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Low-income Countries (low-income + country)
Selected AbstractsWorld Income Distribution and Tax Reform: What Tax Systems Do Low-Income Countries Need?DEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2003J. Ram Pillarisetti This article develops a new method for assessing relative direct tax burdens across all countries, treating the world as a single economic entity and assuming identical preferences across countries. Empirical results show that the new direct tax burden indices are significantly high in low-income countries in comparison with middle- and high-income countries. This article argues in favour of narrowing the base of income and capital gains tax in low-income countries and a long-term convergence of the tax burden levels across countries. Future research into tax reforms in low-income countries should focus simultaneously on economic growth, quality of life and the natural environment. [source] Financing Decentralized Development in a Low-Income Country: Raising Revenue for Local Government in UgandaDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 1 2001Ian Livingstone Uganda has been engaged for a number of years in an ambitious programme of political and financial decentralization involving significantly expanded expenditure and service delivery responsibilities for local governments in what are now forty-five districts. Fiscal decentralization has involved allocation of block grants from the centre to complement increased local tax revenue-raising efforts by districts and municipalities. This article is concerned with the financial side of decentralization and in particular with an examination of district government efforts to raise revenue with the tax instruments which have been assigned to them. These are found to be deficient in a number of ways and their tax raising potential not to be commensurate with the responsibilities being devolved. Achievement of the decentralization aims laid down, therefore, must depend either on the identification of new or modified methods of raising revenue locally, or increased commitment to transfer of financial resources from the centre, or both. [source] Corporate Governance and International Location Decisions of Multinational EnterprisesCORPORATE GOVERNANCE, Issue 6 2007Lammertjan Dam This paper analyses international location decisions of corporations based on corporate governance considerations. Using firm level data on 540 Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) with 44,149 subsidiaries in 188 countries, we test whether firms with relatively good governance standards are more often located in countries with a weak governance system. We find empirical support for this hypothesis, especially for those corporations present in low-income countries. [source] Corporate Governance: And the Bargaining Power of Developing Countries to Attract Foreign InvestmentCORPORATE GOVERNANCE, Issue 2 2000Enrique Rueda-Sabater Following the rapid growth of foreign investment flows in the 1980s and 1990s some countries that had been dependent on official aid are now (even after the recent financial crises) obtaining most of their external financing from private sources. But low-income countries still receive little private capital flows. Arguing that corporate governance, broadly defined to include many business practices, is an important determinant of inward foreign investment this paper explores links between corporate Governance: And the ability of developing countries to attract foreign investment. It raises policy questions for developing countries and points to the need for complementary actions by government, businesses associations and institutional investors to promote corporate governance improvements. [source] Linking Social Development with the Capacity to Carry Debt: Towards an MDG-Consistent Debt-Sustainability ConceptDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2009Bernhard G. Gunter Owing to concerns among low-income countries that the new debt sustainability framework of the Bretton Woods institutions may lock them into a so-called ,low debt-low growth' scenario, the United Nations has called for a more MDG-consistent debt-sustainability concept. This article shows that there is a robust relationship between achieving the Millennium Development Goals and having a higher capacity to carry debt. It then discusses options for modifying the current debt-sustainability framework, and suggests that including progress made in achieving the MDGs in determining borrowing limits would be a first step towards adopting such a concept. [source] Aid and Fiscal Deficits: Lessons from Uganda on the Implications for Macroeconomic Management and Fiscal SustainabilityDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 2 2007Martin Brownbridge This article contributes to the ongoing debate on the macroeconomic management of large aid inflows to low-income countries by analysing lessons drawn from Uganda, where the fiscal deficit before grants, which was largely aid-funded, doubled to over 12% of GDP in the early 2000s. It focuses on the implications of the widening fiscal deficit for monetary policy, the real exchange rate, debt sustainability and the vulnerability of the budget to fiscal shocks, and argues that large fiscal deficits, even when funded predominantly by aid, risk undermining macroeconomic objectives and long-run fiscal sustainability. [source] The Poverty Reduction Strategy Approach Six Years On: An Examination of Principles and Practice in UgandaDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 6 2006Sudharshan Canagarajah It is over six years since the World Bank and the IMF started promoting a PRS approach to development management in low-income countries. The 2005 review endorsed the approach, but highlighted the need for a renewed focus on the principles underpinning it: country ownership; results orientation; comprehensiveness; partnership focus; and long-term outlook. Uganda is often hailed as one of the best