Miscellaneous Knowledge Notes
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Publication
Civil Service Recruitment: Recruiting the Right Persons the Right Way
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-11)Skilled and motivated personnel are arguably the most important determinant of an effective government. How does a government recruit the best and the brightest? This Governance Note examines different approaches to recruiting through career- and position-oriented systems; measuring knowledge versus competencies; screening applicants through written or oral tests; and recruiting junior- and senior-level civil servants. It also compares the advantages and disadvantages of centralized and decentralized recruitment processes. Although this note primarily focuses on civil servants, many of the findings presented here are generalizable to other public employees, such as teachers and health workers. -
Publication
Challenging Cultural Conventions: Qualitative Evidence from Jeevika
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-10)In 2006, when the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project was launched, the state’s rural poverty ratio was 44.6 percent - 36 million of the total 82 million people in Bihar were living in poverty. Bihar is India’s third most populous state with 8 percent of the total population but ranks lowest on the human development index (HDI). Rural communities in the state are often beset by pervasive social inequalities and caste and gender hierarchies. Simultaneously, Bihar has also had a long history of progressive movements that constantly challenged upper caste hegemony. However, these movements have had limited success in address gender inequality - Bihar ranked lowest on the Gender Equality Index with lower caste women facing double subordination. Overall, rural Bihar was characterized by weak service delivery, complex political and social dynamics, limited inclusion of the poor into institutions, few economic opportunities, and a frail development infrastructure. It was in the midst of this that JEEViKA was piloted and implemented. -
Publication
Combating Malnutrition: Can Group Procurement be Equitable? Results from a Food Security Program in Rural Bihar
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-10)India has among the highest rates of child malnutrition worldwide, with Bihar one of the worst affected states. With the intent of combating food insecurity, the Government of India (GoI) and the state Government of Bihar (GoB) offer a Food Security Fund (FSF) via the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society. The program has proved successful in giving rural women agency to ensure food security for themselves and their families. The scheme is most effective in reaching the poorest households when local committees procure the most affordable grains. -
Publication
Drought-Proofing through Groundwater Recharge: Lessons from Chief Ministers’ Initiatives in Four Indian States
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-06-10)Indian agricultural communities are facing a crisis driven by, among other things, skewed terms of trade and farmers’ inability to deal with increasingly adverse climatic conditions. Because agriculture continues to be the primary source of livelihood for most of India’s population, governments at all levels are under pressure to find ways to help farmers. In western and peninsular India, where droughts are common, several state governments have vowed to make farming “droughtproof” through ambitious flagship programs. This case study reviews the experience of four such programs in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, and Rajasthan. Although the programs differ in approach, implementation style, and duration, all of them aim to shield farmers, particularly smallholders, from the misery imposed by droughts. Among these states, efforts in Gujarat appear to be the most mature; however, concerns regarding sustaining momentum, capacity building of communities, demand management, and establishing functional local governance remain. We use evidence gathered through field studies to draw lessons for designing effective drought mitigation strategies through improved management of groundwater resources. -
Publication
Seeds of Success: Stories of IFC’s Work to Improve the Lives of Women in Agribusiness Value Chains
(Washington, DC, 2019)According to the e Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), women make up on average forty-three percent of the agricultural workforce in developing countries. Female participation in value chains is critical, yet they still face gender-specific constraints and challenges in owning, accessing, and controlling resources that affect their productivity, livelihood, and income. These are stories of collaboration, gender advancement, and women empowerment. IFC believes in creating and implementing Gender-Smart Solutions to close gender gaps in the sector, thus increasing agricultural yields and revenues, improving wages, and helping women expand to new, favorable markets. -
Publication
Microfinance and Index Insurance: Testing Business Models in the Agricultural Sector
