1945

Partnerships for the Goals

Inequality Trends in Some Developed OECD Countries

Oct 2005

Working Paper

This paper argues that income inequality has increased in several, but not all, developed countries over the last twenty years. The increase in some countries supports the conclusion that the deregulation of markets, resulting in the concentration of economic power, is the fundamental cause as well as the gross manifestation of inequality of both income and wealth.

Inequality in India: A Survey of Recent Trends

Jul 2007

Working Paper

Parthapratim Pal and Jayati Ghosh

This paper analyses the nature and causes of the patterns of inequality and poverty in India. Since the economic liberalization in the early 1990s, the evidence suggests increasing inequality (in both spatial and vertical terms) as well as persistent poverty. The macroeconomic policies possibly responsible for these trends include—fiscal tightening, regressive tax policies and expenditure cuts; financial sector reform that reduced institutional credit flow to small producers and agriculturalists; liberalization of rules for foreign and domestic investment, leading to more regional imbalance and skewed investment patterns, and trade liberalization, which has affected livelihoods and employment generation.

From Aid to Global Development Policy

Sep 2012

Working Paper

José Antonio Alonso

The international community has advanced in reforming the international aid system. Such reform comes at a time when there is a renewed skepticism about aid effectiveness and when the crisis sheds new doubts about the sustainability of donors’ commitments. At the same time, the international reality has changed as a consequence of the growing heterogeneity of the developing world, the new geography of global poverty, the emergence of new powers from the developing world, the presence of new aid players and, finally, the enlargement of the sphere of international public goods. Such changes demand a deeper reform in the development cooperation system.

Insurance Against Losses From Natural Disasters in Developing Countries

Oct 2009

Working Paper

Joanne Linnerooth-Bayer and Reinhard Mechler

This paper examines the recent experience with insurance and other risk-financing instruments in developing countries in order to gain insights into their effectiveness in reducing economic insecurity. Insurance and other risk financing strategies are viewed as efforts to recover from negative income shocks through risk pooling and transfer. Specific examples of public-private insurance programs for households, business-firms, and governments are described, highlighting their limitations, especially in light of the post-Katrina experience in the United States. It examines arguments both in support of and in opposition to donor and public involvement in provision of subsidized insurance in developing countries.

Inequality and Household Economic Hardship in the United States of America

Apr 2006

Working Paper

Heather Boushey and Christian E. Weller

Income inequality in the United States of America has increased over the past few decades. Along with this development, employee compensation as a share of national income has tended to decline, the profit share of national income has grown, and inequality within labour has risen. There is no empirical support for the argument that greater inequality has resulted in faster productivity growth, but there is some indication that rising inequality has been connected to slower demand growth. Increased access to credit may have temporarily muted the implications of greater income inequality.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Food Security and Nutrition

Jun 2020

Working Paper

The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic is a health and human crisis threatening the food security and nutrition of millions of people around the world. Hundreds of millions of people were already suffering from hunger and malnutrition before the virus hit and, unless immediate action is taken, we could see a global food emergency. In the longer term, the combined effects of COVID-19 itself, as well as corresponding mitigation measures and the emerging global recession could, without large-scale coordinated action, disrupt the functioning of food systems. Such disruption can result in consequences for health and nutrition of a severity and scale unseen for more than half a century.

How Cash Transfers Boost Work and Economic Security

Oct 2007

Working Paper

There has long been a minority view that providing people with cash is an effective way of combating poverty and economic insecurity while promoting livelihoods and work. The mainstream view has been that giving people money, without conditions or obligations, promotes idleness and dependency, while being unnecessarily costly. Better, they contend, would be to allocate the available money to schemes that create jobs and/or human capital and that produce infrastructure. This paper reviews recent evidence on various types of scheme and on several pilot cash transfer schemes, assessing them by reference to principles of social justice.

Obstacles to Implementing Lessons From the 1997-1998 East Asian Crises

Aug 2008

Working Paper

Jomo Kwame Sundaram

Various different and sometimes contradictory lessons have been drawn from the 1997-1998 East Asian crisis experiences. The ideological implications and political differences involved have complicated the possibility of drawing shared lessons from the crises. The seeming calm and increased growth in most developing countries in the period since 2001 have also undermined the possibility of far-reaching developmental reforms following the experience. Perhaps most importantly, the vested interests supporting existing international financial governance arrangements continue to impede the possibility of implementing lessons drawn from the experience. Such interests are generally supported by conventional wisdom and reinforced by the financial media.

