Few commercial banks have engaged in profitable microfinance lending despite repeated attempts by donor agencies to entice their entry. The case of Banco de la Empresa, a Latin American private bank, illustrates how penetration of the microenterprise market segment could evolve. This paper...

This study identifies key barriers to women¿s businesses globally and evaluates the degree to which they constrain women¿s business growth in Latin America. These barriers include a lack of access to financial products and services, risk aversion, social conventions, family responsibilities,...

The purpose of this paper (MIF/GN-78-14) is to evaluate a set of projects in the MIF's "Market Functioning" portfolio, which includes 12 projects for a total MIF contribution of US$7.6 million. The MIF projects analyzed here concentrated on four areas of vital importance to the development of...

This presentation discusses the matching grant program started in Argentina in August of 1996. The objective of the program is to help increase the international competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by facilitating access to, and reducing costs of export related services. This...

This study sought to compare and analyze salaries paid to senior managers in the public sector in some Latin American countries.

Este documento fue comisionado por la Red de Gestión Públlica y Transparencia del Diálogo Regional de Política para la III Reunión Hemisférica celebrada los días 14 y 15 de noviembre de 2002. Este trabalho visa analisar o sistema de serviço civil e a gestão de recursos humanos da...

Este trabalho investiga a efetividade de instrumentos tributários de incentivos à pesquisa, desenvolvimento e inovação utilizados no Brasil desde o início dos anos de 1990. Particularmente, são analisados dois instrumentos distintos. A Lei de Informática cuja primeira edição foi feita...

The presentation discuses incentives used to support innovation in the private sector in Brazil. It focuses on the incentives for supporting firms' innovative activities, which include a wide range of programs, such as: Sectoral Funds, Industrial, Technological; Foreign Trade Policy; and new...

How effective are export promotion activities in developing countries? What are the channels through which export promotion affects firms' exports, the intensive margin or the extensive margin? Empirical evidence in this respect is scarce. We aim at filling this gap in the literature by...

This publication examines job creation and the work of the IDB from two supporting policy perspectives: (i) policies and programs to improve the business climate and investment for private sector-driven growth; and, (ii) labor market policies and programs. For each of these two pillars, the...