Related Articles

Matching keywords : Informal Sector; Regional Development; Unorganised Manufacturing.

Housing for All: A Goal Achievable by 2030

Urban Economy Forum 2020 echoes the global call for affordable housing for all. With over 1.8 billion people living in slums and informal settlements globally, the question remains, when will we be ab...

by Alex Venuto | On 07 Nov 2020

eSS Sunday Edit: Waiting for a Vaccine! Fault lines in Medical Science and Governance Exposed

People’s ability to respond to this crisis is coloured by class, caste, gender and religion and the government’s failure to respond adequately to the needs of its citizens, exposing the ugly underside...

by Ravi Duggal | On 26 Oct 2020

Coronabrief: Who Cares? Feminist Responses to the Pandemic

The policy recommendations and demands about inclusion of women and marginalized groups in all aspects of life, including groups particularly vulnerable in many Asian countries such as women migrant a...

by | On 02 Jun 2020

Emerging Trends in India-Pakistan Trade

The study finds that there has been a limited impact of trade liberalization on the volume of trade between the two countries. The shift from positive list to negative list has not resulted in any maj...

by Nisha Taneja | On 05 Feb 2019

Changing Structure of Employment in Indian States

The study attempts a comparative assessment of the changing employment situation in major Indian states, measured in terms of worker-population ratios and the distribution of workers into status group...

by A.V. Jose | On 01 Feb 2019

Enlargement Decisions of Regional Trading Blocs with Asymmetric Members

This paper analyzes the conditions under which an existing bilateral free trade area (FTA) prefers to expand in size and when it prefers consolidation through customs union (CU) formation when the exi...

by Sunandan Ghosh | On 31 Jan 2019

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

Does Regional Integration Matter for Inclusive Growth? Evidence from the Multidimensional Regional Integration Index

This paper employs a multidimensional approach to gauge the degree of regional integration and analyze impact on growth, inequality, and poverty. It constructs a multidimensional regional integration...

by Cyn-Young Park | On 26 Oct 2018

Bribes vs. Taxes: Market Structure and Incentives

Firms in developing countries often avoid paying taxes by making informal payments to tax officials. These bribes may raise the cost of operating a business, and the price charged to consumers. To dec...

by Francesco Amodio | On 17 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

Mainstreaming SMEs: Promoting Inclusive Growth in APEC

SME development as a major domestic policy objective that is consistent and reinforced within APEC would not only engender inclusive growth, but also enable SMEs to become drivers of growth for the do...

by Erlinda M. Medalla | On 06 Jul 2018

Trade Costs, Time, and Supply Chain Reliability

This paper uses measures of international transport time, in median and standard deviation, based on shipment-level data from the Universal Postal Union, to analyze the effect of time on trade costs....

by Utsav Kumar | On 14 Jun 2018

Constructing the Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation and Integration Index: A Panel Approach

This paper proposes a panel approach in the construction of the Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation and Integration Index (ARCII) to strengthen the index’s ability to track the progress of economic inte...

by Cyn-Young Park | On 06 Jun 2018

Global Banking Network and Regional Financial Contagion

This paper investigates and tests the role of regional exposures in financial contagion from advanced to emerging market economies through the global banking network using data on cross-border bilater...

by Cyn Young Park | On 31 May 2018

Trends and Patterns in Labour Quality in India at Sectoral Level

In this paper aggregate labour quality and the first order quality indices of education, age and gender have been estimated using the JGF (1987) methodology for the Indian economy, its broad secto...

by K L Krishna | On 29 May 2018

Broadband Adoption and Firm Performance: Evidence from Informal Sector Firms in India

Using unit level data for informal manufacturing sector, drawn from the Government of India’s National Sample Survey Organization , this paper addresses the impact of broad...

by Kausik Chaudhuri | On 25 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

Trends and Patterns in Labour Quality in India at Sectoral Level

In this paper aggregate labour quality and the first order quality indices of education, age and gender have been estimated using the JGF (1987) methodology for the Indian economy, its broad sectors,...

by K L Krishna | On 04 Apr 2018

Climate Policy under Cooperation and Competition between Regions with Spatial Heat Transport

The paper builds a novel stochastic dynamic regional integrated assessment model (IAM) of the climate and economic system including a number of important climate science elements that are missing in m...

by Yongyang Cai | On 04 Apr 2018

Characteristics of the Workers in the Urban Informal Sector of Pakistan

The informal sector is widely considered as a crucial segment of the economy, whose mere presence convince the policy-maker to reorient the development strategy to promote jobs and equity.

by A. R. Kemal | On 02 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

Trade Rules in E-commerce: WTO and India

Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is an integral part of business activities, and various models of e-commerce have emerged with liberalisation and technological developments. Global e-commerce trade...

by | On 28 Mar 2018

Regional Cooperation to Combat Climate Change: The Way Forward

This paper is based on the presentation given by the author at the Fifth WIEF roundtable on climate change held in Dhaka, organized by the WIEF secretariat on 20 March 2012. The paper will introduce t...

by | On 21 Mar 2018

Urbanization and India’s Slum Continuum: Evidence on the Range of Policy Needs and Scope of Mobility

In contrast with historical precedent, urbanization across the Global South is associated with increasing levels of urban poverty. These trends engender unique challenges for practitioners and schola...

by Emily Rains | On 21 Mar 2018

Stories of Empowerment – Case Studies of Empowerment of Rural Workers

With a population nearing 60 million, half of which occupies the two major cities of Karachi and Hyderabad, Sindh is the only province with a rural population in the minority. Research conducted by PI...

by Salman Rashid | On 21 Mar 2018

Status of Labour Rights in Pakistan 2015

The PILER 2015 Report on the Status of Labour Rights, fifth in the series, based on secondary research, aims to present an overview of the status of labour and the issues in the year impacting labour...

by Pakistan Institute of Labour Education & Research (PILER) | On 21 Mar 2018

Asia-Africa Cooperation in Human Resource Development

Sub Saharan Africa is gifted with a young population underthe age of 25 years; they are two-thirds of its population. Such a young workforce along with opportunities in industry and modern services ca...

by Santosh Mehrotra | On 14 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

Fringe Lives A Study of a Slum in Patna

The research says that urbanisation is considered to be a sign of economic development of a particular country.

by Rahul Jambhulkar | On 23 Feb 2018

Labour Market and Household Behaviour: A Case of Unorganised Sales women

The paper says that women constitute only a quarter of the total labour force in India though they form nearly half of the Indian population.

by Martin Patrick | On 14 Feb 2018

Broadband Adoption and Firm Performance: Evidence from Informal Sector Firms in India

Using unit level data for informal manufacturing sector, drawn from the Government of India’s National Sample Survey Organization, this paper addresses the impact of broadband adoption on firm perfo...

by | On 13 Feb 2018

A New Measure of Inter-industry Distance and Its Application to the U.S. Regional Growth

The paper also suggests that our index can serve as an alternative measure of the industrial linkages.

by Yoon Joon | On 01 Feb 2018

Technological Change, Automation and Employment: A Short Review of Theory and Evidence

A selective survey of recent papers in the area of technological change, automation and employment is presented. The objective is to convey analytical ideas and the empirical evidence that have inform...

by K. V. Ramaswamy | On 16 Jan 2018

Inequality, Employment and Public Policy

This paper examines dimensions of inequality including labour market inequalities and discusses public policies needed for reduction in inequalities. It discusses both inequality of outcomes and inequ...

by S.Mahendra Dev | On 16 Jan 2018

Using Gross Trade Data to Map Archetypal GVCs

This paper introduces a new, publicly available database for tracking merchandise trade in the global value chains for apparel/textile/footwear, motor vehicles and parts, and electronics, developed or...

by Michael Ferrantino | On 16 Jan 2018

Health Financing and Delivery in India: An Overview of Selected Schemes

The paper shows that a range of institutional innovations are possible in terms of bridging the health equity divide.

by Kalpana Jain | On 04 Jan 2018

Urban Refugees in Delhi: Self-Reliance can’t be Exclusively Entrepreneurial

Self-reliance is, by definition, about individualised responsibility for social wellbeing and economic security. This idea drives urban refugee livelihood programmes, in India and beyond, as aid organ...

by | On 22 Dec 2017

Prospects of India–Bangladesh Economic Cooperation: Implications for South Asian Regional Cooperation

In recent years, South Asia has received growing attention as a region that is integrating successfully into the global economy. To maximize the benefits in terms of faster growth and poverty reductio...

by Prabir De | On 19 Dec 2017

PIDS Calls For ‘Intelligent’ Discourse On Federalism

The study says that the policymakers should see merit in examining whether federalism can indeed address the sociopolitical and economic problems that hamper the country’s growth.

by PIDS Information Staff | On 11 Dec 2017

Informal Employment in India: An Analysis of Forms and Determinants

This paper disaggregates informal employment into different forms, with particular focus on the growing informalisation of the labour force by formal enterprises. The analysis of the determinants of f...

by Rosa Abraham | On 05 Dec 2017

Labour Regulations in India: Improving the Social Security Framework

An important segment of labour regulations concerns the protection aspects of social security. These regulations provide safety nets or fall back mechanisms to enable workers to cope with crises that...

by | On 30 Nov 2017

Appraisal of Informal Political Associations and Institutions: Implications for Democratic Decentralisation in Punjab

This study by using mixed research strategy disentangled the process by which local governments are formed in Punjab.

by Asad Rehman | On 24 Nov 2017

Knowledge attitude and practice survey on social protection schemes in selective districts

The study focus on the existing social assistance schemes targeted towards the extreme poor.

by Rabia Tabassum | On 16 Nov 2017

Deepening Economic Cooperation between India and Sri Lanka

This study analyzes the India–Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (FTA) over the past decade. It is noted that bilateral trade between the countries has increased steadily and India became the most favored...

by Kavita Iyengar | On 13 Oct 2017

Towards ‘Make in South Asia’: Evolving Regional Values Chains

One of the most important ways in which several of the common developmental challenges in South Asia could be addressed is by focusing on manufacturing. In the new context, manufacturing becomes key...

by Ram Upendra Das | On 04 Oct 2017

The puzzles and contradictions of the Indian labour market: What will the future of work look like ?

Analysing the Indian labour market poses inherent challenges given the country’s size and diversity. Rather than a case of “jobless growth”, India has experienced concentrated employment growth, mainl...

by Sher Verick | On 04 Oct 2017

Federalism and the Formation of States in India

In recent days, the process of federalization within the Indian Union has become more debatable due to the unequal federal development at various levels. In this context, the issues of state formation...

by Susant Kumar Naik | On 14 Sep 2017

Structural Change and Labour Productivity Growth in India: Role of Informal Workers

Labour productivity in an economy or industry may increase due to intrinsic increase in productivity (due to capital deepening or TFP growth) or due to the reallocation of workers to more productive s...

by Rosa Abraham | On 11 Sep 2017

Toward a New Frame for Regional Films: Manbhum Videos and the Other Side of (Indian) Cinema

This article focuses on the production and mass circulation of locally produced videos in and across socially marginalized areas of Bengal. It emerges from the research conducted on the video industry...

by Madhuja Mukherjee | On 31 Aug 2017

Economic Integration and Development Partnerships: Southern Perspectives

Regional integration (RI) is a process by which countries enter into an agreement to upgrade cooperation through common institutions and rules. The objectives of the agreement could range from economi...

by Research and Information System for Developing Countries | On 24 Aug 2017

Demonetisation: Macroeconomic Implications for Indian Economy

The present paper attempts to explore the macroeconomic implications of the “demonetisation” exercise announced on November 8, 2016, for the Indian economy on three board parameters of growth, distrib...

by Pradymna Rawat | On 09 Aug 2017

Gender, Islam, and law

This paper considers arguments about Islam and women’s welfare, and, at greater length, how legal systems with Islamic elements treat women, with a focus on how women fare in Islamic family courts. Ke...

by John R. Bowen | On 02 Aug 2017

The India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement: An Appraisal of Progress

The Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) between India and Singapore came into effect on 1st August 2005. It was the first such comprehensive FTA signed by India with any country c...

by V. S. Seshadri | On 02 Aug 2017

Rethinking Electricity Sector Reform in Developing Asia: Balancing Economic and Environmental Objectives

The OECD or ‘standard’ model of electricity sector reforms has been widely adopted in non-OECD Asian countries since the 1990s. However, despite two decades of attempts at reforms, no notable progress...

by Tooraj Jamasb | On 31 Jul 2017

A Case for Institutional Demand as Effective Social Protection: Supporting Smallholders Through Procurement and Food Assistance Programmes

This paper focuses on the rationale for state-based market interventions to support smallholder production along with some case studies that follow the evolution and impact of what we call ‘institutio...

by Ryan Nehring | On 28 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

Trade Facilitation for a More Inclusive and Connected Asia and Pacific Region: Progress and Way Forward

This study also describes trade facilitation projects that promote development through deepening regional cooperation and integration.

