This article reports on a vision of health improvement that challenges African countries and their external partners to rethink current health strategies. The report stresses positive experiences in sub-Saharan Africa and concludes that far greater progress in improving health is possible than...

Good health is necessary for well-being but also has another critical impact: it causes poverty, in that large health expenditures can bankrupt families. Many nations are now hoping that formally mandated social health insurance (SHI), involving payroll taxes, will provide a solution. This...

In 1987, the World Bank recommended that the principle of cost recovery be incorporated into an agenda for financing publicly provided health services in developing countries. Concern remains widespread, however, that the introduction of user fees in government operated facilities or costly...

This paper begins with a review of the broad motivations behind the New Public Sector Management (NPSM), including intrinsic differences between public and private organizations that appear to impact on incentives and performance. The experience in selected OECD countries is reviewed where the...

Good health is necessary for well-being but also has another critical impact: it causes poverty, in that large health expenditures can bankrupt families. Many nations are now hoping that formally mandated social health insurance (SHI), involving payroll taxes, will provide a solution. This...

The debate on whether natural disasters cause significant macroeconomic impacts and indeed hinder development is ongoing. Most analyses along these lines have focused on impacts on gross domestic product. This paper looks beyond this standard national accounting aggregate, and examines whether...

East Asia has experienced a dramatic decrease in output growth volatility over the past 20 years. This is good news, as output growth volatility affects poor households because of coping strategies that have long-term, harmful consequences, and the overall economy through its negative impact on...