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Showing papers in "Oxford Development Studies in 2013"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors used panel Granger causality tests to study the relationship between sector-specific foreign direct investment (FDI) and CO2 emissions in 18 Latin American countries for the period 1980-2007.
Abstract: This paper uses panel Granger causality tests to study the relationship between sector-specific foreign direct investment (FDI) and CO2 emissions. Using a sample of 18 Latin American countries for the period 1980–2007, we find causality running from FDI in pollution-intensive industries (“the dirty sector”) to CO2 emissions per capita. This result is robust to controlling for other factors associated with CO2 emissions and using the ratio of CO2 emissions to GDP. For other sectors, we find no robust evidence that FDI causes CO2 emissions.

130 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a framework for the causes of over-indebtedness in micro-finance is presented, which highlights the role of external influences and the responsibility of lenders, as well as the role borrowers play in their own over-debt.
Abstract: With over-indebtedness emerging among microfinance customers, the industry's sustainability and social impact are at risk. Filling a void in the literature, this paper develops a definition of over-indebtedness that is appropriate for customer protection purposes. It provides a framework for the causes of over-indebtedness that highlights the role of external influences and the responsibility of lenders. It recognises the role borrowers play in their own over-indebtedness. This paper challenges several misconceptions and oversimplifications about microfinance over-indebtedness. These include the belief that default-based risk management indicators are sufficient to signal concerns in relation to customer protection. Further misconceptions are the undesirability of consumption loans, as well as the benefits of competition, of regular instalment schedules, of a zero-tolerance policy and of annual percentage rates. By enhancing our understanding of microfinance over-indebtedness and its causes, this paper pr...

65 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, women continuously negotiate a position between their kinship groups and neighbours, in a context where dependence on men is considered natural, and they recommend revising current understandings of female agency to take into account the complex relationship between agency and power and challenge the conventional polarity of power as domination and power as agency (power to).
Abstract: In the microfinance industry, “empowerment” is often described as a means to facilitate female emancipation from male domination. This paper draws on women's testimonies to highlight the fundamental importance of women's relationships with one another in this process. Women continuously negotiate a position between their kinship groups and neighbours, in a context where dependence on men is considered natural. Micro-credit uses are shaped by, and embody, relationships between women, including power relationships. We recommend revising current understandings of female agency to take into account the complex relationship between agency and power and challenge the conventional polarity of power as domination (power over) and power as agency (power to). In many cases, even where there is solidarity between women, women having agency require or imply domination over other women.

60 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Chaudhuri et al. as mentioned in this paper observed that households across different states in rural and urban India prefer to incur more expenditure on education for male members than for females, and found significant gender bias in household educational expenditure in a number of Indian states.
Abstract: Gender discrimination in household expenditure on education has led to unsatisfactory progress in educational attainment for women in many countries across the world. It has been observed that households across different states in rural and urban India prefer to incur more expenditure on education for male members than for females. Kingdon (2005) [Where has all the bias gone? Detecting gender bias in the intra-household allocation of educational expenditure, Economic Development and Cultural Change, 53(2), 409–452] has observed significant gender bias in household educational expenditure in a number of Indian states utilizing the household survey data of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, New Delhi. Other researchers, such as Chaudhuri & Roy (2006) [Do parents spread educational expenditure evenly across the two genders? Evidence from two North Indian states, Economic and Political Weekly, 41, pp. 5276–5282] and Lancaster et al. (2008) [Household expenditure patterns and gender bias: evide...

56 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper examined the determinants of middle-class intra-generational mobility in Mexico and Chile, finding that labour market resources (education and occupational status of the household head and number of members in the labour market) are much stronger determinants than demographic factors, suggesting the importance of policies that foster human capital and protect workers from shocks.
Abstract: Using panel data-sets from Mexico and Chile for the first years of the 21st century, the authors examine the determinants of middle-class intra-generational mobility. The middle class is defined by means of a latent index of economic well-being that is less sensitive to short-term fluctuation and measurement error than standard measures of income. The authors find high rates of both upward and downward mobility in Mexico and Chile, indicating that the middle class has opportunities to move to higher levels of well-being but is also vulnerable to falling into poverty. In both countries, labour-market resources (education and occupational status of the household head and number of members in the labour market) are much stronger determinants of mobility than demographic factors, suggesting the importance of policies that foster human capital and protect workers from shocks. Rural middle-class households are substantially more vulnerable to falling into poverty and have little chance of advancing to upper cla...

