We estimate the causal effect of food standards on Vietnamese pangasius farmers' wellbeing measured by per capita consumption expenditure. We estimate both the average effects and the local average treatment effects on poorer and richer farmers by instrumental variable quantile regression. Our...

Most studies focus on trade effects and organizational outcomes of international standards, neglecting the effect of standards on employees. Using a two-year matched firm-employee panel dataset, this paper finds that the application of standards improves work conditions in small and medium...

Using a rich panel dataset of SMEs active in the manufacturing sector in Viet Nam, this paper investigates the drivers of firm productivity, focusing on the role played by international management standards certification. We develop and test the hypothesis that, controlling for technological...

Using an original dataset from the Vietnamese catfish sector, we study the impact of vertical coordination options on household welfare and the implications of different stages of vertical coordination for the success of the whole sector. The welfare gain from contract farming and employment on...

This paper explores the interaction between food standards and vertical coordination in the Vietnamese pangasius sector. For farmers and processors alike, the adoption of standards is motivated by a desire to improve market access by ensuring high quality supply. Instead of encouraging the...

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the scope for international private standards to play a role in reducing business risk. Business risk is measured as variability in revenue, customer base, informal payments, and temporary firm closure. The results show lower levels of business risk...

We investigate the marginal productivity of investment across countries. The aim is to estimate the return on investments financed by foreign aid and by domestic resource mobilization, using aggregate data. Both returns are expected to vary across countries and time. Consequently we develop a...

Using firm level data from eight Sub-Saharan Africa countries we examine credit constraint differentials between male and female manufacturing entrepreneurs. Enterprises owned by female entrepreneurs are less likely to be credit constrained compared to their male counterparts. The magnitude of...

We argue that non-experimental impact estimators will continue to be needed for evaluations of interventions in developing countries as social experiments, for various reasons, will never be the most preferred approach. In a survey of four studies that empirically compare the performance of...

Employer-provided benefits are independent elements in the compensation packages that make up firms' payment strategies. Such benefits are aimed at attracting and retaining preferred employees and improving incentives. In Myanmar, there are two employee benefit systems: (1) an unregulated...