Snapshots are short reports on recent releases of data and information about development. To subscribe to EADS newsletter and updates, sign up here. Please note that EADS News is only available to those with .gov addresses.

• Current Reports

  Doing Business 2017: Equal Opportunity For All (No. 107, January 2017) - PDF

  The 2017 Doing Business report “Equal Opportunity For All” highlights the large disparities between high- and low-income economies and the higher barriers that women face to starting a business or getting a job compared to men. Additionally, the 2017 report added a gender component in three indicators, collected data on Somalia for the first time, and expanded the paying taxes indicators by adding post-filing processes. This EADS snapshot focuses on countries that received at least $2 million in USAID assistance in fiscal year 2016 and are not classified as high income by the World Bank.

• 2016 Reports

  Doing Business 2016 - APEC Performance (No. 103, April 2016) - PDF

  EADS Snapshot 103 on Doing Business 2016 - Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) analyzes APEC progress on the World Bank Ease of Doing Business indicators based on priorities laid out in the APEC EoDB Action Plans. It assesses the first Action Plan (2010-2015) and introduces the second Action Plan’s (2016-2018) five priorities: 1) Starting a Business, 2) Getting Credit, 3) Trading across Borders, 4) Enforcing Contracts, and 5) Dealing with Permits.

  Doing Business 2016 (No. 102, March 2016) - PDF

  The 2016 Doing Business report measures the efficiency of and compliance with business regulation, covering ten topics from trading across borders to building permits. This EADS snapshot focuses on 88 countries that received at least $2 million in USAID assistance in fiscal year 2014 and are not classified as high income by the World Bank. This year’s snapshot reveals that USAID-assisted countries in 2015 made 44 percent more regulatory reforms related to Doing Business than countries not assisted by USAID, the highest number since 2009.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2015-2016 (No. 101, January 2016) - PDF

  This EADS Snapshot discusses the 2015-2016 edition of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), a widely anticipated annual publication from the World Economic Forum. Switzerland scores the highest overall. China and Guinea respectively have the highest and lowest scores of the low- and middle-income countries which received at least $2 million USAID assistance in fiscal year 2014 and which are the focus of this analysis. The snapshot gauges the evolution of competitiveness over a three-year period, from 2013 to 2015, and compares the changes in a country’s GCI scores regionally as well as globally. The five regions included are: Asia, Europe and Eurasia, the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

  Rule of Law Index 2015 (No. 100, January 2016) - PDF

  The World Justice Project’s Rule of Law has data since 2012. The EADS has added the annually published World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law Index as a new source. Its indicators measure rule of law based on the perceptions of the general public and in-country experts worldwide. This EADS Snapshot focuses on 59 countries and on four out of eight factors: 1) absence of corruption, 2) open government, 3) regulatory enforcement, and 4) criminal justice.

• 2015 Reports

  Women, Business, and the Law (No. 99, October 2015) - PDF

  The World Bank's Women, Business, and the Law report has collected data since 2009 about the legal restrictions on female entrepreneurship and employment. The 2016 report is the fourth in the series and includes 173 economies. This snapshot analyzes four major topics included in the official report: Accessing Institutions, Building Credit, Going to Court, and Protecting Women from Violence.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 98, June 2015) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) Snapshot summarizes the April 2015 World Economic Outlook report, emphasizing the trends and projections for USAID-assisted countries. The WEO report emphasizes the importance of the drop in oil prices on the world economy, which provided an economic boost to oil importers but will weigh on activity in oil exporting countries. This snapshot focuses on six world regions and concentrates on real GDP, investment, unemployment rate, inflation, and trade growth.

  Heritage Foundation 2015 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 97, February 2015) - PDF

  Since 1995, The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation have compiled the Index of Economic Freedom. The Heritage Foundation defines economic freedom as "the condition in which individuals can act with autonomy while in the pursuit of their economic livelihood and greater prosperity." The Index of Economic Freedom analyses countries' commitment to the rule of law, principles of limited government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets. This 2015 snapshot highlights 91 USAID-assisted countries across the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe and Eurasia, and Afghanistan and Pakistan regions.

  Doing Business 2015 (No. 96, February 2015) - PDF

  It is now easier to do business in most of the world's economies than was the case a year ago. This is the conclusion of the World Bank's Doing Business 2015, the 12th installment in a series of annual reports aimed at identifying which regulations foster business activity. The report measures the impact of business regulations on local small and medium-size enterprises in 10 categories across 189 of which 123 economies (8% greater than the previous year) implemented a total of 230 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business. More than 83 percent of all economies surveyed improved their distance to frontier score since last year.

  Trade in East Africa (No. 95, January 2015) - PDF

  In July, 2013, President Obama announced Trade Africa, a new partnership to increase trade within Africa and between Africa and global markets. This snapshot looks at the EAC's trade patterns and the United States' role in promoting EAC trade, and then considers each of Trade Africa's initial goals.

• 2014 Reports

  IMF, World Economic Outlook Database (No. 94, December 2014) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) Snapshot summarizes the October 2014 World Economic Outlook report, emphasizing the trends and projections for USAID-assisted countries. This snapshot focuses on six world regions: Europe and Eurasia, Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Middle East and North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis and charts concentrate on real GDP, investment, unemployment rate, inflation, and trade growth.

  UN Comtrade Database, Harmonized System (No. 93, December 2014) - PDF

  This snapshot covers the UN Comtrade database on trade data as reported under the Harmonized System (HS), the classification system most commonly used by governments for international trade data reporting and trade policymaking.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2014-2015 (No. 92, October 2014) - PDF

  This snapshot discusses the 2014-2015 edition of the Global Competitiveness Index, a widely anticipated annual publication from the World Economic Forum.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 91, June 2014) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) Snapshot summarizes the April 2014 World Economic Outlook report, emphasizing the trends and projections for USAID-assisted countries. This snapshot focuses on five world regions: Europe and Eurasia, Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis and charts concentrate on real GDP and trade growth.

