It has long been claimed that rural electrification greatly improves the quality of life. Lighting alone brings benefits such as increased study time and improved study environment for school children, extended hours for small businesses, and greater security. But electrification brings more...

This paper presents such a stocktaking of land reform and farm restructuring in four countries (Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, and Moldova) that have had particular difficulties with land reform, farm restructuring, farm performance, or rural poverty. It is organized by case studies, each of...

All countries fund safety net programs for the protection of their people. Though an increasing number of safety net programs are extremely well thought out, adroitly implemented, and demonstrably effective, many others are not. This book aims to assist those concerned with social policy to...

This report analyzes the experience of Albania with the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) process. The focus of the report is on evaluating the performance of the World Bank in supporting the PRSP initiative, not on appraising the authorities policies. The main emphasis of the report is on...

This volume takes a critical look at the country's social protection "system" - broadly defined to include policy interventions, public institutions, and the regulation of private institutions that lower the welfare costs of adverse shocks to income from job loss and extended unemployment,...

In autumn 2000, the World Bank's board approved the first ever strategy for the new social protection and labor sector, and in January 2001, the sector published the strategy. The subtitle, from safety net to springboard, indicated the World Bank's move toward a broader understanding of poverty...

Migration has historically been a source of opportunities for people to improve their lives and those of their families. Today, the large differences in income between places-particularly countries-continue to motivate individuals to escape poverty through migration. The potential advantages of...

This volume is an introduction to the theories and policies that affect economic growth and poverty. It is a compilation of lecture notes used in face-to-face and e-learning courses presented by the World Bank Institute's (WBI) Poverty Program during 2004-08. The volume is divided into three...

This overview summarizes the key findings of the eight chapters and one policy note. It is organized as follows. The first section provides a background of Guangdong, while the second describes the current situation of inequality in the province. Next is a discussion of the potential impacts of...

Index insurance, such as weather indexing, addresses other inherent problems in insurance by using an indicator that is not affected by individual behavior and may address monitoring costs and moral hazard. A number of innovations using index insurance are being tried currently in diverse...