Measurement Frontiers
« Previous Entries Next Entries »On Governance and Human Rights in China and Iran
Monday, October 11th, 2010So it goes: a few days ago the Nobel Peace Prize for 2010 was awarded to Liu Xiaobo, the jailed Chinese dissident, in spite of the active lobbying by the authorities in China (including threats on dire consequences on their relations with Norway)…
Governance improves, goes into reverse, and fails: WGI and Governance Matters released
Friday, September 24th, 2010We are releasing the new version of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI), covering 213 countries over the 1996-2009 period. All the data and resources ca be found at www.govindicators.org. It is accompanied by a new analytical report on the WGI, to be found here. prepared with my co-authors in this project, A. Kraay and M. Mastruzzi. And a synthesis [...]
On the state of Governance and the governance of States around the World: what will the WGI scorecard tell us?
Thursday, September 23rd, 2010In past writings we have emphasized the neglected link between good governance by wealthy and developing countries and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Lately such link is getting a bit more attention in the media, as it is being emphasized by stars like U2′s Bono and his own NGO, named ONE. Of course, [...]
Casting Light on the MDGs through better Governance and Less Corruption
Saturday, September 18th, 2010The lofty events of the 2010 United Nations Summit on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are already underway in New York. A gala is taking place tomorrow evening, Sunday the 19th of September, at the luxurious Waldorf Astoria for the rich and famous to celebrate the MDG achievements and give awards in a celebrity-laden event. One [...]
Blowing the Vuvuzela on FIFA: Governance Reforms for Development
Friday, July 9th, 2010Sixty-two games have been played at the 2010 World Cup, which has been marvelously hosted by South Africa. Only two games remain; one tomorrow for third place, and then Sunday’s much awaited World Cup Final between Spain and the Netherlands. In a couple of days, we will have a brand new world soccer champion. But [...]
Apology Letter to Maradona, or to the Soccer World?: Don’t cry for me Argentina
Sunday, July 4th, 2010The Letter, entitled ‘An Apology to Maradona, a Rolicking Genius’, was published just before yesterday’s World Cup game between Argentina and Germany. Excerpted, it reads:…
Will June 27 become ‘Instant Replay in Soccer’ Day?
Sunday, June 27th, 2010This day, June 27th, is important for both Britain and Argentina. Over 200 years ago, on this day in 1806, the British captured Buenos Aires. Today, June 27th, 2010, fortunes were reversed. Two crucial soccer games took place in the knockout stage of the World Cup. In the first, Germany sent England home 4-1, while [...]
Scrap FIFA World Soccer Ranking: Geography and Governance predict World Cup results
Friday, June 25th, 2010In its own World Soccer Federation portal, FIFA.com, boasts: ‘since 1993, the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking has become a regular part of international sports and an important indicator to find where teams stand in world’s football’s pecking order’…
Back to the Future in the soccer World Cup: Chile wins 1-0 or 3-1?
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010This day, June 16th, is the day when Chile won a very important soccer game. So important, that Chile earned 3rd place in the World Cup! How can that be, some may ask, when the current World Cup in South Africa is only in its very first stage? I am thinking about the very same [...]
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be met unless governance improves
Friday, May 14th, 2010In 2000, the international community agreed on eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Among others, countries pledged to halve extreme poverty, achieve universal education, halt the spread of HIV/AIDS and reduce child and maternal mortality rates by 2015. Ahead of the UN’s upcoming September 2010 Summit on the MDGs, countries and aid donors have begun [...]
Does Grease Money Speed Up the Wheels of Commerce?
Sunday, May 2nd, 2010Does bribery reduce bureaucratic red tape to an enterprise? That is a question that Shang-Jin Wei and I investigated in a research paper over a decade ago. The Economist writes about it in their current issue in an article called (following Moises Naim’s coining) ‘The Corruption Eruption’ , here, also citing the work of Wharton’s [...]
Corruption and Fiscal Deficits in Rich Countries
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010Some of my research tends to challenge orthodoxy, such as taking issue with the claim that the developing ‘world’ is the corrupt one (contrasting wealthy nations); that corruption is largely about blatant bribery, and that corruption and macro-economic stability should be viewed separately from each other by different types of ‘experts’. I am committing the heresy of focusing on the link between corruption [...]
Wall Street Reform and Beyond
Friday, April 16th, 2010For years I have been arguing that regulatory and state capture is a major challenge in many countries, including in the US. I wrote papers, presented analysis and evidence, even argued the case to top executives at the World Economic Forum long ago. Yet I had limited success, other than getting some articles published in [...]
Breaking the Cycle of Crime and Corruption (while questioning existence of the cycle)
Wednesday, April 14th, 2010The World Policy Journal asked for the views of a few of us on “How Can Nations Break the Cycle of Crime and Corruption?” I answered, in a just-published short piece, though I disagreed with the main premise behind such question: Crime and Corruption need not be inextricably linked, or party to a vicious cycle…
California Learning Lessons from Chile’s Earthquake
Saturday, April 3rd, 2010Dozens of researchers have flocked to Chile to study the design and construction lessons from Chile’s 8.8 mega-earthquake in February, for potential application in California (similarly earthquake-prone and regulation-codes). Buildings of similar vintage located next to each other fared totally differently. It is like a ‘living laboratory’ setting — a haven for researchers…
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