Brookings: Experts - Homi Kharas

U.S. Private Philanthropy

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

A striking gap has emerged in the United States between official government aid and private aid. As the U.S. government reviews its external development assistance, some believe the deliberations will not reflect how those outside Washington think about development. Homi Kharas discusses what motivates private aid donors and the impact they make.

Do Philanthropic Citizens Behave Like Governments?

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Rapid growth in private development aid raises a host of questions regarding the allocation of aid and its selectivity across recipient countries. Raj Desai and Homi Kharas analyze giving patterns from two large, internet-based non-profit organizations and discuss the need for private and official aid partnerships.

Non-G-20 Developing Countries and the G-20 Summit: Perspectives on Global Leadership

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

What did the Pittsburgh G-20 Summit offer non-G-20 developing countries? Homi Kharas examines the Summit talks and how the interests of developing countries in this group were not adequately addressed.

The 0.85 Percent Solution for Low-Income Countries

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

A topic of discussion at previous G-20 summits, IBRD resources are central to helping poor countries survive this economic crisis. Homi Kharas discusses the importance of making IBRD resources much more widely available to promote development and urges G-20 leaders to continue talks about this issue at the summit in Pittsburgh.

President Obama's Agenda Needs Greater Focus on Global Development

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Although the Obama administration faces serious challenges at home and abroad, Homi Kharas, Johannes Linn and Noam Unger call for greater attention to the world's poor. The experts provide recommendations on how the Obama administration can begin to improve America's critical role in global development.

The Global Economic Crisis and Failed States

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Already precariously dependent on commodities before 2008, the world's fragile states have been critically hit by the global financial crisis. In a recent article in Foreign Policy Magazine, Homi Kharas notes that a number of them are likely to suffer declines in real per capita income through 2010 as a result of the global recession and commodity price declines.

Action on Aid: Steps Toward Making Aid More Effective

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

World leaders at the G-20 London Summit and the World Bank and IMF spring meetings responded to the urgent needs of the world’s poorest countries impacted by the global economic crisis with new financial commitments and pledges. Homi Kharas argues that full recovery from the crisis and future successful development ultimately requires reducing aid volatility and enhancing aid flow coordination.

Can India's Tiger Economy Survive the Global Crisis?

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

How worried should India be by the global economic crisis? Will the crisis impact India’s overall growth trajectory and thus mark the end of the country’s growth miracle? In this article, Brookings expert Homi Kharas, along with Laurence Chandy and Geoff Gertz, examine India’s long term economic outlook in light of the crisis and consider how policymakers should respond.

The G-20 London Summit 2009

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Leaders of the Group of 20 (G-20) countries met in London on April 2 for their second summit on the global financial crisis. In a new set of articles, Brookings experts addressed the critical issues for policy-makers and offered guidelines for more effective global coordination.

The Great Stability is Over: The Poverty Trap Facing Low-Income Countries

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Homi Kharas analyzes the impact of the financial crisis on developing countries—from declining economic growth forecasts to cutbacks in development assistance. He argues that greater attention should be paid to managing risk in low income countries and developing countercyclical instruments in the international institutions to aid the developing world.

The Financial Crisis, a Development Emergency, and the Need for Aid

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Affected by the financial crisis, the world’s poorest countries are facing a development emergency. Cutbacks in foreign aid and devalued currencies are wiping out aid contributions that supply the world’s poor with basic necessities—food, education, and healthcare. Billions of aid dollars are sitting in Washington, ready for disbursement but hindered by bureaucracy. Homi Kharas outlines steps to accelerate the disbursement of this aid so that poor countries can receive the help they need.

More Excuses from Donors at Doha

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The recent Doha Financing for Development Conference reviewed promises to increase the volume and quality of aid; yet, with the global financial industry in meltdown, aid to developing countries is expected to fall. Raj Desai and Homi Kharas argue that volatility in aid disbursements can send poor countries spinning into recession that then needs far more aid to reverse in the future.

Better Aid: Responding to Gaps in Effectiveness

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Despite increasing aid volume and ministerial promises and commitments, there are gaps in the effectiveness of development aid. Using a two-pronged approach, Homi Kharas and Johannes Linn analyze these gaps and provide useful recommendations so that the aid architecture can be strengthened, aid flows coordinated and development sustainable—ultimately making aid better.

The G-20 Financial Summit: Seven Issues at Stake

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Leaders from G-20 countries gathered in Washington, D.C. to address a financial crisis whose evolution highlights a dramatic shift in the global economy. In a new report, Brookings Global experts examine seven key issues at stake and make recommendations for next steps.

Accra Agenda for Action: Old Promises, New City

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Following the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, the High Level Forum will resume for its third gathering in Accra, Ghana on September 2, 2008. Homi Kharas examines the coordination of development aid and the addition of new donors since the Paris Declaration and questions whether this Forum’s ministerial declaration of an Accra Agenda for Action can provide improvements to the $170 billion aid system.

The California Consensus: Can Private Aid End Global Poverty?

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The rise of private aid donors—foundations, NGOs, corporations, and individuals—is changing the landscape of development assistance. As private aid has doubled within the past decade, the developing world welcomes these new players, and Raj Desai and Homi Kharas argue that they have the potential to be more effective in ending global poverty than the traditional bilateral and multilateral aid agencies.

