Showing papers on "Developing country published in 1984"

International data base.

Abstract: The concept of the International Data Base (IDB) grew from recognition of the need for timely high quality information on the demographic social and economic characteristics of foreign countries. During the past 2 decades the Bureau of the Census US Department of Commerce has been compiling analyzing and evaluating international demographic data and to a lesser extent socioeconomic data with particular emphasis on developing countries. In 1979 at the request of the Office of Women in Development at the Agency for International Development a computerized data base of demographic and socioeconomic statistics that could be used to assess the status of women in developing countries was established. The major categories of data now being included in IDB are as follows: population by age and sex; vital rates infant mortality and life tables; health and nutrition; fertility and child survivorship; migration; provinces and cities; family planning; ethnic religious and language groups; literacy and education; labor force employment income and gross national product; and household size and housing indicators. The Bureau through its Center for International Reserch (CIR) developed a computerized central depository of demographic social and economic data for all countries of the world to serve the needs of the public and private sectors. The initial emphasis was on demographic and social data since these subject areas are those for which a vast amount of data has already been compiled analyzed and evaluated by CIR staff. However meetings are being planned with users to determine the additional types of data that are desired particularly in the economic and health-related areas. IDB includes data for all countries of the world by urban and rural residence. The time coverage is from 1950 to the present. Data sources include: population and industrial censuses and surveys administrative records population registers statistical publications research papers and personal communication with foreign officials and researchers. Quality and quantity of data varies from country to country depending on the quality of field work the sample design the accuracy of information given by respondents the adequacy of tabulations or publications and specification or knowledge of data needs. Data for each country are presented according to the definitions prescribed by that country; no attempt has been made by the Bureau to standardize definitions of concepts. Model 204 a data base management system developed by the Computer Corporation of America was adopted for the IDB project. Technical details of this system are provided in the annex as well as lists of tables included in the IDB.

Decentralization in Developing Countries: A Review of Recent Experience

Abstract: A large number of developing countries that are politically, economically and ideologically diverse began decentralizing development planning and management functions during the 1970s and early 1980s, because of growing dissatisfaction with the results of highly centralized national planning and administration, and because the thrust of development policies changed drastically during the 1970s. The results of decentralizing have been mixed. Third World country governments have faced myriad problems in designing and implementing programs for decentralizing development management successfully, and even where the programs have been relatively successful not all of the anticipated benefits have accrued to either central or local administrative units. Ultimately, decentralization is a political decision, and its implementation is a political process. This report reviews the types of decentralization that have been tried in developing countries since the early 1970s, draws inferences about their success from assessments of their results, describes the basic conditions that seem to affect the successful implementation of decentralization policies, and offers a set of general operational principles to guide governments that are considering decentralization of development planning.

Socio-economic factors in Infant and child mortality: A cross-national comparison

Abstract: Using results from the World Fertility Survey (WFS) for 28 countries, socioeconomic differences in neonatal, postneonatal, and child mortality were examined. To maintain some degree of comparability and to make presentation of the results feasible, focus was on 5 variables which are available for each survey. It can be argued that each of the 5 socioeconomic variables considered here--mother's education, mother's work status since marriage, current or most recent husband of mother's occupation and education, and current type of place of residence of mother--affects infant and child mortality, although often as surrogates for other variables which were usually not directly available. For over 24 countries, the neonatal mortality rate varied from 84 in Nepal to 15 in Malaysia. In Nepal the rate for children of the skilled and unskilled was high (124) but where the husband had received 7 or more years of education the rate of 54 was low. At the other extreme, rates in Malaysia varied from 5 when mother's had 7 or more years of education to 23 for offspring of the least educated husbands. The highest overall postneonatal rate of 89 was again found in Nepal and the lowest national rate in Trinidad and Tobago at 13. In 9 out of 24 countries the high values were over 3 times as great as the low values and the absolute difference exceeded 30/1000 in 13 countries. Differences on child mortality are substantial, reflecting the greater influence of socioeconomic factors on mortality in early childhood. Nationally, the values ranged from 186 in Senegal to a low of 8 in Trinidad and Tobago. In only Haiti, Guyana, and Pakistan did the ratio of the maximum to the minimum rates for sizeable groups fall below 2. At the other extreme, in 5 countries the ratio exceeded 10 and in a further 6 was above 4. Differences between the high and low groups within countries exceeded 30 in 18 out of 28 countries and were over 50 in 10 of these. In 9 countries the highest rates occurred among mothers with no education and in a further 6 among husbands with no education. Education of mother, followed by education of her husband and his occupation were generally the strongest explanatory variables. The work status of the mother was not likely to be an important explanatory variable in these analyses. Results of a multivariate analysis suggested intriguing differences in the relative roles of different socioeconomic variables. Mother's education seemed to play an important role in determining children's chances of surviving in several Latin American and South East Asian countries. In no country did husband's level of education appear in all 3 models. The occupation of the husband was possibly the purest indicator of socioeconomic status, and this factor appeared in the models for all 3 segments of infant and child mortality. Mother's work status appeared least often.

