In The News

Rethinking Foreign Aid

Paul Farmer December 25, 2013
Aid is in desperate need, and distribution could be more efficient to produce sustainable results. Writing for Foreign Affairs, Paul Farmer, professor at Harvard University, points out that “80 percent of aid from major bilateral and multilateral donors to fragile countries still bypasses the systems of local public institutions” but improving lives depends on long-term improvements to public...

Global Experts Still Need Local Knowledge

Pranab Bardhan December 12, 2013
Many professions have gone global, as leading researchers hunt for global patterns, develop global indices and make global pronouncements. Economist Pranab Bardhan analyzes this trend in the field of economic development, and points out, “With the advance of such ‘global practices’ what gets short shrift is the old-fashioned in-depth study into the historical-institutional contexts of particular...

The Philippines’ Tough Rebuilding Task

Pacific Strategies and Assessments December 9, 2013
Disaster relief and reconstruction offers especially tough challenges for developing nations like the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan. Displacement adds to immediate shelter, health, sanitation and economic problems, and that is a first priority. “The reconstruction and rehabilitation process, however, will also include rebuilding damaged infrastructures, restoring power and water supply, and...

China and the US Court Africa

Raluca Besliu August 1, 2013
Within two weeks of assuming power, China’s President Xi Jinping, visited Africa. US President Barack Obama’s recent visit, widely seen as an attempt to counter China’s growing influence on the continent. Many speculate on which power will prevail in what could be described as an African version of the Great Game. During his visit, Obama said that US investment would support local economies, not...

In Africa, Obama Hot on Xi’s Trail

Zachary Keck July 9, 2013
As US President Barack Obama embarked on his first trip to Africa as president, the specter of China loomed large. The trip, which took the president to Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania, was officially described as reinforcing “the importance that the United States places on our deep and growing ties with countries in sub-Saharan Africa.” However, the struggle for influence between the US and...

The Rise of the Global Middle Class

Linda Yueh July 2, 2013
Describing the shift as historic, the United Nations reports that the global middle class in China, India and Brazil will have propelled their countries’ economies to account for nearly half of world output by 2050. Defined by the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development as people who earn or spend between $10 and $100 per day, the global middle class is set to grow exponentially in...

Why India Trails China

Amartya Sen June 20, 2013
India as a democracy has made great strides in education, poverty reduction and economic reform, but the country, destined to the world’s most populous, still lags behind China. “The far greater gap between India and China is in the provision of essential public services — a failing that depresses living standards and is a persistent drag on growth,” writes Amartya Sen in an opinion essay for the...