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This section of the GDN-NA Web site will provide users with regularly-updated information on topics important to the substantive work and professional experience of development scholars and practitioners, including information about the Global Development Network and its North American hub.
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| Title | Date |
|---|---|
| Local Institutions Inhibit Knowledge Flows -- 2003 Arab Development Report | January 26, 2004 |
| The Arab world possesses a wide range of human and natural resources, as well as a strategic location between Europe and Asia. However, since the 1960s, a wide variety of development indicators in this region's countries have stagnated or declined: With such positive attributes, why has development in the Arab world lagged? The UN Development Program has engaged Arab researchers to prepare a series of four annual reports addressing causes and correctives for this. The 2003 report, second in the series, illustrates how in the face of globalization, Arab governments have enacted policies to limit the flow of knowledge in areas such as education, the media, cultural activity, as well as research and development. For Arab countries to overcome their development gap, the report's authors call for local governments to promote expanded and intensified connections between the Arab world and other regions. | |
| IDB's Social Development Institute Offers Capacity-Building Course for Social-Sector Leaders | January 26, 2004 |
| The Interamerican Development Bank's Social Development Institute will hold a six-day course on "Leadership and Social Management" in Washington, 24-29 May. The course aims to provide a framework for decision-making and strategic planning to managers from the public sector; from civil-society organizations; and from educational institutions. The Institute has funding available for nationals of "Group D" countries, as specified by the IDB. | |
| Ford Foundation Sponsors Inter-American Studies Fellowships at Mexico's ITAM | January 22, 2004 |
| The Center for Inter-American Studies and Programs (CEPI), with the support of the Ford Foundation, invites applications by professionals from diverse disciplines and sectors to participate in its Resident Fellowship program, based at the Instituto Tecnolăgico Autănomo de M©xico (ITAM), located in Mexico City. CEPI works to provide a space for discussion and specialized research on inter-American issues, in order to stimulate greater understanding and interest in this area. Each year, CEPI offera a limited number of Resident Fellowships to nationals of any country from the academy, public sector, diplomacy, intergovernmental organizations, and civil-society organizations, including media outlets. The duration of the Resident Fellowships will range from three to nine months. Only in exceptional cases will CEPI offer residencies of less than three months or more than nine months. | |
| Aid Not Always a Boon to Developing Markets -- "Monitor" | January 8, 2004 |
| During a recent cooking-oil shortage in Ethiopia, the Christian Science Monitor reports that foreign donors tripled imports, reducing market prices by 40 percent. If this sounds like a success story, consider that aid agencies' warnings of a shortage may have exaggerated the situation: Increased imports smothered demand for the production from a local firm that had supplied consumers' needs, provided 180 jobs, generated investment capital, and reduced Ethiopians' dependence on imports for food staples. Even as this "aid decision" harmed its intended beneficiaries, the surge in cooking-oil exports allowed devloped-country farmers to make a profit, even though they had produced in excess of projected demand. This story adds more detail to the "aid effectiveness" debate, which rejects the characterization of all foreign assistance as good in itself, and searches for the conditions and mechanisms, generally highly market-driven, that translate resource commitments into higher standards of living. A working paper by CGD Fellow Bill Easterly -- which also appeared in the journal Foreign Policy -- has refocused scholars' and policymakers' attention on the question of aid effectiveness. | |
| New Managers Training at Business-Funded University in South Africa | January 8, 2004 |
| Despite the essential role of education in improving life prospects, access to learning remains a challenge, both in higher-income and lower-income societies. Since 1999, however, South African businesspeople have built a university offering virtually free commercial training to students from the country's poorest communities. A recent story from the Christian Science Monitor details the progress and prospects of CIDA University. | |
| CIGI to Award Fellowships in International Governance | November 5, 2003 |
| As a result of a partnership with the University of Waterloo and the Institute on Governance (Ottawa), the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) invited applications for four one-year fellowships in international governance, with particular interest in international economics and multilateral governance. Applications for research fellowships are welcome from recent recipients of the Ph.D. or equivalent degrees, university faculty members, and employees of government, international, humanitarian, and private research institutions that have appropriate professional experience. | |
| Convergence among Countries or Individuals? Fischer Lecture Sparks Controversy | October 28, 2003 |
