This paper attempts to offer specific inputs to the debate on local content promotion in the oil industry, using the specific case of São Tomé and Príncipe as point of reference. Our approach emphasizes inter-sectoral linkages and institutional pre-conditions for local content promotion....

This Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper for Nigeria highlights the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS). NEEDS gives special support to agriculture, industry, small and medium-scale enterprises, and oil and gas. Under the plan, the government will seek long-term capital...

In a general equilibrium in which bribe-extracting bureaucrats can endogenously choose regulatory burden and delay, the effective (not just nominal) red tape and bribery can be positively correlated across firms. Using data from three worldwide firm surveys, this paper finds evidence consistent...

This 2007 Article IV Consultation highlights that despite recent progress in poverty reduction, Yemen remains far from achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Oil production has been declining since 2000, and in the absence of major discoveries, proven oil reserves could be depleted in some...

This Selected Issues paper on Bolivia reports that it has experienced major increases in its gas reserves, production, and exports. Not only have their levels increased significantly, but also there have been extensive regulatory changes, which range from the privatization of the mid-1990s to...

This paper formulated a short-run model, with an explicit role for monetary policy, for analyzing world oil and gas markets. The model described carefully the parameters of these markets and their vulnerability to business cycles. Estimates showed that short-run demand for oil and gas was price-...

This Selected Issues paper reviews the developments, issues, and prospects of the petroleum sector of Kazakhstan, and analyzes the recent strong economic growth, the links between the oil and the non-oil sector, and assesses the contribution of each sector. It explores the trade policy options...

This paper discusses the rising profile of natural gas in global energy, factors constraining its further development, the gas contracting process, and the absence of a global market, which is analyzed in the context of the economic rent in the gas price and the opaque nature of gas contracts. A...

The Gulf of Guinea's tremendous potential is creating investment opportunities for the region. Some of its resources, such as oil, minerals, and forests, continue to attract significant investments whereas others, like natural gas, could be exploited to their full potential if necessary...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes the unconventional energy boom in North America, and its macroeconomic implications and challenges for Canada. The unconventional energy boom has had significant positive effects on Canada’s economic activity and has the potential to contribute even...