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31. ASEAN Economic Integration on Services: An Analysis of Economic Impacts and Implications

Author:
Meeryung La
Publication Date:
06-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP)
Abstract:
ASEAN continues its efforts to liberalize services trade in the region as part of the process of establishing the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). ASEAN has been increasing the level of regional liberalization through package negotiations of the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS). After signing the 10th AFAS package, the package negotiations were replaced by the ASEAN Trade in Services Agreement (ATISA), which takes a negative list approach and includes regulatory cooperation between member states. Upon this backdrop, this paper attempts to examine the progress of service market integration within ASEAN and analyze the impact of service liberalization pursued by ASEAN. Based on the analysis results, we also present policy implications to enhance cooperation with ASEAN in the service sectors.
Topic:
Economy, Services, ASEAN, Economic Integration, and Regional Economy
Political Geography:
Asia

32. Services Trade Needs to be Taken as Seriously as Goods Trade

Author:
Anna Guildea and David Henig
Publication Date:
07-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
European Centre for International Political Economy (ECIPE)
Abstract:
Services constitute at least a quarter of total trade. Between 2009 and 2019 global services trade increased by nearly 50%, compared to 18% for goods trade. Yet it is rarely taken as seriously as goods in global trade policy discourse. This is a problem when making the case for trade.
Topic:
Globalization, Services, Trade, and WTO
Political Geography:
Global Focus

33. Decentralization And Local Governance Reform: Towards Accountable Local Government And Better Service Delivery In Ghana

Author:
Mohammed Awal
Publication Date:
09-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:
Since the late 1980s, many countries in Africa started the process of devolving polical, administrave, and fiscal responsibilies from central to local governments. The movaons of countries for undergoing such a governance change are varied and include a range of polical as well as social and economic factors (see; Dickovich and Wunsch, 2014; Mogues, Benin and Cudjoe, 2009; Crawford and Hartman, 2008). Ghana has been implemenng decentralizaon reform since 1988. The central purpose of the reform is to improve local governance and be er provision of public services that would improve the lives of ordinary cizens (see; Ahwoi, 2010). Yet, in spite of a wave of decentralizaon policy reforms, local governments in Ghana sll remain weak. Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) – the polical, administrave and fiscal authority responsible for local governance- have weak accountability systems, are unresponsive and in many instances unable to deliver important public services that impact the lives of ordinary cizens (See; Ofei-Aboagye, 2018; CDD-Ghana and UNICEF, 2019). The poor performance of local governments in delivering public services has led to calls for deepening decentralizaon reform in Ghana. In response to the calls for strengthening local governance, government has in recent mes iniated and is implemenng key policy reforms in polical, fiscal and administrave decentralizaon. While the current reforms proposals –parcularly in polical decentralizaon –are far reaching, there sll remain areas of decentralizaon and local government reforms that require the a enon of policy makers, local government accountability oversight agencies as well as social accountability actors. This paper aims to smulate public discourse on strengthening decentralizaon for be er local government accountability and responsive public delivery service in Ghana. The aim of this paper is two fold; to provide key pointers to policy makers on the outstanding reform and policy issues in decentralizaon and local governance that needs polical crical a enon, and , to serve as an advocacy tool for non-state actors in fostering evidence informed advocacy towards achieving accountable, responsive local governments in Ghana.
Topic:
Governance, Reform, Services, and Decentralization
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana

34. Political Accountability in Ghanaian Slums: Evidence from the Grassroots

Author:
Jeffrey W. Paller
Publication Date:
09-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:
More than 5.5 million Ghanaians live in slums. The majority of these people live in the Greater Accra Region. Contrary to popular portrayals of these communities as criminal havens and cut off from the state, slums are important spaces for citizens to interact and engage with the government. Based on one year of fieldwork, this study reveals considerable differences in the levels of political accountability and governance in Ghanaian slums. This research study asks: Why are some communities able to attract and manage state resources to build toilets, construct sewers, pave roads, collect garbage, and provide security while others are unable to attract and manage these same services? In this paper, I suggest three factors that help shape the development of slum communities: 1. Historical conditions and informal institutions 2. State-society linkages, and 3. Political accountability mechanisms I compare and contrast political dynamics in Old Fadama, Ga Mashie and Ashaiman—all slum areas in Greater Accra Region.
Topic:
Politics, Accountability, Services, Informal Settlement, and Slums
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana

35. Powering Households and Empowering Women: The Gendered Effects of Electrification in sub-Saharan Africa

Author:
Lauren Clark
Publication Date:
05-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
Institution:
School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
Abstract:
Despite positive trends in electrification and gender equality in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) over the last two decades, the region lags behind the rest of the world in both dimensions. Recent economic assessments of the efficiency of pursuing universal electrification in SSA show the costs outweigh the benefits. This paper argues that, in the context of SSA, gains in women’s empowerment may strengthen the case for electricity expansion, but are not captured in standard cost-benefit analyses. The paper reviews existing literature to identify four channels through which positive externalities and equity gains may arise from electrification: (1) alleviating time poverty, (2) expanding labor market opportunities (“economic empowerment”), (3) improving maternal health and women’s safety, and (4) changing social norms. Findings indicate that electrification can alleviate women’s time poverty, create opportunities for women and girls to enter the labor force or focus on school, decrease exposure to harmful indoor air pollutants, improve maternal health, reduce exposure to and acceptance of gender-based violence, and change social norms through access to information. Expanding electricity access using renewable energy sources (“sustainable electrification”) presents additional opportunities to enhance women’s economic power by mainstreaming gender in the industry’s development. Falling costs of renewable technologies may also shift traditional cost-benefit analyses of electrification. Based on these findings, the paper recommends that policies continue to promote universal electricity access by prioritizing sustainable technologies that can support high-power household appliances, and integrating gender into every stage of the electrification process.
Topic:
Development, Gender Issues, Women, Services, and Electricity
Political Geography:
Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa

36. The evolving gender gap in labor force participation during COVID-19

Author:
Simeon Djankov, Pinelopi Koujianou Goldberg, Lisa Hyland, and Eva (Yiwen) Zhang
Publication Date:
04-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE)
Abstract:
Despite many significant gains by women in the paid workforce in recent decades, the percentage of women participating in the labor force has remained lower than the percentage of male participants. Now, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic downturn it precipitated, the gap in labor force participation between men and women in some economies has actually widened, with potentially damaging repercussions for women’s career prospects and pay. The pandemic has disproportionately affected sectors employing more women, such as retail stores, restaurants, and the hotel and hospitality business. An increase in family caregiving responsibilities because of school and childcare closures has also fallen on working mothers' shoulders. Both factors have pulled women out of the labor force. The authors track trends in male and female labor force participation in 43 countries and find substantial differences across countries in the way women’s participation has been affected relative to that of men. In some countries, such as Colombia, Chile, and Cyprus, the gender gap in labor force participation widened the most during the pandemic. The gender gap also widened in the United States, driving 2.5 million women from their jobs in what Vice President Kamala Harris called a “national emergency” for women. In other economies, such as Luxembourg and Lithuania, the gender gap in labor force participation, unexpectedly, shrank during the early period of the pandemic. On average, female employees have fared better in countries where women are less concentrated in the services sector, less likely to be employed as temporary workers, and where laws supported greater equality at the onset of the crisis. Greater government expenditure on childcare in the pre-COVID-19 era, however, does not appear to have insulated female workers from the damaging repercussions of the pandemic.
Topic:
Economics, Gender Issues, Labor Issues, Women, Services, COVID-19, and Empowerment
Political Geography:
Colombia, Chile, Cyprus, Global Focus, and United States of America

37. COVID-19 and Services Trade in ASEAN+6: Implications and Estimates from Structural Gravity

Author:
Anirudh Shingal
Publication Date:
04-2021
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)
Abstract:
Given the importance of services for economic activity in general and the salience of reducing service link costs for overcoming the economic and health challenges emanating from COVID-19, we examine the implications of the pandemic for services trade in the original group of ASEAN+6 countries that began negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement. Our analysis reveals that with the exception of the Philippines and Viet Nam for services exports, and Cambodia and India for services imports, up to half of total services trade for all other sample countries could be adversely affected by the pandemic. In the absence of bilateral services trade data for 2020, we proxy the impact of COVID-19 on services trade using bilateral data on announced greenfield investment in services sectors from fDi Markets. Structural gravity estimates suggest that a 1% increase in COVID-19-related deaths in the source country may have reduced ASEAN+6 bilateral greenfield investment by US$0.15 million in 2020 relative to the corresponding value in 2019.
Topic:
Investment, Services, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Asia and Southeast Asia

38. Robots and Labor in the Service Sector: Evidence from Nursing Homes

Author:
Karen Eggleston, Yong Suk Lee, and Toshiaki Lizuka
Publication Date:
02-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center
Abstract:
In one of the first studies of service sector robotics using establishment-level data, we study the relationship between robots and staffing in Japanese nursing homes. We utilize variation in robot subsidies across prefectures as an instrumental variable to explore the impact of robot adoption on nursing homes’ staffing decisions. We find that robot adoption appears to decrease difficulty in staff retention and to increase employment by augmenting the number of care workers and nurses on flexible employment contracts. Robot adoption is negatively correlated with the monthly wages of regular nurses, consistent with reduced burden of care such as fewer night shifts. Our findings suggest that robots may not be detrimental to labor and may help to remedy challenges posed by rapidly aging populations.
Topic:
Science and Technology, Labor Issues, Services, Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Emerging Technology, and Labor Cost
Political Geography:
Global Focus

39. Cooperation in Trade in Services

Author:
Akshay Mathur and Purvaja Modak
Publication Date:
06-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Gateway House: Indian Council on Global Relations
Abstract:
The shift in the global trend from trade in goods to trade in services, especially digital services has focused attention on the necessity of a modern and robust regulatory framework for it. The bilateral steps by India and Canada outlined in this paper can feed into current efforts by multilateral institutions to develop a universal framework for capturing services trade data.
Topic:
International Cooperation, Regulation, Institutions, Services, and Trade
Political Geography:
South Asia, Canada, India, and North America

40. Service Delivery in Taliban-Influenced Areas of Afghanistan

Author:
Scott Smith
Publication Date:
04-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:
In 2018 and 2019, USIP partnered with the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), a Kabul-based research and policy organization, in an effort to understand how the Taliban provide education, health, and other services to people who live in areas where they are the dominant power. Based on a series of studies conducted by AAN in five districts across the country, the report also examines the Taliban's motivations as a governing entity and their implications for a potential peace settlement.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Taliban, Peace, and Services
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and South Asia