This report was prepared in close
collaboration with the Bank of Albania. This report focused
on trade, services, and agriculture; however, the limited
scope of their operations still leaves a potentially large
unmet demand for credit in agriculture. This report focuses
on problems related to the operation of Immovable Property
Registry System (IPRS) and other institutions and the
formalization of property rights and inscription of

Interest in investment climates has
emerged relatively recently. In the 1960s and 1970s,
governments in many countries believed they should play a
direct role in rural credit, input supply, production,
trade, transport, distribution, and even marketing. However,
in the 1980s and 1990s, government-dominated systems fell
into disgrace because of poor performance. For the rural
sector, the primary focus had traditionally been on

Despite positive, relatively broad-based
and stable growth record in recent years and immense
untapped potential in agriculture, mining and services,
Zambia's poverty rates have not declined significantly
and remain high. Income growth is limited by coordination
failures such as poor access to domestic and international
markets, inputs, extension services and information. High
indirect costs - most of which attributable to

This paper addresses two vital concerns
in the debate on adaptation to climate change. First, how
can countries prepare to manage the impact of climate-change
induced natural disasters? Second, how can countries ensure
that they have the governmental institutions required to
manage the phenomenal challenge of adaptation to climate
change? A range of economic and institutional measures are
tested for their potential effects on natural disaster

This paper compares and contrasts the
performance of rural and urban manufacturing firms in
Ethiopia to assess the impact of market integration and the
investment climate on firm performance. Rural firms are
shown to operate in isolated markets, have poor access to
infrastructure and a substantial degree of market power,
whereas urban firms operate in better integrated and more
competitive markets, where they have much better access to

This paper uses two recently completed
surveys of individual entrepreneurs (farmers and
microentrepreneurs) and registered enterprises (agricultural
and nonagricultural) operating in Mexico s rural sector to
provide new evidence about the factors influencing the
incidence of credit constraints and investment behavior. To
measure the incidence of credit constraints, the authors use
self-reported information on whether economic agents have a

Poor governance is a major impediment to
achieving development outcomes of the forest sector. It
results in losses of income, employment, government
revenues, and local and global environmental services.
However, at present, no comprehensive guide to reforming
forest governance has been developed. Although usually it is
relatively easy to recognize that the forest sector in a
country is failing to deliver all its potential benefits,

This paper provides the results of an
international survey of practitioners with experience in
facilitating the participation of African smallholder
farmers in supply chains for higher-value and/or
differentiated agricultural products. It explores their
perceptions about the constraints inhibiting and the impacts
associated with this supply chain participation. It also
examines their perceptions about the factors affecting the

The response to the GRI Indicators
presents a glimpse into the World Banks (also known as the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development or
IBRD in the capital market) complex suite of activities.
Topics that are of interest to sustainable investment
communities, NGOs, and country clients determine materiality
for the purposes of this report. Reporting priorities are
determined annually based on the corporate priorities of the

The response to the GRI Indicators
presents a glimpse into the World Banks (also known as the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development or
IBRD in the capital market) complex suite of activities.
Topics that are of interest to sustainable investment
communities, NGOs, and country clients determine materiality
for the purposes of this report. Reporting priorities are
determined annually based on the corporate priorities of the

Well-functioning groups enforce social
norms that restrain opportunism, but the social structure of
a society may encourage or inhibit norm enforcement. This
paper studies how the exogenous assignment to different
positions in an extreme social hierarchy - the caste system
- affects individuals' willingness to punish violations
of a cooperation norm. Although the analysis controls for
individual wealth, education, and political participation,

Bangladesh has recorded impressive
economic and social gains since the 1990s. Recent growth has
been at levels close to six percent. The country has doubled
per capita growth and taken large strides toward reaching
many Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), ahead of many
comparable countries. Attaining the MDGs calls for
accelerating economic growth to six-seven percent a year.
Accordingly, Bangladesh's Poverty Reduction Strategy