This note summarizes findings from an
analysis of Vanuatu national leasing data drawn from the
Vanuatu department of lands databases for the period of
1980-2010. It provides a preliminary indication of how much
of Vanuatu is currently under lease, where land is being
leased, how leased land is being used, the length of leases,
and the extent that leases have been subdivided. The profile
also highlights areas where data collection needs to be improved.

Kenya has experienced a decade of
relatively strong economic growth. Between 2000 and 2009,
economic growth in Kenya averaged 3.7 percent. However,
growth declined sharply in 2008 and 2009 as a result of the
violence following the December 2007 presidential elections,
of the global food, fuel, and financial crisis, and of the
drought that occurred after the fourth consecutive year.
This persistent poverty and vulnerability highlights the

This paper investigates the urbanization
of the Indian manufacturing sector by combining enterprise
data from formal and informal sectors. It finds that plants
in the formal sector are moving away from urban and into
rural locations, while the informal sector is moving from
rural to urban locations. Although the secular trend for
India's manufacturing urbanization has slowed down, the
localized importance of education and infrastructure has

This report assesses the challenges and
opportunities for the development of the Khatlon oblast in
Tajikistan. The report argues that the rise in the strategic
significance of Khatlon must be matched by responses in
public policy and a strong upturn in private investment to
strengthen economic prospects. The report identifies four
key reform imperatives for stimulating growth in the oblast.
These are: (i) promoting cities and internal connectivity to

The primary objective of this report is
to provide a coherent and comprehensive review on integrated
urban water management (IUWM) approach to assist public
authorities to identify and address the future challenges of
urban water supply, sanitation and flood management in
African cities. This report presents the existing and future
challenges in Africa, the possible options for innovative
technologies and approaches for their breakthrough and a way

Cities' development matters to
Pakistan. It is central to economic growth, job creation and
quality of life. This is also one of the core themes in the
2011 Government of Pakistan Framework for Economic Growth
(FEG). This paper explores the conditions for
growth-enhancing spatial change in Pakistan s cities.
Cities' development matters to Pakistan. Two strands of
analysis are developed. First, it reviews the performance

Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of
Macedonia has closed several gaps in gender inequalities,
particularly in education and health, but key disparities
persist in access to economic opportunities and agency,
particularly among certain ethnic groups. This report
provides an overview of gender disparities in several
outcomes related to human and physical endowments, access to
economic opportunities, and agency. In addition, it offers

This volume is organized as follows.
Chapter one address two questions: how has spatial
concentration evolved with growth and development, and what
are the efficiency implications of too much or too little
spatial concentration? This chapter summarizes the various
models that analyze growth by geographic concentration and
sets the foundation for concepts discussed in later
chapters. Chapter two focuses on urbanization in

Disasters are increasing worldwide with
more devastating effects than ever before. The absolute
number of disasters around the world has almost doubled
since the 1980s, but the average number of natural disasters
in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has almost tripled
over the same period. In MENA the interplay of natural
disasters, rapid urbanization, water scarcity, and climate
change has emerged as a serious challenge for policy and

This study investigates the impact of the Golden Quadrilateral highway project on the urban and rural growth of Indian manufacturing. The Golden Quadrilateral project upgraded the quality and width of 5,846 km of roads in India. The study uses a difference-in-difference estimation strategy to compare non-nodal districts based on their distance from the highway system. For the organized portion of the manufacturing sector, the Golden Quadrilateral project led to improvements in both urban and rural areas of non-nodal districts located 0-10 km from the Golden Quadrilateral.

The Lao Government has also made
important commitments to gender equality in both its
national socio-economic development planning and in a number
of international agreements. Through mapping the gender
dimensions of trade in Lao PDR, this report aims to draw out
key inter-linkages between a more open trade policy and
gender. Recent export performance in Lao has been strong and
mostly driven by hydro-electricity and minerals, which

The Latin America and Caribbean (LAC)
region has a unique mix of qualities and challenges when it
comes to the environment. It is exceptionally endowed with
natural assets, with globally significant biodiversity and
valuable crops, and also harbors the world s greatest carbon
sink in the Amazon. The purpose of the series is to
contribute to the global knowledge exchange on innovation in
environmental and water resources management and the pursuit