Stand alone books

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Risk Analysis for Islamic Banks

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2008) Van Greuning, Hennie ; Iqbal, Zamir

This publication provides a comprehensive overview of topics related to the assessment, analysis, and management of various types of risks in the field of Islamic banking. It is an attempt to provide a high-level framework (aimed at non-specialist executives) attuned to the current realities of changing economies and Islamic financial markets. The Islamic financial system is not limited to banking; it also covers capital formation, capital markets, and all types of financial intermediation and risk transfer. Islamic finance was practiced predominantly in the Muslim world throughout the middle ages, fostering trade and business activities with the development of credit. The growth of Islamic finance coincided with the current account surpluses of oil-exporting Islamic countries. The Middle East saw a mushrooming of small commercial banks competing for surplus funds. The Islamic Republics of Iran, Pakistan, and Sudan announced their intention to make their financial systems compliant with Shariah.
Financing Cities : Fiscal Responsibility and Urban Infrastructure in Brazil, China, India, Poland and South Africa

(New Dehli : Sage Publications and World Bank, 2007) Clarke Annez, Patricia ; Peterson, George E.

This book, Financing cities, emphasized case studies on different topics to look at the interactions of a range of variables and factors and to see how they fit together. Rather than require each case to follow the same format, the authors have structured their papers around the issues that matter most from their perspective in addressing the topic in hand. The first part of this book presents case studies describing the framework established at the national level to promote urban infrastructure finance while ensuring fiscal discipline and reviewing recent experience as well as future challenges. The subjects covered include the impact of political and fiscal decentralization, limitations on borrowing, managing moral hazard, the role of the financial sector, the achieving of the right balance between stringent controls and encouragement of local governments taking responsibility for fiscal discipline coupled with market discipline. The cases featured include three of the world's largest decentralized nations; together the five countries featured in the conference account for nearly a third of the world's urban population. Part I includes case studies for each of the five countries featured in the conference: Brazil (Chapter 1), China (Chapter 2), India (Chapter 3), Poland (Chapter 4) and South Africa (Chapter 5). Part II then shifts from the frameworks for fiscal discipline to urban infrastructure investments and the strategies used to mobilize investment funding. Chapters 6 and 7 examine the financing strategies for urban infrastructure in Shanghai and Brazil respectively. The next two chapters focus on specialized intermediaries offering urban infrastructure finance in cities. One is a fully private venture in South Africa (Chapter 9) while the other, in Tamil Nadu, India (Chapter 8), is a spin-off of a government fund with minority private ownership. The final two chapters examine experiences with two other mechanisms for mobilizing funding for infrastructure investments from the private sector, land leasing and sales (Chapter 10) and private participation in infrastructure operations (Chapter 11).
Making Finance Work for Africa

(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2007) Honohan, Patrick ; Beck, Thorsten

Making Finance Work for Africa presents a coherent policy approach that addresses African priorities and can work in African conditions. It challenges the applicability of some conventional views on a range of issues from securities markets and banking regulation to the organization of microfinance institutions. The authors identify promising trends from across sub-Saharan Africa and pinpoint shortcomings. The book will be useful to policy makers, bankers, financial analysts, and economists working in Africa.
Attacking Africa's Poverty : Experience from the Ground

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2006) Fox, Louise M. ; Liebenthal, Robert B.

By all measures, poverty in Africa as a whole has increased and deepened. But in fact, Africa contains a number of undocumented success stories of poverty reduction. This book presents case studies of thirteen of these success stories, giving grounds for some real hope, and providing useful learning for all policymakers, governments, businesses, service providers, non-governmental organizations, and donors. Case studies are drawn from the experiences of Uganda, Rwanda, Senegal, Kenya, Botswana, Mauritania, Tanzania, Lesotho, Zambia, Malawi, South Africa, and Ghana.
Private Solutions for Infrastructure in Angola : A Country Framework Report

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2005) Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility

The Country Framework Report (CFR) for Angola is one of a series of country reviews aimed at improving the environment for private sector involvement in infrastructure. The report seeks to assist the Government of Angola in developing policies, and a framework to promote private participation in the rebuilding, and development of the country's infrastructure. Following the years of conflict, and the resulting damage to the country's infrastructure, as well as the negative impacts on economic growth and development, the country's investment needs are enormous. This study is particularly focused on how to maximize the private sector's role and contribution. The report's scope is on investment in infrastructure in the following sectors: electricity and gas; water and sanitation; transport; and, telecommunications. For each sector, a separate section in the report covers the current situation, opportunities for private sector participation in infrastructure (PPI), PPI barriers, and, measures and actions to promote more private involvement. A further section covers cross-sectoral issues. This CFR concludes with an action plan that identifies the steps that need to be taken to promote, encourage, and facilitate PPI in the short, medium, and long term.
Contracting for Public Services : Output-based Aid and Its Applications

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2001-08) Brook, Penelope J. ; Smith, Suzanne M. ; Brook, Penelope J. ; Smith, Suzanne M.

Access to good, reliable public services is critical for the poor in developing countries if they are to rise out of poverty. Safe water and sanitation, modern energy and communications, good-quality basic education and health services--all contribute directly to individual well-being, and all improve economic opportunities for low-income households. The primary challenge now is to ensure that aid- and tax-funded spending reaches the poor, that the services this money finances respond to their needs and preferences, that these services are delivered efficiently, and that public funds are used in a way that leverages private financing of service delivery. The cases gathered in this report tell of efforts to improve the delivery of services by contracting out their provision and linking the payment of subsidies to the delivery of services to targeted groups--illustrating aspects of an approach that the authors call "output-based aid." The cases highlight varied attempts to sharpen the focus on the objectives of aid and public spending, to improve incentives for efficiency and innovation, to expand opportunities for mobilizing private financing to meet social objectives, and to enhance accountability in the use of pubic resources.
Private Solutions for Infrastructure : Opportunities for Uganda

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2001-07) Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility

This Country Framework Report for Uganda, is part of a series focused on achieving poverty eradication, rural development, and economic growth through sustained infrastructure programs. Introducing private investment to the infrastructure sectors, lies at the heart of the Government's strategy to achieve combined sector restructuring, and liberalization. To this end, infrastructure development must be responsive to economic, and social needs, based on clear planning, and policy coordination. The report prioritizes on exploiting all beneficial options for private sector involvement, paying close attention to the development of effective incentive frameworks. Moreover, subsidy and donor funding mechanisms should be introduced to support poverty alleviation in the context of reform, while measures should be taken to ensure capacity is available to execute the reform program effectively, and provide for its coordination to maximize economic development. There should be a strong bias toward sector liberalization, except where this would result in significant loss of economies of scale, or scope, and, the establishment of an overall regulatory environment, attractive to private sector participation should be a critical priority, while protecting the interests of consumers.