Public Financial Management
« Previous EntriesHaiti: Rescue, Recovery, and Effective Development Aid
Monday, January 18th, 2010We are pained about the death toll and human suffering in Haiti and we share their sorrow. With the exception of the tsunami in Asia, this tragedy is unprecedented in recent memory in a country not at war. Current technology makes the devastation and death instantly clear around the globe. Such technology also enables [...]
Chile ingresando a la OCDE: como ir al Mundial de Futbol?
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009Es ya oficial ahora: Chile entrará a la OCDE, y pronto. Un gran reconocimiento y logro. Según la BBC, Chile festeja como un Mundial, ya que Andrés Velasco dice en París: “Es como clasificar para el Mundial, donde están los 32 mejores equipos. Aquí en la OCDE son 30 y con Chile vamos a ser [...]
Power shifting back from Washington to New York: Recapture of the State in the offing?
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009Imagine you hold a very high position in the US Government, in Washington, DC. And you believe it is important to talk to the top Wall Street bankers, to nudge them to be more modest about their bonuses, and more generous about their lending. You call a meeting with these top bankers in Washington. [...]
International Anti-Corruption Day 2009: An Hour of Silence to Reflect and Reboot
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009 As Wednesday, December 9th dawns, there is a dim reminder that one is supposed to ‘celebrate’ International Anti-Corruption. ‘Dim reminder’ to ‘celebrate’ in quotation marks indeed, because unfortunately anti-corruption continues to be largely in the back-burner for most world powers, for most international institutions, and for many of their leaders.
Or worse…
Corruption Index today, Development Aid Reform tomorrow?
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009Transparency International (TI), the international anti-corruption NGO, just released its annual corruption perceptions index (CPI). No big surprises. This is no surprise. Corruption does not tend to change dramatically from one year to the next. Yet it is certainly worth reviewing the new data.
Before so doing, a warning: governance indices (including those we are associated [...]
Indicadores Mundiales de Gobernabilidad 2009
Thursday, July 2nd, 2009Acabamos de salir a la luz con los Indicadores Mundiales de Gobernabilidad 2009, y con el nuevo reporte ‘Governance Matters’. El resumen en español, el reporte, y los datos estan aqui.
In French, here.
In Arabic, here.
In Japanese, here.
In Chinese (last year), here.
In Russian (last year), here.
In Português (last year), here.
For access to the most current Worldwide Governance [...]
Governance Matters 2009: Learning From Over a Decade of the Worldwide Governance Indicators
Monday, June 29th, 2009Today we are releasing the report Governance Matters VIII, which includes the new update of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI). Now collaborating from the Brookings Institution, I continue to take part in this research project with my former World Bank colleagues Aart Kraay and Massimo Mastruzzi.
In the WGI we construct and measure six dimensions [...]
Grand Donor Illusion and Larceny in Africa?
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009Last week’s piece in the New York Times (NYT, and in IHT) on ill-fated Anti-Corruption commissions and campaigns in a number of prominent countries in Africa elicited comment, both in this blog space and elsewhere. I also got separate communications and feedback, including on the role of donors and aid, which was not the [...]
On Lessons from Chile for the Americas during the Crisis (2)
Thursday, February 5th, 2009In my previous blog entry, I made the case that both the antecedents of the financial crisis faced by Chile in 1982, as well as the approach taken to resolve it, provide insights for countries such as the US today -suitably adapted by circumstances, size and complexity, of course. Nonetheless, focusing on the fundamental pillars to [...]
Lessons from America for the US Financial Crisis?: the case of Chile (1)
Saturday, January 31st, 2009Forbes Magazine invited me to write an article on corruption. One argument I made was that the US financial crisis constitutes a major and overdue wake-up call to the dormant anticorruption field, which for too long has focused on conventional second-order issues (here the article). I also suggest that some humility could help: for a change, lessons from an emerging economy could be [...]
How about next G-20 Summit on good governance for sound financial markets?
Wednesday, November 19th, 2008The first G-20 summit, focused on the financial crisis, just took place this past weekend. When measured against expectations of such gatherings, there were some accomplishments. Such as in trade: the collective pledge to avoid raising any trade and investment barriers, or the promise to ‘strive’ for a deal on the stalled Doha round. And [...]
Capture and the Financial Crisis: An Elephant forcing a rethink of Corruption?
Monday, November 3rd, 2008Mushrooming analysis of the determinants of the financial crisis are all over the web. They range from simplistic and blanket accusations of the ‘greed’ of the market capitalism to the arcane technical explanation of a misguided regulatory covenant on the other. And the spectrum in between is crowded, including the misstep by Treasury Secretary Paulson in letting [...]
Unfettered Free Market, Financial Crisis and Political Backlash: How about a Market-Friendly Approach Instead?
Tuesday, October 7th, 2008The end of the 1980s brought about the demise of the Soviet Union and its then satellites. With the failure of socialist planning, gloating took place among some Western circles who declared absolute victory for free market capitalism.
Almost twenty years later, as we approach the end of the first decade of the new millennium, we [...]
‘Governance Matters’: A new blog on governance at the World Bank
Monday, May 26th, 2008With the just launched ‘Governance Matters’ blog, the World Bank has now fully joined the governance blogosphere. The idea was afoot for many months. There was initial pushback by a few higher ups. But support from many quarters and persistence prevailed, helped by the growing recognition of the importance of blogging in today’s world. And this personal blog I have hosted for a [...]
Blogging for Transparency & Good Governance: on IFIs
Saturday, April 26th, 2008 Blogs are playing an increasingly important role for improved governance. Blogs do not face the restraints of commercial print media. The blogosphere is a planet apart from traditional PR departments of public institutions, enabling citizens to share unfiltered information, expose misdeeds, and freely express views. Blogs help make governments and public institutions more accountable. In real time.
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) were also involved during the [...]