Journal Special Issue
Aid Policy and the Macroeconomic Management of Aid

This is an introduction to the UNU-WIDER special issue of World Development on aid policy and the macroeconomic management of aid. We provide an overview of the 10 studies, grouping them under three sub-themes: the aid–growth relationship; the supply-side of aid (including its level, volatility, and coordination of donors); and the macroeconomic framework around aid. The studies in the special issue demonstrate the centrality of research methodology, the importance of disaggregation, and the need to account for country-specific situations and problems. This introduction concludes that the sometimes “over heated” debate on aid needs redirecting toward more rigorous analysis, in which the advantages—and disadvantages—of using aid for development can be evaluated in a calmer manner.

Table of contents
  1. Aid Policy and the Macroeconomic Management of Aid
    Tony Addison, Finn Tarp
  2. Assessing Foreign Aid’s Long-Run Contribution to Growth and Development
    Channing Arndt, Sam Jones, Finn Tarp
    Working Paper
    | Assessing Foreign Aid’s Long-Run Contribution to Growth in Development
  3. Aid and Income: Another Time-Series Perspective
    Matthijs Lof, Tseday Jemaneh Mekasha, Finn Tarp
    Working Paper
    | Aid and Income
  4. Aid Supplies Over Time: Addressing Heterogeneity, Trends, and Dynamics
    Sam Jones
    Working Paper
    | Aid Supplies Over Time
  5. Business Cycle Fluctuations, Large Macroeconomic Shocks, and Development Aid
    Era Dabla-Norris, Camelia Minoiu, Luis-Felipe Zanna
  6. Consequences of Aid Volatility for Macroeconomic Management and Aid Effectiveness
    John Hudson
    Working Paper
    | Consequences of Aid Volatility for Macroeconomic Management and Aid Effectiveness
  7. International Coordination and the Effectiveness of Aid
    Arne Bigsten, Sven Tengstam
    Working Paper
    | International Coordination and the Effectiveness of Aid
  8. The Hard Challenge of Aid Coordination
    François Bourguignon, Jean-Philippe Platteau
    Working Paper
    | The Hard Challenge of Aid Co-Ordination
  9. Aid and Government Fiscal Behavior: Assessing Recent Evidence
    Oliver Morrissey
    Working Paper
    | Aid and Government Fiscal Behaviour
  10. Fiscal Composition and Aid Effectiveness: A Political Economy Model
    Paul Mosley
    Working Paper
    | Fiscal Composition and Aid Effectiveness
  11. Policy Responses to Aid Surges in Countries with Limited International Capital Mobility: The Role of the Exchange Rate Regime
    Andrew Berg, Rafael Portillo, Luis-Felipe Zanna
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