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 14 Jul 2017

Implementation of the ASEAN+3 Multi-Currency Bond Issuance Framework: ASEAN+3 Bond Market Forum Sub-Forum 1 Phase 3 Report

The report says that the ASEAN+3 Multi-Currency Bond Issuance Framework (AMBIF) is a policy initiative under the Asian Bond Markets Initiative (ABMI) to help facilitate intraregional transactions thro...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 11 Jul 2017

Asian Development Outlook 2015 Supplement: Growth Holds Its Own in Developing Asia

The report says Asia’s developing economies remain on track to post growth of 5.8% in 2015 and 6.0% in 2016, as the region’s economies remain resilient to continued economic weakness in industrialized...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 26 Jun 2017

Development of Backward Areas Outcome of the interventions so far

The problem of balanced regional development received much greater attention in the Third Five Year Plan. The Plan took a more positive view of the possibility of reaching regional balance. It stated...

by MC Singhi | On 22 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

Fossil Fuel Subsidies in Asia: Trends, Impacts, and Reforms - Integrative Report

This report measures the size of associated subsidies on these fossil fuels including direct transfers, tax exemptions, subsidized credit, and losses of state enterprises in India, Indonesia, and Thai...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 14 Jun 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

Collective Action on South Asia's 'Wicked Problems'

The problems of water, energy, climate change, and urbanisation, are all intertwined; they are, also, all 'wicked'. There is little consensus on how to effectively navigate these problems, let alone,...

by | On 02 Feb 2017

The Problem of Inequality

The paper examines consumption, income, regional, social and gender inequalities in India. Income inequalities are much higher that of consumption. It also looks at inequalities in opportunities like...

by S.Mahendra Dev | On 19 Dec 2016

Regularisation of ASHAs: Only One Gap to be Bridged for United Action

The Second National Workshop on Informalisation of Employment in the Health Sector organized by the Public Services International (PSI), Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA) and United Nurses Union (UNA) took p...

by Kavita Bhatia | On 15 Dec 2016

Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Global Burden of Diseases is an annual effort to measure the health of populations at regional, country, and selected subnational levels. GBD produces estimates of mortality and morbidity by cause, a...

by | On 29 Nov 2016

Demonetisation: Impact on the Economy

The argument posited in favour of demonetisation is that the cash that would be extinguished would be “black money” and hence, should be rightfully extinguished to set right the perverse incentive s...

by | On 17 Nov 2016

Policy Brief on Female Labor Force Participation in Pakistan

In Pakistan, women work primarily in the home or on the farm. Their participation in work outside these areas, particularly in formal employment, is extremely low. It is possible that some forms of wo...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 04 Nov 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

Poor Women in Urban India: Issues and Strategies

It is generally recognised that poverty is experienced differently according to their gender, age, caste, class and ethnicity and within households. Income levels, food security and indeed life choice...

by | On 05 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

Remittances and Informal Work

This paper studies the effects of remittances on informal employment in the migrants’ countries of origin, looking both at the remittance-receiving and non-migrant households. Using data from the Soci...

by | On 05 Oct 2016

Interactions between Policy Assumptions and Rural Women's Work - A Case Study

The concern of this paper is limited to the approaches to rural women's development and an understanding of their work roles in the planning strategies. [CWDS Working paper].

by Kumud Sharma | On 30 Sep 2016

India-Pakistan Bilateral Trade: Past, Present and Future

Formal trade between India and Pakistan due to tariff barriers and quota problems is not significant; significance is diminishing year after year.The reason for diminishing India-Pakistan bilateral...

by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry PHD Chamber | On 29 Sep 2016

Habitat III National Reports for the Asia-Pacific Region

The National Reports received to date were considered during the development of the Regional Report and examples from National Reports have been incorporated into the Regional Report as appropriate T...

by United Nations (UN) | On 07 Sep 2016

Words Matter: A Textual Analysis of SBP’s Monetary Policy Reviews

In this paper a textual analysis is performed of monetary policy statements issued during the past ten years by State Bank of Pakistan and compare them with policy reviews of seven selected central ...

by Asif Mahmood | On 07 Sep 2016

Potential Effects of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership on the Philippine Economy

Using a global computable general equilibrium model, the paper analyzes the potential effects of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on the Philippine economy. The analysis involves an...

by | On 30 Aug 2016

The History of Humanitarian Action in East and Southeast Asia: Asian Perspectives

ASEAN assumed different roles in responding to humanitarian crises in Cambodia (in the 1970s) and Myanmar (Cyclone Nargis in 2008). For the Cambodia situation, ASEAN was playing the role of ‘antagonis...

by | On 19 Aug 2016

Trade Liberalization and Regional Dynamics

We study the evolution of trade liberalization’s effects on local labor markets, following Brazil’s early 1990s trade liberalization. Regions that initially specialized in industries facing larger t...

by Rafael Dix-Carneiro | On 16 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

Will Services be the New Engine of Economic Growth in India?

This paper revisits the role of manufacturing and services in economic development in the light of the following new facts: (a) a faster growth of services than that of manufacturing in many developin...

by | On 08 Aug 2016

Global Estimates 2015: People Displaced by Disasters

The time is opportune to ensure the causes and consequences of this urgent issue are better addressed. Policy makers are pushing for concerted progress across humanitarian and sustainable development...

by | On 01 Aug 2016

The Informal Economy: Definitions, Theories and Policies

Today, there is renewed interest in the informal economy worldwide. This is because a large share of the global workforce and economy is informal and because the informal economy is growing in many co...

by | On 29 Jul 2016

State and the IT Industry in India: A Policy Critique

By adopting a historical comparative perspective,this paper assesses the role of state (both national and subnational) in industrialisation through the growth and policy experience of an ‘achieving’ s...

by Keshab Das | On 20 Jul 2016

India’s Informal Trade with Pakistan

This study (i) identifies factors determining informal trade, (ii) prepares estimates of India's informal trade with Pakistan (iii) examines the modalities of informal trade (iv) analyzes the transact...

by Nisha Taneja | On 13 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

Reaping India’s Promised Demographic Dividend

India is expected to become one of the most populous nations by 2025, with a headcount of around 1.4 billion1. The country’s population pyramid is expected to “bulge” across the 15–64 age bracket over...

by | On 11 Jul 2016

The “Engine of Economic Growth”: An Overview of Private Investment Policies, Trends, and Projects in Cambodia

This paper aims to present an overview and analysis of the current investment landscape in Cambodia, as well as its impacts on people and the environment. It is hoped that the information ...

by Mark Grimsditch | On 01 Jul 2016

Informal Labour Markets in Pakistan

This paper describes the results of a survey of informal-sector firms in Pakistan. Firms belong to the informal sector mainly because of scarce financial resources. There are significant differences...

by M. Ali Choudhary | On 16 Jun 2016

Compendium of Good Practices in Training for Gender Equality

The Compendium of Good Practices in Training for Gender Equality aims to make both an empirical and an analytical contribution to the field of training for gender equality. The Compendium offers in-de...

by | On 31 May 2016

UN Women Training Centre Annual Report 2015

The Report details results from the 27 courses offered by the UN Women Training Centre. It also highlights the role of the Training Centre as a training resource hub by delivering training of trainers...

by UN Women | On 31 May 2016

Youth and Labour Reforms in India

On account of May 1st being the Labour Day, India Youth Fund interviewed Professor Arup Mitra from the Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi on a number of labour rights and reforms related issues in In...

by Arup Mitra | On 26 May 2016

Stop Stunting in South Asia: A Common Narrative on Maternal and Child Nutrition

Governments in South Asia are progressively acknowledging that child stunting is both a marker and a maker of poor development. UNICEF regional and country offices in South Asia work with regional bo...

by United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF | On 24 May 2016

Occupational Health and Safety and the Poorest

The decline of jobs with secure and lasting contracts and work-related social benefits as well as the corresponding rise in precarious and unprotected work are phenomena affecting both industrialized...

by Anna Marriot | On 18 May 2016

Assessing the Challenges of Climate Change to Biodiversity in Food and Agriculture Production in the Pacific

Ten countries from the Pacific have gathered in Nadi, Fiji, for a regional consultation on the region’s biodiversity for food and agriculture. The consultation, on the State of Biodiversity for Food a...

by Nadi Fiji | On 17 May 2016

Book Review: Dynamics of India's Labour Market

Review of Labour, Employment and Economic Growth in India. Edited by K. V. Ramaswamy, Cambridge University Press, 2015.

by Lalit K. Deshpande | On 04 May 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

How the Collapse of ‘Chimerica’ Will Affect South Asia

India and Pakistan, the two large countries in South Asia, must work for the region’s collective good rather than moving closer to the United States and China, respectively, and promoting the interest...

by Shahid Javed Burki | On 28 Mar 2016

Impact of the People’s Republic of China’s Growth Slowdown on Emerging Asia: A General Equilibrium Analysis

As an important global and regional economic power, the PRC’s growth slowdown may cause large spillover effects to its neighboring economies. Using a multi-sectoral global computable general equilibri...

by Fan Zhai | On 22 Mar 2016

Structural Change, Economic Growth and Trade: Case for Regional Reallocation of Investment in India

The economic structure and rates of growth across the states in India are markedly different, with significant disparities in income per capita growth as well as sector-specific performance. The high-...

by Alokesh Barua | On 21 Mar 2016

Optimal Monetary Policy in the Presence of Sizable Informal Sector and Firm Level Credit Constraint

Optimality of pro-cyclical monetary policy in the presence of informal sector and firm level constraint is analysed. The findings suggest that in case of export demand shock pro-cyclical monetary pol...

by Waqas Ahmed | On 21 Mar 2016

The Role of Services in Enhancing Indian Manufacturing Exports: A Firm Level Analysis, 2000-01 to 2011-12

This paper tries to examine and assess the contribution of services towards India’s manufacturing exports at the firm level. The findings confirm that services have contributed to enhanced export comp...

by Sonia Mukherjee | On 15 Mar 2016

Investing in Natural Capital for a Sustainable Future in the Greater Mekong Subregion

The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) is poised to continue developing at a significant pace. The subregion is well placed to benefit from the emerging Association of Southeast Asian Nations Economic Com...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 15 Mar 2016

Export-Led Development, Employment and Gender in the Era of Globalization

Developing countries continue to face substantial underemployment, working poverty and informality of employment across various regions. In particular, women are more likely to be affected by higher l...

by | 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

Women at Work Trends 2016

Over the last two decades, women’s significant progress in educational achievements has not translated into a comparable improvement in their position at work. In many regions in the world, in compari...

by International Labour Organization [ILO] | On 15 Mar 2016

Institutional Change in Market-Liberal State Capitalism: An Integrative Perspective on the Development of the Private Business Sector in China

This paper shows that a more accurate depiction of the development of China’s private sector is gained by considering the complex interaction between bottom-up and top- down processes. First, the pape...

by | On 09 Mar 2016

Transboundary Pollution as an Issue in Northeast Asian Regional Politics

The paper investigates the political aspects of the coorperation between China, South Korea and Japan to address transboundary pollution in Northeast Asia. Investigating the motivations, modalities an...

by Reinhard Drifte | On 09 Mar 2016

Energy Security in Northeast Asia: Putin, Progress and Problems

This article intends to bring to light the energy security concept in the region, while analyzing how this multilateral cooperative energy scheme can contribute to building a new regional economic sec...

by Se Hyun Ahn | On 09 Mar 2016

Is There a Closure Penalty? Cohesive Network Structures, Diversity, and Gender Inequalities in Career Advancement

That social capital matters is an established fact in the social sciences. How different forms of social capital affect gender disadvantages in career advancement is less clear, however. Qualitative r...

by | On 08 Mar 2016

Shortage of H1N1 Vaccines; Natural Disasters and Infectious Diseases in Asia

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly 5,000 lives have been claimed by the novel influenza virus (H1N1). The US has now declared H1N1 as a national emergency. With the start of the...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 05 Mar 2016

Climate Change and Migration: What Are the Connections?

The Jakarta Post recently reported experts as saying that ‘[e]xtreme weather caused by climate change has given people another reason to migrate’. The comment was made in reference to a soon-to-be rel...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 03 Mar 2016

Economic and Political Relations Between Bhutan and Neighbouring Countries

The diversification of Bhutan’s relations began with its entry into the United Nations in 1971, and while external relations continued to be largely confined to India, the establishment of its relatio...

by | On 02 Mar 2016

Occupational Health Among Workers in the Informal Sector in India

Despite having laws and regulations to protect health of workers in industries in India, little has been effective in ensuring and protecting health and safety especially in case of small and medium f...

by Amrita Ghatak | On 01 Mar 2016

Challenges and Developments in the Financial Systems of the Southeast Asian Economies

This paper discusses the economies and financial systems of Southeast Asia (SEA) and focuses on challenges and developments in the region. Despite the diversity of SEA economies and some important exc...

by Toshiyuki Shimada | On 29 Feb 2016

Asia-Pacific Migration Report 2015 Migrants' Contributions to Development

The Report assesses the development impacts of migrants in the countries of the Asia-Pacific region and provides guidance on the steps countries, regional organizations, civil society actors and other...

by United Nations Economic and Social Commission (UNESCAP) | On 29 Feb 2016

Information for Climate Change Adaptation: Lessons and Needs in South Asia

This paper serves as background for a South Asian regional workshop that will bring together adaptation information users and producers to inform likely new investments in the information base for cli...

by Ayesha Dinshaw | On 29 Feb 2016

The Challenge of Employment in India An Informal Economy Perspective - Vol - II

In this paper a new set of measures of labour force, employment and unemployment has been suggested which we believe would be better suited for many purposes than those currently in use. New measures...

by National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorgan NCEUS | On 29 Feb 2016

Growth Pole Programme For Unorganised Sector Enterprise Development

Government of India constituted the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector (NCEUS) in September 2004 as an advisory body and a watchdog for the informal sector to bring about im...

by National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorgan NCEUS | On 29 Feb 2016

Prospects of Wheat and Sugar Trade between India and Pakistan: A Simple Welfare Analysis

Due to a long history of strained political relations between India and Pakistan, trade possibilities between the two neighbouring countries have rarely been studied [Nabi and Nasim (2001), Mukherji (...

by Abid Burki | On 24 Feb 2016

The Hong Kong Declaration and Agriculture: Implications for Bangladesh

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), established in 1993, is a civil society initiative to promote an ongoing dialogue between the principal partners in the decision-making and implementing process....

by Uttam Kumar Deb | On 24 Feb 2016

Typhoon Kestana: Asia’s Katrina

The devastation and catastrophe wrought by Typhoon Kestana on the Philippines’ capital Manila reflect a huge gap between rising vulnerabilities and preparedness at the national and regional levels. As...

by | On 24 Feb 2016

ASEAN’s Journey in Cyberspace: A Tale of ‘Divided’ Cities

In 1997, ASEAN leaders envisaged Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as the technology that would foster the region’s economic integration and has since commissioned numerous projects and...

by | On 24 Feb 2016

Asean-China Trade Relations :15 Years of Development and Prospects",The Gioi Publishers,2008 Recent Development of China-ASEAN Trade and Economic Relations: From Regional Perspective

Abstract: The development of China-ASEAN trade and economic relations within the recent 15 years has of great significance not only for both sides but also for the whole East-Asia region. This paper i...

by Zhao Jianglin | 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

Human Securitising’ the Climate Security Debate

Efforts to understand the connection between climate change and national, regional and international security have fuelled something of a climate security industry, evidenced in a range of reports fro...

by Lorraine Elliot | On 24 Feb 2016

Operationalising Regimes and Recognising Actors: Responding to Crises in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia as a region has a unique history, and the evolving relationships between its communities, states, regional organisations and the international community reflect this. Given this context...

by Alistair Cook | On 24 Feb 2016

Ensuring Urban Food Security in ASEAN

This policy brief provides the main findings of the Food Security Expert Group Meeting which was convened by the RSIS Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies in Singapore on 4-5 August 2010....

by | On 23 Feb 2016

Financial Institutions and Structures for Growth in East Asia

The paper examines the changing size, shape and range of financial markets in the region indicates the extent to which regional markets have become more efficient and have improved in quality since th...

by Jenny Corbett | On 23 Feb 2016

Industrial Growth And Environmental Industrial Growth And Environmental Industrial Growth And Environmental Degradation: Degradation: Degradation: A Case Study Of Tiruppur Textile Cluster A Case Study Of Tiruppur Textile Cluster A Case Study Of Tiruppur Textile Cluster

The rapid economic growth achieved after globalization by most of the developing countries, has imposed considerable social costs and has become a major threat to sustainable development. However it i...

by Prakash Nelliyat | On 23 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

Indian Innovation Systems and Emergence of Biopharmaceutical Sector: Issues and Prospects

The prospective entry of generic dominated Indian pharmaceutical sector in the ambit of new technologies is likely to give filip to emergence of strong biopharmaceutical sector.It is pertinent in this...

by Sachin Chaturvedi | On 23 Feb 2016

Recent Monetary Policy Statement of   Bangladesh Bank (July 2009)

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), established in 1993, is a civil society initiative to promote an ongoing dialogue between the principal partners in the decision-making and implementing process....

by Debapriya Bhattacharya | On 22 Feb 2016

Deepening Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ Financial Markets

This paper discusses the financial landscape of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a region engaged in building an economic community (a “single market and production base”) by 2015....

by Choong Lee | On 21 Feb 2016

Regional Integration in South Asia: What Role for Trade Facilitation?

