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Received January 2003
Greetings from B-SPAN, the World Bank's webcasting station on development
issues. Among the recent additions to B-SPAN are the following:
Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Director of the United Nations Human Development Report
Office, noted in her overview of the 2002 Human Development Report that Nobel
winning economist Amartya Sen once proclaimed democracy to be the greatest
achievement of the twentieth century. By the year 2000, more than half of the
world's population lived in democracies while those living under
authoritarian rule dropped to less than one-third. But the report, which
focused on the role of politics in development, suggests emerging democracies
remain vulnerable to abuses which may negatively affect social and economic
development. Improving governance becomes a focal point for successful
development, and the report called an increased emphasis on citizen
engagement a critical ingredient in such a process. Democracies, the report
noted, improve economic and social development through accountability and
public participation rather than relying solely on competition for power or
resources. The event was chaired by Ian Johnson, Vice President of the World
Bank's Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development network, with
commentary from Bank economists Branko Milanovic and Mark Gradstein.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_hd_report.htm
During the late 1990's University of Goteborg economist Thomas Sterner worked
with the Development Economics network of the World Bank, and had first-hand
insights into some practical applications of economic instruments on a
variety of global environmental management settings. His Bank experiences
proved instrumental in his recent book, Policy Instruments for Environmental
and Natural Resource Management, a collaborative publication between the
Bank, Resources for the Future, and the Swedish International Development
Agency (SIDA). In his discussion of the book, which covers a wide spectrum
of economic theory and instrument selection design in both developed and
developing countries, Sterner explained how the evolution of property rights
led to the creation of principles which govern the way resources are often
utilized. He also provided an overview of policy instruments, and how taxes,
charges, and permits are used in different regions. The author stressed that
variations in local and regional costs necessitate the need for myriad
approaches. Sterner noted the book sought to help identity policy
instruments which might ensure equity and sustainability in situations where
free markets could not make such assurances. In the book, the author focused
on transport, industry, and the management of ecosystems including fisheries,
water, forests, and agriculture.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_policy_instruments.htm
Beginning in the summer of 1997, Indonesia's currency began a downward spiral
from 2,200 rupiah to the dollar to 17,000 to the dollar by January 1998. The
social impact of the economic crisis was substantial as wages fell and the
numbers of Indonesians living in poverty soared. In response, the government
had targeted sales of rice, health care subsidies and community block grants,
as well as created new work and scholarship programs. Harvard University
professor Lant Pritchett provided an overview of his empirical analysis of
these targeted programs in a recent discussion at the Bank. Among the
findings, Pritchett's research suggests the size of a program's coverage was
not substantial in determining its impact, but community values and community
participation were influential factors.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_targeted_indonesia.htm
More than 100 staff joined the Bank's Chief Economist Nicholas Stern and Vice
President of Operations Policy and Country Services Jim Adams in December for
a wide-ranging discussion on development strategy and Bank operations. Much
of the discussion focused on scaling up the Bank's impact through project
analysis and evaluation. Stern provided an overview of development lessons
the Bank has drawn from its experiences, and discussed the institution's
strategy for improving the investment climate for growth and empowering poor
people. Stern said the following were among the key lessons the Bank has
learned from its work: the state is a critical component but not a substitute
for the market; the private sector is the most powerful driver of economic
growth; trade is an engine for growth; and development activities function
more effectively if people feel empowered. Stern also noted is a process of
structural change in societies, usually away from agriculture and into
services or manufacturing. The challenge for the Bank is to look at the
structural issues surrounding growth in order to help guide these changes.
Adams talked about the operational side of the Bank's day-to-day work and
efforts to cut red tape. Staff raised questions and offered comments,
including lessons learned from their own experiences. Topics discussed
included some of the difficulties and successes of integrating capacity
building and empowerment activities into the Bank's operations, the need for
more adept responses to rapid urbanization; and the need to provide better
incentives to staff for working in difficult countries or on risky projects.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_dynamic_dev.htm
Naturally reoccurring phenomena such as El Nino affect climate on a global
scale, destroying livelihood's and hindering sustainable development.
