South Asia has attracted global attention because it has experienced rapid GDP growth over the last two decades. What is not so well known is that South Asia is the least integrated region in the world. South Asia has opened its door to the rest of the world but it remains closed to its...

South Asia, which is home to 1.5 billion people, is a land of sharp and growing contrasts. It has attracted global attention as an emerging economic powerhouse, but is also home to the largest concentration of people living in conflict, poverty, and malnutrition. This has created 'two South...

South Asia's growth pattern, and India's growth in particular, has attracted global attention because of its success in service exports. The South Asian experience suggests that a service revolution-rapid growth and poverty reduction led by services-is now possible. What is a service revolution?...

South Asia is among the fastest growing regions in the world, but it is also home to the largest concentration of people living in conditions of debilitating poverty, human misery, gender disparities, and conflict. This volume focuses on the impact of demographics, globalization, human mobility,...

The surge in global commodity prices of the past few years has presented a tremendous development challenge to South Asian countries. On a net basis South Asia is estimated to have suffered an income loss equivalent to some 9.6 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) between January 2003 and...

South Asia has performed well over the past 25 years in reducing poverty, improving human development and increasing growth, but faster progress with poverty reduction will require a higher rate of growth. This book shows that the development performance is not a puzzle but largely explained by...

Despite external shocks, Indonesia has maintained creditworthiness through swift adjustment. Indonesia's flexible economic management and clear policy signals have lent stability to the economy, in contrast to the stop and go reforms, uncertainty, and constant debt renegotiations in many high...

Webster’s Dictionary defines institution as “an established order, principle, law or usage as an element of organised society or of civilisation”. There are other interpretations of this term, depending upon the context for which the term is needed. For the purposes of the theme of this...

The surge in global commodity prices of the past few years has presented a tremendous development challenge for South Asian countries. The large loss of income from the terms of trade shock has worsened macroeconomic balances, fueled rapid inflation, and hurt growth. Although commodity prices...

Sri Lanka's weak economic performance, although compounded by the civil war and budgetary imbalance, largely reflects the following: 1) a stop-and-go pattern of policy reform, because of political constraints - even though the results of reform were generally positive; 2) weak economic...