The trade performance of countries in South Asia over the past two decades has been poor relative to other regions. Exports from South Asia have doubled over the past 20 years to approximately USD 100...

by John Wilson | On 21 Feb 2016

Cross-Border Electricity Cooperation in South Asia

South Asian countries, facing challenges in efficiently meeting growing electricity demand, can benefit from increased cross-border electricity cooperation and trade by harnessing complementarities in...

by Anoop Singh | On 21 Feb 2016

Regional Financial Arrangements and the International Monetary Fund

The rise of regional monetary arrangements poses a challenge for the International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s global surveillance efforts. This paper reviews how the IMF has responded to earlier regional i...

by Barry Eichengreen | On 21 Feb 2016

Singapore’s Growing Role in Asian Food Security

In seeking to ensure its own food security Singapore, may be transforming itself from a passive food importer to an active contributor to the regional and global food system – through research and dev...

by | On 20 Feb 2016

Floods and Regional Disaster Preparedness: Too Little, Too Late?

As the floods in Thailand and Cambodia continue, the state of regional cooperation is proving critical in addressing the difficulties faced by affected countries. Disaster preparedness is increasingly...

by | On 20 Feb 2016

Expert Working Group Meeting on Food Wastage in Southeast Asia

The implications of the estimated 30-50 per cent global food wastage for energy, soil, water and human resources are substantial. Recognising the need to pay greater attention to this issue, the RSIS...

by S. Rajaratnam International Studies | On 19 Feb 2016

Disasters in Southeast Asia’s Megacities: Protecting the Informal Sector

In the megacities of developing Southeast Asia, the important role of the informal sector in supporting economic development is often under-recognised. Cities seeking to address the economic risks and...

by | On 19 Feb 2016

On compact, Integrated & Connected Cities

The Urban Planning and Design focus area of UN-Habitat aims to support cities, regional and national authorities in adopting improved policies, plans and designs for more compact, socially inclusive,...

by Rafael Tuts | On 19 Feb 2016

Impact Of Trade Liberalisation On Employment In Bangladesh

The present study has examined the changes in the employment scenario of Bangladesh following the pursuance of the trade liberalisation strategy and the possible effects of further trade liberalisatio...

by Wasel Shadat | 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

Too Pressed To Wait

Jane Weru in this lecture highlights the plight of women and girls living in informal settlements in Nairobi, with special regard to the poor sanitation conditions prevalent in informal settlements in...

by | On 19 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

Climate Risks, Regional Integration, and Sustainability in the Mekong Region

It is a pleasure to introduce this book, the major output of the second phase of the Sustainable Mekong Research Network (SUMERNET). Since its start in 2005, the SUMERNET program has aimed to strength...

by Institute Stockholm Environment | 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

Food Security Robustness: A Driver of Enhanced Regional Cooperation?

Food security encompasses multiple, inter-connected dimensions, from production-related concerns, to market and price dynamics, environmental trends and policy approaches. Given this, ‘robustness’, th...

by | On 17 Feb 2016

Can Parental Migration Reduce Petty Corruption in Education?

Educational outcomes of children are highly dependent on household and school-level inputs. In poor countries remittances from migrants can provide additional funds for the education of the left behin...

by Lisa Höckel | On 17 Feb 2016

An ASEAN Nuclear Crisis Centre: Preparing for a Technological Disaster in Southeast Asia

As some Southeast Asian countries consider using nuclear energy, the region should now be preparing a regional nuclear emergency response, incorporating technological and nuclear emergencies into its...

by | On 16 Feb 2016

ASEAN’s Haze Shroud: Grave Threat to Human Security

Transboundary haze pollution is posing significant multiple risks to the well-being and security of people in ASEAN. Beyond looking at it as an environmental issue, it is a severe threat to human secu...

by | On 16 Feb 2016

The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank: Should Asia Have Both?

The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) face three sets of challenges: those that are common to others in the official development finance community; those that are common to the World Ban...

by Vikram Nehru | On 16 Feb 2016

Thailand’s Economic Integration with Neighboring Countries and Possible Connectivity with South Asia

Thailand’s increasing importance as a regional co-production base and as an intra-regional trade and border trade hub is due mainly to recent changes in its economic structure, namely, the lack of ope...

by Suthiphand Chirathivat | On 16 Feb 2016

Pension and Social Security Schemes in Pakistan: Some Policy Options

An examination of the public pension and social security schemes in Pakistan reveals that the provision of regular pensions is limited to formal sector employees only. A number of social security sche...

by Naushin Mahmood | On 14 Feb 2016

A Deadly Triangle: Afghanistan, Pakistan and India

The hostility between India and Pakistan lies at the heart of the current war in Afghanistan. Most observers in the West view the Afghanistan conflict as a battle between the U.S. and the NATO-led Int...

by William Dalrymple | On 14 Feb 2016

Utilization of Maternal Health Care Services in India: Understanding the Regional Differences

There is great regional variation on utilization of maternal health care services across India. While regional differences have long been established, why women in some states are more likely to utili...

by Sonalde Desai | On 12 Feb 2016

Beyond Geography: Unlocking Human Potential

This Report focuses on the productive abilities of the regions, households and individuals. The report also reinforces the fact that there are inequalities between and within regions, as well as soci...

by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) | On 12 Feb 2016

The Global Gender Gap Report 2013

The Global Gender Gap Index seeks to measure one important aspect of gender equality: the relative gaps between women and men, across a large set of countries and across the four key areas of health,...

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

The Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2014

This report looks at what a new energy architecture might look like and how best-in-class enabling environments have already helped some high-ranking countries begin their transitions to more efficien...

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

Protecting Shared Traditional Knowledge: Issues, Challenges and Options

Shared and widely distributed traditional knowledge, among communities and across national borders is often the norm rather than the exception. However, it remains an area for which policy and legal s...

by | On 10 Feb 2016

The Role of Informal Cross-border Trade in Myanmar

In a country where there are constraints in formal practices, informal activities normally arise. Informal practices are not necessarily illegal and bad, however some of them tend to occupy a grey are...

by | On 09 Feb 2016

Urbanization, Inequity and Health in India: a Landscape

In India an official definition of the term urban by Census is: over 5000 population; a population density of over 400 persons per sq km; over 75% of male workforce in non-primary activities. This art...

by Organising Team (MFC) | On 09 Feb 2016

Remittances and Poverty Linkages in Pakistan: Evidence and Some Suggestions for Further Analysis

This exercise is envisaged to provide a brief account of the research studies on inter-relationship between remittance inflows from abroad and the poverty levels obtained in the country. This is discu...

by Mohammad Irfan | On 06 Feb 2016

Urban Poverty in Nepal

This research report tracks various aspects of poverty in Nepal across geographical areas and evaluates the rise of squatter settlements. It also looks at various dimensions of poverty, resilience for...

by Shivit Bakrania | On 05 Feb 2016

Global Innovation Networks and their Implications for the Multilateral Trading System

This think piece examines the emergence of global innovations networks and their implications for multilateral trade rules. After pointing out, that the WTO agreements were reached with little direct...

by | On 05 Feb 2016

ASEAN Integrity Community: A Vision for Transparent and Accountable Integration

Each ASEAN member state has taken some steps to addressing corruption at the national level, such as ratifying the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), but much more is urgently neede...

by Transparency International TI | On 05 Feb 2016

Diplomacy Facing the Revolution of “Transparent Society” and “Risk Society” WikiLeaks: international and regional ramifications

Contrary to the assumption that the leaks of the diplomatic cables represented a heavy and unexpected pressure on American diplomacy - through their exposition of a mode of operation based on hypocris...

by Hichem Al-Karoui | On 03 Feb 2016

Food Security Post-2015: What Countries Need to Do So That Regional Collaboration Can Be Effective

Attempts to explain why ending hunger has been so hard, so here the focus is on four main themes: the complex role of markets, the importance of government policies, the historical process of structur...

by C. Peter Timmer | On 03 Feb 2016

Syria and Turkey: A Turning Point or a Historical Bet

Syrian-Turkish relations represent a regional and international phenomenon that has attracted a considerable amount of political and media attention; however, research on the dynamics and wagers invol...

by Aqil Mahfoudh | On 02 Feb 2016

Corruption Perceptions Index 2015

Based on expert opinion from around the world, the Corruption Perceptions Index measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption worldwide. Not one of the 168 countries assessed in the 2015 i...

by | On 02 Feb 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

The Future and the WTO: Confronting the Challenges: A collection of short essays

Mutually agreeable solutions have yet to be found for moving the WTO’s stalled Doha Round forward. This collection of short essays aims to help in the search for consensus by providing brief but thoro...

by | On 30 Jan 2016

Regional Economic Integration in South Asia: Prospects and Challenges

This paper dwells upon some of the conceptual issues pertaining to regional economic cooperation in general and specific to the South Asian region. It also documents the progress made in SAARC, the SA...

by Ram Upendra Das | On 30 Jan 2016

Regional Cooperation for Regional Infrastructure Development: Challenges and Policy Options for South Asia

This paper discusses the emerging scenario in regional infrastructure development in South Asia, identifies the infrastructure challenges for the future, and provides some policy options in order to b...

by Prabir De | On 30 Jan 2016

Rules of Origin under Regional Trade Agreements

It is argued in this paper that both the negotiations and the analytical literature pertaining to Rules of origin (ROO) display a lack of sound understanding of the implications of rules of origin. De...

by Ram Upendra Das | 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 Impact of Formal and Informal Institutions on Economic Performance: A Cross-Country Analysis

This study is an attempt to understand the relative contribution of culture and economic freedom to economic growth. Through applying fixed effect to the panel of fifty four developed, developing and...

by Yasir Khan | 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

Services Trade Agreement in South Asia Contours and Modalities

Available literature on regional trade integration in South Asia points to a variety of economic and non-economic factors that have slowed the integration process. The major non-economic factors inclu...

by South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics & Environment SAWTEE | On 28 Jan 2016

Mainstreaming Community-Based Conservation in a Transboundary Mountain Landscape Lessons from Kangchenjunga

This paper draws recommendations for transboundary and participatory biodiversity conservation from ICIMOD’s pioneering Kangchenjunga Conservation Landscape Initiative. The Kangchenjunga landscape, sh...

by Karma Phuntsho | On 28 Jan 2016

Uneven Development and Regionalism: A Critique of Received Theories

This paper attempts at critically examining various theoretical approaches concerning uneven development and regionalism. Major theories propounded by the neo-classical regional school, institutionali...

by Sudarshan Iyengar | On 28 Jan 2016

Competition and Response in Small Firm Clusters: Two Cases from Western India

This paper addresses the different firm level strategies adopted to face up to the pressures of competition by two industrial clusters in the highly industrialised state of Gujarat. The overwhelming p...

by Keshab Das | On 28 Jan 2016

Infrastructure and Growth in a Regional Context: Indian States since the 1980s

The central focus of this paper is to underscore emerging patterns and issues in the availability of and access to physical infrastructure in major Indian states during the two decades since the 1980s...

by Keshab Das | On 28 Jan 2016

What’s in a Country Average? Wealth, Gender, and Regional Inequalities in Immunization in India

Recent attention to Millennium Development Goals by the international development community has led to the formation of targets to measure country-level achievements, including achievements on health...

by Abdo Yazbeck | On 28 Jan 2016

How could Mega-Regional Trade Negotiations Affect Agricultural and Food Trade?

A new generation of 'mega-regional' trade deals have the potential to reshape the landscape of global agricultural trade, by establishing new commitments on market access as well as new regulatory nor...

by | On 27 Jan 2016

Intellectual Property Provisions in Regional Trade Agreements: Revision and Update

The paper assembles detailed information about the IP provisions contained in active RTAs notified to the WTO. The goal was to expand beyond the more commonly studied RTAs, to review the full array of...

by Maegan McCann | On 27 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

Tbt Provisions In Regional Trade Agreements: To What Extent Do They Go Beyond The WTO TBT Agreement?

This paper investigates whether TBT provisions included in RTAs differ from those under the WTO TBT Agreement, and, if they do, whether they entail broader commitments. Our analysis covers 238 RTAs, o...

by Vira Khoroshavina | On 26 Jan 2016

Skills, Informality, and Development

This paper makes an attempt to estimate the index of informal sector employment which can be attributed to the supply-push phenomenon. Factors which explain the inter-state variations include the indu...

by Arup Mitra | On 24 Jan 2016

‘Make in India’ – The Future of Indian Manufacturing

India’s new government assumed office over five months ago and the succeeding months have thus far been testimony to some significant announcements by the charismatic Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The...

by | 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

SUMMARY OF INDONESIA’S PRIVATE SECTOR DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT

While Indonesia's rank in overall ease of doing business improved in 2015 according to World Bank's worldwide competitiveness ranking, overall ease of doing business still ranks unfavorably compared t...

by | On 22 Jan 2016

The E15 Initiative: Strengthening the Global Trade and Investment System in the 21st Century

World trade has experienced a significant slowdown since the 2008 financial crisis. Over this period, the global ratio of trade expansion to income growth has halved. An effective global trade and inv...

