This paper provides an overview of the period prior to the recent global crisis, and the policies that were adopted around the world in response to the crisis. It highlights a number of key issues regarding economic and financial policies that governments have faced both globally and nationally....

The author argues that externalities in financial markets, implicit and explicit guarantees on financial transactions, and information asymmetries in financial markets that may exacerbate contagion provide a rationale for a government role in managing the risk associated with cross-border...

In trying to explain institutional quality, different authors have come to conflicting conclusions. In tackling the problem themselves, the authors show three things. First, openness is positively and pretty robustly associated with institutional quality. To minimize selection bias, the authors...

Good institutional quality (function) and similar institutional design (form) can promote international trade by reducing transactions costs. The authors evaluate the relative importance of function versus form in a gravity model, using an indicator of different legal systems as a proxy for...

Ghana's economic program after independence emphasized public investment and spending as the road to growth, a strategy that led to recurring fiscal deficits and declining growth. Since the 1984 Economic Recovery Program, Ghana's fiscal deficits have declined and the public sector has been...

Aid is expected to promote better living standards by raising investment and growth. But aid may also affect institutions directly. In theory, these effects may or may not work in the same direction as those on investment. The authors examine the effect of aid on economic institutions and find...

Greater trade integration has often been viewed as requiring greater standardization in institutions, without which the benefits of trade do not materialize. There are many current debates concerning the degree and area of standardization needed and these debates are likely to continue for the...

To control the expansion of government contingent liabilities and reduce fiscal vulnerability, one must be able to identify and measure them. The authors discuss how this may be done and demonstrate how the assessment of fiscal adjustment may change substantially when a broader picture of...

The World Trade Indicators (WTI) database and ranking tool cover country level indicators of trade performance and policies and institutions that affect trade. The purpose of this initiative by the World Bank is to benchmark progress in these areas while highlighting important data gaps. The...

This paper examines fiscal outcomes in Eastern and Central European countries before and during the global crisis of 2008-2010. These outcomes are evaluated in the context of overall changes in fiscal institutions and global market conditions. Eastern and Central European countries’ situations...