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017)While access to credit is a key instrument toalleviate rural poverty, microfinance institutions(MFIs) are often unable to expand their agriculturelending portfolio. One of the key advantages for microfinance institutions to offer index insurance products to their customersis to reduce the default risk on their agriculture lending portfolio and therefore allow the expansion of agriculture credit. Index-insurance can be sold by microfinance institutions either on a mandatory or voluntary basis.One of the key success factors of credit-bundling is to offer a holistic solution to mitigate agriculture risks. The second business model that microfinance institutions have tested is to be direct customers of index insurance. Portfolio insurance has the potential to benefit farmers both ex-post (ex: restructuring of loans, loans write-offs, offer of emergency loans) and ex-ante (ex: larger supply of agriculture credit, reduced agriculture lending interest rates). -
Publication
A Decade of Rural Transformation: Lessons Learnt from the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project—JEEViKA
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017)The objective of this booklet is to document a decade of journey of the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project (BRLP) from 2006 to 2016 in the one of the poorest states in India. The project was successfully completed and a follow-on project, Bihar Transformative Development Project (BTDP) commenced in 2016 to expand the BRLP model. This booklet is a joint effort of the Bihar Rural Livelihood Promotion Society (BRLPS) (locally known as JEEViKA) and the World Bank and aims to share the lessons learnt with the development practitioners and colleagues around the world who have the same motivation and goals for rural poverty alleviation and transformation for shared prosperity. -
Publication
Poverty and Social Exclusion in India: Women
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012)This brief describes the poverty and social exclusion of Women in India. The last few decades have seen remarkable progress in the status of women and girls, yet the cultural roots of gender inequality are still strong and affect a range of outcomes. The high salaries and independent lifestyles of women in urban India have captured public imagination. Yet progress has been very uneven and slower than would have been expected based on India’s levels of per capita income. Females still have an overall survival deficit in childhood and during their reproductive years and are severely disadvantaged in the labor market. Inequalities in wages are a disincentive for women to work, but they clearly want work!. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is an example of a program that explicitly seeks to provide paid work to poor women. The scheme mandates that at least one-third of workers should be women and makes several provisions to enhance the participation of women. Threats to women’s security also influence the ability of women to access markets and services and claim spaces for themselves. This is an area in which policy can have a huge effect. Making public spaces safe for women is a major step forward in enhancing women’s access to these spaces. -
Publication
Poverty and Social Exclusion in India: Dalits
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012)This brief is based on a Poverty and Social Exclusion in India.Caste is perhaps the oldest form of social stratificationin India.After independence, the Indian Constitution abolisheduntouchability and the erstwhile untouchablescame to be known as the Scheduled Castes(SCs).The situation of Dalits has undergone dramatic transformation over time.While caste has had significant implications for poverty and other welfare outcomes, this note focuseson two arenas—education and the labor market.Our analysis based on the National Sample Survey(NSS) data suggests that there has been expansion in education among Dalits, but not at the samepace as among the upper castes.Micro studies continue to document discrimination against SC students. In the labor market, Dalits remain largely in casuallabor. Education is considered a panacea to poor labor market outcomes and overall it has positive effects for all men.It would nevertheless be naïve to dismiss the changes in caste dynamics, more so over the past two decades. Attendant to the economic changes, social movements asserting the power of Dalits have swept some states and have given Dalits a sense of political voice and agency. In sum, we find that despite localized changes,there have been modest changes for Dalits in the aggregate. -
Publication
Poverty and Social Exclusion in India: Overview
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012)The report’s main objective is to track development outcomes for three select groups - scheduled tribes (STs), scheduled castes (SCs), and women - that have traditionally faced exclusion in India. It asks the question: how did these groups fare over a period of rapid growth in India, primarily in the nineties; and were they able to break through the historically grounded inequalities that have kept entire generations among them trapped or did traps trump opportunities? It focuses on exclusion along three spheres - services, markets, and voice and agency. Within these too, the attempt is to highlight a few select issues that offer new insights. The report draws both on national data (national sample surveys (NSS) and national family health surveys (NFHS)) as well as qualitative work for its evidence, relying more on the latter to probe heterogeneity within states and groups and incipient processes that result in exclusion.