New ways of achieving debt sustainability beyond the enhanced HIPC Initiative

In 1996 the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative was launched by the Bretton Woods institutions to reduce the external debt burden of low-income countries (LICs) to sustainable levels in a reasonably short period of time because debt constitutes an obstacle to sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. In some HIPCs, however, debt sustainability has been in danger despite debt relief under the HIPC Initiative. Debt relief is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for development. It can do no more than play a catalytic role. The question, then, is how to achieve debt sustainability beyond the HIPC Initiative.     

How similar is the world in the internet era? A comparison of e‐business in China,Russia, and Sweden

Much has been written about how e‐business can serve as a strong homogenizing influence and essentially make the world into one market. Yet, little research has empirically investigated this question. This study seeks to describe e‐business activity in China, Sweden, and Russia to identify similarities and differences in the portfolios of e‐business applications in these countries. Our results indicate that different e‐business applications are emerging as more prevalent in different countries. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.