In The News

Mohammed A. R. Galadari May 25, 2004
This year’s G8 summit, held in The United States, may be punctuated, for the first time, by the conspicuous presence of leaders of Arab states. This is a departure from the last meeting of world powers, held in France in 2003, which featured discussions that did not directly involve the Middle East and included little input from the Arab community – only Egyptian and Saudi Arabian delegations...
Edward L. Morse May 25, 2004
The ever-swelling prices for crude oil worldwide have many consumers and governments concerned. The authors of this article – a former US energy official and an oil adviser to Saudi Arabia – attribute the problems to ineffective policies pursued by the United States and Saudi Arabia over the past year. According to them, the initial catalyst for these policy decisions was the 2003-2003 Venezuelan...
Chen Shui-Bian May 20, 2004
Newly-reelected Taiwanese President Chen Shui-Bian delivered an inaugural address this week titled, "Paving the Way for a Sustainable Taiwan." In the speech, Chen assessed the progress of Taiwan's democratization. He said, "Democratic advancement occurs only through constant and gradual endeavor, one step at a time." Chen described Taiwan's new electoral processes,...
Syed Jamaluddin May 18, 2004
A host of factors, including the continent-wide financial, industrial, and political difficulties since the end of the colonial age have reduced economic performance in Africa to often pitiable levels. Despite starting “from behind” and the current obstacles to economic growth, this editorial highlights progress Africa has made, and the future development that can be speeded up by proper...
S. Nihal Singh May 17, 2004
India's surprise election results from last week have left everyone struggling to understand how the powerful BJP could lose so decisively in a time of economic prosperity. The answer, suggests S. Nihal Singh, a former editor of the Statesman of Calcutta and the Indian Express, lies in the unequal distribution of India's growth. Though the globalization of India's technological...
Tash Shifrin May 13, 2004
The growers of one of the world’s most globalized farm produce –coffee --may benefit from the worldwide concern about their plight. The UK based international development and aid agency, Oxfam and a private coffee company have launched a joint-venture: a chain of fair trade coffee shops named the Progreso Café. Fair trade coffee is the fast growing coffee sector in United Kingdom and provides...
Sanjeev Srivastava May 10, 2004
Global interest in Indian economic and cultural practices is swelling rapidly, from the labor outsourcing debate to Bollywood film exports. In the United States, India is a topic for newspaper front pages, Indian corporations are traded on the New York Stock Exchange and audiences gather for the country’s art. Delhi is creating regional alliances with China and Pakistan, and all systems are go...