This paper examines the climate-change related factors that affect the incidence of dengue in the Philippines. Dengue, one of the most high-profile public health problems in Southeast Asia, has been estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars in the Philippines and worldwide in terms of...

This paper investigates whether changes in climatic conditions significantly contribute to incidence of poverty in the Philippines. Due to the lack of sufficient regional estimates of poverty, this study utilized food cpi data to proxy for poverty level. The relationship between poverty level...

This paper investigates whether climate "shocks" (or short-term but sharp changes in climatic conditions), El Niño and La Niña, have significant impacts on inflation in the country. Using regional panel data and information from PAGASA, this study finds that both of these weather shocks have...

Following an earlier paper titled 'Population and Poverty: The Real Score' (UPSE Discussion Paper 0415, December 2004), the present paper was first issued in August 2008 as a contribution to the public debate on the population issue that never seemed to die in this country. The debate heated up...

This paper provides a review of the empirical evidence cited in the current public discussions on removing the remaining constitutional restrictions on foreign-equity ownership in certain economic sectors. A fuller appreciation of the given evidence shows that lifting equity restrictions is not...

We are pleased to note that the discussion paper we wrote ("How to change a constitution by handwaving") has attracted some interest from the public and observers of economic policy. Among the more thoughtful responses the paper has received is that from the Foundation for Economic Freedom...

Are new mayors more responsive to disasters than their reelected counterparts? The identification strategy is based on slim vote margin in which new and reelected mayors are found to be as if randomly assigned. We find that with greater storm exposure: new mayors spend more on health sector than...

This paper examines the climate-change related factors that affect the incidence of dengue in the Philippines. Dengue, one of the most high-profile public health problems in Southeast Asia, has been estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars in the Philippines and worldwide in terms of...

Following an earlier paper titled "Population and Poverty: The Real Score" (UPSE Discussion Paper 0415, December 2004), the present paper was first issued in August 2008 as a contribution to the public debate on the population issue that never seemed to die in this country. The debate heated up...