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

India and APEC An Appraisal

This Study surveys the progress that APEC has made towards promoting regional economic cooperation and integration. It examines the desirability of India joining APEC and looks at possible benefits an...

by V. S. Seshadri | On 21 Jan 2016

On Migration and the Policy Process

Accepting that virtually any policy can have some impact on the movement of people, one can also recognize that a series of policies exist that have been developed specifically to deal with migration...

by | On 20 Jan 2016

Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India 2016

Regional integration efforts have intensified at varying levels over the years to implement the regional integration initiatives of ASEAN, ASEAN+3 and ASEAN+6. Current efforts are still not enough to...

by OECD Development Centre | On 13 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

Towards ‘Make in South Asia’ Theoretical Basis and Policy Responses for Evolving Regional Values Chains

The paper presents the theoretical canvass emphasising the need to adopt an integrated approach towards trade in goods, trade in services and investment in a regional framework. In this context, rules...

by Ram Upendra Das | On 09 Jan 2016

Indian Military Diplomacy: Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief

The paper focuses on India’s approach to collaboration on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief with major powers and within various regional initiatives. This paper begins with a brief review o...

by C. Raja Mohan | On 09 Jan 2016

Is India Making Waves in South China Sea?

The South China Sea (SCS) disputes are regarded as one of the most difficult regional conflicts in the Asia-Pacific, in an ‘arena of escalating contention. This paper looks at India’s interests and st...

by Rajeev Ranjan Chaturvedy | On 09 Jan 2016

Initiative for ‘Southern Silk Route’ Linking Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar

This paper looks at the ‘BCIM Regional Cooperation’ and the related proposal to revive the ‘Southern Silk Route’ connecting China and India through Bangladesh and Myanmar. The aim is to understand the...

by | On 09 Jan 2016

New Maritime Silk Road: Converging Interests and Regional Responses

This paper discusses revival of the Maritime Silk Road. It begins with a narration of the historical background of MSR, its origin and development, followed by an analysis of latest announcements by t...

by | On 09 Jan 2016

World Population Prospects The 2015 Revision

Understanding the demographic changes that are likely to unfold over the coming years, as well as the challenges and opportunities that they present for achieving sustainable development, is important...

by United Nations (UN) | On 08 Jan 2016

Institutions for Asian Integration: Innovation and Reform

The formation of regional production networks in East Asia has occurred mainly through market forces, without much help from regional institutions in promoting the creation of a single Asian market. W...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 07 Jan 2016

Asia-Latin America Free Trade Agreements: An Instrument for Inter-Regional Liberalization and Integration?

Trade integration and free trade agreement (FTA)-led cooperation between Asia and Latin America has increased since the early 2000s. Using new criteria, this paper examines whether Asia-Latin America...

by Ganeshan Wignaraja | On 07 Jan 2016

Production Networks, Profits, and Innovative Activity: Evidence from Malaysia and Thailand

Cross-border production networks have been playing an increasingly important role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries’ trade in recent years, but micro-level studies are ra...

by Ganeshan Wignaraja | On 07 Jan 2016

Financing Development Cooperation in Northeast Asia

Infrastructure connectivity in Northeast Asia — comprising the northeastern People’s Republic of China, Japan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia, and the Russi...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 07 Jan 2016

The 2030 Architecture of Association of Southeast Asian Nations Free Trade Agreements

This paper investigates and analyzes the present status, potential, and prospects of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) free trade agreements (FTAs). The move towards the ASEAN Economic Co...

by Suthiphand Chirathivat | On 07 Jan 2016

Cross-Border Price Differentials and Goods Market Integration in East Asia

As cross-border movements of goods, capital, and labor are intensifying, it is likely that goods markets in East Asia will become increasingly integrated. This study investigates the current state of...

by Woosik Moon | On 07 Jan 2016

Regional Trade Agreements and Enterprises in Southeast Asia

This paper undertakes a comparative and firm-level analysis of the impact of regional trade agreements (RTAs) in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. It finds that firm-heterogeneity matters in RT...

by Ganeshan Wignaraja | On 07 Jan 2016

Regional Financial Regulation in Asia

The Asian financial crisis (1997-1998) and the global financial crisis (2007-2009) highlighted the potential value of financial regionalism, i.e., regional-level cooperation in financial policy. This...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 07 Jan 2016

ASEAN Economic Integration through Trade and Foreign Direct Investment: Long-Term Challenges

This paper explores the long-term challenges for trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The region has emerged as an important production base...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 06 Jan 2016

Fungible Borders and Informal Regionalism: Rethinking China’s International Relations

The processes of informal or soft regionalism driving China’s engagement with the regional and global economy are resulting in nuanced understandings of state, security and the conduct of internationa...

by Nimmi Kurian | On 05 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

Towards 'Make in South Asia' Evolving Regional Values Chains

One of the most important ways in which several of the common developmental challenges in South Asia could be addressed is by focusing on manufacturing. This paper highlights insights from the status...

by Ram Das | On 02 Jan 2016

Summary of Indonesia's Gender Analysis

Indonesia has made significant progress in promoting gender equality. Gender gaps in the youth literacy rate have been eliminated. Near parity in enrollment rates in elementary up to tertiary levels h...

by Uzma Hoque | On 01 Jan 2016

Managing Capital Flows in Asia: An Overview of Key Issues

Global capital flows into emerging markets, including those in Asia, continue to be volatile, generating both benefits and costs. The latter are associated with episodes of currency and banking crises...

by Ramón López | On 01 Jan 2016

From a Centralized to a Decentralized Global Economic Architecture: An Overview

This paper argues that calls for a New Bretton Woods system in the aftermath of the global economic crisis — similar to the remarkable 1944 Bretton Woods conference that led to the establishment of va...

by Pradumna Rana | On 30 Dec 2015

Illegal Immigration and the Shadow Economy

We build a general equilibrium model in which both illegal immigration and the size of the informal sector are endogenously determined. In this framework, we show that indirect policy measures such as...

by Carmen Camacho | On 29 Dec 2015

The Impact of Infrastructure on Trade and Economic Growth in Selected Economies in Asia

Infrastructure plays a key role in facilitating trade, especially since recent trade liberalization in Asia has resulted in significant tariff reductions. This study quantifies the impacts of both har...

by Jamilah Mahyideen | 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

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

The Role of Sri Lanka in Enhancing Connectivity between South Asia and Southeast Asia

Improving physical connectivity between South and Southeast Asia has long been recognized as a key element in promoting greater trade and investment linkages within the region. As an island economy, S...

by Dushni Weerakoon | On 29 Dec 2015

Policies to Enhance Trade Facilitation in South Asia and Southeast Asia

This paper discusses trade facilitation in the context of enhancing trading links between South and Southeast Asia, in a manner understandable to the non-specialist. Presently, these two Asian regions...

by Anthony Bayley | On 29 Dec 2015

Economic Implications of Deeper South Asian–Southeast Asian Integration: A CGE Approach

The paper estimates the potential gains to be large, particularly for South Asia, assuming that the policy- and infrastructure-related variables that increase trade costs are reduced via economic coop...

by Fan Zhai | On 29 Dec 2015

Evaluation on the Contribution of UN Women to Prevent Violence against Women and Expand Access to Services

During 2012-2013, the UN Women Independent Evaluation Office undertook a corporate thematic evaluation of the UN Women contribution to preventing violence against women (VAW) and expanding access to r...

by UN Women | On 28 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

Thailand’s Investment in India’s Northeast: Strategies, Potentials and Risks

The imperatives for Thailand’s investment in the Northeast have come from two important considerations, reflecting longterm strategic objectives of the Look West Policy of Thailand. First, India’s nor...

by | On 22 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

Domestic Work, Wages and Gender Equality: Lessons from Developing Countries

The paper looks at the basic characteristics of female domestic workers, gaps in minimum wage coverage, compliance, and the extent of minimum wage violations. Presenting empirical evidence on labour m...

by | On 16 Dec 2015

Human Development Report 2015- Work for Human Development

From a human development perspective, work, rather than jobs oremployment is the relevant concept. A job is a narrow concept with a set of pre-determined time-bound assigned tasks or activities, in an...

by United Nations Development Programme [UNDP] | On 15 Dec 2015

Skill Transferability, Migration, and Development: Evidence from Population Resettlement in Indonesia

We use a natural experiment in Indonesia to provide causal evidence on the role of location-specific human capital and skill transferability in shaping the spatial distribution of productivity. From 1...

by Samuel Bazzi | On 08 Dec 2015

Regional Inequality and ‘Inclusive Growth’ in India under Globalization: Identification of Lagging States for Strategic Intervention

This paper analyses the trends and patterns of economic inequality across Indian states since the early 1990s. The inter-state inequality in per capita income and consumption expenditure show a clear...

by | On 04 Dec 2015

Terrorism and Security in Asia: Redefining Regional Order?

While a good deal has been written and said about the threat posed by terrorism in Southeast Asia, there has been little work analyzing the impact of terrorism and the war on terror on Asian regional...

by Amitav Acharya | On 22 Nov 2015

Investment and Growth in India under Liberalization: Asymmetries and Instabilities

This paper makes the case that the growth trajectory of the Indian economy in the post-1991 liberalization period is characterised by an inherent source of instability in manufacturing and industrial...

by | On 20 Nov 2015

Regional Trade Openness Index, Income Disparity and Poverty - An Experiment with Indian Data

This study aims to examine how ‘open’ Indian states are with respect to international trade and uses the index of regional openness thus constructed to reflect on several aspects that affect the level...

by | On 19 Nov 2015

Requiring Indian Utilities to Report: Harnessing Disclosure Legislation to Improve Water and Sanitation Services

The paper argues for a regular public reporting of key performance indicators by the WatSan utilities in India. It elaborates on how the policy behind these reforms could be operationalized.

by Premila Nazareth Satyanand | On 18 Nov 2015

India Approaches Replacement Fertility

This Population Bulletin updates a previous Bulletin from 2006, India's Population Reality: Reconciling Change and Tradition. India's population (currently at 1.3 billion) will exceed China's before 2...

by O.P. Sharma | On 18 Nov 2015

An Impact Evaluation of Investment in Infrastructure : The Case of the Railway Connection in Uzbekistan

The objective of this paper is to examine the nature and magnitude of the effects of infrastructure provision on regional economic performance. The empirical evidence of the analysis is based on diffe...

by Naoyuki Yoshino | On 13 Nov 2015

Decent Work Country Programmes and Human Mobility

The aim of this review is to assess the ways in which Decent Work Country Programmes (DWCPs) address the issue of internal migration, and to evaluate the extent to which this discussion is related to...

by | On 06 Nov 2015

Trends and Patterns in Consumption Expenditure: A Review of Class and Rural-Urban Disparities

This paper primarily aims to capture the changing patterns of consumption expenditure of three broad classes, namely, the ‘upper’ ‘middle’ and ‘bottom’ classes in the rural and urban India. In contras...

by | On 05 Nov 2015

Migration for Hard Work: A Reluctant Livelihood Strategy for Poor Households in West Bengal, India

This paper reports some initial findings of a study of how migrants in India and Bangladesh and the household members that stay behind reduce the insecurities they face (including hunger, debt, ill-he...

by | On 02 Nov 2015

Child Labour and Health Hazards

The document titled “Child Labour and Health Hazards” has been prepared with the objective to generate awareness on the dangers faced by children at the workplace through various training and other in...

by | On 26 Oct 2015

Military Build-up in the Indian Ocean: Implications for Regional Stability

As the Indian Ocean region increasingly becomes a more important geopolitical space, global powers and smaller states are laying down their stakes. This paper examines the military build-up of major I...

by | On 15 Oct 2015

Regional Inequality in Bangladesh in the 2000s: Re-Visiting the East-West Divide Debate

The term “East-West divide” as a way of describing regional disparity in Bangladesh has emerged in the policy discourse only in the 2000s. The administrative divisions belonging to the western part of...

by | On 08 Oct 2015

Informal Employment Among Youth: Evidence from 20 School-to-Work Transition Surveys

This report explores a recently created data set on youth employment with a specific focusing on the topic of informal employment. Recent evidence shows that informal labour markets are growing and oc...

by | On 07 Oct 2015

Food Security, Productivity, and Gender Inequality

This paper examines the relationship between gender inequality and food security, with a particular focus on women as food producers, consumers, and family food managers. The discussion is set against...

by Bina Agarwal | On 29 Sep 2015

Impact of Climate Change on Yield of Major Food Crops in Tamil Nadu, India

This study uses panel data for 39 years and 13 districts to estimate the yield sensitivity of major food crops to climate change in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It first estimated the margina...

by V. Saravanakumar | On 25 Sep 2015

Evolution of Minimum Wage Policy and Regulatory Framework: An Inter Country Perspective

The issue of wages is perhaps the most vital issue for various categories of workers, especially those engaged in the informal and unorganized sector. This study points out that in spite of various d...

by | On 15 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

Implementation of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 - Case Study of India

This paper takes a look at the efforts made by the Government of India since the enactment of the Act to improve the relevance of minimum wages, its impact in bringing the workers out of the poverty l...

by | On 07 Sep 2015

Why do Migrants do Better Than Non-Migrants at Destination? Migration, Class and Inequality Dynamics in India

This paper explores why migrants at their destination fare better than nonmigrants, across different socio-economic classes in India, while the general perception of migrants is that they are less end...

by Vamsi Vakulabharanam | On 03 Sep 2015

Income Inequality, Poverty and Labor Migration in Thailand

This paper explores the dynamics of economic growth, poverty, inequality and migration in Thailand, and evaluates the relevance of Lewis model to Thailand’s long-term development. Thai economy seems t...

by Somchai Jitsuchon | On 03 Sep 2015

Institutional Constraints to Innovation: Artisan Clusters in Rural India

The paper offers a ctitical understanding of the policy approaches for rural industrialization by underscoring inadequate understanding of the dynamics understanding of the dynamics or specificities...

by Keshab Das | On 03 Sep 2015

Global, Regional, and National Disability-Adjusted Life Years (Dalys) For 306 Diseases and Injuries and Healthy Life Expectancy (HALE) For 188 Countries, 1990–2013: Quantifying the Epidemiological Transition

The Global Burden of Disease Study 2013 (GBD 2013) aims to bring together all available epidemiological data using a coherent measurement framework, standardised estimation methods, and transparent da...

by | On 29 Aug 2015

Employment and Wages in Indian Manufacturing: Post-Reform Performance

This work is a contribution to the Employment Policy Department’s focus on employment and growth in G20 developing economies. Much discussion on employment and growth in developing economies analyses...

by | On 27 Aug 2015

The Experience with Regional Economic Cooperation Organizations: Lessons for Central Asia

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Central Asia has witnessed repeated efforts to strengthen regional integration through cooperation with the establishment of a number of regional organizations...

by Johannes F. Linn | On 25 Aug 2015

On Reckoning Level Differentials in the Measurement of Progress: An Illustration in the Context of Deliveries Assisted by Skilled Health Personnel

The paper highlights that performance assessments should account for non-linear dynamics of progress, whereby an improvement at a higher level represents greater achievement than an equal improvement...

