03. Journals
3,120 items available
Permanent URI for this community
These are journal articles published in World Bank journals as well as externally by World Bank authors.
Sub-collections of this Collection
10 results
Items in this collection
Publication Development with a Human Face(2011-04) NdunGabonne, NjongonkuluArchbishop Njongonkulu NdunGabonne is Head of African Monitor, a pan-African nonprofit or Gabonnization that monitors development funding, delivery, and impact and helps bring African voices to the development agenda.Publication South-South Cooperation and Knowledge Exchange : A Perspective from Civil Society(2010-10) Cruz, AnabelSouth-South cooperation is not new. It has been around for several decades in the form of economic integration, cultural exchanges, and technical cooperation. Traditional North-South cooperation, however, with resources coming from the rich northern countries to the poor southern ones has been supplemented by other models. Indeed, middle income countries have been taking on various roles, not only as recipients of development aid, but also as providers of development cooperation. New actors and approaches have entered the development cooperation landscape.Publication South Meets South : Enriching the Development Menu(2010-10) Maruri, Enrique; Fraeters, HanAfrican countries, like Nigeria, with an emerging information technology (IT) industry, are examples of how globalization has opened up vast new opportunities. Information technology and business process outsourcing is a multibillion dollar talent-driven industry with a market that is still untapped. Africa is keen on exploring this new frontier which has the potential to create thousands of quality jobs for its young people. But to do so, it must nurture the right skills. Where can these be found?Publication The Bogotá Spirit : South-South Peers and Partners at the Practice-Policy Nexus(2010-10) Schulz, Nils-SjardOn a warm evening in late March of this year, more than 500 enthusiastic delegates from around the world poured out of the Chamber of Commerce building in Bogot�, with a shared vision that South-South cooperation would reshape today�s development cooperation landscape. Despite the Colombian capital�s dizzying altitude of 2,800 meters, their zeal for effective South-South knowledge exchange and mutual learning left the participants of the Bogot� High Level Event on South-South cooperation and Capacity Development clear headed and with a long list of ideas, projects and plans, for their countries and regions, and for their multilateral, parliamentary, civil society, and research organizations.Publication Corporate Governance at the World Bank and the Dilemma of Global Governance(World Bank, 2010-08-30) Kaja, Ashwin; Werker, EricMost major decisions at the World Bank are made by its Board of Executive Directors. While some countries enjoy the opportunity to serve on this powerful body, most countries rarely, if ever, get that chance. This gives rise to the question: Does board membership lead to higher funding from the World Bank's two main development financing institutions, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). Empirical analysis shows that developing countries serving on the board can expect more than double the funding from the IBRD as countries not on the board. In absolute terms, countries on the board receive an average $60 million “bonus” in IBRD loans, an amount that rises in years when IBRD loans are in high demand, particularly for countries in the most influential seats. This effect is more likely driven by informal rules and norms in the boardroom than by the power of the vote itself. No significant effect is found in IDA funding. These results point to challenges of global governance through representative institutions.Publication To Mitigate or to Adapt : Is that the Question? Observations on an Appropriate Response to the Climate Change Challenge to Development Strategies(World Bank, 2010-08-02) Shalizi, Zmarak; Lecocq, FranckClimate change is a new and important challenge to development strategies. In light of the current literature a framework for assessing responses to this challenge is provided. The presence of climate change makes it necessary to at least review development strategies—even in apparently nonclimate-sensitive and nonpolluting sectors. There is a need for an integrated portfolio of actions ranging from avoiding emissions (mitigation) to coping with impacts (adaptation) and to consciously accepting residual damages. Proactive (ex ante) adaptation is critical, but subject to risks of regrets when the magnitude or location of damages is uncertain. Uncertainty on location favors nonsite-specific actions, or reactive (ex post) adaptation. However, some irreversible losses cannot be compensated for. Thus, mitigation might be in many cases the cheapest long-term solution to climate change problems and the most important to avoid thresholds that may trigger truly catastrophic consequences. To limit the risks that budget constraints prevent developing countries from financing reactive adaptation—especially since climate shocks might erode the fiscal base—“rainy-day funds” may have to be developed within countries and at the global level for transfer purposes. Finally, more research is required on the impacts of climate change, on modeling the interrelations between mitigation and adaptation, and on operationalizing the framework.Publication Financial Institutions and Markets across Countries and over Time(World Bank, 2010-02-15) Beck, Thorsten; Demirgüç-Kunt, AsliThis article introduces the updated and expanded version of the Financial Development and Structure Database. The database includes indicators on the size, efficiency, and stability of banks, nonbank financial institutions, and equity and bond markets over 1960–2007. It also contains indicators of financial globalization.Publication Agricultural Growth and Poverty Reduction(World Bank, 2009-11-30) de Janvry, Alain; Sadoulet, ElisabethAgricultural growth has long been recognized as an important instrument for poverty reduction. Yet, measurements of this relationship are still scarce and not always reliable. The authors present additional evidence at both the sectoral and household levels based on recent data. Results show that rural poverty reduction has been associated with growth in yields and in agricultural labor productivity, but that this relation varies sharply across regional contexts. GDP growth originating in agriculture induces income growth among the 40 percent poorest, which is on the order of three times larger than growth originating in the rest of the economy. The power of agriculture comes not only from its direct poverty reduction effect but also from its potentially strong growth linkage effects on the rest of the economy. Decomposing the aggregate decline in poverty into a rural contribution, an urban contribution, and a population shift component shows that rural areas contributed more than half the observed aggregate decline in poverty. Finally, using the example of Vietnam, the authors show that rapid growth in agriculture has opened pathways out of poverty for farming households. While the effectiveness of agricultural growth in reducing poverty is well established, the effectiveness of public investment in inducing agricultural growth is still incomplete and conditional on context.Publication Partnering for Progress(World Bank, 2009-02-01) Nelson, Mark; Tejasvi, AjayMuch technical assistance aimed at building capacity has failed to deliver the results sought. The article examines the causes and the possible solutions.Publication Brazil as an Emerging Donor(World Bank, 2009-02-01) Sotero, PauloThis article offers an examination of Brazil's experience as a new donor: its purposes, goals, and the effectiveness of its approach.