The Reality of Rising Food Prices: Benefits to the Poor

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In an Oxford-style debate hosted by The Economist, Homi Kharas closes his argument that there is “an upside for humanity in the rise of food prices.” Kharas argues that further research concludes that the current high food prices can lead to an optimistic future for the world’s poor—more food, higher income, and ultimately a decline in poverty.

Reinvesting in Agriculture to Reduce Poverty

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As part of an Oxford-style debate hosted by The Economist, Homi Kharas provides further reasoning that there is “an upside for humanity in the rise of food prices.” Higher prices provide incentives for increased food production and opportunities for raised incomes among the poor, and international donor support for the developing world has been accelerated due to this global crisis.

Measuring the Cost of Aid Volatility

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Aid volatility, caused by various reasons including shifts in the donor’s economic and political landscape, can negatively affect development growth. Homi Kharas measures the cost of aid volatility using a financial metric, which if used by policymakers, can create a better system of aid flows and effective development. At times, recipient countries can incur negative income shocks, and Kharas calculates that in recent years about 16 billion USD in development assistance has been lost to aid volatility.

Rising Food Prices – An Upside?

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In an Oxford-style debate hosted by The Economist, Homi Kharas supports the proposition that that there is “an upside for humanity in the rise of food prices.” Kharas argues that although current high food prices create hardships for some, higher prices in a market economy will provide the incentive for further production and ultimately raise incomes and provide the world with more food.

Global Food Shortages and the G8 Summit

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:00:37 GMT

Homi Kharas offers some insight about the G8 summit with a particular focus on poverty and global food prices. Kharas argues that G-8 nations need to address short-term solutions as well as the broader issues of imbalances in the global economy in order to have a more comprehensive set of solutions for the global food crisis.

Growth through Scaling Up: Some Practical Implications of The Growth Report

Tue, 27 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The Commission on Growth and Development’s report recognizes the most sensible strategy to implement development programs is “learning-by-doing” or an experimental approach. In addition to this strategy, Johannes Linn and Homi Kharas push for strong evaluation and implementation in order to scale-up and expand successful development interventions over time. Through stated recommendations, Linn and Kharas encourage policymakers and aid agencies to replicate successful programs so that economic growth can be achieved.

The New Philanthropy and Development Aid

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

While the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings made recent headlines, the Global Philanthropy Forum, gathering top private aid donors, fell in the shadows. These private aid donors will likely give more aid to the world’s poor this year than the institutions that convened the Spring Meetings. Raj Desai and Homi Kharas compare these two events and discuss how private aid can help to relieve global poverty.

Rising Food Prices: a Global Crisis

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Rising food prices partly reflect the spillover from high energy costs, and are causing major problems for poor people. Homi Kharas argues for more development assistance for agriculture production to increase food supplies in the long run as well as for more assistance for sustainable development projects to create jobs and higher wages so that poor people can afford the rising costs of food.

Short Term Fixes for Development Assistance

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Poor planning and execution of projects, unachievable goals and a lack of accountability resulting in corruption are a handful of reasons why donors’ development assistance is failing to end poverty. Homi Kharas outlines four short term measures to improve the quality of aid by drawing attention to the growing unmanageable aid delivery system with multiple donors, fragmented projects and divided priorities.

Competition, Not Coordination: Making European Foreign Aid More Effective

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The effectiveness of foreign aid is reduced by the low share of aid going into country programmes, donors’ fragmentation into small and often disconnected projects, and by significant volatility over time. Joshua Hermias and Homi Kharas discuss the key role that competition can have in spurring efficiency in aid agencies, which would asist aid harmonization.

A Reality Check on African Aid

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

President Bush recently concluded a trip to Africa, where he was received warmly throughout the five-nations he visited. During his administration, U.S. economic assistance to African nations has more than doubled and has been targeted, with some success, toward HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention—diseases that take a terrible toll on Africa's people. Homi Kharas analyzes U.S. prioritization and allocation of the pledged aid to put these accomplishments into perspective.

The Impact of Rising Global Food Prices

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

International food prices are rising globally, prompting many countries to adjust tariffs to attract or keep more food domestically. Homi Kharas, Senior Fellow, Wolfensohn Center for Development, recently discussed the tariffs with NPR, noting how policies are impacting production and consumption patterns globally.

New Rules for a New World: The Necessity of Reforming Global Governance

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

From climate change to international aid, better rules of engagement are mandatory to resolve global issues and sustain the current cycle of prosperity and wealth, Homi Kharas argues. Managing globalization well is being held hostage to the absence of productive engagement between rich and poor countries.

Trends and Issues in Development Aid

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

By examining the trends in aid flows and the changing aid architecture, Homi Kharas, Brookings Visiting Fellow at the Wolfensohn Center for Development, discusses the shortfalls in the dissemination of billions of dollars in development assistance.

The New Reality of Aid

Wed, 01 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Ten Years After the East Asian Crisis: A Resurgent and Restructured Region

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Homi Kharas, The Brookings Institution (6/27/07)

Top Ten Global Economic Challenges: An Assessment of Global Risks and Priorities

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Top Ten Global Economic Challenges Report by Global Economy and Development (February 2007)