Corporate Governance

Corporate Governance
Author: International Finance Corporation
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2015
Genre:
ISBN:

Emerging markets are becoming important engines of global growth. These markets, such as the transition economies in Europe and Central Asia, are viewed with increasing interest by foreign investors as private sector participation grows, as regulatory reforms take effect, and as individual firms focus on elevating their business practices to align with international standards. In fact, foreign direct investment inflows to transition economies increased by 28 percent to reach $108 billion in 2013, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Sound corporate governance is a critical element in helping these emerging markets meets their full economic potential. Good corporate governance, defined as the structures and processes by which companies and banks are directed and controlled, helps firms operate more efficiently, improves access to capital, mitigates risk, and safeguards against mismanagement. Good governance also facilitates appropriate consideration of other critical issues for enterprises, including environmental and social responsibility. It is the foundation for long-term business growth and sustainability, adding value for investors and contributing lasting dividends for economies. Companies and banks, particularly those in emerging markets that are focused on improving their corporate governance can look to a growing body of evidence that such efforts matter, yielding bottom line benefits, reputational enhancements, and competitive differentiation. In one study of note, the Emerging Market Investor Survey, 100 percent of the investors interviewed said they will pay a higher premium for good governance in an emerging market firm than what they would pay for a similar firm in a developed market. As companies and banks in Europe and Central Asia find their place on the world's economic stage, efforts to enhance governance practices are helping them reduce their business risks, improve performance, and set the course for long-term success and profitability.

Making It Big

Making It Big
Author: Andrea Ciani
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2020-10-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1464815585

Economic and social progress requires a diverse ecosystem of firms that play complementary roles. Making It Big: Why Developing Countries Need More Large Firms constitutes one of the most up-to-date assessments of how large firms are created in low- and middle-income countries and their role in development. It argues that large firms advance a range of development objectives in ways that other firms do not: large firms are more likely to innovate, export, and offer training and are more likely to adopt international standards of quality, among other contributions. Their particularities are closely associated with productivity advantages and translate into improved outcomes not only for their owners but also for their workers and for smaller enterprises in their value chains. The challenge for economic development, however, is that production does not reach economic scale in low- and middle-income countries. Why are large firms scarcer in developing countries? Drawing on a rare set of data from public and private sources, as well as proprietary data from the International Finance Corporation and case studies, this book shows that large firms are often born large—or with the attributes of largeness. In other words, what is distinct about them is often in place from day one of their operations. To fill the “missing top†? of the firm-size distribution with additional large firms, governments should support the creation of such firms by opening markets to greater competition. In low-income countries, this objective can be achieved through simple policy reorientation, such as breaking oligopolies, removing unnecessary restrictions to international trade and investment, and establishing strong rules to prevent the abuse of market power. Governments should also strive to ensure that private actors have the skills, technology, intelligence, infrastructure, and finance they need to create large ventures. Additionally, they should actively work to spread the benefits from production at scale across the largest possible number of market participants. This book seeks to bring frontier thinking and evidence on the role and origins of large firms to a wide range of readers, including academics, development practitioners and policy makers.

The World Bank Group A to Z 2016

The World Bank Group A to Z 2016
Author: World Bank Group
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2015-10-02
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1464806551

The World Bank Group A to Z provides the most concise and essential information about the mission, policies, procedures, products, and services of the new World Bank Group. This second edition is a follow-up to the first volume released for the 2014 Annual Meetings. The World Bank Group A to Z series builds on previous editions of A Guide to the World Bank to include features not found in its predecessors including: a graphical introduction to the World Bank Group, highlighting the Bank Group's goals, financials, regions, and results; examples and photos of Bank Group projects and programs; and tools to guide you to the information you are looking for (even if you don’t know exactly what that is). It also reflects the wide-ranging reforms that have taken place within the World Bank Group in recent years, including the launch of the new World Bank Group Strategy; new approaches to development; the establishment of new Global Practice Groups and Cross Cutting Solutions Areas; and the goal of becoming a "Solutions Bank," one that will marshal the vast reserves of evidence and experiential knowledge across the five World Bank Group agencies and apply them to local problems. With more than 280 entries arranged in encyclopedic A-to-Z format, readers can easily find up-to-date information about the five agencies of the World Bank Group and the wide range of areas in which they work: from agriculture, education, energy, health, social protection and labor to gender, jobs, conflict, private sector development, trade, water and climate change. The World Bank Group's work in all of these areas now focuses on two new twin goals: eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 and boosting shared prosperity of the poorest 40 percent in every developing country.

A Guide to the World Bank

A Guide to the World Bank
Author: World Bank
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2007-06-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0821366955

The World Bank Group is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. Its focus is on helping the poorest people in the poorest countries by using its financial resources, staff, and extensive experience to aid countries in reducing poverty, increasing economic growth, and improving quality of life. In partnership with more than 100 developing countries, the Bank Group is striving to improve health and education, fight corruption, boost agricultural support, build roadsand ports, and protect the environment. Other projects are aimed at rebuilding war-torn countries or regions, providing basic services such as access to clean water, and encouraging investments that create jobs. In addition to this critical groundwork around the world, various parts of the World Bank Group are involved in activities ranging from conducting economic research and analysis to providing financial and advisory services to governments and private enterprises. This completely revised and updated second edition provides an accessible and straightforward overview of the World Bank Group's history, organization, mission, and purpose. Additionally, for those wishing to delve further into subjects of particular interest, the book guides readers to sources containing more detailed information, including annual reports, Web sites, publications, and e-mail addresses for various departments. It also provides information on how to work for or do business with the World Bank. A good introduction for anyone interested in understanding what the World Bank Group does and how it does it, this book shows readers who want to learn more where to begin.

