World Bank Technical Papers

45 items available

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https://hdl.handle.net/10986/13860
Informal documents that present knowledge acquired through that Bank's operational experience. They contain material that is practical rather than theoretical and include state-of-the-art reports and how-to-do-it monographs. They can also concern matters that cut across sectoral lines, such as the environment and science and technology. This series was superseded by the World Bank Working Papers series in 2003 and the World Bank Studies series in 2010.

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2001 - 20022
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Country: ALBANIA × Topic: Poverty Reduction × Supported Language: en ×

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    Poverty in Albania : A Qualitative Assessment
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2002) De Soto, Hermine; Gordon, Peter; Gedeshi, Ilir; Sinoimeri, Zamira
    This qualitative assessment of poverty in Albania seeks to deepen the understanding of poverty in the country, first, by involving poor Albanians in a process of exploring the causes, nature, extent of poverty, and how it affects their livelihoods. Second, it is intended to support the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). Third, it supports preparation of the Country Assistance Strategy (CAS), and the Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS) process. Fourth, it supports ongoing research on formal and informal institutions in the country that are relevant to poverty, and it identifies as well, emerging areas of concern. Findings suggest that poverty in the study sites, developed as a result of a weak economic base at the beginning of reform (as of 1990), worsened as the reforms continued and accelerated during the 1997 financial crisis. From household interviews, it is perceived that the causes of poverty are a result of unemployment, insufficient and low quality of land, absence of formal institutions, and marketing mechanisms to support industrial and agricultural development, and the government's inability to respond to infrastructure and basic needs. The study further examines the factors depressing and/or precluding (sector wide) the potential to compete, sustain livelihoods, attain employment, and receive economic and social assistance.
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    Household Welfare, the Labor Market, and Social Programs in Albania
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2001-05) Rashid, Mansoora; Dorabawila, Vajeera; Adams, Richard
    The paper provides an overview of household welfare, labor markets, and social programs in Albania, outside of its capital, in 1996. At the time, Albania was in a cross roads, from a period of phenomenal growth, to a series of economic crisis, though still ranking as the poorest country in the Central and Eastern Europe Region. The main findings suggest that the majority of the poor are rural, self-employed in agriculture, a result of Albania's large rural population that is mainly employed in subsistence agriculture. These households also have the highest poverty incidence, followed by out of labor force individuals, and the unemployed. Not surprising, the highest poverty incidence is in the rural north, requiring subsidized wheat, and cash transfers to survive difficult winters. Interestingly, migration is a major coping strategy in Albania: households with no migrants, were poorer than those where a family member was working abroad. The study raises concern about the education system, and safety nets, considering there are high drop out rates in basic, and secondary education among the poor, and, education spending is biased against the poor, except in basic education. Moreover, health outcomes are particularly worse among the poor. The study notes that outside of pensions, Albania's social protection system appears moderately well targeted to the poor, however, high tax rates, and limited wage base, makes a contribution based social protection system questionable.