52 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used data collected from 397 women participants in a micro-credit program in rural India, and found that measuring empowerment in terms of outcomes alone is not only insufficient but can actually be misleading as well.
Abstract: The impact that microcredit has on women's empowerment has been much debated in the literature. Some studies find negative effects; some find positive effects and others no effect. A reconciliation of these discrepancies has been attempted by attributing them to the usage of different measures of empowerment. In particular, it has been argued that those studies that view empowerment as outcomes for women associated with their access to loans, find positive effects, and those studies that focus on processes of loan use find negative effects. These different ways of measuring empowerment are the focus of this study. Using data collected from 397 women participants in a microcredit programme in rural India, it is evident that measuring empowerment in terms of outcomes alone—as most impact assessments do—is not only insufficient but can actually be misleading as well. The findings of this study suggest that a more robust understanding of the linkages between lending to women and their empowerment can be achie...

51 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In order to catch up with the current technological frontier, firms, especially in developing countries, try to acquire technological advancement through internal R&D efforts, as well as through external technology-sourcing activities as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: In order to catch up with the current technological frontier, firms, especially in developing countries, try to acquire technological advancement through internal R&D efforts, as well as through external technology-sourcing activities. This study tests whether these two sources of technology acquisition are complements or substitutes for each other in small- and medium-sized Chinese manufacturing firms. The evidence that we present shows some signs of complementarity between the two sources of knowledge in reaching a higher unconditional intensity of product innovation for firms with 100–300 employees and, in general, a significant degree of substitutability between them in achieving higher levels of labour productivity.

50 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the notion of "aspirations" is theoretically and conceptually framed, and Amartya Sen's use of the term capabilities as the space within which development should be assessed is explored.
Abstract: This paper takes up Appadurai's suggestion that aspirations could be used as a key to unlock development for people who are economically marginalised, and that their capabilities could be increased by this approach The notion of “aspirations” is theoretically and conceptually framed, and then Amartya Sen's use of the term capabilities as the space within which development should be assessed is explored I subsequently describe a five-year programme in which economically marginalised women in Khayelitsha near Cape Town were assisted in voicing and attempting to realise their aspirations, while being assisted with access to some resources Capability outcomes and constraints are described and analysed, and the question of adaptive preferences is addressed I conclude that deliberate efforts to realise aspirations, accompanied by some facilitation, can increase capabilities, but that there are also structural constraints to capability expansion for these women that frustrate their aspiration of class mobility

44 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, three processes of agrarian transformation are analysed for the period 2002 to 2008: intensification of grain production, commercial diversification from staple crops and income diversification out of agriculture.
Abstract: Using longitudinal data from 2354 smallholder households in 103 villages in eight African countries, three processes of agrarian transformation are analysed for the period 2002 to 2008: intensification of grain production, commercial diversification from staple crops and income diversification out of agriculture. Methodologically, three multi-level, binary logistic models are used. The trends observed provide grounds for some optimism: despite an overall picture of stagnation, intensification in grains (yield per hectare) seems to be increasing. Farmers have, however, raised productivity through the more intense use of labour resources rather than through technological change, while political commitments to agriculture have not improved the production environment. Rather, economic growth and commercialization emerge as strong drivers of intensification, both at country and household levels. Tendencies towards distress-driven income diversification out of agriculture appear to have abated somewhat in the f...

42 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an analytical disjuncture between its discourse and analysis, overlooking the root causes of poverty and exclusion in relational processes, is identified and addressed using the example of gender.
Abstract: Policy towards microfinance has undergone a shift away from building financial institutions focused on serving poor people to an “inclusive” agenda for financial sector development, operationalized by some donors in an approach entitled “Making Markets Work for the Poor”. This approach is located in New Institutional Economics and the enabling environment focus of the post-Washington Consensus. Despite the way in which this inclusion agenda echoes social exclusion discourse, it engages with a residualist rather than relational understanding of poverty. This leads to an analytical disjuncture between its discourse and analysis, overlooking the root causes of poverty and exclusion in relational processes. Arising from this is the failure to recognize that developing institutions and “enabling” environments require an understanding of social institutions and their influence as social regulatory structures. The author illustrates how analysis can proceed to address this disjuncture using the example of gender...