  FY2012 U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 90, April 2014) - PDF

  USAID has released an update to the U.S. Overseas Loans and Grants (the Greenbook), with FY2012 foreign assistance levels. This snapshot highlights U.S. Economic Assistance of $31.2B by implementing agencies, recipient countries and by US Strategic Framework Objectives. Learn where and how the United States targets economic assistance worldwide.

  Trafficking in Persons (No. 89, March 2014) - PDF

  This EADS snapshot discusses the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report by U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons which presents a global outlook of the nature and scope of trafficking in persons and the broad range of foreign government actions to confront and eliminate it. The snapshots focuses on 90 countries that received at least $2 million in USAID assistance in fiscal year 2012 and are not considered high income countries using World Bank GNI per capita data for 2012. Between 2009 and 2013 Colombia, Georgia, and Macedonia were the best performers. On the other hand, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Congo (Kinshasa) were the worst performers.

  Global Slavery Index (No. 88, February 2014) - PDF

  In October 2013, the Walk Free Foundation released the first edition of the Global Slavery Index. The index estimates the number of people enslaved in the world and ranks 163 countries on the prevalence of slavery. This snapshot highlights USAID-assisted countries included in the report.

  Heritage Foundation 2014 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 87, February 2014) - PDF

  Since 1995, The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation have compiled the Index of Economic Freedom. The Heritage Foundation defines economic freedom as "the condition in which individuals can act with autonomy while in the pursuit of their economic livelihood and greater prosperity." The Index of Economic Freedom analyses countries' commitment to the rule of law, principles of limited government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets. This snapshot highlights 83 USAID-assisted countries that have data for the years 2010-2014.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 86, January 2014) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) snapshot, examines the October 2013 World Economic Outlook report, emphasizing the changes to the economic forecasts in the last publication in April. This snapshot focuses on five world regions: Europe and Eurasia, Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis and charts concentrates on four macroeconomic indicators with historic and forecast data that highlights regional trends and prospects.

  Doing Business 2014 (No. 85, January 2014) - PDF

  The World Bank's Doing Business 2014 report is the 11th in a series of annual reports that presents quantitative indicators on 11 areas of business regulation for 189 economies. Four new countries have been added in the 2014 report; Libya, Myanmar, South Sudan, and San Marino. The report highlights that 114 economies implemented 238 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business (18 percent more reforms than last year). Moreover, the report notes improvements in removing some of the biggest bureaucratic obstacles to private sector activity. Lastly, the report indicates that low-income economies have improved their business regulations at twice the rate that high-income economies have. This snapshot highlights how USAID-assisted countries ranked in the 2014 report.

• 2013 Reports

  Changes in the Food Price Index (No. 84, December 2013) - PDF

  In November 2013 the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) introduced a few changes to its monthly FAO Food Price Index (FFPI), which tracks global changes in cereal, meat, dairy, oil, and sugar prices to create an overall food price index and five sub-indices. This snapshot outlines the changes and their effect on the index.

  MENA Youth Unemployment (No. 83, December 2013) - PDF

  Having the right education, skills, and job opportunities, youth are the necessary backbone for the development of robust economies. However, in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, 26 percent of the unemployed in the labor force are youth. Their frustration and humiliation with being unemployed or suffering from unsatisfying low-paying jobs served as the genesis for the historical Arab Spring uprisings. Using data from the World Bank, United Nations, and World Economic Forum, this snapshot analyzes six key factors behind youth unemployment; demographic pressure, gender discrimination, skill mismatches, labor market rigidities, large public sector, and weak public sector for nine MENA countries.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2013-2014 (No. 82, October 2013) - PDF

  This EADS Snapshot discusses the 2013-2014 edition of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), a widely anticipated annual publication from the World Economic Forum. Switzerland scores the highest overall, China is the highest scoring country receiving U.S. assistance and not a high-income country, and Chad scores the lowest. While the average assisted country's GCI score has improved since 2011, its improvement has slowed. On a regional basis, performance over the last three years has been mixed. Each region's average score is higher in 2013 than in 2011, with two exceptions; the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition to including an overview of the GCI methodology, this snapshot delves into the GCI's results region-by-region, highlighting performance trends, stand-outs, and backsliding.

  Global Peace Index 2013 (No. 81, September 2013) - PDF

  The Global Peace Index is produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace in collaboration with the Economist Intelligence Unit to rank countries based on their level of peace by measuring the level of safety and security in a country, the extent of domestic or foreign conflicts and the degree of militarization. This snapshot focuses on the 91 low- and middle-income countries that received at least $2 million USAID funding in fiscal year 2011.

  USAID Water and Development Strategy (No. 80, September 2013) - PDF

  USAID recently published a five year Water and Development Strategy that outlines the agencies goals concerning water programming. This snapshot examines the states of the world regarding water issues and highlights data sources that provide water related statistics and available to users on the International Data & Economic Analysis.

  Trade in East Africa (No. 79, August 2013) - PDF

  President Obama recently announced Trade Africa, a new partnership to increase trade within Africa and between Africa and global markets, focusing initially on the East African Community (EAC). This snapshot looks at the EAC's trade patterns and the U.S.'s role in promoting EAC trade as they relate to Trade Africa's goals.

  World Bank Income Groups (No. 78, August 2013) - PDF

  World Bank country income categories are relied on for analysis and operational decisions by various development organizations, including the MCC. This snapshot examines the patterns of income category change and the consequences of this category change on the distribution of official development assistance.

  Trade Capacity Building (No. 77, July 2013) - PDF

  The latest annual survey of U.S. Government Trade Capacity Building (TCB) Assistance indicates that the total funding for all agencies was just under $1.0 billion in FY2012, down from a revised $1.4 billion in FY2011. USAID funding for TCB, at $0.7 billion in FY2011 and $0.4 billion in FY2012, is the most by a single agency. For several years prior to FY2011, the Millennium Challenge Corporation had been the largest funder of TCB.

