One of the objectives of the reforms and liberalization of the last 15 years in local public services was to reduce the traditional fragmentation of production. This was to be achieved through restructuring that reduced inefficiencies and made it more possible to exploit economies of scale,...

We examine the presence of women in Italian corporate boards before the introduction of Law 120/2012. We consider all directors of publicly-traded firms in 2008-10 and investigate the potential determinants of having boards with gender-diverse representation and the correlation between female...

I divari di genere sul mercato del lavoro, ai vertici delle imprese, nelle retribuzioni restano significativi in Italia. Nel lavoro, che sintetizza i principali risultati di un progetto di ricerca volto a individuare gli effetti economici e le principali cause di tali divari, vengono discusse...

In the last decade the Italian economy has underperformed compared both with the previous decades and with the main European countries. It is widely acknowledged that this evolution reflects unresolved structural problems, which have become more urgent in view of the major changes in the world...

Insufficient competition remains a major obstacle to growth in Italy. The main culprits include the institutional environment and the regulations governing some economic sectors subject to market failures. As to the former, relative neglect of economic efficiency has produced an unstable and...

The paper summarizes the framework used in a research project on local public services carried out by Bank of Italy researchers. It discusses motivations, characteristics, results and general lessons of the project, whose sector-specific results are detailed in individual papers. The project was...

Financial inclusion has received growing attention over the years as an enabling factor for promoting growth, reducing inequalities, and addressing poverty. In order to support policy choices aimed at enhancing financial inclusion, we investigate its main drivers, with a special focus on...