38 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the gender-related wage differentials in the rural and urban sectors of the Indian economy are analyzed and the results reveal the presence of labour-market discrimination against women.
Abstract: In this paper, the gender-related wage differentials in the rural and urban sectors of the Indian economy are analysed. The hypotheses that there is a glass-ceiling effect—a greater wage gap at the top end of the wage-distribution range—and a sticky-floor effect—a wider wage gap at the bottom are examined. Findings show evidence of the glass-ceiling effect in the rural sector and evidence of the sticky-floor effect in the urban sector. Using a counterfactual decomposition method, the raw wage gap is decomposed to identify the contributions of characteristics and coefficients. The results reveal the presence of labour–market discrimination against women. Furthermore, women at the lower end of the wage-distribution spectrum face more discrimination than those at the higher end of the range.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a comparative study of Kampala (Uganda) and Kigali (Rwanda) is presented, showing that in the former the regular mobilisation of urban social groups into protests and riots has institutionalised what might be termed "noise" as the most meaningful form of political participation.
Abstract: Amid ongoing debates about institutions and development, the importance of informal institutions (or norms) is widely recognised. Relatively little, however, is known about how informal institutions form and persist over time in particular contexts. This paper combines a concern with the process of informal institutionalisation and a focus on everyday politics in urban areas. Drawing on a comparative study of Kampala (Uganda) and Kigali (Rwanda), it argues that in the former the regular mobilisation of urban social groups into protests and riots has institutionalised what might be termed “noise” as the most meaningful form of political participation. In Kigali, by contrast, comparatively “silent” processes of collective mobilisation that involve structured activities and community “self-policing” have become institutionalised. The paper analyses these differential patterns, considering the tacit norms of negotiation in each case and the incentives for urban social and political actors to adhere to them.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the contributions of micro finance in development studies, drawing particularly on research conducted in India, and argue that understanding MF interventions at the local level requires the social and political analysis of global development architecture, while MF may also play a role in consolidating or cementing global political economy at its base.
Abstract: Microfinance (MF) has grown over the last two decades into an important sub-field of development studies. This special issue of Oxford Development Studies explores the contributions of MF, drawing particularly on research conducted in India. After a brief overview of the emergence of MF as a research field, this introduction develops three themes. First, we argue that MF interventions generally involve, and assume a process of transformation of, financially excluded people and groups who are not fully dominated by the logic of market exchange but have histories, culture, social relationships and politics structured by other kinds of authority and dynamics. Second, we argue that understanding MF interventions at the local level requires the social and political analysis of global development architecture, while MF may also play a role in consolidating or cementing global political economy at its base. Third, we argue that MF interventions have provided fertile ground for research into the causes and conseq...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the relationship between social protection and disability in theory and practice is discussed and the state should play a greater role in the provision of social assistance for persons with disabilities in developing countries.
Abstract: This article reviews the relationship between social protection and disability in theory and practice. Persons with disabilities and their families may be considered among the most worthy recipients of social protection due to their vulnerability to chronic poverty and social exclusion. A review of cash transfer programmes for persons with disabilities reveals positive economic, social and service access outcomes. However, coverage and benefit levels remain low. This article calls for the state to play a greater role in the provision of social assistance for persons with disabilities in developing countries. Policies and programmes which protect economic security should be combined with those which promote an enabling environment in which people can achieve security of livelihood.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the individual data of 255 clients in India and the data of 48 groups to compare the transaction costs (TCs) between urban and rural microfinance clients.
Abstract: Inclusive financial sectors are important for development in terms of equity and efficiency. Although microfinance has developed rapidly, little is known about the actual costs for clients to access microfinance services, except for interest rates. The insufficient outreach of microfinance in rural areas remains one of the main challenges for the sector. This paper uses the individual data of 255 clients in India and the data of 48 groups to which they belong to compare the transaction costs (TCs) between urban and rural microfinance clients. The results suggest that the TCs incurred by urban microfinance borrowers are globally higher than those incurred by their rural counterparts (4.81% compared with 3.35%), mainly because of their opportunity expenses and individual costs that are unrelated to microfinance groups. Yet, when considering a household's total monthly expenditure level, the microfinance TCs constitute a much higher relative expenditure for rural households than for their urban counterparts....