  World Investment Report 2013 (No. 76, July 2013) - PDF

  UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2013 notes that global foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows fell 18 percent in 2012, decreasing to $1.35 trillion from $1.5 trillion in 2011. The decline was mainly caused by weak economic growth and policy uncertainty in the major the economies. However, with improvements in key macroeconomic indicators, UNCTAD predicts that FDI in 2013 will remain stable with a slight increase to $1.45 trillion. All regions experienced an increase in inward FDI stock, with Asia and Eastern Europe leading the surge. The rise of inward stock in Asia was driven by lower-income countries that serve as bright spots for labor intensive FDI. In Latin America the growth of FDI inflows resulted from a mix of natural resource seeking, strength of commodity prices, and market-seeking activity. FDI inflows to Sub-Saharan Africa were driven by investments in the extractive sector, private equity funds, and manufacturing and services industries.

  Open Markets Index (No. 75, July 2013) - PDF

  The International Chamber of Commerce recently began publishing the Open Markets Index, a measure of the economic openness of 75 nations that comprise more than 90 percent of global imports. This snapshot examines which countries fared well and poorly in the 2013 rankings, which countries shifted in the rankings, and how the index's scores are calculated.

  Economic Trends Reports (No. 74, June 2013) - PDF

  EADS prepares annual economic trends reports on ten geographic areas of interest to USAID staff. This EADS Snapshot summarizes the finding of the latest reports, showing that while the world economic growth rate is heading higher, there are many risks to the outlook. The Economic Trends Reports are available on the International Data & Economic Analysis website.

  State of the World's Mothers (No. 73, June 2013) - PDF

  This snapshot presents highlights from Save the Children's Mothers' Index, which measures the well-being of mothers in 176 countries around the world. Finland was the highest-ranked country in the 2013 index and Congo (Kinshasa) was the lowest-ranked.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 72, May 2013) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) snapshot, highlights global and regional trends in economic growth based on the April 2013 World Economic Outlook report. This snapshot focuses on five world regions, which are the Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, and Europe and Eurasia. The analysis and charts concentrates on four macroeconomic indicators with historic and forecast data. The four indicators are real GDP, export volume of goods and services, general gross debt as a percentage of GDP and inflation.

  Human Development Report 2013 (No. 71, April 2013) - PDF

  The Human Development Report 2013 (HDR), published by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), focuses on the link between the transformation of developing countries into "dynamic major economies" and human development. This snapshot highlights the statistical findings of this year's HDR, focusing on the 95 countries that received at least $2 million in obligations of USAID assistance in fiscal year 2011.

  Youth, Education, and Conflict (No. 70, April 2013) - PDF

  This snapshot identifies several key sources for measuring the levels and trends of education in developing countries including those affected by conflict. The snapshot focuses on conflict-affected countries that received over $2 million in USAID funding in fiscal year 2011.

  FY2011 U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 69, March 2013) - PDF

  USAID has released an update to the U.S. Overseas Loans and Grants (Greenbook), with FY2011 foreign assistance levels. This snapshot highlights U.S. Economic Assistance of $31.7 by funding agencies, recipient countries, and U.S. Foreign Assistance Framework Objectives. Learn where and how the United States, as the largest bilateral donor, targets economic assistance.

  Civil Society Organization Sustainability Index (No. 68, March 2013) - PDF

  This snapshot presents highlights from the 2011 Civil Society Organization (CSO) Sustainability Index, which measures the sustainability of the civil society sectors of 53 countries in Eastern Europe and Eurasia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia. In 2011, four countries improved the sustainability of their CSO sectors and nine countries saw a decrease in CSO sector sustainability. The highest-ranked country was Estonia (2.0) and the lowest-ranked was Belarus (5.9).

  U.S. Official Development Assistance (No. 67, February 2013) - PDF

  This snapshot presents highlights from the U.S. Government's 2011 Official Development Assistance (ODA) as reported to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Development Assistance Committee (OECD/DAC). It includes data about top ten recipients, geographic areas, income groups, and sectors. In 2011, U.S. ODA increased to a record-high $30.8 billion, with $27.1 billion in bilateral and $3.7 billion in multilateral assistance.

  Heritage Foundation 2013 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 66, February 2013) - PDF

  Since 1995, The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation have compiled the Index of Economic Freedom, based on the principles of the empowerment of the individual, non-discrimination and open competition. This snapshot reviews changes over the past year (2012-2013) for countries that received at least $2 million in USAID assistance in fiscal year 2011.

• 2012 Reports

  The Ibrahim Index: Governance on the African Continent (No. 65, December 2012) - PDF

  The Mo Ibrahim Foundation releases annual measures of the quality of governance in Africa. Reflecting the multi-dimensional nature of governance, the Foundation's index aggregates 88 measures from 23 independent data sources to rank 52 countries. This snapshot summarizes highlights from the 2012 Index, which presents new rankings and ratings for 2011. For 2011, as was true in 2010, the top ranked country was Mauritius (82.8) and the lowest was Somalia (7.2). At the top end, there were no changes in the top five countries, although it is notable that the Seychelles dropped nearly two index points while holding on to fourth place in the rankings. The most notable gain toward the top end of the rankings was for Tunisia, up nearly three index points and climbing from 10th to 8th place in a single year.

  Doing Business 2013 (No. 64, November 2012) - PDF

  The World Bank's Doing Business 2013 report highlights the 201 improvements in business regulations made in 185 economies. The 2013 report is the 10th edition of Doing Business and specifically notes the improvements in low-income countries in fostering positive business environments since the report's inception. Regulation practices have been converging over the past ten editions and the gap between the poor-performing economies and the well-performing economies has narrowed. The report found that the largest area of convergence has been in reducing the cost and complexity of regulatory processes.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 63, November 2012) - PDF

  This snapshot highlights global and regional trends in economic growth based on the October 2012 World Economic Outlook report from the IMF and focuses on countries that received at least $2 million in USAID assistance in fiscal year 2010. While the IMF forecasts that the recovery is slowing down and depends largely on how the European and U.S. policymakers resolve their short term economic challenges, USAID assisted countries have been growing at a higher rate than the global average.

