On the eve of elections in India, farm loan waiver became one of the major election promises. According to some estimates, as a result of farm loan waivers, there is a likelihood that during fiscal 2018-2019, India’s fiscal deficit may widen to $16.17 billion. Furthermore, if all the states in India were to waive 50% of their farm debt, it would cost 1% of India’s GDP (in 2016-17 prices). The brief argues that the farm loan waivers are not the solution to farm crisis.

Access to finance is always a top concern for enterprises because just as a car cannot run without oil, a business cannot develop and grow without financing. Sufficient funds allow companies to upgrade their machineries, adopt new technologies and hire top talents, which in turn increase productivity and profitability.

The objective of a free trade agreement (FTA) is not to bring about a balance in trade, but to workout a ‘win-win’ situation for both producers and consumers inFTA member countries. In doing so, there can be instances where the trade deficit increases for one partner.

This policy brief aims to highlight just some of the ways that Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) will almost inevitably play a role in helping WTO Members implement their commitments under the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).

Given the experience of Asia-Pacific economies it is difficult to deny the powerful transformative effect of integration into the global economy. Indeed, it is largely the success of the Asian Tigers that led to the emergence of the concept of export-led growth, and more recently, the growing prevalence of production through Global Value Chains has pointed towards a new paradigm for pursuing structural transformation through international integration.

International trade is widely acknowledged as a positive force in the creation of economic value and in the advancement of global development efforts and poverty-reduction initiatives. Imperfections and inadequacies in the system of global commerce aside for the moment, it is correct to consider trade to be one of the few truly global drivers of economic activity, and, as was illustrated during the global crisis, one area where national and international policy levers can be effective and highly impactful...