate F...

by Prodipto Ghosh | On 26 Jul 2016

RBC Methodology and the Development of Aggregate Economic Theory

This essay reviews the development of neoclassical growth theory, a unified theory of aggregate economic phenomena that was first used to study business cycles and aggregate labor supply. The focus of...

by Edward Prescott | On 21 Jul 2016

Distributional Effects of Means Testing Social Security: Income Versus Wealth

This paper compares Social Security means tests that would reduce benefits for recipients who fall in the top quarter of the income distribution with means tests aimed at those in the top quarter of t...

by Alan Gustman | On 20 Jul 2016

Reimagining India’s Urban Future: A Framework for Securing High-Growth, Low-Carbon, Climate-Resilient Urban Development in India

This paper reviews the current state of the literature on Indian urbanization to analyze existing urban development trajectories at the state level in order to understand the challenges Indian cities...

by Meenu Tewari | On 15 Jul 2016

Understanding the BRICS Evolving Influence and Role in Global Governance and Development

The BRICS Summit process was inaugurated in 2009 as a signal that the global governance system of the future would need to be constituted to reflect a politically diverse, multipolar world. At this...

by | On 15 Jul 2016

Conflicts in the South China Sea and China ASEAN Economic Interdependence: A Challenge to Cooperation

This paper analyzes the absence of correlation between China-ASEAN economic interdependence and dispute settlement in the South China Sea, against liberals’ prediction. It argues that there are a few...

by | On 13 Jul 2016

Livelihood of Local Communities and Forest Degradation in India: Issues for REDD+

The enforcement of The Forest Conservation Act, 1980 enabled the regulation of widespread diversions of forestland for non-forest uses, and hence put a check on deforestation. The changing priorities...

by | On 12 Jul 2016

Compliance in Letter and Compliance in Spirit? : Evidence from Board and Audit Committee Meetings in India

This paper analyzes two notions of compliance, 'compliance in letter' and 'compliance in spirit', using data on Board and Audit Committee meetings from India under its Clause 49 corporate governance r...

by Subrata Sarkar | On 11 Jul 2016

State-Focused Roadmap to India’s “Vision 2030”

By 2030, India will be amongst the youngest nations in the world with nearly 150 million people in the college-going age group. By 2030, the already existing challenges for Indian higher education – a...

by | On 07 Jul 2016

Impact of Independent Directors’ Resignations on Firm’s Governance

Directors are liable for any act of omission or commission. They have a reputation to protect. While Independent directors might engage in passive monitoring; when apprised of a decision where the pro...

by Preet Singh | On 05 Jul 2016

Impact of Board and CEO characteristics on Firms’ Performance

Corporate governance characteristics like board composition and leadership impact a firm’s performance. Researchers have attempted to explain the relationship using different theoretical perspectives...

by Chitra Singla | On 05 Jul 2016

A Study on Community Engagement with Schools in Five States: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh

The study sought to gauge the extent of decentralisation and devolution of power to community-based bodies in relation to schools, and see if there is any disconnect between what is envisaged and what...

by Jyotsna Jha | On 01 Jul 2016

Is Marketing a Science: Debate Revisited

The study conducts a formal analysis of various schools of thought of science. Specifically, the study offers a comparison between historical relativism, scientific realism, logical empiricism, and lo...

by Dheeraj Sharma | On 01 Jul 2016

Perspectives on the Investigation, Prosecution and Prevention of Art Crime in Asia

Many art crimes exist in Asia, where looting and trafficking of regional artefacts have developed extensively in contemporary times. The sophisticated methods of looters and middlemen, the highly effi...

by Stefan Gruber | On 30 Jun 2016

Beautiful Minds: The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics

This is that time of the year when the economics fraternity is abuzz with the news of potential winners of the prestigious prize in economics, the Nobel Memorial Prize. This will be the 45th year of a...

by Saibal Ghosh | On 30 Jun 2016

National Study on Working Conditions of Teachers: State Report for Jharkhand

The study revealed that universalization of primary education goal had created a pressure on the government to meet the requirement of recruiting large number of teachers in a short period of time. Th...

by GVSR Rao | On 30 Jun 2016

Peace, Terrorism, or Civil Conflict? Understanding the Decision of an Opposition Group

This paper models an opposition group’s choice between peace, terrorism, and open conflict. Terrorism emerges if executive constraints are intermediate and rents are sizeable. Open conflict is predict...

by Michael Jetter | On 27 Jun 2016

The Kalikayatna Approach towards Primary Education: A Study of the Learning Initiative of Prajayatna

This paper attempts to study and evaluate the strengths and limitations of an alternative approach to learning -the Kalikayatna approach -that has been implemented in selected clusters in five distric...

by Jyotsna Jha | On 27 Jun 2016

Executive Stock Options: Will it Work as a Good Governance Mechanism in all Scenarios?

In this paper, it is contended that ESoPs will not work as a good governance or mitigation mechanism in all types of firms. ESoPs can be an effective mitigation mechanism for a firm with dispersed own...

by | On 25 Jun 2016

Challenges in Implementing the Right to Education: The Karnataka Case

This paper analyses some of the major financial and governance challenges for attaining universal elementary education following RTE norms. The focus is on Karnataka. The analysis of financ...

by | On 22 Jun 2016

Factors Influencing Outcome Expectations and Self-Efficacy in Driving Internet Use in Rural India

This study uses the theory of social capital and social cognition to understand the drivers of Internet use from the perspective of outcome expectations and self-efficacy. The primary research questi...

by Rekha Jain | On 21 Jun 2016

A Joined-Up Approach to Delivering the Global Goals for Sustainable Development

The sustainable management and restoration of our landscapes – achieving land degradation neutrality - will deliver many co-benefits. From biodiversity conservation and combating climate change to ens...

by | On 17 Jun 2016

Migration and Remittances: Recent Developments and Outlook

According to the World Bank’s Migration and Remittances Factbook 2016, more than 250 million people, or 3.4 percent of the world population, live outside their countries of birth (Figure 1). The volum...

by | On 14 Jun 2016

From Uniformity to Diversity: A Paradigm Shift from Industrial Agriculture to Diversified Agroecological Systems

Today’s food and farming systems have succeeded in supplying large volumes of foods to global markets, but are generating negative outcomes on multiple fronts: widespread degradation of land, water an...

by | On 10 Jun 2016

Inter-Regional Comparisons of Humanitarian Action

Throughout the conference it became clear that there are two emerging trends in humanitarian action across the Asia–Pacific. The first is the increasing activity of selected Asia-Pacific states engage...

by | On 09 Jun 2016

Global Action on Climate Change in Agriculture: Linkages to Food Security, Markets and Trade Policies in Developing Countries

The objective of this report is to catalyse thinking about the ways in which agriculture – which has a vital role in global food security, development and natural resources use – can and must be fully...

by Aziz Elbehri | On 06 Jun 2016

Nutrition Moves: States Create Promising Change in India

This publication gathers a collection of twenty case studies that illustrate how Indian states are creating promising change to ensure the delivery of essential nutrition information, counselling, sup...

by United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF | On 03 Jun 2016

Honor and Stigma in Mechanisms for Environmental Protection

Honor and stigma play a role in environmental protection. Environmental honors are bestowed on people and firms who go out of their way to do right by the environment. Similarly, environmental stigm...

by Prasenjit Banerjee | On 03 Jun 2016

The Mixture as Before? Student Responses to the Changing Content of School Meals in India

We study how attendance rates of primary school children respond to cost neutral changes in the design of India’s school meal program. Municipal schools in the capital region of Delhi switched from pa...

by | On 02 Jun 2016

Surveillance of Chronic Diseases: Challenges and Strategies for India

This paper describes the status, challenges and scope for strengthening surveillance of chronic disease risk factors, morbidities and mortality in India. Surveillance experience of four selected Stat...

by Udaya S. Mishra | On 30 May 2016

The Dragon and the Giraffe: China in African forests

China needs Africa’s forests, and Africa knows it. Chinese investments in African forests and woodlands are growing fast. China is the largest importer of tropical timber in the world — possibly accou...

by | On 25 May 2016

Democratising Forest Business: A Compendium of Successful Locally Controlled Forest Business Organisations

This book presents 19 case studies from 14 developing countries that show how local people have been democratising forest business and draws a set of conclusions from analysis of these case studies wh...

by | On 25 May 2016

Organised Forest-Farm Producers Mitigate Climate Change Through Adaptive Resilience

Climate mitigation programmes and finance mechanisms like Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) must engage millions of forest farmers if they are to halt deforestation...

by Jeffrey Campbell | On 25 May 2016

Re-inventing the Congress

Congress should have long goals, energy, media strategy, good governance to come back to power.

by T.N. Ninan | On 21 May 2016

The Republic of Korea’s Economic Growth and Catch-Up: Implications for the People’s Republic of China

This study investigates the economic growth and catch-up of the Republic of Korea over the past half-century. The gap of output per worker between the Republic of Korea and United States has decreas...

by Jong-Wha Lee | On 19 May 2016

Message by the Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity

The Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity gives a brief message on the occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity 2016.

by | On 18 May 2016

Priorities for India’s National Health Policy

In this paper we will argue that India’s health policy needs to focus more on delivering those aspects of healthcare which are public or quasi-public goods to correct this balance, and to regulate and...

by Rahul Ahluwalia | On 18 May 2016

Biodiversity: Importance and Climate Change Impacts

Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms, including genetic and structural difference between individual and within and between individual and within and between species. Biodiversity pl...

by | On 18 May 2016

Economics and Biodiversity

The challenges faced by biodiversity and the relation between biodiversity and economics are shown.

by Prakash Nelliyat | On 17 May 2016

Game Theoretical Approach to Regulate the Public-Owned River Water Utilities: A Case Study of Cauvery River

Management of regulated water systems has become increasingly complex due to rapid socio-economic growth and environmental changes in river basins over recent decades. This paper focusses on the publ...

by Zareena Begum Irfan | On 17 May 2016

Well-being, Happiness, and Public Policy

As a background paper to the International Expert Working Group on a New Development Paradigm, this document seeks to synthesise for busy readers how the IEWG might explain and defend well-being and h...

by | On 11 May 2016

The Trade Marks Act, 1999

Indian trademark law statutorily protects trademarks as per the Trademark Act, 1999 and also under the common law remedy of passing off. Statutory protection of trademark is administered by the Contro...

by Ministry of Commerce and Industry GOI | On 09 May 2016

Agricultural Outlook and Situation Analysis Reports: Rabi Outlook Report January 2016

Accordingly, the agricultural outlook and situation analysis undertaken in this study refers to the main crop based food items: cereals (specifically rice, wheat, jowar, bajra, maize and overall coars...

by Rajesh Chadha | On 09 May 2016

Towards a Tribunal Services Agency

The performance of Indian tribunals has been unsatisfactory. Yet, policy-makers continue to rely heavily on tribunals to achieve their end objective. One example of this are the tribunals which will a...

by | On 02 May 2016

The Comply - or - Explain Approach for Enforcing Governance Norms

This article critically examines the relative advantages of the comply - or - explain approach vis -à-vis the more traditional comply -or- else approach and identifies the specific insti...

by | On 02 May 2016

Analyzing the Impact of Global Financial Crisis on the Interconnectedness of Asian Stock Markets using Network Science

This study shows how 13 important stock markets in Asia namely, India, Bangladesh, Philippines, China, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Pakistan, South Korea and Thailand...

by | On 02 May 2016

A Comparative Study of Living Conditions in Slums of Three Metro Cities in India

A comparative study of representative slums across three largest metro cities in India through primary surveys. It is found that certain characteristics, such as large average household size, poor hou...

by Sugata Bag | On 28 Apr 2016

The Paris Protocol – A Blueprint for Tackling Global Climate Change beyond 2020

The 2030 Policy Framework confirms the EU's firm commitment to lead by example in tackling climate change. It sets out a binding, economy-wide domestic reduction target of at least 40% greenhouse gas...

by European union | On 26 Apr 2016

God’s Own Country – Moving Towards Universal Health Coverage in Kerala – Piloting in the Districts of Malappuram and Palakkad

The report ‘God’s Own Country, Moving Towards Universal Health Coverage in Kerala, Piloting in the Districts of Malappuram and Palakkad’, 2016 provides details and in-depth understanding of the Univer...

by Sunil Nandraj | On 21 Apr 2016

Piracy of Intellectual Property: Past, Present, and Future

The last few decades have seen enormous growth in piracy of copyrighted goods and, in particular, an enormous growth in piracy of creative works that employ a digital format. In this paper we discuss...

by Michael Waldman | On 15 Apr 2016

PAISA for Panchayats - Tracking Fiscal Devolution toLocal Goverments: A case study from Kolar district, Karnataka

The PAISA for Panchayats research project extends AI’s PAISA methodology to track fund flows and implementations processes at the Panchayat level. By focusing on understanding the state of fiscal devo...

by | On 13 Apr 2016

State Finances: A Study of Budgets of 2015-16

Empirical findings across a swathe of countries, advanced and emerging, confirm that the composition of government expenditure can have perceptible growth implications.

by Reserve Bank of India RBI | On 12 Apr 2016

Education in India: NSS 71st Round

The report gives a detailed account of the education system in India.

by Ministry of Statistics and Prog Implementation (MOSPI) | On 05 Apr 2016

Global Report on Urban health: Equitable, Healthier Cities for Sustainable Development

The Global report on urban health: equitable, healthier cities for sustainable development, 2016 presents new data on the health of urban residents from nearly 100 countries, updating the first joint...

by World Health Organisation (WHO) | On 04 Apr 2016

Agriculture-Nutrition Linkages and Child Health in the Presence of Conflict in Nepal

This paper focuses on this agriculture-nutrition link in Nepal in the context of the country’s decade-long civil conflict. Using panel household data from the Nepal Living Standards Survey (NLSS), co...

by Elizabeth Bageant | On 30 Mar 2016

Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016

The Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016 ranks 126 countries on their ability to deliver secure, affordable and sustainable energy. The results of the global Energy Architecture Pe...

by World Economic Forum [WEF] | On 22 Mar 2016

Impact of JNNURM and UIDSSMT/ IHSDP Programmes on Infrastructure and Governance Outcomes in Cities/ Towns in India

The paper is based on a review of the available official data and the existing literature on the Missions. It is divided into three broad sections. The first analyzes data available from the official...

by Lalitha Kamath | On 21 Mar 2016

Water Reallocation and Grabbing Processes, Mechanisms and Contributory Factors

The paper attempts to develop a project life-cycle approach to gain insights into the complexities of water reallocation. The paper is able to show that water reallocation and the resultant phenomeno...

by Subodh Wagle | On 21 Mar 2016

Institutional Choices in the Shadow of History: Decentralization in Indonesia

This series is a continuation of WRI’s ‘Environmental Accountability in Africa’ working paper series (Working Papers number 1 through 22). The series was renamed to reflect the Equity Poverty and Envi...

by Institue World Resources | On 20 Mar 2016

More Ghost Savings: Understanding the Fiscal Impact of India’s Direct Transfer Program — Update

Since April 1, 2015, India’s cooking gas subsidies have been distributed by electronic transfer through the Direct Benefit Transfer for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) scheme (known as DBTL, or PAHAL1 )...

by | On 18 Mar 2016

Cybersecurity, Internet Governance and India’s Foreign Policy: Historical Antecedents

India’s stances in global Internet governance debates have often been noted, and criticised, for their strong preference for multilateral models of engagement, as different from the multistakeholder a...

by Saikat Datta | On 17 Mar 2016

Maldives Overcoming the Challenges of a Small Island State Country Diagnostic Study

This report identifies four critical constraints to inclusive growth in the Maldives: (1) inadequate and poor quality maritime infrastructure that constrains connectivity, limits provision of basic go...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 17 Mar 2016

Exchange Market Pressure in India

In this paper, we empirically investigate the episodes of currency market stress/crisis in India during the period 1992 – 2012 with the help of a monthly EMP index for India constructed for this perio...

by Anuradha Guru | On 16 Mar 2016

Trade and Wage Inequality: A Specific Factor Model with Intermediate Goods

In this paper we have made an attempt to explain the observed rising inequality between unskilled and skilled wages, or, fall in relative wages of unskilled labour within a general equilibrium framewo...

by Alokesh Barua | On 16 Mar 2016

Budget Speech Andhra Pradesh 2016-17

Budget Speech of Yanamala Ramakrishnudu Minister of Finance.

by Yanamala Ramakrishnudu | On 16 Mar 2016

Corporate Governance, Competition and Firm Performance: Evidence from India

The aim of this paper is to show the interaction effect of product market competition and corporate governance variables on firm performance. While the linkage between internal governance mechanism an...

by Manoj Pant | On 15 Mar 2016

Implementation of the ASEAN +3 Multi - Currency Bond Issuance Framework

ABMI aims to develop efficient and liquid bond markets in Asia, which would enable better utilization of Asian savings for Asian investments. ABMI can also contribute to the mitigation of currency and...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 15 Mar 2016

Disaster Risk Management in Asia and the Pacific

The study considers key trends, in terms of disaster incidence, sources of vulnerability, and social and economic impacts. This is followed by discussions of some of the major issues: compound disaste...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 15 Mar 2016

Japan’s ODA Still Going Strong

In the 1990s, Japan was the world’s top donor. This position was lost in 2001, after a prolonged economic slump, a deteriorating fiscal situation, and increasingly critical public view of ODA made the...

by | On 14 Mar 2016

Growing Inclusive Businesses in the Philippines: The Role of Government Policies and Programs

Inclusive business (IB) is a private sector approach to providing goods, services, and livelihoods on a commercially viable basis, either at scale or scalable, to people at the base of the pyramid by...

by Roehlano M. Briones | On 14 Mar 2016

The Methodology of Polanyi's Great Transformation

The goal in this article is to articulate the methodology used in this book to bring out the several dimensions on which it differs from current approaches to social science. Among the key differences...

by Asad Zaman | On 14 Mar 2016

Politics of ‘Good Governance’ in Sri Lanka’s Parliamentary Polls

Sri Lanka’s latest parliamentary election, slated for 17 August 2015, is important not only for the political-comeback bid by former President Mahinda Rajapakse but also for the focus on issues of ‘go...

by Ayesha Wijayalath | On 14 Mar 2016

The Housing Market and Housing Policies in Japan

Housing policies in Japan after World War II were focused on the quantitative supply of houses with a wide range of targeted groups and public rental houses. The Japan Housing Corporation (now the Urb...

by Masahiro Kobayashi | On 14 Mar 2016

Corporate Governance and Product Market Competition

On one hand product market competition acts as an ultimate solution to align interests of managers and shareholders, and on the other hand, competition alone may not be sufficient because it may not p...

by Ekta Selarka | On 13 Mar 2016

R and D Spillovers Across the Supply Chain: Evidence from the Indian Automobile Industry

This study attempts to capture the impact of vertical and horizontal R and D spillovers across the supply chain. Empirical studies have captured vertical spillovers while finding the role of horizonta...

by Madhuri Saripalle | On 13 Mar 2016

North Korea's Fourth Satellite Launch Attempt

North Korea has announced that it will attempt another satellite launch between December 10 and 22. As North Korea has an active nuclear weapons program and launching a satellite is technologically qu...

by | On 12 Mar 2016

The Promise of a Protocol

Uruguay’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights marked an important milestone in its protection in international law. The Optional...

by | On 12 Mar 2016

Eurasian Union versus Silk Road Economic Belt?

While Russia and China are heralding a new “strategic partnership,” this policy brief explores how competition between the two countries may increasingly emerge in regard to Central Asia—a region wher...

by | On 11 Mar 2016

Biofuel Feedstock Cultivation in India: Implications for Food Security and Rural Livelihoods

Biofuels are acquiring importance due to their potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The two most important biofuels – viz., bioethanol and bio-diesel, are largely considered supplementary t...

by K.S. Kavi Kumar | On 11 Mar 2016

Parent’s Choice Function for Ward’s School Continuation in Rural India: A Case Study in West Bengal

In this paper we present a choice function of a rural household about her/his ward?s schooling. It makes an empirical evaluation on the basis of simple theoretical framework using primary data set, su...

by Debdulal Thakur | On 11 Mar 2016

Efficiency in Education Sector: A Case of Rajasthan State (India)

In this paper, considering the district level variations in literacy and other pertinent socio-economic variables we explore whether efficiency in education in district level enrolments is merely a re...

by Brijesh C. Purohit | On 11 Mar 2016

Breaking the Deadlock: Security Building on the Korean Peninsula

Economic aid has failed to induce North Korea to denuclearize. Instead, reducing tensions and addressing mutual security concerns is the only way to break the stalemate in denuclearization negotiation...

by | On 10 Mar 2016

Related Party Transactions and Stock Price Crash Risk: Evidence from India

Related Party Transactions disclosures in Annual Reports have recently gained more attention of the Indian policymakers. This paper aims at finding out the effect of related party transactions disclos...

by Subhra Choudhury | On 10 Mar 2016

Does Corporate Governance Matter in Determinants and Use of Cash: Evidence from India

Our study investigates the determinants and use of cash holdings by Indian companies. Using a large sample of manufacturing firms that are publicly traded on Bombay Stock exchange for the period of 19...

by Ekta Selarka | On 10 Mar 2016

Determinants of Child Health: An Empirical Analysis

Infant and child mortality rates in India have fallen by almost half from the time of adoption of millennium development goals to 2012 but there has not been a concurrent decrease in morbidity and und...

by Sowmya Dhanaraj | On 10 Mar 2016

Poverty Reduction in Pakistan: Learning from the Experience of China

Three major objectives of this study are: (i) to understand China’s success against poverty, particularly the mechanism through which, the economic reforms led to poverty reduction; (ii) to give a his...

by G. M. Arif | On 10 Mar 2016

Power Crisis in Pakistan: A Crisis in Governance?

The objective in this study is to examine the issues and constraints faced by the power sector in Pakistan. The paper will try to evaluate the reasons behind the current energy crisis despite present...

by Afia Malik | On 10 Mar 2016

Designing Contracts for the Global Fund: Lessons from the Theory of Incentives

This paper uses contract theory to suggest simple contract designs that could be used by the Global Fund. Using a basic model of procurement, we lay out five alternative options and consider when each...

by Liam Wren-Lewis | On 10 Mar 2016

Climate Change Economics: A Review on Theoretical Understanding and Controversies

The neo-classical economics literature incorporated the notion of environment during the mid 20th century, but climate change has found its place in the economics discourse during the early 1980s. Dur...

by Unmesh Patnaik | On 09 Mar 2016

Stagnation Traps

The provide a Keynesian growth theory in which pessimistic expectations can lead to very persistent, or even permanent, slumps characterized by unemployment and weak growth. We refer to these episodes...

by Gianluca Benigno | On 09 Mar 2016

Models of Affective Decision-making: How do Feelings Predict Choice?

Intuitively, how we feel about potential outcomes will determine our decisions. Indeed, one of the most influential theories in psychology, Prospect Theory, implicitly assumes that feelings govern cho...

by Caroline J. Charpentier | On 09 Mar 2016

Mass Education or a Minority Well Educated Elite in the Process of Development: the Case of India

This paper analyses whether in developing countries mass education is more growth enhancing than to have a minority well educated elite. Using the Indian census data as a benchmark and enrollment rate...

by Amparo Castelló-Climent | On 09 Mar 2016

On the Allocation of Public Goods to Villages in India

The paper tries to analyse the effect of religious composition on the provision of public services captured mainly by infrastructure index, of four types, (i) basic amenities such as water, housing an...

by Santanu Gupta | On 09 Mar 2016

Determinants and Challenges of Sustainable Forest Governance in India: An Analysis in Retrospect and Prospect

This paper looks into the role of community based natural resource management focussing on the Joint Forest Management (JFM) in India. The analysis presented is the result of triangulation of critical...

by Madhusudan Bandi | On 09 Mar 2016

The Return of Religion? The Paradox of Faith-Based Welfare Provision in a Secular Age

For centuries, churches were the main institutional providers of welfare in Europe before the state took over this role in the late 19th century. The influence of modernization theory meant that moder...

by | On 08 Mar 2016

Organizational Identities and Institutions: Dynamics of the Organizational Core as a Question of Path Dependence

Organizational identity is a mechanism that mediates between external pressures and internal demands on continuity. The concept of organizational identity is considered to be central to solving the re...

by | On 08 Mar 2016

Transnational Economic Order and National Economic Institutions Comparative Capitalism Meets International Political Economy

Even after two decades of research on globalization, we still face open questions about the interplay between national capitalist institutions and transnational economic governance. How does embeddedn...

by | On 08 Mar 2016

Mega¬ Sporting Events Fuelling Human Trafficking?

The upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup scheduled to take place in South Africa between 11 June and 11 July 2010 has once again raised concerns over the possibility of human trafficking. A study by the Human...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 05 Mar 2016

Voluntary Compliance: Better Governance with Lesser Government

Analysed from various perspectives, the success of a recent experiment of regulating car traffic on the streets of India’s capital city of Delhi – in order to control air pollution – shows the possibl...

by Vinod Rai | On 04 Mar 2016

Debating Geo-Engineering Governance: How It Matters to the Asia- ¬Pacific Region

The debate on the risks and opportunities of geoengineering is currently gaining momentum. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is, for the first time, assessing the scientific basis as well...

by | On 03 Mar 2016

Bihar Budget Analysis 2016-17

The Finance Minister of Bihar, Mr. Abdul Bari Siddiqui, presented the Budget for Bihar for the financial year 2016-17.

by Arvind Gayam | On 03 Mar 2016

Examining ASEAN Capacity in the Context of the Thai- ¬Cambodian Border Dispute

Amidst heightened expectations regarding ASEAN’s contribution to international order, particularly in the context of a trend towards multilevel security governance, ASEAN is attempting to transform it...

by Holly Haywood | On 02 Mar 2016

Thai Floods – What Effect on Rice?

Thailand’s worst floods in decades have caused over 350 deaths, and are inflicting extensive damage to much of the country’s land, crops, livestock, infrastructure, housing and industrial areas. An es...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 02 Mar 2016

Report on "Strategy of Coalition for Food and Nutrition Security"

The Coalition serves as a platform for the members to collaborate and achieve a common vision: "To achieve sustainable food and nutrition security for all" The Coalition aims to raise awareness, foste...

by Coalition for Food & Nutrition Security India | On 02 Mar 2016

Fiscal Policy Instruments and the Political Economy of Designing Programs to Reach the Poorest

This paper examines the fiscal instruments available to different levels of government and their interactions to enhance the effectiveness of public policies for the poorest and hungry groups. Address...

by Ehtisham Ahmad | On 01 Mar 2016

The Political-economy of Tax Reforms in Pakistan: The Ongoing Saga of the GST

Should tax reforms be guided by rules of thumb suggested by the IMF, or directions or reform based on analytical approaches, such as optimal tax theory? In many cases, the applications of the directio...

by Ehtisham Ahmad | On 01 Mar 2016

Cultivated Land Conversion in China and the Potential for Food Security and Sustainability

With over a billion people in China, the issue of cultivated land conversion is extremely important both in terms of food security and environmental sustainability. This paper investigates the relatio...

by Shunji Cui | On 01 Mar 2016

Comparative Analysis of Indonesian and Korean Governance

This paper overviews governance issues in Indonesia and Korea from a comparative perspective. To do so, the WGI (World Governance Index) developed by the World Bank is employed for a more objective an...

by Prof. Yunwon Hwang | On 01 Mar 2016

Keeping Land Local: Reclaiming Governance from the Market

Land struggles in countries like Cambodia, Myanmar, Philippines

by Focus on the Global South FGS | On 29 Feb 2016

Conditional Cash Transfer Programs: An Effective Tool for Poverty Alleviation?

The paper highlights a number of issues that countries need to explore in assessing the feasibility of a CCT program: a country needs to assess the current level of specific human capital outcomes and...

by Hyun H. Son | On 29 Feb 2016

Assessing the Impact of Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission's Open Access Order for Solar Power Generators in Karnataka

WRI is keen to track its on-ground impact to serve as a feedback mechanism to Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) and as a learning for other state regulators who may be looking for sol...

by Deepak Sriram Krishnan | On 29 Feb 2016

Price Discovery and Volatility on NSE Futures Market

This paper studies price discovery and volatility in the context of introduction of Nifty futures at the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in June 2000. Cointegration and Generalised Auto Regressive Cond...

by M. T. Raju | On 28 Feb 2016

Corporate Debt Market in India: Key Issues and Some Policy Recommendations

This paper presents an overview of the corporate debt market in India. A study of the structure and the status of the corporate debt market along with the current policies initiated by Securities and...

by M. T. Raju | On 28 Feb 2016

10th CII Corporate Governance Summit

The role of media in corporate governance, role of board of directors, stakeholders' response to news media coverage of corporate governance and the challenges of managing information risk in the digi...

by U.K. Sinha | On 28 Feb 2016

The Green Climate Fund: An Opportunity to Rationalise Climate Finance?

Is the new Green Climate Fund (GCF) set to be yet another unwieldy addition to the climate finance web? While the form of the GCF, and its functions, has yet to be fully determined, it has been framed...

by Sofiah Jamil | On 27 Feb 2016

Is the ASEAN plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) the Answer Tt Southeast Asia’s Food Security Challenges?

The recently launched ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) aims to safeguard the region’s food security in times of calamity, disaster, supply shock or extreme price spike. The region had...

by Sally Trethewie | On 27 Feb 2016

Enhancing ASEAN Regional Capacity for Disaster Response Operations

Major disasters that typically hit Southeast Asia illustrate the immensity of the tasks involved in undertaking disaster relief operations. With the establishment of the ASEAN Community by the end of...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 27 Feb 2016

Women in Southeast Asia: From Equality to Development

2015 marks the 20th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on Women, held in Beijing in September 1995. While the world takes stock of how far we have come in terms of acknowledging women’s righ...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 27 Feb 2016

Energy Sustainability in Southeast Asia: Towards the Achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals

In Southeast Asia, primary energy demand is projected to increase from 554.8 Mtoe in 2010 to 1,110.2 Mtoe in 2035. Oil will continue to dominate the energy mix with coal share growing at the fastest a...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 27 Feb 2016

Satyam Failure and Changes in Indian Audit Committees

Audit committees have received considerable attention globally in recent years. We examine the effects of the Satyam failure on changes in the composition and functioning of Indian audit committees. A...

by R. Narayanaswamy | On 27 Feb 2016

Rising Milk Price – A Cause for Concern on Food Security

Continuous rise in food prices has been posing a serious policy challenge in India. Milk is a major contributor to the food price rise due to its high growth in demand in the domestic and internationa...

by S. Rajeshwaran | On 27 Feb 2016

Effectance Motivation and Self-validation in Interpersonal Attraction from Attitude Similarity

Effectance motivation -- a will for certainty and a feeling of being able to know and predict -- was proposed in the 1960s as the mechanism underlying the well-known attitude similarity effects on att...

by Ramadhar Singh | On 27 Feb 2016

The Myanmar Nargis Aftermath: A Disaster in Governance

Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar, which made headline news across the globe, triggered denunciations of the military regime in delaying the international humanitarian relief efforts. The cyclone-struck count...

by | On 26 Feb 2016

Political Economy of Multilevel Information Generation and Liability Management

The issue of managing sub-national liabilities is not only an issue in the EU, but is also being a major concern in South Asia, China and Brazil as much of the public investment needed for sustainable...

by Ehtisham Ahmad | On 26 Feb 2016

Budget 2016: Lagging Quality Education; Increase Public Investment to Improve Basic Infrastructure

In the Union Budget 2015-16, there was a reduction in the allocation for school education on account of more untied funds being given to States following the 14th Finance Commission recommendation. Ho...

by Provita Kundu | On 26 Feb 2016

A Note on Defining the Dependent Population Based on Age

Dependent population is defined as that part of the population that does not work and relies on others for the goods and services they consume. In practice, specific population age groups have in thei...

by Rachel Racelis | On 25 Feb 2016

Energy Security: Rethinking Market and Governance

Alleged market failures and the abuse or overuse of governance have shown that energy security could no longer be sufficiently ensured by working with the market or governance alone. Recent global con...

by | On 25 Feb 2016

ASEAN Petroleum Security Agreement: Sealed or Leaking?