  Financial Access Survey (No. 62, October 2012) - PDF

  The Financial Access Survey (FAS) is an annual survey of the supply of financial services in 187 countries and territories. The IMF has produced the FAS since 2004 and it currently serves as the data source for the G-20 Basic Set of Financial Inclusion Indicators. Despite the global financial crisis, access to financial institutions has been increasing in USAID assisted countries. The global financial crisis slowed down or reversed expansion of commercial banks in every USAID assisted country, including China. The level of deposits in commercial banks in each USAID region has increased since 2004. The increasing outstanding deposits as a percent of GDP indicate primarily that these countries have excess monies to deposit and could indicate that regional commercial banks are becoming increasingly trusted with deposits.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2012-2013 (No. 61, October 2012) - PDF

  This snapshot discusses the 2012-2013 edition of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), a widely anticipated annual publication from the World Economic Forum. Switzerland scores the highest overall, Israel is the highest scoring country receiving U.S. assistance, and Burundi scores the lowest. While the average assisted country's GCI score has improved since 2010, its improvement has slowed. On a regional basis, performance over the last three years has been mixed. Each region's average score is higher in 2012 than in 2010, with one exception—the Middle East. In addition to including an overview of the GCI methodology, this snapshot delves into the GCI's results region by region, highlighting performance trends, stand-outs, and backsliding.

  Poverty Data: Concepts and Sources (No. 60, September 2012) - PDF

  The measurement of poverty is essential to the task of tracking progress in fulfilling one of USAID's core missions. This EADS Snapshot surveys the basic concept of poverty measures and the range of available data sources.

  Changes in the Balance of Payments (No. 59, September 2012) - PDF

  After several years of consultations, the IMF has released the sixth version of its Balance of Payments Manual, a document that governs the procedures, methodology, and presentation of balance of payments data. This snapshot summarizes key changes and is intended for users who regularly analyze balance of payments data to track countries' transactions with the rest of the world, such as reserve and debt accumulation, trade, and investment.

  Open Net Initiative: Internet Censorship Data (No. 58, September 2012) - PDF

  The Open Net Initiative's (ONI) global Internet censorship data provides ratings on the breadth and depth of Internet censorship. Countries are scored for their level of filtering across four content categories: Political, Social, Internet Tools and Conflict and Security. Of the 74 countries covered by ONI, 43 received at least $2 million U.S. dollars in USAID funding in fiscal year 2010. This snapshot summarizes the main findings for these countries.

  Global Peace Index 2012 (No. 57, September 2012) - PDF

  The Global Peace Index (GPI) is produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace in collaboration with the Economist Intelligence Unit. It rates countries on their internal and external "peacefulness" using sub-indicators from various sources, and is intended to be a more in-depth measure of peace than merely counting the number of violent acts. Using comparable data from 2009-2012, the most improved USAID-assisted countries include Sri Lanka, Georgia, and Guyana.

  Women's Economic Opportunity Index (No. 56, September 2012) - PDF

  Traditionally working largely in unpaid and informal markets, women have had less access to economic opportunity than men, especially in developing countries. The 2012 Economist Intelligence Unit's Women's Economic Opportunity Index is intended to measure the economic advancement of women around the world by scoring countries' progress in improving the underlying factors that have prevented women's access from economic opportunity in the formal economy. An overall message of the report that accompanies the index is that countries can enact opportunity enabling policies, but putting those policies into practice is another thing. Indeed, nearly all countries score higher in quantitative measures of labor policy than labor practice. This snapshot examines this relationship and it delves into some statistical characteristics of the Women's Economic Opportunity Index.

  World Investment Report 2012 (No. 55, August 2012) - PDF

  UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2012 and the accompanying FDI database reveal trends and prospects for global foreign direct investment. In 2011, global FDI inflows surpassed pre-crisis levels, although UNCTAD predicts slower growth in 2012. This snapshot examines investment flows and underlying trends by region and finds FDI flows increased to all USAID regions except the Middle East.

  EIU Global Food Security Index (No. 54, August 2012) - PDF

  In response to the continued importance of food security in the international arena the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), sponsored by DuPont, has released a new Global Food Security Index (GFSI). The purpose of the GFSI is to assess a country's vulnerability to food insecurity by measuring the drivers of food security: affordability, availability, and quality and safety.

  World Bank Income Groups (No. 53, July 2012) - PDF

  World Bank country income categories are relied on for analysis and operational decisions by various development organizations, including the MCC. This snapshot examines country categorizations for 2012 in terms of population and poverty. The shifting of a single high population country can cause large numbers of poor people to be classified as living in a Middle Income country. Today, over 2 billion people live on less than $2 a day, 90 percent of whom are in Middle Income countries. EADS provides the World Bank's latest income groups and World Development Indicators through its IDEA: Query.

  World Bank Enterprise Surveys (No. 52, July 2012) - PDF

  The World Bank surveys businesses in most of the world's developing countries and emerging markets. The resulting Enterprise Surveys database provides insights into the factors which hamper business growth and facilitates prioritizing reform agendas. EADS provides access to the full Enterprise Surveys database through its IDEA: Query.

  Trade Capacity Building (No. 51, June 2012) - PDF

  The latest annual survey of U.S. Government Trade Capacity Building (TCB) Assistance indicates that the total funding for all agencies was $1.0 billion in FY2011. The decline from $1.7 billion in FY2010 is accounted for by large country compacts with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) in FY2010 versus none reported in FY2011. USAID funding for TCB increased twenty-nine percent in FY2011, to more than a half billion dollars, including a significant increases for activities in Pakistan.

  Social Institutions and Gender Index 2012 (No. 50, June 2012) - PDF

  The OECD Development Centre's Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 2012 is a composite measure that focuses on the underlying social institutions that influence gender roles and relations in over 100 non-OECD countries.

