The goal of this report is to take stock
of the existing evidence on the impact of the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) on poverty, to examine the
current challenges that an extension of CARP would face, and
to suggest directions toward achieving progress on land
reform given the financial and policy constraints faced by
the program. The report starts by examining the nature and
relevance of the challenges that an extension of the land

This report presents findings from a
field-based survey on the conduct of agricultural operations
at 39 large-scale, mature agribusiness investments in
sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. The objective of the
report is to provide first-hand, practical knowledge of the
approach, behavior, and experience of these investments,
their relationships with surrounding communities and the
consequent positive and/or negative outcomes for these

Following the transition to democracy in
2008, two very important political developments took place.
These were the announcement of the 7th National Finance
Commission Award, which was agreed upon in December 2009 in
Lahore, Pakistan, and the unanimous ratification by
Parliament of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution in
April 2010. Both developments have the potential of
fundamentally restructuring the way Pakistan is governed in

This report presents the problem,
describes the analytical framework, the African and World
context and the characteristics that need to be present for
a responsible and effective urbanization. Chapter one
discusses the issues involved in measuring urban growth and
density and the problem of under-measuring density. Chapter
two introduces key aspects of the recent urbanization in
Tanzania, including migration, structure of economy and

This Policy Memorandum provides policy
advice to the government of Liberia (GOL) in an effort to
mainstream gender issues in policies, programs, and projects
supporting agricultural production and value-chain
development. It is organized as follows. Section I reviews
women's roles in Liberian agriculture and agricultural
value chains, drawing on a variety of data sources,
including the 2007 Core Welfare Indicator Questionnaire

In broad terms, the sources of economic
growth are well understood but relatively few countries have
succeeded in effectively harnessing this knowledge for
policy purposes so as to sustain high rates of growth over
an extended period of time (commission on growth and
development 2008; Yusuf 2009a). This study argues, however,
that a high growth strategy which puts technology upgrading
and innovation at the center might warrant a different

This paper discusses the social impacts
of Costa Rica's Payments for Environmental Services
(PSA) program and their effect on rural poverty. Although
the analysis is hampered by significant information gaps, we
believe that the PSA Program has probably managed to have an
impact on the poor. This impact is almost certainly positive
on the poor who were able to participate, but is difficult
to quantify. However, except for very few cases, it seems

This policy brief developed by the NORAD-funded Grassroots capacity development for REDD+ Project addresses the use of the cascade  approach  for  capacity development  on  REDD+, establishing  collaborative  arrangements  with local partner organizations, and drivers  of  deforestation  and  forest  degradation in Nepal.

Urbanization deserves urgent attention from policy makers, academics, entrepreneurs, and social reformers of all stripes. Nothing else will create as many opportunities for social and economic progress. The urbanization project began roughly 1,000 years after the transition from the Pleistocene to the milder and more stable Holocene interglacial. In 2010, the urban population in developing countries stood at 2.5 billion. The developing world can accommodate the urban population growth and declining urban density in many ways.

Local benefit sharing in hydropower
projects can be defined as the systematic efforts by project
proponents to sustainably benefit local communities affected
by hydropower investments. Benefit sharing is a promising
approach for implementing hydropower projects sustainably,
and is emerging as a supplement to the requirements of
compensation and mitigation. Benefit sharing can provide
equitable development, sustainability, and smooth project

In countries such as Georgia, the risks
of climate change for the agricultural sector are a
particularly immediate and important problem because the
majority of the rural population depends either directly or
indirectly on agriculture for their livelihoods. The most
effective plans for adapting the sector to climate change
will involve both human capital and physical capital
enhancements; however, many of these investments can also

Within any economy, agriculture is the
sector that is most sensitive to climate change. In Armenia,
however, the risks are even more pronounced because the
majority of the rural population depends on agriculture for
their livelihoods. This publication outlines the policy
options available to Armenia, based on a rigorous evaluation
of the impacts of climate change on agricultural systems. It
provides a solid foundation for taking strategic and, in