A complete guide to sovereign wealth funds written by and for industry practitioners

Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) aren't new, but they are often misunderstood. As they've attracted more attention over the last decade and grown greatly in size, the need for a new and thorough resource on SWFs has never been greater. These funds will only grow more important over the coming years. In this book, expert authors who work in the industry present a comprehensive look at SWFs from the perspective of western investors.

Whatever happened to the money supply? This book explains how the analysis of monetary and credit aggregates is undertaken at the Bank of England, the European Central Bank and (as an example of a developing country) the Bank of Tanzania. The book also explores how this analysis relates to these central banks' monetary policy strategies and how it feeds into policymaking. An editorial introduction provides the intellectual and historical background - from the contributions of key economists such as Milton Friedman and Jacques Polak, to monetary targeting and inflation targeting - and argues that central banks and policy analysts would be foolish to neglect the insights monetary analysis can offer. The papers compiled in Monetary Analysis at Central Banks demonstrate just how useful and varied those insights are.

This volume covers the proceedings of the ZAFIN Finance and Sustainability conference, organized by the Wroclaw University of Economics in cooperation with the Corvinus University of Budapest and the University of Economics in Prague. The authors analyze a variety of issues related to recent finance problems, including corporate finance, public finance, monetary and fiscal policy issues, and risk management. The book also discusses topics related to sustainable finance, the transition to green economies, corporate sustainability and sustainable development. The target audience for this book includes researchers at universities and research and policy institutions, graduate students, and practitioners in economics, finance and international economics working for private or government institutions.

One of the most important functions of modern government is to marshal and deploy resources to achieve desired objectives and outcomes. This task is overseen by the Central Budget Agencies (such as Ministries of Finance and Treasuries) who have the responsibility of generating tax revenue, and controlling and allocating public expenditure. This extensive comparative study investigates the changing nature and role of Central Budget Agencies (CBAs) in ten countries reflecting a spectrum of different institutional and constitutional contexts. Eighteen expert contributors offer detailed accounts of the various trajectories that have occurred within their respective CBAs, set against the changing political environment in which they operate. A recurring theme throughout is an evaluation of the power and agenda-setting roles of CBAs, assessing how their influence has grown or waned over time. An important feature of the book is that each chapter attempts to incorporate external scholarly analyses with internal practitioner views. Four key areas are examined in each of the CBAs, including: * the changing roles and responsibilities of CBAs * the politics of the budget process and the influence of CBAs * administrative and post-administrative cultures inside government * future prospects and directions for the CBAs. The original research presented in this book provides a new window into the world of CBAs, adding an important contribution to the scholarly research on public finance and government budgeting. It will also assist many CBAs to re-evaluate their roles and contributions to public budgeting and public sector management. This volume is required reading for anyone wanting to gain greater insight into whether CBAs really are the best guardians of the public purse.

Pulls together variables recognized by academic scholars and practitioners as important for conducting performance budgeting and integrates these factors into a holistic model of improved theoretical logic. Engages a multi-methodological approach to provide an empirical foundation for the framework developed. Contains case studies from around the US, and will appeal to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries such as Latin America, China, South Korea, Taiwan and numerous developing countries in Asia.

Common wealth dividends are universal cash payments funded by fees on the private use of common resources like land, minerals, and the atmosphere as a carbon sink. Thomas Paine's 1797 pamphlet Agrarian Justice and Alaska's Permanent Fund Dividend are staples in the literature on Basic Income, but there is much more to common wealth dividends beyond these highlights, and common wealth dividends have a distinctive ethical justification and distinctive policy implications that merit discussion. This monograph, the most comprehensive study of common wealth dividends to date, will be of interest to students, teachers, and advocates of Basic Income and those in the field of environmental studies, including sustainable development, natural resource management, and climate policy.

Cost-Benefit Analysis presents an authoritative collection of the most important published articles in the field together with an extensive new introduction by the editors. Whilst focusing on the practical side, looking at applications such as education, transportation and the value of life and health, this important volume also emphasises the essential role of economic theory, with sections on the economic costs of public funds, foreign exchange and labour. The result is an influential selection based on robust and fundamental theoretical propositions -- ones that are readily suitable for everyday applications. This timely volume provides a comprehensive synthesis of the current state of the theory and application of cost-benefit analysis. It draws from a wide range of journals to include the key articles which are the benchmarks in the development of the field. It will be invaluable to academics and practitioners alike.

