Economic transformation and diversification require solutions that take account of the political economy of reform. This book explores the process of economic transformation, using Senegal as an example. Sound macroeconomic and fiscal policies are prerequisites for achieving this kind of transformation, but these policies need to include the appropriate industrial policies and good economic governance, which provide incentives to help small- and medium-sized enterprises emerge from the inf...

With technology and globalization advancing at breakneck speed, the world economy becomes more complex by the day. Activists, politicians, and media enablers—conservative and liberal, left and right, informed and just plain wrong—consistently seize this opportunity to present woefully simplistic explanations and hype the latest myths regarding issues affecting the economy. Their purpose is not to educate but to advocate and, in many cases involving the media, manufacture outrage to drive r...

The role of industry in low income countries is important. Industry is good for growth, job creation, and poverty reduction. All of these factors depend on the size and the rate of growth of industry. Africa doesn’t have enough industry to reach the Sustainable Development Goals for growth, job creation, and poverty reduction. Africa’s share of global manufacturing has fallen from about three percent in 1970 to less than two percent in 2010. Why is there so little industry in Africa?

The first two decades of the twenty-first century have witnessed an influx of innovations and reforms in public financial management. The current wave of reforms is markedly different from those in the past, owing to the sheer number of innovations, their widespread adoption, and the sense that they add up to a fundamental change in the way governments manage public money. This book takes stock of the most important innovations that have emerged over the past two decades, including fiscal res...

This publication highlights Mozambiques remarkably strong growth over the two decades since the end of the civil war in 1992, as well as the major challenges that remain for the country to rise out of poverty and further its economic development. Chapters explore such topics as the role of megaprojects and their relationship to jobs and growth; infrastructure and public investment; Mozambique's quest for inclusive growth; developing the agricultural sector; and building a social protection f...

This is a critical period for the WTO and for realizing the potential of trade as a driver of growth and poverty reduction. It is time for good intentions to be translated into solid multilateral agreements that promote development, and it is high time that the rich countries tore down their barriers. But trade agreements by themselves cannot guarantee growth and poverty reduction: aid for trade and internal reforms are needed too. On all this, detail matters and trade agreements are compl...

Governments often use direct subsidies or tax credits to encourage investment and promote economic growth and other development objectives. Properly designed and implemented, these incentives can advance a wide range of policy objectives (increasing employment, promoting sustainability, and reducing inequality). Yet since design and implementation are complicated, incentives have been associated with rent-seeking and wasteful public spending.This collection illustrates the differen...

Leading governments undertook extraordinary measures to offset the 2008 economic crisis, shoring up financial institutions, stimulating demand to reverse recession, and rebalancing budgets to alleviate sovereign debt. While productive in and of themselves, these solutions were effective because they were coordinated internationally and were matched with sweeping global financial reforms. Unfortunately, coordination has weakened after these initial steps, indicating one of the crisis's adve...

Examining the economic forces that will shape Africa's future.Africa’s Lions examines the economic growth experiences of six fast growing and/or economically dominant African countries. Expert African researchers offer unique perspectives into the challenges and issues in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, and South Africa.Despite a growing body of research on African economies, very little has focused on the relationship between economic growth ...

Mozambique is an economic success story in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Its remarkable achievements offer valuable lessons to other low-income countries in a post-stabilization economic phase, including how they can efficiently manage a scaling up of foreign aid aimed at poverty reduction. Of special interest to other sub-Saharan countries are the book's discussions of Mozambique's progress toward consolidating macroeconomic and financial stability, and the challenges it faces in ensuring lon...

Since the early 1990s, most developing economies have become more integrated with the world's economy. Trade and foreign investment barriers have been progressively lifted and international trade agreements signed. These reforms have led to important changes in the structures of these economies. The labor markets have adjusted to these major changes, and workers were required to adapt to them in one way or another.In 2006, the Social Protection Unit of the World Bank launched an important res...

The Korea-World Bank High Level Conference on Post-Crisis Growth and Development held in June 2010 in Busan Republic of Korea successfully brought key development issues to the forefront laid the groundwork for setting global development priorities and advanced the discussion among the international community the G20 and the non-G20 countries on development policy. This volume compiles the papers and proceedings presented at this conference which was attended by a mix of delegations from inte...