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Book Sewing Success

Download or read book Sewing Success written by Gladys Lopez-Acevedo and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2012-03-14 with total page 535 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The end of the MFA was followed by rising apparel exports, falling prices, and a reallocation of production and employment between countries. There were also significant changes within countries. The first main finding of this report is that export and employment patterns after the MFA/ATC did not necessarily match predictions. While many predicted that production would shift to low-wage countries, this book shows that only 13 percent of variation in export changes post-MFA can be explained by the differences in wage levels. Second, changes in exports are usually, but not always, good indicators of what happens to wages and employment within countries. This is especially important for policy because it shows that simply using exports as a metric of 'success' in terms of helping the poor is not sufficient. Third, the Book identifies the specific ways that changes in the global apparel market affected earnings. The Book shows that wage premiums change in predictable ways: rising (in most cases) in countries that were proactive in adapting to the MFA phase-out and expanded their market shares, and falling in countries that failed to respond in a timely fashion to the changing environment. The Book shows that promoting 'upgrading' (defined as shifting to higher-value goods, shifting up the value chain, or 'modernizing' production techniques) seems to be necessary for sustainable competitiveness in the apparel sector but does not necessarily help the poor. Policies that support upgrading need to be complemented with targeted workforce development to make sure that the most vulnerable workers are not left behind. Having a vision for the evolution of the apparel sector that incorporates developing worker skills seems crucial. Otherwise, less-skilled workers could miss out on opportunities to gain valuable work experience in manufacturing.

Book Understanding Changes in Poverty

Download or read book Understanding Changes in Poverty written by Gabriela Inchauste and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2014-08-21 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The 2015 Millennium Development Goal to cut in half the share of the world’s population living in extreme poverty was met with time to spare. By 2013, the percentage of developing-country populations living in extreme poverty decreased from 43 percent in 1990 to 21 percent by 2010. Clearly, there is still a long way to go, with 1.2 billion people without enough to eat. What can we learn from the recent success? This volume presents recent methods to decompose the contributions to poverty reduction. What was the main contributor to poverty reduction? Using a simple accounting approach, we find that labor income growth was the largest contributor to moderate poverty reduction for a group of 21 countries with substantial reductions in poverty over the past decade. Moreover, in most cases, it was the growth in income per worker that contributed the most to poverty reduction, rather than an increase in employment. Changes in demographics, public transfers and remittances helped, but made relatively smaller contributions to poverty reduction. Public transfers were important in reducing extreme poverty, pointing to the crucial role of social protection systems. How was labor income growth able to reduce poverty? After a review of the literature, a structural decomposition method is presented and implemented in three countries. The results show that that labor income grew mainly because of higher returns to human capital endowments. This could signal increases in productivity, a higher relative price of labor, or both. In Bangladesh and Peru, this was driven by higher returns to workers with low levels of education, which may have partly been driven by higher food prices. In contrast, in Thailand, poverty fell partly due to increasing returns to education.

Book Tuvalu Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments

Download or read book Tuvalu Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments written by IBP, Inc. and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2017-06-28 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tuvalu Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments - Everything you need to know about the country - Geography, history, politics, economy, business, etc.

Book Tuvalu Foreign Policy and Government Guide   Strategic Information and Developments

Download or read book Tuvalu Foreign Policy and Government Guide Strategic Information and Developments written by IBP, Inc. and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2018-03-21 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2011 Updated Reprint. Updated Annually. Tuvalu Foreign Policy and Government Guide

Book World Development Indicators 2007

Download or read book World Development Indicators 2007 written by and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2007-01-01 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: World Development Indicators is the World Bank's premier annual compilation of data about development. This indispensable statistical reference allows you to consult over 900 indicators for some 150 economies and 14 country groups in more than 80 tables. It provides a current overview of the most recent data available as well as important regional data and income group analysis in six thematic sections: World View, People, Environment, Economy, States and Markets, and Global Links. The CD-ROM editions contain 45 years of time series data, covering 1960 to 2005, and offer mapping, charting, and data export formats. Click below for more information on the CD-ROM editions.

