Category Archives: Trade & Development

The Size of Nations

Posted on February 2, 2010 by andrewleigh

Ever wondered why there are so many countries in the world? My AFR op-ed today attempts to provide an answer. Full text over the fold.

Posted in Global issues, Trade & Development | 5 Comments

The Economics of Terrorism

Posted on January 19, 2010 by andrewleigh

My AFR op-ed today is on the economics of terrorism, discussing a new book by Eli Berman. He’s not the first empirical social scientist to tackle the topic (Robert Pape and Alan Krueger both have extensive treatments of the topic), … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 2 Comments

Supply in Saigon, Heterogeneity in Hanoi, Demand in Danang

Posted on January 15, 2010 by andrewleigh

My colleagues Brian McCaig and Ha Nguyen are running ANU’s second “Vietnam Economics Workshop”. Their call for papers is over the fold.

Posted in Coming Events, Trade & Development | Comments Off on Supply in Saigon, Heterogeneity in Hanoi, Demand in Danang

The economics of refugee flows

Posted on November 2, 2009 by andrewleigh

With some notable exceptions, the Australian public debate over refugees has so far been conducted largely in an evidence-free zone. So I’ve asked my colleague Tim Hatton to send me through his recent writings on the topic. Tim has written … Continue reading →

Posted in Australian Politics, Trade & Development | Comments Off on The economics of refugee flows

The Size of Nations

Posted on September 30, 2009 by andrewleigh

My Wryside Economics talk on ABC Radio National’s Life Matters program tomorrow is on “The Size of Nations”, a terrific book by Alberto Alesina and Enrico Spolaore, which posits that country size is a tradeoff between the economic benefits of … Continue reading →

Posted in Coming Events, Economics of Elections, Trade & Development | 4 Comments

Some shows don’t have cheap seats

Posted on September 23, 2009 by andrewleigh

My friend Michael Fullilove argues in The Australian that the PM is doing the right thing in seeking a UN Security Council seat. He point out that the cost of a campaign is likely to be around $35 million. This … Continue reading →

Posted in Global issues, Trade & Development | 1 Comment

Free Trade Helps Families and Kids

Posted on June 1, 2009 by andrewleigh

Simon Crean has today released a report from the CIE showing that Australian families are $3900 a year better off thanks to trade liberalisation over the past couple of decades. And in a reminder of barriers yet to fall, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics of Education, Trade & Development | 3 Comments

Iraqi bleg

Posted on April 27, 2009 by andrewleigh

Loyal reader Alistair Campbell, who helped run the Youth Initiative for Progress in Iraq conference last year, is looking for financial and in-kind support to get an Iraqi team to the 2010 World Schools Debating Championship. More details over the … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq, Trade & Development | Comments Off on Iraqi bleg

Can a Randomly Delivered Paper Make you Scared of Tigers?

Posted on April 7, 2009 by andrewleigh

One of my PhD students, Dinuk Jayasuriya, is giving an interesting seminar next week. All welcome. Time & Date: 9.30 – 11.00am, Friday, 17 April Location: Coombs Building, Seminar Room B Speaker: Dinuk Jayasuriya Topic: “A Randomized Study Investigating State-Run … Continue reading →

Posted in Media, Trade & Development | Comments Off on Can a Randomly Delivered Paper Make you Scared of Tigers?

Blame the climate, not the colonists

Posted on March 15, 2009 by andrewleigh

My ANU colleague Sambit Bhattacharya has a new paper on the causes of African underdevelopment. He tests various theories, and concludes that what matters most is having a climate that is conducive to malaria. Here’s the abstract: Root Causes of … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 4 Comments

Oportunidades Knocks?

Posted on March 3, 2009 by andrewleigh

Can paying children for attendance and grades boost scores, or will it do more harm than good? In development economics, one of the most popular programs over recent years are conditional cash transfer programs. Modelled on a randomised trial of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics of Education, Trade & Development | 3 Comments

Development Conference Papers

Posted on June 23, 2008 by andrewleigh

For anyone who was unable to attend last week’s New Techniques in Development Economics Conference (supported by AusAID), some of the papers are available online. Full program over the fold. Those that are available are hyperlinked; others should show up with … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | Comments Off on Development Conference Papers

New Techniques in Development Economics

Posted on June 19, 2008 by andrewleigh

I’m co-organising a conference today and tomorrow on “New Techniques in Development Economics” (program and location details here), including some of my favourite development economists from outside Australia (including but not limited to Chris Blattman, Leigh Linden, Seema Jayachandran, Dean Karlan, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Randomisation, Trade & Development | Comments Off on New Techniques in Development Economics

Making Aid Work

Posted on May 25, 2008 by andrewleigh

My op-ed last Tuesday was on the effectiveness of foreign aid, looking especially at AusAID’s efforts (via its Office of Development Effectiveness) to ensure that the multi-billion dollar increase in foreign aid over the coming years isn’t wasted. Full text … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 11 Comments

COD

Posted on May 7, 2008 by andrewleigh

It goes without saying that there is plenty of exploitation in the people-smuggling business. But it’s wrong to think that the smuggler has all the power. A new paper looking at migrants smuggled from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the UK finds … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 1 Comment

