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Remittance Markets in Africa - Book Launch Videos

Submitted by Dilip Ratha on Wed, 02/08/2012 - 08:17
On People Move

We have just received the video recording of the launch event for Remittance Markets in Africa. The book launch was well attended and there was a lively Q&A. Sanket Mohapatra and I presented the key findings of their volume. Mr.

Europe: Fiscal Stimulus versus Structural Reform, or More?

Submitted by Zia Qureshi on Tue, 02/07/2012 - 12:17
On Let's Talk Development

The current policy debate on spurring growth is sometimes couched as a choice between fiscal stimulus and structural reform. In the context of the euro zone, this gives an incomplete picture. Two other issues are important: financial policies to avert a credit crunch; and collective actions to rebuild confidence. Adding these complicates the picture but helps point the way to a fuller policy response and clearer priorities to address the current mutually reinforcing combination of a growing sovereign debt-banking problem on the one hand and risks of a recession on the other.

¿Debemos seguir preocupados por el precio de los alimentos?

Submitted by Otaviano Canuto on Sun, 02/05/2012 - 11:56
On World Bank Meetings Center

Crisis mundial de los alimentos - Banco Mundial


Los precios de los alimentos están cayendo finalmente después de un año de alzas y alta volatilidad. Sin embargo, no debemos descuidarnos. Los precios de ciertos alimentos siguen siendo muy altos, con lo cual millones de personas en todo el mundo están aún expuestas al riesgo de padecer desnutrición y hambruna.

Veamos primero los números. Según el último informe trimestral Alerta sobre precios de los alimentos  del Banco Mundial publicado esta semana, los precios mundiales de los alimentos cayeron 8% entre septiembre y diciembre de 2011 debido al aumento de la oferta y la incertidumbre sobre la situación económica mundial.

Así, en diciembre de 2011, el índice respectivo del Banco Mundial cerró un 7% por debajo de los niveles de diciembre de 2010, y un 14% por debajo del máximo alcanzado en febrero. Sin embargo, el promedio del índice de 2011 es un 24% más alto que el del año anterior, y los precios internos de los productos clave siguen siendo peligrosamente elevados en muchos países.

Examinemos el caso del maíz. En México, por ejemplo, el maíz aumentó 106% entre diciembre de 2010 y el mismo mes de 2011, encareciendo las tortillas. El valor del trigo aumentó 88% en Belarús, mientras que el sorgo subió 57% en Burkina Faso. No importa donde se mire, alguien en algún lugar está pagando más dinero para poner comida sobre la mesa, ya sean quesadillas mexicanas o “to” (gachas) de Burkina Faso.

Some general information on US SEC registration of diaspora bonds

Submitted by Dilip Ratha on Fri, 02/03/2012 - 09:30
On People Move

Of late I have been receiving a number of questions on legal requirements for selling retail diaspora bonds in the US. I am enclosing below some general information, but with the caveat that I am not a lawyer and I may be wrong. In the end reputable law firms (rather than economists like me) ought to be consulted.  



  • Retail diaspora bonds (even if they are a part of a larger institutional offering) should be registered under SEC Securities Act 33 Schedule B.

  • It can take 2-3 months to complete registration.

Africa’s 2012 growth prospects appear bright, but downside risks could dampen momentum

Submitted by Punam Chuhan-Pole on Wed, 02/01/2012 - 15:24
On Africa Can end poverty

Sub-Saharan African countries bucked the slowdown in the global economy and grew at a robust pace in 2011 (see Africia's Pulse, February 2012 Update).  


The region’s output expanded by an estimated 4.9 percent, faster than in 2010 and just shy of the pre-crisis (average of 2003-08) level of 5 percent.  Excluding South Africa, the regional growth rate was 5.9 percent.  Particularly notable is the fact that this growth was widespread:  over a third of countries posted 6 percent or higher growth; another 40 percent grew at between 4-6 percent.  Equally important is the fact that several countries saw sustained growth rates of over 6 percent a year in both 2010 and 2011.


So what can Sub-Saharan Africa expect in 2012?  Barring a serious deterioration in the global economy, the outlook for the region seems bright, with a pickup in GDP growth to 5.3 percent in 2012 and 5.6 percent in 2013.  High commodity prices and strong domestic demand, especially buoyant private consumption, are expected to sustain the expansion.


But these factors also point to Africa’s vulnerability. 

Davos 2012: Slippery Streets

Submitted by Kevin Lu on Mon, 01/30/2012 - 15:15
On Political Risk and Emerging Markets

The World Economic Forum launched its seventh Global Risks report before this year’s annual meeting in Davos. The top risk this year, among the 50 most pressing risks based on a survey of 400 top business leaders, is income inequality and its associated economic and political risks. The report aptly summarized this risk as the “risk of dystopia.”


Beyond Keynesianism in the Year of the Dragon

Submitted by Justin Yifu Lin on Fri, 01/27/2012 - 10:42
On Let's Talk Development

Millions of Chinese have just celebrated the beginning of the year of the Dragon - a year which according to Chinese tradition is auspicious for ambitious undertakings. These may be required as the global economy faces severe headwinds. According to the January edition of Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report the world economy is expected to grow at 2.5 percent and 3.1 percent in 2012 and 2013, significantly below the 3.6 percent projected for both years in last July’s GEP. But even achieving these much weaker outturns is highly uncertain. The downturn in Europe and weaker growth in several large developing countries, such as Brazil and India, could potentially reinforce one another, resulting in an even weaker outcome. But without growth it will be more difficult to reduce the high debt of some advanced economies to sustainable levels and create much needed jobs world-wide.

Do the Bank’s Operational Staff Support the Bank’s Research Department?

Submitted by Martin Ravallion on Thu, 01/26/2012 - 11:20
On Let's Talk Development

The quality of development projects depends in part on how well grounded project preparation is in knowledge about what works and what does not. Development practitioners need to be well informed if their projects are to have impact.

The World Bank’s in-house research department—the Development Research Group (DECRG)—is the main unit aiming to supply relevant research findings to Bank operations, as well as to external clients. It is not a large department, accounting for about 1% of the Bank’s administrative budget. But it produces the majority of the Bank’s research, and has a high profile internationally. Indeed, it is often ranked ahead of almost all universities and think tanks in development economics, measured by the quantity of research outputs, downloads and citations to research findings. For example, the highly-regarded and much-watched ranking done by the IDEAS project currently puts DECRG ahead of all but one university. 

Knowledge Gaps on Innovation for Green Growth

Submitted by Mark Dutz on Wed, 01/25/2012 - 09:40
On Let's Talk Development

Small but sometimes radical new steps toward greener energy and green growth are happening on our stressed planet, but we don’t hear enough about them, nor do we sufficiently explore and share policy lessons.
 

Examples include ‘smart grid’ R&D activities that deploy sensors to gather data on incoming electricity from wind, solar and other renewables with varying power outputs, better management of outages, factoring in the needs of electric vehicles, and installing more energy-efficient power meter usage in homes and offices. At the other end of the spectrum, Husk Power Systems, a company operating in Bihar, India has devised a novel single fuel gasifier for rural electrification based on discarded rice husks – one of India’s most common waste products. Thanks to the risk husks, 60 mini-power plants have now been installed. They  power about 25,000 households in more than 250 villages in rural India. 

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