On the basis of available data, this paper compares public sector employment and pay in Latin America and the Caribbean. It highlights the methodological challenges of gathering and making valid comparisons on the basis of such data.

Latin America suffered a profound state crisis in the 1980s, which prompted not only the wave of macroeconomic and deregulation reforms known as the Washington Consensus, but also a wide variety of institutional or 'second generation' reforms. 'The State of State Reform in Latin America' reviews...

Latin America suffered a profound state crisis in the 1980s, which prompted not only the wave of macroeconomic and deregulation reforms known as the Washington Consensus, but also a wide variety of institutional or 'second generation' reforms. 'The State of State Reform in Latin America' reviews...

This paper analyzes the impact of the Strengthening Women Entrepreneurship in Peru (SWEP) program. SWEP trained female micro entrepreneurs in business management practices (such as accounting and marketing). The training, which was provided in 4- to 5-hour sessions, used soap operas and...

An influential body of scholarship argues that corruption behaves as a selffulfilling prophecy. The idea of this work is that levels of corruption emerge endogenously as a result of a society-wide coordination game in which ther individual returns to corrupt behavior are a function of how...

This paper augments a relatively standard dynamic general equilibrium model with financial frictions in order to quantify the macroeconomic effects of the credit deepening process observed in many Latin American (LA) countries in the last decade, most notably in Brazil. In the model, a stylized...

Este libro se enfoca en la reforma del Servicio Civil (empleo público de la administración central) en América Latina. Analiza diagnósticos actualizados de la calidad institucional de los sistemas de servicio civil en 16 países completados en 2004 por el Banco y hace un análisis de su...

Este livro trata da reforma do Funcionalismo Público (emprego público do governo central) na América Latina e analisa os diagnósticos atualizados da qualidade institucional dos sistemas de serviço público em 16 países, realizados em 2004 pelo Banco, fazendo uma análise de sua evolução...

The mission of Pro Mujer Perú is to support women through loans and training programs that will contribute to their comprehensive development. The majority of these women are self-employed peddlers whose business produces an income for their families. This presentation gives an overview of the...

Ecuador's current political economy is largely a product of the boom that took place in the country's oil sector in the early 1970s. The pressure of heightened revenue flows created an oil-exporting factional democracy, and a dichotomy between policies focused on minimizing the pitfalls of...