Nearly 65% of adults in the Arab region remain excluded from formal financial systems, according to a new report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). The Annual SDG Review 2025 paints a sobering picture of persistent financial exclusion that is undermining the region’s ability …
On the eve of WHO's 60th anniversary, Udani Samarasekera asks health and development experts what they think some of the UN agency's greatest achievements and failures have been and how they believe the organisation needs to change to better address health globally.
This article focuses on the main issues vital for the survival of the International Monetary Fund in the context of rapid and almost revolutionary changes in the world's money and capital markets, the rise of fast growing, emerging economies, and the decline in the use of the institution's resources and …
EVEN a return to Inspector Raj looks probable as a distraught government is determined to rein in spiralling prices at any cost. The government is considering imposition of price ceilings on commodities if other measures to repress inflation fail. The finance ministry recently asked the Cabinet Committee on Prices (CCP) …
A nationwide survey of nearly 700 people suggests that Americans would prefer more money be invested in technology to solve the nation's energy ailments than to cure cancer or other diseases. Some 37% of respondents to the poll, conducted by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in Virginia, said they …
THE government may allow multilateral funding agencies such as World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) to directly extend debt to urban local bodies (ULB). At present, the grants are routed through the central government, which passes it to the states. The move is expected to provide an alternative portfolio …
- A nationwide survey of nearly 700 people suggests that Americans would prefer more money be invested in technology to solve the nation's energy ailments than to cure cancer or other diseases. Some 37 percent of respondents to the poll, conducted by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in Virginia, …
The recent duty cuts by the government may have some impact on softening prices after a couple of weeks, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said today, even as it expected inflationary pressure to persist for a few more months. In its Asia Development Outlook released today, ADB expected inflation to …
Senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi says in an article that the Rs 60,000 crore loan waiver announced by the UPA government recently may benefit some people but it has left out a large mass of poor people. Besides, there are many other discrepancies in the waiver scheme, he says. …
THEUS economy could contract in the first half of this year but should then pick up as aggressive interest rate cuts stimulate growth and financial and housing market woes recede, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday. "It now appears likely that real gross domestic product will not grow …
INFLATION LED BY SUPPLY-SIDE CONSTRAINTS, MONETARY TIGHTENING WON'T HELP Neelakshi Rana NEW DELHI THERE seems to be a near consensus among economists that containing inflation through monetary tightening would prove counterproductive. Unlike in February 2007 when RBI checked inflation by raising rates, they argue, this time inflation is largely led …
Asian growth is expected to cool in 2008, as the region grapples with a global downturn and soaring inflation expected to hit decadehigh levels, the Asian Development Bank said. Fast-rising rice and oil prices as well as a worldwide slowdown will have a strong impact, the Manila-based ADB said in …
After the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations for Central employees, the Government is set to put in place a commission to determine salaries, allowances and perks of Members of Parliament. The Cabinet is expected to clear a proposal to this effect at its meeting scheduled for tomorrow. Since the new arrangement …
This paper tracks the organizational and financial history of the Integrated Village Development Project (IVDP) and the self-help group (SHG) network it supports in Tamil Nadu, India. It describes how the network is connecting and negotiating with a variety of formal sector institutions, paving the way towards aligning the "informal" …
Though the Union Budget was hailed as being farmer-friendly, a closer scrutiny reveals that it gives much less to villagers and the weaker sections of society than what appears at first glance. The media was quick to highlight the loan waiver for small farmers but it chose to ignore the …
This paper is set in the context of a larger development policy debate pertaining to regional inequalities in India. Historically some regions had experienced agricultural prosperity due to their resource endowments especially water. The complementarity between modern inputs and water has boosted the public investments in these regions in order …
Q. We need to create true fiscal and monetary federalism in this country. Do you have any ideas in this direction? Chidambaram: There are one thousand schemes and programmes which are funded by the Centre. It has come as a big revelation. We are now putting in place a Central …
Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, in his famous speech at Avadi near Chennai in 1955, spelt out the conditions for inclusive growth. He asked and I ask the same question
maharashtra is planning to amend the state employment guarantee act to divert the reserve fund to other projects. The move comes when the union government is trying to fortify the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (nregs). On February 21, the cabinet decided to do away with a mandatory grant to …