| Economics teaches that individuals invest factors of production -- whether capital or labor -- in the place where they yield the highest marginal return. Generally speaking, these attractive rates of return occur where high levels of demand exist for the input in question. In the long run, disparities in the factors of production become less pronounced, and differences in per-capita income become narrower. Much of development economics proceeds from this "convergence hypothesis." Despite the constantly accelerating pace of global finance and commerce in recent years, scholars have found little empirical evidence to suggest that convergence has occurred since the end of World War II: But have scholars simply looked for convergence in the wrong places? A column in The Economist -- commenting on a lecture by former IMF director Stanley Fischer -- recently elicited a sharp exchange of views on this topic between a well-known American scholar and The Economist's deputy editor. | |
| Researcher Makes Opening Inquiry into Global Finance Networks Supporting Terror | October 3, 2003 |
| In a newly-published study, Loretta Napoleoni combines extensive field research with economic theory to trace the ways terrorist organizations use formal and informal financial systems in support of their missions, and to suggest policy responses to disrupt terrorist finance networks. | |
| Which Monetary Policy Hedges Best against Crisis? Important Roles for "Sterilzed Intervention," Institutions -- The Economist | September 11, 2003 |
| Supporters of libertarian governing philosophies have exerted considerable influence on national policies by advocating the efficiency of floating exchange rates in international currency markets. The current mainstream of economic thinking harbors serious concerns about mechanisms like pegged rates and currency boards, particularly in developing economies. Nevertheless, The Economist has recently reported on research emphasizing the benefits available to such economies from a disciplined policy of managed intervention and building credible information-sharing institutions, respectively. | |
| UNECA, The Economist Regard Growth in "Lion Cubs" Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda with Guarded Optimism | August 28, 2003 |
| Though economic growth continues to lag when measured over the entire sub-Saharan region, some Arfican countires have turned-in strong performances in recent years, according to data compiled for the UN Economic Commission for Africa's 2003 report and featured recently in The Economist. Why have some African economies grown steadily, and what kinds of challenges complicate the long-term picture for strong performers like Mozambique, Rwanda, and Uganda? | |
| Discussion Lists Focus Attention on Disability in Development | July 21, 2003 |
| As many as 15 to 20 percent of poor people living in poverty in developing countries have some kind of a disability. This population often makes up the poorest of the poor. People in this group have among the worst access in the world to an education, job-training opportunities, employment opportunities, political participation, and general community life. Nevertheless, many mainstream international development programs consistently exclude this population. Two mailing lists have become available to help users learn more about issues affecting people with disabilities in developing nations, and to promote knowledge sharing and cooperation among professionals working on these issues. | |
| UN Small-Arms Conference Links Firearm Violence to Lagging Development | July 11, 2003 |
| Representatives of member states convened at UN Headquarters for the first Biennial Meeting on Small Arms, where they shared initial progress reports on the global plan agreed in 2001 to restrict illicit trade in firearms. Two civil-society organizations timed the release of reports they prepared to coincide with the conference; both emphasize that the proliferation and misuse of small arms poses a major obstacle to development around the world. The third annual Small Arms Survey, subtitled "Development Denied," comes from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva: Authors detail the small-arms problem's "direct burden resulting from threat to life, combined with the indirect burden of protection and avoidance, constitute a tax on the standard of living of communities." In their report, titled "Putting People First," analysts at the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue emphasize the "humanitarian toll from armed violence," complicating "health, humanitarian, human rights, development, and disarmament" efforts. An article from the UN Foundation's wire service contains additional coverage of the conference, and links to other materials. | |
| Edited Volume Explores Role of Institutions in Development of Americas | July 9, 2003 |
| How much does a country's socioeconomic development depend on the progress of democratic and civil-society institutions in that country? In a collection of essays published recently by the Inter-American Development Bank, authors contend that in some countries, poorly-functioning political institutions limit the effectiveness of technically sound economic policies. Adding their perspectives on Latin America's experience to a growing literature, the contributors to "Democracy in Deficit: Governance and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean" find that relatively low standards of living result more from shortcomings in the region's civic institutions processes than from poor economic management. "Democracy in Deficit" also includes chapters on institutional reform by the Brazilian scholar and former minister Luiz Carlos Bresser Pereira and Professor Guillermo O'Donnell of Notre Dame. In a recent working paper on a related note, Bill Easterly of the Center for Global Development finds that societies exhibiting high levels of income inequality tend to lack institutional and educational supports for development. For additional information on this subject, users might also consult the Center for Democracy and Development or the International Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development . | |