Another look at corporate social responsibility and reporting: An empirical study in a developing country

Abstract: This paper presents a view of corporate social responsibility accounting and reporting from the standpoint of a developing country. The study is based on a personal interview questionnaire survey conducted by the authors with mainly chief executive officers in one hundred companies operating in Malaysia. Various aspects of corporate social performance, including social reporting, are examined. The findings indicate that social reporting lags behind corporate social involvement and that major corporate attention is focused on activities relating to employees and products/services. In addition, the results show that corporate size and national origin of corporate ownership are relevant in reflecting the extent of social commitments made by companies.

Wives and work: the sex role revolution and its consequences.

Abstract: The % of married women in the US work force has risen from 4.6% in 1890 to 51.2% in 1982. The more highly developed the country and the longer it has been developed the higher the proportion of married women in the labor force. The greatest increase in labor force participation has been among wives under age 35 with young children. Postponement of marriage diminished marital fertility longer life expectancies and the increasing frequency of divorces are all reasons for the decline of the male breadwinner system and the rise of the egalitarian system. The main weakness of the egalitarian system is that although it brings the wife back into economic production it does so outside the home and thus in a way incompatible with child raising. The remedy for this weakness is to equalize the rights and obligations of the 2 sexes in both the workplace and the home. But this will not occur until traditional attitudes towards working women change and public policy lessens the conflict between work and child care. Even then the egalitarian system would not be insured of lasting success. Immigrants from developing countries to developed countries will tip the scale away from the egalitarian system. Governmental policies concerning reproduction could also have profound effects on the egalitarian system. Thus a modified egalitarian system seems the most likely path in the future. (summaries in ENG FRE SPA)

Government finance in developing countries

Abstract: Fiscal systems throughout the world have been severely strained in recent years, as governments have assumed more responsibility for economic management. The developing counties, where needs are greatest and resources scarcest, have found their finances especially hard pressed. This book examines a range of issues in government finance that confront developing countries: the formulation and execution of national budget; the objectives, size, and effects of expenditures; the purposes and results of various ways of taxing income, wealth, consumption, exports, or natural resources; the role of foreign and domestic borrowings; and the consequences of financing by money creation. The book also relates fiscal operations to goals such as growth and development, economic stabilization, equitable distribution, and national self-reliance. The author stresses the need to take account of economic and political conditions and particularly administrative capacity when evaluating the suitability of fiscal measures in developing countries.

Children and the elderly in the U.S

Abstract: The demographic changes that have affected the U.S. population in the 1960s and 1970s are first described. Of particular significance were the decrease in the number of children and the increase in the number of the elderly. The author suggests that as a result of these demographic changes the well-being of the elderly has improved greatly since the early 1960s whereas that of the young has deteriorated. The contributory role of changes in the family to the decline in the well-being of children is noted. Other factors considered include the allocation of public spending the political influence of the respective groups resources for education and resources for health care.