by William Joe | On 21 Aug 2015

China: Case study on Human Development Progress towards the Millennium Developmental Goals at the Sub-National Level

This paper analyses an overview of china human development in Time and Space. The paper covers themes like regional inequality in China Since 1952 and Urban-Rural Inequality, 1980-2000. The paper is a...

by | On 21 Aug 2015

Recent Developments in Myanmar and New Opportunities for Sub-Regional Cooperation: A Bangladesh Perspective

The paper analyses the potential opportunities between Bangladesh and Myanmar stemming from sub-regional cooperation. The paper examines Myanmar’s integration into the regional and global economy toge...

by Debapriya Bhattacharya | On 18 Aug 2015

Trade and Transport Facilitation in Bangladesh: An Audit of the State of Play

This working paper embodies the results of trade and transport facilitation audit which was carried out in the Bangladesh context, as part of a South Asian regional study.The study documents the major...

by Naimul Saif | On 11 Aug 2015

Prevention of Loss or Decline of Vernacular and Indigenous Languages in the Indian Sub-Continent

Asian Societies with linguistic diversity have faced serious problems of loss or decline of vernacular and indigenous languages in modern times. Globalisation and urbanisation have brought a sea chang...

by P. Ishwara Bhat | On 10 Aug 2015

Myanmar: Unlocking the Potential - A Strategy for High, Sustained, and Inclusive Growth

Recognizing the need to formulate policy strategies for the changes it faces, Myanmar started a multifaceted reform process in 2011. But speeding up development requires a multipronged but more cohere...

by | On 04 Aug 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

Inflation Targeting in India: Select Issues

The adoption of inflation targeting in India has been a much debated topic which also becomes a challenge for the emerging economy. Though inflation targeting has already been adopted in many emerging...

by Charan Singh | On 17 Jul 2015

Toward Regional Cooperation for the Sustainable Development of the East Asian Seas

In an era where development issues concerning human security, health, and the environment transcend national boundaries, international cooperation has become more crucial than ever. This issue of the...

by Atty. Raphael Lotilla | On 10 Jul 2015

Skill Formation and Employment Assurance in the Unorganised Sector

The issue of skill building has been at the forefront of policy debates in recent years. India can take advantage of its young workforce and hence the demographic dividend, only if the workforce posse...

by National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorgan NCEUS | On 10 Jul 2015

The Hidden Workforce: A Study on Child Labour in the Garment Industry in Delhi

Over 168 million children across the world are trapped in the vicious cycle of child labour. Deprived of their basic right to survival, protection, development and participation, these children, betwe...

by Save the Children | On 07 Jul 2015

The Challenge of Employment in India An Informal Economy Perspective: Volume I

This is the final report of the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector, which was set up by the Government of India on 20th September 2004, to "review the status of unorganized/...

by National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorgan NCEUS | On 07 Jul 2015

Waste Pickers in Pune, India

Recent statistics show the majority of workers in developing countries earn their livelihoods in the informal sector. For this paper, a sample of 150 was randomly drawn from the membership database of...

by Poornima Chikarmane | On 06 Jul 2015

Street Vendors and the Dynamics of the Informal Economy: Evidence from Vung Tau, Vietnam

The role of the informal economy in promoting genuine economic development remains a contested one: optimists believe potential entrepreneurs are capable of supporting themselves and their families, p...

by John Walsh | On 25 Jun 2015

Policy Issues on Street Vending: An Overview of Studies in Thailand, Cambodia and Mongolia

Street vending and urban space for micro enterprises constitute an important policy theme that needs to be advanced further in development literature and policy. In many countries, urban space tends t...

by Kyoko Kusakabe | On 24 Jun 2015

Urban Informal Workers: Representative Voice & Economic Rights

he purpose of this paper is to provide a summary analysis of five case studies prepared for the 2013 World Development Report team that illustrate why and how the representative voice and economic rig...

by Martha Chen | On 24 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

Monetary Policy and Informal Finance

This article utilises state-level data for 1961–2012 to examine the interlinkage between informal finance and monetary policy. The analysis suggests that in response to a monetary contraction, borrowi...

by Saibal Ghosh | On 15 Jun 2015

An Enquiry in to the Employment of the Organized Sector in India

The paper attempts to analyze the trends in the organized sector employment of India for the period 1961 to 2010. It is found that the organized employment is in the state of decline, exhibiting a dow...

by G Burange | On 08 Jun 2015

E-Waste in India

Like hazardous waste, the problem of e-waste has become an immediate and long term concern as its unregulated accumulation and recycling can lead to major environmental problems endangering human heal...

by Rajya Sabha | On 04 Jun 2015

Report of the Working Group on Occupational Safety and Health for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012 to 2017)

The report is a document of action-focussed legislative and pragmatic interventions to transform the existing state of Occupational Safety and Health in the country both in the formal and informal sec...

by Ministry of Labour and Employment GoI | On 20 May 2015

Reforming Labour Markets in States

resenting a critical review of the issues in labour market reforms in India, this article places them against the backdrop of trends in labour force participation and formal/informal employment in the...

by Achin Chakraborty | On 18 May 2015

ASEAN and Conflict Management: The Need for a High Council

This year the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will formally establish the ASEAN Community, which is set to enhance regional community building among its member states. Ramses Amer makes...

by | On 13 May 2015

Instability and Regional Variation in Indian Agriculture

This study has taken up two seemingly different but connected aspects of Indian agriculture, the first part dealing with the analysis of agricultural instability at the national and state levels and t...

by Ramesh Chand | On 13 May 2015

Assamese Language, Narrative and the Making of the North East Frontier of India: Beyond Regional Indian Literary Studies

This paper is divided into two broad sections. The first section deals with the Brahmaputra Valley in Assam (north east India) and its transformation into a frontier in the nineteenth century. The sec...

by Manjeet Baruah | On 05 May 2015

Key Indicators of Employment and Unemployment in India, 2009-10

The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) during the period July 2009 - June 2010 carried out an all-India household survey on the subject of employment and unemployment in India as a part of 66th roun...

by National Sample Survey Office NSSO | On 05 May 2015

World Malaria Report 2014

The World Malaria Report 2014 summarizes information received from malaria-endemic countries and other sources, and updates the analyses presented in the 2013 report. It assesses global and regional m...

by World Health Organisation (WHO) | On 24 Apr 2015

Increasing Economic Opportunities of Women in the APEC

The paper argues for increasing women`s economic opportunities in the APEC region and states that women`s participation in the economy is skewed toward micro and small enterprises and they are mostly...

by | On 23 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

Internal Migration in India: Distress and Opportunities

Millions of footloose and impoverished men, women and children in India, migrate from the countryside each year to cities – in crowded trains, buses, trucks and sometimes on foot – their modest belong...

by Harsh Mander | On 30 Mar 2015

Capital for House-Based Industries: A Case Study in West Bengal

The lack of access to formal credit at affordable cost (effective interest) is the most critical constraint faced by the rural entrepreneurs to get involved in productive profitable business activit...

by Shrabani Mukherjee | On 27 Mar 2015

Inter-Regional Disparities in Industrial Growth and Structure

The present study examines the issues and propositions outlined above by analyzing the growth and structure of manufacturing industry in different states of India, in a comparative framework. It attem...

by T.S. Papola | On 19 Mar 2015

India: Development Effectiveness Brief

The publication captures the core of ADB's operations in India and showcases select ADB interventions that are helping the government achieve its development goals. ADB supports the Government of I...

by Asian Development Bank Institute | On 17 Mar 2015

Regional Disparities in Growth and Human Development in India

This paper argues that that per capita income in all states in India increased in the past four decades but in fact no sign of convergence could be visible as it was expected in the context of liberal...

by | On 13 Mar 2015

Death Sentences and Executions 2012

This report covers the judicial use of the death penalty for the period January to December 2012. Amnesty International records figures on the use of the death penalty based on the best available info...

by Amnesty International AI, | On 13 Mar 2015

Financial Access - Measurement and Determinants: A Case Study of Unorganised Manufacturing Enterprises in India

This paper attempts to study financial access of unorganized manufacturing enterprises in India given their importance to the economy and the fact that finance has been the main constraint on their gr...

by T.A. Bhavani | On 12 Mar 2015

Dynamics of Informal Employment in Maharashtra: Prelude to a Triad

The paper examines, using unit National Sample Survey (NSS) 61st, 66th and 68th rounds, of household, personal, and labour market characteristics of persons who are 15 years and above, living in Mahar...

by G.D Bino Paul | On 22 Feb 2015

Microfinance for Decent Work – Enhancing the Impact of Microfinance: Evidence from an Action Research Programme

In many emerging markets, Micro FinanceInstitutions have significant outreach, providing financial services to thousands, if not millions of small and micro enterprises. Since their primary relationsh...

by International Labour Organisation ILO | On 18 Feb 2015

Public Private Sector Partnerships in an Agricultural System of Innovation: Concepts and Challenges

The purpose of this paper is to explore current practice, speculate on future patterns of PPP and discuss how partnership can be leveraged in the development process. The paper seeks to view PPP exper...

by Andy Hall | On 16 Feb 2015

Financial Access - Measurement and Determinants: A Case Study of Unorganised Manufacturing Enterprises in India

This paper attempts to study financial access of unorganized manufacturing enterprises in India given their importance to the economy and the fact that finance has been the main constraint on their gr...

by T.A. Bhavani | On 09 Feb 2015

Determinants of Regional Patterns of Manufacturing Exports: Indian Firms since the Mid-1990s

A preliminary analysis of the spatial determinants of firms’ export activities by Indian states has been undertaken in this study. Thus, the present study attempts to fill the gap by focusing on issue...

by Jaya Prakash Pradhan | On 06 Feb 2015

Migration and Informality

This paper outlines the trends and patterns of migrants . It also discusses the impact and socioeconomic characteristics of migration in Delhi.

by | On 05 Feb 2015

Global Economic Prospects

The report argues the recent setback in global economy and ways to strengthen the growth in developing countries. with a view to undertake growth and recovery in high-income countries, there is need t...

by World Bank | On 14 Jan 2015

An Analysis of the Informal Labour Market in India

The Indian labour market is characterised by predominance of informal employment with more than 90 per cent of India’s informal workforce working as self-employed and casual workers. The worrying tre...

by A Srija | On 22 Dec 2014

Housing and Labor Productivity of Female Tea Pluckers in Sri Lanka

This study analyzes the link between labor productivity of tea-plantation workers in Sri Lanka and their living conditions. The results indicate a significant negative relationship between Indoor Air...

by Ajantha Kalyanaratne | On 16 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

Regionalization of Labour Reform Process: The Fabian strategy

The President of India signed a revised set of labour laws from Rajasthan into state law. The Rajasthan government has revised the Factories Act, the Industrial Disputes Act and the Contract Labour Ac...

by K.R. Shyam Sundar | On 02 Dec 2014

Training Module on Gender and Social Security for Unorganised Sector

The benefits of social protection do not, often, percolate down to the eligible beneficiaries. The main case of this deficiency is the lack of awareness of the main stakeholders, like the workers or...

by Shashi Bala | On 19 Sep 2014

Worker’s Rights and Practices in the Contemporary Scenario: An Overview

This book offers a careful summary of the rights and practices of work in the Indian labour market. In specific, it deals with rights deficiency of workers in different sectors especially on agricultu...

by V.V. Giri Labour Institute | On 19 Sep 2014

Rural-Urban Migration and Urban Informal Sector in India

Migration is a process that gets intensified with the process of economic development. Population mobility from rural to urban areas is a common feature in India. Interestingly, this rural-urban migra...

by Debasis Chakraborty | On 11 Sep 2014

Informal Sector and Conditions of Employment in India

Keeping in mind the significant number of labour engaged in informal sector of the economy, the report has probed into the characteristic of the informal labour force and the enterprises in which they...

by National Sample Survey Office NSSO | On 09 Sep 2014

Spatial Convergence and Growth in Indian Agriculture: 1967-2010

Inter-state diversity has been a perennial feature of Indian agriculture. The study probes if per capita income in Indian agriculture has converged across states in the last four and a half decades. I...

by Tirtha Chaterjee | On 06 Sep 2014

Mindsets, Trends and the Informal Economy

The informal economy comprises those economic activities which are beyond the purview of the state because they lie outside its framework of laws, regulations and protections. A small proportion of th...

by Ravi Kanbur | On 13 Aug 2014

Employment Stagnancy in India: Policy Plus Monetary reform

The Indian economy is witnessing a dichotomous trend- an increasing share of employment in industry with decline in Value Added to output. When compared to other Asian economies, we’re adding workers...

by Aritra Chakrabarty | On 10 Jul 2014

Inter-Regional Report on Labour Migration and Social Protection

Since the 1970s in particular, the countries of Western Asia and those of the Asia-Pacific region have been closely linked to each other through highly extensive movements of people. Opportunities cre...

by United Nations Economic and Social Commission (UNESCAP) | On 17 Jun 2014

Jobs and Livelihoods Mapping the Landscape

The Indian labour market is characterised by abysmally low participation of women in the labour market, enormity of low wage informal employment, and scarcity of decent regular wage employment. The c...

by IRIS Knowledge Foundation IKF | On 17 Jun 2014

Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013: A Generation at Risk

This issue of Global Employment Trends for Youth provides an update on youth labour markets around the world, focusing both on the continuing labour market crisis and on structural issues in youth lab...

by International Labour Organisation ILO | On 30 May 2014

Urbanization and Spatial Patterns of Internal Migration in India

With an urbanization level of 31.16 percent in 2011, India is the least urbanized country among the top 10 economies of the world. In addition, unlike other countries, the transition of workforce out...

by Ajay Sharma | On 26 May 2014

Eating Spaces, Resisting Creation: A Study of Creation and Consumption of Travel-based Food Shows on Regional and National Television

The dynamics of the market post liberalization of the Indian economy in the 1990s have permeated both, the urban middle class and rural households, setting a trend of negotiation with the ‘exotic fore...

by Shweta Ghosh | On 13 May 2014

A Study on Market Survey of Reusable e-Products and Recyclable e-Components

This report, Market Survey of Reusable and Recycled e-products looks at how e-Waste is a source of raw material which can and should be put back into manufacturing. More so, the life of components /eq...

by Environmental Management & Policy Research Institute | On 12 May 2014

Human Development in India: Challenges for a Society in Transition

This report highlights the way in which poverty and a?uence intersect with age-old divisions of regional inequalities, gender, caste, and religion that have long structured human development in India....

by Sonalde Desai | On 17 Apr 2014

Informal Sector: Definitions and its Implications for Growth

This paper discusses the importance of the informal sector in supporting livelihoods and contributing to production and consumption activities of developing countries is widely evident. However, lack...

