Download or read book Income Support for the Poorest written by Emil Tesliuc and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2014-06-26 with total page 223 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study reviews the role and workings, with their strengths and weaknesses of last-resort income support (LRIS) programs in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. It draws on a combination of household survey and administrative data for a large group of countries and detailed case studies for a smaller number of countries that span the spectrum of the income range in the region. It thus combines the value of wide, comparable multi-country work with that of in-depth, country-specific probing on key themes. The experiences of LRIS programs in Eastern Europe and Central Asia have demonstrated the technical feasibility of highly efficient poverty-targeted programs in the region. The detailed case studies suggest how programs can improve their coverage, control error and fraud and be implemented effectively in decentralized settings. This experience is pertinent to other regions as well, adding to the know-how for poverty targeting programs in middle and low income countries. Perhaps especially importantly, the book shows that means testing can be accomplished in settings with sizeable informal sectors and at reasonable administrative costs. The study also suggests that currently the role of last resort income support programs within the overall social protection systems of the region is often too small and that their eligibility thresholds should be revised and indexed, so that the programs continue to serve a meaningful swath of the low income households in each country. Moreover the programs can be used as the nexus to weave together a variety of income supports and services for low income households.

Download or read book Improving social protection for rural populations in Europe and Central Asia written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2022-09-16 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: FAO’s Strategic Framework (2022–2031) envisages the transformation to more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agrifood systems for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind. In this scope, FAO promotes inclusive economic growth by reducing inequalities between urban and rural areas, rich and poor countries, men and women to attain a better life for all. This report analyses the specific risks and vulnerabilities faced by rural populations in Europe and Central Asia. It highlights the gaps and barriers concerning social protection in the region, which present challenges for addressing the specific vulnerabilities of rural populations and helping them to better manage risks. The report discusses how social protection programmes should be designed and financed to contribute to more inclusive rural transformation processes, improved nutrition and dietary outcomes, women’s empowerment, and other social issues such as child labour. In this scope, the report specifies key entry points for FAO to improve social protection for rural populations in the region. The report concludes that, especially in the post-pandemic period, expanding the coverage, adequacy and comprehensiveness of social protection for rural populations is key to addressing food security and nutrition, rural poverty, developing agriculture, and building resilient and sustainable food systems in Europe and Central Asia.

Download or read book Albania written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2010-07-12 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Albania enjoyed strong growth with comparatively benign external vulnerabilities before the crisis. Monetary policy provided timely support, and the exchange rate functioned as a shock absorber. However, policy buffers are now exhausted and must be rebuilt. Fiscal tightening has to be quickly effected. Medium-term fiscal policy should be governed by a credible and monitorable fiscal rule. The Albanian economy has to broaden its sources of growth and strengthen competitiveness. Sound macroeconomic statistics are essential for competent policy making and investor confidence.

Download or read book Social Policy Review 21 written by Rummery, Kirstein and published by Policy Press. This book was released on 2009-06-17 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social Policy Review provides students, academics and all those interested in welfare issues with critical analyses of progress and change in areas of major interest during the past year. This year the Review takes the opportunity of the 60th anniversary of the key legislation founding the welfare state in the UK to provide a comprehensive overview of policy developments in the UK and internationally. The first part brings together a selection of papers which have been commissioned to examine historical and contemporary developments in policy tackling Beveridge's five evils of want, idleness, disease, squalor and ignorance, looking at how policy has changed since the aims and ideology of the inception of the post-war welfare state. The second part looks at the issue of the current challenges facing children's welfare services internationally: always a contemporary and contentious issue. The final part brings together a selection of papers looking at the effect of policy development at various governance levels on social policy. The contributions bring together an exciting mix of internationally renowned authors to provide comprehensive discussion of the some of the most challenging issues facing social policy today.

Download or read book World Social Protection Report 2017 19 written by and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Revisiting Targeting in Social Assistance written by Margaret Grosh and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2022-06-14 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Targeting is a commonly used, but much debated, policy tool within global social assistance practice. Revisiting Targeting in Social Assistance: A New Look at Old Dilemmas examines the well-known dilemmas in light of the growing body of experience, new implementation capacities, and the potential to bring new data and data science to bear. The book begins by considering why or whether or how narrowly or broadly to target different parts of social assistance and updates the global empirics around the outcomes and costs of targeting. It illustrates the choices that must be made in moving from an abstract vision to implementable definitions and procedures, and in deciding how the choices should be informed by values, empirics, and context. The importance of delivery systems and processes to distributional outcomes are emphasized, and many facets with room for improvement are discussed. The book also explores the choices between targeting methods and how differences in purposes and contexts shape those. The know-how with respect to the data and inference used by the different household-specific targeting methods is summarized and comprehensively updated, including a focus on “big data†? and machine learning. A primer on measurement issues is included. Key findings include the following: · Targeting selected categories, families, or individuals plays a valuable role within the framework of universal social protection. · Measuring the accuracy and cost of targeting can be done in many ways, and judicious choices require a range of metrics. · Weighing the relatively low costs of targeting against the potential gains is important. · Implementing inclusive delivery systems is critical for reducing errors of exclusion and inclusion. · Selecting and customizing the appropriate targeting method depends on purpose and context; there is no method preferred in all circumstances. · Leveraging advances in technology—ICT, big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning—can improve targeting accuracy, but they are not a panacea; better data matters more than sophistication in inference. · Targeting social protection should be a dynamic process.

