This paper considers transitional dynamics of consumption and physical capital in Lucas-type growth models. We find that when the ratio of physical to human capital is sufficiently high, it is optimal for both consumption and physical capital to fall for a finite period and then rise along their...

This short paper analyzes Namibia's data from 1968 to 1992 in order to determine the role of exports in economic growth. The analysis confirms the general importance of exports, but finds no discernible sign of accelerated growth because of it. There is some evidence supporting the political...

It is sometimes argued that political competition yields benefits to the citizens just as competition in economic markets yields benefits to consumers. We consider the economic costs and benefits of political competition and find that the story is somewhat more complicated. We first review the...

We note the empirical regularity that market liberalizations cause an initial fall in output, efficiency and value-added. We account for these findings in a model where liberalizations increase systemic risk. We compare it to alternative explanations and discuss implications.

We investigate why we observe non-negative duration dependence among young unemployed men in urban Ethiopia. Assuming that genuine duration dependence is negative, there are five explanations for a non-decreasing hazard: the presence of unemployment benefits, the existence of Active Labour...

Droughts, hurricanes and other environmental shocks punctuate the lives of poor and vulnerable populations in many parts of the world. The direct impacts can be horrific, but what are the longer-term effects of such shocks on households and their livelihoods? Under what circumstances, and for...

Donors who try to impose policy conditionality on countries receiving their aid commonly face conflicting incentives between using aid to induce income-increasing reforms and using aid to assist low-income countries: this conflict can lead to a time-consistency problem.This paper offers a...

In advanced market economies, the use of trade credits is an important way of short-term financing and generally considered as being part of normal business practice. Some transition economies, however, have experienced a rapid accumulation of trade credits which have led to interlocking webs of...

Unproductive enterprises that feed on productive businesses, are rampant in developing countries. A consequence of parasitic enterprises is that societies may be locked into a self enforcing configuration of beliefs and practices that result in persistent poverty. When entrepreneurs of both...

Civil society has been calling for improvement in Local Government for sometime now, primarily because of the ineffectiveness of the KSAC and Parish Councils island-wide to provide services such as, roads repair and public lighting, amongst others. Due to a lack of voter participation, however,...