Measuring the contribution of services to the Indian economy is a challenging task because it presents problems not encountered in the primary and secondary sectors. The authors discuss problems found particularly in quantifying the contribution of the banking and software sectors and suggest...

This chapter offers a primer on poverty, inequality, and vulnerability analysis and a guide to resources on this topic. It is written for decision makers who want to define the type of information they need to monitor poverty reduction and make appropriate policy decisions and for the technical...

Guinea-Bissau endured a major conflict in 1998 and has suffered from persistent political instability since independence. After a brief review of indicators of governance in Guinea-Bissau and recent political developments, the objective of this Chapter is to provide results from a recent survey...

The ideology of globalization and its practice based on neo-liberal paradigm has played a vital role in re-arranging the architecture of global economic and political order. Central to this new economic dispensation is a shift in the role of the state, particularly in its commitment towards the...

Over the last few years, many attempts have been made to implement VAT in India. Initially, all states were to move to VAT system by 2000, but administrative problems and concern over the revenue implications of the change delayed the scheduled implementation. It has been postponed for five...

While many developing countries have reformed their financial systems over the last few decades, how an increased level of financial liberalization affects the saving-investment relationship remains unclear. This paper examines the dynamic relationship between the domestic saving and investment...

Micro-Finance is emerging as a powerful instrument for poverty alleviation in the new economy. In India, micro-Finance scene is dominated by Self Help Groups (SHGs) - Banks linkage Programme, aimed at providing a cost effective mechanism for providing financial services to the 'unreached poor'....

In the Gangetic flood plain of West Bengal, wetlands are used for multiple purposes, and have significant role in the livelihoods of the local people. Over the years, these Multiple Use Systems (MUSs) are getting converted to single use systems due to economic and social pressure from dominant...

Given the poor economic performance of Guinea-Bissau over the last few years, including a severe recession toward the end of 2002, poverty is likely to be high and to have risen in recent years even compared to its high postconflict level. The first objective of this chapter is to estimate the...

This article investigates the relationships among economic growth, income distribution and poverty in Brazil during the period from 2001 to 2005. Those relationships are analyzed starting from the selection of three models: one that relates the variations in the poverty indicators and the main...