The decline in international oil prices over the past two years has resulted into an economic crisis in the Republic of Congo that could forestall the transformation efforts to move the country towards higher middle income status. A key strategy that government has pursued in recent years has...

Malaysia's economic growth expanded strongly in first quarter (1Q) 2017. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for 2017 is expected to accelerate to 4.9 percent, slightly above the government's current projection range of 4.3 to 4.8 percent. The current account surplus has declined (1Q 2017:...

This report is structured as follows. Chapter one analyzes the performance of Kazakhstan s trade. Chapter two presents an overview of recent developments in Kazakhstan regional and international trade integration. Chapter three examines in detail key issues related to market access, focusing on...

The Government of Liberia (GOL) enacted the national identification registry (NIR) act in 2011 to establish national identification in the country. The law called for the setup of a NIR to be responsible for issuing a biometric-based identification card to each citizen and resident in Liberia....

These two addresses to the National Leaders' Seminar on Population and Development in Nairobi and to the International Population Conference in Mexico City in 1984 concern the urgent and important problem of fast population growth. Rapid population growth slows development, with the poor being...

The impact of the global financial and economic crisis on the Middle East and North Africa region was relatively mild. Lack of integration and a large public sector helped insulate the region to some extent, but now these and other factors are slowing down the speed of its economic recovery. The...

Nicaragua has gone through profound political, economic and social transitions in recent decades. Following a turbulent history of dictatorship (Somoza 1936-1979), the Sandinista revolution (1979-1989) and neoliberal adjustment (1990-2006), it remains one of the poorest countries in Latin...