World Bank Country Study
43 total works
Soon after its declaration of independence, Lithuania launched a program of market-based economic reforms that achieved remarkable results. However, a banking crisis erupted in January 1996, driven by a combination of ineffective bank supervision, poor bank practices, and deep-rooted sectoral imbalances. With financial support from the World Bank, Lithuanian authorities embarked on a broad economic reform program with two immediate objectives: the resolution of the banking system's operational and undercapitalization problems, and a reduction in the most severe imbalances in the economy. 'Volume I' distills findings and conclusions and builds a policy action plan for fast stable growth. 'Volume II' contains a collection of twelve policy notes that provide the technical analysis behind that plan.
Despite Panama's relatively high-income per capita, poverty remains pervasive. The distribution and magnitude of poverty varies significantly by geographic area, but it is most extreme in the rural and indigenous areas. Disparities in education cause most of the poverty, malnutrition, and inequality. This report on these and other issues of poverty in Panama was prepared as a result of a collaborative process between the government and the World Bank. The process was established to build capacity for, and ownership of, the analysis in the government. The objectives of the report are as follows: - to assess the extent and determinants of poverty, malnutrition, and inequality in Panama; - to examine the impact of government policies and spending on the poor in key sectors; and - to outline priorities and steps for translating broad principles for poverty reduction into action.
'The poverty of individuals and households in Moldova have mirrored the causes of the overall slowdown in the economy. Many enterprises found that the post-Soviet economic structure resulted in a vast increase in the ratio of their input prices to the market price of their output.' Moldova is having an arduous transition from being a centrally-planned economy to one that is guided by market signals. This and the regional crisis in 1998 have exacerbated poverty and inequality levels in Moldova. This report provides a detailed analysis of the situation regarding living standards in the country and provides a framework for policy for the Government's emerging social assistance program. It examines the composition and distribution of poverty in Moldova, how income and price shocks have affected the lives of the poor, and the role of the Moldovan state in easing poverty. It concentrates on analyzing the results for the Right Bank of Moldova, so that any references to Moldova imply the Right Bank. The report will interest members of the Moldovan government, Bank staff, and anyone studying Eastern Europe in general and Moldova in particular.
'At the end of 1995, the Czech Republic was regarded as the clearest success story in the region. It had one of the lowest rates of inflation and the lowest rates of unemployment. The high GDP growth rate looked sustainable, as it was accompanied by a moderate current account deficit, balanced fiscal account and seemed to be underpinned by important structural reform.' The Czech Republic was perceived until 1996 as the most successful transition economy in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The Czech Republic seems to be the clearest success story in the region. However, the Czech miracle came to a halt in May 1997. Its future economic development and successful integration into the European Union (EU) depends critically on its capacity to recover a sustainable output growth path. To assist the country in achieving its primary goal to join the European Union (EU) in the shortest period of time, this report analyzes economic developments in the Czech Republic since 1997. It focuses on assessing the status of the Czech Republic's economy from the perspective of its pursuit for EU membership. The report is composed of two volumes. The first volume is the summary report that condenses main findings and conclusions. The second volume is the main report. It provides the assessment and technical study of selected key sectors of the Czech economy. The EU accession process dominates the sector analyses, which are outlined in each chapter.
Past successes are creating new challenges for the Chilean health care system. Chile's population is aging as a result of increasing life expectancy and declining fertility. In Chile, as elsewhere in the world, an older population causes concern about greater use of health services, and the corresponding financial burden. Increasingly, Chile's medical system is using advanced technologies to provide care for serious health conditions affecting people of all ages. The expansion in access to costly, high-technology services puts additional pressure on health care financiers. This paper contributes to discussions on two related aspects of the future of Chile's health care delivery and financing: the effects of the aging of the population and the increasing demand for catastrophic care. Data from several sources is used in order to address complex questions and draw conclusions regarding the magnitude of the problem facing the Chilean government today and in the near future. In addition, the paper describes and evaluates the programs that have been proposed and implemented to assure access and contain costs, as well as analyze the strengthens and weaknesses of other options for financing catastrophic elderly care. It also discusses possible alternatives for dealing with catastrophic and elderly health care costs.