The ASEAN Petroleum Security Agreement signed recently in Thailand marks a milestone for ensuring regional energy security by including a provision for voluntary oil stockpiles. However, mandatory, as...

by | On 25 Feb 2016

Nongovernment Reforestation in the Philippines: Review, Analysis, and Ways Forward

The study reviewed and assessed nongovernment reforestation in the Philippines vis-a-vis government and total reforestation using primary and secondary data. The end purpose was to identify issues and...

by Danilo C. Israel | On 25 Feb 2016

Recent Trends in Out-of-School Children in the Philippines

In 2008, about 12 percent of five- to fifteen-year-old children were not in school, five years later this had gone down to about 5 percent. Adjusted net primary school attendance rates have increased...

by Clarissa C. David | On 25 Feb 2016

National Treatment on Internal Taxation: Revisiting GATT Article III:2

The principle of non-discrimination which comprises national treatment and most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment is an important pillar of the multilateral trading system. The World Trade Organization (...

by Sherzod Shadikhodjaev | On 25 Feb 2016

Combed Cotton Yarn Exports of Pakistan to the US: A Dispute Settlement Case

On December 24, 1998 the Government of Pakistan (GOP) received a Call Notice from the US Government for consultation regarding the establishment of quantitative restraints on Pakistani exports of Comb...

by S. M. Hussain | On 25 Feb 2016

Biosafety Protocol, International Trade and Agricultural Biotechnology: Policy Inferences for India

The growing development in and possibly greater diffusion of biotechnology products have further accentuated the intensity of trade restrictions on the entry of these goods in countries like EU, Japan...

by Sachin Chaturvedi | On 25 Feb 2016

Trade Liberalization under New Realities

The last decade has witnessed significant influx of direct foreign investment in developing countries. The increased flow of foreign investment has contributed to the ability of developing countries t...

by Syed Ali | On 25 Feb 2016

Integration and Trade Specialization in East Asia

The 1990s saw East Asia becoming more integrated as trade barriers fell, trade intensity and intra-industry trade increased, and production networks formed. This greater integration has resulted in ch...

by Yose Damuri | On 24 Feb 2016

Towards Comprehensive Economic Co-operation between India and Central Asian Republics

Despite some recovery in recent years, Central Asian Republics (CARs) remain in difficult economic situation and they present a serious challenge to Asia. It is in the mutual interest of both CARs and...

by Ramgopal Agarwala | On 24 Feb 2016

Improving the Business Climate in NTT: The Case of Agriculture Trade in West Timor

Efforts to improve the business climate in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province are still facing significant obstacles. Moreover, a healthy business climate is needed to create conditions conducive to ha...

by Widjajanti Suharyo | On 24 Feb 2016

The 2004 Global Labor Survey: Workplace Institutions and Practices Around the World

This paper reports on an Internet-based survey designed to collect information on the state of workplace practices from labor experts and practitioners around the world -- the 2004 Global Labor Survey...

by Richard B. Freeman | On 24 Feb 2016

Report on “Regional Consultation on the Responsibility to Protect

Five years have passed since the signing of the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document, when United Nations (UN) member states agreed to the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP). Contained in paragraph 138 of...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 24 Feb 2016

Responsibility to Protect: How Should Southeast Asia Respond?

The emerging doctrine of Responsibility to Protect may have been endorsed by world leaders. But the primary challenge remains how to get it implemented. RtoP may mean different things to different sta...

by | On 24 Feb 2016

Inadequate N Application of Rice Farmers in the Philippines Problems, Causes, Solutions

Inadequate application of nitrogen (N) fertilizer has been identified by the Food Staples Sufficiency Program (FSSP) as a major constraint in achieving rice self-sufficiency. The available literature...

by Roehlano M. Briones | On 24 Feb 2016

Cost Effectiveness Assessment of Green House Gas Mitigation Options: A Proposed Methodology

The World Bank has been requested by the government of India to undertake a study, “Strategies for Low Carbon Growth.” The study considers different options for low-carbon growth trajectories to fisca...

by Ministry of Environment and Forests GOI | On 24 Feb 2016

Review of Green House Gas Emissions from the Creation of Hydro Power Reservoirs in India

This is a preliminary report for the World Bank regarding emissions of greenhouse gases from hydropower reservoirs in India. The objective of the work, according to the terms-of reference, is, inter a...

by World Bank | On 24 Feb 2016

Clean Coal Power Generation Technology Review: World Wide Experience and Implications for India

The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the clean coal technologies (CCT) used in power generation worldwide and draw preliminary recommendations regarding the utilization of CCT optio...

by World Bank | On 24 Feb 2016

CO2 Mitigation Potential of Grid-Supplied Thermal, Power Generation Expansion in IndiaCO2 Mitigation Potential of Grid-Supplied Thermal, Power Generation Expansion in India

This paper looks at the short and long term development of electricity generation that is needed to support this high economic growth rate together with increasing rural electrification, and identifie...

by World Bank | On 24 Feb 2016

Residential Consumption of Electricity in India – Documentation of Data and Methodology

This paper describes the methodology used for the electricity consumption section of the household module of the India Low Carbon Growth Study and presents preliminary results. The module is used to p...

by World Bank | On 24 Feb 2016

Modi’s Urban Initiatives – a Paradigm-shift?

A number of new initiatives announced by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi now, with the phased goal of transforming the overall quality of life in the country’s urban centres, have been conceptual...

by S Narayan | On 24 Feb 2016

Towards Transparency and Good Governance

Transparency has been put in processes, changed many rules for protection of environment and we have started taking decisions that are based on policies. The cases that fall within the policy framewor...

by Ministry of Environment and Forests | On 24 Feb 2016

Urban Nomads: The Masan Jogis Based on the Field Work Experiences in Mumbai

This paper is based on field work experiences with Masan Jogi community living in Mumbai city, which is a De-Notified Tribe. There is lack of awareness and knowledge about these communities.

by . Anjana | On 24 Feb 2016

Forest – Based Bamboo Trade in Mendha Lekha and Jamguda

This paper documents two different models that can be adopted by tribal villages for forest-based bamboo trade under the ambit of the FRA, 2006.

by Centre for Civil Society CCS | On 24 Feb 2016

The Puzzle of Small Farming in Japan

Japan’s small farming represents a puzzle. Currently nearly three-quarters of farmland is operated by farmers whose farm size is well under optimal size. Being too small is the main reason for the hig...

by Yoshihisa Godo | On 24 Feb 2016

Non-Traditional Security Challenges, Regional Governance, and the ASEAN Political-Security Community

Much of the attention on institutional development within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has focused on the progress in establishing the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC)....

by | On 23 Feb 2016

China and East Asian Energy: Prospects and Issues

Adequate supplies of natural resources have always been preconditions for economic growth. The requirements for energy and metallic mineral resources have been larger and more obvious with the modern...

by Dominic Meagher | On 23 Feb 2016

Security Sector Governance and Conflict Management in Southeast Asia

Security sector governance (SSG) poses a huge challenge to states transitioning to democracy, particularly in cases where the military and other components of the security sector had been very influen...

by | On 22 Feb 2016

Differentiated Policies: Indonesia’s International Leadership and Internal Challenges

Indonesia’s position as a regional champion of democracy and human rights has become prominent in international forums since the resignation of President Suharto in 1998 and the subsequent period of i...

by Alistair D.B. Cook | On 22 Feb 2016

A Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium Model for India

Over the last decade, the Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) framework has become a workhorse for macroeconomic analysis in both academic and policy circles. Following this emerging trend,...

by Parantap Basu | On 21 Feb 2016

A Lesson In Market Contestability: Calculating The Cost Of Chinese State Intervention In Iron Ore Price Negotiations

This article analyses the motivation and impact of the 2009 intervention of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) in benchmark price negotiations. The impact of the transition from benchmark pri...

by Luke Hurst | On 21 Feb 2016

A Position Paper on World Rice Futures

There is a widespread belief that rice futures are not necessary for the Asian rice markets because these markets are not “broken.” In any case, it is not clear to many why a rice farmer would benefit...

by | On 20 Feb 2016

Does Conservation Agriculture Deliver Climate Change Mitigation Through Soil Carbon Sequestration in Tropical Agro-Ecosystems?

Conservation agriculture (CA), comprising minimum soil disturbance, retention of crop residues and crop diversification, is widely promoted for reducing soil degradation and improving agricultural sus...

by David Powlson | On 19 Feb 2016

Overseas WMotives and Giving Norms Behind Remittances: The Case of Filipinoorkers and their Recipient Households

The literature has focused on motives to explain remittance behavior. But as non-anonymous transfers, remittances are apt to be influenced by giving norms as well. We formula...

by Michael Alba | On 19 Feb 2016

The Goods & Services Tax Debate in India: Concepts and Issues

The chequered but ongoing political efforts to introduce a uniform Goods & Services Tax (GST) throughout India should actually be seen through a larger economic prism. The current sense of urgency, re...

by | On 19 Feb 2016

Discourse on Kashmir: From Territoriality to ‘Enlightened Sovereignty’

The author calls for renewed focus on the idea of ‘soft borders’ between India and Pakistan, with particular reference to Jammu and Kashmir, in the light of a theory of ‘enlightened sovereignty’ that...

by | On 19 Feb 2016

China’s Sovereign Investment Funds In International Perspective: The Exceptionalism Of Cic And Safe

China is the only country in the world with two sovereign investment vehicles dedicated to managing excess foreign reserves for return, not just safety and liquidity. As the investment profile and beh...

by Angela Cummine | On 19 Feb 2016

Stock Market Liberalisations in the South Asian Region

It has long been realised that factor accumulation and technological development are only proximate causes of economic development, and focus has now shifted to investigating the ‘deeper determinants’...

by Fazal Husain | On 18 Feb 2016

The Federation Model Of Community Organizing

In the past two decades through a process called “Enumeration” through which the members collect at city level data about slums, Slum Dwellers International have created a mechanism which serves to cr...

by | On 18 Feb 2016

Enhancing Forage Integration And Access For Smallholder Livestock Production

In the upland areas of Southeast Asia, most smallholder farmers keep animals. Buffalo provide a traditional source of draught power for land preparation or transport, and animal manure is often used t...

by Research Consultative Group on International Agricultural | On 18 Feb 2016

Workshop Report: National Planning for Phase 1 of the CCAC Paddy Rice Component in Vietnam

This workshop was conducted as part of the mitigation strategies in rice production project, implemented with support from the agriculture initiative of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition. The projec...

by B. Sander | On 18 Feb 2016

Food Security: What It Means for a Food-Importing Country

Most countries depend on three “food taps” – imports, self-production, reserve stocks – to make food available. All countries import some amount of food to meet their increasingly diverse dietary dema...

by | On 17 Feb 2016

Disaster Risk Governance: Strengthening Collaboration with Non-State Actors

The increasing use of disaster risk governance today suggests that there is a deeper problem with how disasters are being managed. It does not mean governments have been ineffective. But they do have...

by | On 17 Feb 2016

Volatility Spillover between the Stock Market and the Foreign Market in Pakistan

The paper examines the volatility spillover between the stock market and the foreign exchange market in Pakistan. For the longrun relationship we use the Engle Granger two-step procedure and the volat...

by Abdul Qayyum | On 17 Feb 2016

The Relationship between Corporate Governance Indicators and Firm Value: A Case Study of Karachi Stock Exchange

It is investigated whether differences in quality of firm-level corporate governance can explain the firm-level performance in a cross-section of companies listed at Karachi Stock Exchange. Therefore,...

by Attiya Y. Javid | On 17 Feb 2016

State Of Climate Information Products And Services For Agriculture And Food Security In Myanmar

The increasing variability of seasonal climate and increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events that are expected to accompany climate change will impact agricultural production and fo...

by Ruby Policarpio | On 17 Feb 2016

Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation in the Developing World

This paper conducts an integrated assessment of climate change impacts and climate mitigation on agricultural commodity markets and food availability in low- and middle-income countries. The analysis...

by Petr Havlík | On 17 Feb 2016

Agriculture’s Contribution To National Emissions

Agriculture is an important source of greenhouse gas emissions globally, but how do emissions differ among countries? The relative contribution of agriculture to countries’ emissions budgets can infor...

by Meryl Richards | On 17 Feb 2016

Indonesia’s Foreign Domestic Workers: Dilemma of Not Working Overseas

While the United Nations takes stock of how far women have come in getting women’s rights acknowledged as human rights, Indonesia wants to stop sending women out of the country as foreign domestic wor...

by | On 16 Feb 2016

Citizen-Led Accountability and Inclusivity in Pakistan

This ‘theory in practice’ paper examines the experiences of citizens groups seeking to hold Pakistan’s elected representatives and governance institutions accountable. A sustained period of democracy,...

by | On 16 Feb 2016

Awareness and the Demand of Safe Drinking Water Practices

The demand for environmental goods is often low in developing countries. The major causes are awareness regarding the contamination of water and poverty, but less attention has been paid to the former...

by Eatzaz Ahmed | On 16 Feb 2016

Economic Stability and Choice of Exchange Rate Regimes

The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance of Europe’s structural problems and governance as the cause of the current euro area crisis. The euro may have led to bubbles, but member econo...

by Sahoko Kaji | On 16 Feb 2016

Supply Chains and Credit-Market Shocks: Some Implications for Emerging Markets

Driven by the increasingly important role of supply chains in global production, this paper studies empirical association between global credit-market shocks and firm behavior towards liquidity needs...

by Yothin Jinjarak | On 16 Feb 2016

From Global Factory to Global Mall: East Asia’s Changing Trade Composition

This paper studies how East Asia’s trade composition and orientation have changed over the past decade and analyzes the implications for the region and beyond. Over the last 2 decades we have witnesse...

by Matthias Helble | On 16 Feb 2016

Financial Inclusion, Financial Education, and Financial Regulation: A Story from Indonesia

Many reforms have taken place in Indonesia following the Asian financial crisis of 1997– 1998. The government has embarked upon institutional transformation, making the country one of the region’s mos...

by Georg Inderst | On 16 Feb 2016

Stock Market Reaction to Catastrophic Shock: Evidence from Listed Pakistani Firms

This study examines the effect of the earthquake of October 8, 2005 on the price behaviour and activities of Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE). Sixty firms are selected from those listed on Karachi Stock E...

by Attiya Y. Javid | On 15 Feb 2016

Towards a Measure of Core Inflation in Bangladesh: Conceptual Issues

Identifying core inflation has become a very important issue for the Central Banks of the world for last few years. It has also become a practice to monitor the core inflation along side the headline...

by Md. Shahiduzzaman | On 15 Feb 2016

Monetary Policy and Capital Market Development in Bangladesh

Bangladesh Bank (BB) adjusted its monetary policy stance during 2005 in order to contain inflationary pressures and facilitate stability in the foreign exchange market. At the end of 2005, interest ra...

by Shubhasish Barua | On 15 Feb 2016

Corporate Governance: An essential mechanism to curb malpractices by Organizations

The corporate governance mechanisms are market, institution and legal settings that protect outside investors from opportunistic behavior of managers or controlling shareholders. In the absence of suc...

by M. Bakhtear Uddin Talukdar | On 15 Feb 2016

Building Integrity to Ensure Effective Water Governance

As with any governance framework, participation, transparency and accountability form the guiding principles needed for ensuring policies and decisions on water are responsive to citizens. When these...

by Transparency International TI | On 14 Feb 2016

Household Budget Analysis for Pakistan under Varying the Parameter Approach

Using micro-level household data for rural and urban Pakistan, this study estimates Engel equations for 22 commodity groups with quadratic spline specification, in which the number and locations of kn...

by Eatzaz Ahmad | On 14 Feb 2016

China Buys into Afghanistan

This article examines three elements of the popular narrative of China’s involvement in the development of Afghanistan’s vast natural resource wealth. It argues that Chinese companies invested in Afgh...

by Erica Downs | On 14 Feb 2016

Growth Diagnostics in Pakistan

Following the Hausmann, et al. (2005) methodology, an attempt is done to identify the constraints to growth in Pakistan. It is argued that governance failure and institutional shortcomings are the h...

by Abdul Qayyum | On 14 Feb 2016

The Conditional Capital Asset Pricing Model:- Evidence from Karachi Stock Exchange

This is an attempt to empirically investigate the risk and return relationship of individual stocks traded at Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE), the main equity market in Pakistan. The analysis is based on...

by Attiya Y. Javid | On 14 Feb 2016

Test of Multi-moment Capital Asset Pricing Model: Evidence from Karachi Stock Exchange

This study examines the Capital Asset Pricing Model of Sharpe (1964) Lintner (1965) and Black (1972) as the benchmark model in the asset pricing theory. The empirical findings indicate that the Sharpe...

by Attiya Y. Javid | On 14 Feb 2016

A Study of Cases Filed under Section 498A, IPC; Closed as False in Two Districts and Two Cities of Rajasthan

This study explores closed cases filed under section 498A of the IPC, which pertains to cruelty to a married woman by her marital family. It draws from two datasets of both primary and secondary data,...

by Anjali Dave | On 14 Feb 2016

Let Them Fly - A Multi-Agency Response to Child Marriages in Haryana

The Prohibition of Child Marriages Act (PCMA), 2006 came into effect on 1 November, 2007 replacing the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929. PCMA is a social re-engineering mechanism which mandates St...

by Trupti Jhaveri Panchal | On 14 Feb 2016

Does Governance Contribute to Pro-poor Growth? Evidence from Pakistan

This paper explores linkages between governance and pro-poor growth in Pakistan for the period 1996 to 2005. The analysis indicates that governance indicators have low scores and rank at the lowest pe...

by Rashida Haq | On 14 Feb 2016

Strengthening Corporate Governance to Combat Corruption

The collapse of global financial markets in September 2008 has ignited a debate on what caused their quick undoing. As captured in the comments of the OECD Secretary-General, there is a growing sentim...

by Transparency International TI | On 13 Feb 2016

Foreign Direct Investment in Health Services

The purpose of this paper is to document the emergence and growth of FDI in health services, and to discuss its drivers, potential benefits and risks associated with this FDI, as well as policy issues...

by Zbigniew Zimny | On 13 Feb 2016

Women’s Empowerment at the Frontline of Adaptation: Emerging Issues, Adaptive Practices, and Priorities in Nepal

The findings of the study reveal that, across Nepal, there has been an increase in rural women’s workload rendering multiple effects on women’s health, income, safety, nutrition, violence against wome...

by Dibya Devi Gurung | On 13 Feb 2016

The Government Budget : A Critical Appraisal with Reference to Transparency and Accountability

Budget is the major economic policy document of the government for a particular year and perhaps beyond. Therefore, it is imperative to study the processes, institutional mechanisms, and decision-maki...

by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan | On 13 Feb 2016

Segmented Schooling: Inequalities in Primary Education

This paper utilizes a newly collected nationally representative survey data from over 41,550 households to examine social inequality in children’s educational outcomes. The focus is on 8 to11 year old...

by Sonalde Desai | On 13 Feb 2016

Structured Inequalities – Factors Associated with Spatial Disparities in Maternity Care in India

This paper seeks to explain disparities in delivery care across districts by focusing on three factors: marriage and kinship patterns; district wealth; governance and quality services. It examines the...

by Sonalde Desai | On 12 Feb 2016

After the Conflict: Nation-Building and Corruption

Globally, there are 26 ongoing armed conflicts and nearly one sixth of the world’s population lives in so-called ‘weak governance’ zones.1 In 2009 alone, the United Nations estimated that 42 million p...

by Transparency International TI | On 12 Feb 2016

Ending Corruption to Ensure Basic Education for All

Universal primary education is one of the eight pledges of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that are set to be met by 2015. Since the goals have been adopted, corruption and governance deficits...

by Transparency International TI | On 12 Feb 2016

2015 and Beyond: The Governance Solution for Development

There are fewer than 1000 days remaining until the 2015 deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Based on current progress, many will not be achieved. For Transparency Internati...

by Transparency International TI | On 12 Feb 2016

Matching Skills and Labour Market Needs: Building Social Partnerships for Better Skills and Better Jobs

Skills are critical assets for individuals, businesses and societies. Matching skills and jobs has become a high-priority policy concern, as mismatches, occurring when workers have either fewer or mor...

by World Economic Forum [WEF] | On 11 Feb 2016

International Labour Rights for Women and Girls

This report is dedicated to an inventory of the most relevant ILO conventions for women workers, as generally put forward by the ILO, the ITUC and legal scholars publishing in international academic j...

by | On 10 Feb 2016

Inequities in Health Services in Mumbai

In absolute terms, the MCGM has presented a budget for the year 2015-16 wherein its income is Rs. 33,000 crores and expenditure is Rs 31,000 crores. Out of this expenditure, it has allotted Rs. 2,552...

by Sadanand Nadkarni | On 09 Feb 2016

The Challenges in Urban Planning to Overcome Health Inequities in India

India has 8,928 urban areas or towns as per the Census 2011, 53 are cities or metros having more than 1 million population. Till date, we had taken for granted that several health indicators were wors...

by Dhruv Mankad | On 09 Feb 2016

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies to Minimise GHG Footprint in Transportation Sector, India

India has a number of policies that contribute to climate mitigation but what is required to implement these into action is proper planning and allocation in the budget

by T. V. Ramachandra | On 09 Feb 2016

Women and Urban Health Governance: A Study of Empowerment and Entitlement

The ‘theory and practice of change’ that the UHRC has been fortunate to learn from first hand is that organized slum women who are trained, mentored, and supported have a greater capacity to access go...

by Siddharth Agarwal | On 09 Feb 2016

Uncertainty and the Market for Patents

Modern societies regard knowledge as a production factor in its own right. The market is the prevailing governance mode of their economies, and it is supposed to be the most appropriate mode of tradin...

by | On 08 Feb 2016

Organizational Identities and Institutions

Organizational identity is a mechanism that mediates between external pressures and internal demands on continuity. The concept of organizational identity is considered to be central to solving the re...

by | On 08 Feb 2016

The Liberalization of Climate-friendly Environmental Goods: Issues for Small Developing Countries

Liberalization of environmental goods that are climate-friendly could aid climate mitigation efforts by lowering costs of these goods by reducing or eliminating higher tariffs and non-tariff barriers...

by International Centre and Sustainable Development | On 08 Feb 2016

Trade Policy Options for Sustainable Oceans and Fisheries

With 37% of fish harvest exported as food for human consumption or in non-edible forms, trade policies and measures constitute an essential part of the overall policy framework needed to support susta...

by | On 08 Feb 2016

The Second Report on the State of the World’s Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

This report updates the global assessment provided in the first report on The State of the World’s Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, published in 2007. It focuses particularly on chan...

by Food and Agricultural Organization [FAO] | On 08 Feb 2016

Progress of the World's Women 2000

Launched in June of 2000, "Progress of the World's Women" is UNIFEM's biennial investigation of progress made towards a world where women live free from violence, poverty and inequality. The first iss...

by UN Women | On 08 Feb 2016

Market Design for Altruistic Supply: Evidence from the Lab

Volunteer supply is widespread, yet without a price inefficiencies occur due to suppliers’ inability to coordinate with each other and with demand. For these contexts, we propose a market clearinghous...

by Robert Slonim | On 07 Feb 2016

Ensuring An Efficient, Effective And Equitable Green Climate Fund

Today’s climate financing landscape poses a number of governance challenges. It is characterised by fragmentation and weak coordination, begging better clarity, connectivity and accountability for tho...

by Transparency International TI | On 07 Feb 2016

Global Corruption Report: Climate Change

The Global Corruption Report is the first comprehensive publication of its kind to explore the corruption risks related to tackling climate change. From international policy-making to national level m...

by Transparency International TI | On 06 Feb 2016

Corporate Governance in Pakistan: Corporate Valuation, Ownership and Financing

In this study the relationship between corporate governance and corporate valuation, ownership structure and need of external financing for the Karachi Stock Market is examined for the period 2003 to...

by Attiya Y. Javid | On 06 Feb 2016

Corruption In The Land Sector

Unprecedented pressures on land and its governance have been created. As evident around the globe, where land governance is deficient, high levels of corruption often flourish. Under such a system, la...

by Transparency International TI | On 06 Feb 2016

Safeguarding Mitigation Efforts For Sustainability

The objectives of climate change mitigation projects are undermined when they do not meet sustainable development criteria and transparency standards. In such cases, international mitigation mechanism...

by Transparency International TI | On 06 Feb 2016

Price Setting Behaviour of Pakistani Firms: Evidence from Four Industrial Cities of Punjab

Since the introduction of rational expectations in the literature, most of the research focus in the area of macroeconomics has been investigating micro foundations of macroeconomic theory and transmi...

by Wasim Shahid Malik | On 06 Feb 2016

Fiscal Federalism in Pakistan: The 7th National Finance Commission Award and Its Implications

Pakistan is a federal country. Distribution of resources has a profound impact on income, development, backwardness, and poverty. The paper briefly discusses the federation, its needs and importance i...

by Usman Mustafa | On 06 Feb 2016

CDM: Is it a ‘win–win’ strategy for rural poverty alleviation in India?

India is perceived to be one of the most attractive Non-Annex I countries for CDM project development. There are more than 350 projects in the CDM pipeline, largely in the areas of renewable energy, e...

by Smita Sirohi | On 05 Feb 2016

It Belongs To You: Public Information in The Middle East And North Africa

This report is part of a larger, region-wide project, entitled ‘Addressing Corruption Through Information and Organized Networking’ (ACTION). ACTION is a four-country project covering Egypt, Morocco,...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Global Corruption Report: Education

Corruption and poor governance are acknowledged as major impediments to realising the right to education and to reaching global development goals. Corruption not only distorts access to education, but...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Bangladesh National Integrity System Assessment 2014

One of the key strategic areas of Transparency International Bangladesh's research has always been the institutions of democracy and specialized pillars of governance and accountability, which constit...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Pakistan National Integrity System Assessment 2014

The objective of the NIS report is to assess and evaluate the various key institutions of governance in the country. These institutions are responsible for integrity and the elimination of corruption....

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Nepal National Integrity System Assessment 2014

Transparency International Nepal’s (TIN) National Integrity System Assessment Nepal 2014 describes the latest status of 11 pillars of NIS in terms of their capacity, governance and role besides pointi...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Corruption and Sport: Building Integrity to Prevent Abuses

Sport is a global phenomenon engaging billions of people and generating annual revenues of more than US$ 145 billion. But corruption and challenges to governance threaten to undermine all the good tha...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Local Governance Integrity: Principles and Standards

The purpose of the Anti-Corruption Principles and Standards for Local Governance Systems is to provide clear guidance as to how to prevent corruption and deal with it when it occurs. Most of them appl...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Egypt 2014: National Integrity System Assessment

Between 2011 and 2014, Egypt experienced perhaps the most turbulent and uncertain phase in its modern history. The elimination of widespread corruption was one of the key issues galvanising Egyptians...

by Transparency International | On 05 Feb 2016

Civil Society Participation, Public Accountability and The UN Convention Against Corruption: December 2015

UNCAC Article 13 explicitly recognises the role that civil society can play in tackling corruption. That said, since the establishment of the UNCAC Review Mechanism, there has been debate amongst Stat...

by Transparency International | On 03 Feb 2016

Assessment of the Bhutan Anti-Corruption Commission 2015

The assessment of Bhutan's Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) represents the first time Transparency International has conducted an independent assessment of this sort. The tool will be applied to other...

by Transparency International | On 03 Feb 2016

Inter-linkage between Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Trade in Pakistan: Are they Complements or Substitute?

This study tries to investigate the inter-linkage between foreign trade and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in case of Pakistan. Annual data for the period 1985–2010 have been considered for eight maj...

by Unbreen Qayyum | On 03 Feb 2016

Institutional Quality, Conflict and Aid Dependency

This study attempts to explore the impact of foreign aid on the quality of governance and how conflicts, whether internal or external affect the overall situation. Conflicts affect governance directly...

by Unbreen Qayyum | On 03 Feb 2016

Governance and the Effectiveness of Foreign Capital

This study empirically investigates the impact of foreign capital and governance on the economic growth by employing country level data from 1984 to 2010 for Asian developing countries. Governance; fo...

by Unbreen Qayyum | On 03 Feb 2016

Market Imperfections and Dividend Policy Decisions ofManufacturing Sector of Pakistan

Dividend policy is an important issue of corporate finance and the present study examines the effect of market imperfections such as asymmetric information, agency costs and transaction cost of issuin...

by Darakhshan Younis | On 03 Feb 2016

Liquidity Benefits from Underpricing: Evidence from Initial Public Offerings Listed at Karachi Stock Exchange

This study explains the underpricing phenomenon through the relationship of underpricing (initial returns), ownership structure and aftermarket liquidity empirically by using cross-sectional data of 5...

by Malik Muhammad Shehr Yar | On 03 Feb 2016

Dynamic Relationship and Volatility Spillover between the Stock Market and the Foreign Exchange Market in Pakistan: Evidence from VAR-EGARCH Modelling

The paper examines the dynamic relationship and volatility spillovers between the stock market and the foreign exchange market in Pakistan using weekly data from 02 July, 1997 to 04 July 2012. Johanse...

by Abdul Qayyum | On 03 Feb 2016

Effect of Credit Rating on Firm Performance and Stock Return: Evidence form KSE Listed Firms

This study investigates the determinants of credit ratings of firms and the impact of credit rating on firms’ performance and stock return for listed firms in Pakistan. For empirical analysis of this...

by Rubina Shaheen | On 03 Feb 2016

The Global Financial Crisis and Investors' Behaviour: Evidence from the Karachi Stock Exchange

The present study empirically examines the short term under and overreaction effect in the Karachi Stock Exchange, Pakistan, in the context of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis considering the period f...

by Asiya Sohail | On 03 Feb 2016

Does Inside Ownership Matters in Financial Decisions and Firm Performance: Evidence from Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan

This study provides the evidence on the effect of managerial ownership on the firm’s performance and financial policies (debt and dividend) for 140 listed manufacturing firms of Pakistan.

by Haris Arshad | On 03 Feb 2016

Does the Rise of the Middle Class Lock in Good Government in the Developing World?

