Journal of International Development最新文献

Studies aiming to evaluate the effectiveness of channels for participating in administration have been conducted mainly in democratic, developed countries. However, outcomes from those settings may not apply to developing or less developed countries where democracy has yet to be consolidated. In Mozambique, which has an authoritarian regime, the effectiveness of participatory channels from the public point of view remains unexplored. Therefore, based on participants' motives for participation, this study empirically examines citizens' perception of channels for participating in administration with specific reference to Gaza Province and suggests that policy makers and administrators design participation channels for local governments to ensure and protect citizens' authentic participation in administration.

Does foreign aid reshape citizen views on governments? How does Chinese aid relate to corruption perception in African local governments? Studying 33 African countries from 2000 to 2014 (175 590 respondents), Chinese aid heightens perceived corruption in local councillors and officials. Corruption scandals likely contribute to negative views of both China and local governance. Control variables like World Bank aid and Confucius Institutes disprove alternate theories. Heterogeneous effects demonstrate that China's aid is unwelcome among low-skilled individuals who feel threatened by its expansion, magnifying corruption perception. This suggests that Chinese aid's unfavourable image fosters scepticism among African citizens and undermines collaborating local governments.

Social network approaches on microfinance self-help groups (SHGs) find that their organizational capacity lies in network expansion—a social capital basis for various policy interventions through SHGs. To what extent do SHGs create connections in and out of the group boundaries in the caste- and gender-segregated India? This study adds group cohesion and contact diversity as potential network advantages and fully assesses the relationship-spanning structure of SHGs in India. Modelling network structures in 71 villages in the Diffusion of Microfinance dataset, we identify SHGs' community bonding as well as bridging capacities through the simultaneously expanded and cohesive helpful exchange ties. However, SHG members' exchange ties are more caste- and gender-homogeneous, suggesting that SHGs bond rather than bridge individuals across these salient socio-demographic groups. We develop a policy imperative to promote mixing based on the socio-demographic composition when aggregating individual SHGs into higher-level units.

In the past two decades, foreign direct investment (FDI) in emerging economies has witnessed substantial growth in the agricultural sector. Globally, more than a quarter of these investments have failed. Beyond case studies, the factors that contribute to these failures have been subject to limited research. To address this research gap, this article draws on a unique data set of 106 investments in Ethiopia, from which failures were identified and detailed case studies analysed to identify the causes of failure. Drawing on the literature on institutional voids, our analysis shows that the high rates of failure in the agricultural sector are often caused by insufficient planning at the proposal stage, assumptions about the availability of expertise, socio-political and environmental risks, insufficient financing and/or a changing investment landscape and underestimation and/or misunderstanding regarding the limits of extractive approaches. These lessons suggest that while FDI in the agricultural sector has potential, the working approaches require significant transformation. We offer a set of strategic recommendations to mitigate the risk of investment failure in agricultural investment.

We present an ecosystem approach to analyze open-source data to identify populations vulnerable to human trafficking and to reveal underlying causal relationships. In the case of Bangladesh, our analysis suggests combinations of indicators that are highly predictive of human trafficking. The traditional narrative that poverty and unemployment are the main drivers for human trafficking may be an oversimplification. We find many areas where vulnerability is highest within lower-middle to middle-class societies with (a) moderate levels of income and education, (b) adherence to traditional gender norms of a male-dominated patriarchal society, and (c) access to an urban center.

Financial inclusion is an important driver of economic growth, but gender gaps persist in financial activity, especially in low-income countries. This study analyses the impact of text messages that make salient neighbours' savings behaviour on account usage and savings behaviour of low-income men and women in Senegal. We performed a randomized field experiment in which 2056 clients of a local financial institution were assigned to one of three experimental conditions. We found gender differences in how these text messages impact savings and account usage. Account usage, account activity and average savings balances of female clients who received weekly savings reminders making their neighbours' savings behaviour salient increased compared to those who received generic savings reminders and those who received no savings reminders. The treatment had no impact on male clients. These results suggest that content-specific text message reminders can create benefits for both the supply and demand side of financial services for women in low-income countries, thereby increasing financial inclusion.

This study examines the pattern of central policy agendas discussed in international development over the last three decades. It highlights the predominant countries and issues by examining the theme-based periodicals of a leading international development agency. It analyses the visibility of countries and identifies main topics by examining the OECD Development Centre Working Papers. Findings indicate that certain topics (e.g., market, economy, finance, trade) have been consistently covered, while some policy issues have been highlighted in specific periods. This study also finds that the OECD's people- and planet-centred approach has been reflected in its key reports and documents.

The present study assesses the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic-induced income shocks on dietary diversity in India using eight waves of the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy–Consumer Pyramids Household Surveys data over the period January 2019 to August 2021. Using a two-stage least squares panel regression model and a specification akin to difference-in-differences technique, our results suggest that an income shock of any magnitude reduced the dietary diversity of households across India, though the impact has been more severe in the rural areas compared to urban and during the first year of the pandemic compared to the second. The mediating role of household socio-economic characteristics, pandemic indicators and food prices is also examined.

The study analyses the effect of global value chains participation (GVCP) on CO₂ emissions and assesses whether digitalization technologies can enhance environmental quality. We use panel data estimation techniques for 112 developing countries over the period 1990–2018. Findings show that the GVCP contributes to environmental degradation. Other factors that increase environmental damage include FDI inflows, industrial value-added and electricity consumption. However, renewable energy consumption significantly reduces CO₂ emissions. Findings show that digitalization is an effective channel in reducing CO₂ emissions in the GVCP in developing countries. These findings have important policy implications in exploring the GVCP's development dynamics in upgrading opportunities from digital technologies to reduce environmental pollution and promote sustainable growth in developing economies.

This paper is interested in explaining the causes of the simultaneous evolution between economic and informality growth. Using a large annual panel of African countries with a time series of 25 years, our results are paradoxical: the effect of growth on the informal sector becomes contradictory in the presence of high corruption rates. When the corruption rate is low (>1.3577), growth is indirectly related to the informal sector and vice versa when it is high (<1.3577). The results, which highlight a previously unknown paradox, contribute significantly to the existing literature on the subject and are robust to alternative specifications. It is therefore desirable for policymakers to improve the transparency of interactions between firms, public and private agents to fight corruption.