Intellectual property related development aid: is supply aligned with demand?

We assessed to what extent developed country development aid programmes are likely to have interacted with, and potentially contributed to the promotion of country-appropriate sustainable changes in IP strategies and technological capacities over the period 2005-10. This was done primarily on the basis of an imputed impact assessments of four emerging and transition economies; namely Brazil, India, Poland and Thailand. Through an analysis of various measures of the domestic economic, technological and Intellectual Property context, we studied to what extent the supply of IP-related development aid provided between 2005 and 2010 responded to the likely needs of recipient countries. While the data shows that technical and financial assistance in this area could be of great use, and there is clearly a need for well-targeted IP TA and much scope for useful IP TA interventions, there seemed to only be a partial alignment between country needs and the direction of IP TA. On the whole, most IP-related development aid and technical assistance ended to focus on similar areas in each country, regardless of the development context. In Brazil and India’s case, training on IP administration may have influenced increased efficiency (from a low base) at the INPI and IP India, while the substantial EU support to raise SME IP awareness in Poland is likely to have had some significant impacts. In India, sustained development aid in this area likely influenced legislation on plant variety protection, as did WIPO TA on legislative reforms in Thailand. In all cases, the substantial US (and to a more limited extent EC) focus on development aid directed towards enforcement coincided with improvements in this area, though the political and economic pressures by both providers, and especially the US Section 301 System probably dwarfed the impact of this type of aid. Further, the typology and direction of IP related development aid reflects the comparative advantage of IP TA providers, as well as political and diplomatic interests, trade priorities and colonial ties, among many other things. As such, it is important to understand that IP TA is also highly political – a fact often concealed in the emphasis on its “technical” nature.Intellectual Property and development, aid and technical assistance technological capacities in Brazil, India, Poland, Thailand, taxonomy of development, funding flows Intellectual Property and development, aid and technical assistance technological capacities in Brazil, India, Poland, Thailand, taxonomy of development, funding flows Intellectual Property and development, aid and technical assistance, technological capacities in Brazil, India, Poland, Thailand, taxonomy of development, funding flows Intellectual Property and development, aid and technical assistance technological capacities in Brazil, India, Poland, Thailand, taxonomy of development, funding flows

Measuring Progress with Tests of Learning: Pros and Cons for "Cash on Delivery Aid" in Education

This paper reviews, in non-technical terms, the case for and against using tests of learning for measuring annual educational progress within programs of “progressbased aid.” It addresses three questions about testing in developing countries. One, are valid and reliable measures of student learning currently available in developing countries? Two, are existing tests used in developing countries capable of registering the changes in educational results called for under “progress-based aid”? And three, do developing countries have the technical and administrative capacity to undertake annual assessments of learning? The paper includes a brief description of existing national, regional and international testing activities in developing and transition countries, a discussion of some technical topics related to testing and assessment, and various options for using learning assessments in the context of “progress-based aid.”foreign aid, international education, international development

Is foreign aid fungible? Evidence from the education and health sectors

This paper takes a fresh look at the issue of foreign aid fungibility. Unlike the bulk of existing empirical studies, I employ panel data that contain information on the specific purpose for which aid is given. This allows me to link aid given for education and health purposes to recipient public spending in these sectors. In addition, I attempt to distinguish between aid flows that are recorded on the recipient’s budget and those that are off-budget, and illustrate how a failure to differentiate between on- and off-budget aid produces biased estimates of fungibility. Sector programme aid is the measure of on-budget aid, while technical cooperation serves as a proxy for off-budget aid. In both sectors, across a range of specifications, technical cooperation leads to at most a small displacement of recipient public expenditure, implying limited fungibility for this type of aid. In static fixed effects models sector programme aid shows an almost one-for-one correlation with recipient public expenditure, again suggesting low fungibility, but this effect becomes imprecise and volatile in dynamic models estimated with system GMM.foreign aid, fungibility, public education expenditure, public health expenditure