The international flow of third level lesser developed country students to developed countries: Determinants and implications

Abstract: This study analyses the international flow of third level developing country students to advanced countries from the perspective of sending authorities in developing countries. The magnitude of this flow can hardly be overemphasized; on the basis of a conservative estimate made in the article, the annual loss of foreign exchange entailed by this flow amounted to 17 percent of the interest repayment on total external debts of the lesser developed countries (LDCs) in 1979, a sum which the developing countries themselves can hardly ignore. On an aggregate basis, our principal hypothesis is that the outflow of students is determined primarily by excess demand for third level education in developing countries. The empirical results support this hypothesis, while pointing to the importance of other factors. Excess demand for third level education in the developing countries is one of the most important determinants of the flow of developing country students to the advanced countries. On the whole, expansion of developing country tertiary education, at the national or regional levels, could effectively divert some of the flow to local institutions. Aside from this, expansion can also be argued on the basis of the high returns to third level education in developing countries compared to the returns to physical capital, as well as the considerable economies of scale associated with this level of instruction. Further, given the willingness/ability of the students to pay, as witnessed by the fact that the vast majority of developing country students finance privately their education abroad, the expansion of third level education in LDCs could be funded substantially via user charges and student loan schemes.

Pace of Life, Punctuality, and Coronary Heart Disease in Six Countries

Abstract: Cross-cultural differences in attitudes and behaviors concerning time, punctuality, and pace of life, and the relationship of these measures to coronary heart disease, were investigated in a series of studies in Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, Italy, England, and the United States. Study 1 found that public clocks were most accurate in the most economically developed countries (Japan and the United States) and least accurate in the least developed country (Indonesia). Study 2 measured average walking speed during main business hours. Walking speed was fastest in Japan and slowest in Indonesia. Also, subjects in smaller cities tended to walk slower than those in larger cities. Study 3 measured average time taken to complete a standardized postal request. Work speed was again fastest in Japan. Italy was slowest. There were high intercorrelations within cities for the above three measures. Next, the findings from the first three studies were related to incidence of coronary heart disease. Despite the lack of avail...

Women's Status and Fertility in Developing Countries: Son Preference and Economic Security

Abstract: The relationship between women's status, which is defined in terms of the degree to which they are economically dependent on men, and fertility in developing countries is examined. The paper adopts a particular theoretical perspective regarding fertility determinants and explores the implications of women's status within that context. This perspectives gives special attention to the value of children as security assets in settings where public welfare assistance is minimal or non-existent and financial and insurance markets are poorly developed. In this context, women's economic status, and the institutional factors that create a degree of dependence, determine the relevance of sex of children in defining security goals. High dependence results is defining security goals in terms of surviving sons. Given similar security needs, and other things being equal, fertility will be considerably higher in settings where there is a strong preference for sons than in settings where son preference is weak. A cross-national empirical analysis is presented that supports this argument.

Foundations for Change: Aspects of the Construction Industry in Developing Countries

Abstract: The construction industry pattern of most industrialized countries is often unsuited to the needs of developing countries. Case studies in Ghana and Sri Lanka suggest a new approach, and illustrate how existing frameworks could be changed.

The Long-Run Creditworthiness of Developing Countries: Theory and Practice

Abstract: This paper analyzes the determinants of developing country long-run creditworthiness, focusing on the process of capital accumulation relative to external debt. Creditworthiness depends on the actual capital stock compared with a critical level, representing the gross wealth just sufficient to ensure that interest payments to foreigners never exhaust national output given expected gross inflows and existing outstanding debt. Hence, the probability of rescheduling is linked to debt service-capital, net inflows-capital, investment rates, and income levels. The empirical results, based on a probit analysis of historical rescheduling incidents, are quite robust and supportive of the theoretical framework.

Trends in infant feeding in developing countries.