The current size of the income-secure middle class and its likely future growth, suggest that optimism is indeed warranted for many of today’s middle-income countries. But it is not warranted for all...

by Nancy Birdsall | On 03 Feb 2016

An Analysis of Accrual Anomaly in Case of Karachi Stock Exchange

This study investigates the existence of accrual anomaly by using a sample of 340 non-financial firms listed at Karachi Stock Exchange. The objective of the study is to examine the persistence of th...

by Jawad Mohammad | On 03 Feb 2016

Analysing the Price Cost Markup and Its Behaviour over the Business Cycles in Case of Manufacturing Industries of Pakistan

The issue of imperfect competition in economic theory has been repeatedly discussed given its importance in the distribution of economic resources. In this study, market power measured by price over...

by Salman Ahmad | On 03 Feb 2016

Disciplining Investment Incentives: A Lost Cause?

Investment incentives rank among the most important policy instruments governments employ to influence the locational decisions of multinational firms. In the wake of the recent increase in locational...

by International Centre for Sustainable Trade and Development | On 02 Feb 2016

A New Model for Constructing Poverty Lines

In this paper, we present a new model for constructing poverty lines. The model uses consumer theory to construct both food and nonfood poverty thresholds. Although one cannot completely eliminate the...

by Nanak Kakwani | On 02 Feb 2016

The Compromise Effect in Action: Lessons from a Restaurant’s Menu

The compromise effect refers to individuals’ tendency to choose intermediate options. Its existence has been demonstrated in a large number of hypothetical choice experiments. This paper uses field da...

by | On 02 Feb 2016

The Story of Primary Health Care : from Alma Ata to the Present Day

The idea of primary health care (PHC) emerged in the 1960s, in recognition of the shortcomings of the health systems inherited by developing countries after independence. The urban, centralised and cu...

by Institute of Development Studies IDS | On 01 Feb 2016

Water Policy Brief : Water Policy Programme

Access to clean water is central to healthy and productive lives for the poor. Yet at the beginning of the 21st Century over one billion people still lack this vital resource (WWC, 2000). A decade ago...

by Water Policy Programme WPP | On 01 Feb 2016

Sri Lanka’s North : The Denial of Minority Rights

Deepening militarisation and the lack of accountable governance in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province are preventing a return to normal life and threaten future violence. Scene of the most bitter fighting...

by International Crisis Group | On 01 Feb 2016

Finance for Forests and Climate Change

In addition to providing multiple services and goods, forests can play a key role in tackling climate change. Forestry, as defined by the IPCC accounts for around 17.4 per cent of global GHG emissions...

by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs | On 31 Jan 2016

Financing Mitigation and Adaptation by Developing Countries

There is a broad consensus that without the active participation of developing countries, global temperatures cannot be stabilized at a safe level. It is also agreed that even if temperatures are cont...

by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs | On 31 Jan 2016

Till Debt do us Part: the Urgency of a Sovereign Debt Workout Mechanism

The danger to global economic recovery posed by the European debt turmoil throws a spotlight on a key missing international institution critical to global finance a sovereign debt resolution mechanism...

by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs | On 31 Jan 2016

Global Liquidity for Global Development

Official development assistance declined in real terms in 2011 as a result, in part, of fiscal austerity in many donor countries. Traditional forms of funding have fallen well short of needs to financ...

by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs | On 31 Jan 2016

An Integrated Strategy for Sustainable Cities

The multiple challenges that cities face also represent a strategic opportunity to build sustainable cities and reap the benefits of rapid urbanization. Urban development should be understood as a bal...

by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs | On 31 Jan 2016

Towards an ICT Enabled Farming Community

This paper presents a proposed use of virtual community for farmers in Sri Lanka by reviewing Information and communication technology perspective with reference to past and present political strategi...

by Devaka Punchihewa | On 31 Jan 2016

Comparing Safeguard Measures in Regional and Bilateral Agreements

This study provides trade negotiators, policy-makers and other stakeholders with a clear, practical comparative analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of the various safeguard clauses included i...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Global Food Stamps: An Idea Worth Considering?

In this paper, Prof. Tim Josling analyses whether an international scheme for targeted consumer food subsidies could represent a practical contribution to overcoming food insecurity in developing coun...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Improving the International Governance of Food Security and Trade

This paper critically examines the recent global initiatives to improve various elements of the international governance of food security and the institutional context of policymaking on trade and foo...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Food Reserves in Developing Countries: Trade Policy Options for Improved Food Security

Agricultural prices, along with the prices of primary commodities in general, have been both high and volatile over 2006-11. These developments impact the poor and other vulnerable non-farm households...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Trade and Food Security

The evolving food security agenda offers governments a chance to address some urgent concerns and strengthen the multilateral trade system. The Doha Agenda has been overtaken by time and events. Many...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Agricultural Trade and Food Security: Some Thoughts about a Continuous Debate Food Reserves in Developing Countries: Trade Policy Options for Improved Food Security

Previous agricultural trade negotiations were conducted when global prices were lower. They focused on policies that artificially expanded supply in some countries, or reduced demand in other countrie...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

International Trade Disciplines and Policy Measures to Address Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Agriculture

An increasing concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere is believed to be contributing to global warming. Agriculture is a significant contributor to GHG emissions through crop and an...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Institutions of Accountability Series : The Judiciary Policy Note

The courts are one of the most fundamental institutions where power is contested in a constitutional democracy. A functioning and an independent judiciary can restrain and hold the executive accountab...

by . BRAC | On 30 Jan 2016

Institutional Approach to Anti-corruption: An Evaluation of the Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh

Currently, corruption is one of the most discussed topics in the everyday life of Bangladeshi people. They experience it at almost every stage from the top lair of the bureaucracy to the petty grocery...

by Harun Rashid | On 30 Jan 2016

Does Governance Matter for Enhancing Trade? Empirical Evidence from Asia

The primary objective of this paper is to find whether or not the governance and institutions matter for enhancing Asia’s trade. In this study, we have performed a comprehensive empirical analysis of...

by Prabir De | On 30 Jan 2016

The Day-of-the-Week Anomaly in Market Returns, Volume and Volatility in SAARC Countries

This study investigates extent of market efficiency and presence of day of week effect in stock market indices and volume and volatility in four major SAARC countries, namely Pakistan, Bangladesh, Ind...

by Sumra Abbas | On 30 Jan 2016

Making Regional Cooperation Work for South Asia’s Poor

South Asia has attracted global attention because it has experienced rapid GDP growth over the last two decades. What is not so well known is that South Asia is the least integrated region in the worl...

by Ejaz Ghani | On 29 Jan 2016

Inadequate N Application of Rice Farmers in the Philippines: Problems, Causes, Solutions

Inadequate application of nitrogen (N) fertilizer has been identified by the Food Staples Sufficiency Program as a major constraint in achieving rice self-sufficiency. The available literature on fert...

by | On 29 Jan 2016

Challenges and Trends in Decentralised Local Governance in Bangladesh

Bangladesh has a rich legacy of establishing and promoting local government institutions, but the actual roles and contributions of these institutions to augment citizens’ participation and consolidat...

by Niaz Khan | On 29 Jan 2016

Hard Law and ‘Soft Law’: Options for Fostering International Cooperation

Substantial literature has emerged in the past two decades on the meaning of “soft law”, its purposes, and its consequences for effective international cooperation. This paper argues that the distinct...

by | On 28 Jan 2016

Decentralisation Trajectories with Multiple Institutions: The Case of PIM Programme in India

One of the offshoots of the planned economic development model in India has been the increasing emphasis on effective local governance. With newer models of implementing programmes, incremental steps...

by R Parthasarathy | On 28 Jan 2016

Public Health in Urban India: Lessons from Surat

Surat-a city in the western-most Indian state of Gujarat, is an important case study, especially for those municipalities attempting reform of public health services. This note takes Surat as a case s...

by Rajib Dasgupta | On 28 Jan 2016

McKinsey's Urban Governance and Planning - Relevance to Health

In April 2010 the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) released a report aimed at ‘awakening India’s cities, building inclusive ones and sustaining economic growth. This policy note summarises the report’s...

by Meera Chatterjee | On 28 Jan 2016

Primary Health Care in Gujarat: Evidence on Utilization, Mis-Matches and Wastage

In order to provide adequate and quality primary health care, a multi-layered network of public health infrastructure has been created right from the district to the village level. But Health for All...

by B.L. Kumar | On 28 Jan 2016

Switched On: Youth at the Heart of Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific

Asia and the Pacific is home to 60 per cent of the global population aged 15 to 24 years. Across this geographically, politically, socially, culturally and economically expansive region, youth are a v...

by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific | On 28 Jan 2016

Report of the National Consultation on "Children and Governance: In the Context of Federalism and Devolution"

Economists and experts have been batting for bringing the fiscal federalism, the activist fora has been criticizing the newly brought in fiscal arrangements between Centre and States. This contradict...

by HAQ Centre for Child Rights HAQCRC | On 28 Jan 2016

Promoting Agricultural Growth in Myanmar: A Review of Policies and an Assessment of Knowledge Gaps

This paper reviews the agricultural policy environment in Myanmar up until 2014 with an eye towards identifying policies that can help to accelerate productivity and profitability in the agricultural...

by Ulrike Nischan | On 28 Jan 2016

Enabling the Energy Transition and Scale-up of Clean Energy Technologies: Options for the Global Trade System

With the challenges of access to energy, energy security, and the imperative of climate change becoming more pronounced in recent years, interest in clean energy has surged. Mitigation efforts to limi...

by | On 27 Jan 2016

Triple Wins for Sustainable Development

As countries prepare for the ‘Rio+20’ United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, UNDP is pleased to share this report. It sets out national examples of progress toward sustainable developme...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 27 Jan 2016

Innovative Financing for Development: A New Model for Development Finance?

This Discussion Paper explores recent experiences with innovative sources of development finance in order to capture lessons learned for the more effective implementation of both current and future in...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 27 Jan 2016

Synthesis of Important Discussions on Microfinance and Livelihood Support to Small and Marginal Farmers

This publication incorporates all the discussions on marginal and small farmers such as micro financing for agricultural value chains, MahilaKisanSashaktikaranPariyojna, MF for small farmers through e...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 27 Jan 2016

Small World of Inter-Firm Network and Firm's Acquisition Behaviour

This study finds that the inter-firm network in India on account of director interlocks is a small world and the network has become more integrated since the introduction of corporate governance regul...

by | On 27 Jan 2016

The Political Economy of Low-carbon Investments: Insights from the Wind and Solar Power Sectors in India

The primary motivation behind this research is the need to accelerate the supply of renewable energy because of the important role that it plays in mitigating climate change and in fostering sustainab...

by | On 26 Jan 2016

The Determinants of Quality Specialization

A growing literature suggests that high-income countries export high-quality goods. Two hypotheses may explain such specialization, with different implications for welfare, inequality, and trade polic...

by Roberta Piermartini | On 26 Jan 2016

Infrastructure Provision , Trade And Development Prospects: Potential Role And Relevance Of The WTO Agreement On Government Procurement (GPA)

The paper, nonetheless, acknowledges that delivering these benefits would involve significant practical and political challenges. It concludes that if the challenges can be overcome and the mutual ben...

by Kodjo Osei-Lah | On 26 Jan 2016

Services And Global Value Chains – Some Evidence On Servicification Of Manufacturing And Services Networks

This paper analyses the role of services in international trade through the lens of global value chains (GVCs). Services account for more than 70% of world GDP but only for around 20% of world trade i...

by Rainer Lanz | On 26 Jan 2016

TRIPS Plus Agreements and Issues in Access to Medicines in Developing Countries

Harmonisation of intellectual property rights among the members of WTO has in the recent years seen informed debates on access to medicines. While the developing countries are lured to such agreements...

by Samira Guennif | On 26 Jan 2016

Government Intervention and Prices of Medicines: Lessons from Tamil Nadu

This paper looks at the approach adopted by the government of Tamil Nadu where drug procurement and supply is done through an autonomous agency. The paper emphasises the need for such goverment interv...

by N. Lalitha | On 26 Jan 2016

Pro-Nutrition Agriculture in India: Entry Points and Policy Options

India should comprehensively address its challenge of undernutrition. This includes, pursuing agricultural policies to strengthen agriculture-nutrition linkages. This note suggests that agricultural p...

by S. Mahendra Dev | On 26 Jan 2016

Role of Health Systems in Improving Childhood Nutrition in India

The status of child undernutrition in India continues as an area of concern. There are significant opportunities within health system to address this issue. Allocating clear tasks to workers while bui...

by Rajani R. Ved | On 26 Jan 2016

Agency and Access under Decentralized Governance: Water Supply and Sanitation in Kolkata City

Ensuring sustainable access to basic services in urban India has continued to remain a major challenge for civic bodies. A fast growing urban population has exerted great pressure on the provisioning...

by Keshab Das | On 26 Jan 2016

Governance Structure and Labour Market Outcomes in Garment Embellishment Chains

Globalization has led to large scale outsourcing of production activities to developing countries manifesting in global commodity chains.The study shows that given a choice, enterprises and workers pr...

by Jeemol Unni | On 26 Jan 2016

Decentralisation in India: A Review of Panchayati Raj Institutions in Gujarat

This paper examines how the decentralisation process has evolved over time in India from the ancient times through to the British regime to modern era. It focuses specifically on Panchayati Raj Instit...

by Madhusudan Bandi | On 25 Jan 2016

Public Debt Sustainability in Bangladesh

This policy note reviews the trend in debt composition and sources of debt financing and analyzes debt sustainability of Bangladesh. Along with historical data on level of debt and sources of financin...

by Md. Ezazul Islam | On 23 Jan 2016

Volatility of Stock Return in the Dhaka Stock Exchange

This note examines the volatility in stock prices in the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) during 2003- 2007. Excessive volatility and fluctuations in stock price fail to provide the correct signal on compan...

by Md. Habibour Rahman | On 23 Jan 2016

Prospects and Challenges of Bond Market Development in Bangladesh

The thin bond market in Bangladesh faces manifold challenges emanating from several sources including excessive reliance on bank credit, government debt instruments dominated by primary auction based...

by Md. Akhtaruzzaman | On 23 Jan 2016

India and the BRICS Partnership

India and its partners – Brazil, China, Russia and South Africa – in the BRICS forum have launched the New Development Bank. With the leaders of these countries, who recently met at Ufa in Russia, dis...

by | On 23 Jan 2016

Economic Growth In South Asia: Role Of Infrastructure

The paper examines the output elasticity of infrastructure for four South Asian countries viz., India,Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka using Pedroni’s panel cointegration technique for the period 19...

by Ranjan Kumar Dash | On 23 Jan 2016

Learning from India's Development Cooperation

India now needs to strengthen and harmonise its institutional mechanisms for development cooperation through clear policy statements. In addition to national foreign policy and economic interests, acc...

by Institute of Development Studies IDS | On 23 Jan 2016

Do Government Transfers Reduce Conflict?

Social conflicts have been solved through fiscal policy and the provision of public goods and services over the centuries. Data from India, too, show government expenditure on social services has had...

by Institute of Development Studies IDS | On 23 Jan 2016

Economics of Fisheries and Aquaculture in the Coral Triangle Economics of Fisheries and Aquaculture in the Coral Triangl

Consolidates information on fisheries and aquaculture using a regional lens and analytical tools. Cover the Coral Triangle countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Island...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 22 Jan 2016

Results of the Methodological Studies for Agricultural and Rural Statistics

This report summarizes outcomes of collaboration between ADB and implementing agencies of Bhutan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, the Philippines, and Viet Nam to address gaps in the production of a...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 22 Jan 2016

Accelerating Reductions in Undernutrition: What can nutrition governance tell us?

In order to accelerate progress on undernutrition reduction we need to understand how the governance of nutrition programmes leads to successful outcomes. Based on evidence from six countries: Banglad...

by Institute of Development Studies IDS | On 21 Jan 2016

Productivity in the Era of Trade and Investment Liberalization in India

Very recent years India has witnessed wide-ranging economic reforms in her policies governing international trade and FDI flows. As per the findings of the paper, some of the important determinants of...

by Ram Upendra Das | On 21 Jan 2016

Synthetic Biology in India: Issues in Risk, Power and Governance

In this discussion paper, the status of synthetic biology in India and debates in India on synthetic biology are discussed and the discourses on synthetic biology in India are also analysed. The paper...

by Krishna Ravi Srinivas | On 21 Jan 2016

Quantifying the International Bilateral Movements of Migrants

This paper presents five versions of an international bilateral migration stock database for 226 by 226 countries. The first four versions each consist of two matrices, the first containing migrants d...

by | On 20 Jan 2016

People Matter Civic Engagement in Public Governance

The World Public Sector Report 2008, People Matter, Civic Engagement in Public Governance presents a picture of the evolution of current governance challenges, especially from the point of view of the...

by UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs UNDESA | On 20 Jan 2016

Climate Change and Food Systems: Global Assessments and Implications for Food Security and Trade

This book collects the findings of a group of scientists and economists who have taken stock of climate change impacts on food and agriculture at global and regional levels over the past two decades....

by Food and Agricultural Organization [FAO] | On 20 Jan 2016

An Evaluation Of Mid -Day Meal Scheme

With the twin objectives of improving health and education of the poor children, India has embarked upon an ambitious scheme of providing mid day meals (MDM) in the government and government-assisted...

by Satish Deodhar | On 19 Jan 2016

Philanthropy Beyond Carbon Neutrality

The Paris Agreement on climate change has united the world in the pursuit of an ambitious climate goal. However, goals alone will not avert catastrophic climate change. Credible commitments to aggress...

by Noah Deich | On 19 Jan 2016

Gender and Education: A Review of Issues for Social Policy

This paper provides an overview of key issues relating to the achievement of gender equity in education, laying out some of the contradictions and tensions in donor discourse and policy efforts, and p...

by Ramya Subrahmanian | On 19 Jan 2016

Myanmar 2014: Civic Knowledge and Values in a Changing Society

This is an Asia Foundation survey to document public knowledge and awareness of new government institutions and processes, and to gauge the political, social, and economic values held by people from d...

by The Asia Foundation | On 19 Jan 2016

Reforming the Liability Regime for Air Pollution in India

The recent uproar about the toxic levels of pollution in the country’s national capital region has once again brought to fore the failure of the regulatory and legal mechanisms in India to control air...

by | On 19 Jan 2016

Group Violence, Ethnic Diversity, and Citizen Participation: Evidence from Indonesia

This paper addresses the impact of violent conflict on social capital, as measured by citizen participation in community groups defined for four activity types: governance, social service, infrastruct...

by | On 18 Jan 2016

Language Proficiency of Migrants: The Relation with Job Satisfaction and Matching

We empirically analyze the language proficiency of migrants in the Netherlands. Traditionally, the emphasis in studying language proficiency and economic outcomes has been on the relation between earn...

by Hans Bloemen | On 15 Jan 2016

Globalization, Brain Drain and Development

This paper reviews four decades of economics research on the brain drain, with a focus on recent contributions and on development issues. We first assess the magnitude, intensity and determinants of t...

by Frédéric Docquier | On 14 Jan 2016

Gender and Climate Change Thematic Section

Eldis has brought together an editorially selected range of over 170 research resources from diverse perspectives and publishers. The theme focuses on gender equality and the role that both women and...

by E. Esplen | On 14 Jan 2016

Job Search Processes for Tribal People from Jharkhand and West Bengal

Millions of job seekers in South Asia, including many tribals, are forced by lack of local employment opportunities to migrate towards urban areas. This fieldwork-based study aims to understand specif...

by Rajib Dhar | On 13 Jan 2016

Women Migrants and their Mental Health: A Study of Working Women Hostellers in Mumbai

Mental health is an important component of the total positive health and is interwoven closelywith the physical and physiological dynamics of the human body. Migrant population, being a non-native pop...

by Reshmi R S | On 13 Jan 2016

From Aid to Global Development Policy

The international community has advanced in reforming the international aid system. Such reform comes at a time when there is a renewed skepticism about aid effectiveness and when the crisis sheds new...

by José Alonso | On 11 Jan 2016

Recipients and Contributors: Middle income countries and the future of development cooperation

The new role that middle-income countries (MICs) play in the global landscape obliges international community to review the configuration of the development cooperation system. On the one hand, MICs s...

by | On 11 Jan 2016

Living on the Edge: Immunization Coverage among Children of Nomadic and De-notified Tribes in the Slums of M-East Ward, Mumbai

This study was carried out to assess the immunization status of the NT-DNT children in the 0 to 5 year age group and also to suggest an intervention strategy to immunize the non-immunized children....

by Praveenkumar Katarki | On 11 Jan 2016

Trans-Pacific Partnership and India’s Emerging Challenges

The conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations has major implications for India, which is aspiring for a larger role in the regional architecture of the Asia-Pacific. India will ha...

by Amitendu Palit | On 10 Jan 2016

Trade and Development Report, 2010

The Trade and Development Report 2010 focuses on the need to make employment creation a priority in economic policy. Unemployment is the most pressing social and economic problem of our time, not leas...

by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNCTAD | On 09 Jan 2016

Double Bubble Trouble

Sustaining anything in the region of 7% growth should be good enough in a troubled and risk-laden world.

by T.N. Ninan | On 08 Jan 2016

2015 World Public Sector Report on Responsive and Accountable Public Governance

Heads of state and government have adopted a new development agenda to guide sustainable development efforts for the next 15 years. Member States will have the responsibility of turning this collectiv...

by | On 08 Jan 2016

Prevention and Resolution of Foreign Exchange Crises in East Asia

This paper discusses mechanisms to prevent and resolve foreign exchange crises in East Asia. Policies and mechanisms at the country level as well as regional and global levels are discussed. Policies...

by Andrew Cooper | On 07 Jan 2016

A Report on Fluorosis mitigation in Dhar District (M.P.)

Vasudha Vikas Sansthan with the help of Peoples’ Science Institute, Dehra Doon undertook fluoride testing and fluorosis mitigation in Tirala, Dharampuri and Umarban bloks of Dhar district. The program...

by People's Science Institute PSI | On 07 Jan 2016

Collapsing ‘Government’, Emerging ‘Governances’

Contrary to widespread belief, the collapse of ‘government’ does not automatically entail the collapse of ‘governance’. In a setting of ‘unstable’ livelihoods, households’ coping strategies, coupled w...

by | On 07 Jan 2016

Better Hospitals, Better Health Systems: The Urgency of a Hospital Agenda

This paper outlines the nature of the issues surrounding hospitals in emerging markets and makes the case for early action to bridge the abyss of neglected hospital investments and the path needed to...

by | On 06 Jan 2016

Antibiotics on the Farm: Agriculture’s Role in Drug Resistance

The evidence that antibiotic use in agriculture creates a pool of resistant bacteria in farm animals is not in dispute. The key questions relate to the magnitude of the risk to human health, and the p...

by | On 06 Jan 2016

Habitat III Issue Papers : 22 – Informal Settlements

Although some governments acknowledge the existence of slums and informal settlements, many do not. This lack of recognition and subsequent response directly undermines city-wide sustainable developme...

by | On 05 Jan 2016

Labour Migration for Employment: A Status Report for Nepal

This report reflects efforts to capture the trends in labour migration from Nepal, identify the structural gaps and suggests ways to move forward for the Government and stakeholders. Although various...

by The Asia Foundation | On 02 Jan 2016

Survey on Good Local Governance

The Survey on Good Local Governance is a 38-item survey that aims to obtain a broader data to help set the agenda for local government reforms in the Philippines. It covers the following: citizen perc...

by The Asia Foundation | On 02 Jan 2016

Democracy in Indonesia A Survey of the Indonesian Electorate 2003

This report presents the findings of The Asia Foundation’s third national survey of the ndonesian electorate. The aim of the research was to assess voter knowledge and opinion, and to identify key iss...

by The Asia Foundation | On 02 Jan 2016

Summary of Indonesia's Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Environment Sector Assessment

Indonesia is a net importer of grains, horticulture and livestock produce. The instability of food prices since 2008 has led to a renewed emphasis on food security. Despite increasing food crop produc...

by Victor Pontines | On 01 Jan 2016

Local Funds and Political Competition: Evidence from the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India

This paper examines how local politics affects public fund allocations. It uses the context of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India which was introduced by the Indian National Congr...

by Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay | On 01 Jan 2016

Urban Systems and Urban Development in the People’s Republic of China

This paper examines the trends in urbanization in the People’s Republic of China. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) is experiencing a trend toward population concentration in its large coastal c...

by Zhao Chen | On 01 Jan 2016

Mental Health Effects of Climate Change

Changes in climate and global warming may require population to migrate, which can lead to acculturation stress. It can also lead to increased rates of physical illnesses, which secondarily would be a...

by | On 30 Dec 2015

Service Sector Productivity and Economic Growth in Asia

This paper explores the impacts of more rapid growth in labor productivity in the service sector in Asia based on an empirical general equilibrium model. The model allows for input-output linkages and...

by Jong-Wha Lee | On 30 Dec 2015

Water and People: A National Perspective Mitti Aur Pani Mein Sona Hai

The failures of water management have been extensively studied and reviewed and the shortcomings are listed.

by Ravi Chopra | On 29 Dec 2015

Urban Systems and Urban Development in the People’s Republic of China

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) is experiencing a trend toward population concentration in its large coastal cities. However, at the same time, there is also a distortion of city size toward smal...

by Zhao Chen | On 29 Dec 2015

Deepening the Social Dimensions of Regional Integration

The present report presents an overview of some recent trends and future challenges regarding the deepening of the social dimensions of regional integration, in light of the Recommendations of the Rep...

by | On 29 Dec 2015

Strengthening Municipal Governance through Performance-based Budget Allocation in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, pourashavas are an alternative destination to large cities. With the influx of urban residents within the next decades, governments and development partners must lead pourashavas toward...

by Norio Saito | On 29 Dec 2015

Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women through ICT

This article focuses on the gender digital divide. It reviews the gender dimensions of ICT and how the United Nations has addressed the issues of gender equality and ICT. It explores potentials for em...

by UN Women | On 29 Dec 2015

The ASEAN Economic Community: Progress, Challenges, and Prospects

The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) was set up in 2003 with the objectives of creating a single market and production base, enhancing equitable economic development as well as facilitating the integrat...

by Siowyue Chia | On 29 Dec 2015

UNDP and Climate Change

Released on the eve of the Paris climate change conference (COP21), this report – a mix of infographics and country case examples – outlines UNDP’s decades-long support to partner countries to tackle...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 29 Dec 2015

Response of Stock Markets to Monetary Policy: An Asian Stock Market Perspective

We estimate the response of Asian stock market prices to exogenous monetary policy shocks using a vector error correction model. In our paper, monetary policy transmits to stock market price through t...

by Farzana Sehrin | On 29 Dec 2015

The Gender Dividend: A Business Case for Gender Equality

This paper presents the case for investments and actions — on an unprecented scale — to broaden the range of real opportunities open to the world's 3.5 billion women and girls. Advocates for equality...

by UN Women | On 28 Dec 2015

Housing Policies for Asia: A Theoretical Analysis by Use of a Demand and Supply Model

The main objective of this paper is to give an overview of the most commonly used housing policies and to illustrate their economic impact. To facilitate the analysis, we first introduce a simple two-...

by Naoyuki Yoshino | On 24 Dec 2015

Connecting South Asia and Southeast Asia: A Bangladesh Country Study

Economic integration is being inhibited by the poor state of transport connectivity between Bangladesh, and South Asia and Southeast Asia. This study reviews connectivity initiatives of Bangladesh and...

by Mustafizur Rahman | On 23 Dec 2015

Enhancing Youth Political Participation throughout the Electoral Cycle

This guide identifies key entry points for the inclusion of young people in political and electoral processes and compiles good practice examples of mechanisms for youth political empowerment around t...

by United Nations Development Programme [UNDP] | On 23 Dec 2015

Different Paths to Power: The Rise of Brazil, India and China at the World Trade Organization

New powers, such as China, India and Brazil, are challenging the traditional dominance of the US in the governance of the global economy. It is generally taken for granted that the rise of new powers...

by Kristen Hopewell | On 23 Dec 2015

Asymmetric Influence in Global Banking Regulation

Global regulatory standard setting is one of the most lucrative battlefields of the international political economy. Asymmetric influence and regulatory capture in setting such standards can undermine...

by Roman Goldbach | On 23 Dec 2015

Slouching Tiger, Roaring Dragon: Comparing India and China as Late Innovators

Despite growing interest in the phenomenon of ‘latecomer innovation,’ the nature of this challenge – and its relationship to globalization – remain poorly understood. This article develops a theoretic...

by Andrew Kennedya Kennedya | On 23 Dec 2015

Lending Rates Behavior in Bangladesh: Some Facts and Determinants

The intention of this study is to analyze lending rate behavior in Bangladesh and also to determine the factors that mostly affect the lending rates. For this purpose, a set of macro and bank specific...

by Shahana Nasrin | On 22 Dec 2015

The Politics of Climate Change in India: Narratives of Equity and Co-benefits

India occupies an intriguing dual position in global climate politics – a poor and developing economy with low levels of historical and per capita emissions, and a large and rapidly growing economy wi...

by Navroz Dubash | On 21 Dec 2015

Addressing Climate Change Risks, Disasters, and Adaptation in the People’s Republic of China

It is vital for countries to identify climate risks, reduce these risks through mitigation, and adapt to these risks—thereby increasing resilience and reducing vulnerability. This study informs decisi...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 21 Dec 2015

The Right of Citizens for Time Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011: Origin, Need, and Analysis

Tabled by V. Narayanasamy, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, in Lok Sabha in December 2011, The Right of Citizens for Time Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and Redre...

by Amit Chandra | On 21 Dec 2015

The High and Low Politics of Trade

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is in trouble. Its negotiating mechanism has mostly seized up, as reflected in the failure to conclude the long-running Doha Round. No obvious solution to this conun...

by | On 21 Dec 2015

Managing the Family Firm: Evidence from CEOs at Work

We develop a new survey instrument to codify CEOs’ diaries in large samples and use it to measure the labor supply of 1,114 family and professional CEOs of manufacturing firms across six countries...

by Oriana Bandiera | On 18 Dec 2015

Can Improved Cooking Stoves Work? The Nepal Chulo Experience

What motivates rural households to switch from older cooking methods to newer, more improved, ones? Improved cooking stoves (ICS) technology has demonstrated capacity to reduce health hazards from smo...

by Dipika Gawande | On 18 Dec 2015

Climate Change: Perspectives from India

This collection of articles captures and disseminates some perspectives on climate change from the Indian context. Starting from an argument on a new climate deal to highlighting the importance of the...

by Sunita Narain | On 17 Dec 2015

Accountability for International Nutrition Commitment Initiatives

This paper draws on secondary data to map out a proliferating set of international nutrition commitment initiatives, and assesses how these employ accountability mechanisms to support the delivery of...

by Dolf J.H. te Lintelo | On 17 Dec 2015

The Brics Development Bank

This policy brief recommends that these include commitments to: ending extreme poverty and inequality, with a special focus on gender equity and women’s rights; aligning with environmental and social...

by Oxfam International | On 17 Dec 2015

Rethinking India’s Climate Policy and the Global Negotiations

This essay examines India’s position in international negotiations on climate change and domestic mitigation actions, based on scientific evidence and equity. It is argued that India’s stance has larg...

by D Raghunandan | On 17 Dec 2015

Surrogacy: Law’s Labour Lost?

