The Overseas Development Institute has coordinated a 10-country study on the effects of the global financial crisis and country level policy responses in Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Cambodia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia. These countries exhibit different levels of openness, aid and remittance dependency, financial integration, economic and trade structures, and institutions and so it is likely that they will be affected differently. Conducted by 40 developed and developing country researchers, this research has examined the main transmission belts (trade, private capital flows, remittances, aid) through which the crisis affects developing countries. It has also examined the growth and development effects and the policy responses so far. While it is still too early to assess the full effects, and there is consensus amongst the country case studies that 2009 will see worse effects than 2008, we find that different countries are affected differently. The slowdown in growth comes after a period of strong growth for developing countries and puts development success stories in danger.

Contributors: Dirk Willem te Velde with Charles Ackah, Olu Ajakaiye, Ernest Aryeetey, Debapriya Bhattacharya, Massimiliano Calì, Tayo Fakiyesi, Amoussouga Gero Fulbert, Hossein Jalilian, Luis Carlos Jemio, Jodie Keane, Jane Kennan, Isabella Massa, Anna  McCord, Mareike Meyn, Manenga Ndulo, Mustafizur Rahman, Ira Setiati, Hadi Soesastro, Sarah Ssewanyana, Milo Vandemoortele and others