Assesses Uganda's urgent social problems þ lack of education, poor health, and high population growth þ and means for alleviating them. This study concludes that if Uganda's social conditions - among the world's worst - are to improve, social spending must be both increased and better allocated. Three areas are considered critical. * Education: Although the great majority of children enter primary school, by secondary school enrollment drops to only 13 percent overall and to 7 percent for girls. This dropout rate is largely attributed to high fees and poor learning conditions. The study recommends expanding access to primary education by restructuring government expenditure and private spending. * Health: Uganda's infant mortality is 70 percent higher than the average among low- income countries and its death rate is double the average. Because the leading causes of illness and death are preventable þ albeit sometimes with great difficulty þ the study recommends that health policy be reoriented toward public health and prevention. * Family planning Given that up to 70 percent of women have a favorable attitude toward family planning, the study recommends that the urgent problem of high fertility be immediately addressed by making family planning services widely available. The report stresses that government policies should take into account the interrelationships among social problems þ for example, the correlation of low female education to high fertility, infant mortality, and child malnutrition.

This overview includes chapters on child mortality, adult mortality, fertility, proximate determinants, marriage, internal migration, international migration, and the demographic impact of AIDS.

Examines the economic problems that arise when governments own and operate enterprises that could be managed by the private sector. Despite more than a decade of divestiture, state-owned enterprises account for nearly as large a share of developing countries' economies today as twenty years ago. This report examines the economic problems that arise when governments own and operate enterprises that could be managed by the private sector. It finds that such enterprises are often inefficient and shows how the resulting losses to the economy hinder growth, making it harder for people to escape poverty. Why have reforms had such little impact? In an innovative study of the political economy of state enterprise reform, the report describes common obstacles to reform and describes ways that some countries have overcome them. Drawing on a rich database and detailed country case studies, the report provides the most comprehensive assessment yet of a decade of divestiture and reform of state-owned enterprises. It evaluates the experiences of 12 countries: some of these countries reformed successfully and some did not, but all tried to improve the incentive structure by changing the contract between the government and state- owned firms. The report offers guidance for successful reform and suggests ways that foreign assistance can more effectively support reform efforts. The countries covered in the case studies are Chile, China, Czech Republic, Egypt, Ghana, India, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Philippines, Poland, Senegal, and Turkey. Published for the World Bank by Oxford University Press

The technologies of information and communications and their application are becoming central issues for all governments trying to achieve long-run growth and international competitiveness. This country study provides a comprehensive analysis of the role of informatics in economic development and examines Turkey's efforts to develop its capacity in those areas. During the 1980s, Turkey laid the foundation for its transition to an information-based economy by liberalizing finance and investment regulations and by reducing barriers to competition. Tariffs on computer equipment were slashed, and the government embarked on a program of investment in the communications system. Investors responded, particularly in the finance and travel sectors and in select operations of large corporations. But the largest consumer of these technologies is still the Turkish government. And gains in productivity expected from modernization have not yet been widely evident. This study says that the most effective policy to promote an information-based economy is a commitment to open competitive markets. The major factor in that commitment is building up an educated workforce. Although Turkey's performance in this area is better than most developing countries', this report contends it needs to do more to meet its goal of full participation in the new era of informatics. The study contains cross-country comparative data throughout the book and in annexes.