The article presents the inconsistencies in the revised Draft ART Bill of 2010, particularly with regard to provisions about surrogacy and citizenship of the babies born from a surrogate mother.

by Aastha Sharma | On 16 Dec 2015

China's Fitful Economic Reforms

Back in 2004, when I ran the Chinadesk at the International Monetary Fund, my team some written questions to Beijing ahead of our meetings with Chinese officials. China’s central bank had claimed that...

by Eswar Prasad | On 16 Dec 2015

National Experiences in Building Social Protection Floors: India’s Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

This study highlights three central themes of the MGNREGA: first, the innovative policy framework of the Act, which brings together rights-based entitlements, demand-driven employment, and citizen-cen...

by Ellen Ehmke | On 16 Dec 2015

An Analysis of the Turmoil in the Stock Market: Issues and Challenges for Monetary Policy

The objective of this study is to examine the characteristics of the stock market bubble burst in Bangladesh and policy response for the sample period from 2004:7-2013:2. This paper also discusses the...

by Dr. Sayera Younus | On 15 Dec 2015

Education Reforms, Bureaucracy and the Puzzles of Implementation: A Case Study from Bihar

It is a widely accepted truth that the Indian state suffers from a serious crisis of implementation capability. Despite widespread recognition of this crisis, there is remarkably little analytical wor...

by | On 15 Dec 2015

The Sunday Edit: The Music of Relativity

It’s a hundred years since Einstein laid out the fundamental landscape of the General Theory of Relativity and changed the human construct of our universe.

by S Srinivasan | On 14 Dec 2015

Adaptation in a Global Climate Agreement

This paper reviews the adaptation components of the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) submitted by developed, emerging, and least developed nations, and suggests how such measures...

by | On 11 Dec 2015

Climate-Smart Agriculture: Smallholder Adoption and Implications for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation

There are a wide range of agriculture-based practices and technologies that have the potential to increase food production and the adaptive capacity of the food production system, as well as reduce em...

by | On 09 Dec 2015

Comparing Emissions Mitigation Efforts across Countries

A framework for comparing mitigation effort is drawn, drawing from a set of principles for designing and implementing informative metrics. A template for organizing metrics on mitigation effort is pr...

by William Pizer | On 09 Dec 2015

Progress of the World’s Women 2008/2009: Who Answers to Women?

The “Progress of the World's Women 2008/2009: Who Answers to Women?” demonstrates that one of the most powerful constraints on realizing women's rights and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (...

by | On 07 Dec 2015

Gender Equality and Sustainable Development

The immense social, economic and environmental consequences of climate change and loss of essential ecosystems are becoming clear. Their effects are already being felt in floods, droughts, and devasta...

by | On 07 Dec 2015

Follow-up and Review of the SDGs: Fulfilling our Commitments

This paper considers the challenge of establishing a robust follow-up and review mechanism to support such implementation. The paper underscores the importance of the follow-up and review process taki...

by | On 04 Dec 2015

Government Intervention in Grain Markets in India: Rethinking the Procurement Policy

This paper reviews the rice procurement operations of the Government of India from the standpoints of cost of procurement as well as effectiveness in supporting farmers’ incomes. The two channels used...

by Neha Gupta | On 02 Dec 2015

The Socio-Economic Impact of HIV at the Household Level in Asia: A Regional Analysis of the Impact on Women and Girls

An important element of the socio-economic impact of HIV is how it disproportionately affects women and girls, in terms of their vulnerability to infection, constrained access to services and the a...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 01 Dec 2015

Narendra Modi’s Eighteen Months

What is the preogress report of Modi Government? Well, there are some good and bad reports. There are some good projects but the implementation part of it is slow.

by T.N. Ninan | On 28 Nov 2015

Parliament Session Alert-Winter Session Alert: November 26 – December 23, 201 5

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will meet for the Winter Session between November 26th and December 23rd, 2015. The legislative agenda includes 19 Bills currently pending in Parliament for consideration an...

by Kusum Malik | On 25 Nov 2015

Comment of the Draft Environmental Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015

The Bill which proposes fundamental changes to Environmental Governance in India is deeply disconcerting and disruptive of prevailing environmental jurisprudence. The Bill promotes fundamental changes...

by Environment Support Group (ESG) | On 20 Nov 2015

Fiscal Seigniorage “Laffer-curve effect” on Central Bank Autonomy in India

It is often emphasised that seigniorage financing of public sector deficits is technically a “free lunch” if the economy has not attained the full employment levels. However, conservative macroecono...

by Lekha S. Chakraborty | On 16 Nov 2015

Now Focus on the Economy

What the government should is to concentrate on economic issues with diversionary issues being put back in the cupboard.

by T.N. Ninan | On 07 Nov 2015

The Promise and Perils of Participatory Policy Making

This paper examines evidence on the advantages and limitations of participatory governance. The study compares theoretical predictions with the experience of South Africa, where policy-making fora ope...

by | On 04 Nov 2015

Top Ten Urban Innovations

Humanity faces the mammoth task of adding over 2 billion people to the urban population before 2050. This is the equivalent of creating a city the size of London or San Francisco every month for the n...

by | On 03 Nov 2015

Evaluating the Targeting Effectiveness of Social Transfers: A Literature Review

Many methodologies exist for dividing a population into those who are classified as eligible for social transfers and those who are ineligible. Popular targeting mechanisms include means testing, prox...

by | On 29 Oct 2015

Social Norms and Governance: The Behavioral Response to Female Leadership

Women in leadership positions make different policy choices compared to men. An increase in the proportion of female leaders can therefore alter both the nature of governance as well as the types of p...

by Pushkar Maitra | On 23 Oct 2015

State Food Provisioning as Social Protection: Debating India’s National Food Security Law

This report provides an overview on the main issues debated during the development and passage of the India’s National Food Security Act (2013), which legally binds national and state governments to e...

by Harsh Mander | On 20 Oct 2015

The Battle for Bihar

While the politics of caste and personalities do seem to be relevant to the elections to the Legislative Assembly in the eastern Indian State of Bihar, with the multi-phase polls beginning on 12 Octob...

by | On 19 Oct 2015

China’s One Belt One Road Strategy: The New Financial Institutions and India’s Options

This paper attempts to discuss India’s options to collaborate with China at the event of the formation of new financial institutions and how should India engage with China’s new Silk Road strategy.

by Ajay Chhibber | On 16 Oct 2015

E-Retailing and the Consumer Protection Bill, 2015: Drawing from the European Union Consumer Directives

E-retailing has exponentially grown in the past decade. Alongside, consumer grievances have also started surfacing. The Consumer Protection Bill, 2015 addresses this by giving the right to the consu...

by Akhileshwar Pathak | On 15 Oct 2015

The Consumer Protection Bill, 2015: (Lack of) Rights of the Consumer to Terminate Sale Contract

Consumer protection law rests on the foundations of contract law and the law of sale of goods. A consumer law has to conceptually express this foundation and the modifications it is bringing about in...

by Akhileshwar Pathak | On 13 Oct 2015

The Consumer Protection Bill, 2015

A bill to provide for adequate protection of the interests of consumers and for prevention of unfair trade practices and for the said purposes to make provisions for establishment of the Consumer Prot...

by Lok Sabha Secretariat | On 13 Oct 2015

The New Dread-word

The new dread-word is deflation. What does this mean for India? This can cause a threat for domestic producers. This is because of the global situation. We can be prepared and by improving efficiency...

by T.N. Ninan | On 09 Oct 2015

Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007–2012) Social Sector

The Eleventh Plan places the highest priority on education as a central instrument for achieving rapid and inclusive growth. It presents a comprehensive strategy for strengthening the education secto...

by Planning Commission, India | On 09 Oct 2015

Determination of Farm-Level Adaption Diversity to Cyclone and Flood: Insights from a Household-Level Survey in Eastern India

The present study aims to assess determinants of adaptation diversity (i.e., a number of adaptation mechanisms undertaken by the farm households). For empirical assessment, a farm household-level s...

by Chandra Sekhar Bahinipati | On 09 Oct 2015

Dividend Policy and Role of Corporate Governance in Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan

This study examines the relationship between internal mechanisms and external mechanisms of corporate governance and dividend policy for 100 manufacturing firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange over...

by | On 08 Oct 2015

Soil Health: Issues and Concerns - A Review

This paper brings out the importance of soil fertility management (SFM) with respect to agricultural production and livelihood contribution to the rural people. It looks into the farmers' own knowledg...

by B. Suresh Reddy | On 08 Oct 2015

India's Journey with Corporate Social Responsibility – What Next?

One of the causes for raised eyebrows to the Companies Act, 2013 is Section 135. The provision mandates companies meeting certain requirements to compulsorily contribute to corporate social responsibi...

by | On 06 Oct 2015

Attempting the Production of Public Goods through Microfinance: The Case of Water and Sanitation

This paper evaluates the attempt to create public goods via microfinance loans. Microfinance loans in the production of goods with public goods characteristics signify an emergent micro-privatisation....

by Philip Mader | On 06 Oct 2015

Strategies for Safe Motherhood in Tamil Nadu: A Note

While most states in India are grappling with the problem of high MMR, states such as Tamil Nadu have managed to reduce MMR levels to 79 deaths per 100,000 live births (SRS 2011–13). This review also...

by William Joe | On 06 Oct 2015

Now for the Reality Play

What the government needs to do, perhaps, is to spell out an action agenda for the next four months, in the run-up to the 2016 Budget.

by T.N. Ninan | On 02 Oct 2015

Public Good Provision in Indian Rural Areas: The Returns to Collective Action by Microfinance Groups

Self-help groups (SHGs) are the most common form of microfinance in India. The authors provide evidence that SHGs, composed of women only, undertake collective actions for the provision of public good...

by | On 01 Oct 2015

Housing Finance Mechanisms in India

India is home to over 1.1 billion people. With about one in every sixth person in the world living in India, housing perforce assumes significant importance. Successive Indian governments have regarde...

by UN-HABITAT | On 25 Sep 2015

Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements 2013

Planning and Design for Sustainable Urban Mobility argues that the development of sustainable urban transport systems requires a conceptual leap. The purpose 'transportation' and 'mobility' is to gain...

by UN-HABITAT | On 25 Sep 2015

Present State of Goods and Services Tax (GST) Reform in India

There are several challenges before introduction of GST and these can be classified into two broad heads – a) GST Design and Structure related, and b) GST Administration and Institutional. On design r...

by Sacchidananda Mukherjee | On 24 Sep 2015

The Challenge of Slums - Global Report on Human Settlements 2003

The Challenge of Slums presents the first global assessment of slums, emphasizing their problems and prospects. It presents estimates of the numbers of urban slum dwellers and examines the factors tha...

by United Nations Human Settlements Programme UN-Habitat | On 23 Sep 2015

Human Rights for All: International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

This Handbook is mainly for human rights practitioners who want to familiarise themselves with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and use the human rights fram...

by | On 23 Sep 2015

Geo-economics: Seven Challenges to Globalization

This report from the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Geo-economics maps out the challenges that current geo-economic trends pose for globalisation. Findings show that the rise in strat...

by | On 22 Sep 2015

Rural Health System in India: A Review

Rural Health is one of vital elements of rural life. India being a nation of villages requires an intensive approach towards rural health. Nearly 75 per cent of health infrastructure and other health...

by | On 22 Sep 2015

Education for All 2000-2015: Achievements and Challenges

This Report draws on all of this experience, to make sharp recommendations for the place of education in the future global sustainable development agenda. The lessons are clear. New education targets...

by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultura [UNESCO] | On 22 Sep 2015

Production, Market Structure and the Role of Public Policy: Foodgrains in the New Economy

Although India’s plans for market reforms and opening up agriculture with earnest optimism and anticipation, every step on the way was laced with caution and deliberation and every action was weighed...

by Nilabja Ghosh | On 21 Sep 2015

Report of the Working Group on Public Distribution System and Food Security for the Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-2007)

This planning commission report on Food Security deals with the changing consumption pattern for food in India and reviews some studies on demand and supply projections for cereals in India. It also e...

by Planning Commission | On 21 Sep 2015

Challenges In Designing Counterinsurgency Policy: An Institutionalist Perspective

Research on India's counterinsurgency practice is divided into two categories. One emphasizes moderation in the use of coercive power, while the other highlights its wanton abuse. This paper attempts...

by Kaustav Dhar Chakrabarti | On 18 Sep 2015

Designing and Evaluating Social Safety Nets: Theory, Evidence, and Policy Conclusions

This paper reviews the literature on the performance of commonly found social safety net programs in developing countries. The evidence suggests that universal food subsidies have very limited potenti...

by | On 18 Sep 2015

The Percolation of Public Expenditure: Food Subsidies and the Poor in India and Philippines

This paper measures the percolation of food subsidy expenditures to the poor. The paper proposes a metric that takes into account the depth and width of income transfer. The metric is applied to food...

by Shikha Jha | On 18 Sep 2015

Decentralized Local Governance and Citizen Participation in South Asia

This paper encompasses two major themes - local governance and citizens' participation in five neighbouring countries in South Asia, their trials, achievements and failures. Whether their experiences...

by | On 14 Sep 2015

Steel's a Steal

Steel is a basic input for the entire engineering industry (cars, household goods, machinery of all kinds), and for the infrastructure sector (roads, railways, power, real estate, etc). Raise the cost...

by T.N. Ninan | On 12 Sep 2015

Overcoming the Curse of Malnutrition in India: A Leadership Agenda for Action

The leadership agenda for action released by Coalition for Sustainable Nutrition Security in India to promote policy, programme and budgetary focus on overcoming the curse of malnutrition. The Coaliti...

by Coalition for Food & Nutrition Security India | On 11 Sep 2015

Developing Regional Value Chains in South Asian Leather Clusters: Issues, Options and an Indian Case

The possibility of developing regional production networks in specific sectors between nations of South Asia has been explored in this paper. The case of the leather and leather goods cluster in T...

by Keshab Das | On 11 Sep 2015

Making the Indian Budget: How Open and Participatory?

Open and participatory budget making is imperative for good governance; yet by international standards India fares badly on this count. This article analyses the process of budget preparation and...

by Vinod Bhanu | On 11 Sep 2015

Basel III Implementation- Challenges for Indian Banking System

In India, Basel III capital regulation has been implemented from April 1, 2013 in phases and it will be fully implemented as on March 31, 2019. Do we need Basel III for a country like India? What are...

by N.S. Viswanathan | On 08 Sep 2015

Centre-State Relations in India: Time for a New Framework

Three cross-cutting developments, namely the rise of regional political parties, globalisation and liberalisation of the economy and judicialisation of the federal process have deeply influenced the m...

by Niranjan Sahoo | On 07 Sep 2015

A Review of Data on Nutrition in India: Preliminary Findings

This paper summarizes the preliminary findings of Global Nutrition Report (GNR), which we shared at the GNR stakeholder roundtable in New Delhi. The primary recommendations suggested are a set of core...

by | On 04 Sep 2015

Kerala Perspective Plan 2030

The Kerala Perspective Plan 2030 (KPP) is a Government of Kerala initiative that will serve as the basis for implementation of a series of initiatives aimed at fostering sustainable and inclusive grow...

by Government of Kerala Govt | On 04 Sep 2015

The Great Expectations: Impact of One-Child Policy on Education of Girls

The findings of the paper highlights the role of fertility policies in women’s empowerment of last century. This paper investigates the impact of the birth control policies on teenage girls’ education...

by Wei Huang | On 03 Sep 2015

Globalization, Liberalization and Income Inequality: The Case of China

This paper studies the mutual effects of globalization, liberalization and income inequality using a case study of China. Comparing the trends of economic growth and income distribution, it found that...

by Jinjun Xue | On 03 Sep 2015

Decent Work, Youth Employment and Migration in Asia

This paper discusses migration trends and issues concerning young people in Asia - a region hosting more than 60 per cent of world’s youth population and one third of the global number of young migran...

by | On 01 Sep 2015

Excess Food Stocks, PDS and Procurement Policy

This planning commission paper tries to examine some of the factors that have led to accumulation of excess food grain stocks and make policy prescription on how to deal with the problem of surplus fo...

by Arvind Virmani | On 25 Aug 2015

Reforming Internet Governance and the Role of China

This paper examines the issue of internet governance and analyzes the developments and challenges in reforming the current system. With state and non-state actors alike seeking to influence the way th...

by | On 25 Aug 2015

Understanding Children’s Risk and Agency in Urban Areas and their Implications for Child-centred Urban Disaster Risk Reduction in Asia: Insights From Dhaka, Kathmandu, Manila and Jakarta

This paper presents the findings of a study undertaken by IIED in partnership with Plan International on urban children’s risk and agency in four large Asian cities: Dhaka (Bangladesh), Kathmandu (Nep...

by | On 24 Aug 2015

Priorities for Primary Education Policy in India’s 12th Five-year Plan

This paper seeks to bridge the gap by summarizing the research, making policy recommendations based on this research, and suggesting an implementation roadmap for the 12th Plan. The main findings repo...

by Karthik Muralidharan | On 20 Aug 2015

Profile of Educational Outcomes by Gender: An Age Cohort Analysis

How to achieve target of universal primary education in Pakistan and how do we keep students that have enrolled to continue with schooling to higher levels are the most important policy questions whi...

by Madeeha Gohar Qureshi | On 18 Aug 2015

The Public Education System and What the Costs Imply

There are basic methodological and conceptual problems with recent research that ends up arguing that private school education is more effective than public education. Such findings have obvious polic...

by | On 17 Aug 2015

Public Debt Management in India and Related Issues

This study focuses on the marketable domestic public debt of the Government of India (GoI) in terms of size, magnitude, policy and approach followed and also discusses issues and challenges on debt m...

by Lakshmanan L | On 13 Aug 2015

Economic Growth, Financial Development and Income Inequality

The central objective of the paper is to empirically examine the relationship between financial development and income inequality. Theoretically, there are grounds for both a positive and negative re...

by Donghyun Park | On 12 Aug 2015

Social Enterprises and Employment: Mainstreaming SMEs and Employment Creation

This paper argues that mainstreaming SMEs and SE into various international treaties will require the assumption of positive externalities which markets cannot fully evaluate. To show this, the possib...

by Leonardo Lanzona | On 12 Aug 2015

The BPO Challenge: Leveraging Capabilities, Creating Opportunities

There may not be a single standard approach to developing the ICT-BPO sector, the successful experiences of developing countries can provide useful insights and practical lessons for countries contemp...

by Fatima Lourdes E. Del Prado | On 12 Aug 2015

Pathways of Transnational Activism: A Conceptual Framework

This paper presents a novel analytical framework to study transnational activism in the context of today’s international governance architecture. While there is a considerable amount of literature on...

by Sabrina Zajak | On 07 Aug 2015

Reaching Every Child for Primary Immunization: An Experience from Parsa District, Nepal

This document describes the activities and achievements of an effective approach used in Nepal to involve community leaders and local health workers, volunteers, and organizations in tracking children...

by Hari Krishna Shah | On 06 Aug 2015

The Millennium Development Goals Report 2015

The MDG Report 2015 found that the 15-year effort to achieve the eight aspirational goals set out in the Millennium Declaration in 2000 was largely successful across the globe, while acknowledging sho...

by United Nations UN | On 05 Aug 2015

Economics of Human Trafficking

This paper presents an economic model of human trafficking that encompasses all known economic factors that affect human trafficking both across and within national borders. The authors envision human...

by Elizabeth M. Wheaton | On 05 Aug 2015

IT Governance and IT Strategy: Board's Eye View

Banking in India and globally is undergoing and there are many challenges that are lying ahead. The basic underlying theme that runs through this changing landscape is the ever increasing reliance on...

by Harun R Khan | On 04 Aug 2015

Rationalisation of Agriculture in Kerala: Implications for Natural Environment, Agro-Ecosystems and Livelihoods

This paper takes on an older debate that the agriculture transformation in the regional economy of Kerala has been mainly driven by ‘peasant rationality’. It argues that the agrarian transformation...

by Viswanathan P K | On 31 Jul 2015

Speaking Out: Safeguarding Civil Society Space for Children

Save the Children believes that a strong, diverse and independent civil society can play an important role in ensuring the realisation of children’s rights. This policy brief outlines why Save the Chi...

by Save Children | On 28 Jul 2015

Liberalizing Trade of Environmental Goods and Services: How to Address the Free-Rider Problem

This paper aims to provide APEC members with evidence-based guidance on the implementation of the APEC mandate. Theoretically, this approach addresses the free-rider problem. Free riders are countries...

by | On 28 Jul 2015

Forgotten Voices: The World of Urban Children in India

This report discusses how the major urban development schemes in India do not adequately take into account issues related to children’s health, education, growth, safety and participation. The rising...

by Save Children | On 28 Jul 2015

Public Economics and Sustainable Developments Policy

The domain of public economics is increasing as governments‘ policy goal is shifting from economic development to sustainable development. The government has to act as a trustee representing future ge...

by U. Sankar | On 22 Jul 2015

Public Service Spending: Efficiency and Distributional Impact—Lessons from Asia

Efficiency and equity are cornerstones in rational service delivery in the public sector. This paper benchmarks efficiency and equity in public spending on health, education and social protection in a...

by | On 10 Jul 2015

Action Alert? A Mid-Day Meal for Children: A Story Full of Non-Compliance, Poor Performance and Irregularities, Say the CAG Findings

Is the mid-day meal scheme following the nutritional standards? Are funds properly allocated? HARCRC is showing a clear picture of what is happening to the mid-day meal scheme.

by HAQ Centre for Child Rights HAQCRC | On 08 Jul 2015

Engaging Civil Society to Promote Democratic Local Governance: Emerging Trends and Policy Implications in Asia

This paper discusses a wide range of issues in engaging civil society to deepen and sustain decentralization and local democracy. It examines the concepts of democratic local governance and decentrali...

by | On 07 Jul 2015

A Commons Story in the Rain Shadow of Green Revolution

The study is an attempt to bring to the fore a Commons perspective of agriculture, livestock and rural livelihoods in the dryland and tribal areas of India. Would agriculture, livestock and rural live...

by Foundation for Ecological Security FES | On 07 Jul 2015

Education and Academic Entrepreneurship in India

The paper aims to explore few aspects of academic entrepreneurship. Besides dwelling upon the conceptual definition, there is an attempt to understand the processes and stages of academic entrepreneur...

by Deepthi Shanker | On 30 Jun 2015

Mainstreaming SMEs through Social Enterprises

Social enterprises (SEs) are crucial both for the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and labor generation. The goal of SEs is to provide public goods to communities. In the Philippines...

by | On 29 Jun 2015

The Similarity and Liking Effects on Interpersonal Attraction: A Test of the Two-Dimensional Cognitive Model

In the two-dimensional model of interpersonal attraction, cognitively evaluated respect for capacity of and trust in willingness to facilitate goals/needs of each other have been postulated to be nec...

by Ramadhar Singh | On 25 Jun 2015

Improving Children’s Lives, Transforming the Future – 25 years of Child Rights in South Asia

Despite rapid economic growth in South Asia, strong inequalities persist and children pay a heavy price. This publication examines latest trends and data on children in the eight countries of the regi...

by United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF | On 24 Jun 2015

Progress for Children beyond Averages: Learning from the MDGS

A child’s chance to survive and thrive is much greater in 2015 than it was when the global community committed to the MDGs in 2000. Data show significant progress in areas such as child survival, nutr...

by United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF | On 24 Jun 2015

Impact of Climate Change on Food Production: Options for Importing Countries

This RSIS policy brief identifies possible implications of climate change disturbances on crops and livestock in world production centers by 2030, 2050 and 2080. Policy recommendations for importing...

by | On 22 Jun 2015

Street Vending in Ten Cities in India

For most street vendors, trading from the pavements is full of uncertainties. They are constantly harassed by the authorities. The local bodies conduct eviction drives to clear the pavements of these...

by Sharit Bhowmik | On 22 Jun 2015

Medium-Term Budgetary Framework (MTBF) of Prime Minister’s Office 2011-12

The statement aims to build a knowledge-based and digital Bangladesh and to advance the socio-economic conditions of all sections of the nation, through the establishment of good governance in the all...

by Ministry of Finance Bangladesh | On 17 Jun 2015

The Institutionalisation of Climate Policy in India: Designing a Development-Focused, Co-Benefits Based Approach

While there is growing attention to climate policy, effective coordination, design and implementation of policy require attention to institutional design for climate governance. This paper examines th...

by | On 16 Jun 2015

Implementation of Forest Rights Act: Undoing the Historical Injustices?

This paper is based on a critical literature review and looks into the implementation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) in India, with particular reference to the two states of Chhattisgarh and Gujarat....

by Madhusudan Bandi | On 09 Jun 2015

Tackling Myanmar’s Corruption Challenge

Corruption is widespread in Myanmar, and this has significant negative effects on the country’s economic development. In response, President U Thein Sein has made fighting corruption a priority. Howev...

by Khaing Sape Saw | On 04 Jun 2015

The Constitution (One Hundred and Fifteenth Amendment) Bill, 2011

This Bill is further amendment to the constitution on levy and collection of goods and service tax and trade in India. It provides the parliament with exclusive powers to make laws with respect to goo...

by Ministry of Finance | On 19 May 2015

State of Indian Farmers: A Report

The present study is based on primary survey across 18 states of India by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), Delhi conducted between December 2013 and January 2014. The survey wa...

by | On 18 May 2015

YOJANA Volume 58, Issue 1- January 2014

The January 2014 issue of YOJANA contains the following articles - Tribal and Marginalized Communities, Constitutional Provisions, Laws and Tribes, Actualising Adivasi Self-Rule, The Food Bill, Wild F...

by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting MIB | On 11 May 2015

Socio-economic Impact of Implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in India

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005 which is a rights-based flagship scheme of the Government of India with effect from 2 February, 2006, guarantees at least 100...

by | On 06 May 2015

The Violence of Disappearance: Reading the Boko Haram Kidnapping

‘To disappear’ is no longer a metaphysical-theological mystery or magic act, but a political invention that must be seen as integral to the violence of modern politics. Focusing on the disappearance o...

by Pramod K. Nayar | On 04 May 2015

MGNREGA Sameeksha: An Anthology of Research Studies on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (2005) Act 2006–2012

This report by Ministry of Rural Development is an analytical anthology of all major research studies done on Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Act (MGNREGA) that were published in various acad...

by | On 29 Apr 2015

Growing through Cities in Developing Countries

This paper examines the effects of urbanization on development and growth. It begins with a labor market perspective and emphasizes the importance of agglomeration economies, both static and dynamic....

by | On 24 Apr 2015

Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012–2017): Social Sectors

This Five Year Plan document focuses on Social Sectors like Health, Education, Employment and Skill Development, Women’s Agency and Child Rights, Social Inclusion.

by Planning Commission | On 23 Apr 2015

Compendium of State Policies from the Perspective of Climate Change Mitigation

The report documents compendium of state policies from perspective of climate change mitigation with findings such as many states endowed with rich natural resources are naturally very environment fri...

by | On 21 Apr 2015

Economic Policy Reforms in South Asia: An Overview and the Remaining Agenda

In the past few years, the pace of economic growth in South Asia has slowed considerably for two reasons: unfavourable global economic environment and the slowing pace of economic reforms that once we...

by | On 20 Apr 2015

The National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 -Challenges, Buffer Stocking and the Way

The National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 combines and expands the scope of some existing food-based welfare schemes. It will be distributing raw rations, meal(s) and/or cash. Approximately 81.35 cro...

by Shweta Saini | On 20 Apr 2015

Towards a Developmental Framework for Net Neutrality: The Rise of Sponsored Data Plans in Developing Countries

Academic research has been paying little attention to the net neutrality debate in developing countries, where large content providers such as Facebook, Google and Twitter have long been executing agr...

by | On 14 Apr 2015

Myanmar: Cross-Cutting Governance Challenges

The paper assesses the current status of governance institutions in Myanmar, as well as their performance, in comparison to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and selected other countr...

by Cullen Hendrix | On 02 Apr 2015

Foreign Trade Policy: 1st April, 2015 – 31st March, 2020

The new five year foreign trade policy, 2015-2020 provides a framework for increasing exports of goods and services as well as generation of employment and increasing value addition in the country. Th...

by Ministry of Commerce and Industry GOI | On 02 Apr 2015

The National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 - Challenges, Buffer Stocking and the Way Forward

The paper empirically maps the annual distribution commitment (61.43 MMTs) of the government with the procurement pattern of rice and wheat, for each quarter, to estimate the quarterly operational sto...

by Shweta Saini | On 01 Apr 2015

Situating Labour in the Global Production Network Debate: As if the ‘South’ Mattered

The basic purpose of this paper is to contextualise and highlight the issue of labour and working conditions in industries in the global South engaged in subcontracting operations under the control of...

by Keshab Das | On 31 Mar 2015

Assam Child Budget 2014-15

The State budget had focused the receipt and expenditure under the Consolidated Fund of the Government with dissemination of allocation under different development sectors. The fund flow towards child...

by | On 24 Mar 2015

Budget (2015-16) Speech of Haryana Finance Minister

Budget speech of Haryana Finance Minister

by Capt. Abhimanyu | On 24 Mar 2015

The India–Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement and the Proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement: A Closer Look

The paper provides the Sri Lankan perspective of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) highlighting both the positive outcomes and the negative aspects. The paper shows that the FTA has worked in favor of Sr...

by Saman Kelegama | On 16 Mar 2015

Make in India: Re-chanting the Mantra with a Difference

The paper attempts to trace the origin and idea of Make in India through time and identifies what needs to be done to turn the Make in India mantra into a reality. Free market is the engine of growth...

by Satish Y Deodhar | On 13 Mar 2015

An Agenda for the New Government: Policy Options for India in Maldives

According to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs’ (MEA) brief on ‘India-Maldives Relations’: “India and Maldives share ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious and commercial links steeped in antiq...

by | On 10 Mar 2015

Youth and Democratic Citizenship in East and South-East Asia

This report addresses East and South-East Asian youth’s sense of involvement and empowerment as democratic citizens, their assessments of institutions and quality of governance, and how they particip...

by United Nations Development Programme UNDP | On 10 Mar 2015

Women in Indian Labour Market - Emerging Options

Expanding women’s access to the labour market and enhancing their employability, apart from all its other impact, contributes to the GDP substantially. It is important to generate creative partnership...

by G.D Bino Paul | On 10 Mar 2015

Small Farming Needs a Budget Boost

The asks of the Agriculture sector are many but what all must the budget focus on? A National Convention on Budget 2015-16 by the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability looks at these.

by Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability | On 26 Feb 2015

Climate Change: Slow It Down or Deal With It?

