This article sets out to investigate the reasons why some household businesses decide to register and become formal (while others do not) in order to shed light on the origins of informality. We use qualitative as well as quantitative data on household businesses (HB) derived from first-hand...

This paper contributes to the current debate on pro-poor growth. It discusses the respective impacts of macro-economic growth and the reduction of income inequality on monetary poverty. Our results emphasise the potential importance of the latter factor and suggest putting forward redistribution...

The strong growth of the Vietnamese economy over the last two decades has brought about sweeping economic and social changes. In particular, there has been a sharp downturn in poverty along with an upturn in social inequalities (albeit not as sharp as in China). This makes the question of the...

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund launched a joint initiative in September 1999, setting the fight against poverty at the heart of development policies. Under this initiative, developing countries wishing to apply for financial aid from either of the organizations, or for debt...

The success of export processing zones in Madagascar, or Zone Franche, since 1990 is an isolated case in Africa, apart from Mauritius. This paper explains that Zone Franche has had a very significant macro-economic impact in terms of exports and jobs. Thanks to Zone Franche, before the 2002...

Since its creation, the role and mission of the World Bank have gradually expanded, allowing it to acquire its present leadership role in development policy. Faced with the crisis of legitimacy of the 1990s, this institution implemented profound, continuous changes. The promotion of new poverty...

National accounts data indicate good performance since 1997. But how far can we trust this diagnostic given the weakness in official statistics? If the improvement in real growth reveals effective, do households benefit from it? To address these questions, this study analyzes reliable data from...

The success of Export Processing Zones (EPZs) or the Zone Franche in Madagascar is, with the exception of Mauritius, an isolated and unrecognized case in Africa. The Zone Franche has had a highly significant macroeconomic impact in terms of exports and jobs. Madagascar became the number two...

The strong growth of the Vietnamese economy over the last two decades has brought about sweeping economic and social changes. In particular, there has been a sharp downturn in poverty along with an upturn in social inequalities (albeit not as sharp as in China). This makes the question of the...