  Economic Trends Reports (No. 49, May 2012) - PDF

  The USAID Economic Analysis and Data Services (EADS) team has produced ten regional economic trends reports. These annual reports summarize the latest World Economic Outlook projections from the IMF and utilize other sources to analyze trends in real GDP, inflation, investment, trade, and poverty reduction. In this snapshot, the EADS team provides an insightful overview of world economic growth, with a focus on the impact of euro zone turmoil, commodity price swings, and growth trade linkages with China.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 48, May 2012) - PDF

  In the April 2012 World Economic Outlook, the IMF reports that the global recovery is precarious and depends largely on how the economic crises in the euro area are resolved. Countries receiving USAID assistance are expected to grow faster than the global average, about 5.1 percent in 2012, but not as fast as the average for all developing economies due to a number of sources of risk. The risks to USAID assisted countries remain continued access to credit and unsustainable commodity price growth. To maintain positive growth, the IMF recommends that developing countries practice a difficult balance between limiting risks from advanced economies, particularly the euro area, and implementing policies to forestall risk from capital flows, fluctuating commodity prices and increased inflation.

  The Networked Readiness Index (No. 47, May 2012) - PDF

  The World Economic Forum, together with the INSEAD Business School, annually publish the Networked Readiness Index (NRI). The NRI quantifies in detail the main drivers and impacts of information and communications technology (ICT) for the purposes of augmenting country productivity and enhancing global competitiveness. The database of technology metrics covers in detail 142 countries—both developing and advanced—and the existing digital divide.

  EIA's Energy Outlook (No. 46, March 2012) - PDF

  This snapshot highlights findings by the U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) "Short-Term Energy Outlook: March 2012" and the "International Energy Outlook 2011." The EIA provides a wide range of international data covering energy production, stocks, demand, imports, exports, and prices. This snapshot focuses on EIA data related to countries outside of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (non-OECD) with a particular focus on countries receiving at least $2 million in USAID assistance in FY2010.

  Women, Business and the Law (No. 45, March 2012) - PDF

  The World Bank's Women, Business and the Law 2012 report focuses on gender differentiations in legal treatment in areas affecting women's participation in the economy. Covering 141 economies, the report establishes six indicators of gender differences in formal laws and institutions. One of the most interesting findings of this report is that a greater number of restrictions apply to married than to unmarried women.

  U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 44, February 2012) - PDF

  This snapshot presents highlights from the newly released U.S. Overseas Loans and Grants report (Greenbook). In FY2010 the United States remained the largest bilateral donor, obligating nearly $38 billion of economic assistance. For the second consecutive year Afghanistan is the top recipient of U.S. economic assistance. Iraq, who had been the top recipient for most of the last decade, fell to fourth. Haiti joins the list of top ten recipients for the first time while Pakistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Sudan remain perennial entries. Learn more about where and how the United States targeted its economic assistance in FY2010.

  Heritage Foundation 2012 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 43, January 2012) - PDF

  The 2012 Index of Economic Freedom, compiled by the Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal, defines economic freedom as a society in which "each person controls the fruits of his or her own labor and initiative." The 2012 index registers a slight decrease of 0.2 in the world's average economic freedom over the past year. However, several USAID-assisted countries have made significant improvements to expanding economic freedom, including Rwanda, Macedonia, and Bangladesh. This snapshot highlights the 2012 Index of Economic Freedom scores and analysis for countries receiving at least $2 million in USAID assistance for FY2010.

• 2011 Reports

  Human Development Report 2011 (No. 42, December 2011) - PDF

  The Human Development Report 2011 (HDR), published by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), focuses on linkages between two critical development issues: sustainability and equity. The report reveals the risk that environmental constraints and widening inequality could reverse much of the global progress in human development made over the past forty years. This snapshot highlights the findings of this year's HDR for countries that have received at least $2 million in US foreign assistance in FY2009. From 2009 to 2010 the average HDI for USAID countries increased by 0.88 percent, but only increased by 0.57 percent from 2010 to 2011.

  Doing Business 2012 (No. 41, December 2011) - PDF

  The World Bank's Doing Business 2012 is the ninth annual report tracking regulations that affect business activity. The report presents quantitative indicators on business regulation and the protection of property rights for 183 countries. This snapshot highlights the main findings from Doing Business with a focus on countries that receive USAID funding and their progress over time.

  The Ibrahim Index: Governance on the African Continent (No. 40, November 2011) - PDF

  Using a 0-100 scale, with higher scores indicating better governance outcomes, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation developed a quantitative index to measure governance in Africa. Governance is a multi-dimensional concept, and under the Ibrahim Index, governance is defined as a set of services that a government delivers to its citizens. According to the recently release 2011 edition of the Ibrahim Index, the overall improvement of governance over the last year has been mixed. Thirty four countries improved an average of 0.8 points, while 19 countries fell an average of 0.7 points. Unsurprisingly, North Africa was the only region whose average score fell (from 55.9 to 55.5), while West Africa's average score improved the most (from 50.5 to 51.1). This EADS snapshot investigates these results in further detail and looks at the trends of governance in Africa.

  Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012 (No. 39, October 2011) - PDF

  The World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012 notes the start of an economic recovery after several difficult years. The report acknowledges that this recovery is unevenly distributed and threatened by uncertainty. Developing countries have managed to recover quicker, but that recovery is tempered by global concerns. Rising commodity prices eroding purchasing power, increased inflation and the possibility of unsustainable levels of debt could lead to an economic slowdown. Of the 142 countries in the 2011 GCI, 70 received at least $2 million in USAID assistance for fiscal year 2009. Israel and China remained the highest ranked USAID-assisted countries and both improved their scores from the previous report. Chad and Burundi remain at the bottom of the list and both declined in rank from the 2010 GCI. Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Brazil are new entrants to the top ten list, with Sri Lanka's rank increasing 27 places from 2009. Except for Timor-Leste, the bottom ten USAID-assisted countries are all located in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region that continues to struggle with competitiveness.