PRS performers. This article finds that Uganda's Poverty Eradicaton Action Plan (PEAP) has brought significant gains to development management, but that its performance against several of the PRS principles is disappointing. A return to these principles could improve the practice of the government and development partners around the PEAP , a finding likely to be applicable to many countries implementing a PRS. [source] Managing Development for Results: A Role for Results-oriented Public Expenditure ManagementDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 6 2004John Roberts Can results-oriented approaches to public expenditure management function in low-income countries? Do they have a role in securing the implementation of poverty reduction strategies? And can they assist donors in ,managing aid for results'? Findings from seven countries suggest that they can work in environments with mediocre discipline in budget and public finance management and a degree of uncertainty caused by macroeconomic instability, but not when there is excessive ,informality' and instability. With political will and a strong finance ministry, they have proved valuable tools in ensuring the coherent expansion of pro-poor programmes and their delivery through autonomous local governments. However, they have yet to become effective in improving public administrations' accountability to parliament and to non-governmental stakeholders. [source] World Income Distribution and Tax Reform: What Tax Systems Do Low-Income Countries Need?DEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2003J. Ram Pillarisetti This article develops a new method for assessing relative direct tax burdens across all countries, treating the world as a single economic entity and assuming identical preferences across countries. Empirical results show that the new direct tax burden indices are significantly high in low-income countries in comparison with middle- and high-income countries. This article argues in favour of narrowing the base of income and capital gains tax in low-income countries and a long-term convergence of the tax burden levels across countries. Future research into tax reforms in low-income countries should focus simultaneously on economic growth, quality of life and the natural environment. [source] Evolving Themes in Rural Development 1950s-2000sDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 4 2001Frank Ellis This article provides a brief overview of the major switches in rural development thinking that have occurred over the past half-century or so. Dominant and subsidiary themes are identified, as well as the co-existence of different narratives running in parallel. The continuing success of the long-running ,small-farm efficiency' paradigm is highlighted. The article concludes by asking whether sustainable livelihoods approaches can be interpreted as providing a new or different way forward for rural development in the future. The answer is a cautious ,yes', since these approaches potentially permit the cross-sectoral and multi-occupational character of contemporary rural livelihoods in low-income countries to be placed centre-stage in efforts to reduce rural poverty. [source] Global use of alcohol, drugs and tobaccoDRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 6 2006PETER ANDERSON Abstract Humans have always used drugs, probably as part of their evolutionary and nutritional heritage. However, this previous biological adaptation is unlikely to be so in the modern world, in which 2 billion adults (48% of the adult population) are current users of alcohol, 1.1 billion adults (29% of the adult population) are current smokers of cigarettes and 185 million adults (4.5% of the adult population) are current users of illicit drugs. The use of drugs is determined largely by market forces, with increases in affordability and availability increasing use. People with socio-economic deprivation, however measured, are at increased risk of harmful drug use, as are those with a disadvantaged family environment, and those who live in a community with higher levels of substance use. Substance use is on the increase in low-income countries which, in the coming decades, will bear a disproportionate burden of substance-related disability and premature death. [source] Mental health and alcohol, drugs and tobacco: a review of the comorbidity between mental disorders and the use of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drugsDRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 6 2006EVA JANE-LLOPIS Abstract This paper reviews some major epidemiological studies undertaken in high-income countries during the last 15 years which have reported the prevalence of mental disorders and substance use disorders and their relationship. Comorbidity between mental and substance use disorders is highly prevalent across countries. In general, people with a substance use disorder had higher comorbid rates of mental disorders than vice versa, and people with illicit drug disorders had the highest rates of comorbid mental disorders. There is a strong direct association between the magnitude of comorbidity and the severity of substance use disorders. While causal pathways differ across substances and disorders, there is evidence that alcohol is a casual factor for depression, in some European countries up to 10% of male depression. Policies that reduce the use of substances are likely to reduce the prevalence of mental disorders. Treatment should be available in an integrated fashion for both mental and substance use disorders. There is a need to expand the evidence base on comorbidity, particularly in low-income countries. [source] The impact of eliminating the global illicit cigarette trade on health and revenueADDICTION, Issue 9 2010Luk Joossens ABSTRACT Aims The purpose of this study was to update global estimates of the illicit cigarette trade, based on recent data, and estimate how many lives could be saved by eliminating it and how much revenue governments would gain. Data sources and