Abstract: Focusing on breastfeeding trends in developing countries this paper examines data sources conclusions and limitations of the most important national level studies of infant feeding practices; describes trends in breastfeeding at the national level and for selected subgroups; reviews cross-sectional differences in breastfeeding practices for a larger number of countries; and examines available information on supplementation patterns in the developing world. In most cases the data on breastfeeding experiences were obtained from studies involving interviews with probability samples of women that were nationally representative. Information on trends came either from a single survey that collected information on the entire breastfeeding histories of the sample women or from 2 or more cross-sectional surveys. A variety of measures were used to evaluate trends in breastfeeding in the 7 countries included in this review -- Taiwan Malaysia Korea Singapore Thailand Mexico and Panama. The available information is inadequate to measure overall trends in infant feeding practices in the developing world. Information to measure national levels of supplementation and weaning is particularly lacking. The lack of national information on the use of infant formulas is a glaring example of how little is known about national supplementation practices. A comparison of trends in the 7 countries shows substantial variation in the degree and even in the pattern of change across countries. Yet certain common elements can be identified. A downward trend in breastfeeding exists in most of the 7 countries. The pattern of decline varies markedly from country to country. In Taiwan and Malaysia both the proportion of infants ever breastfed and the duration of breastfeeding have declined markedly. In Thailand most of the decline is due to a reduction in the duration of nursing with little change noted in the proportion of infants ever breastfed. A reduction in the longer durations of breastfeeding accounts for most of Koreas decline. In Panama the decline in nursing is based on measures of breastfeeding duration. Contradictory patterns are found in Mexico with a small decline in the proportion of infants ever breastfed offset by inconsistent changes in the proportions of infants breastfed at different ages. The pattern of change in Singapore resembles the recent trend in breastfeeding in developed countries i.e. sharp declines in the proportion of infants ever breastfed and in the shorter nursing durations followed by an upturn in both measures. Despite the common belief that most breastfeeding change has occurred among urban populations declines are noted in the rural areas of several countries. Trends vary by ethnicity. Declines are largest for the most modern groups. In the future more emphasis needs to be placed on the collection of information on all types of infant and child nutrition in the developing world.

Evaluating Human Rights in Africa: Some Problems of Implicit Comparisons

Abstract: Since the 1970s, many humanistically minded academics have become concerned with the comparative measurement and analysis of human rights. The new concern is partly a result of the introduction of human rights as a subject of United Nations debates and foreign policy deliberations, especially in the United States during the Carter Administration (1977-81). Frequently, on the intergovernmental and national levels, the debate is nothing more than a new means of rhetoric, with an additional patina of moral concern, for asserting a nation-state's normal national security interests. In the United Nations and other such fora, a favorite tactic of debate is to compare one's own country's human rights strengths with another country's human rights weaknesses. Thus socialist countries criticize the lack of welfare security in capitalist countries, while the latter reply with an indictment of the lack of civil liberties in the former. Former imperialist powers criticize the human rights practices of their former colonies. Developed countries and underdeveloped countries are also compared, almost inevitably to the latters' disadvantage. Finally, since no country has completely lived up to the United Nations ideal as embodied in the International Bill of Rights,' it is fair game for adversaries to hold up that ideal as a mirror to reflect human rights abuses. In this paper, I illustrate the problems of how implicit human rights comparisons affect one's evaluations of human rights performance, by discussing

Family planning program effort and birthrate decline in developing countries.

Abstract: Preliminary results from a study of family planning program effort in 93 developing countries indicate that family planning programs can contribute substantially to increased contraceptive usage and declines in fertility. Questionnaires were used to rate countries on 30 items grouped into 4 components: policy and stage-setting activities service and service-related activities recordkeeping and evaluation and availability and accessibility of services. The countries with the highest program effort scores out of a possible 120 for 1982 were China (101) Republic of Korea (96.9) Singapore (95.3) Taiwan (92.6) Indonesia (87.1) Colombia (85.3) Mauritius (84.6) Hong Kong (82.6) and Sri Lanka (81.6). 4 countries--Kampuchea Laos Libya and Mongolia--had scores of 0. Unweighted mean program effort scores by region were 55 for South and East Asia 46 for Latin America 24 for the Middle East and North Africa and 18 for Sub-Saharan Africa. Of the 9 countries that improved their program effort scores by 25% or more in 1972-82 7 are in South and East Asia or Latin America. 18 countries (including Brazil China Colombia Indonesia Thailand and Turkey) had declines in their crude birth rates of at least 25% in the 1965-80 period and an additional 16% had declines of 10% or more. However no significant fertility declines occurred in Sub-Saharan Africa or in most of the Arab and Muslim countries. Contraceptive prevalence in the 74 countries for which data were available ranged from 0-80% with an average of 26% of married women of reproductive age. The birth rate declines and contraceptive prevalence increases in an orderly manner as program effort and socioeconomic setting improve. The article concludes with case studies of countries representing each of 3 program effort categories: Colombia (strong) Malaysia (moderate) and Kenya (weak). It is suggested that the collection and analysis of program information can help program administrators government and private sector policy makers and donor agencies to improve program perforance. Final study results will be available in a forthcoming World Bank monograph. (summaries in ENG SPA FRE)