by Niru Yadav | On 10 Mar 2014

Informal Manufacturing Sector in India: Pre and Post Reform Growth Dynamics

The informal manufacturing sector (IMS) in India has been a major part of the economy. Whether its growth is due to entry of people in distress, or whether it is a vibrant and growth oriented sector i...

by Dipa Mukherjee | On 10 Mar 2014

Liberalization, Informal Sector and Formal-Informal Sectors’ Relationship: A Study of India

This paper shows how India initiated the process to integrate its domestic economy with the world economy from early 1990s due to severe balance of payments crisis, high fiscal deficit and high inflat...

by Indrajit Bairagya | On 10 Mar 2014

Report of the Committee on Unorganised Sector Statistics

This report shows how Indian economy is depend on the informal sector. Unorganised or informal sector constitutes a pivotal part of the Indian economy. More than 90 per cent of workforce and about 50...

by GOI National Statistical Commission | On 10 Mar 2014

Are Women’s Issues Synonymous with Gender in India? Looking Across Geographic Space

This paper attempts to shift the focus from ‘women’ to the significance of the gender equation by assessing the intensity of gender disparity across geographic space, and enquiring into the reasons...

by Nira Ramachandran | On 04 Feb 2014

Maritime Territorial Disputes in East Asia: A Comparative Analysis of the South China Sea and the East China Sea

This article systematically compares maritime territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas. It draws on the bargaining model of war and hegemonic stability theory to track the record of confl...

by Andy Yee | On 02 Jan 2014

Migrants' Private Giving and Development: Diasporic Influences on Development in Central Gujarat, India

The paper addresses the migration-development debate by developing a framework for understanding who are the migrants, what they are sending back, and how these transfers are being utilised in the lo...

by Puja Guha | On 28 Nov 2013

A Review of Internal and Regional Migration Policy in Southeast Asia

This working paper provides an overview of migration policy analysis in academic and policy (‘grey’) literature for Southeast Asia, as well as a brief outline of the current migration policy environme...

by Maureen Hickey | On 27 Nov 2013

Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and Informal Economy in India: Trends, Initiatives and Challenges

This work examines the status of Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (FPRW) in the informal economy in India and locates the gaps and challenges in ratifying the ILO Conventions 87, 98, 138 a...

by Dhanya M.B | On 19 Nov 2013

Regional Cooperation on the Ganga Basin: Yet a mirage?

Ganges is one of the important rivers of South Asia. It is a trans-boundary river between India and Bangladesh. Some rivers, originating in the Tibetan Autonomous region of the People's Republic of Ch...

by Dwarika Dhungel | On 15 Nov 2013

Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership: Reform Challenges and Key Tasks for the Philippines

The paper calls the attention of policymakers to address critical constraints affecting the effective utilization of free trade agreements, growth, trade facilitation and customs administration, servi...

by Gilberto M. Llanto | On 15 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

In Search of Inclusion: Informal Sector Participation in a Voluntary, Defined Contribution Pension System

This paper examines who contributes and who persists in contributing in a national, voluntary, defined contributory pension program, where the government provides the incentive of matching contributi...

by Renuka Sane | On 28 Oct 2013

Missing Labour Force or ‘De-Feminization’ of Labour Force in India ?

The gendered division of household labour, stigma attached to paid labour and status production has precipitated withdrawal from paid work as a strategy to reduce the double burden of women. Upward s...

by Vinoj Abraham | On 09 Oct 2013

State of the Urban Youth India 2013: Employment, Livelihoods, Skills

The State of the Urban Youth India 2013: Employment, Livelihoods, Skills is an attempt to pull together a data and knowledge base on and of youth in urban India. The focus of the Report is youth emplo...

by IRIS Knowledge Foundation IKF | On 08 Oct 2013

Refining State Level Comparisons in India

The performance of Indian States are analyzed across three critical sectors – health, education and infrastructure are analyzed. An index is constructed for each using the Principal Component Analys...

by Pranjul Bhandari | On 10 Jun 2013

Circular Migration in India

This brief explores circular migration in India and the policy response, and impact of this policy response, on the welfare of migrants and more broadly, on regional inequality. [ODI Policy Brief No....

by Kate Bird | On 24 Apr 2013

State of the Urban Youth India 2012: Executive Summary

The State of the Urban Youth India 2012: Employment, Livelihoods, Skills developed and produced by IRIS Knowledge Foundation, Mumbai on a commission from the UN-HABITAT Global Urban Youth Research Net...

by Padma Prakash | On 14 Apr 2013

Inequalities Reinforced? Social Groups, Gender and Employment

Based on the last four rounds of NSS data the study explores some dimensions of women’s labour market participation across social groups. [CWDS Occasional Paper No.59]. URL:[http://www.cwds.ac.in/OCPa...

by Neetha N | On 01 Mar 2013

Connecting the Dots: The Urban Informal Sector and Climate Vulnerabilities in Southeast Asia’s Megacities

In the megacities of developing Southeast Asia, the informal sector plays an important role in supporting economic development. Yet, in discussions of the ramifications of climaterelated natural haz...

by Sofiah Jamil | On 13 Feb 2013

Contribution of the Unorganized Sector to GDP Report of the Sub Committee of a NCEUS Task Force

The task of the Sub-committee was to review the existing methodologies for estimating the contribution of unorganized/informal sector to GDP and suggest measures to facilitate direct estimation. The G...

by NCEUS NCEUS | On 06 Sep 2012

Report on Conditions of Work and Promotion of Livelihoods in the Unorganised Sector

This Report is focused on the informal or the unorganized economy which accounts for an overwhelming proportion of the poor and vulnerable population in an otherwise shining India. It concentrates on...

by NCEUS NCEUS | On 05 Sep 2012

Engaging Small and Medium Enterprises in Production Networks: Firm-level Analysis of Five ASEAN Economies

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are under scrutiny for their engagement in production networks following recent emphasis on increasing intra-reg...

by Ganeshan Wignaraja | On 06 Jul 2012

The Impact of Infrastructure on Agricultural Productivity

This paper provides an empirical basis for the perceived link between rural infrastructure and agricultural productivity. It validates the hypothesis that deficiencies in rural infrastructure e.g.,...

by Gilberto M Llanto | On 24 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

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

Saving Mumbai

What Mumbai needs as a starting point is a city administration that is accountable to the city's residents, and a directly elected mayor, as in all great cities of the world. [BS Weekend Ruminations]....

by T.N. Ninan | On 22 Feb 2012

Regional and Global Monetary Cooperation

The increasing occurrence of national, regional, and global financial crises, together with their rising costs and complexity, have increased calls for greater regional and global monetary cooperation...

by Mario Lamberte | On 21 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

Formalizing the Informal Economy: Women’s Autonomous Self-Employment in Rural South India

This paper considers the effects of contemporary restructuring of women and men’s employment in rural south India alongside ongoing efforts to recast India’s poor rural women as entrepreneurs. This s...

by Samantha Watson | On 15 Feb 2012

Selling Formal Insurance to the Informally Insured

Unpredictable rainfall is an important risk for agricultural activity, and farmers in developing countries often receive incomplete insurance from informal risk-sharing networks. The demand for, and...

by A. Mushfiq Mobarak | On 10 Feb 2012

Estimating the Middle Class in Pakistan

Using the Pakistan Social and Living Measurement Survey (PSLM), conducted in 2007-08, the paper measures the magnitude of the middle class (definition given by Thurow (1987); Birdsall, Graham and Pe...

by Durr-e- Nayab | On 06 Feb 2012

Are All Migrants Really Worse Off in Urban Labour Markets? New Empirical Evidence from China

The rapid and massive increase of rural-to-urban migration in China has drawn attention to the welfare of migrant workers, particularly to their working conditions and pay. This paper uses data from...

by Jason Gagnon | On 06 Jan 2012

Insights into Workers and ‘Political’ Union

Review of the book Workers, Unions and Global Capitalism: Lessons from India, Rohini Hensman, Tulika Books, New Delhi, 2011, pp. xix + 415

by Sharit Bhowmik | On 27 Dec 2011

Approach Paper: Vulnerabilities of Women Homebased Workers`

This paper focuses on homebased women workers and discusses the specific issues of their vulnerability as women and as workers, in the framework of their basic citizenship right to economic and soci...

by Indrani Mazumdar | On 26 Dec 2011

Realising Decent Work

A commentary on final report of the task force on domestic workers

by G.D Bino Paul | On 26 Dec 2011

Estimating the Value of Statistical Life in Pakistan

The study estimates the Value of Statistical Life and Limb in Pakistan based on the compensating wage differential among blue-collar industrial workers in the city of Lahore. The data for this study...

by Mohammad Rafi | On 07 Dec 2011

Informal Labour and Credit Markets: A Survey

This paper reviews the literature on the informal economy, focusing first on empirical findings and then on existing approaches to modelling informality within both partial and general equilibrium e...

by Nicoletta Batini | On 24 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

Opening India’s Garments Sector to South Asia

This paper examines the competitiveness of the Indian garments industry vis-à-vis the other South Asian countries Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Under the SAFTA agreement, many of the garment i...

by Saon Ray | On 16 Sep 2011

Achieving Progress for Development Effectiveness in Busan: An Overview of CSO Evidence

The global Reality of Aid Network has been working in preparation for Busan alongside CSO colleagues from women’s rights organizations, trade unions, farmers’ organizations, faith-based organizations...

by Brian Tomlinson | On 30 Aug 2011

Infrastructure Investment and Regional Economic Growth: A Case Study of Maharashtra

The study initially reviews the infrastructure facilities for the 33 districts of Maharashtra for one year i.e.1999-2000. Using this, the extent of disparities between these regions is found. Further...

by A M Swaminathan | On 29 Aug 2011

World Trade Report 2011- The WTO and Preferential Trade Agreements: From Co-existence to Coherence

The ever-growing number of preferential trade agreements (PTAs) is a prominent feature of international trade. The World Trade Report 2011 describes the historical development of PTAs and the current...

by World Trade Organisation WTO | On 22 Jul 2011

Kiranas 'Kicked' by Malls

The unorganized retail sector in India compriises small stores located in every nook and corner. People bought their day to day requirements and hoarded monthly stock from the kirana (mom-and-pop) sto...

by Sakshi Bhatnagar | On 11 Jul 2011

The Effect of Exchange Rate Changes on Trade in East Asia

This paper considers how exchange rates affect East Asian trade. The evidence indicates that exports produced within regional production networks depend on exchange rates throughout the region while l...

by Willem Thorbecke | On 01 Jul 2011

A De Facto Asian-Currency Unit Bloc in East Asia: It Has Been There but We Did Not Look for It

Pegging in a coordinated way to a regional basket currency is considered by many as optimal for east-Asian countries. By contrast, according to existing empirical studies, these countries have most of...

by Eric Girardin | On 29 Jun 2011

Inequality, Growth and Poverty in the Era of Liberalization and Globalization

This policy brief reports the main findings of the study on changes in within-country income inequality over the last two decades and on the links between poverty, inequality, and growth. It focuses o...

by Giovanni Andrea Cornia | On 08 Jun 2011

Club-Convergence and Polarisation of States A Nonparametric Analysis of Post-Reform India

The objective of this paper is to study the dynamics of the distribution of regional per capita income of Indian states in the post reform period, in order to identify trends towards convergence-c...

by Sabyasachi Kar | On 20 May 2011

Enhancing Intra-SAARC Trade: Pruning India’s Sensitive List under SAFTA

The study suggests an approach to reduce India’s sensitive list under SAFTA. The concept of Revealed Comparative Advantage has been used to pair the RCAs for products on India’s sensitive list with th...

by Nisha Taneja | On 29 Apr 2011

Report of the Task Force on Credit Related Issues of Farmers

The Task Force visited 45 villages across 17 states and held state and regional level consultations to understand from women and men farmers, bankers, civil society, academicians, planners, activists,...

by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Devt NABARD | On 27 Apr 2011

Environment, Human Development and Economic Growth after Liberalisation: An Analysis of Indian States

Economic growth does not necessarily ensure environmental sustainability for a country. The relationship between the two is far more complicated for developing countries like India, given the depend...

by Sacchidananda Mukherjee | On 16 Mar 2011

Enhancing Development through Policy Coherence

Policy coherence implies that donors in pursuing domestic policy objectives should avoid adversely affecting the development prospects of poor countries. To achieve policy coherence donors and multila...

by Amelia U. Santos Paulino | On 14 Mar 2011

South Asian Integration Prospects and Lessons from East Asia

In the context of the low levels of regional cooperation among South Asian countries when compared with the successful results from cooperation in East Asia (consisting of South East and East Asian...

by Ramesh Chandra | On 18 Feb 2011

Some Aspects of Inter District Disparities in Tamil Nadu

The study analyzes the inter-district variations in levels of income and human development in Tamal Nadu in recent years. It also tries to analyze the causes of the relatively low levels of income of...

by R. J. Chelliah | On 15 Feb 2011

National Programme for the Health Care of the Elderly-Better Late than Never

While there are many path-breaking elements in the Programme document, the stress is on a top down programme that leaves little room for accommodating regional needs. Nor is there much emphasis on enc...

by Syam Prasad | On 15 Feb 2011

The Contribution of the New Institutional Economics to an Understanding of the Transition Problem

Institutions and the way they evolve shape economic performance. Institutions affect economic performance by determining (together with technology employed) the cost of transacting and producing. They...

by Douglass C. North | On 04 Feb 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

Poverty Eradication / Alleviation in North East India : An Approach

The NEC Shillong has assigned the National Institute of Rural Development, North Eastern Regional Centre (NIRD-NERC), Guwahati to prepare a report on “Poverty Eradication in the North Eastern Region...

by Ministry for Development of the North East (DONER) | On 28 Jan 2011

Microfinance and Moneylender Interest Rate: Evidence from Bangladesh

The linkage between the formal and informal credit markets has long been of great interest to development economists. This paper addressed one aspect of the linkage by empirically investigating the...

by Debdulal Mallick | On 25 Jan 2011

Rethinking the Informal Economy: Linkages with the Formal Economy and the Formal Regulatory Environment

This paper explores the relationship of the informal economy to the formal economy and to the formal regulatory environment. It begins with a comparison of the earlier concept of the ‘informal sec...

by | On 18 Jan 2011

Fifty Years of Regional Inequality in China: A Journey through Central Planning, Reform, and Openness

This paper constructs and analyses a long-run time-series for regional inequality in China from the Communist Revolution to the present. There have been three peaks of inequality in the last fifty...

by Ravi Kanbur | On 17 Jan 2011

Retrieving LAI of Different Forest Species from Landsat TM/ETM+ Imaginary

Information on vegetation is important for the planning of regional natural resources management carbon cycling studies, terrestrial primary productivity modeling of hydrology, energy and climate. In...

by Nepal C. Dey | On 17 Jan 2011

World Programme of Action for Youth

This is a ready reference for organizations, youth policy practitioners and young people to the World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY), its 15 priority areas and their corresponding proposals for...

by United Nations UN | On 29 Nov 2010

Balance of Trade, Remittance and Net Capital Flows: An Analysis of Economic Development in Kerala since independence

A major drawback of the plethora of regional studies in India is that most of them tend to treat regional development as an autonomous process of regional productive forces and relations of production...

by T.M. Thomas Issac | On 15 Nov 2010

Informalization of Industrial Labour in India: Are labour market rigidities and growing import competition to blame?

