Formal identification is a prerequisite for development in the modern world. The inability to authenticate oneself when interacting with the state—or with private entities such as banks—inhibits access to basic rights and services, including education, formal employment, financial services,...

Oil and other mineral rents are, in most countries, owned by producing states on behalf of their citizens. The paper focuses on three questions. First, how should countries take into account the great uncertainty over future export prices in planning their spending programs? Second, how should...

Summary Evidence is mounting that the pattern of overseas aid through time, of which its volatility (or instability) is a key dimension, has an important influence on its effectiveness. The three papers in this Special Section examine the extent of this influence, and how it may be possible to...