Book Impact of Maternal and Child Health Private Expenditure on Poverty and Inequity in Bangladesh

Download or read book Impact of Maternal and Child Health Private Expenditure on Poverty and Inequity in Bangladesh written by Asian Development Bank and published by Asian Development Bank. This book was released on 2012-12-01 with total page 59 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Government of Bangladesh has made it a priority to expand access to maternal, neonatal, and child health (MNCH) services. However, healthcare services in Bangladesh are predominantly financed through household out-of-pocket expenditures. This study used a number of different data sources and innovative methods to determine overall expenditures on MNCH treatment, and how they are financed. Total expenditure on MNCH patient services is estimated at Taka 17.3 billion in fiscal year 2007, which represents 12% of total recurrent expenditures on health. Of this expenditure, 60% was for treating children under the age of 5 years, and only 28% was for childbirth care. In terms of financing, the government financed only 28% of this expenditure. More than two- thirds of MNCH expenditures in 2006-2007 was financed through household out-of-pocket spending, most of which was spent on purchasing medicines and other commodities from private pharmacies. The findings suggest the need for substantial increases in public funding of MNCH services, with the prioritization of increased funding to childbirth care and improving the availability of medicines at MOHFW facilities

Book Trade Liberalisation and Poverty in South Asia

Download or read book Trade Liberalisation and Poverty in South Asia written by Prema-chandra Athukorala and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2011 with total page 221 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The link between trade liberalisation and poverty has arguably been one of the most debated topics in development policy debate. Existing studies on the subject have primarily used multi-country cross-sectional data, and there is a growing concern about the limitations of this approach in providing a sound empirical basis for informing the policy debate. These limitations point to the need for undertaking in-depth analyses within individual countries over time. In order to examine the connection between trade liberalisation and poverty, this book provides case studies of trade policy reforms and poverty reduction outcomes of seven countries in South Asia - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The South Asia region allows for an excellent comparative study given the widespread emphasis on liberalisation reforms in the region over the past two decades, as well as highlighting significant inter-country differences in terms of the timing and comprehensiveness of reforms, and the heavy concentration of world poverty in the region. This book is a useful contribution to studies on South Asia, as well as International Trade and Development Economics.

Book Social Policies in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu

Download or read book Social Policies in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu written by Biman C. Prasad and published by Commonwealth Secretariat. This book was released on 2012 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Solomon Islands and Vanuatu are two small states that have struggled to develop successful social policies since independence. This study traces their social histories and examines factors that have hindered progress. Future development requires a move away from traditional social structures and a focus on political stability and economic growth.

Book International Financial Statistics  August 2006

Download or read book International Financial Statistics August 2006 written by International Monetary Fund. Statistics Dept. and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2006-07-31 with total page 1115 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: International Financial Statistics provides a complete library of continuously updated international statistics on all aspects of international and domestic finance. The monthly print edition contains over 1,000 pages of statistical data in each issue. It reports, for most countries of the world, current data needed in the analysis of problems of international payments and of inflation and deflation, i.e., data on exchange rates, international liquidity, money and banking, interest rates, prices, production, international transactions, government accounts, and national accounts. Information is presented in country tables and in tables of area and world aggregates.

Book Restoring Balance

Download or read book Restoring Balance written by M. Asaduzzaman and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2010-03-29 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rural energy s importance to the Bangladesh economy cannot be underestimated, The problems rural people face in obtaining safe, clean, and reliable energy supplies are not minor inconveniences. People are cooking with biomass fuels including large amounts of leaves and grass that expose them harmful indoor air pollution. They light with kerosene or sometimes candles which give off a dim light that hampers studying and reading in the evening. Finally, rural productivity suffers because of lack of access to modern energy. However, the picture also is not all bleak. This study underscores how improved access to rural energy services can created multiple benefits for rural life from income and labor productivity to education and women s health. Recommended or enhancement of programs for improved stoves, rural electrification, renewable energy and greater access to commercial liquid fuels can significantly improve both the rural productivity and enhance the quality of life in rural Bangladesh.

