Fragility that periodically erupts into a full-blown financial crisis appears to be an integral feature of market-based financial systems in spite of the emergence of sophisticated risk management tools and regulatory systems. If anything, the increased frequency of modern crises underscores how...

State-owned enterprises (SOEs) continue to constrain Pacific economies. They absorb scarce capital, suffer low productivity, and often provide high cost and low quality services. SOE reform is vital to create private investment opportunities, reduce the costs of doing business, and improve...

Achieving Financial Stability in Asia sets out to identify the elements which could restore confidence to the countries of the region and stabilise financial flows on a global basis. Thus, measures must be taken which include improving public and corporate governance, strengthening democracy and...

This private sector assessment reviews Fiji’s private sector environment in 2006–2012, against recommendations made in ADB’s 2005 Promise Unfulfilled: Private Sector Assessment for Fiji. While fiji has made considerable reform progress in a number of areas (including tax reforms,...

The Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) is a regional technical assistance facility cofinanced by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Australian Aid, and the New Zealand Aid Programme. PSDI works with ADB’s 14 Pacific developing member countries to improve the enabling...

This analysis is a follow-up to Transforming Tonga: A Private Sector Assessment. It assesses until early 2012 in reducing transaction costs and other barriers to growth identified in the 2008 private sector assessment. It concludes that Tonga has been one of the leading reformers in the Pacific...