The black market exchange rate premium is widely used in the empirical literature as an indicator of trade and exchange rate distortions. This paper presents a simple test of the null hypothesis that the black market exchange rate is a reliable indicator of the equilibirum exchange rate. The...

The question that needs to be asked with regards to the impact of tourism on Jamaica is do we in Jamaica know the real potential of the industry?

We apply the set up of limited commitment model to empirically test the role of informal risk-sharing networks using panel data on informal credit transactions from rural Ethiopia. The empirical estimates provide convincing evidence for the belief that enforcement problem limits the direct role...

In a model of sequential patent races, it is examined whether or not introducing a patent law in the home country is beneficial to the firms and the society as a whole given the foreign country already offers patent protection. Before the first patent race starts, the firms and the foreign...

The diffusion of modern, efficient technology has far-reaching consequences for the geography of economic activity, inequality and environmental quality. This article examines two popular yet highly controversial claims about the conditions most favorable to the rapid spread of new technology....

Emerging evidence shows a strong correlation between institutions and economic growth, and explains the recent research shift from focus on resources and resource productivity to institutions as determinants of economic growth. The positive correlation is read by some as indication that...

This paper surveys research on social capital. We explore the concepts that motivate the social capital literature, efforts to formally model social capital using economic theory, the econometrics of social capital, and empirical studies of the role of social capital in various socioeconomic...

Analysis into the sources of lower levels of national productivities between Central East European Economies and the European Union is scarce and lacks comparability. These sources are assessed by analysing the role played by sectoral structures. After providing a brief overview over comparative...

Con questo articolo si intende offrire una rassegna critica del dibattito in corso da più di un decennio sul concetto di capitale sociale. Gli studi considerati sono suddivisi in base all’aspetto della struttura sociale cui di volta in volta viene accordata maggiore enfasi. La rassegna si...

This paper examines the determinants of child health in rural Ethiopia for the period 1994-97 using height-for-age z-scores as measures of long-term health. The panel nature of the data helps to control for community, household and individual level heterogeneity. Unlike most previous studies,...