Other ESW Reports
262 items available
Permanent URI for this collection
This includes miscellaneous ESW types and pre-2003 ESW type reports that are subsequently completed and released.
Items in this collection
1 - 4 of 4
-
Publication
Armenia : Child Welfare Note
(Washington, DC, 2002-12-09)This Note was prepared in response to the needs for technical assistance expressed by the the Ministries responsible for child welfare and child protection in Armenia. With the Ministry of Education and with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Social Security is developing a child welfare strategy, which will feed into the Poverty Reduction Strategy that is currently being drafted by the Armenian Government. The purpose of this Note is to assist the preparation of the child welfare strategy by identifying major issues in family and child welfare, assessing efficiency and effectiveness of current policies and suggesting measures that would better ensure the well-being and future of Armenia's children. This note discusses the dramatic political, economic, and social changes that Armenia went through over the 1990s. Some of them, especially prolonged economic hardship and extensive out-migration have had a criticial impact on child welfare; they have weakened the capacity of Armenia families to manage risks, as well as the ability of the state to provide meaningful support. Other factors contributing to the current state of child welfare include high poverty risk, low health and nutrition status, lesser access to education, effects of migration, and the increased risk of joining an underclass of children deprived of family upbringing. The government will have to focus on a number of key issues in creating an environment ensuring family and child well-being. -
Publication
Armenia : Growth Challenges and Government Policies, Volume 2. Main Report
(Washington, DC, 2001-11-30)This report reviews growth trends in Armenia for the period 1994-2000, outlines major weaknesses of existing development patterns, and suggests a package of policy recommendations designed to accelerate enterprise restructuring, attract investment, and encourage the creation of new businesses in the medium term (three to five years). Such steps are needed to systain (and preferably to increase) the current growth rates, to stop emigration among the young and skilled, and to reduce poverty. The government needs to focus much more clearly on generating the environment for private sector led growth by removing bottlenecks in policies, infrastructure, and institutions that prevent new private businesses from flourishing. International aid donors can help by supporting the removal of administrative barriers for investments, the rehabilitation of infrastructure, and the creation of "restructuring agencies" that will enable firms in key sectors to overcome or avoid common constraints to business growth in Armenia. Successful restructuring by such firms should have a demonstration effect on the country's economy and help consolidate public support for moving forward the program of reform begun a decade ago. -
Publication
Armenia : Growth Challenges and Government Policies, Volume 1. Main Conclusions and Recommendations
(Washington, DC, 2001-11-30)This report reviews growth trends in Armenia for the period 1994-2000, outlines major weaknesses of existing development patterns, and suggests a package of policy recommendations designed to accelerate enterprise restructuring, attract investment, and encourage the creation of new businesses in the medium term (three to five years). Such steps are needed to systain (and preferably to increase) the current growth rates, to stop emigration among the young and skilled, and to reduce poverty. The government needs to focus much more clearly on generating the environment for private sector led growth by removing bottlenecks in policies, infrastructure, and institutions that prevent new private businesses from flourishing. International aid donors can help by supporting the removal of administrative barriers for investments, the rehabilitation of infrastructure, and the creation of "restructuring agencies" that will enable firms in key sectors to overcome or avoid common constraints to business growth in Armenia. Successful restructuring by such firms should have a demonstration effect on the country's economy and help consolidate public support for moving forward the program of reform begun a decade ago. -
Publication
Armenia : Towards Integrated Water Resources Management
(Washington, DC, 2001-11)The objective of this paper is to examine the challenges in the water sector faced by Armenia today, and outline options for management and allocation of its water resources in the future, considering the need for a stable, transparent apublic sector management framework and sustainable resource use for long-term private investment and job creation, and for appropriate balances among water uses for domestic, industrial, agriculture, electricity generation, watershed protection, and ecological purposes. The report builds on the recommendations of the Integrated Water Resources Management Planning (IWRMP) Study, which was supported by the World Bank, financed by the Government of Netherlands, and completed in 2001. The report also builds on experience with project implementation to date in water-related sectors. The report suggests that a water management strategy that focuses on rehabilitation and reduction of water losses, and balances for drinking, irrigation, hydropower, and environmental use is likely to have the highest welfare gains. Further, a strategy that uses economic instruments to manage demand, and increases private sector participation and local stakeholder responsibility for system operation, with the public sector maintaining a key role in overall water resources management, will help improve the efficiency of water use.