Researchers from Columbia University's International Research Institute came
to the Bank recently to discuss forecasting models on the impact of the
current El Nino for 2002 into 2003. Projections were made for weather
patterns globally, with particular emphasis given to understanding the impact
of El Nino on Asia, Africa and Latin America. IRI researchers also discussed
how political, economic and social conditions influenced regions and nations
to respond differently to these climatic changes. IRI's modeling sought to
anticipate the social and economic impact of El Nino in 2003 to help
policymakers in the Bank and elsewhere design appropriate emergency response
and risk management initiatives. IRI researchers also looked at specific
policy related questions such as El Nino's impact on incidents of malaria,
agricultural production and water resource management.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_forecasting_elnino.htm
Countries see their education systems as contributing to their national
cohesion through the building of skills, work habits, and individual
responsibility. Little is known, however, about how the content and
organization of education systems might influence the attitudes of children
regarding cooperation or trust. The results of a study on social cohesion
and education were presented recently by Jo Ritzen, Vice President of the
Bank's Human Development network, and Bank education specialists Lianqin Wang
and Yael Duthilleul. The study sought to examine the relationship between
educational quality, income distribution and social cohesion. Ritzen
described social cohesion as a person's "ability to move forward" and said
the analysis suggested high social cohesion translated to low transaction
costs. One hypothesis, Ritzen suggested, is people associate a high quality
of education with a better quality of life, and this may create a sense of
social cohesion. From his own observations, Ritzen said he has seen a
correlation between educational inequality, high social transaction costs and
corruption. He also noted there appears to be a relationship between income
and social cohesion, and the data related to educational quality and income
is firm according to many recent measurements. How education systems are
organized may also provide information on social cohesion. He and colleagues
believe school autonomy has a positive effect on achievement, but are less
sure about the effects on inequality. Ritzen and colleagues found a high
degree of correlation between social cohesion, trust, educational
achievement, and income. For instance, school and teacher autonomy was
positively related to trust. The researchers believe the data suggests more
trusting societies create more autonomous education systems, which are in
turn more inclusive and may lead to higher levels of trust.
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_education_social.htm
B-SPAN offers everyone an opportunity to see policy seminars and presentations
held regularly at the World Bank. Leading experts from around the world discuss
a variety of sustainable development and poverty reduction issues, and anyone
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B-SPAN are permanently archived, and can be seen at anytime from its website.
B-SPAN is a virtual library of information on sustainable development and
poverty reduction issues.
To visit B-SPAN, go to
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN
If you wish to know about upcoming events at the Bank or events to be covered by
B-SPAN, visit
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/this_month_wb.htm
The following videos have been recently made available:
Development Economics
Dynamic Development: Innovation and Inclusion - What Does This Mean For The
Bank?
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_dynamic_dev.htm
Exports versus Foreign Direct Investments (FDI)
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_exports_fdi.htm
The Effect of Minimum Wages on Formal and Informal Sector: Evidence from
Costa Rica
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_min_wage_costarica.htm
Environment
Climate Change and Agricultural Vulnerability
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_climate_change.htm
Forecasting the 2002-2003 El Nino and Minimizing its Impacts on Development
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_forecasting_elnino.htm
Policy Instruments for Environmental and Natural Resource Management
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_policy_instruments.htm
Operations Evaluation Department (OED) Book Launches: Global Forests and
Comprehensive Development Framework
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_cdf_forests.htm
Finance
Global Dialogues on E-Security
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_e-security.htm
Global Dialogues on Microfinance
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_reg_microfinance.htm
Human Development
Education and Social Cohesion
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_education_social.htm
Empowering the Poor Through Rural Information Centers: What Works and What is
Sustainable? Gender and Digital Divide Series
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_info_centers.htm
Linking Policy Actions to Results in Education: New Tools for Sharpening Our
Thinking
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_linking_policy.htm
UN Development Programme's Human Development Report 2002
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_hd_report.htm
Law and Justice
Access to Justice: Dutch and British Experiences
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_access_justice.htm
Poverty Reduction and Economic Management
Targeted Programs in Economic Crisis: Empirical Findings from Indonesia's
Experience
http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/B-SPAN/sub_targeted_indonesia.htm
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