Climate change is for real and there are two responses – mitigation or adaptation. What does the Union Budget need to do about climate change adaptation?

by Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability | On 26 Feb 2015

Budget 'Asks' for Food and Nutrition Security

With the budget round the corner what are the asks from the standpoint of food sovereignty? A Convention on Budget 2015-16 by the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability looks at these.

by Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability | On 26 Feb 2015

Citizens Charter on Drinking Water and Sanitation before Union Budget

Ahead of the Union Budget, Civil Society Organizations ask for policy strategies to support drinking water and sanitation for vulnerable sections. Civil society budget groups, collectively as a networ...

by Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability | On 26 Feb 2015

Inclusive Water Governance: a Global Necessity. Lessons from India

Efficient water management has emerged as a critical challenge of environmental protection and human security in the twenty-first century. Lack of water management affects the hydrological cycle of th...

by | On 24 Feb 2015

Cracks in Budgetary Policies towards the Social Sectors

The union budget for 2014-15 offers few changes in terms of policy priorities from the United Progressive Alliance government interim budget for 2014-15, and it fails to recognise the cracks in the co...

by Subrat Das | On 20 Feb 2015

Budget Transparency and Participation: Recommendations to the Fourteenth Finance Commission

This paper explores the need for a Pre-Budget Statement, sub-national transparency and civil society participation to make the budgetary process in India more transparent, accountable and participator...

by Ravi Duggal | On 20 Feb 2015

Public Spending Towards Harnessing Renewable Energy in India

The energy sector unquestionably constitutes one of the major driving forces of Indian economy. Ever since the 12th Plan has projected the growth rate of 8-9 per cent per annum for the economy for the...

by Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability | On 20 Feb 2015

The Impacts of Infrastructure in Development: A Selective Survey

Development economists have considered physical infrastructure to be a precondition for industrialization and economic development. Yet, two issues remain to be addressed in the literature. First, whi...

by Yasuyuki Sawada | On 16 Feb 2015

Asymmetric Price Adjustment - Evidence for India

The study tries to examine whether there exists asymmetry in the price adjustment of firms while using the commodity wise whole sale price indices belonging to three different sectors - primary, manuf...

by Sartaj Rather | On 12 Feb 2015

India’s Climate Strategy Needs Revision

Developing countries do not come with a clear plan or proactive position to climate change negotiations, whereas industrialised nations do - to erase their contribution to the emissions already presen...

by Sunita Narain | On 22 Jan 2015

Cash Transfers and Temptation Goods

This paper reviews 19 studies with quantitative evidence on the impact of cash transfers on temptation goods. Studies find either no significant impact or a significant negative impact of transfers on...

by David K. Evans | On 22 Jan 2015

The Mechanism of Long-Term Growth in India

This paper aim to provide an account of growth in India based on its internal dynamics. This helps to place the relative roles of policy, shocks, and internal dynamics. The paper leads us to conclude...

by Pulapre Balakrishnan | On 21 Jan 2015

Towards A Pareto Efficient Indian Agricultural Market - with Specific Focus on Rice and Wheat Markets

The paper examines the policies of the central as well as state governments with respect to the agricultural market, specifically in rice and wheat markets, analyses their shortcomings and argues for...

by Anandi Subramanian | On 16 Jan 2015

Annual Status of Education Report (Rural) 2014

ASAR report has made a great contribution to the discussions on our primary education policy. On a few parameters, these surveys show that the overall learning levels have deteriorated over the years....

by PRATHAM | On 15 Jan 2015

Governance in Sri Lanka: Lessons from Post-Tsunami Rebuilding

This article applies complex evolving systems theory to investigating the governance factors affecting rebuilding in the wake of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka. It also examines the crucial processes o...

by | On 13 Jan 2015

Food Security and Nutritional scenario of India- An overview

The purpose of this paper is to assess the availability of food to poor and nutritional situation of national households. The growth of production of food grains is 2.12 per cent in 2000-01 to 2010-1...

by | On 26 Dec 2014

Logged On : Smart Government Solutions from South Asia

Mobile technology is helping to fight corruption in Pakistan, improve health delivery in Bangladesh, provide access to government by the ordinary citizen in India, and help monitor elections in Afghan...

by Zubair Bhatti | On 18 Dec 2014

Price Movements for Rice and Wheat: A Structuralist Policy Perspective

This paper examines the price movements in rice and wheat, following structuralist principles emphasizing the necessity of long term solutions in combination with short and medium term management. How...

by K U Gopakumar | On 17 Dec 2014

Urban Governance in Bangladesh: The Post-Independence Scenario

Urbanization worldwide has been found to be an effective engine of economic growth and socio-cultural development. In pure economic terms, urbanization contributes significantly to the national econ...

by | On 17 Dec 2014

Impediments to Contract Enforcement in Day Labour Markets: A Perspective from India

This paper focuses on one such setting in India's urban informal economy: the 'day labour' market for casual labour. We survey seven such markets in Navi Mumbai (a city on the outskirts of Mumbai),...

by Karthikeya Naraparaju | On 12 Dec 2014

Last Call to Get Climate Deal Right

The US “peaked” its emissions in 2012. Countries which were required to cut emissions did not do so at the scale or pace needed. The Durban CoP agreed that the world would work to finalise a new agree...

by Sunita Narain | On 03 Dec 2014

Land of exclusion: India exclusion Report 2013-14

The report seeks to track and map the extent to which central and state governments in India have succeeded in ensuring access to a range of basic public goods for all people. This report argues that...

by Centre Equity Studies | On 27 Nov 2014

Role of Collective Agency in Gender Rights

The fact that progress in equal rights for women has come about largely through the efforts of social reform movement in the 19th century and women’s liberation movement in the 20th century Maharashtr...

by Vibhuti Patel | On 21 Nov 2014

Consequences of Unequal Urbanization on Development

Historically, urbanization has been a great force of economic transformation, modernization and social change in the developed world. On the flip side, migration has been blamed for the woes of modern...

by Ram Bhagat | On 21 Nov 2014

Efficiency in Healthcare Delivery: Performance of Public Services

This paper focusses on the current health profile of the state of Maharashtra, and its performance as against other growth driven states like Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. Using parameters such as birth rat...

by Manisha Karne | On 21 Nov 2014

An Empirical Study of Determinants of Child Labour

The objective of this paper is to analyse the nature and magnitude of the problem and determinants of child labour and their participation in the workforce at an early age. The results reveal that fam...

by Kabita Sahu | On 20 Nov 2014

Criss-Crossing Globalization: Uphill Flows of Skill-Intensive Goods and Foreign Direct Investment

This paper documents an unusual and possibly significant phenomenon: the export of skills, embodied in goods, services or capital from poorer to richer countries. A set of stylized facts is presente...

by Aaditya Mattoo | On 06 Nov 2014

Agriculture, Income and Nutrition Linkages in India

India contains the majority of the world’s malnourished children, yet malnutrition has declined only very slowly in recent years, despite rapid economic growth and apparent improvements in food securi...

by Suneetha Kadiyala | On 31 Oct 2014

Governance Issues and Challenges in Implementation Of National Food Security Act 2013

India is a developing country having 2nd highest population in the world. Even after 66 years of its independence, County is facing a serious issue of poverty and malnutrition. The Government of I...

by Hitesh S. Gujarati | On 29 Oct 2014

Voice and Agency: Empowering Women and Girls for Shared Prosperity

Despite recent advances in important aspects of the lives of girls and women, pervasive challenges remain. These challenges reflect widespread deprivations and constraints and include epidemic levels...

by Jeni Klugman | On 14 Oct 2014

The 100 Laws Project: Compendium of Laws to be Repealed

100 laws are identified which can be repealed. The laws in this compendium need to be repealed on account of any one of three reasons: they are either redundant (having outlived their purpose), they...

by Centre for Civil Society CCS | On 08 Oct 2014

Evolution and Critique of Buffer Stocking Policy of India

An evaluation of the country’s buffer stock policy reveals gaps and inefficiencies. Large quantities of food grains have accumulated in the godowns of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and its nom...

by Shweta Saini | On 26 Sep 2014

Violence against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia

Violence against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia examines the prevalence and factors associated with various types of violence against women and girls in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indi...

by Jennifer L. Solotaroff | On 25 Sep 2014

Unpacking Transparency and Accountability Measures

Accountability is broadly defined as the obligation of those holding power to take responsibility for their behaviour and actions. Essentially the term encapsulates three main elements; answerability...

by Gayatri Sahgal | On 16 Sep 2014

Production, Procurement and Inflation: A Market Model for Food Grains

Rapid rise in the price of food grains and their continued upsurge is a matter of concern for not only the government and policy makers but also for all concerned with social welfare. This is particul...

by Gopakumar K.U. | On 15 Sep 2014

Letting Girls Learn: Promising Approaches in Primary and Secondary Education

This paper analyses the benefits from female education (who gains and in what ways) and the constraints (direct and opportunity costs, reflecting economics and tradition). It then outlines promising a...

by Barbara Herz | On 01 Aug 2014

The Political Economy of MGNREGS Spending in Andhra Pradesh

Are ostensibly demand-driven public programs less susceptible to political clientelism even when private goods are allocated? This is examined using expenditure data at the local level from India’s N...

by Megan Sheahan | On 01 Aug 2014

Examining the Impact of Climate Change on Migration through the Agricultural Channel: Evidence from District Level Panel Data from Bangladesh

This paper studies how changes in climatic variables such as temperature and rainfall impact migration through agriculture. Bangladesh is recognized as one of the most vulnerable countries to climate...

by Paritosh Roy | On 31 Jul 2014

Position Paper: National Focus Group on Teaching Science

The objectives, content, pedagogy and assessment of science education at various stages are examined.

by National Council of Educational Research &Training NCERT | On 25 Jul 2014

Union Budget 2014 - Education, Employment and Skill Building

According to Census estimates, more than half the population of the country, 51.8 per cent, to be precise, is less than 35 years of age, while the population in the critical demography category of 18-...

by Nandini Bhattacharya | On 16 Jul 2014

Union Budget 2014: Budgetary Resources for Public Goods

India’s health policy has focused on primary health centers and hospitals. The numbers of hospital beds, doctors, and nurses per 1000 persons have often been treated less as inputs and more as measure...

by Aarti Salve | On 14 Jul 2014

Who Goes? Failures of Marital Provisioning and Women's Agency among Less Skilled Emigrant Women Workers from Kerala

This paper draws upon a selection of narratives from interviews with over 150 less skilled emigrant and returnee women workers from Trivandrum district to argue that the conditions that structure i...

by Praveena Kodoth | On 14 Jul 2014

Student Learning in South Asia: Challenges, Opportunities, and Policy Priorities

This report covers education from primary through upper secondary school. Given its importance for school readiness, this report also reviews early childhood development even though that is outside...

by Halil Dundar | On 11 Jul 2014

In-service Teacher Training for Public Primary Schools in Rural India

The paper represents an amalgamation of different viewpoints of teachers, cluster resource co-ordinators, resource persons, and staff members from district and state level offices of SSA, DIET, Depart...

by Huma Kidwai | On 07 Jul 2014

India's Public Distribution System: A National and International Perspective

This study examines the impact of India's Public Distribution System (PDS) on poor households in terms of income gains, reductions in the incidence and severity of poverty, as well as nutritional impr...

by R. Radhakrishna | On 07 Jul 2014

"They Say We’re Dirty": Denying an Education to India’s Marginalized

The 77-page report documents discrimination by school authorities in four Indian states against Dalit, tribal, and Muslim children. The discrimination creates an unwelcome atmosphere that can lead to...

by Human Rights Watch | On 17 Jun 2014

The Market Valuation of Innovation: The Case of Indian Manufacturing

The relationship between market value and innovation in the context of manufacturing firms in India was analysed, using data for 2001-2010. In a milieu where most firms do not patent, the concern was...

by Sunil Kanwar | On 10 Jun 2014

Connecting South Asia to Southeast Asia: Cross-Border Infrastructure Investments

Most of the trade between South Asia and Southeast Asia is by sea. However, with improved infrastructure and easier border crossing procedures, land traffic could grow to boost trade in goods, service...

by Jean-Francois Gautrin Gautrin | On 02 Jun 2014

Some notes on negotiations around sexuality and consumption practices among young women of Delhi

This paper examines the construction of female sexual desire in contemporary Indian advertising with a special emphasis on how young women of Delhi negotiate with issues in and around sexuality and co...

by Aakriti Kohli | On 13 May 2014

World Atlas of Gender Equality in Education

Gender equality is one of the six goals of the global Education for All campaign that UNESCO leads. This was launched in 2000, when the countries of the world agreed to “eliminate gender disparities i...

by Edward B. Fiske | On 12 May 2014

Annual Report 2010-11 Department Of Food and Public Distribution

The primary Policy objective of the Department of Food& Public Distribution is to ensure food security for the country through timely and efficient procurement and distribution of foodgrains. This inv...

by MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DIST GOI | On 05 May 2014

REACH Annual Report 2013

REACH, Renewed Efforts Against Child Hunger and under-nutrition, is an inter-agency initiative established in 2008 by the four UN agencies Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Child...

by USAID Agency for International Development | On 29 Apr 2014

Decentralised Forest Governance, Institutions and Livelihoods in Odisha: A Study of Evolution of Policy Process and Politics

This paper aims to provide an analytical glimpse of the evolution of forest policies in Odisha in the post-independence era, by unraveling the major stages of evolution of such policies. The paper a...

by Bishnu Prasad Mohapatra | On 02 Apr 2014

Incorporating Public Good Availability into the Measurement of Poverty

This paper makes an attempt to incorporate bene ts from unpaid public services into consumption decisions to arrive at more accurate measures of poverty and inequality. The analysis is based on prim...

by Anders Kjelsrud | On 14 Mar 2014

Environmental Goods and Services: Issues for Negotiations for India

Liberalisation of trade in environmental goods and services (EGS) has become a key issue at the complex and rapidly developing trade and environment interface. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) at it...

by Vijaya Katti | On 12 Mar 2014

Market Opportunitiesin Environmental Goods And Services, Renewable Energy,Carbon Finance And CATS

The report considers the general market opportunities presented in the selected countries. It is based on desk research that drew on the most readily available and accessible information sourced from...

by UK DEVELOPMENT | On 12 Mar 2014

Global Value Chains And Development

Global trade in goods and services, which today amounts to more than $20 trillion, includes a significant amount of double counting. Raw material extracted in one country may be exported first to a se...

by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development | On 10 Mar 2014

The Governance Of Global Value Chains

This article builds a theoretical framework to help explain governance patterns in global value chains. It draws on three streams of literature – transaction costs economics, production networks, and...

by Gary Gereffi | On 10 Mar 2014

Debating Poverty

The first of a series of eSSays dossiers on issues of public concern. Guest editor: M.H. Suryanarayana. Contents: Poverty Line: Pursuit of an Elusive Minimum by M.H. Suryanarayana Fixing Poverty...

by eSocialSciences eSS | On 08 Mar 2014

Determinants of Clusters in Indian Manufacturing: The Role of Infrastructure, Governance, Education, and Industrial Policy

This paper investigates the determinants of spatial concentration and entry within manufacturing across states in India. Using an unbalanced panel of 180 industries spread across 16 major Indian sta...

by Ana M. Fernandes | On 30 Jan 2014

India’s Development Cooperation: Charting New Approaches in a Changing World

This report first briefly delves into the historical context within which India's development cooperation must be seen and the role, objectives and the functioning of the DPA is explained. The report...

by Vivan Sharan | On 21 Jan 2014

Asian Development Bank Sustainability Report

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) Sustainability Report has been issued every 2 years since 2007. The current Sustainability Report contains selected performance highlights of ADB’s operations and corp...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 20 Jan 2014

Governance and Development Outcomes in Asia

The relationship between governance and economic development is one of the most important areas of research in international development. Much of the previous literature has focused on whether better...

by Kunal Sen | On 20 Jan 2014

Security and the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment: Findings from a Thematic Synthesis of the Pathways of Women’s Empowerment Research

While security and women’s empowerment are both prominent development concerns, there has to date been little sustained analysis of the relationship between the two. An unexamined assumption appears t...

by Naomi Hossain | On 15 Jan 2014

Economics of Migration and Remittances: A Review Article

The aim of this paper is to analyse the different generations of migration theory and remittances from the development economics perspective, examining in particular the dichotomy between economic a...

by Puja Guha | On 02 Jan 2014

Child Work and Schooling in Rural North India: What do Time Use Data Say about Tradeoffs and Drivers of Human Capital Investment?

This study examines time use data for 1244 children in the age-group 6-12 years in 274 villages in eight states in rural north India to understand the tradeoffs between time spent in school, time sp...

by Sudha Narayanan | On 02 Dec 2013

Justice and State-Building in Afghanistan: State vs. Society vs. Taliban: Reflections on a Survey of the Afghan People

In Afghanistan, the process of creating a state judiciary has developed slowly, first through the gradual assertion of state control over sharia courts starting from the reign of Abdur Rahman (1880-19...

by Antonio Giustozzi | On 22 Nov 2013

Southeast Asia’s Food Security Challenge: More than ‘Stock’ Solution Needed

Countries in Southeast Asia face a fresh challenge to their food security as food consumption patterns change, and reliance on imports increases to meet such shifts. Consequently, they may be left wit...

by Belinda Chng | On 01 Nov 2013

Rationalism Rationed

The gruesome murder of Dabolkar, who had been spearheading a movement against superstitions in Maharashtra, has plunged all people of rationalist disposition in shock. Voices are rising that laws sho...

by Oscar F Picazo | On 22 Oct 2013

Welfare and Poverty Impacts of India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme: Evidence from Andhra Pradesh

India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) is one of the largest public works programs globally. Understanding the impacts of NREGS and the pathway through which its impacts are realiz...

by Songqing Jin | On 14 Oct 2013

Envisioned Scope and Challenges of National Food Security Bill

National Food Security Bill (NFSB) aims to make food easily accessible at affordable prices to people. But there are operational and financial difficulties in implementing this.

by Sweety Thomas | On 07 Oct 2013

Do Open Sewers Lead to a Reduction in Housing Prices? Evidence from Rawalpindi, Pakistan

The Hedonic property value method is used to estimate how a dismenity, bad odor from an open sewer system, affects housing prices in the city of Rawalpindi in Pakistan. An estimate of the benefits of...

by Mohammad Irfan | On 05 Sep 2013

A Capable State in Afghanistan: A Building Without a Foundation?

This paper argues that attempts at state-building in Afghanistan have led to institutions that are not robust. The state institutions and organizations continue to be highly dependent on external re...

by Frauke de Weijer | On 20 Aug 2013

Mapping Budget Processes in the Public Health Sector in Maharashtra

This study looked at budget processes related to health in two districts of Maharashtra and found that there was a significant variation in the way budget estimation was practiced at the level of Prim...

by Prashant Raymus | On 17 Jul 2013

An Economic Investigation of Corruption and Electricity Theft

Theft and corruption are common in electricity distribution systems worldwide. Electricity theft is analysed in the framework of an individual’s choice under uncertainty and through a three-layered pr...

by Faisal Jamil | On 10 Jul 2013

Civil society demands transparency and uninterrupted supply of TB medicines

TB patients, Civil society and TB organizations gathered today at Nirman Bhawan to protest against the ongoing stock-outs of TB medicines that have led to treatment interruptions across the country. T...

by Lawyers Collective | On 27 Jun 2013

Examining Private Participation in Embankment Maintenance in the Indian Sundarbans

This paper analyses the complementarities between land productivity and conservation investments in the context of river embankment maintenance in the Indian Sundarbans.[SANDEE]. URL:[http://www.san...

by Prasenjit Sarkhel | On 06 Jun 2013

National Urban Health Mission

The Union Cabinet gave its approval to launch a National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) as a new sub-mission under the over-arching National Health Mission (NHM).

by Anonymous | On 27 May 2013

Efficiency of Raising Health Outcomes in the Indian States

This study measures the efficiency of Indian states in raising health outcomes, using the stochastic frontier methodology for panel data for the period 2000-2009. [MSE WORKING PAPER 70/2012]. URL: [...

by Prachitha J | On 16 Apr 2013

Advertisement Placement in TV Programs: Different Roles of ELM and Mood Protection Mechanism

This study explores how involvement of the audience with cognitive/affective program influence their processing of advertisements aired in between the program because of varying involvement within p...

by Mayank Jyotsna Soni | On 12 Apr 2013

Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012–2017): Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth

Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017). [Planning Commission, GOI]. URL:[http://planningcommission.nic.in/plans/planrel/12thplan/pdf/vol_1.pdf].

by Planning Commission | On 10 Apr 2013

Do School get Their Money? PAISA 2012

The PAISA exercise uses planning and budgeting systems as the entry point, it is an attempt to build an empirical understanding of current governance processes at the grassroots to push for a larg...

by Accountability Initiative | On 29 Mar 2013

Repayment and Exclusion in a Microfinance Experiment

The experiment is designed to explore the effectiveness of such sanctions in improving repayment incentives. Groups of 10 members are provided with joint-liability loans for a specific investment pr...

by Jean Marie Baland | On 07 Mar 2013

Exploring the gap between hand washing knowledge and practices in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional comparative study

This study is a cross-sectional comparative study between baseline (2006), mid-line (2009) and end-line (2011) surveys in 50 sub-districts from the first phase of the programme. Thirty thousand househ...

by Sifat Rabbi | On 22 Feb 2013

The Companies Bill, 2011

A bill to consolidate and amend the law relating to companies. [PRS]. URL:[http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Company/companies%20bill%202011.pdf].

by Parliamentary Research Service PRS | On 11 Feb 2013

BMC Budget Speech-Education, 2013-14

estimates of receipts and expenditure for the financial year 2013-14 with respect to the primary education. [BMC]. URL:[http://www.mcgm.gov.in/irj/go/km/docs/documents/MCGM%20Department%20List/Chief%...

by Municipal Commissioner BMC | On 11 Feb 2013

Firewood Collections and Economic Growth in Rural Nepal 1995-2010: Evidence from a Household Panel

A longitudinal household survey from World Bank Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS) was used for the study. A relatively small (but representative) sample of households residing in the mountain...

by Jean-Marie Baland | On 28 Jan 2013

The Gender Differences in School Enrolment and Returns to Education in Pakistan

In this study attempt has been made to link the gender differences in parental resource allocation in demand for education at primary, secondary and tertiary level of education to gender differences i...

by Madeeha Gohar Qureshi | On 24 Jan 2013

Social Fragmentation, Public Goods and Elections: Evidence from China

This study examines how the economic effects of elections in rural China depend on voter heterogeneity, for which religious fractionalization is taken as a proxy. [BREAD Working No. 366]. URL:[http:/...

by Gerard Padro-i- Miquel | On 09 Jan 2013

A Gender-Based Theory of the Origin of the Caste System of India

This paper proposes a theory of the origins of India’s caste system by explicitly recognizing the productivity of women in complementing their husbands’ skills. Its interesting to know the emergence...

by Chris Bidner | On 04 Jan 2013

Review of Input and Output Policies for Cereals Production in Pakistan

This report reviews the input and output policies for cereals implemented in Pakistan during the period 1996–2010. Pakistan has a long and varied history of intervening in farm input and output market...

by Abdul Salam | On 16 Nov 2012

Co-movement of Skill Premium and Stock Prices

We examine the empirical phenomenon of co-movement of skill premium and share prices by appealing to the techniques of cointegration. The US data (1984--2010) reveals that stock prices and skill premi...

by Kausik Gangopadhyay | On 05 Nov 2012

The Buoyant Billions: How “Middle Class” Are the New Middle Classes in Developing Countries? (And Why Does It Matter?)

Middle-income countries (MICs) are now home to most of the world’s extreme poor—the billion people living on less than $1.25 a day and a further billion people living on between $1.25 and $2. At the s...

by Andy Sumner | On 05 Nov 2012

Security Sector Governance (SSG) and Conflict Management in Indonesia: The Aceh Case

This paper examines the evolution of security sector governance (SSG) in Indonesia, focusing in particular on the effects of security sector reform (SSR) on the management of the secessionist conflict...

by Rizal Sukma | On 26 Oct 2012

The Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development Bill, 2011

To declare the institution known as the Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development, to be an institution of National importance and to provide for its incorporation and for matters connected...

by Ministry of Youth and Sports Affairs YAS | On 05 Oct 2012

Bihar: What went wrong? And what changed?

A historical narrative of Bihar is provided context to much of its current state, Focus is given on its contemporary economy in the past three decades to better understand the moribund state of its ec...

by Arnab Mukherji | On 28 Sep 2012

Food Subsidy in India: Trends, Causes and Policy Reform Options

This paper analyses the trends in volume of food subsidy in the post-reforms period (1991-92 to 2012-13) and then examines various components of food subsidy, which are under the control of FCI and th...

by Vijay Paul Sharma | On 20 Sep 2012

Property Rights and Intra-Household Bargaining

This paper examines whether an individual-level transfer of property rights increases the individual's bargaining power within the household. The question is analyzed in the context of a housing ref...

by Shing-Yi Wang | On 18 Sep 2012

Revisiting the Devolution of ENR Functions

The devolution of environment and natural resource functions to local government units was a bold move in the history of environmental Management in the Philippines. However, the implementation of the...

by Senate Economic Planning Office SEPO | On 28 Aug 2012

Capital Market Bank Funding: (Not such a) Brave New World …

What degree the financial crisis and the resulting developments have impacted and will impact long-term, capital market bank funding. [DB research] URL:[http://www.dbresearch.com/PROD/DBR_INTERNET_EN-...

by Meta Zähres | On 23 Aug 2012

Network Structure and the Aggregation of Information: Theory and Evidence from Indonesia

A unique data-set from Indonesia is analysed to understand what individuals know about the income distribution in their village to test theories such as Jackson and Rogers (2007) that link informatio...

by Vivi Alatas | On 23 Aug 2012

Coordinating Healthcare and Pension Policies: An Exploratory Study

Rapid ageing of the population globally represents an unprecedented historical trend. As pension and healthcare costs are positively correlated with rising incomes, ageing, urbanization, and a shift f...

by Azad Singh Bali | On 20 Aug 2012

The Group of Twenty: Input and Output Legitimacy, Reforms, and Agenda

The paper examines the debates and makes specific policy recommendations by which regionalism, the engagement of small states (through the role of Singapore and the 3-G coalition), and the expansion o...

by Andrew F Cooper | On 09 Aug 2012

Averting an Impending Storm: Can We Reengineer Health Systems to Meet the Needs of Aging Populations?

The proportion of elderly in the world population is increasing. Health systems across the globe are ill prepared to meet the needs of aging populations. The needs of the elderly are different from t...

by Arlene S Bierman | On 08 Aug 2012

The Quality of Governance How Have Indian States Performed?

What is ‘good’ governance? Can the quality of governance be measured? And how do state governments in India measure up by such a measure? [Working Paper no. 104]. URL:[http://www.nipfp.org.in/neww...

by Sudipto Mundle | On 02 Aug 2012

Reexamining the Finance–Growth Relationship for a Developing Economy: A Time Series Analysis of Post-reform India

The cross-country empirical literature on the finance-growth relationship has debated three propositions: (i) financial deepening has a strong impact on the growth process; (ii) measures of financia...

by Sabyasachi Kar | On 13 Jul 2012

India’s 2012 UPR Examination: No Commitment on Enhancing Human Rights but a Mountain to Climb

On 24th May 2012, the United Nations Human Right Council reviewed India’s human rights record during the 13th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland. This was India’s...

by Asian Centre for Human Rights ACHR | On 12 Jul 2012

Does Access to Secondary Education Affect Primary Schooling? Evidence from India

This paper investigates if better access to secondary education increases enrolment in primary schools among children in the 6–10 age group. A household-level longitudinal survey is also done coveri...

by Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay | On 10 Jul 2012

Revive Development Studies

Review of the book From Individual to Community: Issues in Development Studies--Essays in Memory of Malcolm Adiseshiah by Nandan Nawn.

by Nandan Nawn | On 05 Jul 2012

Growth of Asian Pension Assets: Implications for Financial and Capital Markets

Pension assets have seen rapid growth world-wide over the past decades, although they suffered large losses during the global financial crisis of 2007–2008. Such growth is notably due to both structur...

by Yuwei Hu | On 02 Jul 2012

Inclusive National Accounts: Introduction

An outline of what would be ideally needed for a comprehensive set of national accounts is given. National governments and international agencies ought ideally to go even beyond green national accoun...

by Partha Dasgupta | On 22 Jun 2012

Has India Emerged? Business Cycle Stylized Facts from a Transitioning Economy

A comprehense documentation - using both annual and quarterly data - an exhaustive set of stylized facts for the Indian business cycle in the pre and post reform period, the data is used to report...

by Chetan Ghate | On 19 Jun 2012

Capitalism, Religion, and the Idea of the Demonic

Following the debate on the relationship between capitalism and religion, this paper discusses the role of religion in present-day capitalism. It argues that neither the secularization thesis nor the...

by Christoph Deutschmann | On 11 Jun 2012

The Effects of Democratization on Public Goods and Redistribution: Evidence from China

This study investigates the effects of introducing elections on public goods and redistribution in rural China. A large and unique survey was collected to document the history of political reforms and...

by Yang Yao | On 05 Jun 2012

Price Support, Domestic Procurement Programme and Public Stock Management

This Policy Brief discusses the policy options for improving effectiveness of price support, domestic procurement programme and public stock management in Bangladesh. It has been funded by th...

by Quazi Shahabuddin | On 01 Jun 2012

Arsenic Contamination of Groundwater in Bangladesh

Shallow groundwater with high arsenic concentrations from naturally occurring sources is the primary source of drinking water for millions of people in Bangladesh. It has resulted in a major public...

by Imran Matin | On 28 May 2012

Black Money

The objective of this paper is to place in the public domain various facets and dimensions of black money and its complex relationship with the policy and administrative regime in the country. The pa...

by Ministry of Finance | On 22 May 2012

The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2007

With the aim of better regulation of traffic systems in cities, this Bill amends the existing Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Among other provisions, it makes way for state governments to allow recognised a...

by Parliamentary Research Service PRS | On 21 May 2012

Narrowing the Gaps through Regional Cooperation Institutions and Governance Systems

Regional governance systems and national frameworks to address climate change and accelerate green growth in Asia are reviewed and tools to address climate change are outlined. Options for regional le...

by Heinrich-Wilhelm Wyes | On 11 May 2012

The Demographic Dividend: Effects of Population Change on School Education in Pakistan

This study examines how the changing demographics in Pakistan, resulting primarily from fertility transition, would affect educational attainment of school-age population during the next two decades...

by Naushin Mahmood | On 23 Apr 2012

Research Study on Women’s Empowerment, Good-governance and Decentralisation : Assuring Women’s Participation in Panchayats of Two Backward Districts of Northern Part of West Bengal

The study focused on the factors and forces behind the participation of women in Panchayat Structure specially after the seventy third Constitution Amendment Act. The role performance, role awarenes...

by Dilip Kumar Sarkar | On 20 Apr 2012

Audio-visual Services: International Trade and Cultural Policy

The audiovisual sector is a significant component of the economy in terms of wealth creation and employment and audiovisual industries also play an important cultural role. This study reviews the main...

by Gillian Doyle | On 20 Apr 2012

Measuring and Explaining the Asymmetry of Liquidity

This paper examines transactions costs in buying versus selling using a large database of snapshots of the limit order book. On the equity spot market, there is clear evidence of asymmetry in liquid...

by Rajat Tayal | On 19 Apr 2012

Labour Migration and Remittances in Uttarakhand

The type, volume, and mode of transfer of remittances in Uttarakhand is analysed. The impact of remittances, in terms of both financial flows and transfer of new skills and the perceptions in relat...

by Anmol Jain | On 18 Apr 2012

The Great Depression and the Great Recession: What have we Learned?

