We assess empirically whether foreign official development assistance (ODA) has been effective in alleviating HIV/AIDS epidemics, which figures prominently among the Millennium Development Goals. We employ a difference-in-difference-in-differences approach to identify the treatment effect of ODA...

We examine how foreign aid can be used to induce a recipient country to engage in trade-policy reforms. First, we develop a two-country and two-period theoretical model where the donor's promise of aid in period 2 depends on the recipient's chosen tariff in period 1. Without aid, optimal tariff...

This paper examines whether foreign aid in education has a significant effect on growth. We take into consideration the heterogeneous nature of aid as well as the heterogeneity of aid recipients - we disaggregate the aid data into primary, secondary and higher education, and run separate...

There have been ongoing discussions within the WTO Doha Round on Trade Facilitation and the wider Aid for Trade agenda to assist developing countries in reducing behind-the-border restrictions and to help them benefit from trade reform. Our paper contributes to this debate by analyzing the...

We explore whether foreign aid affects developing countries' creditworthiness, as proxied by the Institutional Investor's measure of country credit risk. Based on a simple model of international borrowing and lending, we develop the hypothesis that current aid reduces the likelihood of future...

Does official aid pave the road for private foreign investment or does it suffocate private initiative by diverting resources towards unproductive activities? In this paper we explore this question using data for a large number of developing and emerging economies. Controlling for countries'...

Does official aid pave the road for private foreign investment or does it suffocate private initiative by diverting resources towards unproductive activities? In this paper we explore this question using data for a large number of developing and emerging economies. Controlling for countries'...

This paper provides new empirical findings on the aid-growth relation. We find evidence for considerable asymmetry in the aid-growth relation; i.e., aid cuts have a large negative impact on economic activity, while increasing aid may be ineffective in promoting growth. Development aid thus...