Scholars and practitioners have long hailed fiscal federalism as a critical tool for improving government services, but it has not always lived up to its promise when applied in specific countries. This book offers both an explanation for such mixed effects and a roadmap for better outcomes in the future. It argues that the benefits of fiscal federalism are contingent on a particular confluence of political institutions, namely democratic decentralization and political party integration. With this in mind, the authors emphasize the importance of striking a ''fine balance'' between the accountability benefits delivered by empowered local governments and the national coordination necessary for good policy outcomes. Such a balance can be achieved, they contend, when integrated party structures compensate for the potential downsides of a decentralized state. The book formalizes this argument for a variety of electoral democracies and, using new data on subnational political institutions, tests it with models of education, health, and infrastructure service delivery in 135 countries across 30 years. It also presents comparative case studies of Senegal and Nigeria. Academic economists and political scientists will value the book for its contribution to the literature on fiscal federalism and political decentralization, and development practitioners will benefit from its practical solutions to the problems of local governance.

From a giant of health care policy, an engaging and enlightening account of why American health care is so expensive-and why it doesn't have to be Uwe Reinhardt was a towering figure and moral conscience of health care policy in the United States and beyond. Famously bipartisan, he advised presidents and Congress on health reform and originated central features of the Affordable Care Act. In Priced Out, Reinhardt offers an engaging and enlightening account of the U.S. health care system, explaining why it costs so much more and delivers so much less than the systems of every other advanced country, why this situation is morally indefensible, and how we might improve it. Drawing on the best evidence, he guides readers through the chaotic, secretive, and inefficient way America pays for health care, dispelling the confusion, ignorance, myths, and misinformation that hinder effective reform.

The central goal of this volume was to assemble outstanding scholars and policymakers in the field of financial markets and institutions and have them articulate significant market developments in their particular areas of expertise during the past few decades.Not just a celebratory volume, Public Policy and Financial Economics selected internationally recognized financial economists who have worked with Professor Kaufman during his years of scholarly research, and have a combined mastery of specialized financial markets themes and, very importantly, knowledge of public policies in the areas. All 15 chapters offer unique, innovative, and exciting expositions of several critical topics in financial economics.

This authoritative new volume contains a selection of the most important articles and papers spanning over 20 years on budgeting and managing public spending. It is divided into five succinct parts, covering the main areas of the field including the political-economic environment, approaches to expenditure budgeting and implementing the budget. Donald Savoie does not limit his examples to just one country - budgeting and spending is discussed in a variety of countries, including the UK, Australia, New Zealand, America, Canada and Spain. He has also written a new introduction to accompany the piece. All those with an interest in government spending, budgeting and how finances are controlled will find this work - which includes articles and papers not immediately accessible - an essential reference tool.

Non-communicable diseases have surpassed infectious diseases as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Prevention and treatment of the causes and consequences of lifestyle-related diseases forms an important part of health policy in the twenty-first century. Public health economics - from quantifying the problem, to evaluating interventions and developing toolkits to assist decision makers - is an essential area for any postgraduate student and researcher with an interest in applied economics to understand. There are a wide range of techniques from mainstream economics and health economics that can be applied to the evaluation of public health policy and public health issues. In this book, Brown presents examples from developed countries to illustrate how economic tools can be applied to public health. Further, cross-country comparisons illustrate how contextual factors related to healthcare systems, demographics and environmental factors may impact on outcomes and the cost-effectiveness of public health policies, in order to aid understanding and help students apply theory into practice.