Book More and Better Jobs in South Asia

Download or read book More and Better Jobs in South Asia written by The World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2011-12-20 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Asia has created nearly 800,000 jobs per month during the last decade. Robust economic growth in large parts of the region has created better jobs -- those that pay higher wages for wage workers and reduce poverty for the self-employed, the largest segment of the region s employed. Going forward, South Asia faces the enormous challenge of absorbing 1 to 1.2 million entrants to the labor force every month for the next two decades at rising levels of productivity. This calls for an agenda that cuts across sectors and includes improving the reliability of electricity supply for firms in both urban and rural settings, dealing decisively with issues of governance and corruption, making access to land easier for urban informal firms and strengthening transport links between rural firms and their markets. It requires improving nutrition in early childhood to avoid cognitive impairment, intensifying the focus on quality of learning in education systems, equipping workers with the skills that employers demand, and reorienting labor market regulations and programs to protect workers rather than jobs. The continuance of high economic growth to help improve job quality is not assured. But the region s demography can provide a favorable tailwind. The growth of workers exceeds that of dependents in much of the region. The resources saved from having fewer dependents can be shifted to high-priority investments in physical and human capital accumulation necessary to create productive jobs in countries with an enabling policy framework. But the demographic window of opportunity is open for only the next three decades, a fact which lends urgency to the reform agenda. This book will be of interest to policy makers, their advisers, researchers and students of economics who seek solutions, not only to the challenge of creating more and better jobs in South Asia but globally as well. It is the first title in South Asia Development Matters,a new series that will serve as a vehicle for in-depth synthesis of economic and policy analysis on key development topics for South Asia.

Book Stitches to Riches

Download or read book Stitches to Riches written by Gladys Lopez-Acevedo and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2016-03-28 with total page 207 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Asia is in the midst of a demographic transition. For the next three decades, the growth of the region’s working age population will far outpace the growth of dependents. Close to one million individuals will enter the workforce every month. This large, economically active population can increase the region’s capacity to save and make crucial investments in physical capital, job training, and technological advancement. But for South Asia to realize these dividends, it must ensure that its working-age population is productively employed. As one of the most prominent labor-intensive industries in developing countries, apparel manufacturing is a prime contender. With around 4.7 million workers in the formal sector and another estimated 20.3 million informally employed (combined with textiles), apparel already constitutes close to 40 percent of manufacturing employment. And given that much of apparel production continues to be labor-intensive, the potential to create more and better jobs is immense. There is a huge window of opportunity now for South Asia, given that China, the dominant producer for the last ten years, has started to cede some ground due to higher wages. But the region faces strong competition from East Asia—with Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam already pulling ahead. Plus the sector suffers from production inefficiencies and policy bottlenecks that have prevented it from achieving its potential. Against this backdrop, this report hopes to inform the debate by measuring the employment gains that the four most populous countries in South Asia—Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (hereafter `SAR countries’)—can expect in this new environment of increased competition and scrutiny. Its main message is that it is important for South Asian economies to remove existing impediments and facilitate growth in apparel to capture more production and create more employment as wages rise in China. The successful manufacturers will be those who can supply a wide range of quality products to buyers rapidly and reliably—not just offer low costs.

