Of the world's 6.7 billion people (as of 2008), 1.3 billion lived on less than $1.25 Purchasing Power Parity dollars per person per day and another 1.7 billion lived on between $1.25 and $2.50 PPP dollars (Chen and Ravallion, 2012). The scourge of absolute economic misery among billions of the...

In the last few years, significant amount of research has produced evidence in support of the signaling, credential or "sheepskin" effects in rates of return to schooling for studies of the developed as well as developing countries. An example of the former is the seminal empirical work by...

Some countries fail to ensure that their citizens and businesses make an appropriate contribution to the financing of public tasks. But not all countries with a low tax ratio automatically fall into this category. This paper presents an approach to bridge the gap between probabilistic statements...

The purpose of this study is to bring out the role of financial intermediation in food production and food security. Pakistan is among one of those countries which are food insecure. Agriculture credit can increase the food production which ensures the food security. The widely accepted...

This study analyzed the trends and pattern of institutional credit supply to agriculture during pre- and post-financial reforms along with their determinants. It then compared the effects of reform policies on access to institutional credits in Nigerian agricultural sector before and after the...

Background: This study examines the access to credit, credit investment, and credit fungibility for small-holder farmers and medium- and large-scale farmers in the agricultural sector of the Shikarpur District of Sindh, Pakistan. Methods: A standardized questionnaire was used to collect data...

Formal credit plays an important role for the development of the agriculture sector in developing countries because many farmers are characterized as liquidity constrained. Access to credit can increase farmers' purchasing power for inputs and agricultural technology, thus raising the overall...

Women are more likely than men to work in the informal sector and to drop out of the labor force for a time, such as after childbirth, and to be impeded by social norms from working in the formal sector. This work pattern undermines productivity, increases women’s vulnerability to income...

Do minimum wage policies reduce poverty in developing countries? It depends. Raising the minimum wage could increase or decrease poverty, depending on labor market characteristics. Minimum wages target formal sector workers—a minority of workers in most developing countries—many of whom do...