Since the 1980s, there has been increasing informalization of industrial labour in India. It has taken two forms: rising share of the unorganized sector in manufacturing employment and informalizatio...

by Bishwanath Goldar | On 03 Nov 2010

Human Capital and Manufacturing Productivity Growth in India

Empirical studies on total factor productivity growth (TFPG) in developing countries highlight trade openness, research and development and market structure as being the most important determinants...

by Vinish Kathuria | On 02 Nov 2010

Skills, Informality and Development

This paper makes an attempt to estimate the index of informal sector employment which can be attributed to the supply-push phenomenon. Factors which explain the inter-state variations include the...

by Dibyendu S. Maiti | On 02 Nov 2010

The Internationalization of Small and Medium Enterprises in Regional and Global Value Chains

Production networks and the regional division of labor have been established in East Asia resulting in massive vertical intra-industry trade in parts and components within the region. This phenomenon...

by Hank Lim | On 02 Nov 2010

Socioeconomic Impacts of Cross-Border Transport Infrastructure Development in South Asia

Although the overall economic performance of economies in South Asia in recent years has been impressive, there is concern that an aging and increasingly inadequate infrastructure may limit the potent...

by John Gilbert | On 01 Nov 2010

Regional Cooperation, Infrastructure, and Trade Costs in Asia

International trade has played an essential role in Asia’s remarkable growth, development, and integration in recent decades. Infrastructure, both hard and soft, has played an integral part in facil...

by Douglas H. Brooks | On 28 Oct 2010

The Welfare Fund Model of Social Security for Informal Sector Workers: The Kerala Experience

This paper examines the evolution of the institution of ‘Welfare Funds’ for informal sector workers in the State of Kerala in India. The Kerala experience, which is now thirty years old, reflects wh...

by K. P. Kannan | On 25 Oct 2010

Government Structure and Labour Market Outcomes in Garment Embellishment Chains

The perspective of global commodity chain or GCC framework and social embeddedness are used to understand the organizational and social linkages in the embellishment production network in garment i...

by Jeemol Unni | On 21 Oct 2010

From Local to Global and Informal to Formal: Entering Mainstream Markets

This is a brief sketch of the Self Employed Women’s Association’s (SEWA) three- decade-long journey from the local to global and informal to formal sector in search of finding work and income for n...

by Reema Nanavaty | On 15 Oct 2010

Imperatives of Regional Economic Integration in Asia in the Context of Developmental Asymmetries: Some Policy Suggestions

Regional economic integration agreements are considered to be important policy mechanisms to address regional developmental asymmetries. The Asian reality is characterized by developmental asymmetri...

by Ram Upendra Das | On 15 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

Fiscal Policy Coordination in Asia: East Asian Infrastructure Investment Fund

East Asian countries were seriously affected by the 2008 global crisis through a steep fall in exports. This experience exposed the vulnerability of the East Asian growth model and emphasized the impo...

by Mahani Zainal Abidin | On 05 Oct 2010

Emergence of Rating Agencies: Implications for Establishing a Regional Rating Agency in Asia

The present analysis sheds light on the setting up a regional rating agency in Asia in the wake of recent financial crisis. We investigate the policy facing a financial regulator while evaluat...

by Ying Yi Tsai | On 30 Sep 2010

The Wage Elasticity of Informal Care Supply: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study

This paper focuses on the relationship between wages and supply of informal care to elderly parents. Unlike most of the previous research estimating wage elasticities of informal care supply, this...

by Olena Nizalova | On 28 Sep 2010

Extending Labour Inspections to the Informal Sector and Agriculture

Labour inspections could, in theory, improve labour standards and help countries move towards decent work goals and the elimination of chronic poverty. But, in practice, inspections are either not con...

by Priya Deshingkar | On 21 Sep 2010

Feeding Southeast Asia: Mekong River Fisheries and Regional Food Security

This paper reviews the available literature that links regional food security to the Mekong River’s wild capture fisheries, and argues for recognition of the existing contribution that the fisheries...

by Brooke Peterson | On 08 Sep 2010

The Evolution of Singapore Business: A Case Study Approach

This volume contains summaries of 12 case studies for three categories of business organisations defined by ownership, i.e. foreign, state and (local) private. The case studies explore the history a...

by Anisha Sabhlok | On 06 Sep 2010

The Potato’s Contribution to Population and Urbanization: Evidence from an Historical Experiment

In this paper regional variation in suitability for cultivating potatoes, together with time variation arising from their introduction to the Old World from the Americas is being exploited, to estim...

by Nathan Nunn | On 26 Aug 2010

Informal Trade in the SAARC region

This paper explores issues relating to informal trade in the SAARC region. It spells out the reasons underpinning illegal trade in the South Asian region. Further it focuses on the estimated size an...

by Nisha Taneja | On 10 Aug 2010

Asian Economic Integration ASEAN+3+1 or ASEAN+1s?

In this paper an attempt is made to evaluate the most efficient approach to regional economic integration in Asia. Given that ASEAN is an existing regional bloc in Asia, alternative approaches to the...

by Amita Batra | On 04 Aug 2010

Regional Economic Integration and FDI in South Asia : Prospects and Problems

The slow progress and modest achievements of regional integration in South Asia have generated a huge amount of skepticism about its role as an effective strategy of growth. The present study, howev...

by Aradhna Aggarwal | On 22 Jul 2010

Implications Of The Economic Rise Of The PRC For Asean and India: Trade and Foreign Direct Investment

An important and vigorous policy debate ongoing in Asia concerns the impact of the economic rise of the PRC on the rest of the region. This paper examines the relative performances of the PRC, selec...

by Sadhana Srivastava | On 20 Jul 2010

Education Impact Study: The Global Recession and the Capacity of Colleges and Universities to Serve Vulnerable Populations in Asia

This paper reviews the capacity of colleges and universities to serve poor and vulnerable populations during past and present economic shocks. The main argument is that the environment of the global r...

by Gerard Postiglione | On 27 May 2010

The Size of Informal Economy in Pakistan

This paper estimates the size of informal economy in Pakistan by using monetary approach with some modifications, electricity consumption approach and MIMIC model. Under monetary approach, we take car...

by Muhammad Farooq Arby | On 20 May 2010

Industrializing West Bengal? : The Case of Institutional Stickiness

The paper discuses the role played by institutional behavior in determining the policy outcomes of a state. Apart from secondary data the paper is also based on information collected from selected sta...

by Deepita Chakravarty | On 19 Mar 2010

Climate Change and the Future Impacts of Storm-Surge Disasters in Developing Countries

The implications of sea-level rise and storm surges for 84 developing countries and 577 of their cyclone-vulnerable coastal cities with populations greater than 100,000 are explored. Combining the mos...

by Susmita Dasgupta | On 25 Feb 2010

Track Record of Financial Institutions in Assisting the Poor in Asia

A variety of institutional forms of microfinance are being introduced in Asia including by the ADB-and financial institutions pursue different objectives, so it is difficult to assess how well micro...

by Richard L Meyer | On 13 Nov 2009

Definitional and Statistical Issues Relating to Workers in Informal Employment

This paper based on Indian and international documents assesses existing definition, criteria and methodologies for estimating employment and income generated in the informal economy in India. [NCEUS...

by Sheila Bhalla | On 02 Sep 2009

Employment and Income in India: Case of a City Economy

This paper analyses the pattern of growth observed in the city economy of Ahmedabad, a metropolitan city in the industrially developed state of Gujarat. The growth of this city is placed in the cont...

by Jeemol Unni | On 17 Aug 2009

Morbidity Patterns In Kerala: Levels and Determinants

This paper examines the levels, patterns, and determinants of morbidity in Kerala. This study is based on a community survey conducted in 2004, in three districts of the state namely Thiruvananthap...

by Navaneetham K | On 14 Aug 2009

Restoring the Asian Silk Route: Toward an Integrated Asia

Lack of full regional connectivity is one of the major constraints hindering regional growth and integration in Asia, as well as with the rest of the world. One of the conclusions of this paper is tha...

by Biswa N Bhattacharyay | On 11 Aug 2009

Human Development Index for Andhra Pradesh

The method used to measure Human Development are reviewed in order to measure Human Development Index for rural AP by considering indicators such as economic attainment, longevity and education. The e...

by Jatinder S Bedi | On 07 Jul 2009

Labour and Trade Unions in the Financial Sector: Challenges and Perspectives in Contemporary Brazil

The configuration of the liquid wealth involved a reorganization of society and the financial system with on labour and trade union organization in Brazil. The changes involved the redefinition of the...

by Jose Ricrado Goncalves | On 06 Jul 2009

Measuring Inflationary Pressure in Bangladesh: The P-Star Approach

The paper estimates the P* model for Bangladesh economy and test its forecasting ability through generating recursive forecasts. The empirical result shows that the model performs relatively well and...

by Mustafa. K. Mujeri | On 27 Jun 2009

Sources of FDI Flows to Developing Asia: The Roles of Distance and Time Zones

This paper investigates sources and determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) flows to developing Asia using bilateral FDI flows for the period 1990-2005. With regard to the determinants of FDI...

by Rabin Hattari | On 27 Jun 2009

Subnational Taxes in Developing Countries: The Way Forward

It is critical to emphasize that intergovernmental fiscal relations must be thought of as a system and that all the pieces in the system must fit together if decentralization is to work properly. Vari...

by Richard.M. Bird | On 16 Jun 2009

Financial Development and Velocity of Money in Bangladesh: A Vector Auto- Regression Analysis

The study uses co-integration and vector auto-regression (VAR) techniques to identify the determinants of income velocity of money (VM) in Bangladesh, covering both narrow and broad money. The study o...

by Md. Akhtaruzzaman | On 15 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

Role of Science & Technology, Higher Education and Research in Regional Socio-Economic Development

This paper is an attempt to focus on the role of Science and Technology (S&T) on regional development of India by considering 21 Indian states. The Index approach using the Principal Component techniq...

by Rajesh Shukla | On 12 Jun 2009

Agriculture, Food Security,and Poverty in China; Past Performance, Future Prospects, and Implications for Agricultural R&D Policy

China’s experience demonstrates the importance of technological development and public investment in improving agricultural productivity, farmer income, and food security in a nation with limited supp...

by Jikun Huang | On 07 Jun 2009

Health Economics for Developing Countries: A Survival Kit

Health economics is increasingly recognized as a discipline that has much to offer developing countries in addressing these problems, but how can it help? What economic concepts and tools can be appli...

by Anne Mills | On 04 Jun 2009

Conceptualising Informality: Regulation and Enforcement

The informality discourse is large and vibrant, and is expanding rapidly. But there is a certain conceptual incoherence to the literature. New definitions of informality compete with old definitions l...

by Ravi Kanbur | On 02 Jun 2009

Contribution of the Unorganised sector to GDP Report of the Sub Committee of a NCEUS Task Force

The task of the Sub-committee was to review the existing methodologies for estimating the contribution of unorganised/informal sector to GDP and suggest measures to facilitate direct estimation. The G...

by NCEUS NCEUS | On 28 May 2009

PRC-Latin America Economic Cooperation: Going beyond Resource and Manufacturing Complementarity

Despite the rapid development of economic interaction between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries, their trade and investment ties are still in their...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 20 May 2009

Assessing Policy Choices For Managing SO2 Emisions From Indian Power Sector

The production, transportation and consumption of energy resources, especially of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, generate negative environmental externalities including air pollution....

by Deepa Menon Choudhary | On 18 May 2009

No Through Road: The Limitations of Food Miles

The focus of this paper is on food miles issues associated with the import of products from developing countries. As the concept of food miles has been an issue in organic agriculture since before the...

by Els Wynen | On 14 May 2009

Can Ethical Trade Certification Contribute to the Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals? A Review of Organic and Fair-trade Certification

The growth of ethical consumerism in developed countries has led to increased imports of environmentally and socially certified products produced by the poor in developing countries, which could poten...

by Sununtar Setboonsarng | On 13 May 2009

The Asian “Noodle Bowl”:Is It Serious for Business?

A lively debate is taking place over the impact of free trade agreements (FTAs) on East Asia's business between those who view the agreements as a harmful Asian "noodle bowl"—i.e., overlapping regiona...

by Masahiro Kawai | On 13 May 2009

Gender and Innovation in South Asia

To understand how gender, women’s rights and citizenship intersect with innovation in SouthAsia, one must begin by considering some of the main features of life for South Asian women, about a half of...

by Sujata Byravan | On 06 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

'Mirakles' Do Happen!

