World Institute for Development Economics Research

About: World Institute for Development Economics Research is a facility organization based out in Helsinki, Finland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Poverty & Population. The organization has 110 authors who have published 525 publications receiving 17316 citations.

The Environment as a Commodity

Abstract: All economic activity is based ultimately on re sources found in nature Whether it is consumption The point in exposing the morphology of produced or production, or whether it is exchange, the comgoods and services is not to construct a resource modities which are involved are made of constitutheory of a value There are any number of natural ents provided by nature Thus, the ingredients of resources, and this alone precludes such an at any manufactured good are other produced goods, tempted theory from being coherent My purpose, labour time and skills, and natural resources Each rather, is to use it to express surprise at the fact that of these constituent produced goods is in turn made despite the centrality of natural resources in eco up from the ingredients that went into its manufacnomic activity, they find little room in economics ture, namely labour time and skills, natural rediscourses Interest in resource economics, more sources, and further produced goods It follows particularly environmental economics, has only that any manufactured commodity is ultimately a been intermittent, and if we are currently witness combination of labour and natural resources ing a resurgence (and this special issue is an ex ample of it), we have also just lived through a Labour too is a produced good Even raw labour is decade-long neglect, during which much valuable an output, manufactured by those natural resources research could have been done2 We are way behind which sustain life, resources such as the multitude where we should have been, and could have been,

Export specialisation and local economic growth

Abstract: This paper aims to provide empirical evidence on whether export specialization or diversification is better for local economic growth. Using export data from 354 magisterial districts of South Africa for 1996 and 2001 we estimate spatial growth regressions that include measures of the degree of export specialization and diversification. Overall, exporting regions outperform other (less or non-) exporting regions. Also, we find that export specialisation, rather than export diversification, has been associated with local economic growth; with specialization in mining and agriculture being especially beneficial. Our results support the view that specialization in a locality's area of comparative advantage is good for local economic development. We also find that localities with higher initial levels of human capital, and higher subsequent population growth, performed better. This is consistent with the belief that policies aimed at strengthening human capital and improving agglomeration economies, will enhance local economic development.

Trade Liberalisation and Economic Performance: Theory and Evidence for Developing Countries

Abstract: The last five decades have witnessed a profound evolution of economic policy in developing countries, particularly in the case of trade strategies. Both internal, as well as external, factors have prompted the need for more outward-oriented (or liberalised) trade policy regimes. The creation of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1947 and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1995 have been important driving forces for free trade. Since then, the major quantitative barriers to trade, i.e. tariffs and non-tariff barriers (quotas, licences and technical specifications, among other restrictions), have substantially been reduced or dismantled. Also, the progress towards more liberalised trade regimes, mainly in developing countries, has been manifested in the trade and development literature. Major studies suggest that the performance of more outward-oriented economies is superior to that of those countries pursuing more inward-looking trade practices (Greenaway and Nam, 1988; Dollar, 1992; Sachs and Warner, 1995; and Rodriguez and Rodrik, 2000). Recent developments in the international trade literature focus on the potential dynamic effects of trade liberalisation, i.e. simplification of tariff structures and elimination of non-tariff barriers, in reducing the incentives to rent seeking and in accelerating the flow of technical knowledge from the world market. Moreover, there have been important advances regarding the study of trade liberalisation and its impact on exports, imports and the balance of payments, largely neglected in the literature, often driven by supply-side considerations.

Aid allocation to fragile states: Absorptive capacity constraints

Abstract: The international donor community has grave concerns about the effectiveness of aid to countries it classifies as 'fragile states'. The impact of aid on growth and poverty reduction and the ability to efficiently absorb additional inflows is thought to be significantly lower in these countries compared to other recipients. This paper examines this issue and suggests that a while a number of fragile states can efficiently absorb more aid than they have received, a number receive far more aid than they can efficiently absorb from a perspective based purely on per capita income growth. Policy recommendations are provided.

Exchange Rates and Competition for FDI in Asia

Abstract: This paper argues that relative exchange rates between the host countries of foreign direct investment affect their competition for FDI. Specifically, if the host country currency appreciates against the source country's currency more than that of its rival, FDI inflows of the host country will decrease, while FDI inflows increase in the rival country. Using the data of Japanese FDI in nine Asian manufacturing sectors from 1981 to 2002, the paper examines the hypothesis in the context of the competition between China and ASEAN-4 (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand). Empirical results show that the relative exchange rate is a statistically significant factor that determines the relative inflows of Japanese FDI for manufacturing as a whole, and for such sub-sectors as textiles, food, electronics, transportation equipment, and others. Exchange rate policies of China and ASEAN-4 played a critical role in dynamically reshaping the geographic distribution of Japanese FDI in Asia.