The objective of the Nepal Investment Climate Assessment (ICA) is to evaluate the investment climate in Nepal in all its dimensions and promote policies to strengthen the private sector. The investment climate is made up of many dimensions that shape the opportunities for investments, employment...

For decades, corruption in Ethiopia has been discussed only at the margins. Perhaps because many have not experienced corruption as a significant constraint to their lives and businesses, or perhaps because a culture of circumspection has dampened open dialogue, Ethiopia has seen neither the...

Cities contribute an estimated 70 percent of the world's energy-related greenhouse gases (GHG). Their locations, often in low-elevation coastal zones, and large populations make them particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. But cities often take steps, even ahead of national...

Africa's financial systems face challenges across many dimensions, as discussed in the report financing Africa: through the crisis and beyond. The analysis in that report was based partly on several detailed background papers that are included in this volume. The next six chapters are written by...

From the Victorian poor laws in nineteenth century Britain to the post-war recovery of the 1940s, public works programs have historically played an important role as countercyclical interventions to address seasonal and short-term unemployment. In recent times, the role of public works has...

Poorly implemented energy subsidies are economically costly to taxpayers and damage the environment through increased emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants. Energy subsidies also create distortive price signals and result in higher energy consumption or production as well as...

This paper is organized as follows. In chapter two, Samson Bilangna and Marcellin Djeuwo from the Cameroon customs administration present the history and the outcomes of the performance measurement policy launched by their administra-tion: the General Directorate of Customs signed 'performance...

The overall goal of this book is to change the way urban policy makers think about urban water management, planning, and project design in Africa. African cities are growing quickly, and their current water management systems cannot keep up with growing demand. It will take a concerted effort on...

This book is organized as follows: this first chapter examines the pattern of structural transformation in Middle East and North Africa, or MENA and summarizes the role of various factors examined thoroughly in the rest of the volume. This second chapter examines the correlates of this overall...

The efficiency and productivity of Colombia's urban system will be a key determinant in the ability of the country to transition from a middle income to a higher-income economy. Colombia, as with most Latin American countries, has experienced positive growth rates in the past few years,...