The Financial Crisis of 2007-2008 and the Great Recession of 2007-2009 are now in the past. Again there was the debt crisis of 2010-11. During the worst of the recent financial crisis/Great Recession...

by Michael D Bordo | On 13 Apr 2012

A Corporate Governance Index for Large Listed Companies in India

A Corporate Governance Index for 500 large listed Indian firms for the period from 2003 to 2008 is constructed. The index construction uses information on four important corporate governance mechan...

by Jayati Sarkar | On 04 Apr 2012

Budget Speech 2012-13: Goa

Budget speech by Ministry of Finance, Goa. [Budget Speech]. URL:[http://www.goa.gov.in/pdf/Speech12-13.pdf].

by Goa Government | On 28 Mar 2012

Tamil Nadu Budget Speech: 2012-13

Speech of Thiru O. Panneerselvam, Hon’ble Minister for Finance, Government of Tamil Nadu, presenting the Budget for the year 2012-2013 to the Legislative Assembly on 26th March, 2012. [Government...

by Tamil Nadu Government | On 27 Mar 2012

How Can Bill and Melinda Gates Increase Other People’s Donations to Fund Public Goods?

A simple theory is developed which formally describes how charities can resolve the information asymmetry problems faced by small donors by working with large donors to generate quality signals. To t...

by Dean Karlan | On 26 Mar 2012

How Much Does Natural Resource Extraction Really Diminish National Wealth? The Implications of Discovery

The paper considers the process of discovery for subsoil resources, including both hard minerals and hydrocarbons and estimates its magnitude in recent years, as derived from the sum of extraction an...

by Alan Gelb | On 20 Mar 2012

Ethics of Public Health Interventions: A View from the Frontline

Rural people are deprived even of the basic facilities of medical care. Is this ethical? [6th K R Memorial lecture].

by Yogesh Jain | On 16 Mar 2012

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, GOI 2012-13

This brief uses Government reported data to analyse Sarva Shiksha Ahiyan performance along the following parameters: a) Overall trends in allocation and expenditures, b) Expenditure performance across...

by Accountability Initiative | On 16 Mar 2012

Report on China's Central, Local Budgets (2012)

REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CENTRAL AND LOCAL BUDGETS FOR 2011 AND ON DRAFT CENTRAL AND LOCAL BUDGETS FOR 2012. [Ministry of Finance Report]. URL:[http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/news/...

by Ministry of Finance China | On 15 Mar 2012

Towards Building A Happy, Prosperous and Caring Bangladesh: Budget Speech 2011-12

Budget speech 2011-12 by Finance minister. URL:[http://www.mof.gov.bd/en/budget/11_12/budget_speech/speech_en.pdf].

by Abul Maal Abdul Muhith | On 14 Mar 2012

Time Poverty, Work Status and Gender: The Case of Pakistan

Time is an important economic resource that can be spent in a variety of ways. Diverse demands on a person’s time may reach a point where the individual may be categorized as time poor. Time poverty...

by Najam us Saqib | On 09 Mar 2012

Agricultural Insurance in India: Problems and Prospects

The challenges of providing insurance to Indian agricultural sector in a manner that is both meaningful and sustaining. Critical assessment of the existing initiative and present possible options fo...

by M J Bhende | On 09 Mar 2012

Budget of Nepal 2011-12

Budget speech by Nepal Finance Minister. URL:[http://www.mof.gov.np/publication/speech/2011/pdf/budgetspeech_english.pdf].

by Ministry of Finance, Government of Nepal | On 06 Mar 2012

Report of the Sub-Groups on Child Rights for 12th Five Year Plan

A Working Group on Child Rights was constituted by the Planning Commission to recommend priorities and strategies for children in the 12th Five year Plan 2012-17. Five Sub Groups of the Working group...

by Government of India Ministry of Women and Child Development | On 06 Mar 2012

Penance time

The time has come for the governmant to make up for its sins of the past three years. The Budget must be judged on whether it shows that the govt is in the mood to recognize its follies, and in a posi...

by T.N. Ninan | On 05 Mar 2012

What is the (New) Deal with Fragile States?

Poor governance and lack of state capabilities in around 45 countries pose a threat to global security and development. The involvement of the international community is required to help these st...

by Wim Naudé | On 02 Mar 2012

The End of the “Liberal Theory of History”? Dissecting the U.S. Congress’ Discourse on China’s Currency Policy

In the last ten years, economic issues related to currency policy have become the major ongoing dispute between China and the U.S. Especially the U.S. Congress is stridently demanding a tougher poli...

by Nicola Nymalm | On 01 Mar 2012

Working of Livestock Exchange Markets in Rajasthan

Livestock sector is an integral part of India’s agriculture and an important part of the whole economy with reference to employment, income and earning of foreign exchange for the country. The growth...

by Ministry of Agriculture GOI | On 01 Mar 2012

Study on Impact of Micro Finance in Reduction of Domestic Violence Against Women

The main objective of the study is to investigate whether there is any evidence to support the view that the disbursement of micro finance to women reduces the incidence of domestic violence, and if...

by Institute of Social Studies Trust ISST | On 23 Feb 2012

Foundations of Collective Action in Asia: Theory and Practice of Regional Cooperation

This paper argues that the collective action in Asia by its regional organizations has historically suffered from a “capability–legitimacy gap”: a disjuncture between the capability (in terms of mat...

by Amitav Acharya | On 17 Feb 2012

Mumbai Riots, 1992-3: Revisiting the Affected

Review of the book 'Riots and After in Mumbai: Chronicles of Truth and Reconciliation' Meena Menon, Sage Publications India, 2011, Pp 267 + xcii, Rs. 595/-

by Irfan Engineer | On 17 Feb 2012

Are Saving and Investment Cointegrated? A Cross Country Analysis

Saving is an important part of the economic process that gives rise to investment and economic growth. In this paper an attempt is made to explore the relationship between saving and investment in t...

by Sanjib Bordoloi | On 14 Feb 2012

Toward a Framework for Implementation of Climate Change Treaty through Self-enforcing Mechanisms

The paper discusses the pros and cons of the already proposed international cooperative mechanisms toward climate change mitigation and highlights the problem of information revelation, particularly...

by Meeta Keswani Mehra | On 27 Jan 2012

Chinese Commodity Imports in Ghana and Senegal: Demystifying Chinese Business Strength in Urban West Africa

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, independent entrepreneurial migrants from China have been increasingly flocking to Africa in search of “greener pastures.” This paper scrutinizes the...

by Laurence Marfaing | On 25 Jan 2012

Evidence on Changes in Time Varying Volatility around Bonus and Rights Issue Announcements

The short term and long term stock price volatility changes around bonus and rights issue announcements have been examined using historical volatility estimation and time varying volatility approach...

by Madhuri Malhotra | On 24 Jan 2012

Building World Class Businesses for the Long Term

This report identifies some of the factors complicating the debate on role of the company in society. It focuses particularly on the changing models of ownership and differing time horizons and on how...

by Gillian Lee | On 23 Jan 2012

Peer Effects, Risk Pooling, and Status Seeking: What Explains Gift Spending Escalation in Rural China?

It has been widely documented that the poor spend a significant proportion of their income on gifts even at the expense of basic consumption. We test three competing explanations of this phenomenon—pe...

by Xi Chen | On 10 Jan 2012

Can Lease Hold Forestry in Nepal Benefit People and the Environment?

In Nepal an innovative form of forestry management, known as the Leasehold Forestry (LHF) Programme, is being introduced to protect forest land and help it regenerate. A new SANDEE study analyzes th...

by South Asian Network for Development SANDEE | On 10 Jan 2012

Parental Education as a Criterion for Affirmative Action in Higher Education: A Preliminary Analysis

Affirmative action, especially in the form of reservation policies, to address the issues of inclusion and equity has been in place in India for a long time. Through these policies higher participatio...

by Rakesh Basant | On 09 Jan 2012

Time for elections

Even though it would be considered politically premature by both the Congress and the BJP – it may be best to think in terms of fresh elections. URL:[http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/t-n-ni...

by T.N. Ninan | On 03 Jan 2012

Turning the Tide: Improving Water Resource Management in the Philippines

Water is arguably the most important natural resource and because it is scarce, its optimal usage and proper management must be ensured. Water governance in the Philippines, however, has becom...

by Senate Economic Planning Office SEPO | On 03 Jan 2012

Foreign Direct Investment and Economic Growth in Pakistan: A Sectoral Analysis

This paper establishes an empirical relationship between industry -specific foreign direct investment (FDI) and output under the framework of Granger causality and panel cointegration for Pakistan o...

by Muhammad Arshad Khan | On 03 Jan 2012

Moving up the Quality ladder? EU-China Trade Dynamics in Clothing

A simple method is applied to study the relative quality of Chinese versus European products exported in the clothing sector after the end of the Multi-Fiber Arrangement. Based on the model of Foste...

by Hylke Vandenbussche | On 03 Jan 2012

Consumption Taxes: Their Ramifications for Income Distribution

The distribution effects or incidence of consumption taxes such as the Value Added Tax (VAT), Goods and Services Tax (GST) remains a contentious issue. Three aspects have to be distinguished. First is...

by Parthasarathi Shome | On 13 Dec 2011

China’s Financial Integration into the World Economy: Scrutinising China‘s International Investment Position

Possible scenarios for China and the world economy until 2015 is looked at. In all of them, China will continue to accumulate FX reserves, so that reserve assets will remain the largest component of...

by Catherine Shu Ling Tan | On 08 Dec 2011

National Urban Transport Policy

The objective of this policy is to ensure safe, affordable, quick, comfortable, reliable and sustainable access for the growing number of city residents to jobs, education, recreation and such other...

by Ministry of Urban Development GOI | On 30 Nov 2011

Impact of the Retail FDI Policy on Indian Consumers and the Way Forward

This paper analyses the impact of the retail FDI policy on Indian consumers and make policy recommendations for the Indian government. Based on a primary survey of Indian consumers, the paper examines...

by Arpita Mukherjee | On 28 Nov 2011

Publishing Construction Contracts as a Tool for Efficiency and Good Governance

Construction is a $1.7 trillion industry worldwide, much of which is linked to publicly financed projects. Outcomes from this financing are frequently suboptimal. Cost and time escalation, as well a...

by Charles Kenny | On 25 Nov 2011

The Challenge of Food Inflation

The trends in food inflation over the past 60 years are given. Having thus set the context, the factors driving structural food inflation, which should give us a perspective of the underlying dynam...

by Duvvuri Subbarao | On 24 Nov 2011

How Prudent are Rural Households in Developing Transition Economies: Evidence from Zhejiang, China

Rural households in developing economies frequently use precautionary saving to cope with income risk. Such prudent behavior can be strengthened in transition economies where more risks are typically...

by Ling Jin | On 23 Nov 2011

Final Report of the Task Force on Domestic Workers: Realising Decent Work

This report presents the results of the deliberations of the Task Force. Section one provides the background. Section two presents the status of the implementation of March 2010 recomme...

by Ministry of Labour and Employment MoL&E | On 18 Nov 2011

The G20: Engine of Asian Regionalism?

The paper scrutinizes the functioning of the G20 and its role in increasing coordination. and cooperation between Asian countries. It highlights divergent agendas amongst the A6 as regards the future...

by Hugo Dobson | On 09 Nov 2011

The Public Procurement Bill, 2011

An Act to regulate public procurement with the objective of maximising economy and efficiency, promoting competition among suppliers and contractors while ensuring a fair, transparent and equitable...

by Planning Commission | On 08 Nov 2011

Explorations in Cultural Process

Review of the book 'Locating Cultural Change Theory, Method, Process' Partha Pratim Basu and Ipshita Chanda (eds.) Sage Publications, New Delhi, 2011, 279 pp, Rs.795/.

by Hemali Sanghavi | On 04 Nov 2011

German Companies Engaging in China: Decision-Making Processes at Home and Management Practices in Chinese Subsidiaries

This paper attempts to explain why internationalization processes to China are growing despite the significant difficulties that foreign direct investments into China encounter. The answer to this q...

by Geny Piotti | On 04 Nov 2011

Draft of Citizens Right to Grievance Redress Bill, 2011

A Bill to lay down an obligation upon every public authority to publish citizens charter stating therein the time within which specified goods shall be supplied and services be rendered and provide...

by Department of Administrative Reforms Public Grievances | On 03 Nov 2011

The Pricing Problem of Public Transport in Kerala

The mainstay of the public transport system in Kerala is the private stage carriages (PSC), the economics of operation of which is the subject of this paper. The long run sustainability of the secto...

by Narayana D | On 28 Oct 2011

Macro-Economic Policy Outcomes and Agriculture Relation between Fiscal Deficits and Investment in Agriculture

In an earlier paper (Alagh, Munish, 2011) it was shown that macro economics matters in agriculture. The relevance of understanding the impact of macro-economic policy on agriculture was outlined. A...

by Munish Alagh | On 24 Oct 2011

Gender, Governance and Women’s Rights in South Asia

This study focuses on gender equality and democratic governance in the five largest states of the South Asian region, namely, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Beginning with a general...

by Seema Kazi | On 20 Oct 2011

Who Drives Change? Comparing the Evolution of Domestic Climate Governance in India and South Africa

This paper compares and contrasts the nature and scope of change in the domestic climate governance of India and South Africa between 2007 and 2010. It uses an actor-centered approach to analyze the d...

by Babette Never | On 18 Oct 2011

Recent Global Crisis and the Demand for Gold by Central Banks: An Analytical Perspective

When India purchased 200 tonnes of gold under the International Monetary Fund's limited gold sales programme, it was interpreted inter alia that it may further inflate the gold price when the price...

by Karunagaran A | On 17 Oct 2011

Draft of the Proposed National Sports Legislation

A bill to provide for development of sports in India, coordination of national teams for participation in international events, fair and transparent functioning of autonomous sports bodies and welf...

by Ministry of Youth and Sports Affairs YAS | On 17 Oct 2011

National Telecom Policy-2011 (NTP-2011)

NTP-2011 has the vision Broadband on Demand and envisages leveraging telecom infrastructure to enable all citizens and businesses, both in rural and urban landscape, to participate in the Internet and...

by Ministry of Communication & Information Technology GOI | On 13 Oct 2011

Localization, Globalization and Networks of foreign Subsidiaries

This research is about multinational enterprises (MNEs) and their subsidiaries abroad. The specific focus of the research is on the foreign subsidiaries? local embeddedness, global integration and m...

by Filip De Beule | On 10 Oct 2011

Got Water? Social Divisions and Access to Public Goods in Rural India

Data for 436 rural districts has been used from the 2001 Census of India to examine whether different aspects of social divisions help explain the wide variation in access to tap water across rural In...

by Divya Balasubramaniam | On 07 Oct 2011

Cross-LoC trade in Kashmir: From Line of Control to Line of Commerce

This study examines how business entities and individuals in Jammu and Kashmir view trade transactions with the other side and perceptions about the economic viability of Cross-LoC trade. More speci...

by Altaf Hussain Kira | On 28 Sep 2011

Understanding Inflation and Controlling It

Inflation management is one of the hardest tasks an economic policymaker has to undertake. It appears, at first sight, that one can rely entirely on commonsense to carry out this task. But that will b...

by Kaushik Basu | On 28 Sep 2011

Integrated Financial MIS for Local Government Public Expenditure Management - A Case Study of Khajane in Karnataka

Expenditure Management is critical to effective public service delivery, especially at the local government level. Leveraging on information systems to aid in expenditure management is viewed as an ...

by Sandeep M S | On 20 Sep 2011

Iraq’s Last Window: Diffusing the Risks of a Petro-State

This paper, examines the possibility of adopting Oil- to- Cash scheme in Iraq. Here, a new opportunity is identified which aims for direct distribution of Iraqi oil rents in the planned production exp...

by Johnny West | On 19 Sep 2011

History of Monetary Policy in India since Independence

An SIIO paradigm, based on structure and ideas that become engraved in institutions and affect outcomes, is developed to examine and assesses monetary policy in India after independence. Narrative h...

by Ashima Goyal | On 16 Sep 2011

Slower Growth in China: How Much of a Drag on the Global Economy?

China’s expected growth slowdown - from 10.3 per cent yoy in 2010 to 8.9 per cent this year and 8.3 per cent in 2012 - will impact the global economy. An in-depth look at how important China really is...

by Steffen Dyck | On 09 Sep 2011

Evolution of Property Rights Regimes in the Groundwater Economy of India-Constraints on Moving Towards a Common Property Regime

The paper paper reviews the 'model' central and state government bills, pertaining to groundwater, through a conceptual framework and discusses the Andhra Pradesh experience in the developing governme...

by G.Ananda Vadivelu | On 30 Aug 2011

Institutional Innovations and Models in the Development of Agro-Food Industries in India: Strengths, Weaknesses and Lessons

Agro-industries are given high priority in India particularly because of their great potential for contributing to development. The emphasis on village-based agro-industries was introduced almost a...

by Vasant P Gandhi | On 29 Aug 2011

Indian Social Democracy: The Resource Perspective

This paper examines the strategy for obtaining adequate resources for the Indian State, where the goals of the State comprise the provision of public goods (which, by de nition, bene t everyone) and...

by P.V. Srinivasan | On 24 Aug 2011

When do Stock Futures Dominate Price Discovery?

Stock futures offer leveraged positions and are expected to attract informed traders. Many researchers have found that the information share of the stock futures is surprisingly small; the equity sp...

by Jeffrey Vincent | On 24 Aug 2011

Risks, Farmers’ Suicides and Agrarian Crisis in India: Is There A Way Out?

Poor returns to cultivation and absence of non-farm opportunities are indicative of the larger socio-economic malaise in rural India. This is accentuated by the multiple risks that the farmer faces...

by Srijit Mishra | On 23 Aug 2011

Darwin’s Theory of Descent with Modification, versus the Biblical Tree of Life

There is a need to reappraise the different concepts like the 'Tree of Life', and what Darwin meant by them, and how he used the terms. The Tree of Life example is not the only case where Darwin's wor...

by David Penny | On 23 Aug 2011

Technology in Banking- In Pursuit of Excellence

The contribution of technology to the Indian banking industry, the role played by IDRBT and the significance of banking technology awards, in fostering the technological developments of banks. Issues...

by Anand Sinha | On 23 Aug 2011

Reforms in Indian Agro-processing and Agriculture Sectors in the Context of Unilateral and Multilateral Trade Agreements

In this paper, the potential impacts of trade and investment-related policy reforms on India’s agro-processing sector is explored. The direct effects of policy reforms within the processing sector, an...

by A. Ganesh-Kumar | On 22 Aug 2011

The Costs of Achieving the Millennium Development Goals through Adopting Organic Agriculture

This paper provides estimates of the costs of organic agriculture (OA) programs, and sets them in the context of the costs of attaining the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It anal...

by Anil Markandya | On 19 Aug 2011

Climate Change, Rural Livelihoods and Agriculture (focus on Food Security) in Asia-Pacific Region

The objective of this paper is to identify climate change related threats and vulnerabilities associated with agriculture as a sector and agriculture as people’s livelihoods (exposure, sensitivity, a...

by S. Mahendra Dev | On 17 Aug 2011

Identifying Systemically Important Financial Institutions (SIFIs)

In this study the analytical framework for identifying and benchmarking systemically important financial institutions is discussed. First, the main concepts underlying the SIFI definition are laid out...

by Christian Weistroffer | On 12 Aug 2011

The Draft National Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011

The draft Bill puts in place a new institutional mechanism to ensure that the Rehabilition and Resettlement (R&R) provisions are implemented effectively as an integral part of land acquisition.

by Ministry of Rural Development GOI | On 10 Aug 2011

The Challenge of Aid in Pakistan: Is Cash on Delivery Part of the Solution?

This brief examines options for a (Cash on Delivery) COD Aid contract in Pakistan’s education sector and its potential benefits for improving the relationship between official donors and the governm...

by Wren Elhai | On 08 Aug 2011

Distress Situation in Dryland Areas Impacts on Livelihood Pattern and the Coping Strategies: A Review

This paper is a review of the different coping mechanisms adopted by the households in different dryland area of India. The primary focus of the present paper is to understand the coping mechanisms...

by Nikhil Govind | On 05 Aug 2011

Configuring Balanced Scorecards for Measuring Health System Performance: Evidence from 5 Years’ Evaluation in Afghanistan

In 2004, Afghanistan pioneered a balanced scorecard (BSC) performance system to manage the delivery of primary health care services. This study examines the trends of 29 key performance indicators ov...

by Edward Anbrasi | On 04 Aug 2011

The Digital Society: New Ways to More Transparency, Participation and Innovation

The study makes specific recommendations for decisionmakers in industry, society and politics on how to handle new network technologies. URL:[http://www.dbresearch.com/PROD/DBR_INTERNET_EN-PROD/PROD...

by Thomas F Dapp | On 02 Aug 2011

Chronic Poverty in South West Madhya Pradesh: A Multidimensional Analysis of its Extent and Causes

The structuralist perspective envisages poverty, especially in rural India, as a long duration phenomenon. Over time, most of the structural features of poverty have remained more or less intact. As a...

by Amita Shah | On 02 Aug 2011

Enhancing Women Empowerment through Information and Communication Technology: A Report

Information and Communication Technology (ICT’s) bring lot of opportunities to women in the work situations and small business. Teleporting, flexi time and work from home arrangements are some of t...

by Government of India Ministry of Women and Child Development | On 29 Jul 2011

Transfer Paths and Academic Performance: The Primary School Merger Program in China

In this paper, the overall goal is to examine the impact of the Rural Primary School Merger Program on academic performance of students using a dataset from a survey that we designed to reflect tran...

by Alexis Medina | On 27 Jul 2011

Fair Shares: Crediting Poor Countries for Carbon Mitigation

Focusing on the power sector, Wheeler estimates energy growth and incremental costs for six low-carbon energy technologies (biomass, solar, wind, geothermal, hydro, and nuclear) in 174 countries from...

by David Wheeler | On 25 Jul 2011

Bentham from the Crypt Once More: Politicians in Pursuit of Happiness

There is a burgeoning academic literature on happiness polls that has used a range of different measures and approaches across countries rich and poor alike to answer the question, “what makes peopl...

by Charles Kenny | On 21 Jul 2011

THE LOKPAL BILL, 2011

A bill to provide for the establishment of the institution of Lokpal to inquire into allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries and for matters connected therewith. URL:[http://www...

by Parliamentary Research Service PRS | On 19 Jul 2011

Shocks, Economic Growth and the Indian Economy

This paper analyses the impact of domestic and external shocks on the Indian economy. A macro-modelling framework is developed that evaluates the impact of two domestic shocks (rainfall shortfall an...

by B B Bhattacharya | On 15 Jul 2011

Primary School Teachers: The Twists and Turns of Everyday Practice

The paper examines the role played by of classroom environment in the development of a teacher. The paper studies the concept of 'teacher development' in India. URL:[http://www.eruindia.org/files/Tea...

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 08 Jul 2011

The Don Sahong Dam: Potential Impacts on Regional Fish Migrations, Livelihoods and Human Health

This paper focuses on the Don Sahong Dam (DSD’s) potential impacts on fish and fisheries, and particularly the project’s regional implications in relation to fisheries, including its possible impact...

by Ian Bird | On 08 Jul 2011

Board Interlocks and Their Impact on Corporate Governance: The Indian Experience - Coping with Corporate Cholesterol

Board interlocks and corporate elites are an engaging field of ongoing academic and policy research around the world, especially because of the concentration of economic power in few individuals or en...

by Bala N Balasubramanian | On 08 Jul 2011

Decentralized Forest Governance - A Policy Perspective

This paper examines challenges associated with early stages of decentralizing the administration and management of forest resources. It is based on review of literature on forest, decentralization a...

by Aruna Kumar Monditoka | On 07 Jul 2011

Detection and Forecasting of Islamic Calendar Effects in Time Series Data: Revisited

This paper is an attempt to revisit the pioneering work of Riazuddin and Khan (2002). A complete business cycle has been elapsed (2002-2010) since their study, so there is need to review the results ...

by Syed Kalim Hyder Bukhari | On 05 Jul 2011

Fiscal Policy for Poverty Reduction, Reconstruction, and Growth

Growth, poverty reduction, and social peace are all undermined when public expenditure management and taxation are weak and when the fiscal deficit and public debt are not managed successfully. And la...

by Tony Addison | On 04 Jul 2011

Public Infrastructure Investment and Non-Market Work in India: Selective Evidence from Time Use Data

Theory of allocation of time revealed that historically market-time has never consistently been greater than the non-market time and therefore the allocation and efficiency of latter may be equally...

by Lekha S. Chakraborty | On 29 Jun 2011

On Graham’s Theory of Multicountry Multicommodity Trade

Mathematical formulations of Frank D. Graham’s theory of multicountry multicommodity trade have not provided numerical methods for finding the world trade equilibrium. Graham was in possession of su...

by Rajas Parchure | On 27 Jun 2011

Incidence and Performance Effects of Interlocking Directorates in Emerging Market Business Groups: Evidence From India

The phenomenon of interlocking directorates is widespread among corporate across the world. This paper studies the structure and extent of interlocking directorates within Indian business groups and ...

by Bikram De | On 24 Jun 2011

India - Reforming Farm Support Policies for Grains

The objective of this study is to analyze some of the recent reforms proposed in the operation of government buffer stocks and provision of price support to wheat and rice farmers in India. Based o...

by Shikha Jha | On 17 Jun 2011

Report of the Working Group on Human Resource Policy for Short-Term Cooperative Credit Structure

For the revival of rural cooperative credit institutions, a Working Group was constituted by NABARD to formulate and suggest comprehensive human resource guidelines for the State Cooperative Bank (...

by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Devt NABARD | On 15 Jun 2011

The Legacy of the Jubilee Debt Relief Movement: Agreements, Lessons, and Remaining Challenges

Over the last 25 years, the international community has pursued a series of measures to address unsustainable debt burdens in low-income countries. Early actions focused on debt relief for official bi...

by Ben Leo | On 15 Jun 2011

Towards a Fair Effective and Sustainable Health Care System for India

Newspapers carry frequent news about increasing government spending in health care and the availability of increasingly more specialised hospital care in India. While facilities in private and gov...

by Rajkumar Ramasamy | On 27 May 2011

Monetary Policy and Credit Demand in India and Some EMEs

Impact of changes in policy rate of interest on demand for bank credit is examined for seven emerging market economies including India for the period 2002 to 2010. Panel data techniques are used after...

by B L Pandit | On 24 May 2011

Business Group Ownership of Banks: Issues and Implications

This paper introduces the phenomenon of business groups in the theory of financial intermediation by banks, developed by Diamond (1984) with a view to analyzing their impact on the result of finan...

by Ashish Taru Deb | On 19 May 2011

Moving to Goods and Services Tax in India: Impact on India’s Growth and International Trade

The broad objectives of this study refer to analysing the impact of introducing comprehensive goods and services tax (GST) on economic growth and international trade; changes in rewards to the fac...

by National Council of Applied Economic Research | On 19 May 2011

Staff Guidance Note on Debt Limits in Fund-Supported Programs

In August 2009, the Executive Board approved new guidelines on external debt limits in Fund-supported programs. Debt limits seek to prevent the build-up of unsustainable debts, while allowing for adeq...

by International Monetary Fund | On 18 May 2011

Hedonic Demand for Rented House in Kohima, Nagaland

The objective of this study is to show how the demand for a rentable house can be quantitatively expressed. The data set is obtained by a primary (sample) survey of 209 households randomly selecte...

by S.K. Mishra | On 18 May 2011

Trends in Wage Goods Prices and Cost of Living of Casual Workers in Shillong

The present study aims at an investigation into the prices of wage goods and the cost of living of casual wageworkers in Shillong, the capital city of Meghalaya, India. Labourers are defined as a...

by S.K. Mishra | On 16 May 2011

Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

Until 1995, there was no law prohibiting sexual harassment in Hong Kong, except where it rose to the level of a criminal offence or a traditional tort. However, the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (whic...

by Carole J. Petersen | On 09 May 2011

Bad Deal for the Planet: Why Carbon Offsets Aren't Working and how to Create a Fair Global climate Accord

The world’s biggest carbon offset market, the Clean Development Mechanism, is a global shell game that is increasing greenhouse gas emissions behind the guise of promoting sustainable development. It...

by International Rivers Network IRN | On 28 Apr 2011

Guidelines for Human-Leopard Conflict Management

After careful consideration of the inputs received from a variety of stakeholders, the following framework guidelines are suggested for managing the humanleopard conflict situations in areas where l...

by Ministry of Environment and Forests GOI | On 22 Apr 2011

Find Me the Money: Financing Climate and Other Global Public Goods

In this paper, four categories of existing resource-mobilization options are examined, including (1) transportation levies; (2) currency and financial transaction taxes; (3) capitalization of IMF S...

by Nancy Birdsall | On 21 Apr 2011

Do Local Elections in Non-Democracies Increase Accountability? Evidence from Rural China

Unique survey data is used to study whether the introduction of local elections in China made local leaders more accountable towards local constituents. A simple model is developed to predict the e...

by Monica Martinez Bravo | On 18 Apr 2011

Financial Transactions Taxes

This paper attempts to address both theoretical and practical considerations for a tax such as financial transactions taxes (FTT). It includes examples of FTT in the wider context, for example, on sto...

by Parthasarathi Shome | On 18 Apr 2011

Is Economic Growth Associated with Reduction in Child Undernutrition in India?

Economic growth is widely perceived as a major policy instrument in reducing childhood undernutrition in India. The association between changes in state per capita income and the risk of undernutriti...

by Malavika A Subramanyam | On 13 Apr 2011

A Policy Reponse to the Indian Micro-finance Crisis

Recent events in India have brought a fresh focus upon the problem of regulation in the field of micro-finance. This paper delineates the three distinct aspects where government needs to play a role...

by Renuka Sane | On 13 Apr 2011

Financial Regulatory Harmonization in East Asia: Balancing Domestic and International Pressures for Corporate Governance Reforms

Focusing on corporate governance, which many see as a critical part of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, and which is also seen as unresponsive to calls for change, this paper argues that such harmoniz...

by Richard W Carney | On 12 Apr 2011

Container Shipping: Successful Turnaround

Global container throughput rose by at least 11% last year, after declining for the first time ever in 2009 (-9%). The level of global container throughput was thus higher again than before the cri...

by Eric Heymann | On 12 Apr 2011

Liquidity Considerations in Estimating Implied Volatility

Some option series in the market are far less liquid than others. Market illiquidity can reduce the informativeness of option prices. In this paper, an alternative schemes are proposed to estimate im...

by Rohini Grover | On 09 Apr 2011

Socio-Economic and Ecological Benefits of Mangrove Plantation: A Study of Community Based Mangrove Restoration Activities in Gujarat

A comprehensive assessment of the multiple benefits of mangrove ecosystems and their restoration efforts in Gujarat is made. The study is important and contextual as there are very limited empirical...

by P.K. Viswanathan | On 29 Mar 2011

Potential Role in Corporate Governance by Employees of Asian Enterprises

Large publicly-held corporations or business groups in developing Asian economies are typically controlled (and managed) by families, and tend to suffer from poor corporate governance. Even though s...

by Sang-Woo Nam | On 29 Mar 2011

Employees in Asian Enterprises:Their Potential Role in Corporate Governance

Large publicly-held corporations or business groups in developing Asian economies are typically controlled (and managed) by families, and tend to suffer from poor corporate governance. Even though s...

by Sang-Woo Nam | On 24 Mar 2011

Reforming Indirect Taxes in India : Role of Environmental Taxes

Extensive reforms of India's indirect taxes at the central and the state levels has prepared the necessary ground for the implementation of a comprehensive goods and services tax (GST). The Empowere...

by D K Srivastava | On 23 Mar 2011

Trade in Services and Human Development: A First Look at the Links.