  World Investment Report 2011 (No. 38, October 2011) - PDF

  UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2011 notes an increase in global foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2010 and indicates that FDI will return to pre-crisis levels by the end of 2011. The major change recorded by UNCTAD is the shift of a majority of the world's FDI to developing and emerging economies. FDI outflows from the developing world increased and most of these flows were to the global South. Global FDI flows rebounded in 2010, rising slightly to $1,240 billion. FDI is expected to reach its 2007 peak of $1,900 billion by 2013, however global economic risks remain that could threaten this outcome. The largest shift is the global turn toward developing and emerging economies for FDI, both inward and outward. FDI inward stock, the amount of FDI accrued over several years reflecting foreign investment over time, has continued to rise across all regions. Latin America and Asia account for most of the increased FDI inward stock, with these regions seeing increases of 15 and 19 percent respectively. Eastern Europe is the only region not to have recovered to its 2007 high and it continues to be one of the slower growing regions.

  World Risk Report 2011 (No. 37, October 2011) - PDF

  The World Risk Report (WRR) 2011 produced by Alliance Development Works in cooperation with the United Nations University examines the risk that a country will be affected by a natural disaster. The goal of the report is to link classical risk analysis approaches of natural hazards with analysis of social and economic dimensions of risk. The authors support a developmental approach to disasters by focusing on prevention, protection of vulnerable groups and risk management. This snapshot highlights the WRR findings for countries receiving at least $2 million in USAID Assistance in 2009 and includes maps showing results for all countries included in the report.

  Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index 2010 (No. 36, August 2011) - PDF

  Since 2006, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), part of the Economist magazine, has released the Democracy Index. The 2010 index states that over half of the world's population lives in some form of democracy, but the basic pillars of democracy have begun crumbling. The index notes a decline in media freedoms and in political participation around the world. Regions receiving USAID assistance, and even the developed world, saw a democratic decline in recent years.

  World Bank Income Groups (No. 35, July 2011) - PDF

  Each July the World Bank releases the annual updates of income groups and lending categories for the world's economies. In the latest 2011 update, 14 countries moved up an income group and 2 countries shifted down. Over the last two decades there has been an unambiguous shift of countries up the World Bank income classification.

  Trade Capacity Building (No. 34, July 2011) - PDF

  Total U.S. Government Trade Capacity Building Assistance was $1.8 billion in FY2009 and $1.7 billion in FY2010. Both levels represent modest declines from the $2.2 billion in FY2008, a year with several large country compacts with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). Although at varying levels, a wide variety of U.S. Government agencies fund and implement trade capacity building activities in developing countries. USAID funding for TCB increased seven percent in FY2010, to more than a half billion dollars, with significant increases for the CAFTA-DR countries.

  UNCTAD World Investment Report 2010 (No. 33, July 2011) - PDF

  UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2010 (WIR 2010) and the accompanying FDI database illustrate the changes in global foreign direct investment as the global financial crisis begins to turn around. After falling in 2008, global FDI inflows fell again in 2009 to $1,114 billion. However, the outlook for FDI is improving and UNCTAD expects FDI to increase through 2012. WIR 2010 shows the increased investment in developing countries, both as destinations and sources of FDI, and notes that developing countries rebounded faster in terms of FDI than other income groups. Nearly half of FDI inflows now go to developing and transition economies and that percentage is expected to increase.

  World Bank Enterprise Surveys (No. 32, July 2011) - PDF

  The World Bank's Enterprise Surveys are a compilation of national firm-level data from emerging markets and developing economies. The data are based on survey responses from business owners and top managers of more than 120,000 firms in 125 countries and cover a broad range of business environment topics including access to finance, corruption, infrastructure, crime, competition, and performance measures.

  UN Population Prospects: 2010 Revision (No. 31, June 2011) - PDF

  On May 3, 2011 the UN released the bi-annual update to its Population Prospects report. This report provides population statistics from 1950 through 2100 for over 200 countries. The key findings from the UN are that world population will be around 10 billion people by 2100 and most growth will come from high fertility developing countries. The report also predicts that world life expectancy will increase from its current 68 years to 81 years by 2100. Most of these gains are expected to come from high fertility countries where disease prevention and treatments for HIV will contribute to declining mortality rates.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 30, May 2011) - PDF

  This snapshot highlights the global and regional growth projections in the April 2011 World Economic Outlook (WEO), a semi-annual IMF report. The IMF reports that the recovery is proceeding as expected: the overall world economy is projected to expand by 4½ percent in 2011 and 2012. Emerging and developing economies are leading the recovery with a projected growth rate of 6½ percent. By contrast, advanced economies are still struggling and are expected to register a modest growth rate of just 2½ percent.

  The Ibrahim Index: Governance on the African Continent (No. 29, March 2011) - PDF

  The Mo Ibrahim Foundation defines its mission as a commitment to improving the quality of governance in Africa. Governance is defined as a set of services that a government delivers to its citizens. To provide a criterion for policy makers and citizens in assessing governance, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation developed a quantitative measure of governance: the Ibrahim index. The index spans the years of 2000 through 2009. This EADS snapshot highlights the results of the latest edition (2008/09) of the Ibrahim Index.

  U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 28, February 2011) - PDF

  This snapshot presents FY2009 highlights on U.S. economic assistance from the USAID Foreign Assistance Database (FADB). In 2009 the United States remained the largest bilateral donor, obligating almost $34 billion of economic assistance. For the first time Afghanistan is the top recipient of U.S. economic assistance, receiving almost $3.1 billion in 2009.

  Heritage Foundation 2011 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 27, January 2011) - PDF

  The 2011 index registers an increase in the world's average economic freedom following two years of decline. Particular regions of improvement were Africa and Eastern Europe. The most improved and most declined countries are spread throughout all five USAID regions, but the majority of the improved countries are found in Africa and Eastern Europe. The most improved country since 2009 is Rwanda. This year's top USAID assisted country is Cyprus at 18th overall, higher than developed countries like Germany and Japan.

