Inter-American Development Bank calls for solutions for financial inclusion of people with disabilities

Most voted projects may receive up to $50,000 in grants The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) announced a call for innovative ideas to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities as financial sector clients and workers in Latin America and the Caribbean. The competition organized by the IDB’s Innovation Lab is open to public and private…

Public consultation on future funding to boost EU competitiveness and innovation

The European Commission has launched a public consultation on the successor to the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme 2007-2013 (CIP). The CIP is the main EU budgetary instrument targeting competitiveness outside the research and skills areas. Its main priorities are SMEs, access to finance, innovation (including eco-innovation), take-up and use of information and communication technologies…

Global economic prospects 2010: crisis, finance, and growth

Fallout from the financial crisis will change the landscape for finance and growth over the next 10 years, a new World Bank report concludes. Developing countries facing higher borrowing costs, lower credit levels, and reduced international capital flows. 2010’s Global Economic Prospects report examines the consequences of the financial crisis on both the short- and…

ADB Strengthens Business Processes to Boost Quality, Responsiveness of Work

ADB has begun implementing sweeping new changes to the way it does business to improve the quality and responsiveness of its work. Starting this January, business processes are being streamlined to make them more efficient, to lower transaction costs, and to enable ADB to respond swiftly to client needs. The improvements will help ADB realize…

EU: Access to finance major problem for SMEs

The European Commission published the results of the new ”Flash Eurobarometer: SMEs’ access to finance”. The survey, conducted with 9071 firms in 27 EU Member States, Croatia, Iceland and Norway, was set up to assess EU companies’ use of various sources of finance, to get a picture of the magnitude of companies’ difficulties in getting…

Economic Development Publications, July 2009

CIPE Guide to Governance Reform: Strategic Planning for Emerging Markets http://tinyurl.com/lmljz9 In order for democracy to deliver value to citizens, it must be founded on good governance. Accountability, transparency, and citizen input in decision-making create the foundation for prosperous, entrepreneurial societies. Good governance is the means by which citizens of emerging markets countries devise local…