The country study is based on the findings of several missions that visited Slovenia during the second half of 1997 and 1998. The report analyzes economic developments of the past few years and policy options linked to the challenges faced by Slovenia in its pursuit of European Union membership. The report is composed of two volumes. 'Volume I' is a summary report that condenses main findings and conclusions. The report focuses on: - elimination of the remaining structural weaknesses as means to maintain the macroeconomic stability; - increasing the competitiveness of the Slovene economy abroad; and - redefining the size and roles of the public and private sectors. 'Volume II' is the main report. It provides the assessment and technical analysis of selected key sectors of the Slovene economy. While each chapter is sector-specific in nature, the EU accession process dominates them. 'Volume II' covers the following issues: - Review of the economic performance during the transition - Analysis of the growth and income convergence issues - Study of the environment sector - Assessment of the foreign trade sector - Challenges of the financial sector - Enterprise sector issues - Labor market and social policies - Agricultural sector - Municipal governments
Reducing poverty is the central development challenge in Bangladesh. This poverty assessment addresses several basic 'counting the poor' questions: Who are the poor? How numerous are they? Where do they live? What are the characteristics of poor households? How should we measure poverty? Has poverty declined? Has inequality increased? In answering these questions this poverty assessment constructs a poverty profile for Bangladesh. Although poverty has declined in Bangladesh in the 1990s, the remaining challenges are enormous. This report is part of a long-term process of capacity building and mainstreaming of poverty analysis in Bangladesh. Its findings suggest five pillars of a possible poverty reduction strategy: * Accelerating economic growth * Promoting education for the poor * Investing in poor areas * Improved targeting of public expenditures and safety nets * Forming further partnerships with NGOs Discussions with stakeholders, NGOs, the government, poverty researchers, and other donors in Bangladesh arising from this report will help to build support for an action plan and more detailed policy and institutional changes for faster poverty reduction.
This study evaluates growth trends in Armenia for the period 1994-2000. It details major weaknesses of existing development patterns, and suggests a package of policy recommendations designed to hasten enterprise restructuring, attract investment, and encourage the creation of new businesses in the medium term (three to five years). This study identifies three elements that represent critical constraints to sustainable economic growth in Armenia: a poor business and investment environment, weak managerial skills, and uncertainty about the country's economic and political prospects in an unstable region.
After being immersed in almost three decades of civil conflict, the prevailing peace and political stability in Ethiopia allowed its government to focus on rebuilding its economy. As an integral part of this undertaking, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is seeking to overhaul the landscape of human capital development in the country. This report discusses the situation and trends in education, health, nutrition, and population. It also examines the barriers to improvement from the points of view of Ethiopian households and public and private suppliers of services. It also attempts to identify the means by which the government can use public resources more effectively.
Although El Salvador has recorded impressive overall economic growth in the 1990s, during this period, agricultural growth has lagged considerably below the rest of the economy, which raises concerns about the long-run capacity of the sector to raise incomes and employment in rural areas and contribute to overall growth. The main objectives of this sector review are twofold: to develop a strategy to revitalize the agricultural sector and realize its full potential for efficient and sustainable growth by enhancing competitiveness; and to present the main findings of the analysis of rural poverty and develop its implications for the design of a strategy for poverty alleviation.
Bosnia and Herzegovina are experiencing the beginnings of political, social and economic recovery. The challenge is to build up the Dayton-mandated institutions and to make the economic recovery sustainable with the help of the international community. This book discusses this challenge.
