The unprecedented damage caused by the
Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE) affected multiple
locations, posing severe challenges for local governments.
Based on advice from an independent council, the government
acted quickly and issued a basic policy and regulation
framework within four months, laying the foundation for an
inclusive process of recovery and reconstruction. This note
documents the interactive process of reconstruction

Against the backdrop of rapidly rising
urbanization in the developing world and the growing demand
for basic services such as water and power, there is an
increasing need to improve service delivery, particularly in
low-income urban settlements. Output-based aid (OBA)
approaches, with their pro-poor targeting, have been piloted
in cities around the world. This note discusses the benefits
and challenges of using an OBA approach in urban projects

For more than four centuries Japan has
been developing forested green belts to mitigate coastal
hazards such as sandstorms, salty winds, high tides, and
tsunamis. Although Japan's green belts were severely
damaged by the March 11 tsunami, they did reduce the impact
of waves, and protected houses by capturing floating debris.
Local governments are planning to reconstruct the green
belts as a countermeasure against tsunamis. While local

In Central Java, in addition to the traditional view of urban transition as an aspect of urban industrialization, rural industrialization based on small- to medium-sized enterprises has become a concern, at least since the Indonesian economic crisis in 1997. Combinations of typical urban and rural activities have resulted in certain features of rural-urban transition as the urban population has continued to increase notably. The intention of this paper is to examine how rural-urban transition characterizes the industrialization of Central Java.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Kenya Government housing policies and strategies for housing the urban poor in Kenya, and how the citizen have benefited from the scheme/plan. Objective of the article was to examine the effectiveness of Housing policies and their implementation strategies in the provision of low-cost housing to the urban poor in Kisumu City. The research question was, how effective are the various Kenya Government Housing Policies and implementation strategies targeting the provisions of low-cost Housing to the urban poor in Kisumu City?

The ability to address land degradation and biodiversity loss while maintaining the production of plant and animal products is a key global challenge. Biodiversity decline as a result of vegetation clearance, cultivation, grazing, pesticide and herbicide application, and plantation establishment, amongst other factors, has been widely documented in agricultural ecosystems.

The ability to address land degradation and biodiversity loss while maintaining the production of plant and animal products is a key global challenge. Biodiversity decline as a result of vegetation clearance, cultivation, grazing, pesticide and herbicide application, and plantation establishment, amongst other factors, has been widely documented in agricultural ecosystems.

The ability to address land degradation and biodiversity loss while maintaining the production of plant and animal products is a key global challenge. Biodiversity decline as a result of vegetation clearance, cultivation, grazing, pesticide and herbicide application, and plantation establishment, amongst other factors, has been widely documented in agricultural ecosystems.

Resumen

In the past dozen years, a literature
has developed arguing that urbanization has unfolded
differently in post-independence Sub-Saharan Africa than in
the rest of the developing world, with implications for
African economic growth overall. While African countries are
more urbanized than other countries at comparable levels of
income, it is well-recognized that total and sector gross
domestic product data are of very low quality, especially in

What is the relationship between
employment and conflict in fragile states? Although this
question cannot be definitively answered, a large body of
research suggests that in countries emerging from conflict,
peace is likelier to endure if growth can be rapidly
restored and translated into economic opportunities for
large segments of the population. With a focus on
Sub-Saharan Africa, this report attempts to address the

In India, land continues to be of
enormous economic, social, and symbolic relevance. The way
in which land can be accessed and its ownership documented
is at the core of the livelihood of the large majority of
the poor, especially in rural and tribal areas and
determines the extent to which increasingly scarce natural
resources are managed. Land policies and administration are
critical determinants of the transaction cost associated