"Large and sustained differences in economic performance across regions of developing countries have long provided motivation for fiscal incentives designed to encourage firm entry in lagging areas. But empirical evidence in support of these policies has been weak at best. The authors undertake...

Poland along with seven other Central European and Baltic countries, joined the European Union (EU) on May 1, 2004. This was a historical event, marking the country's final reintegration with the rest of Europe, and the importance of this from a geopolitical point of view is undeniable. For...

Aden has a number of widely recognized unique assets, which are critical inputs to its emerging strategic positioning within Yemen and the region. Most notable is its natural deep-water harbor on the Red Sea, striking landscapes and distinctive topography, abundance of raw materials, and rich...

In conformity with its objective of functioning as a local Government, Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) sought the assistance of the World Bank for the preparation of a City Development Strategy (CDS) for Kathmandu. The various sectoral as well as integrated strategies presented in this...

In conformity with its objective of functioning as a local Government, Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) sought the assistance of the World Bank for the preparation of a City Development Strategy (CDS) for Kathmandu. The various sectoral as well as integrated strategies presented in this...

The report considers the evolving experience in Ukraine, and looks at lessons from other countries in order to spur thinking about how best to move forward in the development of regional policy. In the context of a transition economy, accurately measuring the changes that are underway is...

"Rules of origin are legitimate policy instruments to prevent trade deflection in a preferential trade agreement short of a customs union. Trade deflection takes place when a product imported into the preferential trade agreement through the member with the lowest external tariff is transhipped...

"This paper examines the effect of regionalism on unilateral trade liberalization using industry-level data on applied most-favored nation tariffs and bilateral preferences for ten Latin American countries from 1990 to 2001. The findings show that preferential tariff reduction in a given sector...

"This is an empirical paper seeking to identify the mode of Turkey's integration into global markets in general, and pan-European markets in particular, as revealed in its trade performance. The analysis provides empirical support to the following observations. First, thanks to steady expansion...