The economic analysis of law is an indispensable conceptual tool for designing and reforming legal systems. It does not necessarily deal with markets, prices, and what are conventionally thought to be economic concepts. Rather, it is an approach to analyzing the law and legal institutions that...

Corruption can never be completely or permanently eliminated. The question is, how can it be controlled? How can a country move from a situation where corruption may be the norm to a situation where corruption is morally intolerable and behaviorally rare? To control corruption, the expected...

Corruption is bad for development. Leaving aside the morality of bribe taking, influence peddling, embezzlement, and other abuses of power for personal or narrow group gain, corruption impedes investment and growth and exacerbates poverty and inequality. Human beings are prone to self-seeking...

The growth prospects of developing countries have worsened over the past six months, world trade growth has slowed, capital flows are unlikely to recover to pre-crisis levels in the near term, and, commodity prices are weak. This note reviews the reduced access to international capital flows by...

Diagnostic surveys can provide vital information for decisionmakers when institutional weaknesses inhibit a more regular flow of information. If strategically designed, a survey can help induce policy change by pointing directly to the main bottlenecks, making it easier for policymakers to find...

By the mid-1990s, after more than 15 years of adjustment lending, it had become clear that adjustment programs in Africa had not accelerated growth or reduced poverty, except in a handful of countries. The main reasons? Recipient governments did not "own" the reform programs, and they perceived...

Terms of trade shocks may slow growth, worsen the distribution of income, and raise the odds of highly disruptive currency crises. This note raises questions on how can countries cope with terms of trade shocks; if commodity price stabilization funds can help; and, how can the private sector...

Debt management can reduce financial vulnerability by limiting liquidity, and rollover risks. This note reviews Argentina's debt management strategy, towards improving the country's credit rating to an investment grade, providing flexibility, liquidity, and opportunity. However, the risks of...

The note focuses on the speculative attack on domestic assets, which can occur irrespective of country's fiscal situation, suggesting political economy considerations may be the reason. However, recent events have reopened the debate on how to reduce vulnerability to capital outflows in...

The note highlights the importance of sound intergovernmental fiscal relations, and proper regulation for successful sub-national borrowing, and illustrates the potential macroeconomic hazards of decentralizing borrowing powers, arguing that the impact of a possible moral hazard problem, namely,...