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In spite of its youth, the Asian Infrastructure Bank's influence can be felt across Asia, funding the planned construction of motorways in Pakistan and future environment-saving hydropower plants in Tajikistan. A year in, Natalie Lichtenstein takes stock. How is the bank structured, what have been the successes, and where could it go in the future?

Infrastructure (Economics) --- Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

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Investment growth in emerging market and developing economies has slowed sharply since 2010. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the causes and implications of this slowdown and presents a menu of policy responses to improve investment growth. It reports four main results. First, the slowdown has been broad-based and most pronounced in the largest emerging markets and in commodity exporters. Second, it reflects a range of obstacles: weak activity, negative terms-of-trade shocks, declining foreign direct investment inflows, elevated private debt burdens, heightened political risk, and adverse spillovers from major economies. Third, by slowing capital accumulation and technological progress embedded in investment, weak post-crisis investment growth has contributed to sluggish growth of potential output in recent years. Finally, although specific policy priorities depend on country circumstances, policymakers can boost investment both directly, through public investment, and indirectly, by encouraging private investment, including foreign direct investment, and by undertaking measures to improve overall growth prospects and the business climate.

Developing Economies --- Emerging Markets --- Fiscal Policy --- Infrastructure Investment --- Investment Slowdown --- Monetary Policy --- Policy Space --- Structural Reforms

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Cambodia's rapid economic growth and poverty reduction have taken place in an environment characterized by macroeconomic stability and prudent fiscal management. Having recently graduated to become a lower middle-income country, Cambodia is beginning to face complex fiscal and public service delivery challenges. The Cambodia public expenditure review (PER) discusses the numerous achievements in fiscal policy to date and presents policy options going forward, based on both analysis and consultations with stakeholders. The PER aims to help the Royal Government of Cambodia in the effort to overcome the challenges and move toward more effective public spending and service delivery, while maintaining macroeconomic stability. to make the most of fiscal policy and available fiscal space, Cambodia needs to continue improving the allocation and execution of public resources, for increased value for money. The Cambodia Public Expenditure Review (PER)discusses the numerous achievements in fiscal policy to date and proposes policy options goingforward, based on both analysis and consultations with stakeholders. The PER aims to help the RoyalGovernment of Cambodia in the effort to overcome the abovementioned challenges and move towardmore effective public spending and service delivery, while maintaining macroeconomic stability. Structured around the key challenges, the six chapters of the PER are based on background papers that incorporate feedback from two rounds of consultations with the PER Committee chaired by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Agricultural Finance --- Fiscal Policy --- Infrastructure Investment --- Roads --- Tax Administration --- Tax Policy

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The Belt and Road Initiative, due to its diverse and extensive infrastructure investments, poses a wide range of environmental risks. Some projects have easily identifiable and measurable impacts, such as energy projects' greenhouse gas emissions. Others, such as transportation infrastructure, due to their vast geographic reach, generate more complex and potentially more extensive environmental risks. The proposed Belt and Road Initiative rail and road investments have stimulated concerns because of the history of significant negative environmental impacts from large-scale transportation projects across the globe. This paper studies environmental risks-direct and indirect-from Belt and Road Initiative transportation projects and the mitigation strategies and policies to address them. The paper concludes with a recommendation on how to take advantage of the scale of the Belt and Road Initiative to address these concerns in a way not typically available to stand-alone projects. In short, this scale motivates and permits early integrated development and conservation planning.

Environment --- Greenhouse Gas Emissions --- Infrastructure Economics and Finance --- Infrastructure Investment --- Railways --- Railways Transport --- Roads --- Transport --- Transport Infrastructure

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This study reviews the approach to development finance adopted by Ghana and takes stock of the current situation of development finance institutions (DFIs). The study then articulates a set of key principles relevant to Ghana reflecting international experience. The intention is to provide the basis for dialogue on new approaches to making Ghana's policies and institutions more consistent with good practices in development finance. The study does not venture into detailed assessment of particular institutions due to the unavailability of required data for such an assessment. The paper primarily focuses on DFIs targeted toward the priority areas of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and non-traditional exports, which are relevant for access to finance and the financial inclusion agenda. Particular attention is paid to their targeting, cost-effectiveness, market distortions, and governance. A review of international experience with DFIs finds that cost-effectiveness tends to be greatest and market distortions lowest when development finance is provided on a wholesale basis through commercial financial institutions that bear the risk and are empowered to make loan decisions, based on well-defined and targeted eligibility criteria. Direct intervention by government in allocation and in setting interest rates tends to undermine sustainability, impact, and willingness of beneficiaries to repay funds that they perceive as politically motivated. Ghana's approach to development was state-led in the post-Independence period through the mid-1960s, and highly interventionist during the 1970s and early 1980s, after a brief period of stabilization. Controls were gradually removed in the late 1980s, and financial policies were liberalized. During the period 1985-2006, the government and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) established a number of institutions to promote and finance MSMEs and exports, especially in agricultural value chains. While the majority operate through private financial institutions, some of these institutions provide finance directly, increasing the cost and risks and reducing effectiveness. Although some of these institutions managed or benefited from donor-supported government projects in the past, little such funding remains available, especially for MSMEs, resulting in low cost-effectiveness and sustainability for some DFIs. Several institutions have come to depend largely on funds from the Export Trade, Agricultural and Industrial Development Fund (EDAIF), which is funded through a levy on imports. However, an interest rate cap of 12.5 percent is imposed on funding provided by EDAIF, which is well below market rates and tends to result in rent-seeking, long delays while applications are vetted, and lack of interest by commercial financial institutions whose earnings are constrained by the interest rate capitolo.

Finance And Development --- Finance And Financial Sector Development --- Financial Structures --- Infrastructure Economics And Finance --- Infrastructure Finance --- Infrastructure Investment