In The News

Baffled by Brazil

Ricardo Hausmann August 14, 2002
Emerging markets such as Brazil and Uruguay need stability in order to sustain growth. The goal behind IMF and US foreign aid should thus be to provide stability. However, Paul O’Neill (US Treasury Secretary), the IMF, and US foreign aid serve more to hurt than to help economic stability, argues Harvard Government Professor Ricardo Hausmann. In order to protect emerging markets when financial...

Brazil Relief Rests on Hopefuls' IMF Stances

Raymond Colitt August 14, 2002
After the 1998 Russian financial crisis and Argentina's economic collapse, the International Monetary Fund's latest target for support is Brazil’s struggling economy, lending that country 30 billion US dollars last week. This seemed like good news for Brazil which hoped that the IMF loan would attract international investment. However, despite the IMF's support, international...

Japan will not slash aid budget for East Asia

Kwan Weng Kin August 13, 2002
As the largest provider of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to East Asia, Japan plays a crucial role in maintaining regional economic stability. However, domestic concerns over Japan’s declining fiscal health have left others anxious about its role as a benefactor to China’s growing prosperity . Some feel that Japan is financing China’s economic growth. Nevertheless, recognizing East Asia as...

Easing Its Stance, U.S. Offers Loans to Uruguay

Richard A. Oppel, Jr. August 5, 2002
Although the Bush administration has been reluctant to give aid to Latin American countries in financial crisis, it recently agreed to bail out Uruguay, a country with a traditionally stable economy. Uruguay has been hit particularly hard by the ripple effects of Argentina and Brazil’s economic crashes. On those countries’ problems, Washington has been ambiguous, and Treasury Secretary Paul O’...

RI's 'Madrasah' Producing Techno-illiterates

Mochtar Buchori July 3, 2002
Mochtar Buchori contrasts the difference between political and cultural madrasas. The political madrasas, which are found mainly in Pakistan and Afghanistan, teach Islamic fundamentalism. However, the cultural madrasas, found in Indonesia with some supported by the government, teach respect for Islam along with a liberal education. Buchori argues that the challenge for Indonesia is to increase...

U.S. Defends Its Farm Subsidies Against Rising Foreign Criticism

Elizabeth Becker June 27, 2002
Thanks to record high US farm subsidies, American farmers can produce cheap crops that drive drown prices in foreign markets. Even though the US maintains that its farm subsidies are within WTO limits, countries around the world believe that the subsidies are contributing to the underdevelopment of agriculture-dependent African and Latin American economies. The US contends that it is trade...

Globalization Narrows Gender Gap: World Bank

June 13, 2002
Andrew Mason, an economist with the World Bank, has found that globalization not only reduces poverty and raises income but also helps narrow gender inequalities in education, nutrition, and health. However, he cautions, governments need to continue their efforts to reduce inequalities. Although export promotion has created millions of new jobs for women "at wages higher than in traditional...