Determinants of Women's Health Status and Health-Care Utilization in a Developing Country: A Latent Variable Approach

Abstract: A latent-variable representation of health is used in a system that determines health and various indicators of health and health-care utilization for Nicaraguan women. Estimates differ somewhat from standard estimates. They imply that women's schooling increases health-care utilization, literate women report less disease incidence, women's childhood backgrounds affect their adult health and health-care utilization, and general resources favor childbirth-related care, but women's full income favors general care. The most significant result is that several important characteristics usually associated with development-women's schooling, household resources, and women's labor force participation-have inverse or no associations with women's health. Health status is hypothesized to be important in developing countries, both as a direct indicator of welfare and because of its possible impact on productivity. Health-care utilization also is of interest, both because of its relation to health status and because it is a particular manifestation of demand and supply for a "1 modem service." Work on the determinants of health status and health-care utilization in developing economies, however, is flawed because true health status is not directly observable. The indicators of health status that have been used in empirical studies-anthropometric measures, days ill, self-reported or clinical disease records, inputs such as nutrients, and health-care utilization indicesare imperfect indicators of underlying health status and generally do not give a congruent representation of that status. Thereby they may not measure adequately health status and their use may lead to biases in estimates and incorrect interpretations. We use a latent variable methodology for the first time to explore health status and health-care utilization in a developing country.' This approach employs systematic relations between various indicators of health status and health status itself and between health status and various related outcomes so that it is possible to estimate the determinants of health status and control for health status in other relations, even though health status is not directly observed. By using this methodology we obtain more satisfactory estimates of the determinants of health status and of health-care utilization in a developing country context than previous estimates using direct but imperfect proxies. This should improve the empirical bases for evaluating health and related policies in the developing world. I. Latent Variable Model of Health Status and Health-Care Utilization In the human capital tradition of analysis of health, individual health status is viewed as determined by individual demand factors given supply prices, environment, age and resources (including genes). Health-care utilization is a derived demand for a service which is used to produce better health. To incorporate the latent variable representation of the unobserved health status, we assume that the demand-supply health status and health-care utilization interactions, as well as the relation of other health indicators to health status, can be represented by the following linear system of relations:

The Population of China

Abstract: 80% of Chinas population live in the rural areas of the country and the demographic trends in this very large social group have a considerable significance for both China and the world as a whole. In many economically developing countries the rate of population growth has fallen faster among the educated urban population than it has among the peasantry. The peasant economy encourages population growth: many children provide many hands to work the small plot of land the typical peasant family owns or rents. Children also ensure that the land will be worked when the parents are old. Although the collectivization of agriculture that followed the Communist revolution removed much of the economic incentive for large families on the farm the rate of population growth remained high because profamily cultural attitudes persisted. Not until after the death of Mao Zedong in 1976 was the control of demographic growth pursued vigorously as an official policy. The political structure of Chinese society is such that policy decisions can be quickly implemented. Consequently the rate of population increase has declined faster in China that it has in any other large economically developing country. Contrary to the experience of many developing countries the reductions in the birthrate have occurred in rural areas as well as in the cities. The decrease in the rate at which the population is growing is on the whole beneficial to a developing country a rapid decline in the birthrate has significant social costs. The official position of the Chinese government is that the largest population China can support is 1.2 billion or 200 million more than the population counted in the most recent census (taken in 1982). A table shows projections of the effect of an immediate birthrate decrease to a level commensurate with an ultimate constant population of 1.2 billion. The projections show that such a rate could have at least 2 implications: in the middle of the 21st century there will be a disadvantageous distribution of the Chinese population according to age and a relatively small group of workers will be supporting a large group of retired people; and if China is to achieve a constant population of 1.2 billion Chinese married couples must average fewer than 2 children for much of the 1990s. The projections present Chinese officials with some difficult choices. The well defined limits of agriculture are the strongest motivation for family planning in China but other considerations have strengthened the collective will to limit population growth. 1 of the disadvantages resulting from a high rate of population growth is the presence of many young people who need jobs. The problem is exacerbated by the shortage of jobs suitable for educated people. Along with the dilemmas of resources and employment uncontrolled population growth could aggravate tensions between the city and the country. In addition to arguments favoring population control birth control devices and rewards and punishments are delivered through the administrative apparatus.

Industrial Structure and Policy in Less Developed Countries

Abstract: 1. Introduction 2. Industrial Structure, International Trade and Development 3. Business Concentration in LDCs 4. Business Behaviour in the Private Sector 5. Business Behaviour in the Public Sector 6. Industrial Policies and Development

13 – Growth with Limited Supplies of Foreign Exchange: A Reappraisal of the Two-Gap Model

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter discusses growth with the limited supplies of foreign exchange. Practical orthodoxy seems unable to understand a simple but important message of the two-gap model: from the accounting identity S - I = X - M - R plus the observation of a current account deficit in the balance of payments, one cannot derive the conclusion that a particular developing country is living beyond its means. The conclusion follows only if net exports are restricted by excess domestic demand. It is not correct when net exports are conditioned by insufficient demand in world markets. The possibility of a foreign-exchange restriction cannot be assumed away in the 1980s merely because of the existence of a competitive world capital market. First, developing countries have to pass an export performance test before entitling themselves to enter the world credit market and the performance criteria required may be too stringent for the poorest developing countries. Second, credit rationing is an important characteristic of these markets and the country credit limits established by international banks may be too low, under given export opportunities, to free individual developing countries from the foreign-exchange bind.

Industrial Protection in the Developed Countries

Abstract: Much has been said in recent years about growing industrial protectionism in the developed countries, but little effort has been made to assess quantitatively the increases in protection that have actually occurred. This essay will provide estimates for the major developed countries (the United States, the European Common Market, and Japan) on changes in their tariff and non-tariff barriers on manufactured imports in general and on imports from the developing countries in particular. The protection of agricultural products is, however, excluded from the preview of the essay.

The Political Dilemmas of Foreign Study

Abstract: On the North American side, academia and academics have long discovered the many benefits to be derived from being involved in training, consulting, or other technical assistance programs for underdeveloped countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America: students from abroad form an increasingly welcome source of enrollment and tuition in universities where the decrease in the American graduate student population (caused by demographic as well as labor-market conditions) has often brought both enrollment and tuition levels to below a critical mass level.' Considerations of efficiency in the use of an institution's resources and capacities make increments of foreign students attractive where declining domestic student populations tend to drive up the unit costs per student. At the same time, many foreign students, especially from Third World countries, tend to come with full or major financial support from their governments, international assistance agencies, or philanthropic organizations, thus sparing their American host institutions the problem of financial support. Problems of "brain drain" in the case of some countries notwithstanding, the majority of foreign students tend to return to positions in their home countries, relieving the U.S. institution of yet another headache, that of placement in a shrinking labor market for graduates in most disciplines.

Country Risk: A Model for Predicting Debt Servicing Problems in Developing Countries

Abstract: Recent events in the international capital markets with more than thirty countries in the last two years unable to meet their debt service obligations have focused attention on the method of country risk analysis used by international banks and financial agencies.