Essays on Development Policy and the Political Economy of Conflict

Electoral Rules and Leader Selection: Experimental Evidence from Ugandan Community Groups. Despite a large body of work documenting how electoral systems affect policy outcomes, less is known about their impact on leader selection. We study this by comparing two types of participatory decision making in Ugandan community groups: (i) vote by secret ballot and (ii) open discussion with consensus. Random assignment allows us to estimate the causal impact of the rules on leader types and social service delivery. Vote groups are found to elect leaders more similar to the average member while discussion group leaders are positively selected on socio-economic characteristics. Further, dropout rates are significantly higher in discussion groups, particularly for poorer members. After 3.5 years, vote groups are larger in size and their members save less and get smaller loans. We conclude that the secret ballot vote creates more inclusive groups while open discussion groups favor the already economically successful. Preparing for Genocide: Community Meetings in Rwanda. How do political elites prepare the civilian population for participation in violent conflict? We empirically investigate this question using data from the Rwandan Genocide in 1994. Every Saturday before 1994, Rwandan villagers had to meet to work on community infrastructure. The practice was highly politicized and, according to anecdotal evidence, regularly used by the political elites for spreading propaganda in the years before the genocide. This paper presents the first quantitative evidence of this abuse of the community meetings. To establish causality, we exploit cross-sectional variation in meeting intensity induced by exogenous weather fluctuations. We find that an additional rainy Saturday resulted in a five percent lower civilian participation rate in genocide violence. Selection into Borrowing: Survey Evidence from Uganda. In this paper, I study how changes to the standard credit contract affect loan demand and selection into borrowing, using a representative sample of urban micro enterprises, most with no borrowing experience. Hypothetical loan demand questions are used to test whether firm owners respond to changes in loans' contractual terms and whether take-up varies by firms' risk type and other firm owner characteristics. The results indicate that contracts with lower interest rates and less stringent collateral requirements attract less risky borrowers, suggesting that there is scope for improvement of standard financial contract terms. Credit Contract Structure and Firm Growth: Evidence from a Randomized Control Trial. We study the effects of credit contract structure on firm outcomes among small and medium sized firms. A randomized control trial was carried out to distinguish between some of the key constraints to efficient credit use connected to the firms' business environment and production function, namely (i) backloaded returns (ii) uncertain returns and (iii) indivisible fixed costs. Each firm was followed for the 1-year loan cycle. We describe the experiment and present preliminary results from the first 754 out of 2,340 firms to have completed the loan cycle. Firms offered a grace period have higher profits and higher household income than firms receiving a rebate later on as well as the control group. They also increased the number of paid employees  and reduced the number of unpaid employees, an effect also found among firms that received a cash subsidy at the beginning of the loan cycle. We discuss potential mechanisms behind these effects.

A comparative study of HR practices in Britain and India

This paper traces the major developments in the field of human resource management briefly and then highlights the need for more cross-national HRM studies. The results from two parallel surveys of matched Indian and British organizations are presented. The main aim of the surveys was to examine a wide range of HRM policies and practices in a cross-national comparative context. The surveys were run in six industries in the manufacturing sector. The study controlled for a number of variables such as size of the organization, product, industry sector and personnel participation. Influence of a number of contingent variables (such as age, size, nature and life-cycle stage of the organization, presence of unions and human resource strategies) on HRM policies and practices is analysed. The study finds significant differences in recruitment, compensation, training and development and employee communication practices between India and Britain.

Classically Cuban Concert "Recordando a Lecuona/Remembering Lecuona"

This flyer promotes the event "Classically Cuban Concert "Recordando a Lecuona/Remembering Lecuona" ", cosponsored by the Latin American and Caribbean Center at FlU, Islas canarias Café and Pro Translating.

Guantánamo and Cuban Nationalism, Lecture by Michael E. Parmly

This flyer promotes the event "Guantánamo and Cuban Nationalism, Lecture by Michael E. Parmly", cosponsored by the FlU Latin American and Caribbean Center.

Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the Voyage of the MS St. Louis: Lecture and Panel Discussion

This flyer promotes the event "Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the Voyage of the MS St. Louis: Lecture and Panel Discussion" cosponsored by the Cuban Research Institute and the Ruth K. and Shephard Broad Distinguished Lecture Series.

¡Oh Cuba Hermosa! El cancionero político social en Cuba hasta 1958, Book presentation by Cristóbal Díaz Ayala

This flyer promotes the event " ¡Oh Cuba Hermosa! El cancionero político social en Cuba hasta 1958, Book presentation by Cristóbal Díaz Ayala" cosponsored by FIU Libraries. This event was held at Books & Books in Coral Gables.

Cuba in Splinters: Eleven Stories from the New Cuba, Book Presentation by Editor Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo

This flyer promotes the event "Cuba in Splinters: Eleven Stories from the New Cuba, Book Presentation by Editor Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo" held at Books & Books in Coral Gables.

Latin Artist Panel Discussion

This flyer promotes the event "Latin Artist Panel Discussion" hosted by the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum.

The Public Health of Cubans and Cuban Americans: A Symposium [Program]

This is the program for "The Public Health of Cubans and Cuban Americans: A Symposium".

The Public Health of Cubans and Cuban Americans: A Symposium

The flyer promotes the event"The Public Health of Cubans and Cuban Americans: A Symposium" cosponsored by the FlU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, the Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work, the Latin American and Caribbean Center, and the Center for Research on U.S. Latino HIV/AIDS and Drug Abuse (CRUSADA) and part of the CRI/LACC Cuba and the Professions Lecture Series.

Peregrinar sin ausentarse: Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda y Gastón Baquero, un puente perdurable entre Cuba y España [Program]

This is the program for the event "Peregrinar sin ausentarse: Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda y Gastón Baquero, un puente perdurable entre Cuba y España".