Rural areas of the developing world are the last frontier of the information technology revolution. Telephone and internet penetration there remains a small fraction of what it is in the developed world. Limited means of electronic communication with the outside world are just one source of...

In this paper we aim to answer the following two questions: 1) has the Common Monetary Area in Southern Africa (henceforth CMA) ever been an optimal currency area (OCA)? 2) What are the costs and benefits of the CMA for its participating countries? In order to answer these questions, we carry...

This paper discusses major policy issues related to commodity dependence and export diversification in low-income countries. Contrary to some widely-held view, it argues that natural resources are not necessarily a “curse” — that they do not condemn low-income countries to underdevelopment...

The five former Soviet republics have become separate states, developing at different rates and in different directions, and with different political and economic regimes. As a result, the cohesion of the region has broken down and economic development is hampered by internal and regional...

Assessing the final impact of globalisation on poverty is a difficult task: i) globalisation affects poverty through numerous channels; ii) some linkages are positive and some are negative and therefore cannot be analysed qualitatively but require quantitative assessments, i.e. formal numerical...

This paper synthesises the existing literature on human capital formation and foreign direct investment (FDI) in developing countries. The aim is to take a bird’s eye view of the complex linkages between the activities of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and policies of host developing...

The Doha Declaration stresses the “important role” of “well targeted, sustainably financed technical assistance and capacity-building programmes”. It dedicates a whole section to them, and reiterates the commitment of its membership to help the weakest among them participate effectively...

The so-called “accession economies” preparing to enter the European Union are experiencing increased inward capital flows based upon positive interest spreads and expectations of currency appreciation. While the authorities of these countries have tried to manage these flows and to prevent...