In the emerging ASEAN Economic Community, regulatory quality and coherence will be critical in stimulating investments and improving the overall business and investment climate. The different countries in the region are concerned not only with aligning and harmonizing regulatory frameworks, but...

Establishing financially inclusive ecosystems for low-income clients, including small and medium enterprises, has become a rising global concern. The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor and the World Bank estimate that around 2.7 billion adults worldwide do not have access to credit,...

Illness or injury, death of a family member, man-made calamities and natural disasters have a devastating effect on those poor households' cash flow, liquidity and earning capacities and thus, on household welfare. Demand for micro-insurance products is growing in view of continuing risks to...

This study assesses the state of microinsurance in the country, identifies the players and their performance, and the challenges facing microinsurance development. The term micro pertains to the capacity of a program to handle the small, sometime irregular cash flows of poor households, who have...

This study articulates the results of the research team's conversations with regulators and desk review of policies in the sectors affecting logistics and trade facilitation in the Philippines. The study covers air transport, land transport, maritime transport, logistics services, and customs...

The EDSA bus market is fiercely competitive. In theory, allowing competition among many bus operators is expected to result in cost-effective and reliable transport services, and efficient use of roads. However, in reality, the outcomes are far different: daylong traffic jam and poor bus service...

The Philippine fishing industry is considered as one of the major industries in the agriculture and fisheries sector. The marine resources available to the country indicate its vast potential in employment creation and output growth. It is in this light that the research team conducted this...