Some services directly produce outputs that are important for human development, such as basic human services. Many other services are important inputs into the production and distribution of goods th...

by Ben Shepherd | On 21 Mar 2011

Constituency Development Funds: Are They Constitutional?

This brief examines one particular criticism of Constituency Development Funds (CDFs): they infringe upon the doctrine of separation of powers. It also discusses whether CDFs adhere to other important...

by Christina Murray | On 18 Mar 2011

Constitution Writing and Conflict Resolution

Over 1975-2003 nearly 200 new constitutions were drawn up in countries at risk of conflict, as part of peace processes and the adoption of multiparty political systems. The process of writing cons...

by Michael Kellerman | On 18 Mar 2011

Relationship Banking and Its Role in Corporate Governance

Bank-based systems of corporate governance are certainly an alternative in many Asian economies. In spite of the great efforts directed to strengthening corporate governance along the Anglo- America...

by Sang-Woo Nam | On 18 Mar 2011

Political Economy of Tribal Development: A Case Study of Andhra Pradesh

The paper delineates the situation of the Scheduled Tribes in the background of various policies of the state during the successive plan periods and its impact on their socio-economic mobility. Pol...

by M. Gopinath Reddy | On 16 Mar 2011

The Global Impact of the Southern Engines of Growth: China, India, Brazil and South Africa

This Policy Brief focuses on links between the developing countries of Brazil, India, China and South Africa and the global economy, with a special emphasis on the implications of China’s spectacular...

by Amelia U. Santos Paulino | On 11 Mar 2011

Discussion Paper: e-Development Index

As per economic theory, digitalisation of the economy impacts economic growth in two ways: one as an input in to production process and the other as an enhancer of productivity through technological...

by Mr. R. Venkatesan | On 11 Mar 2011

Budget Impact on Various Sectors

Budget reactions from various sectors

by Leena Chandan | On 09 Mar 2011

Survey of Corporate Governance Practices in Indonesia, Thailand and Korea

Poor corporate governance is viewed as one of the structural weaknesses responsible for the outbreak of the Asian crisis in late 1997. Controlling family owners could pursue private interests with r...

by Sang-Woo Nam | On 09 Mar 2011

Governing Globalization: Issues and Institutions

This policy brief is intended to outline suggestions and stimulate discussion at a time when the world community is thinking about, and is engaged in, a debate on global governance. The policy brief n...

by Deepak Nayyar | On 04 Mar 2011

Governance in Indonesia:Some Comments

Governance is often a difficult process. Proper governance ideally involves formulating an overall strategy of operations, translating this strategy into specific policies and decisions, and then im...

by Peter McCawley | On 03 Mar 2011

Post-Tsunami Recovery: Lessons from Case Study 1. Sri Lanka

The tsunami of December 26, 2004 left Sri Lanka with over 30,000 people dead, almost a million displaced and an estimated 150,000 people lost their primary source of livelihood. There was massive d...

by Sisira Jayasuriya | On 28 Feb 2011

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, GOI 2010-11

Using government data, this brief reports on Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) performance along the following parameters: a) Overall trends in allocation and expenditures, b) Expenditure performance across...

by Avani Kapur | On 26 Feb 2011

Experiences of Contracting Health Services: an Overview of the Literature

Recent health policy debates in both developed and developing countries have been strongly influenced by a trend towards ‘marketisation’, involving the selective introduction of a range of market me...

by Anne Mills | On 18 Feb 2011

Kerala Budget 2011-12

The Minister for Finance, Dr. T. M. Thomas Issac presented the Budget for the financial year 2011-2012.

by Government of Kerala Govt | On 14 Feb 2011

Key Principles Underlying the New Modes of Aid Governance in Asia

Based on the recent experience of several Asian developing countries and interviews in Vietnam, Indonesia and Laos with aid practitioners from donor institutions and Non Government Organizations (NGOs...

by Caroline Brassard | On 10 Feb 2011

Global South, Sephis e-magazine, Vollume 7:1, 2011

List of Contents Articles Arindam Samaddar, Prabir Kr. Das and Stephen R. Morin, 'Technology Adoption and its Constraints: The Cascading Effects in Two West Bengal Villages' Erick Tejada Sanchez, '...

by SEPHIS | On 07 Feb 2011

Singapore's Exchange Rate-Based Monetary Policy: A Critical Evaluation

The exchange rate-based monetary policy followed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is outlined. Possible theoretical frameworks, including a reaction function is outlined. The way the MAS h...

by Partha Sen | On 31 Jan 2011

On the Economics of Regional Powers: Comparing China, India, Brazil, and South Africa

As the conception of and debates on regional powers have been led by political science, this paper aims to contribute to the discussion from an economics perspective. Based on the discussion of differ...

by Robert KAppel | On 28 Jan 2011

Voluntary Contribution in the Field: An Experiment in the Indian Himalayas

In this paper is a study of trend of voluntary contribution for community services in the Indian Himalayan region. The study is done by using an experimental game method of face-to-face communication...

by Sujoy Chakravarty | On 25 Jan 2011

Oil to Cash: Fighting the Resource Curse through Cash Transfers

Many of the world’s poorest and most fragile states are joining the ranks of oil and gas producers. These countries face critical policy questions about managing and spending new revenue in a way tha...

by Todd Moss | On 25 Jan 2011

Cost-benefit Analysis of CFPR

This paper presents a cost-benefit analysis of the first cohort (2002-03) of selected ultra poor (SUP) households of BRAC’s CFPR. The analysis calculates benefit of the programme using primary data...

by Sanjay Sinha | On 20 Jan 2011

When to Start a New Firm? Modelling the Timing of Novice and Serial Entrepreneurs

The success of new start-up firms often depends on timing. It is valuable for the potential entrepreneur to wait for the right moment before starting a new firm. In this paper we provide a theoret...

by Thomas Gries | On 14 Jan 2011

Socioeconomic Impact of BRAC’s Non-formal Primary Schools

BRAC started its Non-formal Primary Education (NFPE) programme to improve children’s effective participation in their own socio-economic development by increasing literacy, numeracy and required li...

by Altaf Hossain | On 05 Jan 2011

An Inside Look at Two BRAC Schools in Matlab

Since 1985, BRAC has been implementing its Non-Formal Primary Education (NFPE) Programme for disadvantaged children, primarily in the rural areas. From a modest start, the programme has rapidly expa...

by Sabina Rashid | On 29 Dec 2010

The Withdrawal of OHCHR-Nepal: Agreeing an Alibi for Violation?

On 9th June 2010 the mandate of the UN human rights field mission to Nepal, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Nepal (OHCHR-Nepal), expires. The Prime Minister MK Nepal has said t...

by Asian Centre for Human Rights ACHR | On 22 Dec 2010

Group-Oriented Values, Rules and Cooperation

This paper uses a game-theoretic framework to explain how collectivist values hamper societies’ efforts to elicit cooperation in inter-group games of prisoners’ dilemma (PD) and draws on the resul...

by Ke-young Chu | On 15 Dec 2010

ICT and e-Governance for Rural Development

Rural e-Governance applications in the recent past have demonstrated the important role the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) play in the realm of rural development. Several e-Governa...

by T.P. Rama Rao | On 07 Dec 2010

Dairy Information Services Kiosk and Dairy Portal

A proof of concept application using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the dairy sector was developed by the Centre for Electronics Governance at the Indian Institute of Management, Ah...

by T.P. Rama Rao | On 03 Dec 2010

When index dissemination goes wrong: How fast can traders add and multiply?

This paper studies an episode of dissemination of wrong stock index values in real time due to a software bug in the Indian Nifty index futures market on the morning of January 18, 2006. The episod...

by Jayanth R Varma | On 01 Dec 2010

Towards Gender-Balanced Leadership: What has not Worked and What May?

The paper analyzes the the dynamics of gender balance in the corporate world. It examines the present scenario of leadership in this sector and the reasons of lack of female leaders.

by Claire Schaffnit Chatterjee | On 30 Nov 2010

Capabilities and the Process of Development

Sen's concept of capabilities is rooted in welfare theory. For the development economist it has immediate, if somewhat lenuous, appeal on counts. First, the concept provides an ethical basis for evalu...

by G. Omkarnath | On 11 Nov 2010

The WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin: Implications for South Asia

From neutral trade policy devices employed to identity country of origin of commodities, the rules of origin are emerging as protectionist tools. Nation-states, as they are increasingly denied of co...

by K N Harilal | On 09 Nov 2010

Auditor and Audit Committee Independence in India

This article reviews the regulations and governance reforms carried out in India with respect to auditor and audit committee independence. In doing so it critically compares them with the regulations...

by Jayati Sarkar | On 02 Nov 2010

Macroeconomic Impacts of Foreign Exchange Reserve Accumulation: Theory and International Evidence

Recently, a dramatic accumulation in foreign exchange reserves has been widely observed in developing countries. This paper explores the possible long-run impacts of this trend on macroeconomic variab...

by Shin-ichi Fukuda | On 01 Nov 2010

Towards Understanding the Merger-Wave in the Indian Corporate Sector: A Comparative Perspective

The corporate sector in India has witnessed a substantial growth of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) during the 1990s, facilitated by the policy-shift under Structural Adjustment Program. During the...

by P.L. Beena | On 28 Oct 2010

Patterns of Inclusive Growth in Developing Asia: Insights from an Enhanced Growth-Poverty Elasticity Analysis

The primary objective of this research is to identify key factors that explain the observed wide variation in patterns of inclusiveness of economic growth—defined here as gross domestic product (GDP...

by Cielito F. Habito | On 26 Oct 2010

Accelerating Economic Growth and Reducing Poverty: The Road Ahead

It outlines the broad framework and the strategy for poverty reduction based on four pillars: (a) accelerating economic growth while maintaining the macroeconomic stability; (b) improving the govern...

by Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan, | On 19 Oct 2010

Governance, Institutions, and Regional Infrastructure in Asia

This study is a comprehensive, empirical analysis of the linkages between governance, institutions, and regional infrastructure. The empirical results indicate that governance and institutions are cru...

by Prabir De | On 14 Oct 2010

The Impact of Free Trade Agreements on Business Activity: A Survey of Firms in the People's Republic of China

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has emerged as a major player in the global economy and considers free trade agreements (FTAs) an important part of its global trading strategy. The PRC’s export i...

by Yunling Zhang | On 12 Oct 2010

Decent Work and the Informal Economy

The ILO was founded for social justice, a mandate expressed today in terms of decent work as a global goal, for all who work, whether in formal or informal contexts. In June 2002, the delegates to...

by Anne Trebilcock | On 08 Oct 2010

Peasants and Formal Credit in Thiruvithamcore: The State Institutions and Social Structure 1914-1940

Considerations of credit mechanism as a suitable mode of appropriation of surplus, compared to rent, explains to a great extent the motivation, behind state intervention in the money market in pea...

by T.T. Sreekumar | On 04 Oct 2010

Public Debt Management in Sri Lanka-Performance in 2009 and Strategies for 2010 and Beyond

The information included in this publication covers the public debt management strategies adopted in 2009, the movements in debt stock during the year and the related costs and risks and the primar...

by Central Bank of SriLanka CBSL | On 30 Sep 2010

Disciplining Voluntary Environmental Standards At The Wto: An Indian Legal Viewpoint

This paper looks into the proliferation of privately-formulated environmental product standards and analyses whether Indian industry has a legal recourse under the WTO dispute settlement mechanism if...

by Samir R. Gandhi | On 30 Sep 2010

Social Protection is Centuries-Old!

In spite of continued growth, millions of Ugandans remain in long-term, extreme poverty. They are also likely to continue being by-passed by the opportunities that economic growth offers, mostly to th...

by John De Coninck | On 24 Sep 2010

Quantifying Spatial Mislocation in Centrally Provided Public Goods

In this paper they show how an optimization algorithm can be used to approximately quantify the costs to users of spatial misallocation in centrally provided public goods. This method can be employed...

by Siva Athreya | On 23 Sep 2010

Supply Responses in the Livestock Economy of Kerala

The quantitative and qualitative changes taking place in livestock population over the years would be due to the changes in demand for livestock products. The changes in lives...

by K. Narayanan Nair | On 16 Sep 2010

Design of Power Markets : Different Market Structures and Proposed Options for India

In this paper, the different market structure options and the broad organisational forms of restructured wholesale markets for electricity that have emerged, have been critically analysed. [Working Pa...

by Payal Malik | On 15 Sep 2010

Economic Governance of MFIs: Inside the Black Box

This paper investigates a relationship between economic governance and the dual objectives of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs): poverty reduction and financial viability. Using an unbalanced pan...

by Thankom Arun | On 06 Sep 2010

Concentrating Solar Power in China and India: A Spatial Analysis of Technical Potential and the Cost of Deployment

This study provides an in-depth assessment of Concentrating solar power (CSP) potential in China and India using high-resolution spatial data for site selection and modeling of plant performance, ass...

by Kevin Ummel | On 03 Sep 2010

What Can Be Learned About the Economies of China and India from Purchasing Power Comparisons?

Comparisons of India and China have been made for over 50 years. This paper focuses on purchasing power estimates in China and India in the 2005 round of the UN International Comparison Programme (I...

by Alan Heston | On 20 Aug 2010

Testing for the Option Value of Migration

Using uncertainty about the future returns to migration, the option value theory of migration can explain low migration rates in spite of huge wage differences. This paper presents the theory in a...

by Lilo Locher | On 12 Aug 2010

Survey Of State-Society Relations Social Indicators Research Project Executive Summary Report

The executive summary reports on major findings from a survey conducted among a random sample of 1,054 Singaporeans and Permanent Residents aged 18 to 65. Focus is on views of public policies in thr...

by Ooi Giok Ling | On 29 Jul 2010

Collective Action in Diverse Sierra Leone Communities

Scholars have pointed to ethnic and other social divisions as a leading cause of economic underdevelopment, due in part to their adverse effects on public good provision and collective action. We inve...

by Rachel Glennerster | On 13 Jul 2010

Institutions for Asian Connectivity

To make Asia more economically sustainable and resilient against external shocks, regional economies need to be rebalanced toward regional demand- and trade-driven growth through increased regional co...

by Biswa N Bhattacharyay | On 09 Jul 2010

Incentive Based Approaches for Mitigating Greenhouse Gas Emmissions : Issues And Prospects for India

As a consequence of the flexibility mechanisms incorporated in the Kyoto Protocol (KP), incentive-based policies such as emissions trading and the clean development mechanism (CDM) are being widely d...

by Shreekant Gupta | On 07 Jul 2010

Why is Dead DEDA Still Alive?

The paper discuses and analyzes the present state of affairs of the Delhi Energy Development Agency (DEDA).

by Arjun Bhattacharya | On 30 Jun 2010

Heroes of the Market: Street Vendors in Vadodara

The paper is a analysis of the street vendors of Vadodara and the Gujarat Government's attitute towards them.

by Nimisha Srivastava | On 29 Jun 2010

Estimating human resource requirements for scaling up priority health interventions in Lowincome countries of Sub-Saharan Africa: A methodology based on service quantity, tasks and productivity (THE QTP METHODOLOGY)

This study was carried out under the auspices of the LSHTM Health Economics and Financing Program, which, at the time of the work, received a research programme grant from DFID. The findings, conclu...

by Christoph Kurowski | On 25 Jun 2010

Intellectual Property Rights: Who Needs Them?

The twenty-first century will be the century of knowledge, indeed the century of the intellect. A nation’s ability to translate knowledge into wealth and social good through innovations will determi...

by Garima Gupta | On 24 Jun 2010

Analyzing Corruption Possibilities in the Gaze of the Media

In this paper analyze the economic incentives that govern the strategic relationship between the government and the independent media has been analysed using a consistent analytical framework.The an...

by Samarth Vaidya | On 17 Jun 2010

Parking Space for the Poor: Restrictions Imposed on Marketing and Movement of Agricultural Goods in India

Agricultural markets in India have been regulated since 1928 with the inception of the "Royal Commission of Agriculture." Policy intervention in agriculture was virtually absent till the Bengal Fam...

by Mayank Wadhwa | On 16 Jun 2010

Commercialisation of Microfinance in India: A Discussion on the Emperor’s Apparel

The paper looks at the growth and commercialization of microfinance in India. It starts out be looking at how the commercial microfinance has evolved internationally by discussing two specific ex...

by M S Sriram | On 08 Jun 2010

Knowledge Work and Human Rights in the Cybercultural Age

The current knowledge economy in terms of their human rights component, the author argues, offers a space where demands and claims can be articulated. Websites, databases, documentation and archives a...

by Pramod K. Nayar | On 06 Jun 2010

Constitutional Fiats: Presidential Legislation in India’s Parliamentary Democracy

his article (the first in a two-part series) evaluates the nature and scope of executive controls over primary legislation in India and Pakistan. A Parliament, in a representative democracy, is the pr...

by Shubhankar Dam | On 05 Jun 2010

All the PM's men

In this article TN Ninan looks at the how the 15 economic ministers have performed. He starts with the finance minister whose record seems very patchy as he has not been able to deal with inflation an...

by T.N. Ninan | On 27 May 2010

Cultures of Transport: Representation, Practice and Technology

It is argue that the so-called cultural‘ (and spatial‘) turn that has remodelled so many other areas of the humanities and social sciences over the last two decades might help answer Armstrong‘s plea...

by Colin Divall | On 21 May 2010

Urban Governance and Finance in India

Over 330 million people live in India’s cities; 35 cities have a population of over a million and three (Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata) of the 10 largest metropolises in the world are in India. India’s...

by M. Govinda Rao | On 21 May 2010

Adaptation, Plasticity, and Extinction in a Changing Environment: Towards a Predictive Theory

A simple evolutionary model is used to understand the critical rate of environmental change beyond which a population must decline and go extinct. The model is used to highlight the major determinants...

by Luis-Miguel Chevin | On 21 May 2010

Executive Blogging: Indian Corporate Heads in the Blogosphere

This study analyzes the content, usability, interactivity and connectivity of Indian executive blogs. Results indicate that among the Indian CEOs and top executives who blog, most are associated wit...

by Smeeta Mishra | On 14 May 2010

The Shape of Temptation: Implications for the Economic Lives of the Poor

This paper argues that the relation between temptations and the level of consumption plays a key role in explaining the observed behaviors of the poor. Temptation goods are defined to be the set of...

by Abhijit Banerjee | On 13 May 2010

MDG-Based Poverty Reduction Strategy for West Bengal

The purpose of this paper is to examine the poverty situation in West Bengal in a multidimensional framework and to explore possible strategies towards reduction of poverty in the state, keeping in...

by Achin Chakraborty | On 22 Feb 2010

The World Bank: Toward a Global Club

In the light of this simple idea of the bank as a global credit club, what are the issues that arise with respect to its current governance structure? How might various proposals for reform strength...

by Nancy Birdsall | On 11 Feb 2010

Towards A Competitive Economy: VAT and Customs Duty Reform

In this paper the issue of indirect tax reform, with a special focus on customs duty reform is examined. [WP]

by Arvind Virmani | On 28 Jan 2010

The Dynamic Relationship between Price and Trading Volume: Evidence from Indian Stock Market

This study investigates the nature of relationship between price and trading volume for 50 Indian stocks. Firstly the contemporaneous and asymmetric relation between price and volume are examined. T...

by Brajesh Kumar | On 25 Jan 2010

Measures of Inflation in India: Issues and Perspectives

A review of the various primary measures of inflation with a particular reference to the divergence between WPI and CPI. Focus is also given on different secondary (derived) measures of inflation, par...

by Deepak Mohanty | On 21 Jan 2010

Re-Activating Primary Health Centres Through Industrial Partnership in Tamilnadu Is it a Sustainable Model of Partnership?

Kerala’s success in human development demonstrated that efficient functioning of government health care delivery system opens the doors of prosperity for the poor and vulnerable sections of the popu...

by Varatharajan D | On 21 Dec 2009

A Marketing Scheme for Making Money off Innocent People: A User’s Manual

Firms often give away free goods with the product that they sell. Firms often give stock options to their top management and other employees. Mixing these two practices—giving stock options to consu...

by Kaushik Basu | On 15 Dec 2009

Flying with the Crane-Recapturing KMVS’s Ten-Year Journey

This document is at the behest of KMVS and is an effort to hold up a mirror to their journey. It is a documentation of their history, context, evolution, and experiences since its emergence in 1989. A...

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 01 Dec 2009

Delivering (sustainable) Services on Scale : Anywhere

This paper addresses issues related to public private partnerships that can enable delivery of comprehensive health care to rural communities.

by Prachi Shukla | On 25 Nov 2009

Post-Conflict Recovery: Does the Global Economy Work for Peace?

This paper mainly addresses the economic dimensions, concentrating on the importance of international trade to state-building and the need for global public goods in a global market economy. The focu...

by Tony Addison | On 23 Nov 2009

No One Barked

No reponse form the policies that the government is announcing

by T.N. Ninan | On 20 Nov 2009

Muslim Women’s Rights Discourse in the Pre independece Period

The present paper deals with the discourse of the rights of Muslim women in the pre- independence period with particular reference to the Shariat Act 1937 and the Muslim Marriage Dissolution Act 193...

by Sabiha Hussain | On 20 Nov 2009

Combining Data, Enhancing Explanation

In this paper the author analyzes the pros and cons of combining data from different sources to revisit some explanatory problems. The problems discussed have risen from a theoretical and analytic g...

by Sarah Irwin | On 18 Nov 2009

Cost and Time Overruns in Infrastructure Projects: Extent, Causes and Remedies

Various issues related to delays and cost overruns in publically funded infrastructure projects are investigated. The study is based on, by far, the largest data-set of 850 projects across seventeen i...

by Ram Singh | On 11 Nov 2009

Philosophy and Practice of Financial Sector Regulation – Space for Unorthodoxy

Evolution of the financial sector regulation in India, particularly focusing on the elements of the policy framework which have contributed to the broader stability in the financial sector is depicted...

by Shyamala Gopinath | On 05 Nov 2009

Rural Health Services at Cross-Roads: Insights from Gujarat

The objective of the paper is to i) understand and document the morbidity profile, ii) examine utilisation of health services, and iii) estimate approximate expenses on health care by th...

by Ratnawali Sinha | On 07 Oct 2009

Emerging Asia's Middle Class-A Force to be Reckoned With

The emergence of a large and dynamic middle class raises Asia’s profile as an attractive market destination for products ranging from consumer goods to financial services. There are even hopes that th...

by Steffen Dyck | On 06 Oct 2009

Position Paper of National Focus Group on Heritage Crafts

The paper says to incorporate the cultural, social, and creative attributes of craft into the educational system,through both theory and practice and also to ensure that craft is viewed as a professi...

by National Council of Educational Research &Training NCERT | On 22 Sep 2009

A Social Cost Approach to Choice at Technology in Building Construction: A Study of Some Alternative Technologies in Kerala

This paper is an attempt to apply the technique of social cost - benefit analysis to the problem of choice of technology in building construction in Kerala. [WP No. 30].

by K P Kannan | On 21 Sep 2009

Middlemen Margins and Globalization

A theory of trading middlemen or entrepreneurs who finance and market goods produced by workers are developed. A two sector two country model of competitive equilibrium, with endogenous sorting of age...

by Pranab Bardhan | On 02 Sep 2009

Introducing Expenditure Quality in Intergovernmental Transfers: A Triple-E Framework

The present study has sought to introduce, conceptualise and operationalise a scheme for integrating the ‘quality’ dimension of public spending into the devolution scheme of intergovernmental transf...

by Mala Lalvani | On 20 Aug 2009

Rough Guide to Impact Evaluation of Environmental and Development Programs

This paper is a “rough guide” for evaluation of programs, projects and policies in the environment and development arena. First, a general overview of the what, how, and why of program evaluation, wit...

by Subhrendu K Pattanayak | On 19 Aug 2009

Reforming Foodgrains Management: Achieving Food Security with Cost-Effectiveness

This paper examines the efficacy of the current system of public foodgrains management and policies in promoting food security in the country. It argues that the system has outlived its usefulness,...

by A. Ganesh Kumar | On 13 Aug 2009

A Glimpse of the Tiger: How Much are Indians Willing to Pay for It?

The recreational demand for the Indian Sundarban, which is a World Heritage site and a complex mangrove ecosystem that borders India and Bangladesh is estimated. Two alternative methodologies exist f...

by Indrila Guha | On 13 Aug 2009

Commodities, Comforts, and Chaos

There is an incessant flow of technical innovations for newer and newer consumer goods and gadgets in our contemporary times. Even though technology has benefitted modern civilization through major sc...

by Arup Maharatna | On 10 Aug 2009

Assets and Poverty Traps in Rural Bangladesh

This paper applies Carter and Barrett’s theory of assets poverty traps to a unique longitudinal survey from rural Bangladesh. Non-parametric and parametric methods are used to examine the shape of the...

by Agnes Quisumbing | On 06 Aug 2009

Village Development Boards (VDBs) in Nagaland

The article describes the constitution and functions of Village Development Boards (VDBs) in NAGALAND where VDBs are considered as “Financial Intermediaries” or “Non-Banking Financial Intermediaries”....

by Karmakar K G | On 06 Aug 2009

Nepal Budget 2009-10

Budget presented by Finance minister of Nepal.

by Surendra Pandey | On 27 Jul 2009

A Status Report on India’s Financial System: A view from the Standpoint of Intermediation and Risk Bearing

The paper seeks to analyse and discuss the impact of financial reform and related institutional change on the process of financial intermediation. In effect reforms stood the earlier quantity driven...

by Chakrabarti B.B. | On 09 Jul 2009

Financialization of Capital - Deterioration of Working Conditions

This paper addresses the issue of establishing a regulatory regime along the production, supply and value chains of multinational corporations in terms of setting labor standards and protecting worker...

by Fichter Michael | On 08 Jul 2009

Report of the Internal Working Group on Debt Management

Establishing a debt management office would consolidate all debt management functions in a single agency, and be the catalyst for wider institutional reform and transparency about public debt. It is i...

by Ministry of Finance | On 04 Jul 2009

Emerging Contours of Financial Regulation: Challenges and Dynamics

The paper attempts to analyse the emerging contours of regulation of financial institutions with an emphasis on the emerging challenges and dynamics. [Paper prepared for Financial Stability Review of...

by Rakesh Mohan | On 29 Jun 2009

Crises, Capital Controls, and Financial Integration

This paper analyzes the effects of capital controls and crises on financial integration, using stocks from emerging economies that trade in both domestic and international markets. The cross market p...

by Eduardo Yeyati | On 27 Jun 2009

Impact of Imported Intermediate and Capital Goods on Economic Growth: A Cross Country Analysis

Knowledge accumulation in the richer countries provides them with comparative advantages in higher productivity products. The countries that import the higher productivity intermediate products and ca...

by C Veermani | On 23 Jun 2009

Financing Long Term Investments in Bangladesh: Capital Market Development Issues

There has been an increase in the demand for infrastructure services and opening up of the infrastructure sector for private investment. As a result, a large number of financial intermediaries and pri...

by Mustafa. K. Mujeri | On 15 Jun 2009

Goods and Services Tax for India

The paper contours of a feasible design of VAT in India. It also takes on board the various alternatives proposed. It looks at the issues that need resolution and the options available for resolving t...

by R.Kavita Rao | On 12 Jun 2009

Development Challenges in Extremist Affected Areas

Widespread discontent among the people has plagued the Indian polity for sometime now. It has often led to unrest, sometimes of a violent nature. Over the years, statutory enactments and institutional...

by Expert Group Planning Commission | On 06 Jun 2009

Research Governance in Social Science and Social Care Research

The paper summarises the main ethical issues in social science and social care research. It outlines what is meant by research governance, especially as set out in the Department of Health Research Go...

by Jan Pahl | On 05 Jun 2009

Regulation of Organ Transplantation in Thailand: Does it Work?

End stage organ failure is very distressing condition. Initially, there was only palliativetreatment for end stage organ failure such as hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Later on, the advancement...

by Viroj Tangcharoensathien | On 04 Jun 2009

Barso Mhare Des… Children's Perception of Drought

The chronic drought in Rajasthan affects everyone. But people are affected in different ways. This may be because of locality, form of livelihood, caste and class.This report carries the voices of gir...

by ECHO Save the Children (U.K) | On 31 May 2009

Gender and Modern Supply Chains in Developing Countries

The rapid spread of modern supply chains in developing countries is profoundly changing the way food is produced and traded. In this paper we examine the gender implications in modern supply chains. W...

by Miet Maertens | On 29 May 2009

Risk Management Lessons from the Global Financial Crisis

During the global financial turmoil of 2007 and 2008, no major derivative clearing house in the world encountered distress while many banks were pushed to the brink and beyond. An important reason for...

by Jayanth R Varma | On 26 May 2009

Impact of Imported Intermediate and Capital Goods on Economic Growth: A Cross Country Analysis

Knowledge accumulation in the richer countries provides them with comparative advantages in higher productivity products. The countries that import the higher productivity intermed...

by C Veermani | On 21 May 2009

Measurement of Employment And Unemployment in India : Some Issues

This paper offers a review of the concepts and definitions used in the NSS Employment-Unemployment Surveys (EUS, for short) which have remained virtually unchanged since they were introduced in the NS...

by K. Sundaram | On 15 May 2009

Reporting The Olympic Year

This paper discusses if the Olymipic Games presented a change- not change along the lines of South Koreas leap towards democracy after the Seol Olympics, but some small shift- and how the nature of it...

by Jane Macartney | On 05 May 2009

Promoting Sustainable Agriculture: Experiences from India and Canada

Agriculture sector, world over, has experienced a phenomenal growth since the mid-twentieth century. The growth, driven by Green Revolution technology, has made a significant dent on aggregate supply...

by Amita Shah | On 02 May 2009

Social Protection for Informal Workers: Insecurities, Instruments and Institutional Mechanisms

This paper presents a broad definition of social protection to include basic securities, such as income, food, health and shelter, and economic securities including having income generating productive...

by Jeemol Unni | On 01 May 2009

Controlling Money and Politics – An Exercise in Damage Control

In many countries political financial regulations have been introduced.

by Marcin Walecki | On 28 Apr 2009

CBDR Principle and Recent Developments at the UNFCCC Ensuring Fairness to Developing Countries

This paper on the CBDR deals with these issues of equity, development and climate change in a holistic way to address the problem from the global south perspective keeping the South Asian requirement...

by Sanjay Vashist | On 24 Apr 2009

Governance in Public Transport Systems: Comparing Indian Railways and Airways

The paper examines the basic reasons and feasible remedies for organizational weakness, and the possible contribution of ownership, industry and management structure, leadership, social norms, and i...

by Ashima Goyal | On 12 Feb 2009

Fluoride Testing and Fluorisis Mitigation in Sonebhadra District

Fluorosis is a crippling disease caused by high fluoride concentrations in drinking water. In India about 20 states have been identified with a problem of excess fluoride in groundwater. Rural popula...

by A. Gautam | On 06 Feb 2009

What Is the Future for Global Case Management Guidelines for Common Childhood Diseases?