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a broader conceptualisation of institutions is proposed to identify the multiple ways in which they mediate livelihoods, drawing upon Scott's three pillars of institutions (regulative, normative and cognitive) and the three schools of neo-institutionalism (rational, cultural and historical).
Abstract: Weaknesses of sustainable-livelihoods analysis include the neglect of power relations; a focus on the material bases of livelihoods, ignoring social and cultural aspects; and failing to incorporate dynamism. This paper seeks to reinvigorate sustainable-livelihoods frameworks through a broader conceptualisation of institutions which identifies the multiple ways in which they mediate livelihoods. It draws upon Scott's (1995) three pillars of institutions (regulative, normative and cognitive) and the three schools of neo-institutionalism (rational, cultural and historical) to present a more comprehensive approach to understanding the ways in which institutions mediate livelihoods. These approaches are in themselves limited in their understanding of agency and institutional transformation. The paper argues that attention to “complex subjectivities” and contestations over meaning within a broader institutional context can identify entry points for strategic development interventions. The utility of the approac...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, four social capital variables are defined according to the tie strength and social distance between the respondent and his/her network members, resulting in four different social capital variable: (1) bonding (strong ties to persons of similar social standing); (2) bridging (weak ties to others of similar status); (3) bondinglink (strong connections to persons with higher social standing; and (4) bridgedlink (weak connections to others with higher status).
Abstract: Social capital matters in the economy. This study shows how different forms of individual social capital affect access to formal credit in rural Thailand. Social capital is defined as interpersonal network (ties) resources. A data collection approach is used that originates in the field of sociology and is innovative in the context of development economics: the personal network survey. Four social capital variables are defined according to the tie strength and social distance between the respondent and his/her network members, resulting in four different social capital variables: (1) bonding (strong ties to persons of similar social standing); (2) bridging (weak ties to persons of similar social standing); (3) bondinglink (strong ties to persons of higher social standing); and (4) bridginglink (weak ties to persons of higher social standing). It has been found that bondinglink social capital reduces the chances of being credit access-constrained. Political patronage or nepotism as the driving force behind...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on the impact of a global production network on the local economy in which production is located, with a particular focus on labour, and use data collected over a 30-year period in villages located 25-30 km north-west of Tiruppur to show how the local rural economy has changed as the knitwear sector has expanded.
Abstract: This paper focuses on the impact of a global production network on the local economy in which production is located, with a particular focus on labour. The network concerned involves knitwear production in Tiruppur, southern India. This has transformed the region surrounding Tiruppur as well as the town, as knitwear production has spread into the countryside. Many of those previously employed in agriculture have moved into knitwear manufacturing and associated activities. This paper uses data collected over a 30-year period in villages located 25–30 km north-west of Tiruppur to show how the local rural economy has changed as the knitwear sector has expanded. The knitwear industry has provided direct employment to a large number of people from less well-placed households, which now commute to work, and it has also pushed up wages in agriculture and other occupations, including those who are not directly related to the knitwear sector. Importantly, the impacts of the expansion of knitwear production have be...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors considered conventional development theory through a subjective well-being (SWB) lens, and proposed a new country ranking in the form of an SWB-adjusted Human Development Index, or "Happy Development Index" to measure people's life satisfaction in different nations.
Abstract: While research on subjective well-being (SWB) has recently attracted much attention in richer nations, its potential in a development context remains underexploited. This paper, therefore, considers conventional development theory through an SWB lens. The Human Development approach with its three key elements of material conditions, health and education is re-assessed by examining to what extent these factors actually matter for people's life satisfaction in different nations. Using data from the World Values Survey for 100 000 people from 70 nations, considerable heterogeneity is identified and a new country ranking in the form of an SWB-adjusted Human Development Index, or ‘Happy Development Index’, is devised.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors make an analytical case for the understanding of development as a process that enables people to reclaim their dignity and interrogate inegalitarian social relations, motivated by the ongoing debate within development studies between those who propound a teleological view of development and those who adopt the opposing view that the process must not obliterate historical and cultural difference.
Abstract: This paper makes an analytical case for the understanding of development as a process that enables people to reclaim their dignity and interrogate inegalitarian social relations. It is motivated by the ongoing debate within development studies between those who propound a teleological view of development and those who adopt the opposing view that the process must not obliterate historical and cultural difference. The former view is informed by an assumption that the human condition can and should be improved, and the trajectory of such improvement is predetermined and predictable. The latter view is ambivalent, not only about the possibility of improvement, but also about its desirability. Against this dichotomy, this paper urges scholars of development to consider that people might envisage that the social inequalities they experience could be reduced, irrespective of “improvement”. The ethnography on which the paper draws cover show the way in which a group of agricultural labourer households stigmatise...

