While privatization of water, electricity, transport and communications infrastructure continues to gain momentum in Latin America, its success often depends on whether countries implement the reforms essential to attract private investment. This book analyzes the legal, regulatory, economic and...

Common sense suggests that healthier people are more productive and wealthier people can obtain things that make them healthier. This book asks whether investments in health also affect productivity and how public policy can influence this relationship. These questions are probed through a...

From Few to Many is the first comprehensive look at Colombia's 1993 health system reforms. It describes the implementation of universal health insurance, including a subsidized system for the poor, and examines the impact of this and other reforms during a time when Colombia experienced crushing...

Este informe presenta una selección de estudios sobre transparencia y corrupción que abarcan desde la relación de la corrupción con los fenómenos socioeconómicos hasta los vínculos entre implementación de políticas y cambios. El punto de partida es el análisis empírico de la...

Latin America in the 1990s remains the most unequal region in the world in terms of income distribution. Yet because of its changing demographics -declining fertility rates and large number of young people entering the workforce- the region now has a unique window of opportunity to reduce the...

Latin America loses about nine trillion cubic meters of water each year, or some 30 percent of the water collected and treated for public consumption. While it is impossible for water systems to deliver 100 percent of their water to the household tap, Latin America could cut those losses by more...

This report moves beyond the conventional scope of economics to examine three entrenched structural factors -demography, geography and institutions- that are closely connected to economic and social development. Historical in nature and slow to evolve, these variables are not always in the...

Traditionally, the concept of quality of life has been viewed through objective indicators. Beyond Facts looks at quality of life through a new lens, namely, the perceptions of millions of Latin Americans. Using an enhanced version of the recently created Gallup World Poll that incorporates...

Healthcare services are more widespread in Latin America and the Caribbean today than 50 years ago, yet this availability is not necessarily reflected in popular perceptions. This study documents the expansion of healthcare services in the region in terms of medically-trained professionals,...