Tax rates are key tools for mobilizing domestic resources and addressing specific market failures. Countries often offer tax concessions or reduce corporate tax rates in order to boost private investment or to direct investment to “desired areasâ€. Corporate tax rates, especially for...

Financing for sustainable development – a significant component of the United Nations’ post-2015 development agenda – is critical for Asia and the Pacific. Home to two thirds of the world’s poor, the region will require the mobilization of vast resources to address...

ESCAP analysis indicates that a minimum wage policy, if designed carefully along with supportive adjustment measures, boosts workers’ income and improves long-term job prospects without adversely affecting businesses. For example, recent minimum wage hikes in Thailand are projected to increase...

The ongoing euro zone debt crisis creates an undesirable scenario for the global economy as well as for the Asia-Pacific region given that the region has close economic linkages. The paper aims to provide quantitative estimates of the potential impact of the euro zone debt crisis on merchandise...

This paper examines the agenda of this year’s G20 Brisbane summit namely, to promote strong economic growth and employment outcomes and to make the global economy more resilient to future shocks – in the context of key policy debates in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as discussions on the...

This regional workshop was held to discuss the findings and implications from 16 case studies dealing with the role of secondary crops in rural poverty alleviation. Part of these case studies were based on field results obtained in the framework of the project "Identification of pulling factors...

This working paper provides a more in-depth study focused on specific areas in Luang Prabang and Vientiane provinces as a continuation of the first phase study, which was a review of the history of production, marketing,consumption and policy related to secondary crops and non-secondary crops...

This is a practical handbook for scientists, analysts, and students working on the definition and implementation of policy changes that contribute to real economic and social agriculture-based development, with a special focus on commodity systems. The objective is to promote efficient and...

Part I The Participatory Prospective Analysis (PPA) Method The philosophy of the PPA method Methodological components Presentation of the method Definition of the system's limits Identification of variables Selection and definition of key variables Mutual influence analysis Interpretation of...

To attain sustainable development in the 21st century, the world's population still has to overcome many challenges; hunger, poverty, environmental degradation and depletion. Policy design in such a context is and will remain a complex task. On one hand, policy makers often lack information on...