Economic growth is a driving force in reducing poverty, but experience has shown that good governance and pro-poor choices are vitally important in the process of alleviating poverty. This paper explores linkages between governance and pro-poor growth in Pakistan for the period 1996 to 2005. The...

The paper investigates the labor market and social impacts of the global financial and economic crisis in Asia and the Pacific as well as national policy responses to the crisis. It draws on recent macroeconomic, trade, production, investment, and remittances data to assess the employment and...

This paper explores the relationship between unemployment (U) and job vacancies (V) in the Singapore labour market. Empirical analysis using the framework of the UV Curve (also known as the Beveridge Curve) indicates that Singapores labour market appears to have improved in its matching...

What forces have shaped our nations employment and remuneration record so far? Where is Singapores unemployment rate headed? What should policy-makers do about it? These are the questions tackled in this paper. It is shown that based on our historical experience, it would be necessary to achieve...

This study provides an overview of the concepts used to measure unemployment in Indonesia and their consequences for the measured unemployment trends. One finding shows that BPSs decision in 2001 to relax the definition of labor force by including discouraged workers has resulted in an...

When most people think about the Olympic Games it is usually in terms of athletic performance. Clearly they are more than that (see Toohey & Veal, 1990). Even the mass media does not confine itself to covering only the sporting angle. For example, symbolism, economic factors, nationalism and...

Foreign capital inflows (FKI) help an economy by financing the imbalance between income and expenditure. However, their impact on poverty in the recipient economy is a controversial issue. In this study, we examine the impact on poverty in two different scenarios : (1) labour is homogeneous; (2)...

This report documents the results of a pilot project on a new poverty monitoring system that improves the current system in three areas. First, it involves the locals in monitoring poverty in their own area. Second, the poverty indicators are sensitive to local conditions, accurate, and cannot...

The Raskin program is a subsidized rice program for poor families which provides 10 kg of rice per poor households at the price of Rp1,000 per kg. This report describes the findings of the study undertaken by the SMERU Research Institute to uncover the effectiveness of the Raskin program in...

Poverty reduction is a top priority for international organizations, governments and non-governmental organizations. The aid resources available for poverty reduction are, however, severely constrained in many countries. Minimizing the leakage of aid resources to the non-poor is a key to...