• 2010 Reports

  Human Development Report 2010 (No. 26, November 2010) - PDF

  The Human Development Report 2010 is the 20th anniversary of UNDP's flagship report. Due to the historic nature of the report, this year's represents a marked change from previous reports. While the Human Development Index (HDI) remains, three new indices have replaced ones used in previous reports. The new indices are: Inequality-adjusted HDI, Gender Inequality Index and Multidimensional Poverty Index. Each serves to provide greater information to users of the HDI and attempts to present a fuller view of human development throughout the world. While the countries with very high human development continue to be developed countries, the reformulation of the HDI provides greater insight into the progress of USAID assisted countries.

  Doing Business 2011 (No. 25, November 2010) - PDF

  Of the top ten countries by most improved rank since last year's report, six are countries that received USAID assistance in the past year. However, unlike last year's report, only five of the top ten reformers come from low or lower middle income countries. The non-USAID assisted countries in the top ten are predominantly those with higher incomes. Once again, the top ten overall countries are non-USAID assisted countries, but Georgia continues to be a strong competitor in the Doing Business Report at 12th place, and the highest USAID assisted country in the ease of doing business rankings. Fewer reforms took place by the time of the 2011 Report (217) than last year's 287 reforms, but sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and North Africa were leading reformers over the past year. The top three areas of improvement were starting a business, paying taxes, and trading across borders.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 24, October 2010) - PDF

  This snapshot highlights the global and regional growth projections and risks in the October 2010 World Economic Outlook (WEO), a semi-annual IMF report. The IMF finds that the recovery is proceeding as expected, but risk levels remain elevated. The majority of these risks exist in advanced economies and a few emerging economies. The first half of 2010 was marked by an increase in activity of 5.25 percent, about 0.5 percent higher than anticipated. Advanced economies grew by 3.5 percent and emerging economies expanded by approximately 8 percent. For 2010, the IMF projects global activity to expand by 4.8 percent and in 2011 by 4.2 percent. The IMF forecasts that emerging economies will grow by 7.1 and 6.4 percent in 2010 and 2011, respectively, and that developed economies will see growth of only 2.7 and 2.2 percent over the same period. The WEO report reiterates the need for policy adjustments following the recent recession, including advanced economies legislating plans for sustainable fiscal positions before 2020, strengthening the financial sector to better recover from shocks and for emerging economies to foster domestic demand.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2010-2011 (No. 23, September 2010) - PDF

  The World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011 highlights the continued need for countries to balance the short-term requirements of addressing the global economic downturn with the long-term requirements of maintaining sustainable levels of debt and emphasizing pro-growth policies. Out of the 139 economies in the 2010-2011 Global Competitiveness Report, 69 countries received funding from USAID fiscal year 2008. While African nations have been making great strides improving their GCI scores in 2009-2010, the 2010-2011 report shows the greatest increases since the 2008-2009 report have been made in Eastern Europe and Eurasia and Asia. Most regions' scores have recovered from the global financial crisis, but Africa and the Middle East and North Africa remain below their pre-crisis average.

  Multidimensional Poverty Index (No. 22, September 2010) - PDF

  Sabina Alkire and Maria Emma Santos from the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) recently developed a new Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) which moves beyond income-based poverty indicators to provide insights to the multiple interconnected deprivations faced by the poor. The index is intended as a tool for policy makers to more effectively target resources and to design policies to eradicate severe poverty. The main findings from the report reflect that overall more people are considered poor according to the MPI measurement of deprivations across an array of basic needs than is found using only income based measurements such as living on less than $1.25 a day.

  World Bank Country Categories (No. 21, July 2010) - PDF

  The World Bank (WB) classifies countries into four income groups (Low, Lower Middle, Upper Middle and High Income). These income classifications are critical to determining a country's eligibility for WB loans and grants with different conditions. Each year the WB revises the income groups based on changes in each country's GNI per capita. In the 2010 World Bank country classifications update, nine countries moved up income categories and two countries regressed.

  International Data on Educational Attainment (Barro-Lee) (No. 20, July 2010) - PDF

  New data on long-term educational attainment are available from the IDEA. Economists Robert J. Barro and Jong-Wha Lee have updated their dataset, extending the years of coverage up to 1950. Estimates of different measures of educational attainment are available for 146 countries at five-year intervals from 1950-2010.

  Trade Capacity Building (No. 19, June 2010) - PDF

  Trade Capacity Building (TCB) funding by the U.S. Government (USG) was $1.8 billion in 2009, down from $2.2 billion in 2008. TCB funds from the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) were $0.6 billion in 2009 after more than doubling in 2008. The moderation of MCC funding was only partly offset by funding from the rest of the USG funding, which more than doubled in 2009.

  World Bank Enterprise Surveys (No. 18, May 2010) - PDF

  In concert with USAID's third annual Small Business Conference to be held May 27th, the International Data & Economic Analysis (IDEA) recently added a new data source—the World Bank Enterprise Surveys—a compilation of national firm-level data from emerging markets and developing economies. The data are based on survey responses from more than 100,000 firms in 123 countries which generate indicators to benchmark the quality of the business and investment climate.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 17, May 2010) - PDF

  According to the IMF's April 2010 World Economic Outlook (WEO), the world economy has recovered more quickly from the post-financial crisis recession than was previously expected. After a ½ percent contraction in the global economy in 2009, world output is expected to expand by 4¼ percent in 2010. Developing countries, particularly in Asia, are leading the recovery.

  UNCTAD World Investment Report 2009 (No. 16, April 2010) - PDF

  UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2009 chronicles the nature and magnitude of the decline in FDI in 2008 due to the financial crisis. This snapshot summarizes part of the UNCTAD report, highlights top USAID-assisted 2008 FDI recipients, and provides near- and medium-term regional FDI prospects.

  Long-Term Economic Growth Trends, 1983-2008 (No. 15, April 2010) - PDF

  Economic growth is critical to reducing poverty in developing countries. While development practitioners monitor many indicators of progress in various sectors, there is consensus that change in gross domestic product (GDP) over an extended period of time is a reliable indicator of economic growth and rising standards of living. Although GDP growth in one year can be obtained by a random confluence of several factors, it is unlikely a country can achieve a rapid growth rate over a long period of time by good luck alone in the absence of a sound economic policy framework. This snapshot identifies countries that have grown five percent or more annually during consecutive 5-year periods from 1983 to 2008.

