This study analyses how strengths and weaknesses of economic, societal, political and environmental structures played out during the Covid-19 crisis in Africa since March 2020. Its main aim is to improve evidence on the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic on African countries and, based...

In 2016, the Irish minimum wage increased from €8.65 to €9.15 per hour. A new ESRI study, funded by the Low Pay Commission, found that the 2016 minimum wage increase led to higher labour costs among firms with more than half of their employees on the minimum wage. However, these types of...

This paper maps out the trade relationship in goods between the two largest trading blocs in the global economy - the EU and US. We use detailed product category information to provide an in-depth description of current trade flows between the two markets, with a particular focus on how Irish-US...

Consumption taxes are a pivotal yet largely unaddressed policy tool that shape the income distribution and potentially thwart the redistributive goals of social policy. Previous research showed how consumption taxes can elevate inequality and poverty on the macro level. However, different...