Working with Smallholders

Working with Smallholders
Author: World Bank
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2023-11-09
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781464819629

"Smallholder farmers are the stewards of more than 80 percent of the world's farms. These small family businesses produce about one-third of the world's food. In Africa and Asia, smallholders dominate the production of food crops, as well as export commodities such as cocoa, coffee, and cotton. However, smallholders and farm workers remain among the poorest segments of the population, and they are on the frontline of climate change. Smallholder farmers face constraints in accessing inputs, finance, knowledge, technology, labor, and markets. Raising farm-level productivity in a sustainable way is a key development priority. Agribusinesses are increasingly working with smallholder farmers in low- and middle-income countries to secure agricultural commodities. More productive smallholders boost rural incomes and economic growth, as well as reduce poverty. Smallholders also represent a growing underserved market for farm inputs, information, and financial services. Working with Smallholders: A Handbook for Firms Building Sustainable Supply Chains (third edition) shows agribusinesses how to engage more effectively with smallholders and to develop sustainable, resilient, and productive supply chains. The book compiles practical solutions and cutting-edge ideas to overcome the challenges facing smallholders. This third edition is substantially revised from the second edition and incorporates new material on the potential for digital technologies and sustainable farming. This handbook is written principally to outline opportunities for the private sector. The content may also be useful to the staffs of governmental or nongovernmental development programs working with smallholders, as well as to academic and research institutions."--

Kick-Starting Your Career in International Development

Kick-Starting Your Career in International Development
Author:
Publisher: OpenIGO Network
Total Pages: 130
Release: 2021-12-14
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 6587835163

This comprehensive eBook will help you land your dream job in the international development sector. It will introduce you to the complex world of international organizations and it will guide you through all the stages of their selection processes. If you are looking for information on how to kick-start your career with an international organization, you have come to the right place! Working for an organization in the field of international development is a dream for many professionals across the globe, since the opportunities offered often combine good remuneration and a wide range of benefits with meaningful work. As you go through the chapters of this eBook, you will be able to tell that the field of international development has work opportunities for professionals coming from very diverse academic backgrounds, therefore, the chances of you finding a vacancy that suits your profile are very high! Nonetheless, it is important that you know that selection processes to integrate the team of international organizations tend to be quite competitive and, for this reason, a strong preparation is key for those who want to succeed. Our team is certain that you want to be amongst the successful candidates and this is exactly why OpenIGO Network has put this eBook together: to help you land the job of your dreams. As we move on through the different stages of the application process, this manual will offer you preparation tips as well as detailed explanations and guidance for each stage – it will introduce you to International Development; it will show you the different opportunities with different types of organizations, give you insight on where to look for vacancies and will also get you ready for competency-based interviews. This manual was written and revised by a team of Ph.D. professors, human resources specialists and intergovernmental organization staff with a great deal of diligence.

The Global Findex Database 2017

The Global Findex Database 2017
Author: Asli Demirguc-Kunt
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2018-04-19
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1464812683

In 2011 the World Bank—with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—launched the Global Findex database, the world's most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Drawing on survey data collected in collaboration with Gallup, Inc., the Global Findex database covers more than 140 economies around the world. The initial survey round was followed by a second one in 2014 and by a third in 2017. Compiled using nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults age 15 and above in over 140 economies, The Global Findex Database 2017: Measuring Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution includes updated indicators on access to and use of formal and informal financial services. It has additional data on the use of financial technology (or fintech), including the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions. The data reveal opportunities to expand access to financial services among people who do not have an account—the unbanked—as well as to promote greater use of digital financial services among those who do have an account. The Global Findex database has become a mainstay of global efforts to promote financial inclusion. In addition to being widely cited by scholars and development practitioners, Global Findex data are used to track progress toward the World Bank goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The database, the full text of the report, and the underlying country-level data for all figures—along with the questionnaire, the survey methodology, and other relevant materials—are available at www.worldbank.org/globalfindex.

Food Safety Handbook

Food Safety Handbook
Author: International Finance Corporation
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 505
Release: 2020-07-06
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1464815496

The Food Safety Handbook: A Practical Guide for Building a Robust Food Safety Management System, contains detailed information on food safety systems and what large and small food industry companies can do to establish, maintain, and enhance food safety in their operations. This new edition updates the guidelines and regulations since the previous 2016 edition, drawing on best practices and the knowledge IFC has gained in supporting food business operators around the world. The Food Safety Handbook is indispensable for all food business operators -- anywhere along the food production and processing value chain -- who want to develop a new food safety system or strengthen an existing one.

Firm Size and the Business Environment

Firm Size and the Business Environment
Author: Mirjam Schiffer
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 68
Release: 2001-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780821350034

The development of the small and medium enterprise sector is deemed crucial for economic growth and poverty alleviation. Such firms are often though to be at a disadvantage when compared with larger enterprises, but the reverse can apply, for example in the more flexible approach of the smaller firm. This paper draws on a private sector survey in 80 countries examining whether business obstacles are related to firm size. It finds a bias against small firms, which experience significantly greater problems than large firms with financing, taxes and regulations, inflation, corruption and street crime. These problems should be the prime targets of policies aimed at reducing inequity.