methods Our estimates of illicit market share are based on formal and informal sources. Our method for estimating the effect of eliminating the illicit trade on tobacco related deaths is based on West et al. with some minor modifications, and involves calculating the size of the illicit cigarette trade; the effect of eliminating it on the price of cigarettes and thus on consumption; the revenue governments are losing because of it; and the number of tobacco-related premature deaths that would be avoided if this illicit trade were eliminated. Results According to available estimates, the size of the illicit trade varies between countries from 1% to about 40,50% of the market, 11.6% globally, 16.8% in low-income and 9.8% in high-income countries. The total lost revenue is about $40.5 billion a year. If this illicit trade were eliminated governments would gain at least $31.3 billion a year, and from 2030 onwards more than 164 000 premature deaths a year would be avoided, the vast majority in middle- and low-income countries. Conclusions The burden of deaths and lost revenue caused by the illicit cigarette trade falls disproportionately on low- and middle-income countries. Eliminating this trade would avoid millions of premature deaths, and recover billions of dollars for governments. [source] Alcohol: No Ordinary Commodity , a summary of the second editionADDICTION, Issue 5 2010Alcohol, Public Policy Group ABSTRACT This article summarizes the contents of Alcohol: No Ordinary Commodity (2nd edn). The first part of the book describes why alcohol is not an ordinary commodity, and reviews epidemiological data that establish alcohol as a major contributor to the global burden of disease, disability and death in high-, middle- and low-income countries. This section also documents how international beer and spirits production has been consolidated recently by a small number of global corporations that are expanding their operations in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. In the second part of the book, the scientific evidence for strategies and interventions that can prevent or minimize alcohol-related harm is reviewed critically in seven key areas: pricing and taxation, regulating the physical availability of alcohol, modifying the drinking context, drink-driving countermeasures, restrictions on marketing, education and persuasion strategies, and treatment and early intervention services. Finally, the book addresses the policy-making process at the local, national and international levels and provides ratings of the effectiveness of strategies and interventions from a public health perspective. Overall, the strongest, most cost-effective strategies include taxation that increases prices, restrictions on the physical availability of alcohol, drink-driving countermeasures, brief interventions with at risk drinkers and treatment of drinkers with alcohol dependence. [source] Aggregate Investment and Political Instability: An Econometric InvestigationECONOMICA, Issue 279 2003Nauro F. Campos Although in theory the long-run effect of uncertainty on investment is ambiguous, available econometric evidence widely supports a negative association between aggregate investment and political instability. A shortcoming of this body of evidence is that it has failed to investigate the existence and direction of causality between these two variables. This paper fills this gap by testing for such causal and negative long-run relationship between political instability and investment. We find there is a causal relation going from instability to investment, but it is positive and particularly strong in low-income countries. This finding is robust to various sensitivity checks. [source] An international survey of training programs for treating tobacco dependenceADDICTION, Issue 2 2009Nancy A. Rigotti ABSTRACT Aims The World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) requires countries to implement tobacco dependence treatment programs. To provide treatment effectively, a country needs trained individuals to deliver these services. We report on the global status of programs that train individuals to provide tobacco dependence treatment. Design Cross-sectional web-based survey of tobacco treatment training programs in a stratified convenience sample of countries chosen to vary by WHO geographic region and World Bank income level. Participants Key informants in 48 countries; 70% of 69 countries who were sent surveys responded. Measurements Program prevalence, frequency, duration and size; background of trainees; content (adherence to pre-defined core competencies); funding sources; challenges. Findings We identified 61 current tobacco treatment training programs in 37 (77%) of 48 countries responding to the survey. Three-quarters of them began in 2000 or later, and 40% began after 2003, when the FCTC was adopted. Programs estimated training 14 194 individuals in 2007. Training was offered to a variety of professionals and paraprofessionals, but most often to physicians and nurses. Median program duration was 16 hours, but programs' duration, intensity and size varied widely. Most programs used evidence-based guidelines and reported adherence to core tobacco treatment competencies. Training programs were less frequent in low-income countries and in Africa. Securing funding was the major challenge for most programs; current funding sources were government (58%), non-government organizations (23%), pharmaceutical companies (17%) and, in one case, the tobacco industry. Conclusion Training programs for tobacco treatment providers are diverse and growing. Most upper- and middle-income countries have programs, and most programs appear to be evidence-based. However, funding is a major challenge. In particular, more programs are needed for non-physicians and for low-income countries. [source] Building our global family , achieving treatment for allHAEMOPHILIA, Issue 2010M. W. SKINNER Summary., Building our global family by reaching out to women, children and youth and those in