This paper discusses a Request from Congo for a Three-Year Arrangement Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) program. Growth in Congo in 2008 was strong, but weakened by the onset of the global financial crisis during the second half of the year that resulted in a deterioration...

In spite of their long history and constitutional status, local governments in Bangladesh have a poor record of being an efficient, accountable and responsive provider of public services at local level. Over the decades, the local government system in Bangladesh has been “more an area of...

This paper is adapted from a recent World Bank study that examined the performance of Kenya’s five largest cities, namely Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru and Elodret. That study identified a host of factors that have contributed to the failure of Kenyan cities, especially Nairobi and other...

In Korea, the socio-economic imbalance between the Capital and non-Capital Regions has become a serious issue despite the various decentralization policies instituted since the 1960’s. This study aims at analyzing the effect of decentralization of population in the capital region on income,...

non-Capital Regions has become a serious issue despite the various decentralization policies instituted since the 1960’s. This study aims at analyzing the effect of decentralization of population in the capital region on income, and revealing the difference in productivity between the Capital...