The present analysis sheds light on the setting up a regional rating agency in Asia in the wake of recent financial crisis. We investigate the policy facing a financial regulator while evaluating whether or not to admit new entrants into the credit rating market. In an incomplete contracting...

This project grew out of the never ending requests I receive from journalists, scholars and government officials to provide a list of the leading think tanks in a particular country or region of the world. Last year I launched a pilot project that was designed to identify some of the leading...

Sustainable development remains high on the international agenda, even as policy makers are distracted by the political and fiscal fall-out of the global financial crisis. Its continued prominence is illustrated by various countries use of fiscal stimulus to fast-track the greening of the...

This paper traces the recent emergence of the new participatory forest management regime in AP Joint Forest Management (JFM) and Community Forest Management (CFM). This paper is based on the existing literature on forest policies, the historical context (pre-colonial, colonial and post...

This paper primarily assesses the status of rural livelihoods in fragile environments with diverse resource endowments and policy interventions. The objective was to examine the effectiveness of resource enhancing policy interventions like watershed development in reducing resource endowment...

This study examines the utilization of iron ore in India. It takes into account the significant reserves of iron ore in India and allays fears that the country's steel industry will run out of iron ore resources if exports continue at the current level. On the contrary, it says that exports are...

With crude oil price largely fluctuating, both oil producing and consuming countries have come to identify the challenges brought by the destabilization of crude oil price. Among those, there have been discussions on fair price, that is, the price level which both consuming and oil producing...

Developing Asia is the driver of today’s emissions intensive global economy. As the principle source of future emissions, the region is critical to the task of global climate change mitigation. Reflecting this global reality and a range of related domestic issues, the governments of...

Development of a vibrant and competitive services sector is a key characteristic of modern economies. In the developed world, services frequently account for two-thirds or three-quarters of all economic activity. The transition from agriculture through manufacturing to a services...

The developing economies of Asia are confronted by serious environmental problems that threaten to undermine future growth, food security, and regional stability. This study considers four major environmental challenges that policymakers across developing Asia will need to address towards...