  U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 14, March 2010) - PDF

  This snapshot presents FY2008 highlights on U.S. economic assistance from the USAID Foreign Assistance Database (FADB). In 2008 the United States remained the largest donor with $33.6 billion of economic assistance, a $6 billion increase from 2007 and a 75% increase from 2003.

  World Bank Commodity Price Data (No. 13, February 2010) - PDF

  The International Data & Economic Analysis (IDEA) recently added a new data source, World Bank Commodity Price Data, commonly referred to as the 'Pink Sheet.' The World Bank Pink Sheet is a summary of world prices on primary commodities exported by developing countries and price indices. The data are available at a monthly, quarterly, and annual frequency. This snapshot provides an overview of the type of data and trends in commodity prices.

  Heritage Foundation 2010 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 12, January 2010) - PDF

  Since 1995 The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation have compiled the Index of Economic Freedom which can be used to track developing countries' progress, or lack thereof, making their societies more economically free. This snapshot looks at the 2010 Index of Economic Freedom scores for 129 developing countries, their progress during the financial crisis, and total USAID assistance for fiscal year 2008.

  UN Human Development Report (No. 11, January 2010) - PDF

  Which two USAID-assisted countries had top-ten scores across all four major indices in the latest Human Development Report? This snapshot analyzes of how USAID-assisted countries fared in the latest Human Development Index, Gender Development Index, Gender Empowerment Index, and Human Poverty Index. The UN Development Program (UNDP) publishes the Human Development Report every year, updating country scores for these widely covered indices with the latest available data on aspects of personal and national development. Though the majority of the top scores in the latest report belong to LAC and E&E countries, Africa has demonstrated marked improvements.

• 2009 Reports

  Long Term Education Trends, 1997-2007 (No. 10, December 2009) - PDF

  This snapshot highlights developing countries that have demonstrated improvements in the education sector from 1970 to 2007. The six indicators included seek to create a comprehensive picture of improvements in access, achievement, and equality of a country's education system. In addition to highlighting top performers, the snapshot compares progress in improving education between developed and developing countries.

  Global Employment and Wages (No. 9, December 2009) - PDF

  According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), global unemployment is expected to increase by over 50 million from 2007 to 2009 mainly due to the impacts of the financial crisis. While the financial crisis originated in developed countries, developing country labor markets, particularly in export-oriented industries, have suffered major losses. In addition to rising unemployment, the ILO reports that global real wage growth has declined in 2008 and is expected to deteriorate further in 2009.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 8, October 2009) - PDF

  The World Economic Outlook (WEO) is a semi-annual report put out by the IMF in conjunction with the IMF/World Bank meetings. It draws on information primarily gathered by IMF staff and presents economic analyses and projections at the global and country levels. This snapshot presents a brief overview of the October 2009 report's GDP growth projections in the context of a global economy that has recently returned to expansion from a deep recession. In addition, it presents regional overviews of economic growth leaders and laggards, international trade growth, private capital flows, and price trends of key commodities.

  Global Competitiveness Index 2009-2010 (No. 7, September 2009) - PDF

  The average regional Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) scores from the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010 reflect small negative impacts on long-term competitiveness as a result of recent external shocks related to the financial crisis. Unlike in previous global crises, Latin America and Caribbean countries have demonstrated resilience to negative external shocks. Europe and Eurasia and Africa lost some gains in competitiveness from the 2007-2008 Report; however, their overall scores still remain higher than two years ago. On the other hand, the Middle East and North Africa and Asia regional averages have declined slightly over the past two years. The authors of the GCI 2009-2010 Report suggest that despite the immediate negative impacts of the financial crisis on competitiveness, there may be positive long-term impacts resulting from reforms and new strategies motivated by the crisis.

  Doing Business 2010 (No. 6, September 2009) - PDF

  This EADS snapshot covers the World Bank's latest Doing Business report measuring the business climate in nearly two hundred countries. The Doing Business report identifies the top ten reforming countries over the past year and USAID provided assistance to reforms in eight of them: Rwanda, Kyrgyz Republic, Macedonia, Moldova, Colombia, Tajikistan, Egypt, and Liberia.

  World Bank Country Categories (No. 5, July 2009) - PDF

  The World Bank annually updates its income groupings and lending categories for all economies with populations of more than 30,000. The income groups and operational lending categories are established based on a view that poorer countries should receive softer conditions on loans from the Bank. In the 2009 update, 14 countries moved up an income group and one country shifted downward to reflect changes in national incomes from 2007 to 2008.

  Trade Capacity Building (No. 4, July 2009) - PDF

  2008 saw a sharp rise in trade capacity building funding, due in large part to the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

  U.S. Economic Assistance (No. 3, May 2009) - PDF

  This snapshot presents 2007 highlights from the USAID Foreign Assistance Database (FADB) on U.S. economic assistance. In 2007 the United States remained the largest bilateral donor with $28.9 billion of economic assistance, a $2 billion increase from 2006 and a 50% increase from five years ago.

  World Economic Outlook (No. 2, May 2009) - PDF

  This snapshot presents a brief overview of projections from the IMF's semi-annual World Economic Outlook for GDP growth by USAID region, economic growth leaders and laggards, international trade growth, private capital flows, and price trends of key commodities. Emerging and developing economies are expected to post a meager, but positive, growth rate of 1.6 percent in 2009. By contrast, the world economy in 2009 is expected to contract by 1.3 percent.

  Heritage Foundation 2009 Index of Economic Freedom (No. 1, May 2009) - PDF

  Since 1995 The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation have compiled the Index of Economic Freedom which can be used to track developing countries' progress, or lack thereof, in making their societies more economically free. This snapshot looks at the 2009 Index of Economic Freedom scores for 129 developing countries, their progress over the past two years, and total USAID assistance for fiscal year 2007.