'Economic integration that leads to the convergence of incomes and living standards is at the heart of the EU accession process. The assumption is that trade integration combined with institutional harmonization will lead to sustainable capital flows from European Union member countries to acceding countries ...' Estonia's case for accession is built, to a large extent, on a record of sound economic management. Indeed, since regaining independence in 1991, Estonia has successfully implemented a broad agenda of stabilization and structural reform policies. This commitment to sound economic management has yielded positive results. However, at present, Estonia is experiencing a sharp economic slowdown as a result of two major external shocks, the Asia and Russia crises. This country study emphasizes areas where there is greatest overlap between the accession agenda and measures to strengthen economic management. These areas of overlap include upgrading financial sector supervision and strengthening budget management. It also includes reforms in areas where there is complementarity between reforms designed to facilitate accession and structural reforms that will support long-term growth and economic integration. These are the modernization of public administration, the adherence to EU quality standards, the continuous improvement of the operations of the customs board, and the completion of land reform. Finally, the last two chapters of the study examine areas where implementing the accession agenda entail either a fundamental change in Estonia's trade policy regime, or have high compliance costs. These are the adoption of the EUs Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), as it evolves, and complying with EU environmental standards.
Regaining Fiscal Sustainability and Enhancing Effectiveness in Croatia
by World Bank
Published 1 April 2002
During the 1990s while undergoing the process of nation building, Croatia made significant strides in private sector development and privatisation. However, confronted by the impact of war and the need for reconstruction, a fairly sizeable deficit was amassed. The new government installed in 2000, was confronted with the need to establish a more sustainable fiscal policy while confronted by high unemployment and social spending. This report contains a thorough analysis of the areas critical to an improved budgetary management process including expenditure reorientation and restructuring. It provides detailed recommendations to facilitate the efforts of the Croatian Government in reducing public spending while improving its' effectiveness.
Education in Rwanda: Rebalancing Resources to Accelerate Post-Conflict Development and Poverty Reduction is part of the World Bank Country Study series. These reports are published with the approval of the subject government to communicate the results of the Bank's work on the economic and related conditions of member countries to governments and to the development community. Ten years after the 1994 genocide - in which an estimated 10 percent of the country's population perished - Rwanda's devastated education system is now back on its feet. This success notwithstanding, the task of transforming the rapid recovery into sustained progress over time has only just begun. A priority will be to ensure that all Rwandan children can complete a full course of primary schooling of reasonable quality; and that expansion at the post-primary levels occurs at a pace commensurate with the labor market's capacity to absorb highly educated job seekers.
Achieving these goals will present tough tradeoffs in financing and service delivery: for example, combining increased funding for primary education with greater reliance on private financing at other levels of education; sharper targeting of public subsidies for education; and tighter management of classroom processes to improve student flow and student learning throughout the system. Education in Rwanda explores the challenges of sustaining educational progress in a fiscally viable fashion
Achieving these goals will present tough tradeoffs in financing and service delivery: for example, combining increased funding for primary education with greater reliance on private financing at other levels of education; sharper targeting of public subsidies for education; and tighter management of classroom processes to improve student flow and student learning throughout the system. Education in Rwanda explores the challenges of sustaining educational progress in a fiscally viable fashion
Colombia, one of South Americas oldest, middle-income democracies, has developed rapidly despite a fifty year 'simmering' civil war and increasing levels of urban and rural crime and violence. In the past decade, however, the scale and intensity of violence has changed from a marginal conflict to generalized violence that now dominates the daily lives of most citizens. As remote guerilla activity has turned into country-wide 'war', bringing in paramilitary groups, drug cartels, and other social actors, so too the causes of violence have changed. These have included both external events such as the collapse of the Cold War, as well as internal changes relating to economic liberalization, coal and oil developments and the impact of the global trade in illicit narcotics. Violence in Colombia is highly complex not only because of the different categories, but also due to its multiple causes. This paper combines disparate existing theories to develop an integrated framework that identifies four different levels of causality: structural, institutional, interpersonal, and individual. It recognizes the mutually reinforcing role played by factors at different levels of causality. Underlying the causes of violence in Colombia is minimal state presence in many parts of the country, widespread corruption and impunity, high levels of societal acceptance of violence, and a regionally fragmented country.
This Country Economic Memorandum is based on the findings of missions that visited the Slovak Republic in December 1996 and January 1997. The report examines the main economic developments of the past few years and the challenges faced by the country in its EU accession quest. It also analyzes the Slovak Republic's ability to take the obligations of membership that imply full compliance with the acquis-communautaire--the set of rules and regulations applicable to all Member States.