| Commonwealth Initiative Funds Travel, Fellowships to Promote Innovation in Development | June 30, 2003 |
| The Commonwealth Science Council has refocused its Travel Grants and Fellowships Program to advance innovation in socioeconomic development through local/indigenous knowledges, with the aim of improving the quality of life of poor people in the Commonwealth. | |
| Netherlands Development Minister Sets Priorities for Governing Coalition | June 27, 2003 |
| In a letter to the Netherlands' House of Representatives, Minister of Development Cooperation Agnes van Ardenne has committed the Government to maintaining official development assistance levels at 0.8 percent of GDP, paying special attention to Africa, and working towards the UN's Millennium Development Goals as the principal strategy toward achieving sustainable poverty reduction. | |
| Revision of Japan's ODA Policies Underway | June 27, 2003 |
| More than a decade after Japan's Cabinet approved a comprehensive policy to guide expenditures on development assistance, a Cabinet subcommittee has begun to revise the ODA Charter. The draft Charter revision addresses issues of policy focus, agency process, political support, and objectives for Japan's aid policy. Announcing the revision, the Cabinet cites four major changes in the policy environment surrounding development assistance. | |
| Aid Study by Alesina & Dollar Cited in "Monitor" Story on Aid Donors' Motivations | June 26, 2003 |
| In recent months, US President George W. Bush has directed greater attention towards outcomes in Africa, and policy analysts have increasingly focused on the effectiveness of development-assistance spending. Against this backdrop, a recent story in "The Christian Science Monitor" asks what motivates foreign-assistance spending: The news analysis turns to a well-known paper in the literature on development economics, which finds that donor states' political interests influence their aid decisions at least as much as recipient states' degree of need or resource efficiency. | |
| Special Meeting of World Economic Forum Tackles Stalemated Conflicts, Slack Economies | June 23, 2003 |
| Organizers of a special meeting of the World Economic Forum just completed in Jordan hope to inaugurate a new period of dialogue and cooperation in the Middle East, and to continue from spurring peacemaking and economic development in this region to enhancing political and economic solutions in similar crises elsewhere. Load the linked page to see a list of agenda items, accompanied by brief introductory descriptions for each session. | |
| Human Security Report Links Development Issues with Conflict | June 13, 2003 |
| A commission of scholars and policymakers convened after the UN's Millennium Summit have completed their inquiry into a new paradigm for analyzing and resolving conflict. "Human Security Now: Protecting and Empowering People" highlights the connections between the prevalence of violent conflict in a society, and the threats experienced by the most marginalized people in that society. This report by the Commission on Human Security analyzes the potentially destabilizing effects of migration, weak governing institutions, corrupt and stagnant economies, poor public health, and underinvestment in health care and acquisition of skills. | |
| OAS Calls for Training Programs to Support with Travel Grants | June 7, 2003 |
| Each year, the Department of Scholarships and Training at the Organization of American States provides a limited number of grants to ducational institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. These grants cover travel expenses for students in the region who enroll in the courses. The OAS has requested proposals from educational institutions interested in securing such grants. | |
| SmartGirl Technologies Offers Workshops on Demographic Analysis | April 18, 2003 |
| The Local Area Demographic Analysis (LADA) Workshop -- offered in several US cities through the year -- provides the skills required to retreive and analyze US Census data. | |
| RAND Reports on Lessons Learned for International S&T Collaboration | April 10, 2003 |
| PDF file describes the results of an inquiry conducted by RAND for the US President's Office of Science and Technology Policy, seeking insights into improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government-sponsored international collaboration in science and technology. | |
| Getting Research into Practice and Policy | April 10, 2003 |
| The Getting Research into Policy and Practice (GRIPP) website is a resource produced by, and written for researchers in order to maximise the impact of their research on policy. It is believed that through the sharing of experiences and ideas from a range of projects and programmes, researchers will be able to achieve greater utilisation of their own research in the development of policies. The site is funded by UK Department for International Development (DFID), and managed by John Snow International (UK). | |
| USAID Administrator Comments on Millennium Challenge Account | January 9, 2003 |
| Press release and transcript of public comments on Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) by USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios, US Embassy London, 21 October 2002. | |
| Canadian Minister for Int'l. Cooperation Comments on New Policy Report | January 9, 2003 |
| Press release from Canadian International Development Agency, including comments by Minister Whelan. | |