Journal ArticleDOI
Jeroen Adam1
TL;DR: In this article, a comparative micro-level study of conflicts in the Indonesian island of Ambon and the Philippine island of Mindanao is presented, showing how the master narrative of a Christian-Muslim cleavage obscures the prominence of localized sub-identities in shaping the escalation of conflict in both places.
Abstract: Through a comparative micro-level study of conflicts in the Indonesian island of Ambon and the Philippine island of Mindanao, the article will show how the master narrative of a Christian–Muslim cleavage obscures the prominence of localized sub-identities in shaping the escalation of conflict in both places. Whilst in Ambon communal violence erupted between Muslims and Christians from 1999 until 2004, armed conflict on the island of Mindanao is generally understood as a decade-long struggle between Muslim armed groups fighting for autonomy against a Christian-dominated Philippine state. Yet, despite these different types of armed struggle, in both cases, everyday tensions about resource access became incorporated in a complex conflict dynamic. These localized tensions are linked to sub-identities within the general Christian versus Muslim dichotomy, thereby creating alternative fault lines and alliances. In conclusion, this article puts forward a renewed understanding of armed conflict as a dynamic and tr...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined whether out-of-pocket health expenditure affects the composition of household consumption and found that poor households decrease the share of clothing and education and increase the consumption of food, fuel and travel.
Abstract: This paper examines whether out-of-pocket health expenditure affects the composition of household consumption. Based on Indian data, conditional Engel curves for 10 broad categories of goods and services, namely food, intoxicants, fuel, clothing and footwear, education, entertainment, travel, rent, durables and other goods have been estimated. Conditional Engel curves show whether the share of a particular good is increased or decreased in household consumption due to health expenditure. The findings suggest that poor households decrease the share of clothing and education and increase the share of food, fuel and travel. It has also been found that households from less developed states and from states with lower public health expenditure were more affected.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined whether the acceleration of growth since reforms began in 1978 has increased regional disparities in China and found that over the whole period, there has been convergence rather than divergence: more backward regions have caught up with leading regions.
Abstract: It is widely believed that the acceleration of growth since reforms began in 1978 has increased regional disparities in China. This paper examines whether this is the case for GDP per capita, labour productivity and technical efficiency in industry in 30 regions from 1978 to 2005. The unexpected conclusion is that over the whole period, there has been convergence rather than divergence: more backward regions have caught up with leading regions. The process of regional convergence was especially strong from 1978 to 1990. In the 1990s, there was divergence, but convergence resumed after 2000, leaving regional inequalities in 2005 much smaller than in 1978. Possible theoretical and policy explanations for the observed pattern are considered.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that while gender differences in characteristics and the return to characteristics widen the gender wage gap at the lower end of the wage distributions, gender differences between the two types of variables widen it at the upper end.
Abstract: Past studies on gender wage inequality in Africa typically attribute the gender pay gap either to gender differences in characteristics or in the return to characteristics. The authors suggest, however, that this understanding of the two sources may be far too general and possibly overlook the underlying covariates that drive the gender wage gap. Moreover, past studies focus on the gender wage gap exclusively at the conditional mean. The authors go further to evaluate the partial contribution of each wage-determining covariate to the magnitude of the gender pay gap along the unconditional earnings distribution. The authors' data are from Kenya, and their empirical technique mirrors re-centered influence function regressions. The authors' results are novel and suggest that while gender differences in characteristics and the return to characteristics widen the gender pay gap at the lower end of the wage distributions, gender differences in characteristics widen the gender wage gap at the upper end of the wa...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of different levels of HIV/AIDS knowledge on the sexual behaviour of males with country-specific effects and controls for socio-economic characteristics and location of residence were investigated.
Abstract: Using population-based samples of 19 sub-Saharan African countries, this paper investigates the effects of different levels of HIV/AIDS knowledge on the sexual behaviour of males with country-specific effects and controls for socio-economic characteristics and location of residence. The main findings are that HIV/AIDS knowledge increases the likelihood of using condoms with and without commercial sex workers, has no significant effect on the likelihood of paying for sex and increases the likelihood of having both pre- and extramarital sex. These results indicate that increased HIV knowledge, on average, is not associated with safer sexual behaviour among males in sub-Saharan Africa.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated how the presence of air pollution might explain health inequalities both between and within developing countries and found that differential exposure to air pollution between asset classes, differential ability to prevent the negative health effects of environment degradation, differential capacity to respond to disease caused by pollutants, and particular susceptibility of some groups to the effects of pollution are all sufficient reasons for explaining a positive link between air pollution and asset-related health inequality.
Abstract: In the health economics literature, many studies have assessed the association between environmental degradation and health outcomes. This paper extends this literature by investigating how the presence of air pollution might explain health inequalities both between and within developing countries. We argue that differential exposure to air pollution between asset classes, differential ability to prevent the negative health effects of environment degradation, differential capacity to respond to disease caused by pollutants, and particular susceptibility of some groups to the effects of air pollution are all sufficient reasons for explaining a positive link between air pollution and asset-related health inequality. Using data from developing countries, our econometric results show that sulphur dioxide emissions (SO2) and particulate matter (PM10) partly explain the large disparities in infant and child mortalities between and within developing countries. In addition, we found that the institutions that are...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a simple well-being regime model incorporating evidence-based policy, rising political aspirations, new technology and agro-climatic change for rural micro-finance in India.
Abstract: Microfinance can be researched narrowly as an instrument for promoting development or more broadly as an endogenous component of development. This paper sets out a simple well-being regime model incorporating both views and uses it to review the dynamics of rural microfinance in India. Four potential drivers of change in the role of microfinance in India are reviewed: evidence-based policy, rising political aspirations, new technology and agro-climatic change. The paper argues for combining more narrowly focused microfinance impact assessment with broader research into microfinance as one component of wider well-being regimes.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper applied the group analogues of Atkinson's index and the Gini coefficient to shed light on the disproportionate burden of undernourishment borne by rural and historically vulnerable caste groups.
Abstract: Studies of undernutrition in India (and elsewhere) have focused exclusively on interpersonal inequalities, and estimates of the magnitude of inter-group inequalities are unavailable. A focus on “horizontal”, or group-based, inequalities offers vital policy insights that would be lost in an approach based purely on interpersonal inequalities. We therefore apply the group analogues of Atkinson's index and the Gini coefficient to shed light on the disproportionate burden of undernourishment borne by rural and historically vulnerable caste groups. Furthermore, the prominent determinants of inter-group disparities are identified through Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition analysis. The paper calls for explicit targeting of backward castes across the country and improved inter-sectoral collaboration to ensure equitable access to education, health care and water and sanitation, particularly across underdeveloped regions.

