The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
The number of people in South Asia's cities rose by 130 million between 2000 and 2011--more than the entire population of Japan. This was linked to an improvement in productivity and a reduction in the incidence of extreme poverty. But the region's cities have struggled to cope with the pressure …
This report summarises a series of studies carried out by a multi-disciplinary team of Thai scholars. It focuses on the dynamics of urbanisation and climate change risks, and on the linkages between urbanisation, climate change and emerging patterns of urban poverty and vulnerability. It provides new and key insights, serving …
This research shows that disaster risks in towns and cities are strongly linked to underdevelopment. The population of Africa’s cities is growing rapidly. But as poor people cram into towns and cities characterised by limited, weak and often under-resourced infrastructure, they are increasingly relegated to marginal, inadequately serviced, informal settlements …
Sri Lanka has made encouraging progress in reducing poverty to below 7 percent of the population, but pockets of severe poverty remain and future prosperity will depend on addressing chronic revenue shortfalls and fostering a more competitive and inclusive economy, say new research findings announced by the World Bank Group. …
What impact has the award of the Fourteenth Finance Commission had on the resources and spending of state governments? Does it necessarily have to lead to a decline in outlays in the social sector? An illustrative and preliminary exercise for Bihar.
The important global, national and local benefits provided by protected areas may come at a cost to communities, and any resultant experience of injustice can undermine protected area conservation. Conversely, the success of many areas conserved by Indigenous Peoples and local communities makes a compelling case for the stronger engagement …
This paper examines the linkages between decentralisation and urban climate governance through a literature review, supported by two city case studies: Saint-Louis in Senegal and Bobo-Dioulasso in Burkina Faso. The paper explores how urban development needs, and the responsibilities, policies and processes required to meet them, are shaped, facilitated or …
This report by the Measure What Matters team examines the current state of corporate and government reporting of water sustainability in India. Businesses, governments and global-level actors all gather data on water resources. However, serving different purposes, their accounting systems are rarely harmonized, which can lead to information asymmetries between …
The purpose of this paper is examine the notion of tenure in connection with water resources and to explore whether the concept of water tenure has the potential to make a useful contribution towards resolving the world’s water resources challenges. It seeks to provide answers to the following questions: (a) …
This issue of Budget Track is a special issue focusing on Nutrition. It is a part of the efforts, to deepen the policy discourse in India on nutrition specifically from the public investment perspective. The recent changes in the federal fiscal architecture and the policy landscape over the last year …
This report is a holistic review of water governance in Bangladesh, with the aim of providing insight to government and non-government actors on the current challenges and opportunities around water governance. The hope is that the findings will help all actors in Bangladesh to align on a positive roadmap for …
The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) at the University of Pennsylvania conducts research on the role policy institutes play in governments and civil societies around the world. Often referred to as the “think tanks’ think tank,” TTCSP examines the evolving role and character of public policy research organizations. …
2015 showed that people working together can succeed in the battle against corruption. Although corruption is still rife globally, more countries improved their scores in the 2015 edition of Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index than declined. Overall, two-thirds of the 168 countries on the 2015 index scored below 50, on …
In October 2015, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change released a Draft Environment Laws (Amendment) Bill 2015 proposing amendments to the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and the National Green Tribunal Act 2010. The stated objective of the Bill is to provide ‘effective deterrent penal provisions’ and to introduce …
Rapidly increasing urbanisation in India has brought much needed focus on the urban development policies in India. The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission was the first programme to provide substantial funds for urban local bodies to improve their infrastructure and bring in better governance systems. This article tries to …
This report highlights the essential role of pandemic preparedness in national security and economic stability, a critical but often under-examined dimension of the global conversation post-Ebola. Importantly, the report demonstrates that the impact of infectious disease crises goes far beyond human health alone and that mitigation, likewise, requires the mobilization …
The report compares different aspects of the State Action Plans on Climate Change (SAPCCs) such as the climate profile, vulnerability assessments, sector-wise climate change strategies and climate change action plans in the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR). It also examines SAPCCs in relation to the National Missions under the National Action …
Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) explores how jurisdictions in Indonesia, focusing on Kalimantan provinces, could become Zero Deforestation Zones (ZDZs). ZDZs are jurisdictions (provinces or districts) that have strong, mutually reinforcing public and private governance structures in place and are on a path to reaching zero net emissions from deforestation while …
Judgement of the Supreme Court of India in the matter of Rajbala & Others Vs State of Haryana & Others dated 10/12/2015 regarding the constitutionality of the Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 8 of 2015).
This report provides new insights into adaptation monitoring, reporting and evaluation systems at the national level in Europe and constitutes the first attempt to consolidate emerging information across European countries. It aims to offer reliable and targeted information to support the effective and efficient implementation of climate adaptation policies and …