Download or read book Competitiveness and Private Sector Development Western Balkans Competitiveness Outlook 2024 Albania written by OECD and published by OECD Publishing. This book was released on 2024-06-26 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Inclusive and sustainable economic growth in the six Western Balkan (WB6) economies depends on greater economic competitiveness. Although the gap is closing gradually, the standards of living in WB6 are well below those of the OECD and EU. Accelerating the rate of socio-economic convergence will require a holistic and growth oriented approach to policy making. This is the fourth study of the region (formerly under the title 'Competitiveness in South East Europe') and it comprehensively assesses policy reforms in the WB6 economies across 15 policy areas key to strengthening their competitiveness. It enables WB6 economies to compare economic performance against regional peers, as well as EU-OECD good practices and standards, and to design future policies based on rich evidence and actionable policy recommendations. The regional profile presents assessment findings across five policy clusters crucial to accelerating socio-economic convergence of the WB6 by fostering regional co-operation: business environment, skills, infrastructure and connectivity, digital transformation and greening. Economy-specific profiles complement the regional assessment, offering each WB6 economy an in-depth analysis of their policies supporting competitiveness. They also track the implementation of the previous 2021 study's recommendations and provide additional ones tailored to the economies’ evolving challenges. These recommendations aim to inform structural economic reforms and facilitate the region’s socio-economic convergence towards the standards of the EU and OECD.

Download or read book Household Welfare the Labor Market and Social Programs in Albania written by Mansoora Rashid and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2001-01-01 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The main focus of this paper is to assess household welfare in Albania, describe the labor market, and evaluate the equity and efficiency of public expenditures on cash benefits and education. This report provides a benchmark against which future welfare developments of the population can be measured. It also includes a statistical annex.

Download or read book The Global Findex Database 2017 written by Asli Demirguc-Kunt and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-04-19 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2011 the World Bank—with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—launched the Global Findex database, the world's most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Drawing on survey data collected in collaboration with Gallup, Inc., the Global Findex database covers more than 140 economies around the world. The initial survey round was followed by a second one in 2014 and by a third in 2017. Compiled using nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults age 15 and above in over 140 economies, The Global Findex Database 2017: Measuring Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution includes updated indicators on access to and use of formal and informal financial services. It has additional data on the use of financial technology (or fintech), including the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions. The data reveal opportunities to expand access to financial services among people who do not have an account—the unbanked—as well as to promote greater use of digital financial services among those who do have an account. The Global Findex database has become a mainstay of global efforts to promote financial inclusion. In addition to being widely cited by scholars and development practitioners, Global Findex data are used to track progress toward the World Bank goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The database, the full text of the report, and the underlying country-level data for all figures—along with the questionnaire, the survey methodology, and other relevant materials—are available at www.worldbank.org/globalfindex.

Download or read book The State of Social Safety Nets 2018 written by The World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-03-23 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The State of Social Safety Nets 2018 Report examines global trends in the social safety net/social assistance coverage, spending, and program performance based on the World Bank Atlas of Social Protection Indicators of Resilience and Equity (ASPIRE) updated database. The report documents the main social safety net programs that exist globally and their use to alleviate poverty and to build shared prosperity. The 2018 report expands on the 2015 edition, both in administrative and household survey data coverage. A distinct mark of this report is that, for the first time, it tells the story of what happens with SSN/SA programs spending and coverage over time, when the data allow us to do so. This 2018 edition also features two special themes †“ Social Assistance and Ageing, focusing on the role of old-age social pensions, and Adaptive Social Protection, focusing on what makes SSN systems/programs adaptive to various shocks.

Download or read book Social Protection and Labor at the World Bank 2000 08 written by Robert Holzmann and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2009 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social Protection & Labor at the World Bank, 2000-2008 presents a progress review of the sector strategy by the World Bank, published in early 2001. The strategy proposed a new conceptual frameworkOCoSocial Risk ManagementOCoto review and reform existing interventions and propose new ones that better assist vulnerable people in addressing the many risks to which they are exposed."

