November 5, 2009
Yes Bill, No Owen: Why I Still Doubt Aid-Growth Regressions
[Update: I posted slides from my turn as a discussant for this paper at the Brookings Institution on January 25, 2010.]
Views from the Center
January 26, 2009
Got a Favorite CGD Research Output in 2008? Tell Eldis!
Eldis, the online aggregator of development policy, practice and research at the Institute of Development Studies in Sussex, is conducting a survey to identify "the most significant new piece of development research of 2008." This strikes me as having roughly the same statistical validity as American Idol does for when it comes to finding new singing talent. Still, as with Idol and other talent shows, the entertainment value of a popularity contest is hard to dispute!
January 5, 2009
My (Partial) Policy Wish List for 2009: Development Dreaming or Practical Possibilities?
We are at the start of what promises to be an unusually difficult year in the global economy. Policy decisions in the United States and other rich world countries will matter immensely for poor and vulnerable people living in developing countries.
November 24, 2008
Tim Geithner and Lawrence Summers - Good Picks for the U.S. and the World's Poor
We at CGD warmly welcome president-elect Barack Obama's appointments of Timothy Geithner as Secretary of Treasury and Lawrence Summers to head the National Economic Council. Both are members of the CGD Board of Directors. This is no coincidence.
September 22, 2008
In the Long Run We Are All Dead, But in the Meantime, Financial Crises Take a Heavy Toll (Development Impacts of Financial Crisis)
I am afraid I disagree rather strongly with Michael Clemens argument that the current financial crisis will matter little to long term growth and thus to global poverty.
September 22, 2008
Crisis? Not If We Take a Long View (Development Impacts of Financial Crisis)
When you’re done reading today’s news stories about the crisis, take a deep breath. Media coverage is focused on the very short term, as usual. Speculation abounds that we live in a different world now. I’m reminded of portentous claims after the Asian Financial Crisis that “the miracle was over”, claims which look very overwrought in hindsight. In historical perspective, many of the most worrisome recent crises are small bumps on a very long road.
September 22, 2008
If Foreign Aid Contracts, AIDS Treatment Jobs are a Safe Bet (Development Impacts of Financial Crisis)
Among the likely but unanticipated consequences of the U.S. financial crisis: AIDS treatment jobs could become a "safe haven" for people whose current employment depends on foreign assistance funds that are currently expended for other purposes.
September 22, 2008
U.S. Financial Crisis Will Mean Slower Growth, Rising Inequality in Developing World (Development Impacts of Financial Crisis)
For many developing countries, the U.S. credit crisis will mean slower growth and rising inequality. The effects will be protracted, and not all will show up at the same time. And the nature and degree of impact will vary widely. Some countries, notably those with extensive foreign exchange reserves and strong fiscal positions, will be much better able to cope than others. But overall the crisis is very bad news for developing countries and especially for the poor.
Commentary Menu