This paper provides a comparative assessment of the market share, reach to the poor, and performance of faith-based and public schools in Sierra Leone using data from the 2004 Integrated Household Survey. One-third of primary school students attend government schools and more than half are in...

This paper provides a comparative assessment of the market share, reach to the poor, and performance of faith-based and public schools in the Democratic Republic of Congo using data from the 2004-2005 "123" survey. More than two thirds of primary school students attend faith-based...

World cotton prices have been declining in the past decade and farmers in West and Central Africa have been especially hard hit. This has led to heated policy debates and difficult trade-offs for governments, as their desire to help producers is constrained by the need to avoid large subsidies...

It has long been argued that faith-inspired health facilities serve the poor in priority in sub-Saharan Africa, in part by being located in remote and poor areas where the reach of government services may remain limited. Unfortunately, proper empirical evidence to back up such claims is rarely...

Due in part to 40 years of cyclical violence, economic growth in Burundi has remained well below the sub-Saharan Africa average, and Burundi is now the third poorest country in the world. The status quo is unacceptable, and it is essential that the Government drive the changes needed to achieve...

The government of Chile has been using for many years a system for the targeting of many of its income transfers and other social programs. The system is based on the ficha CAS, a two page form that households must fill if they wish to apply for benefits. Each household is attributed a score on...

Due in part to 40 years of cyclical violence, economic growth in Burundi has remained well below the sub-Saharan Africa average, and Burundi is now the third poorest country in the world. The status quo is unacceptable, and it is essential that the Government drive the changes needed to achieve...

The strategy of the Zedillo Administration for the reduction of poverty relied on both broad-based social expenditures and targeted poverty programs. Broad-based social expenditures are devoted to the areas of social security and healthcare, education, job training, and housing. Targeted poverty...

While there are different estimates of poverty in Mexico, there is general agreement that poverty is widespread, and that the reduction of poverty should be a key area of focus for the new Administration. Beyond lack of income, poverty is a complex and multidimensional phenomena which affects...