This comprehensive and authoritative book offers a global approach to the modern economics of the family, family law and family policy. Beginning with the division of labour in the family, this book deals with the economics of marriage, the demand for children, inter-generational relationships, and the economics of inheritance. The family is analysed using the theory of utility maximisation assuming that individuals wish to achieve the greatest possible satisfaction with limited resources and imperfect knowledge. The family is examined from both long and short term perspectives, and it is assumed that the family is cooperative with incentives for altruistic behaviour greater than in any other social group. Francisco Cabrillo then develops the analysis to include a discussion of the economics of family policy, an area not widely discussed in the existing literature, with special reference to the European Union. He makes use of simple and clear analytical models, such as neoclassical optimization and game theory, to explain the rationality of individual behaviour in the family and the responses to the incentives created by public policies. The Economics of the Family and Family Policy will be essential reading for economists interested in the family, public policy as well as sociologists and policymakers.

In Educating Public Interest Professionals and the Student Loan Debt Crisis, Robert Leslie Fisher examines the student loan debt crisis and its effects on America's citizens and economies. Exploring the shortage of professionals in fields such as education, medicine, and law, Fisher analyzes the causes and effects of the student loan debt crisis in America and argues for higher wages, student loan debt forgiveness, and an updated financial model to pay for training for public interest professionals. Supported by economic research and a sociological background, Fisher proposes a path forward that will ease the student loan debt crisis and revitalize the economy.

This book analyses the relationship between stakeholder engagement practices and organizational sustainability across sectors and disciplines. It illuminates the relationships between the inputs and processes, vital for all kinds of organizations to engage stakeholders. Then, it describes the mutually-valued outcomes that can produce broader organizational impacts and sustainability. Each chapter is structured around a logic model that provides an analytical framework to engage the reader in strategic analysis and offer practical applications for adaptation and implementation in any organization. The book encourages the reader to systematically consider the descriptive, instrumental, and normative aspects of stakeholder theory as a precursor to designing stakeholder engagement practices.

Bureaucracy and Public Economics brings together in one volume the classic book and related articles which put forward the first formal economic theory of the behaviour of bureaucracies. William Niskanen Jr. has consistently argued that bureaucrats have personal objectives - that differ from those of both their political supervisors and the general public - which they further by use of their monopoly power. He develops his argument to contend that government budgets have become too large and should be curtailed. All of Professor Niskanen's major contributions to this field have been brought together in this one volume including his pioneering article on 'The Peculiar Economics of Bureaucracy', the full text of the book 'Bureaucracy and Representative Government' and his recent reassessment of the larger body of scholarship on the economics of bureaucracy. Scholars, students and teachers of public economics will welcome this volume which, by making some of the key contributions in the field more widely accessible, will provoke discussion, debate and further research.

This book aims to explore if and how securitization changed financial intermediation and lending behaviour by reviewing the pre- and post-financial crisis theoretical and empirical literature. The book's distinctive feature is bringing the growing post-crisis empirical evidence to the attention of a wider audience by critically appraising it against pre-crisis arguments. With its thought-provoking insights, this book is of particular interest for students, practitioners and academics.

First published in 1984. This book brings together and develops the economic theory relating to the design and operation of systems of non-central government - positing major developments in several areas. It considers what functions systems most suitably perform in non-central governments, and their appropriate size and structure. How these authorities might finance themselves - by taxes, charges or loans - is analysed in detail. It also examines the use of grants by higher tiers of government and how such programmes should be designed. Concentrating on contemporary economic concerns, it relates the theory to practice in countries such as Australia, Canada, West Germany, the UK and USA.

Public spending on infrastructure plays an important role in promoting economic growth and poverty alleviation. Empirical studies unequivocally show that under-investment in infrastructure limit economic growth. At the same time, numerous other studies have shown that investment in infrastructure can be a highly effective tool in fighting poverty reduction1. In that context, the financing of infrastructure has been a critical element of most economic growth and poverty reduction strategies in developing countries, since the start of this millennium. This bookprovides a comparative analysis of the aggregate and sectoral implications of higher spending on infrastructure in three very different Asian countries: China, Pakistan, and the Philippines. Particular attention is paid to the role of alternative financing mechanisms for increasing public infrastructure investment, namely distortionary and non-distortionary means of financing. The book will be of interest to scholars and policy-makers concerned with economic growth in developing countries."

