The economic and institutional environment for NARS in the 1990s; Public and private sector funding and execution of research: key concepts; Alternative financing mechanisms; Perspectives for the year 2000 and beyond.
Does enterprise participation in global markets ensure sustainable income growth? Policies have often been designed in the belief that this is true, but competitiveness and participation in international markets may take very different forms, and developing countries do not always benefit. This book presents a series of rich and original field studies from Latin America, conducted by the authors with the same consistent methodological approach, and represents a theory-generating exercise within clusters and economic development literature. The main question addressed is how Latin American small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) may participate in global markets in ways that provide for sustainable income growth, the “high road” to competitiveness. In contrast, the “low road” is often typically followed by small firms from developing countries, which often compete by squeezing wages and revenues rather than by increasing productivity, salaries, and profits.
This book looks at agricultural systems and rural economies in Asia through the prism of alternative innovation systems, alternative public policy and institutional changes. The massive shifts within the agricultural economy in Asia, geared towards increasing production, has had a direct effect on the livelihood of a large mass of people in rural societies, causing financial and social distress. This book explores a wide range of solutions, such as the role of education, improving technical skills and human capital, along with interactive learning in R&D, harnessing ICTs and institutional innovations, to see how these problems can be alleviated. The volume looks at how these methods can help formulate alternative ways to build sustainable and inclusive agricultural societies, ensure food security, sustainable growth and agricultural productivity. This book, rich in theoretical and empirical matter, will be useful for academics and researchers interested in agricultural innovation, development studies and agricultural economics. It will also be of interest to policymakers and thinktanks working towards inclusive social development and sustainability in Asia and the Indian subcontinent.
World Bank Technical Paper No. 404. The health of Russian women has suffered during the economic crisis of recent years. Morbidity and mortality from chronic and infectious diseases have increased. Women's reproductive health has been compromised by an increase in the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases and by lack of access to up-to-date, high quality maternity and family planning services. This paper summarizes this current situation and reports on the findings of one element of the World Banks assistance to improve health care in the Russian Federation: a field testing of revised protocols for the care of women and infants.
World Bank Discussion Paper No. 376. Though Vietnam has made impressive progress in providing widespread access to basic social services, the quantity and quality of the countrys social service provision have shown signs of deterioration within the last two decades. This paper examines the changing role of the public sector in financing and providing social services and safety nets in Vietnam and assesses the countrys efficiency in targeting public resources to the poor in the wake of the important economic policy reforms initiated in 1989. The author analyzes the sources and uses of funds for education, health, and social transfers and highlights the emerging importance of public sector pricing policy and private out-of-pocket expenditures in social sector financing.
Vietnam's educational record is impressive: 91 percent of children between the ages of 5 and 10 are enrolled in school, and 88 percent of the countrys working-age population is literate. However, emerging market forces within Vietnam, as well as examples and competition from its economically vibrant neighbors, raise important new challenges for the countrys education and training (E & T) system. The government of Vietnam has set ambitious targets for increasing enrollments in E & T institutions, but one question remains unanswered: What policies are required to ensure that an expanded E & T system will give its graduates the knowledge, skills, and attitudes demanded by private sector employers and critical to the smooth functioning of a leaner public sector in the futureNULL This study attempts to answer the question and thereby assist education policymakers in Vietnam in making equitable and efficient choices. The report is divided into six chapters. The first two chapters set the general context for a consideration of E & T costs and financing in Vietnam and explain how the system is presently organized and managed. The third and fourth chapters assess the current financing system, including the state budget and other sources of public funding, and calculate the cost per student-year and the cost per graduate at each level. Chapter 5 examines the social rates of return and the cost burdens for different groups within the country. The final chapter looks ahead to the next decade and draws lessons from other countries.
Prepared under the aegis of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), this text presents a fresh and comprehensive look at agricultural development policy. It provides a clear, systematic review of important classes of policy issues in developing countries and discusses the emerging international consensus on viable approaches to the issues. The text is unique in its coverage and depth and it: Summarises hundreds of references on agricultural development policies Cites policy experiences and applied studies in more than 70 countries Provides guidance for policy makers giving examples of successes and failures Reviews issues related to the formulation of strategies and the requirements for making them successful Develops the conceptual foundations and illustrates policies that have worked, and some that have not, with explanations Topics covered include agriculture’s role in economic development, the objectives and strategies of agricultural policy, linkages between macroeconomic and agricultural policy, policies for the agricultural financial system and agricultural technology development. Upper level undergraduates taking courses in Economic Development and International Development and graduates taking courses in Agricultural Development, International and Economic Development, Natural Resource Management and specialised topics in agriculture will find this text of great interest. It also serves as a reference for professionals and researchers in the field of International Development.
Biotechnology offers great potential to contribute to sustainable agricultural growth, food security and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Yet there are economic and institutional constraints at national and international levels that inhibit the poor people's access to appropriate biotechnological innovations. Agricultural Biotechnology in Developing Countries: Towards Optimizing the Benefits for the Poor addresses the major constraints. Twenty-three chapters, written by a wide range of scholars and stake-holders, provide an up-to-date analysis of agricultural biotechnology developments in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Besides the expected economic and social impacts, the challenges for an adjustment of the international research structure are discussed, with a special focus on intellectual property rights and the roles of the main research organizations. Harnessing the comparative advantages of the public and private sectors through innovative partnerships is the only way forward to optimize the benefits of biotechnology for the poor. The book will be an invaluable resource for both academics and policy-makers concerned with agricultural biotechnology in context of developing-countries.
This paper proposes a twenty-first century Agricultural Development Paradigm to respond to unprecedented opportunities provided by worldwide economic reforms and trade liberalization initiatives.
World Bank Discussion Paper No. 373. This discussion paper constructs a consistent, nationwide poverty profile of Cambodia to support the governments effort to strengthen the design of poverty reduction policies. Basic data are given on the level and distribution of living standards as measured by per capita household consumption expenditures. The authors use the Socioeconomic Survey of Cambodia (SESC) of 1993-94 to estimate poverty measures and make poverty comparisons for Cambodia.