Journal ArticleDOI
Jared Pincin1
TL;DR: This article examined whether fragmentation of executive power and the degree of competition from the legislative branch of government increased the amount of tied aid over the period 1979-2009 and found that tied aid increases as the number of decision-makers within the government increases, and decreases as the proportion of excess seats a governing coalition holds above a simple majority.
Abstract: This paper uses a panel of 22 OECD Development Assistance Committee countries to examine whether fragmentation of executive power and the degree of competition from the legislative branch of government increased the amount of tied aid over the period 1979–2009. Fragmentation is defined as the degree to which the costs of a dollar of aid expenditure are internalized by decision-makers and is measured as the number of decision-makers in government. Legislative competition is defined as the relative strength of the government in relation to the legislature. Three variables are used to capture this effect. The empirical results show tied aid, both in levels and as a percentage of total aid, increases as the number of decision-makers within the government increases, and decreases as the proportion of excess seats a governing coalition holds above a simple majority increases.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article examined the relationship between pro-poor growth and the size distribution of manufacturing enterprises in Vietnam and found that the rightward skew may have adverse consequences for efficiency, but less so for equity.
Abstract: This article examines the relationship between pro-poor growth and the size distribution of manufacturing enterprises in Vietnam. Analysis focuses on the consequences for both efficiency and equity of the predominance of very large firms in the size distribution, i.e. the “rightward skew”. The evidence suggests that the rightward skew may have adverse consequences for efficiency, but less so for equity.