Openness, Inequality and Poverty in Africa

Aug 2006

Working Paper

This paper explores the relationships between openness, poverty and inequality in Africa. The analysis begins with a review of social development on the continent since 1980, followed by a discussion of openness and a lengthy exploration of the patterns of trade and finance that link Africa to the rest of the world. Th e macroeconomic policy framework that guided African policymaking over the last three decades is the lens through which poverty and inequality are further examined. The paper highlights the major factors underpinning openness and social development, and concludes with policy.

The TRIPS Agreement and Transfer of Climate-Change-Related Technologies to Developing Countries

Oct 2008

Working Paper

Matthew Littleton

Despite numerous international commitments to promote transfer of climate-change related technologies to developing countries, such transfers are not occurring at a sufficient rate to aid these nations in mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change. The impact of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on transfer of these technologies is discussed through a detailed examination of relevant TRIPS provisions. The paper also addresses options for improving technology transfer through exploitation of existing TRIPS flexibilities, modification of the Agreement, and other public and private legal and policy avenues.

Recent Downturn in Emerging Economies and Macroeconomic Implications for Sustainable Development

Oct 2014

Working Paper

N. R. Bhanumurthy

The paper discusses the progress of Indian economy and its policies since the broad-based structural reforms initiated in 1991 with a special focus on the recent downturn following the global financial crisis. The paper is structured into two parts: first part discusses the major economic and social achievements of India since 1991, it identifies the causes of the recent downturn, and the policy responses to revive the economy. In the second part, the paper outlines the major challenges India is facing and the policies and reforms that need to be implement to achieve sustainable development.

The World of Work and COVID-19

Jul 2020

Working Paper

The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic has turned the world of work upside down. It is having a dramatic effect on the jobs, livelihoods and well-being of workers and their families and on enterprises across the globe, particularly the small and medium sized. While certain sectors and industries have successfully moved online, pointing the way towards exciting innovations in the world of work, millions of workers have lost their livelihoods and many more – especially women who are concentrated in highly exposed sectors – remain at risk. This policy brief presents the stark consequences of COVID-19 in an already precarious world of work and provides practical options to recover better.

The Economic and Social Effects of Financial Liberalization

Oct 2005

Working Paper

This paper considers the main elements of the standard pattern of financial liberalization that has become widely prevalent in developing countries. The theoretical arguments in favour of such liberalization are considered and critiqued, and the political economy of such measures is discussed. The problems for developing countries, with respect to financial fragility and the greater propensity to crisis, as well as the negative deflationary and developmental effects, are discussed. It is concluded that there is a strong case for developing countries to ensure that their own financial systems are adequately regulated with respect to their own specific requirements.

The Economic and Political Costs of Population Displacement and their Impact on the SDGs and Multilateralism

Jul 2020

Working Paper

Kristinn Sv. Helgason

While migration and population displacement has always been part of the human experience, the context within which it occurs today has materially changed. Migration has become an important part of economic globalization and closely related to countries’ development process. Conflicts, poverty, natural disasters and climate events are also forcing people to migrate in an ever-increasing number. For many low-income countries with large number of internally-displaced people, on the other hand, the high economic costs are making it more difficult for them to invest in SDG implementation. Developing countries also host most of the externally-displaced people at high economic costs, which similarly affects their ability to achieve the SDGs. The political costs of hosting large number of refugees in developed states have also been significant in recent years, particularly in the aftermath of the 2015 European Refugee Crisis. The refugee crisis triggered intense politicization of migration and sharp rise in anti-immigration sentiments and support for populist parties in many countries of the region, leading some governments to tighten their borders, introduce more restrictive immigration policies and retreat from multilateral migration efforts. There is at the same time growing recognition that population displacement and migration is a contemporary global challenge that can only be solved through effective multilateral cooperation. In this context, it becomes important for states to build on the current nascent governance architecture such as the Global Compact on Refugees and the Global Compact for Migration so that the benefits of migration and population displacement can be more effectively harnessed for the achievement of the SDGs.

What is the Most Effective Monetary Policy for Aid-Receiving Countries?

