In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, when thousands of young women and men fought for the opportunity to realize their aspirations and potential, the question of jobs continues to be crucial in the Middle East and North Africa region. This report uses jobs as a lens to weave together the complex...

In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, when thousands of young women and men fought for the opportunity to realize their aspirations and potential, the question of jobs continues to be crucial in the Middle East and North Africa region. This report uses jobs as a lens to weave together the complex...

Kosovo is the second poorest country in Europe, after Moldova, with one in five Kosovars living in poverty. Improved economic conditions in the country have yet to translate into significant poverty reduction. The poor are over-represented in households headed by women, in households in which...

The authors use firm-level, cross-county data from Investment Climate surveys in 49 developing countries to investigate an important channel through which informality can affect productivity: access to credit and external finance. Informality is measured as self-reported lack of tax compliance...

November 1999 - A highly diversified trade tariff menu may fuel bribe-taking behavior. Setting trade tariff rates at a uniform level limits public officials' ability to extract bribes from importers. By explicitly accounting for the interaction between importers and corrupt customs officials,...

This policy note offers motivation as well as game plan how to achieve a coherent and mutually beneficial labor migration system. It argues that migrant workers may importantly contribute to economic growth and development both in sending and receiving countries if they find the enabling...

The paper examines severance pay programs around the world by providing the first ever overview of existing programs, examining their historic development, assessing their economic rationale and describing current reform attempts. While a significant part of the paper is devoted to a...