Best blog comment of the year…

Posted on May 5, 2008 by andrewleigh

…comes from Paul Collier, commenting on a Martin Wolf column about the food crisis in the FT. There’s this: The best solution to a problem is often not closely related to its cause (a proposition that that might be recognized in … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 29 Comments

New Techniques in Development Economics Conference

Posted on May 5, 2008 by andrewleigh

With my colleagues Chikako Yamauchi and Xin Meng, and thanks to the generous support of AusAID, I’m co-organising an ANU conference on New Techniques in Development Economics on 19-20 June. We have a bevvy of international speakers, and the discussion should … Continue reading →

Posted in Randomisation, Trade & Development | 1 Comment

Cash 4 Class in Colombia

Posted on March 25, 2008 by andrewleigh

I’ve been arguing recently that one idea which should be randomly trialled in Indigenous communities in Australia is a cash payment for attending school. Blog reader Brendan Duong points out that I should get some succor from the success of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Indigenous Policy, Trade & Development | Comments Off on Cash 4 Class in Colombia

AYAD

Posted on February 6, 2008 by andrewleigh

The terrific Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development program is seeking new applicants – closing date 7 March for a July 2008 start. Here’s the blurb they emailed out. I work for Austraining International. We run the Australian Youth Ambassadors for … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 1 Comment

If it leads, it pleads

Posted on January 10, 2008 by andrewleigh

My AFR oped today is on the impact of the news media on disaster relief. Full text over the fold.

Posted in Media, Trade & Development | Comments Off on If it leads, it pleads

Charity Rating

Posted on December 20, 2007 by andrewleigh

Today’s NYT writes up two hedge funders who rate charities on their effectiveness. Their assessment certainly seems more robust than most charity-comparison sites I’ve seen. Their site is GiveWell.net, and they have a blog, natch.

Posted in Trade & Development | 2 Comments

Napoleon as Natural Experiment

Posted on December 19, 2007 by andrewleigh

Here’s a snippet from the paper “From Ancien Régime to Capitalism: The French Revolution as a Natural Experiment“, by Daron Acemoglu, Davide Cantoni, Simon Johnson & James Robinson: In investigating the relationship between the collapse of the ancien régime and … Continue reading →

Posted in From the Frontiers, Trade & Development | 2 Comments

Call for Papers – New Techniques in Development Economics

Posted on December 18, 2007 by andrewleigh

I’m co-organising an ANU conference on ‘New Techniques in Development Economics’ on June 19-20, 2008. We’ve just issued a call for papers – details below. CALL FOR PAPERS NEW TECHNIQUES IN DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS JUNE 19-20, 2008 AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY The Research … Continue reading →

Posted in Coming Events, Trade & Development | Comments Off on Call for Papers – New Techniques in Development Economics

Passing Trade

Posted on December 1, 2007 by andrewleigh

A new paper, from Emily Oster, looks at the impact of trade on HIV infection rates. Routes of Infection: Exports and HIV Incidence in Sub-Saharan Africa by Emily Oster  I generate new data on HIV incidence and prevalence in Africa … Continue reading →

Posted in Trade & Development | 4 Comments

Do we need country quotas for refugees?

Posted on October 7, 2007 by andrewleigh

I’ve been meaning to write a post about Kevin Andrews’ recent decision to reduce the share of refugees coming to Australia from Africa (and, conversely, to increase the share of non-African refugees, since the total intake is staying constant). In … Continue reading →

Posted in Australian Politics, Trade & Development | 29 Comments

For Better Policymaking, Toss a Coin

Posted on October 4, 2007 by andrewleigh

I have an oped in the Australian Financial Review today, discussing the upsurge of randomised trials in development economics, and linking it to Indigenous policy in Australia. It was written under somewhat unusual circumstances. I’ve spent the past few days on … Continue reading →

Posted in Indigenous Policy, Trade & Development | 8 Comments

Do economists make good ambassadors?

Posted on September 21, 2007 by andrewleigh

The Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development program is looking for economists. Details over the fold. In terms of world social welfare, there’s probably no better place for young economists to be devoting their energies than international development, so if you’re … Continue reading →

Posted in Jobs, Trade & Development | 4 Comments

Hold the front page?

Posted on September 5, 2007 by andrewleigh

More neat articles on the economics of the media keep appearing. This one is from the May 2007 issue of the Quarterly Journal of Economics: News Droughts, News Floods, and U.S. Disaster Relief Thomas Eisensee & David Strömberg This paper studies … Continue reading →

Posted in Media, Trade & Development | 1 Comment

Two Bills

Posted on July 14, 2007 by andrewleigh

Dan Andrews drew my attention to the speeches of Bill Gates and Bill Clinton at this year’s Harvard graduation ceremony. Both are superb speeches, and take a strikingly similar theme: global inequality matters, and it’s possible to do something about … Continue reading →

Posted in Inequality, Trade & Development | 2 Comments

Lowy Shops for a Researcher

Posted on May 14, 2007 by andrewleigh

The Lowy Institute for International Policy is advertising for a research assistant. Details over the fold.

Posted in Trade & Development | Comments Off on Lowy Shops for a Researcher