A courier service entirely run and staffed by the deaf? Is it a workable idea? Here’s the remarkable story of just such a service surviving against all odds.

by Indira Gartenberg | On 18 Apr 2009

Micro and Small Enterprises During Reforms: Policy and Concerns

This paper addresses some key policy issues relating to the micro and small enterprises in India during the reforms period. A close look into the definitional changes in terms of the criterion of inve...

by Keshab Das | On 16 Dec 2008

Workforce Development in India: Policies and Practices

The task of workforce development in India faces the changing realities of globalization and competitiveness, on one hand, and the need for inclusive growth on the other. This report focuses on the is...

by Shyamal Majumdar | On 30 Nov 2008

Performance of Indian Cement Industry: The Competitive Landscape

The competitiveness among the firms in Indian cement industry has also been evaluated. For the year 2006-07, out of the sample of seventeen firms (90.21% of the total market share), about 47% have re...

by G Burange | On 19 Nov 2008

Informal Values and Formal Policies:A study of Japanese Technology Policy and Significance for India

The main objective of this paper is to analyse some aspects of Japanese policy in the post World War-II period and understand how the various informal institutions (shared mental models) have influen...

by Saradindu Bhaduri | On 02 Sep 2008

An Investigation of Incongruency and Distraction Hypotheses: The Context of Dubbed TV Commercials

The current study seeks to understand the effectiveness of commercials that are basically nation-wide commercials dubbed in the regional languages, while not changing any part of the visual: thus they...

by Venkatesh P | On 16 Aug 2008

Banking Sector Reforms and Equity a Sub-Regional Analysis in Andhra Pradesh

In this study an attempt is made to examine the equity aspect due to reforms in the banking sector at sub-regional level in the state of Andhra Pradesh covering the period 1985 to 2004. [CESS WP 68]...

by K S Reddy | On 04 Aug 2008

Constitutionalising Panchayats: The Response of State Legislatures

This article is an attempt to look at debates in the light of the Assemblies' tryst with panchayats. It should be noted that it is not an evaluation of what transpired in the state Assemblies. In view...

by Girish Kumar | On 03 Jul 2008

Inclusive Growth in Andhra Pradesh: Challenges in Agriculture, Poverty, Social Sector and Regional Disparities

The important elements of inclusive growth are: agricultural growth, employment generation and poverty reduction, social sector (health and education) and reduction in regional and other disparities...

by S.Mahendra Dev | On 31 May 2008

Newsletter on Regional Economy: A bi-monthly four state update from IRIS India

A monthly compilation by IRIS.

by IRIS India IRIS | On 09 Apr 2008

The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2007

The Bill seeks to amend the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.

by Parliamentary Research Service PRS | On 28 Feb 2008

Regulation of Informal Financial Institutions: A Study of Money Lenders in Kerala

The working of money lenders in Kerala are analysed. Based on a sample survey, the paper has estimated the volume of deposits and credits extended by money lenders in Kerala and has brought out the un...

by P D Jeromi | On 13 Feb 2008

Critical Issues Facing China’s Rubber Industry in the Era of Market Integration: An Analysis in Retrospect and Prospect

This paper discusses the emerging contradictions that may have serious implications for the sustainable growth and performance of China’s rubber industry in the era of internal restructuring and globa...

by Viswanathan P K | On 30 Jan 2008

National Policy on the Voluntary Sector

This National Policy on the Voluntary Sector-2007 is the beginning of a process to evolve a new working relationship between the Government and the Voluntary Sector, without affecting the autonomy and...

by Planning Commission, India | On 29 Jan 2008

A Review of the Pharmaceutical Industry of Canada

Three important aspects of the Canadian pharmaceutical industry-viz. compulsory licence, price control on patented drugs and the R&D scenario. Unlike other developed countries, which have adopted the...

by Lalitha N | On 18 Jan 2008

Newsletter on Regional Economy A bi-monthly four-state update from IRIS

A monthly compilation by IRIS.

by IRIS India IRIS | On 11 Jan 2008

WCD Thematic Review V.5 Participation, Negotiation and Conflict Management in Large Dams Projects

This thematic review focuses on the siting, construction and operation of large dam facilities (or their alternatives) as sources of significant conflict, and as opportunities to involve many interest...

by RESOLVE Inc et al | On 26 Dec 2007

Unorganised Sector Worker's Social Security Bill 2007

A bill to provide for the social security and welfare of unorganised sector workers and for other matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

by Minister of State for Labour and Employment | On 15 Oct 2007

Why Don’t Small and Medium Enterprises Innovate More : Creating a Cooperative Learning Environment at Individual, Firm and Regional Level

In a globalising economy, regional or national benchmarks do not suffice any more. Be it technology or business method or practices, Indian small scale entrepreneurs will have to benchmark their curre...

by Anil K Gupta | On 10 Oct 2007

Multilateralising Regionalism: Sphagetti Bowls as building Blocs on the Path to Global Free Trade

This paper addresses the final steps to global free trade -- the political economy forces that might drive them, and the role the WTO might play in guiding them. Two facts form the departure point: 1)...

by Richard Baldwin | On 05 Oct 2007

Potential for Sharing Nuclear Power Infrastructure Between Countries

The introduction or expansion of a nuclear power programme in a country and its successful execution is largely dependent on the network of national infrastructure, covering a wide range of activities...

by International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA | On 21 Aug 2007

Women, Work and Insecurities in India

The poor women in developing countries are burdened with the dual responsibility of taking care of housework and the need to supplement household income to meet the subsistence needs. The on-going fle...

by Uma Rani | On 05 Jul 2007

Industrial Clusters in India: Perspectives and Issues for Research

Considering the Indian context as the basis of enquiry into industrial clustering three important issues that largely determine the performance and strategy of firms to survive compete and grow are id...

by Keshab Das | On 27 Jun 2007

APEC 2007: How Strong is India’s Case for Membership?

The September 2007 annual summit of APEC to be hosted by Australia will witness the ending of the decade long moratorium on membership. A major anomaly of the APEC is that while the three largest econ...

by Mukul Asher | On 26 Jun 2007

Book Review: Women Workers, Unite!

Review of Ela R Bhat's 'We are Poor, But So Many Oxford University Press, 2006.

by Sharit Bhowmik | On 10 May 2007

IBSAC (INDIA, BRAZIL, SOUTH AFRICA, CHINA): A Potential Developing Country Coalition in WTO Negotiations

This paper argues that IBSA( India, Brazil, South Africa) as opposed to IBSAC (with China) is a far more coherent group when it comes to WTO negotiations as its interests coincide given the agenda tha...

by Debashis Chakraborty | On 25 Apr 2007

India's Informal Trade With SriLanka

The study is based on an extensive survey carried out in the Indian cities of Chennai, Trichy, Thiruvananthapuram, Tuticorin, Mumbai and Rameshwaram. Informal trade between India and Sri Lanka is larg...

by Nisha Taneja | On 19 Apr 2007

Utilization Of Maternal Health Care In South India

This study examines the patterns and determinants of maternal health care use across different social setting in south India: in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Data source for...

by Navaneetham K | On 10 Apr 2007

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

India’s Rising Role in Asia

This paper strongly suggests that India has been far more intricately integrated with the rest of Asia than has commonly been perceived or acknowledged. This is particularly the case if overall value...

by Mukul Asher | On 12 Dec 2006

Report on a Strategic Approach to Research Publishing in South Africa

The effect of globalization on knowledge exchange, which is mediated very largely through scientific journals being published in English, and having their origins in Europe and North America, has resu...

by Academy of South Africa | On 27 Nov 2006

New Trends in Marathi Theatre: Relationship with Multicultural Indian Identity

The Indian society has been multicultural for many centuries. But the texture of this 'multicultural Indian identity' has changed drastically in the last decade or so. Earlier, when two cultures came...

by Makarand Sathe | On 20 Nov 2006

Monetary Regionalism in Asia Revisited

Given the divergence in economic and institutional structures in the region, any attempt to create a common currency absent macroeconomic policy coordination and mechanism for automatic intra-regional...

by Ramkishen S. Rajan | On 30 Oct 2006

Monetary Regionalism in Asia Revisited

Given the divergence in economic and institutional structures in the region, any attempt to create a common currency absent macroeconomic policy coordination and mechanism for automatic intra-regional...

by Ramkishen S. Rajan | On 30 Oct 2006

Human Cost of Making Bricks

In India, thousands of women, men and children slave away in the brick kilns. Common to almost all brick kilns is the use of violence, over or implicit. Women and girls, however, are profoundly affect...

by Nalini Kant | On 25 Sep 2006

Mumbai/Shanghai: Prospects/Problems--Imitating Global, Failing Local

Do we aspire to be a ‘global’ city like Shanghai, with all the spit and polish to attract foreign investors by the drove? Or can we aim to be a city with a sustainable plan for its development – one t...

by Kalpana Sharma | On 13 Jul 2006

The Wealth of Cities: Towards an Assets-based Development of Newly Urbanizing Regions

The argument in this paper is in four parts: First, the author suggests that we can no longer treat cities apart from the regions surrounding them with which they are intensively entwined. Second, t...

by John Freidman | On 13 Jul 2006

Sociology in the Context of Globalisation: Issues and Challenges in India

Any exercise in mapping the current status of any social science discipline is a mammoth task, as it involves the normative concerns as well as the personal perceptions of the sociologist who treads t...

by Paramjit S Judge | On 16 May 2006

Migration and Labour mobility in the Leather Accessories Manufacture in India

Liberalisation and the policies thereafter have lead to a definite increase in production and export from the leather accessories industry in India. The focus of this paper is on migration and labour...

by Jesim Pais | On 28 Mar 2006

Understanding ‘Crises’ in a Traditional Industry: Case of Coir in Kerala

The paper attempts to critically analyse the issues that are an offshoot of the open market regime pursued in the industry. Intense competition between exporters for developed country suppliers along...

by I. Kalamani | On 28 Mar 2006

The Urban Siliguri and Adjacent Rural Stone Crushers

The river Balasan near Siliguri carries the natural resources like stone, sand, boulders. People live on the riverside and are involved in work like collection of stones and sand, crushing the stones...

by Somenath Bhattacharjee | On 27 Mar 2006

Regional Diffferences in FDI Inflows: China – India Comparison

An analysis of regional differences in the flow of FDI in China and India is important as in both these countries a few regions account for the bulk of FDI inflows. There are very few studies on regi...

by N.S. Siddharthan | On 23 Mar 2006

Financial Integration in East Asia: How Far? How Much Further to Go?

Despite numerous empirical studies examining various facets of the topic, the degree of intraregional financial integration in East Asia remains a matter of vigorous debate. This paper offers a select...

by Tony Cavoli | On 07 Feb 2006

Social Capital, Diversity and (Economic) DEvelopment: Evidence from Indian IT Industry, Bangalore

This paper addresses two sets of questions related to IT development and lessons to be drawn for other regions both in and outside India. Firstly, based on original fieldwork an additional argument t...

by Florian A. Taube | On 19 Jan 2006

ICT sector and regional economic development:Evidence from Karnataka State

This paper distinguishes the contribution of information and communication technology (ICT) sector to economic development by manufacturing and service activities in Karnataka State. Using the availab...

by M.R. Narayana | On 19 Jan 2006

AT Times When Limbs May Fail: Social Security for Unorganised Workers in Karnataka

Policy makers, therefore, often encounter the following questions while formulating the social security schemes. What are the priority social security needs of unorganized workers? What existing mecha...

by D. Rajasekhar | On 13 Jan 2006

Taking Stock of Monetary and Financial Regionalism in Asia

Lecture at RIS, New Delhi December 2005

by Ramkishen S. Rajan | On 12 Jan 2006

Agrarian Reform for a Liberal Pattern of Society? Karnataka's Land Policy and the New Dispensation

It is puzzling how much the discourse of development has backed away from the seemingly central question of rural poverty: land. Elaborate rules concerning its distribution, rights, regulation, prot...

by Ronald Herring | On 12 Jan 2006

Choosing not to Participate--Evidence from Drought-Prone Area Programme in Chitradurg, Karnataka

This paper examines the evidence on the constraints that farmers face in participating in a programme evolved by 'somebody else' viz, ‘the government’, . The paper begins with a discussion on the typ...

by G.Ananda Vadivelu | On 09 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

Ideological Elements in Political Instability in Karnataka: Janata Dal in the 1990s

There are strenuous difficulties in managing competing social groups, segments and regions in the political landscape of Karnataka. These difficulties have been accentuated by touchy issues of status...

by Pamela Price | On 09 Jan 2006

Political Leadership and Economic Development in Karnataka

How has the political leadership in Karnataka contributed to the state's economic developmet? In order to assess the role that the political leadership has played, the author examines the role of the...

by Gujjarappa Thimmaiah | On 09 Jan 2006

Change in Karnataka over the Last Generation: Villages and the Wider Context

This paper examines changes that have (and have not) occurred – at the village level in Karnataka where most or the state’s residents live, and at higher levels when they impinge upon villages – sin...

by James Manor | On 09 Jan 2006

East Asian Community: Prospects and Challenges

There is a growing need to a more institutionalized economic arrangement in East Asia. East Asia Economic Community might be an ideal form of such institution. However, the road is still long and...

by A Damuri | On 23 Nov 2005

Opportunities and Challenges in Building an East Asian Community

Inherenet weaknesses in AFTA and AEC and the need to counter regionalism in other parets of the world are some of the important reasons for evolving an East Asian Community. However, there are severa...

by Joseph Yap | On 23 Nov 2005

The Quest of Economic community in East Asia: Thailand's Perspective

To make the Customs Union in East Asia happen, what is needed the most now are political will and concerted efforts. FTAs should not be the end of economic cooperation in Asia. Instead, the onsolidati...

by Nipon Poapongsakorn | On 22 Nov 2005

Envisioning an East Asian Community--the Eu's Perspective and Role

EU's response to the East Asian community has to take account of several dimensions including Issues and dynamics of East Asian regional cooperation and integration; Scenarios of regional Community-bu...

by Willem vd Geest | On 08 Nov 2005

Spatial Inequality and Development: Overview of UNU-WIDER Project

Spatial inequality is a dimension of overall inequality, but it has added significance when spatial and regional divisions align with political and ethnic tensions to undermine social and political st...

by Ravi Kanbur | On 17 Sep 2005

Survey Of Research In Industrial Sociology (1987-2002)

This paper attempts to assess the research done in the field of industrial sociology during the period 1987 and 2002. Only published work have been noted. The review does not cover unpublished M. Phil...

by Sharit Bhowmik | On 01 Sep 2005

Child Mortality: Beyond Pattrns And Detrminants To Politics And Institutions

Comments on Deolikar's paper: Deolalikar’s paper provides the empirical basis for policy makers to trust their knowledge and provide additional resources (mot merely in monetary terms) to the most v...

by Maitreyi Bordia Das | On 26 Aug 2005

SAARC - Twelfth Summit Declaration 2004

12th SAARC Summit Declaration Islamabad January 2004

by Anonymous | On 13 Aug 2005

SAARC Regional Convention On Suppression O Terrorism

An Additional Protocol to the SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression of Terrorism, has been prepared recognizing the importance of updating the Convention, in order to meet the obligations devolving...

by Anonymous | On 13 Aug 2005

Agreement On South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA)

Motivated by the commitment to strengthen intra-SAARC economic cooperation to maximise the realization of the region's potential for trade and development for the benefit of their people, in a spirit...

by Anonymous | On 13 Aug 2005

SAARC Social Charter

Re-affirms that the principal goal of SAARC is to promote the welfare of the peoples of South Asia, to improve their quality of life, to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural deve...

by Anonymous | On 13 Aug 2005

SAARC and India: Policy Issues hinge on Security and Democracy

The entire project of SAARC is dependent on India’s capacity to bind the neighbouring states in multiple networks of ties to promote regional cooperation. India not only shares frontiers with all the...

by Rajen Harshe | On 13 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