Despite progress toward more comprehensive SPL systems, many Central Americans had limited pre-pandemic access to vital programs to help them cope with crises, find jobs, invest in the health and…

Aylin Isik Dikmelik, Ana Sofia Martinez Cordova |

Whenever the share of industry in the economy starts waning, industrial expansion often becomes a component of the growth policies. This blog analyzes if and how targeting labor market barriers…

Rishabh Sinha |

Why are fertilizer prices so high, and what can countries in Central America do about this?

Luis Flores, Viviana Perego, Diego Arias |

Costa Rica lost the momentum for poverty reduction towards the end of the twentieth century. This makes Costa Rica an outlier in a region that conti…

Jacobus de Hoop, Agustin Arakaki |

Central America and the Dominican Republic have a good track record of economic growth. Between 1991 and 2019, Central America grew by an average of 4.5% per year, and the Dominican Republic by an…

Michel Kerf |

On her daily walk down the muddy road that connects her home with school, Beatriz would sing a cumbia and dream of becoming a professional dancer. However, she would soon find out that her…

Rafael de Hoyos, Natalie O'Connor |

When economists think about price shocks, they consider how a change in price will affect the supply and demand of a product. But when that product is human – i.e., a worker – interpreting the…

Elizabeth Ruppert Bulmer, Claire H. Hollweg |

It is July 2012 and cattle farmers in Nicaragua are worried because Guatemala has enacted a series of laws that restrict beef trade. These so-called “non-tariff measures, ” or NTMs, require that…

Jose Daniel Reyes, Maria Jose Gonzalez Rivas |

My work with small-hold cocoa farmers in Nicaragua has taught me that it is not true that organic production is more expensive, complicated to learn and unsustainable.   The Sustainable…

Mary L. González |

Also available in español A visit to Asia is always bittersweet. I am amazed and seduced by Asia’s enormous success. And to be honest, it also makes me a bit envious.
I am especially…

Carlos Felipe Jaramillo |