Rolling RAMSI forward: some ideas from the literature

Abstract

A key challenge for the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) is accelerating the rate of growth of the economy. For this to happen, various economic reforms need to be implemented. While some of these are in train, many remain within the long and sometimes windy pipelines of the bureaucracy. Here we draw lessons from the extant literature on aid, economic growth and the political economy of reform. We also consider the need for the ‘deep-rooting’ of independent institutions that can mediate between vested interests as part of the reform process so as to ensure its sustainability. These lessons could be particularly pertinent given new administrations in Solomon Islands and Australia, who are keen for new ideas to accelerate the pace of development. Among our recommendations are the support of institutional structures that help build constituencies for reform and more effective types of assistance that are non-financial but which generate real economic benefits