Download or read book Analyzing the Effects of Policy Reforms on the Poor written by World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2010-05-05 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This IEG evaluation, requested by the World Bank s Board of Executive Directors, represents the first independent evaluation of the PSIA experience. The evaluation finds that: The PSIA approach has appropriately emphasized the importance of assessing the distributional impact of policy actions, understanding institutional and political constraints to development, and building domestic ownership for reforms PSIAs have not always explicitly stated their operational objectives (i.e., informing country policies, informing Bank operations, and/or contributing to country capacity) PSIAs have had limited ownership by Bank staff and managers and have often not been effectively integrated into country assistance programs Quality assurance and Monitoring and Evaluation of the overall effectiveness of PSIAs have been weak The evaluation recommends that the World Bank: Ensure that Bank staff understand what the PSIA approach is and when to use it Clarify the operational objectives of each PSIA and tailor the approach and timeline to those objectives Improve integration of the PSIA into the Bank s country assistance program by requiring that all earmarked funding for PSIAs be matched by a substantial contribution from the country unit budgets Strengthen PSIA effectiveness through enhanced quality assurance

Download or read book Proceedings of VIAC 2024 written by Group of Authors and published by Czech Institute of Academic Education z.s.. This book was released on 2024-05-30 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: International Academic Conferences: Teaching, Learning and E-learning (VIAC-TLEl) Management, Economics and Marketing (VIAC-MEM) Transport, Logistics, Tourism and Sport Science (VIAC-TLTS) Engineering, Robotics, IT and Nanotechnology (VIAC-ERITN)

Download or read book World Development Report 2019 written by World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-10-31 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Work is constantly reshaped by technological progress. New ways of production are adopted, markets expand, and societies evolve. But some changes provoke more attention than others, in part due to the vast uncertainty involved in making predictions about the future. The 2019 World Development Report will study how the nature of work is changing as a result of advances in technology today. Technological progress disrupts existing systems. A new social contract is needed to smooth the transition and guard against rising inequality. Significant investments in human capital throughout a person’s lifecycle are vital to this effort. If workers are to stay competitive against machines they need to train or retool existing skills. A social protection system that includes a minimum basic level of protection for workers and citizens can complement new forms of employment. Improved private sector policies to encourage startup activity and competition can help countries compete in the digital age. Governments also need to ensure that firms pay their fair share of taxes, in part to fund this new social contract. The 2019 World Development Report presents an analysis of these issues based upon the available evidence.

Download or read book Impact Evaluation in Practice Second Edition written by Paul J. Gertler and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2016-09-12 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The second edition of the Impact Evaluation in Practice handbook is a comprehensive and accessible introduction to impact evaluation for policy makers and development practitioners. First published in 2011, it has been used widely across the development and academic communities. The book incorporates real-world examples to present practical guidelines for designing and implementing impact evaluations. Readers will gain an understanding of impact evaluations and the best ways to use them to design evidence-based policies and programs. The updated version covers the newest techniques for evaluating programs and includes state-of-the-art implementation advice, as well as an expanded set of examples and case studies that draw on recent development challenges. It also includes new material on research ethics and partnerships to conduct impact evaluation. The handbook is divided into four sections: Part One discusses what to evaluate and why; Part Two presents the main impact evaluation methods; Part Three addresses how to manage impact evaluations; Part Four reviews impact evaluation sampling and data collection. Case studies illustrate different applications of impact evaluations. The book links to complementary instructional material available online, including an applied case as well as questions and answers. The updated second edition will be a valuable resource for the international development community, universities, and policy makers looking to build better evidence around what works in development.

Download or read book Europe and Central Asia Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2022 written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2023-03-14 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report presents the latest updates related to food security and nutrition in Europe and Central Asia, including estimates on the cost and affordability of healthy diets. It also explores how governments are supporting the food and agriculture sector and how to repurpose policies and incentives to make healthy diets more affordable and agrifood systems more environmentally sustainable. The new estimates confirm that the prevalence of hunger at chronic or severe levels is relatively low in the ECA region, through the prevalence of food insecurity at moderate or severe levels can be quite high. The region is seeing alarmingly high – and rising – rates of overweight and obesity. The COVID-19 pandemic has added 25.5 million people in the region to the ranks of the moderately or severely food insecure, leaving them without access to safe, nutritious and adequate food. The war in Ukraine has made the situation worse. Almost all ECA subregions are experiencing increased costs and reduced affordability of healthy diets because of higher food prices and lower incomes. This report contains an in-depth analysis of the repurposing of food and agricultural policies to ensure the food systems transformation is better suited to addressing the “triple challenge” of achieving food security and good nutrition for better health, providing livelihoods to farmers and others connected to the sector, and reducing the nature and climate footprint of the sector. This report also reviews complementing policies within and outside of agrifood systems to assess whether repurposing efforts are impactful in the ECA region.

Download or read book Decentralization in Client Countries written by and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Decentralization in Client Countries' assesses the effectiveness of Bank support for decentralization between fiscal years 1990 and 2007 in 20 countries, seeking to inform the design and implementation of future support. Given the difficulties of measuring the results of decentralization, the evaluation uses intermediate outcome indicators- such as strengthened legal and regulatory frameworks for intergovernmental relations, improved administrative capacity, and increased accountability of subnational governments and functionaries to higher levels of government and to local citizens- to assess the results of Bank support in these 20 cases. To examine potential lessons at a sectoral level, the evaluation also assesses whether Bank support for decentralization improved intermediate outcomes for service delivery in the education sector in 6 of the 20 countries.