Feb 2006

Working Paper

Alessandro Prati and Thierry Tressel

This paper analyses how monetary policy can enhance the effectiveness of volatile aid flows. We find that monetary policy is effective in reducing trade balance volatility. We propose the following taxonomy, excluding the case of emergency assistance. Monetary policy should slow down consumption growth and build up international reserves when aid is abundant and deplete them to finance imports and support consumption when aid is scarce. If foreign aid also affects productivity growth, monetary policy should take this productivity effect into account in responding to aid flows.

The Bottom of the Pyramid Strategy for Reducing Poverty

Aug 2009

Working Paper

The movement emphasizing free markets to reduce poverty has found strong expression in the ‘bottom of the pyramid’ approach in recent years. It views the poor as “resilient and creative entrepreneurs and value-conscious consumers”. This romanticized view of the poor harms the poor in two ways. First, it results in too little emphasis on legal, regulatory and social mechanisms to protect the poor who are vulnerable consumers. Second, it overemphasizes microcredit and underemphasizes fostering modern enterprises that would provide employment opportunities for the poor. More importantly, it grossly underemphasizes the critical role and responsibility of the state in poverty reduction.

Mapping the Linkages between Oceans and Other Sustainable Development Goals

Feb 2017

Working Paper

David Le Blanc, Clovis Freire and Marjo Vierros

This paper maps interrelationships among targets of the Sustainable Development Goal dedicated to oceans (SDG 14), as well as interrelationships between those targets and other SDGs. This is done using a large number of UN reports as well as scientific publications. The literature identifies many linkages among the targets of SDG 14; most of these targets are potentially synergistic with one another. Many linkages also exist between SDG 14 targets and other SDGs. Different targets under SDG 14 link to different SDGs. This has implications for policy discussions on how to achieve progress on SDG 14. The interrelationships that we highlight can be used as a tool for dialogue between policy and scientific communities working on oceans, in particular for assessing the status of knowledge on the various linkages, as well as identifying linkages that are likely to matter most for progress on SDG 14.

What Can Uzbekistan Tell Us about Industrial Policy that We Did Not Already Know?

Feb 2016

Working Paper

Vladimir Popov and Anis Chowdhury

This paper discusses Uzbekistan’s recent experience with structural shifts and industrial policy and the larger implications for existing theories of industrial policy. The paper has a particular focus on various industry policy instruments. Two major hypotheses are discussed: (1) the hypothesis of Haussmann, Hwang and Rodrik (the more technologically sophisticated the export structure, the better for growth) and (2) the hypothesis of Justin Yifu Lin (export specialization should build on existing comparative advantages and not jump over the necessary technological stages).

Crisis Mismanagement in the US and Europe

Feb 2014

Working Paper

There are two major failings in policy interventions in the crisis in the US and Europe: the reluctance to remove the debt overhang through timely, orderly and comprehensive restructuring and the shift to fiscal austerity after an initial reflation. These have resulted in excessive reliance on monetary means with central banks entering uncharted policy waters, including zero-bound interest rates and the acquisition of long-term public and private bonds. This ultra-easy monetary policy has not been very effective in reducing the debt overhang and stimulating spending. It has, however, generated financial fragility, at home and abroad, particularly in the case of the US as the issuer of the key reserve currency, and exit is full of pitfalls. Although ultra-easy money is still with us, the markets have begun pricing-in the normalization of monetary policy in the US and this is the main reason for the turbulence in emerging economies. Policy response to an intensification of the stress in the South needs to depart from past practices and should include measures to involve the private creditors in crisis resolution and provision of market support and liquidity by central banks in major advanced economies.

Macroeconomic Policy for Growth and Poverty Reduction

Jul 2011

Working Paper

Degol Hailu and John Weeks

A fundamental shift in macroeconomic policy thinking is taking place. This shift opens a space for implementing policies that promote growth and reduce poverty in developing countries. In this paper, policies for post-conflict and resource-rich economies are outlined. Fiscal policy would focus on revenue mobilization, scaling-up public investment, and preventing over-heating. Monetary policies would revive the financial sector, prevent inflationary pressures and stimulate private sector investment. Exchange rate policies should focus on achieving slow depreciation and maintaining international competitiveness. These policies should not be considered in isolation from each other, but in coordination.

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