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481. A Different Route: Reimagining the idea of prosperity in Asia

Author:
Maria Dolores Bernabe and Erinch Sahan
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Abstract:
Asia is home to some of the world’s fastest growing economies. Yet millions of people remain poor, while a handful gets richer and richer. Asia needs a development model that leaves no one behind: not the workers and farmers, who act as the driving force behind Asia’s growth – and certainly not the women, who take on the lowest paying jobs in the region. This model must also consider constraints, particularly the earth’s finite natural resources which future generations need to survive. It must move away from carbon dependence and must anticipate and plan for the impacts of climate change. These principles together inform inclusive and sustainable development, which Asian governments can use as a roadmap to transform their societies in an era of vanishing resources and staggering inequalities.
Topic:
Development, Energy Policy, Poverty, Natural Resources, and Inequality
Political Geography:
Asia

482. Rebuilding a More Resilient Nepal: Key recommendations for reconstruction and recover

Author:
Ruth Jackson
Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Abstract:
The April 2015 earthquake devastated Nepal, affecting more than eight million people. Nepalis have shown remarkable resilience in the face of the disaster, and six months on people are rebuilding their homes, their lives and their country. Reconstruction provides an opportunity to build back better and create a stronger, more equal country that is more able to cope with crises. However, this opportunity is being missed, leaving Nepal vulnerable to future shocks and disasters. This briefing paper considers the successes and challenges of the response so far, and looks at what must be done to ensure that Nepal recovers in a way which makes it more resilient and more equitable.
Topic:
Development, Disaster Relief, Humanitarian Aid, Natural Disasters, and Reconstruction
Political Geography:
Nepal

483. Ebola, Liberia, and the “Cult of Bankable Projects”

Author:
Shefa Siegel
Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
Carnegie Council
Abstract:
Fragile states are unable to cope with additional shocks like Ebola; without passable roads, electricity, and social solidarity there is no viable way to administer basic medical care or prevent minerals from illegally crossing porous borders, much less suddenly contain a runaway virus. Yet instead of addressing core issues of state failure, development aid continues pushing narrowly focused agendas that have little meaning in places where institutions and infrastructure are broken. Why, in response to the disastrous events we saw unfolding in Liberia, were we not calling for public and private investment in the region to be shifted from one bureaucratic budget line to another?
Topic:
Development, Humanitarian Aid, Infectious Diseases, Health Care Policy, and Ebola

484. Equatorial Guinea Plays a Leading Role in Combating Malaria

Author:
Mark L. Asquino
Publication Date:
09-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Ambassador's Review
Abstract:
In August 2014, I attended a ceremony at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC that celebrated the tenth anniversary of the Bioko Island Malaria Control Project. Those speaking at the event included senior executives from Marathon Oil Corporation, Noble Energy Inc., and Atlantic Methanol Production Company, which are all US petroleum companies that operate in Equatorial Guinea. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President of Equatorial Guinea, also delivered remarks. All of the speakers were enthusiastic about a dynamic project that has had a trans­formative effect on the health of generations of Equatoguineans by reducing the morbidity and mortality of malaria infection. What follows is an overview of the project’s history as well as the commitment to US innovation and a shared audacity to tackle one of human­kind’s most endemic and fatal diseases.
Topic:
Development, Health, Human Welfare, Infectious Diseases, and Health Care Policy
Political Geography:
United States and Equatorial Guinea

485. On US and Haiti Relations: The Ties that Bind

Author:
Pamela A. White
Publication Date:
09-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Ambassador's Review
Abstract:
Haiti is the last country I will serve as a United States diplomat abroad and it was one of the first places I served early in my career. My perspec­tives on US and Haitian relations have ripened over decades of observation and years of first-hand experience. The question I have been asked most is: “Why does the US Government care about Haiti? There are only about 11 million Haitians, the majority are poor, and they don’t even speak English.” And then the same people answer their own question: “Oh, I know, the United States doesn’t want 40,000 boat people landing on its shores—better to keep them in Haiti!”
Topic:
Development, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, and Governance
Political Geography:
Haiti and United States of America

486. ASEAN: Creating the Rules-Based Architecture in Asia

Author:
Nina Hachigan
Publication Date:
09-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Ambassador's Review
Abstract:
In my second week on the job as the second United States Ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), I headed to Naypyidaw, Burma to meet President Obama at the East Asia Summit. There I witnessed one of the many reasons the United States has increased its engagement with ASEAN: ASEAN convenes Asia. In 1967, leaders of five nations formed ASEAN, renouncing the violence that had characterized their relationships and dedicating themselves to furthering the prosperity of the region. Five more countries joined in the intervening decades and now ASEAN’s Member States, with a total population of some 625 million, are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. ASEAN has delivered well on its primary mission: to keep the peace among a group of member states with huge diversity in levels of economic development, political systems, cultures, religions, and size. This foundation of geopolitical stability has allowed the economies in Southeast Asia to take off and lift tens of millions out of poverty. As a whole, ASEAN has enjoyed the third highest growth rate in the world over the past decade.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Human Welfare, Poverty, and Regional Cooperation
Political Geography:
Asia

