Does good governance matter for FDI inflows? Evidence from Asian economies

This paper examines the effects of the six components of good governance on foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in 15 Asian economies for the period 1996–2007 using a fixed effect model for panel data with heteroskedasticity corrected standard errors. The study also employs the feasible general least square (FGLS) and Prais-Winstein panel estimation methods in order to check the consistency of the results with the fixed effect model. The empirical results reveal that of the six components of good governance, political stability and absence of violence, government effectiveness, rule of law, and control of corruption are the key determinants of FDI inflows, as they exhibit consistent results under different models. However, the study finds no significant evidence with voice and accountability and regulatory quality in FDI inflows. The study reveals that human capital, infrastructure, lending rate, and GDP growth rate also have a significant influence on FDI inflows. We conclude that a country which can enhance its governance environment in general is likely to attract more foreign direct investment despite offsetting deficiencies in other dimensions of good governance such as voice and accountability and regulatory quality.     

Socialism and urbanization in Ethiopia, 1975–90: a tale of two Kebeles

Where implemented, socialism and central planning have long been thought of as wielding powerful influence over the process of urbanization. Traits common to countries as diverse as China, the formerly socialist economies of Europe and third-world socialist regimes are frequently found; conversely, well-established patterns of convergence and divergence can profitably be used for analytical ends. However, by and large Africa has been overlooked by analysts of a comparative bent. As a result, on the one hand, potentially enlightening material may have been left unutilized. On the other, area specialists have often failed to avail themselves of comparative material. Based on the shortage economy approach to socialist urbanization, through the use of two local level case studies this paper endeavours to show how comparative insights can be used to illuminate issues of urbanization in socialist Ethiopia. On a longtemps pensé que la mise en application du socialisme et de la planification centrale influencent profondément le processus d'urbanisation. Des traits communs ont été trouvés à des pays aussi divers que la Chine, les anciennes économies socialistes d'Europe de l'est et les régimes socialistes du tiers monde; à l'inverse, des modèles de convergence et de divergence bien établis peuvent être utilement employés pour les analyses. L'Afrique a cependant été largement ignorée par les analyses comparatives. Par conséquent, d'un côté, des données qui pouvaient être pleines d'enseignements n'ont pas été utilisées. D'un autre côté, les spécialistes des régions ont souvent négligé certains éléments comparatifs. Cet article, qui s'appuie sur une approche d'économie de pénurie de l'urbanisation socialiste, et utilisant deux cas d'étude au niveau local, essaie de montrer comment les savoirs comparatifs peuvent être employés pour mieux comprendre les problèmes de l'urbanisation dans Éthiopie socialiste.