sub-Saharan Africa to achieve Treatment for All. The World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) has committed to recognizing and incorporating the critical and important challenges that are faced by women with bleeding disorders within our global family. The next crucial steps include the development of outreach and registry programmes which can be adapted globally to accelerate the identification of such women, and to educate and guide them to the appropriate clinical care setting. Equally important, awareness must be raised within the broader medical community where women would typically first present with clinical symptoms. Family practitioners, nurse-midwives, obstetricians, gynaecologists and community health clinics will increasingly be strategic and central to WFH outreach efforts, in addition to serving as new care partners essential to the multidisciplinary model of care. Adapting and implementing the WFH development model regionally within Africa is proving to be a successful approach both for the introduction as well as the development of sustainable national care programmes for patients with bleeding disorders. The targeted development of solid national programmes such as in South Africa, Senegal and Kenya has expanded the training capacity of the WFH, as well as providing key regional examples. Local medical professionals are now responsible for providing the training in many regional programmes. Children with bleeding disorders in low-income countries are at great risk of dying young. WFH data demonstrate that among such patients, as the economic capacity of a country decreases so does the ratio of adults to children. The organization of care, training of a multi-disciplinary healthcare team, and education of patients and their families lead to improved mortality independent of economic capacity or increased clotting factor concentrate availability. Additionally, through enhanced youth education, awareness and engagement, we will assure continuity within WFH national member organizations, build greater unity within our global family and capture the innovation and creativity of their ideas to improve Treatment for All. [source] The role of private providers in treating child diarrhoea in Latin AmericaHEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2008Hugh R. Waters Abstract Diarrhoeal disease, a leading cause of child mortality, disproportionately affects children in low-income countries , where private and non-governmental providers are often an important source of health care. We use 10 Living Standards Measurement Surveys from Latin America to model the choice of care for child diarrhoea in the private sector compared to the public sector. A total of 36.8% of children in the combined data set saw a private provider rather than a public one when taken for treatment. Each additional quintile of household economic status is associated with an increase of 6.5 percentage points in the probability that a child with diarrhoea is taken to a private provider (p<0.001). However, treatments provided in the private sector are manifestly of worse quality than in the public sector. A total of 33.0% of children visiting a public provider received Oral Rehydration Solution, compared to 13.7% of those visiting a private provider. Conversely, children treated by a private provider are more likely to receive drugs, most commonly unnecessary antibiotics. Ironically, when it comes to treatment for child diarrhoea, wealthier and better educated households in Latin America are paying for treatment in the private sector that is ineffective in comparison with treatments that are commonly and inexpensively available. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Financial development and poverty reduction in developing countriesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF FINANCE & ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2002Hossein Jalilian Empirical investigation of the link between financial development and economic growth has established that finance exerts a significant and positive influence on growth. This paper extends this line of analysis by examining the contribution that financial development makes to poverty reduction in low-income countries. The results reported support the contention that financial sector development policy can contribute to achieving the goal of poverty reduction in developing countries. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Impact of organizational change on the delivery of reproductive services: a review of the literatureINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2005Tim Ensor Abstract In order to understand the impact of specific maternal health interventions, it is necessary to understand the likely effect of the health system structure. An important aspect of this structure is the organizational culture. Many systems in low-income countries have been based on a centrally planned and financed system. In recent years a series of organizational changes have been introduced into many systems and these substantially alter the way in which the system operates and impacts on reproductive health care provision. The main changes reviewed in this paper are: (i) decentralization, (ii) privatization and (iii) integration and sector wide approaches. Each of these changes is seen to have important implications for reproductive health. In each case it is clear that the nature of the impact depends crucially on the way it is implemented. Quantifying the impact of these changes remains extremely difficult given the many different ways they can be introduced and the many confounding factors that affect the overall impact. The literature does, however, point to a number of key issues that impinge on the way in which change is likely to affect reproductive health initiatives. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Mapping capacity in the health sector: a conceptual frameworkINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2002Anne K. LaFond Abstract Capacity improvement has become central to strategies used to develop health systems in low-income countries. Experience suggests that achieving better health outcomes requires both increased investment (i.e. financial resources) and adequate local capacity to use resources effectively. International donors and non-governmental agencies, as well as ministries of health, are therefore increasingly relying on capacity building to enhance overall performance in the health sector. Despite the growing interest in capacity improvement, there has been little consensus among practitioners and academics on definitions of ,capacity building' and how to evaluate it. This paper aims to review current knowledge and experiences from ongoing efforts to monitor and evaluate capacity building interventions in the health sector in developing countries. It draws on a wide range of sources to develop (1) a definition of capacity building and (2) a conceptual framework for mapping capacity and measuring the effects of capacity building interventions. Mapping is the initial step in the design of capacity building interventions and provides a framework for monitoring and evaluating their effectiveness. Capacity mapping is useful to planners because it makes explicit the assumptions underlying the relationship between capacity and health system performance and provides a framework for testing those assumptions. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Do universal non-contributory old-age pensions make sense for rural areas in low-income countries?INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY REVIEW, Issue 4 2006Jessica K. M. Johnson The need for old-age security coverage in rural areas of many developing countries is rapidly increasing for several reasons, including population ageing and the weakening of family support networks. These trends have generated intense interest in policies that might help respond to the growing problem of rural old-age destitution. The focus of our analysis is on one of the most promising alternatives under consideration: universal non-contributory old-age pensions. This model has some limitations and it is not appropriate for all developing countries, but it would be of potential benefit to far more than the six that have already implemented variants of this approach. [source] Ex ante analysis of the benefits of transgenic drought tolerance research on cereal crops in low-income countriesAGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, Issue 4 2009Genti Kostandini Drought tolerance; Transgenic; Research benefits; Intellectual property rights Abstract This article develops a framework to examine the ex ante benefits of transgenic research on drought in eight low-income countries, including the benefits to producers and consumers from farm income stabilization and the potential magnitude of private sector profits from intellectual property rights (IPRs). The framework employs country-specific agroecological,drought risk zones and considers both yield increases and yield variance reductions when estimating producer and consumer benefits from research. Benefits from yield variance reductions are shown to be an important component of aggregate drought research benefits, representing 40% of total benefits across the eight countries. Further, estimated annual benefits of US$178 million to the private sector suggest that significant incentives exist for participation in transgenic drought tolerance research. [source] Tobacco use, cancer causation and public health impactJOURNAL OF INTERNAL MEDICINE, Issue 6 2002H. Kuper Abstract.,Kuper H, Adami H-O, Boffetta P (University College London, Torrington Place, London, UK; Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; and International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France). Tobacco use, cancer causation and public health impact. J Intern Med 2002; 251: 455,466. This review describes global patterns of tobacco use and the mechanisms by which tobacco use is involved in carcinogenesis. A second part will discuss the association between tobacco use and risk of specific cancer types. To bacco use has traditionally been a practice of high-income countries, but it has recently been taken up in low-income countries and it is particularly common in men. A wide variety of tobacco products exist, of which cigarettes are most frequently consumed. Tobacco products contain more than 50 established or identified carcinogens and these may increase risk of cancer by causing mutations that disrupt cell cycle regulation, or through their effect on the immune or endocrine systems. Certain factors such as genes, diet and environmental exposures may alter susceptibility to cancer in tobacco users. Today at least 15% of all cancers are estimated to be attributable to smoking, but this figure is expected to increase because of the uptake of tobacco use in low-income countries. [source] Aid, restitution and international fiscal redistribution in health care: implications of health professionals' migrationJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2006Maureen Mackintosh Abstract High and sustained levels of migration of health professionals from labour-short health services in low-income countries to the health services of rich countries create a perverse subsidy from poor to rich, flowing across national boundaries. This subsidy worsens international inequality, and creates an obligation, both ethical and legal, for the payment of restitution. Drawing on the case of the migration of health professionals from Sub-Saharan Africa to the UK, we argue that this obligation in turn constitutes an opportunity to shift development aid relationships away from a framework of charity towards a less neo-colonial commitment to progressive international fiscal transfers. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Global Public Health Implications of a Mass Gathering in Mecca, Saudi Arabia During the Midst of an Influenza PandemicJOURNAL OF TRAVEL MEDICINE, Issue 2 2010Kamran Khan MD Background. Every year millions of pilgrims from around the world gather under extremely crowded conditions in Mecca, Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj. In 2009, the Hajj coincided with influenza season during the midst of an influenza A (H1N1) pandemic. After the Hajj, resource-limited countries with large numbers of traveling pilgrims could be vulnerable, given their limited ability to purchase H1N1 vaccine and capacity to respond to a possible wave of H1N1 introduced via returning pilgrims. Methods. We studied the worldwide migration of pilgrims traveling to Mecca to perform the Hajj in 2008 using data from the Saudi Ministry of Health and international air traffic departing Saudi Arabia after the 2008 Hajj using worldwide airline ticket sales data. We used gross national income (GNI) per capita as a surrogate marker of a country's ability to mobilize an effective response to H1N1. Results. In 2008, 2.5 million pilgrims from 140 countries performed the Hajj. Pilgrims (1.7 million) were of international (non-Saudi) origin, of which 91.0% traveled to Saudi Arabia via commercial flights. International pilgrims (11.3%) originated from low-income countries, with the greatest numbers traveling from Bangladesh (50,419), Afghanistan (32,621), and Yemen (28,018). Conclusions. Nearly 200,000 pilgrims that performed the Hajj in 2008 originated from the world's most resource-limited countries, where access to H1N1 vaccine and capacity to detect and respond to H1N1 in returning pilgrims are extremely limited. International efforts may be needed to assist resource-limited countries that are vulnerable to the impact of H1N1 during the 2009 to 2010 influenza season. [source] The exodus of health professionals from sub-Saharan Africa: balancing human rights and societal needs in the twenty-first centuryNURSING INQUIRY, Issue 2 2007Linda Ogilvie Increased international migration of health professionals is weakening healthcare systems in low-income countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa. The migration of nurses, physicians and other health professionals from countries in sub-Saharan Africa poses a major threat to the achievement of health equity in this region. As nurses form the backbone of healthcare systems in many of the affected countries, it is the accelerating migration of nurses that will be most critical over the next few years. In this paper we present a comprehensive analysis of the literature and argue that, from a human rights perspective, there are competing rights in the international migration of health professionals: the right to leave one's country to seek a better life; the right to health of populations in the source and destination countries; labour rights; the right to education; and the right to nondiscrimination and equality. Creative policy approaches are required to balance these rights and to ensure that the individual rights of health professionals do not compromise the societal right to health. [source] DO FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSITS PROMOTE OR DETER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARY DEVELOPMENT IN LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES?THE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, Issue 3 2008AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF CROSS-COUNTRY DATA G21; F36 Foreign currency deposits (FCD) are prevalent in many low-income developing countries, but their impact on bank lending has rarely been examined. An examination of cross-country data indicates that a higher proportion of FCD in total deposits is associated with more private credit only in inflationary circumstances. FCD can lead to a decline in private credit below a certain threshold level of inflation. Given that FCD exhibit persistence, deregulating them in low-income countries could cause more harm than good to financial intermediary development in the long term. [source] Non-linear finance,growth nexusTHE ECONOMICS OF TRANSITION, Issue 3 2009A threshold with instrumental variable approach Financial development; economic growth; instrumental variable; threshold regression Abstract This paper revisits the question of whether the finance,growth nexus varies with the stages of economic development. Using a novel threshold regression with the instrumental variables approach proposed by Caner and Hansen (2004) to the dataset used in Levine et al. (2000) we detect overwhelming evidence in support of a positive linkage between financial development and economic growth, and this positive effect is larger in the low-income countries than in the high-income ones. The data also reveal that financial development tends to have stronger impacts on capital accumulation and productivity growth in the low-income countries than in the high-income ones. The findings are robust to alternative financial development measures and conditioning information sets. [source] INCOME THRESHOLDS AND GROWTH CONVERGENCE: A PANEL DATA APPROACH,THE MANCHESTER SCHOOL, Issue 2 2006TSUNG-WU HO This paper applies a dynamic panel model to explore whether the low-income countries ,catch up' with the rich ones by examining the threshold effects of per capita income on the convergence behavior of growth rates. Empirical evidence from 121 Penn World Table economies and 48 US states indicates that income levels have substantial impacts on the convergence behavior. First, convergence is insignificantly found in the lowest-income regimes, which is interpreted that these poor countries persist at their income levels, which cause possible income barriers-to-growth. That is, the poor countries may not be able to catch up with the rich ones easily, unless an income threshold is overcome. Second, convergence is significantly found beyond the lowest-income regime, implying that the low-income countries catch up with the rich. We conclude that when a certain income threshold is overcome, the poor countries catch up with the rich ones; hence a subsidiary income policy can be helpful. [source] | ||||||||||||||||