Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is widely accepted as the business sector's contribution to inclusive and sustainable development. Thus, government can harness the CSR agenda in pursuit of this goal. There are several reasons why governments should seek to promote CSR: greater social and...

Managing climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has been recognized as one of the world’s greatest challenges in current times, in particular in Asia and the Pacific which accounts for most of the world’s GHG emissions. Such temperature rises in turn are expected to result...

Focusing on the Least Developed Countries located in the Asia-Pacific region, the study explores the impact of different approaches available to the LDCs and their partners in improving their developmental prospects through enhanced trade. The monograph starts with the presentation of trade...

This chapter provides a picture of post-crisis trade and investment interventions in the Asia-Pacific region. It focuses not only on restrictions on merchandise trading, but also on new obstacles to services trade and movements of people, including service providers.

The HIPC Initiative requires countries receiving debt relief to undertake a Poverty Reduction Strategy programme involving elements of trade policy reform. This study reviews country experiences with respect to the impact of reforms of trade and trade-related policies on economic performance,...

There is a considerable body of analysis available that aims to quantify the economic and trade effects of textile and clothing market liberalisation. A number of analysts at national and international institutions have provided their assessments. Different tools and approaches have thereby been...

The objective of the paper is to answer an often-asked question : if tariff rates are reduced, what will happen to wage inequality ? We consider two types of wage inequality : between occupations (skills premium), and between industries. We use two large data bases of wage inequality that have...

this chapter looks at trade facilitation in a trade (transaction) cost framework, and evaluates the impact of transport costs and underdeveloped infrastructure on bilateral trade flows of 10 Asian developing countries.

In 1999, the Commonwealth Government referred the scope for a post-2000 reduction in the general tariff to the Productivity Commission for inquiry and report within nine months. The general tariff covers only rates of 5 per cent or less, and excludes the PMV and TCF sectors. On balance, the...