A framework for national surveillance, monitoring, and research that could help inform guideline development in low-income settings. [Plos Medicine Policy Forum].

by Mike English | On 07 Jan 2009

Report on the GLobal Financial Crisis and Kerala Economy: Impact and Mitigation Measures

This preliminary report has been prepared with a view to assist the state government in understanding the implications of the crisis, so that appropriate policies and programmes could be chalked to de...

by Centre for Development Studies CDS | On 02 Jan 2009

The Economic Impact of Forest Hydrological Services on Local Communities: A Case Study from the Western Ghats of India

Building upon a larger research project at four sites in the Western Ghats of peninsular India, this study examines the link between stream flow, agricultural water use and economic returns to agric...

by SHARACHCHANDRA LELE | On 02 Jan 2009

Educational Reforms in India: Universalisation of Primary Education in Kerala

The history and evolution and the factors underlying the success of primary education in Kerala. [CDS WP 189].

by P R Gopinathan Nair | On 10 Dec 2008

Controlling Money and Politics – An Exercise in Damage Control

Whether there should be transparency in political finance? Whether there should be a control over the money that the political parties are receiving?

by Marcin Walecki | On 04 Dec 2008

Idealistic Images of Watershed Development- Constructive Engagement with Critiques on the Common Guidelines

This paper identifies the idealistic images driving the watershed programmes as a major stumbling block in sustainable natural resource management. It calls for building on the existing governance ins...

by Saravanan S | On 02 Dec 2008

Changing Interface Between Agriculture and Livestock: A Study of Livelihood Options under Dry Land Farming Systems in Gujarat

The present paper tries to empirically examine the changing profile of distribution and ownership of livestock across different regions of India and specifically for Gujarat. Besides, primary data col...

by Amita Shah | On 21 Nov 2008

The Incidence and Performance Effects of Interlocking Directorates in Emerging Market Business Groups: Evidence from India

The structure and extent of interlocking directorates within Indian business groups is studied and analyses the performance effects of such interlocks. It finds that large groups tend to have more int...

by Bikram De | On 21 Nov 2008

Agflation and the PDS: Some Issues

In the context of the current public policy focus on rising food prices and their implications for food security, this paper examines two major issues raised: (i) Universalization of the public distri...

by Suryanarayana M H | On 04 Nov 2008

The Role of Intellectual Property Rights in Information and Communication Technologies

The paper starts by recapitulating the basic arguments provided by economic theory to explain the existence of the patent system. The paper then concentrates on the three important ICT industries viz....

by C Niranjan Rao | On 30 Oct 2008

Dynamics of Rural Water Supply in Coastal Kerala: A Sustainable Development View

This paper examines empirically within sustainable development framework the dynamics of coverage in rural drinking water supply of 180 demand-driven schemes from Malappuram, predominantly a coastal...

by K Pushpangadan | On 27 Oct 2008

Poverty, Private Property and Common Pool Resource Management: The Case of Irrigation Tanks in South India

This study tries to understand the main causes of tank degradation and the complex interrelationships among poverty, private coping mechanisms and community coping mechanisms that affect tank performa...

by Balasubramanian R | On 17 Oct 2008

Affective Cosmopolitanism Ashis Nandy’s Utopia

Ashish Nandy’s utopia is based on a particular view of cosmopolitanism – one that acknowledges and acts upon suffering as a global feature irrespective of geographical and historical location. Nandy’s...

by Pramod K. Nayar | On 16 Oct 2008

Right to Drinking Water in India

This paper proceeds with approach that it is the constitutional obligation of the State to provide adequate quantity of drinking water to the citizens and also protect water resources as common good...

by Ramachandraiah C | On 13 Oct 2008

Pluralism, Tenancy and Poverty: Cultivating Open-Mindedness in Poverty Studies

This paper applies theoretical pluralism to studies of poverty. However in order to be more specific it takes as a case study some competing studies of Indian rural tenancy relations. In the paper, sp...

by Wendy Olsen | On 25 Sep 2008

Estimating the Probability of Trade Union Membership in India: Impact of Communist Parties, Personal Attributes and Industrial Characteristics

The paper analyses the impact of the reach of communist parties, the degree of political activism, personal attributes of workers, and industrial characteristics on the individual decision to unionise...

by Rupayan Pal | On 22 Sep 2008

Food Processing in Andhra Pradesh Opportunities and Challenges

The study is taken up in the state of Andhra Pradesh with the following objectives: 1. To study the opportunities and challenges in processing of rice, fruits and vegetables, oilseeds and livestock...

by S.Mahendra Dev | On 17 Sep 2008

Backward and Forward Linkages that Strengthen Primary Education

The active participation of children in primary education hinges on a plethora of factors. Physical access is just one dimension. Children do not attend school regularly, and even if they do, they do...

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 10 Sep 2008

Managing the Arsenic Disaster in Water Supply:Risk Measurement, Costs of Illness and PolicyChoices for Bangladesh

Arsenic poisoning is a major public health concern in Bangladesh. This study uses primary data to examine health impacts and costs associated with arsenic contamination of groundwater. The study estim...

by M. Zakir Hossain Khan Khan | On 29 Aug 2008

Factors Influencing Successful Primary School Completion for Chidren in Poverty Context.

The current paper is an attempt to capture the process of child development along the age continuum of 0 to 11, with special reference to children living in diverse poverty situations.

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 08 Aug 2008

EFA Case Study India 2003:Gender Equality in Education (India) Progress in the Last Decade.

While the decline in infrastructure, functionality, quality and attitudes affect all children, given the prevailing social inequalities and hierarchies, these factors affect poor children and among th...

by Vimala Ramachandran | On 28 Jul 2008

Managing Capital Flows: The Case of India

From the early 1990s, India embarked on easing capital controls. Liberalization emphasised openness towards equity flows, both FDI and portfolio flows. In particular, there are few barriers in the fa...

by Ajay Shah | On 24 Jul 2008

Between Citizens and Institutions: The Dyamics of the Integration of Water Supply and Sanitation Services in Hyderabad

The purpose of this study is to review the changes that have taken place recently in water supply and sanitation services and examine the role of various stakeholders involved in urban governance in...

by Agnes Huchon | On 15 Jul 2008

Impact of Organic Farming on Economics of Sugarcane Cultivation in Maharashtra

The primary goal of this paper is to examine the impact of organic farming on economics of sugarcane cultivation in Maharashtra. The study is based on primary data collected from two districts coverin...

by Kshirsagar K G | On 14 Jul 2008

Process, People, Power and Conflict: Some Lessons from a Participatory Policy Process in Andhra Pradesh, India

A large body of empirical literature highlights the need for stakeholder participation within the context of policy change and democratic governance. This makes intuitive sense and may appear to be a...

by Vinod Ahuja | On 19 Jun 2008

Impact Of Girl Child’s Enrollment On Work Sharing and Distribution Pattern in Families

Ranga Reddy district, where the present study is carried out is marked by low literacy rate and high concentration of child labour. M.V.Foundation adopted 16 Mandals of this district for the impleme...

by Davaluri Venkateshwaralu | On 10 Jun 2008

Differential Impact of Development Interventions on Multiple Ethnic Groups

This paper looks at the effects on livestock of silvi-pasture development on common lands in relation to (a) ruminant systems and (b) livestock numbers and ownership patterns in Rajasthan, India. [SDC...

by Czech Conroy | On 14 May 2008

Improving the Economic Condition of Farmers

The Official Group would like to recommend a set of policy initiatives for the consideration of the Government of Karnataka. The recommendations of the Official Group are grouped under the following h...

by Government of Karnataka GoK | On 04 May 2008

The Sexual Internet

The ‘sexual Internet’ is clearly a social space where multiple economies – commercial, political and libidinal – intersect. It is a phenomenon that requires exploration from multiple angles: economic,...

by Pramod K. Nayar | On 21 Feb 2008

Women’s Economic Empowerment as the “Magic Potion” of Development?

Boosting women’s relative control of income and other economic resources has so many consequences that positively enhance both gender equality and development that female economic empowerment may be c...

by Rae Lesser Blumberg | On 20 Feb 2008

Estimating the Economic Benefits of Arsenic Removal in India: A Case Study from West Bengal

People living in almost fifty percent of the districts in West Bengal are exposed to arsenic contaminated water. The economic costs imposed by arsenic-related health problems are estimated. Data from...

by Joyashree Roy | On 08 Feb 2008

The Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2007

A bill to provide for the rehabilitation and resettlement of persons affected by the acquisition of land for projects of public purpose or involuntary displacement due to any other reason, and for mat...

by Lok Sabha | On 07 Feb 2008

Requirement of Public Holding for Listing

It is proposed to amend the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Rules, 1957 (SCRR) to make provisions to implement the proposals as suggested at Para 11 in the paper. The comments on these proposals are...

by Ministry of Finance | On 05 Feb 2008

Gender Planning, Budgeting and Auditing

This manual is intended to help local governments to uphold the human rights of women, by involving them in identifying their needs and with their participation, to find possible solutions and move to...

by Aleyamma Vijayan | On 04 Feb 2008

From Theory to Practice: Translating Research into Health Outcomes

Commenting on recent research articles which look at the potential health benefits of behaviour change, the PLoS Medicine Editors say that publication of the findings of such research is only one part...

by PLoS Medicine | On 01 Feb 2008

Toward an Economic Sociology of Chronic Poverty: Enhancing the Rigor and Relevance of Social Theory

This paper focuses on both expanding and refining the analytical scope of the “social” (or non-economic) aspects of chronic poverty, and thereby, to enhance efforts to respond more effectively to it....

by Michael Woolcock | On 25 Jan 2008

Review of Globalisation and Opening Markets in Developing Countries and Impact on National Firms and Public Governance: The and Impact on National Firms and Public Governance: The Case of India

Review of Globalisation and Opening Markets in Developing Countries and Impact on National Firms and Public Governance: The Case of India by Jean-Francois Huchet & Joel Ruet, Scientific Coordinators,...

by Lakshmanan L | On 19 Jan 2008

Child Marriage: Social and Economic Linkages and Opportunities for Intervention

The presentation shows the consequences of child marriage, how to prevent child marriage. [Power Point Presentation].

by Geeta Rao Gupta | On 19 Dec 2007

Determinants of Choosing an Airline by a Traveller -An Analysis from New Zealand Perspective

The important determinants that have influence on travellers to choosing a particular airline are analysed. Data from primary and secondary sources have been used for this paper. A field survey was co...

by Ershad Ali | On 12 Dec 2007

Urbanisation and Globalisation in the Twenty First Century: Emerging Challenges

The speech mainly gives insights into aspects like what is globalisation, urban growth in the next 30 years, new challenges of Globalisation for Cities, the poor that emerges along with the cities, th...

by Rakesh Mohan | On 06 Dec 2007

Education for All by 2015 Will We Make It?

The EFA Global Monitoring Report offers an authoritative reference for comparing the experiences of countries, understanding the positive impact of specific policies and recognizing that progress ha...

by UNESCO Publishing | On 05 Dec 2007

The Growing Importance of Emerging Economies in the Globalised World and its Implications for the International Financial Architecture

The growing importance of India and other emerging economies in the globalized world are given in this lecture. This group of economies is not easy to define. However, some reflections on the implicat...

by Jean-Claude Trichet | On 30 Nov 2007

Decentralisation and Issues in Self Governance in Tribal Areas of South Gujarat

To examine the functioning of Gram Sabha and participation of tribal communities therein to asses the status of self governance under the “Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) A...

by Ratnawali Sinha | On 14 Nov 2007

Poverty, Development and Basic Biology

Although PLoS Biology does not often publish articles that grapple with issues like poverty and human development, it was chosen to do so here because it is believed that the collective output of scie...

by Liza Gross | On 12 Nov 2007

Elements of Effective Central Banking: Theory, Practice, and History

The key elements of effective central banking that account for much of the improvement in monetary policy around the world today are outlined and explained. The past quarter of the century has been a...

by Marvin Goodfriend | On 09 Oct 2007

Inter-firm differences in FII portfolio investment in India

This paper has the objective of analysing the determinants of FII investment in firms in high-tech corporate sectors like automobiles, drugs and pharmaceuticals, IT software and IT hardware for the pe...

by B.L. Pandit | On 08 Oct 2007

The New Mumbai: Defining Systemic Reforms for the Governance of Mumbai City and Mumbai Metropolitan Region

The 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Constitution of India were made with an express objective or purpose of restoring power back to people by legally encouraging “local self-governance”. At the same...

by A.K. Shende | On 08 Oct 2007

Model Nagara Raj Bill

Model bill to amend the laws relating to the Municipalities and to institutionalise citizens’ participation in municipal functions, e.g. setting priorities, budgeting provisions, etc. by setting up of...

by Ministry of Urban Development MoUD | On 08 Oct 2007

Governance and Health

As we celebrate 60 years of political independence and take pride in our dynamic private sector, our remarkable IT successes and all the other usual dimensions of success, let us remind ourselves that...

by Shankar Acharya | On 08 Oct 2007

Inititaing Public Debate on Reforms in Higher Education

Idea on National Knowledge Commission, what it is and what are they trying to accomplish, ask for the audience support, understanding and also talk about the need for major reforms in University educa...

by Sam Pitroda | On 05 Oct 2007

The 40:40 Team

Some of the company managers tune their business strategy to match the quarterly cycle of results announcements. Rapidly growing economies will deliver such high valuations, and many of them will be s...

by T.N. Ninan | On 01 Oct 2007

Position Paper on National Focus Group on Teaching of Mathematics

In the vision of the Group, school mathematics takes place in a situation where: (1) Children learn to enjoy mathematics, (2) Children learn important mathematics, (3) Mathematics is a part of childre...

by R. Ramanujam | On 01 Oct 2007

The Reserve Bank and the State Governments: Partners in Progress

The States, relative to the Centre, have taken the centre-stage in the reform process since the areas of highest national priority now fall essentially within the purview of the States. The unique and...

by Y V Reddy | On 26 Sep 2007

What can be...

Examples of various initiatives for e-governance from Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are given. The application of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology in different sectors can impr...

by T.N. Ninan | On 04 Sep 2007

Reforming the WTO: Toward More Democratic Governance and Decision-Making

This paper takes a critical approach to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and proposes a radical solution involving more direct involvement of civil society and the private sector in WTO governing...

by Saif Al-Islam Alqadhafi | On 27 Aug 2007

Report of the Inter-ministerial Task Force on Convergence of Securities and Commodity Derivative Market

With the abolition of prohibition on forward trade in all the commodities at the beginning of 2003, the commodity derivativesmarket has been totally liberalized. The Ramamoorthy Committee set up by SE...

by Ministry for Consumer Affairs,Food and Public Dist MCAFP | On 26 Aug 2007

Demand and Supply Factors in the Determination of India's Disaggragated Manufactured Exports: A Simultaneous Error-Correction Approach

An investigation of the demand and supply factors underlying the long-term behaviour of India’s disaggregated manufactured exports. An imperfect substitutes demand-supply model of export determination...

by Saikat Sinha Roy | On 20 Aug 2007

On the Relevance of the Median Voter to Resource Allocation amongst Jurisdictions

Allocation of local public good over three jurisdictions with individuals with heterogeneous tastes, in a model with democratic institutions and majority rule. The nature of electoral uncertainty, the...

by Santhanu Gupta | On 16 Aug 2007

Book Review: Anti-Imperialism and Individualism

Organizing Empire: Individualism, Collective Agency, and India. By Purnima Bose; Duke University Press, Durham and London, South Asian Reprint, Zubaan, New Delhi, 2006.

by Barnita Bagchi | On 13 Aug 2007

Better Than the Rest

India’s good economic performance and friendlier ties with important countries that have been either distant or hostile, is achieved by a leader with whom the country can feel at ease. But Dr. Manmoha...

by T.N. Ninan | On 06 Aug 2007

Social Science Research Methods and Knowledge-Claims

This paper explores three important but interrelated issues: The power of example; the fragment as evidence; and finally, the field experience and the possibility of generalisation. These issues are...

by Paramjit S Judge | On 03 Aug 2007

Book Review: Debating India's Future

Review of: The Future of India – Economics, Politics and Governance by Bimal Jalan, Penguin books, New Delhi.

by G Narasimha Raghavan | On 03 Aug 2007

De-risking the System

The advent of political uncertainties has led to questions about poor governance which can lead to economic under performance.

by T.N. Ninan | On 31 Jul 2007

Working Draft for Revised Medical Curriculum: Introduction

There has been a global shift in the emphasis from discipline based curriculum to more integrated and problem based curriculum. However, considering the logistics of implementation and constrains in t...

by Task Force on Medical Education | On 21 Jul 2007

Report of the Task Force on Medical Education for the National Rural Health Mission

Some of the major problems in primary healthcare relate to training and capacity building of health service providers in foreseeable future. It is in this background that government set up a Task Fo...

by Task Force on Medical Education | On 21 Jul 2007

Governance Institutions and Development

The problem of corruption has become very important in recent thinking on development policy. But corruption is only a part of the more general issue of economic governance, and of more general policy...

by Avinash K Dixit | On 17 Jul 2007

Medico Friend Circle Bulletin, 320-321, DEcember 2006-March 2007

Public Health Education in India -Ritu Priya 1 Public Health Education in India - Some Reflections -Ravi and Thelma Narayan 4 A Few Additional Issues for Discussion at the MFC Meet -Anant Phadke 19 ...

by Medico Friend Circle | On 04 Jul 2007

Understanding Chronic Poverty in South Asia

South Asia has the largest number of chronically poor people in the world –an estimated 135 to 190 million people. Chronic poverty in the region is most renounced in areas that have significant minori...

by Chronic Poverty Research Centre CPRC | On 02 Jul 2007

Improving Delivery of Programmes Through Administrative Reforms

India is showing signs of poor delivery of governance. In almost all states people perceive bureaucracy as wooden, disinterested in public welfare and corrupt. It must be recognized that improvement i...

by Naresh C. Saxena | On 02 Jul 2007

Good Urban Governance as a Prerequisite for Sustainable Global Health

Risk and chances of urban sustainability are presented. The new concepts of urban governance and its implications are also explained [Power point Presentation].

by Frauke Krass | On 28 Jun 2007

Reading Sraffa: The Philosophical Underpinnings of Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities

It is argued that that both the Sraffians’ interpretation based on the classical notion of centre of gravitation as well as the neoclassical interpretation based on the supposedly implicit assumption...

by Ajit Sinha | On 26 Jun 2007

Limits of Modern Epidemiological Models: What are the Alternatives?

Modern epidemiology has, by and large, been based on a narrow model of biomedicine and behaviour modification. It fails to answer, for instance the following questions: Why certain populations are inf...

by Vijay Kumar Yadavendu | On 15 May 2007

Lesons Government Failure: Public Goods Provision and Quality of Public Investment

This paper focuses on government investment and expenditure policies. Going beyond the growth experience, the author also tries to relate the policy experience to the issues of aggregate poverty, in...

by Arvind Virmani | On 25 Apr 2007

Primary Education in India Prospects of Meeting the MDG Target

By using two large repeated cross-sections, one for the early 1990s, and one for the late 1990s, the growth in school enrolment is described and completion rates for boys and girls in India, and to ex...

by Sonia Bhalotra | On 22 Mar 2007

Pro-Poor Targeting and Accountability of Local Governments in West Bengal

A commonly alleged pitfall of decentralization is that poverty, socio-economic inequality and lack of political competition allow local elites to capture local governments. This hypothesis is empirica...

by Pranab Bardhan | On 27 Dec 2006

Fiscal Decentralisation and Local Level Gender Responsive Budgeting in Morocco: Some Observations

During the last few years there has been a significant attempt to change the status of women in Morocco. Considerable efforts have been made to incorporate mainstream gender in socio-economic policies...

by M.Govinda Rao | On 27 Dec 2006

Fiscal Decentralisation and Local Level Gender Responsive Budgeting In The Philippines: An Empirical Analysis

With the strengthening of the fiscal decentralisation process in the Philippines, local government units (LGUs) were provided with more opportunities in terms of local level gender responsive budge...

by Lekha S. Chakraborty | On 27 Dec 2006

Telecommunications privatisation in Taiwan: A beautiful mistake?

This paper examines the changing role of the government and market in regulating the telecommunications sector since 1996 in Taiwan. It also explores changes in the institutional framework for regula...

by Kuo-Tai Cheng | On 22 Dec 2006

(Un)Constituting Property: The Deconstruction of the ‘Rights to Property’ in India

This paper is an engagament with the nuances of institutions contained within the edifice of the State, in particular institutions that have played a role in the construction of property rights in Ind...

by Jaivir Singh | On 20 Dec 2006

Beyond the Buzz: Panchayats, Water User Groups and Law in India

Close observers especially in the water and forestry sector point out that user organizations may not fit well within the system of local governance and “linking them to Panchayats may undermine thei...

by Videh Upadhyay | On 20 Dec 2006

Revisiting Primary Health Care in the 21st Century

Although ‘Primary Health Care’, as outlined in the famous Alma Ata Declaration has been a central concept and strategy in the field of health care in the late 20th century, it has not found mention in...

by Anant Phadke | On 11 Dec 2006

Decrypting E-Governance: Narratives, Power play and Participation in the Gyandoot Intranet

The mapping of the social and political constraints that marginalized communities and individuals encounter in their interface with e-governance projects, perhaps, has implications for the optimistic...

by T.T. Sreekumar | On 27 Nov 2006

Fiscal Decentralisation and Local Public Good Provision in China

Fiscal incentive is closely related with extra budgetary revenues.This paper examines the impact of fiscal revenues under decentralisation on responsiveness of public goods provision to real local nee...

by Xin-Qiao Ping | On 21 Nov 2006

Ministries must stop being regulators

Regulation that is working well, as well as others that plainly speak of misgovernance, are both instructive; the road forward lies in separating regulation from the government, and vesting this inste...

by Subramaniam Vincent | On 21 Nov 2006

Urban Studies: An Exploration in Theory and Practices

What is the character of our cities? What are the attributes of inequalities and social exclusions in towns, metropolises and mega cities? How do urban structures and forms characteristic of pre capit...

by Sujata Patel | On 18 Nov 2006

Children, Youth and Media Around the World: An Overview of Trends and Issues

This overview of trends and issues concerning young people and the media is based on a broad review of existing print and electronic sources, interviews with child media experts from different regions...

by Susan Gigli | On 14 Nov 2006

Review of Development and Change: Volume XI Number 1 January - June 2006

Highlights: Cultural Politics of Environment and Development: The Indian Experience Amita Baviskar Participatory Governance and Institutional Innovation – A Case of Andhra Pradesh Forestry Project...

by Madras Institute of Development Studies | On 08 Nov 2006

Policy Brief: OECD: Decentralisation in Asian Health Sectors: Friend or Foe?

Decentralising health services – the transfer of power and responsibility from the central to the local level should help the poor if local resources, accountability and governance are in good shape....

by Hiroko Uchimura | On 25 Oct 2006

Do Television and Radio Destroy Social Capital? Evidence from Indonesian Villages

In "Bowling Alone," Putnam (1995) famously argued that the rise of television may be responsible for social capital's decline. I investigate this hypothesis in the context of Indonesian villages. To i...

by Benjamin A. Olken | On 13 Oct 2006

The Teaching of English in the Government/Aided: Primary Schools in Kerala under DPEP

Launched in 1993 as a national initiative to achieve Universalisation of Elementary Education (UEE) through district-level intervention, the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) was started in...

by Sreedevi K. Nair | On 05 Oct 2006

PAER Issue No. 39, October 2006

* The Future of Economic Policy Making by Left-of-Center Governments in Latin America by Juan Carlos Moreno-Brid and Igor Paunovic (United Nations, Mexico) * Latin America: The End of an Era b...

by Post-Autistic Economics Movement | On 02 Oct 2006

Are we there yet? The deferral of justice and the promise of human rights

Utilizing the critical theory of Drucilla Cornell and Costas Douzinas, and looking back to the utopianism of Ernst Bloch, the paperI offers an argument that acknowledges the limits of the law and th...

by Narnia Bohler-Muller | On 28 Jul 2006

Post-Autistic Economics Review: Issue no. 38, 1 July 2006

- What Is Neoclassical Economics? Christian Arnsperger (University of Louvain, Belgium) Yanis Varoufakis (University of Athens, Greece) - The Autistic Economist Stanley...

by Post-Autistic Economics Movement | On 16 Jul 2006

The Challenges and Opportunities for International Civil Society in Promoting Ethical Globalisation

This paper explores some of the challenges ahead in terms of strengthening civil society networks working for ethical globalisation and in turning their shared vision of ethical globalisation into an...

by Maureen Leen | On 23 May 2006

Three Observations on the Challenges of Growth and Poverty Reduction in Asia

While Asia’s success in growth and poverty reduction is to be greatly welcomed, and should be analysed for the lessons it has for other countries, the policy discourse should take on board three key p...

by Ravi Kanbur | On 21 Apr 2006

Health Inequalities, Social Cohesion and Social Capital: An Exploration

This paper claims that the roots and remedies of health inequalities reflected in the major academic debates that culminated with full force towards the turn of the last century, have done little to u...

by Vijay Kumar Yadavendu | On 30 Mar 2006

Trends and Patterns of Technology Acquisition in Indian Organized Manufacturing: An Inter-industry Exploration

With liberalization of foreign technology import policy in the 1990s, India has seen declining R&D intensity at national level. This has generated a general concern on how Indian industries are doin...

by Jaya Prakash Pradhan | On 28 Mar 2006

The Budget, Outlays, and Inequality

Growth, or more accurately, the quality of growth, is intricately linked to inequality and so the Finance Minister and the government need to do more by addressing problems of governance as well.

by Errol D'souza | On 06 Mar 2006

Editorial: Union Budget: Securing its Legacy

Union Budget 2006-07 breaks new ground in many areas, and continues on the path of modernizing the tax system. It also gives deserved recognition to key allocation priorities. But its legacy will be...

by Mukul Asher | On 05 Mar 2006

Economic Survey 2005-06, Chapter 5

Prices and Food Management

by Ministry of Finance | On 27 Feb 2006

Economic Survey 2005-06, Chapter 4

Securities Markets

by Ministry of Finance | On 27 Feb 2006

Decentralisation on Fallow and Fertile Ground: Preparing the Population for Democratic Self-Governance

Decentralizing authority to democratically elected local government is advised for reasons of efficiency and good governance, but equity may suffer if elites capture decision making at the local level...

by Anirudh Krishna | On 16 Feb 2006

Global Public Opinion on Nuclear Issues and the IAEA - Final Report from 18 Countries

A new 18-country opinion survey sponsored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found that "while majorities of citizens generally support the continued use of existing nuclear reactors, mo...

by International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA | On 02 Feb 2006

The Determinants of Mortality

Mortality rates have fallen dramatically over time, starting in a few countries in the 18th century, and continuing to fall today. In just the past century, life expectancy has increased by over 30 ye...

by David M. Cutler | On 01 Feb 2006

Elementary Education: Rising Expenditure, Poor Quality: Book Review

Review of 'The Economics of Elementary Education in India: The Challenge of Public Finance, Private Provision and Household Costs' edited by Santosh Mehrotra; Sage, New Delhi; 2005, pp.328.

by P. Geetha Rani . | On 20 Jan 2006

Reproductive Health Services and Role of Panchayats in Karnataka

The paper presents an analysis of the reproductive health care services available to women in rural areas in Karnataka, and the various factors influencing them. Based on survey data on the status o...

by Poornima Vyasulu | On 19 Jan 2006

A test of Governance: Education, Health and Family Planning in Areas Annexxed toKarnataka, Maharashtra and AP from Hyderabad State

At the time of reorganization of states on the basis of the linguistic formula, the territory that belonged to erstwhile state of Hyderabad was broken down to three parts and annexed to Andhra Prade...

by P. N. Mari Bhat | On 19 Jan 2006

Communication, Democracy and Evasive Silences:A Preliminary Report on the Public Sphere in Karnataka

This paper looks at one of the most important conditions that defines democracy as a system of self-governance. This condition is that all individuals in a society must have the right to communicate f...

by Dattathreya Subbanarasimha | On 13 Jan 2006

Institutionalising Citizen Participaion in Urban Governance

The twin concepts of a federal arrangement – a structure for a multi-tiered form of government with clearly defined roles and responsibilities, as well as active citizenship are like the two strands...

by Ramesh Ramanathan | On 12 Jan 2006

Corruption and Local Governance: Evidence from Karnataka

The paper examines corruption in the institutions of local government in Karnataka, using a Logit model. One of the arguments in favour of decentralisation in developing countries is that it provide...

by V. Vijayalakshmi | On 09 Jan 2006

Dynamics of Local Governance in Karnataka

The objective of this paper is to unpack the dynamics of local governance in Karnataka by studying the interaction between two sets of rural institutions, (a) the formal, elected Gram Panchayats(GPs...

by Kripa Ananthpur | On 09 Jan 2006

The Mystery of China’s Sinking Stocks

The article exposes the shortcomings of China’s stock markets and examines the failed attempts by the government to introduce meaningful stock-market reform. China has largely avoided major policy blu...

by Weijian Shan | On 07 Jan 2006

The Economic Basis of Global Power: VIP2 A Simple Index of National Power Potential

Though Paul Kennedy and other scholars of National Security, Diplomacy and Foreign relations have emphasized the importance of the economy in National Power, not many economists have taken an interes...

by Arvind Virmani | On 24 Dec 2005

Multilateral Solutions to the Erosion of Non-Reciprocal Preferences in NAMA

This paper analyzes the risks of preference erosion arising from MFN trade liberalization in manufactured products. It focuses on developing countries that receive non-reciprocal preferences in the m...

by Patrick Low | On 19 Dec 2005

Improving governance using IT systems

The main argument of this paper is that in many situations, dicult puzzles of governance can be solved in dramatically new ways using modern IT systems. Nationwide centralised databases, coupled with...

by Ajay Shah | On 12 Dec 2005

India: From White Collar to Blue

India has joined China as the darling of the global investor community. Much of this is well deserved since 14 years of economic reform have genuinely transformed the economy. However, the main driver...

by Sanjeev Sanyal | On 09 Dec 2005

Political Selection and the Quality of Evidence: Evidence form South India

This paper uses household data from India to examine the economic and social status of village politicians, and how individual and village characteristics a®ect politician behavior while in o±ce. Ed...

by Timothy Besley | On 22 Nov 2005

Policy Processes and Policy Advocacy

The development process in the present context where economic and governance reforms are emphasized tends at times to by-pass the concerns of the marginalized and the voiceless. It is precisely to bri...

by V. Anil Kumar | On 19 Nov 2005

New Institutionalism And Legislative Governance In Indian States: A Comaparitive Study Of West Bengal And Uttar Pradesh

In contrast to behaviouralism, which held that institutions reflect the society in which they are embedded, New Institutionalists argue that institutions have an inner logic of action, enjoy autonomy...

by Sudha Pai | On 01 Sep 2005

Price Elasticity Estimates for Tobacco and Other Addictive Goods in India

The tax base of tobacco in India is found to be heavily depended on about fteen per cent of the tobacco users who represent cigarettes smokers. Non-cigarette tobacco products used by the majority of...

by Rijo John | On 22 Aug 2005

Informal Governance and Organizational Success: The Effects of Noncompliance among Lima’s Street Vending Organizations

The successful representation of poor people on the part of membership based organizations depends partly on internal governance structures that are responsive to members’ needs and aspirations. Among...

by Sally Roever | On 31 Mar 2005