Aid?effectiveness: Technical Cooperation

SUMMARY Based on an extensive review of evaluations of technical cooperation projects in many sectors, this article identifies the reasons for success or failure; strengths and weaknesses of TC planning, coordination and implementation; and ways in which donors and developing countries could strengthen the implementation and long?term impact of TC projects. SOMMAIRE Efficacité de l'aide: la coopération technique Cet article identifie, en se basant sur une revue extensive d'évaluations de projets de coopération technique (CT) en divers secteurs, les raisons de la réussite ou de l'échec de la CT; les point forts et les points faibles de la planification, de la coordination et de I'implémentation de la CT; et les moyens par lesquelles les donneurs et les PVD pourraient améliorer les résultats et l'implémentation des projets de CT à long terme. RESUMEN Efectividad de la ayuda: cooperación técnica Basándose en una extensa revisión de las evaluaciones de proyectos de cooperación técnica, este artículo identifica las razones de los éxitos y fracasos, aciertos y debilidades de la planificación, coordinación e implementación de la cooperación técnica, así como las vías que los donantes y los países en desarrollo pueden usar para fortalecer la implementación y el impacto de largo plazo de los proyectos de cooperación técnica, Ayuda y creación de instituciones: algunas lecciones de la agricultura hindú

Aid Volatility, Policy and Development

We build on Bulir and Hamann's analysis of aid volatility (2003, 2005), showing that the conclusions reached depend on the dataset used. Their argument that the poorest countries have the highest volatility appears not to be correct. The impact of volatility on growth is negative overall, but differs between positive and negative volatility. The mix between `responsive´ components of aid, e.g. programme aid, and `proactive´ components, e.g. technical assistance, is important. Finally, we conclude that measures which increase trust between donor and recipient, and reductions in the degree of donor `oligopoly´, reduce aid volatility without obviously reducing its effectiveness

“Swipe Aid”: Using Swipebox to Create a Side-Swipeable Image Gallery for Finding Aids

[Excerpt] The Swipe Aid Project provides another technical solution for the integration of digitized content with a finding aid, specifically aimed at mobile environments. This solution uses a free, open-source JavaScript library (Swipebox) to deliver a multi-device-friendly image gallery within the finding aid. The below project description provides a step-by-step explanation of how Swipebox is used to create a finding aid image gallery. This is followed by a summary of initial feedback, which demonstrates the importance of a finding aid image gallery, as well as desired functionality and further areas for development. This article contributes to the growing body of literature on “next-generation” finding aids by presenting a simple solution to the integration of digitized content for mobile environments

Main characteristics of Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) flows

At the end of the 1990s, the Japanese government distributed annually more than US$10 billion as foreign aid directly or indirectly to developing countries. Japan’s ODA can be divided into the following four groups: 1) Bilateral Grants, 2) Technical Co-operation, 3) Multilateral Aid, and 4) Bilateral Loans. In 2001, Bilateral Grants made up 19.3 percent of Japan’s total ODA budget; Technical Co-operation constituted 29.7 percent; Multilateral Aid and Bilateral Loans accounted for 24.7 percent and 26.3 percent, respectively. There have been criticisms that Japanese ODA loans have been provided mainly for economic infrastructure projects only. In response to these criticisms, the Japanese government claims to have made efforts to channel these loans into various social sectors, such as agricultural projects or rural development.Foreign Aid, Japan

Coordinating Aid for Regional Cooperation Projects: The Experience of Central Asia

For the Central Asian countries the dissolution of the Soviet Union led to economic disintegration as old coordination mechanisms disappeared and new national borders appeared. This paper analyses why it has been difficult to coordinate aid for regional cooperation projects (e.g., on the Aral Sea or trade facilitation) whose economic benefits appear positive. Bilateral aid flows to Central Asia have been dominated by geopolitical rather than economic considerations, and have been at best narrowly national in focus and at worst regionally divisive. Regional organizations composed of Central Asian countries and various neighbours have also competed rather than cooperated, so that the most plausible source of coordinated aid for regional cooperation projects is the multilateral agencies. A key role for aid donors is to provide technical assistance in analysing and explaining benefits, and how these affect various interests. Initial advantages which multilateral agencies had as impartial providers of technical advice were undermined in 1992-93 when the IMF?s strong position in favour of retaining the ruble turned out to be...aid, Central Asia, trade

Illinois Waterfowl Surveys and Investigations, W-43-R-42, Annual Federal Aid Performance Report 1 July 1993 through 30 June 1994

Annual Federal Aid Performance Report W-43-R(S1) -38, 1 July 1989 through 30 June 1990; Study 104: Aerial Censuses of Waterfowl.Report issued on: 15 August 1994INHS Technical Report prepared for Illinois Department of Conservatio