Book Climate Change Risks and Food Security in Bangladesh

Download or read book Climate Change Risks and Food Security in Bangladesh written by Winston Yu and published by Earthscan. This book was released on 2010-09-23 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Managing climate variability and change remains a key development and food security issue in Bangladesh. Despite significant investments, floods, droughts, and cyclones during the last two decades continue to cause extensive economic damage and impair livelihoods. Climate change will pose additional risks to ongoing efforts to reduce poverty. This book examines the implications of climate change on food security in Bangladesh and identifies adaptation measures in the agriculture sector using a comprehensive integrated framework.First, the most recent science available is used to characterize current climate and hydrology and its potential changes. Second, country-specific survey and biophysical data is used to derive more realistic and accurate agricultural impact functions and simulations. A range of climate risks (i.e. warmer temperatures, higher carbon dioxide concentrations, changing characteristics of floods, droughts and potential sea level rise) is considered to gain a more complete picture of potential agriculture impacts. Third, while estimating changes in production is important, economic responses may to some degree buffer against the physical losses predicted, and an assessment is made of these. Food security is dependent not only on production, but also future food requirements, income levels and commodity prices. Finally, adaptation possibilities are identified for the sector. This book is the first to combine these multiple disciplines and analytical procedures to comprehensively address these impacts. The framework will serve as a useful guide to design policy intervention strategies and investments in adaptation measures.

Book Striving for Better Jobs

Download or read book Striving for Better Jobs written by Roberta Gatti and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2014-09-12 with total page 355 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While economic growth has been sustained for a number of years in many countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, this has not resulted in the creation of an adequate number of jobs and has succeeded, at best, in generating low-quality, informal jobs. While there is a great deal of heterogeneity across countries, informality in MENA is widespread, and some countries in the region are amongst the most informal economies in the world. The book looks at informality through a human development angle and focuses specifically on informal employment. In line with this approach, the working definition for informality adopted in the book is “lack of social security coverage” (usually understood as pensions, or if a pension system does not exist, as health insurance), which captures well the vulnerability associated with informal employment. Informal workers in MENA are generally engaged in low productivity jobs - more so than in comparator countries -, are paid less for otherwise similar work in the formal sector, and self-report low levels of satisfaction at work. Also, informal workers in MENA face important mobility barriers into formal employment and thus lack of social security coverage against health, unemployment, and old-age risks. Formal employment in the MENA region is strongly associated with public sector employment. Opportunities for formal employment in the private sector in the region remain very limited. The book identifies 5 strategic directions to promote long-term inclusive growth and formality, namely: (i) fostering competition; (ii) realigning incentives in the public sector; (iii) moving towards labor regulations that promote labor mobility and provide support to workers in periods of transition; (iv) enhancing the productivity of informal workers through training and skills upgrading; and (v) reforming existing social insurance systems and introduce new instruments for coverage extension. This book is addressed to policy makers, academics, and practitioners who wish to understand the phenomenon of informal employment, and policy options for promoting more inclusive and productive labor market opportunities.

Book South Asia s Hotspots

Download or read book South Asia s Hotspots written by Muthukumara Mani and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-07-12 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Asia is particularly vulnerable to climate change. Most previous studies have focused on the projected impacts of sea-level rise or extreme weather - droughts, floods, heatwaves and storm surges. This study adds to that knowledge by identifying the impacts of long-term changes in the climate †“ rising temperatures and changes in precipitation patterns †“ on living standards. It does so by first building an understanding of the relationship between current climate conditions and living standards across South Asia. The study also identifies the set of climate models that are best suited for projecting long-term changes in climate across South Asia. This novel understanding of living standards and climate change is then combined to project impacts of long-term changes in climate on living standards in South Asia. The study finds that higher temperatures will reduce living standards for most of South Asia, with the severity impacts depending on future global greenhouse gas emissions. The study projects “hotspots†?, which are locations where long-term changes in climate will have negative impacts on living standards. Many hotspots are in locations that hitherto have not been identified as particularly vulnerable to climate change. Moreover, hotspots have distinguishing features that vary from country to country. This detailed assessment provides a mosaic of information that enriches our understanding of how climate change will impact people and which populations are most vulnerable. The report also provides guidance on the kinds of actions are most likely to reduce impacts of climate change in each country. The study is a major contribution to our understanding of how increasing temperatures and changing precipitation patterns interact with social and economic structures at a fine granular level across South Asia.