Person:
Nallari, Raj
Author Name Variants
Fields of Specialization
Development Policy
Degrees
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Departments
Growth and Competitiveness Practice, World Bank Institute
Externally Hosted Work
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Last updated
February 1, 2023
Biography
Raj Nallari is currently Practice Manager of the Growth and Competitiveness Practice within the World Bank Institute. Prior to this assignment, he was the Program Leader for the Poverty and Growth Program. He has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Texas at Austin. He joined the World Bank in July 1992 and since then has worked on economic issues of several African, Caribbean and South Asian countries. He was on a two-year secondment to the IMF Policy Development and Review Department. He is the co-author of eleven books on Macroeconomic Stabilization and Growth Issues and has published papers in reputed economic journals. Mr. Nallari can be reached at
Rnallari@worldbank.org .
Publication Search Results
1 - 3 of 3
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Publication
Institutional Environment and Public Officials' Performance in Guyana
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2001-05)The report presents the findings of a survey of public officials in Guyana, whose views were sought in a wide range of civil service issues - from personnel management, to rewards, and disciplinary actions, and, from budget environment to corruption. Answers were used to test some prior assertions about the public sector in the country, and, it is the respondents' belief that public sector jobs are attractive, though public employees are not fully prepared for their jobs through education, and training, nor is recruitment always based on merit. However, officials find policies consistent, but implement policies even if in disagreement with policy directions. Furthermore, decision-making is characterized by poor communication, and low employee participation. Nonetheless, officials surveyed showed insight about which reforms might enhance organizational performance, and, based on data analysis, quantification of how public officials assess the organizations' institutional environment, and performance was possible. Survey data demonstrated how widely varied the institutional environments of such organizations are, and, provided evidence that performance does depend upon institutional environment. The report prioritizes interventions according to the potential payoffs in different performance areas, suggesting performance monitoring is likely to be associated with significant positive change in performance. -
Publication
Micro Efficiency and Macro Growth
( 2010-04-01)This paper is about micro foundations of productivity and growth. There are several studies on productivity for advanced economies but relatively few for developing countries. Using data from the investment climate surveys of the World Bank, estimation results from 45 developing countries, complemented by extended analysis at firm and industry levels for Brazil and India for the period 2002-05, indicate the following: (i) confirmation of the importance of total factor productivity at firm, industry and national levels, but total factor productivity progressively tapers off at each level of aggregation implying that there is a less than one-to-one relationship between micro-efficiency, sector growth, and macro growth; (ii) capital accumulation is more important at the macro level than the micro level; (iii) productivity at the micro level is driven by research and development, the capacity utilization rate, and adoption of foreign technology (all of which involve management decisions), and is negatively related to corruption and instability, tax, and financial regulations; and (iii) confirmation of the lower contribution of total factor productivity to output growth in developing countries than in developed economies. Management decisions are involved in a lot of day-to-day operations at the firm level and therefore management is an unmeasured input. In developing countries, at the firm level, there is a need to understand the contribution of quality of inputs (management quality, education and labor quality, training, experience of workers, use of computers at work) and also the role of external agglomeration (for example, location in a booming city, competitive pressures from new firms, trade competition, and regulations). -
Publication
Understanding Growth and Poverty : Theory, Policy, and Empirics
(World Bank, 2011)This volume is an introduction to the theories and policies that affect economic growth and poverty. It is a compilation of lecture notes used in face-to-face and e-learning courses presented by the World Bank Institute's (WBI) Poverty Program during 2004-08. The volume is divided into three parts. Part one discusses basic concepts and measurement issues pertaining to poverty, national income, and economic growth. Part two deals with the macroeconomic policies that are critical for economic growth in the short term. It covers government enforced fiscal and exchange-rate policies and the roles of financial institutions, development assistance (or aid), debt relief, and trade policies. Part three covers the structural and sectoral policies that affect longer-term economic growth and poverty reduction. To underscore the impact of good governance and effective service delivery in growth and poverty reduction, separate chapters are devoted to institutional and technological development, education, health, labor, and land. The volume ends with a chapter that summarizes knowledge of growth theory, reviews the process of growth in 13 successful countries, and draws out implications for other developing countries. The authors hope that this chapter may be of help to policy makers in identifying the constraints to economic growth and development that may be unique to each country.