487. The Belt and Road initiative: connecting China and Central Europe

Author:
Xiao Fang
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Issues: Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs
Institution:
Slovak Foreign Policy Association
Abstract:
China and Central Europe have experienced similar transitions over time and have a constructive role to play in the international system, taking on responsibility for development. Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries is conducted via the “16+1” mechanism, the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st century maritime Silk Road, known as the “Belt and Road initiative.” Central European countries are EU member states and emerging economies. They are located at a geographically strategic juncture and form part of the East Asia–Transatlantic value chain. The 16+1 mechanism is helping China and Central European countries establish high level annual meetings and is encouraging the private sector, business, people-to-people exchanges. The Belt and Road initiative is providing new financing facilities, and a dialogue with the European Commission on investment plans is being launched. Studies and working groups are emerging to help set strategies, build mechanisms, allocate resources and implement policies. This article argues that the Chinese approach, i.e. the 16+1 mechanism and Belt and Road initiative, is platforms paving the way for China–Central Europe cooperation.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Politics, and Geopolitics
Political Geography:
China and Central Europe

488. Blowing from the East

Author:
Agnes Szunomar
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Issues: Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs
Institution:
Slovak Foreign Policy Association
Abstract:
China is increasingly perceived in Central and Eastern Europe as a country which could bring economic success to the countries of the region through the development of trade relations and the growing inflow of Chinese investment. Within the region, Hungary is regarded as occupying a prominent position by Chinese people and the government for several reasons. Chinese relations have historically been good: over the past decade Hungarian governments have committed themselves to developing the relationship. This trend was further confirmed after the global economic crisis of 2008, when Hungary started looking for new opportunities in its recovery from recession. The “Eastern opening” policy was initiated after the crisis and partly because of it. Officially, this policy puts more emphasis on further developing Chinese–Hungarian relations than was previously the case, including increasing trade and investment. However, the outcomes of the policy – such as the construction of the Budapest–Belgrade railway line – can be evaluated in different ways.
Topic:
Development, Economics, International Trade and Finance, and Politics
Political Geography:
China and Central Europe

489. Migration from China to Slovakia

Author:
Peter Ondris
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Issues: Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs
Institution:
Slovak Foreign Policy Association
Abstract:
While numerous specialist studies about Chinese communities have been published in other countries in the region, this is not the case in Slovakia. Therefore there is a general lack of information about the Chinese community in Slovakia. The objective of this study is, at least partially, to fill this gap. While in many cases, i.e. in Central and Eastern Europe, businesses run by Chinese migrants have contributed to the economic stabilization of the region, including in Slovakia. It should be noted that the number of Chinese people in Slovakia has in the last ten years decreased as a percentage of the foreigners living legally in Slovakia. One could assess this as being a consequence of Slovakia’s EU membership and its adoption of European legislation. The Slovak government has adopted policies to try to change the nature of Chinese migration to Slovakia and attract more educated people and businessmen.
Topic:
Development, Economics, International Trade and Finance, European Union, and Multilateral Relatons
Political Geography:
China, Eastern Europe, Hungary, Central Europe, and Slovakia

490. Climate Technology Partnerships: Form, Function and Impact

Author:
Arunabha Ghosh, Anupama VijayKumar, and Sudatta Ray
Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
With halting progress in climate negotiations, there are growing calls for partnerships among self-selected pools of countries, in the expectation that they would facilitate consensus (among both developed and developing countries) and result in faster decision making. In critically examining such a claim, this paper asks: what kinds of partnerships could facilitate coordinated climate-related action across several countries? By focusing largely on technology partnerships (a key demand in climate negotiations), it examines characteristics of successful partnerships and the conditions under which they are created and sustained. While the motivations of existing partnerships are diverse, their functional scope has remained limited. A review of more than 30 initiatives reveals that very few had been designed to extend beyond sharing knowledge and some preliminary research and development activities. Even fewer had enlarged functional focus on actual transfer of equipment, joint production or extensive deployment mandates. The paper intensively analyzes the purpose, membership and governance of four partnerships. Drawing on their lessons, the paper identifies critical features — appropriate financing, leveraging capacity, flexible intellectual property rules and coordination across several institutions — which could become the foundation of new partnerships to deliver measurable action and possibly increase trust among negotiating parties.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Energy Policy, Science and Technology, Intellectual Property/Copyright, and Governance
Political Geography:
Global Focus