CFR Presents

Development Channel

Issues and innovations in global economic development

Emerging Voices: Richard Dowden on World Bank and IMF Involvement in Africa

by Development Channel Staff Monday, October 29, 2012
China's President Hu Jintao and Rwanda's President Paul Kagame (R) view an honor guard during a welcome ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14, 2007 (Jason Lee/Courtesy Reuters). China's President Hu Jintao and Rwanda's President Paul Kagame (R) view an honor guard during a welcome ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14, 2007 (Jason Lee/Courtesy Reuters).

Emerging Voices features regular contributions from scholars and practitioners highlighting new research, thinking, and approaches to development challenges. This article is from Richard Dowden, the director of the Royal African Society and author of Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles. Here, he discusses the work of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Africa–and how history will evaluate their role.

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Democracy in Development: Food Insecurity and the Future of the Sahel

by Isobel Coleman Friday, October 26, 2012
Women wait to load their cart with bags of rice and bottles of cooking oil at a food distribution center run by the Spanish Non-Governmental Organization Accion contra el Hambre (Action against Hunger) in Tarenguel, Gorgol region, in Mauritania on May 30, 2012 (Susana Vera/Courtesy Reuters). Women wait to load their cart with bags of rice and bottles of cooking oil at a food distribution center run by the Spanish Non-Governmental Organization Accion contra el Hambre (Action against Hunger) in Tarenguel, Gorgol region, in Mauritania on May 30, 2012 (Susana Vera/Courtesy Reuters).

Yesterday on my blog, I discussed the current outlook for food security in the Sahel. While a large humanitarian response and welcome rainfall have averted an immediate crisis, the region continues to face underlying problems ranging from unreliable weather to the conflict in Mali. As I conclude: Read more »

New From CFR: Foreign Affairs on the Fate of the BRICs

by Development Channel Staff Thursday, October 25, 2012
Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Chinese President Hu Jintao, and South African President Jacob Zuma join their hands together during a group photo for the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, India, March 29, 2012 (B Mathur/Courtesy Reuters). Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Chinese President Hu Jintao, and South African President Jacob Zuma join their hands together during a group photo for the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, India, March 29, 2012 (B Mathur/Courtesy Reuters).

In an article in the November/December issue of Foreign Affairs, Ruchir Sharma of Morgan Stanley Investment Management punctures the notion that the BRICs–and emerging markets more broadly–are set for an inexorable economic rise. Instead, he argues, they are entering an era of variable growth in line with historical norms. As he writes: Read more »

Holding Countries Accountable for Social and Economic Rights

by Terra Lawson-Remer Monday, October 22, 2012
Boys look out of a window on bus as they return from school in Colombo, Sri Lanka on October 4, 2009 (Carlos Barria/Courtesy Reuters). Boys look out of a window on bus as they return from school in Colombo, Sri Lanka on October 4, 2009 (Carlos Barria/Courtesy Reuters).

Last week I introduced the SERF Index, a new measurement tool my colleagues Susan Randolph, Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, and I have built to evaluate social and economic rights fulfillment. The new index sheds important light on the issues facing the Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council, where Argentina, Gabon, Ghana, Peru, Guatemala, Benin, the Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Pakistan, Zambia, Japan, Ukraine, and Sri Lanka will be evaluated on their human rights practices under applicable international human rights conventions from October 22 to November 5. This year’s session will be the fourteenth meeting of the Universal Periodic Review since its first session in March 2006. Read more »

New From CFR: John Campbell on the Ibrahim Index and Prize

by Development Channel Staff Friday, October 19, 2012
Mohamed Ibrahim, Chairman of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, participates in a panel discussion titled "Democracy and Voice: Technology For Citizen Empowerment and Human Rights," at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, September 23, 2010 (Chip East/Courtesy Reuters). Mohamed Ibrahim, Chairman of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, participates in a panel discussion titled "Democracy and Voice: Technology For Citizen Empowerment and Human Rights," at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, September 23, 2010 (Chip East/Courtesy Reuters).

On his blog this week, CFR senior fellow John Campbell discussed the 2012 Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership and the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG), both issued by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. Campbell first notes that the foundation failed to find a suitable recipient for the prize for the third time in the past four years. He then analyzes the rankings of the index, explaining that Read more »

Question of the Week: The Millennium Development Goals Part II

by Development Channel Staff Thursday, October 18, 2012
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon speaks during a closing ceremony of the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development summit in Rio de Janeiro on June 22, 2012 (Ueslei Marcelino/Courtesy Reuters). UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon speaks during a closing ceremony of the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development Summit in Rio de Janeiro on June 22, 2012 (Ueslei Marcelino/Courtesy Reuters).

How should the next set of global development goals be chosen?

Question of the Week posts review important questions and controversies in global development by providing background information and links to a full spectrum of analysis and opinion. Today’s post explores the process to determine what will replace the Millennium Development Goals after 2015.

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New From CFR: Shannon O’Neil on Latin America’s Economies

by Development Channel Staff Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Employees work on the assembly line on the Jetta Bicentennial at the Volkswagen (VW) automobile manufacturing factory in Puebla, Mexico, August 12, 2010 (Courtesy Reuters). Employees work on the assembly line on the Jetta Bicentennial at the Volkswagen (VW) automobile manufacturing factory in Puebla, Mexico, August 12, 2010 (Courtesy Reuters).

On her blog yesterday, CFR senior fellow Shannon O’Neil analyzed the changing dynamics of some of Latin America’s leading economies by examining the components of their exports over time. As she explains about Mexico: Read more »

Democracy in Development: Improving Women’s Economic Potential

by Isobel Coleman Wednesday, October 17, 2012
A Kashmiri farmer winnows paddy during harvesting season in Bhatpora on the outskirts of Srinagar, India, October 9, 2012 (Fayaz Kabli/Courtesy Reuters). A Kashmiri farmer winnows paddy during harvesting season in Bhatpora on the outskirts of Srinagar, India, October 9, 2012 (Fayaz Kabli/Courtesy Reuters).

Yesterday on my blog, I discussed the challenge of identifying the most effective ways to overcome obstacles to women’s economic potential. This was the subject of a meeting of the ExxonMobil roundtable series last week at the Council on Foreign Relations. As I write: Read more »

How Well Do Countries Fulfill Economic and Social Rights?

by Terra Lawson-Remer Monday, October 15, 2012
Children stand on garbage as they scavenge at a public dump in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea on January 28, 2012 (Luc Gnago/Courtesy Reuters). Children stand on garbage as they scavenge at a public dump in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea on January 28, 2012 (Luc Gnago/Courtesy Reuters).

The UN Human Rights Council will hold its 14th Universal Periodic Review this month to evaluate human rights practices in fourteen member states from across the globe.

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Emerging Voices: Nicole Tosh on Empowering Girls Through Cash Transfers

by Development Channel Staff Friday, October 12, 2012
Malian refugee children attend a school in the Mbera refugee camp, about 40 km (25 miles) from the border with Mali on May 24, 2012 (Joe Penney/Courtesy Reuters). Malian refugee children attend a school in the Mbera refugee camp, about 40 km (25 miles) from the border with Mali on May 24, 2012 (Joe Penney/Courtesy Reuters).

Emerging Voices features regular contributions from scholars and practitioners highlighting new research, thinking, and approaches to development challenges. This article is from Nicole Tosh, a program associate with the Global Assets Project at the New America Foundation. She discusses how cash transfers can empower girls living in poverty and the technological innovations that stand to facilitate cash transfers.

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