We use firm-level data for the Ethiopian manufacturing sector matched with commodity- level data on tariffs to examine the effect of trade liberalization on firm performance during the 1997-2005 period. We find relatively large positive effects of tariff reductions on total factor productivity,...

Using village date from Tanzania, we test whether gifts and loans between households are voluntary while correcting for mis-reporting by the giving and receiving households. Tow maintained assumptions underlie our analysis: answers to a question on who people would turn to for help are good...

We apply the set up of limited commitment model to empirically test the role of informal risk-sharing networks using panel data on informal credit transactions from rural Ethiopia. The empirical estimates provide convincing evidence for the belief that enforcement problem limits the direct role...