This paper examines the Philippines’ investment climate in its many dimensions, relating these to the performance of the economy at the national, regional, and provincial levels. The central thesis is that the economy’s slow growth over the past two decades or more can be attributed in large...

Starting with the premise that technological innovation and economic growth are interactive and mutually reinforcing, this paper argues that in order to have a fighting chance in the Asean Economic Community (AEC), let alone global, competition, the Philippines (PH) needs to appreciably ramp up...

Most migration studies have used aggregate data to test hypotheses concerning individual migration behavior. This paper attempts to understand migration behavior more directly by analyzing data on individuals and households. The decision to migrate or stay is viewed as influenced by individual...

This paper surveys urbanization and spatial development in the Philippines by reviewing studies dealing one way to another with the subject. The objective is to put spatial and urban issues in perspective so that an understanding of them may cumulate through research. Research on these issues...

A comparative perspective on Asian urbanization and development is offered in this paper. In this first part, some aspects of urbanization and spatial concentration are discussed using data on South, Southeast, East and Centrally Planned Asian countries. South and Southeast (and some extent...

The paper first reviews some of the major studies on internal migration in East and Southeast Asian countries, highlighting its relationship to development, particularly to the role of policies in the evolution of migration patterns. The central theme that emerges is that the pattern and effects...

This chapter begins with the dimensions of the poverty problem in developing countries, and then deals with conceptual and measurement issues. It next discusses the nature, characteristics and correlates of rural and urban poverty. It looks into the issue of gender and poverty, then turns to the...

Recent research papers employing cross-national regressions report that the incomes of the poor move one-for-one with overall average incomes, suggesting that poverty reduction requires nothing much more than promoting rapid economic growth. This paper attempts to probe beneath cross-country...

The Philippines is reputed to be the world’s third highest net remittance recipient country (relative to net migration) after India and Mexico. In 2005, remittances were officially recorded at $11.7 billion1 representing about 10% of GDP. Clearly, remittances resulting from the Filipino...