Political Economy Studies : Are They Actionable? Some Lessons from Zambia

In recent years, the number of studies looking at the effect of politics on economic outcomes has flourished. For developing economies, these studies are useful to better understand why long overdue reforms are not implemented. The studies analyze the overall context within which reforms are being implemented and the underlying incentive framework. However, it seems difficult to make such studies actionable, especially in sectors where donors have a heavy presence that can sometimes distort incentives in addition to the reluctance from some governments to amend the existing systems in place. This paper focuses on some conclusions emerging from the political economy diagnostics carried out in Zambia in various sectors in recent years. Based on interviews of World Bank task managers, the paper attempts to assess the relevance of these studies for the implementation of projects and the policy dialogue and draws lessons on how they have influenced the implementation of the World Bank's support to programs in various sectors in Zambia as well as the main challenges for this type of exercise.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Beuran, Monica, Raballand, Gaël, Kapoor, Kapil
Language:	English
Published:	2011-05-01
Subjects:	ACCOUNTABILITY, ALLOCATION, ANTICORRUPTION, AUDITS, CABINET, CAPACITY BUILDING, CASH FLOWS, CHECKS, CHECKS AND BALANCES, CITIZEN, CITIZEN PARTICIPATION, CITIZENS, CIVIC EDUCATION, CIVIL SOCIETY, COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS, CORRUPTION, DEBT, DECENTRALIZATION, DECISION MAKING, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DIRECT INVESTMENT, DISCRETION, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMIC GROWTH, ECONOMIC HISTORY, ECONOMIC POLICIES, ECONOMIC PROCESSES, ECONOMICS, EXPENDITURE, FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE, FINANCIAL SUPPORT, FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY, FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT, FOREIGN INVESTMENT, FOREIGN INVESTORS, GOVERNANCE CHALLENGES, GOVERNANCE CONSTRAINTS, GOVERNANCE ISSUES, GOVERNMENT DEBT, GPE, HOLDING, HUMAN RESOURCES, INCOME, INEQUALITY, INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE, INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS, INTERNATIONAL BANK, INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, INVESTMENT REGIME, LAND POLICY, LEGITIMACY, LEVY, LOBBYING, LOCAL AUTHORITIES, LOCAL COMMUNITIES, LOCAL GOVERNMENT, LOCAL LEVELS, MINES, MONOPOLY, NATION-STATES, NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, NATIONAL LEVEL, NATIONALISM, PATRONAGE, PENSION, POLICY MAKERS, POLITICAL ECONOMY, POLITICAL ECONOMY OF DEVELOPMENT, POLITICAL ECONOMY STUDIES, POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT, POLITICAL INFLUENCE, POLITICAL INTERFERENCE, POLITICAL LEADERSHIP, POLITICAL LEGITIMACY, POLITICAL OPPONENTS, POLITICAL POWER, POLITICIANS, POOR GOVERNANCE, POOR MANAGEMENT, PRIVATE SECTOR, PRIVATIZATION, PROPERTY RIGHTS, PUBLIC FUNDS, PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS, PUBLIC PROCUREMENT, PUBLIC SECTOR, PUBLIC SPENDING, RETURNS, STOCK EXCHANGE, STOCK MARKET, TAX, TAX REGIME, TAX REVENUES, TAXATION, TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TRANSPARENCY, TURNOVER, VESTED INTERESTS, WEALTH OF NATIONS,
Online Access:	http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/main?menuPK=64187510&pagePK=64193027&piPK=64187937&theSitePK=523679&menuPK=64187510&searchMenuPK=64187283&siteName=WDS&entityID=000158349_20110509140434 https://hdl.handle.net/10986/3418
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