There is a growing interest in Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), particularly in infrastructure and public services. Under the scope of PPPs, renegotiations are becoming more relevant, as empirical evidence suggests that most PPP projects are inevitably renegotiated, i.e., the original contract needs to be adapted to new and unforeseen circumstances. Renegotiations have a substantial impact on the contract and performance of a PPP and usually represent significant costs for users and taxpayers. However, very little is known about the management and, mainly, the process of renegotiating that will, very likely, occur. This book provides a set of case-studies of PPP renegotiations in the transport sector. The authors illustrate the Portuguese experience, a country that has been using PPP extensively, particularly in transport. The case studies provide an extensive and detailed analysis on each aspect of the project and the renegotiation. What drives renegotiations? Why are some projects more renegotiated than others? What are the results? How can the performance of renegotiation processes be improved? These and other questions provide the basis for the discussions in this book. The novelty and value of the book come mainly from the extent of information available. Each case-study deals with these questions in much more detail than what is common in the case-studies approach.

This book presents latest research in the field of Political Economy, dealing with the integration of economics and politics and the way institutions affect social decisions. The focus is on innovative topics such as an institutional analysis based on case studies; the influence of activists on political decisions; new techniques for analyzing elections, involving game theory and empirical methods.

At a time when state assistance to the arts sector has come under considerable scrutiny both in Europe and the United States, this book comprehensively examines the evolution of, and rationale for, state involvement with the so-called 'high' arts on both continents. This book offers an overview of the key economic issues arising in relation to the state and the arts in these regions, with a detailed analysis of the European and American models of state assistance to the high arts sector.John O'Hagan examines in detail the various channels - regulation, taxation and direct expenditure - through which the state interacts with the arts and compares and contrasts the experiences of America and Europe. Regulatory measures considered include the guarantee of artistic freedom, copyright, resale royalties for artists, and trade restrictions. He also considers taxation measures to support the arts, including deductions for charitable contributions to the arts, property tax exemption, and relief on artists' income. The discussion on direct expenditure covers state ownership of institutions, revenue funding and matching grants as well as new avenues of expenditure such as community arts/arts centres, and new revenue sources for this expenditure, such as lottery funding. Finally the book covers the non-profit making arts sector, and examines why it, and not the commercial sector, receives private and state funding. The State and the Arts will be indispensable for students and academics of public and social policy, cultural economics and public management. It will also be of considerable interest to policymakers and key players in the arts sector.

This book provides a self-contained presentation of the statistical tools required for evaluating public programs, as advocated by many governments, the World Bank, the European Union, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. After introducing the methodological framework of program evaluation, the first chapters are devoted to the collection, elementary description and multivariate analysis of data as well as the estimation of welfare changes. The book then successively presents the tools of ex-ante methods (financial analysis, budget planning, cost-benefit, cost-effectiveness and multi-criteria evaluation) and ex-post methods (benchmarking, experimental and quasi-experimental evaluation). The step-by-step approach and the systematic use of numerical illustrations equip readers to handle the statistics of program evaluation. It not only offers practitioners from public administrations, consultancy firms and nongovernmental organizations the basic tools and advanced techniques used in program assessment, it is also suitable for executive management training, upper undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as for self-study.

This volume - the summary of a five-year research programme - describes and assesses the Scandinavian approach to local public finance. A key role of local finance in Scandinavia is redistribution in the form of a wide array of social services that are largely financed at the central level.

The Japanese population is aging faster than any other in the world. The per centage of Japan's population aged 65 and above was only 7.1% in 1970, but just 30 years later, in 2000, it reached 17.2%. A declining birth rate and a rising average life expectancy will continue to push this trend further. This situation is causing serious problems for Japanese society.Structural reforms, especially tax and social security reforms, to accommodate this drastic demographic change have become an urgent policy issue. The purpose of this book is to establish guidelines for tax and social security reforms in Japan in terms that are both efficient and equitable. In this study, an extended life-cycle general equilibrium model is employed to rigorously take account of the rapidly aging Japanese population. The simulation approach adopted in our analysis permits us to calculate the effects of alternative policy packages on capital accumulation and economic welfare. This enables us to make proposals for concrete economic policies."