International Development

World Development Report 2012: Gender, Equality, and Men's Education?

by Frank Karioris

Published on Good Men Project and XYonline.com.

A discussion of the World Development Report 2012 discussing the way the report addresses issues of men's education.... more A discussion of the World Development Report 2012 discussing the way the report addresses issues of men's education. Published at http://goodmenproject.com/ethics-values/world-development-report-2012-gender-equality-and-mens-education/ and http://www.xyonline.net/content/look-how-men’s-education-portrayed-world-development-report-2012-gender-and-equality-and-whe.

The nonillusory effects of neoliberalisation: linking geographies of poverty, inequality, and violence

by Simon Springer

Springer, S. 2008. The nonillusory effects of neoliberalisation: linking geographies of poverty, inequality, and violence. Geoforum. 39 (4), 1520-1525.

This paper steps into recent debates concerning the (f)utility of neoliberalism as an ‘actually existing’ concept by... more This paper steps into recent debates concerning the (f)utility of neoliberalism as an ‘actually existing’ concept by reminding the reader that without a Marxian political economy approach, one that specifically includes neoliberalisation as part of its theoretical edifice, we run the risk of obfuscating the reality of capitalism’s festering poverty, rising inequality, and ongoing geographies of violence as something unknowable and ‘out there’. By failing to acknowledge such nonillusory effects of neoliberalisation and refusing the explanatory power neoliberalism holds in relating similar constellations of experiences across space as a potential basis for emancipation, we precipitously ensure the prospect of a violent future.

Violent accumulation: a postanarchist critique of property, dispossession, and the state of exception in neoliberalizing Cambodia

by Simon Springer

Springer, S. Forthcoming. Violent accumulation: a postanarchist critique of property, dispossession, and the state of exception in neoliberalizing Cambodia. Annals of the Association of American Geographers.

Employing a poststructuralist-meets-anarchist stance that advances conceptual insight into the nature of sovereign... more Employing a poststructuralist-meets-anarchist stance that advances conceptual insight into the nature of sovereign power, this article examines the dialectics of capitalism/primitive accumulation, civilization/savagery, and law/violence, which are argued to exist in a mutually reinforcing 'trilateral of logics'. In deciphering this triadic system, this article offers a radical (re)appraisal of capitalism, its legal process, and its civilizing effects, which together serve to mask the originary and ongoing violences of primitive accumulation and the property system. Such obfuscation suggests that wherever the trilateral of logics is enacted, so too is the state of exception called into being, exposing us all as potential homo sacer (life that does not count). Proceeding as a diagnostic assessment of sovereign power, where although signposted by Cambodia's contemporary experiences of violent land conflict, this article is not intended as a fine-grained empirical analysis. Instead, it forwards a theoretical dialogue where Cambodia's neoliberalizing processes offer a window on how sovereign power configures itself around the three discursive-institutional constellations (i.e., capitalism, civilization, and law) that form the trilateral of logics. Rather than formulating prescriptive solutions, the intention here is critique, where in particular it is argued that the preoccupation with strengthening Cambodia's legal system should not be read as a panacea for contemporary social ills, but as an imposition that serves to legitimize the violences of property.

ICT and development: East is east and West is west and the twain may yet meet

by Lars Soeftestad

Sistema financeiro e desenvolvimento: uma discussão teórica sobre bank-based, market-based e abordagem funcional

by Elson Rodrigo Souza Santos

Preliminary and incomplete version

Over time several authors have discussed how best to organize the financial system to promote growth of... more
Over time several authors have discussed how best to organize the financial system to promote growth of long-term cover and support the changes arising from development. The recurring debate about the structures and theoretical defenses of the bank-based system (based on financial intermediaries) and market-based (direct relationship between savers and borrowers of funds). More recently, the functional approach was added as a central point that puts the capacity of the financial system to support the productive sector and moving to the background structure. In this paper seek to present the theoretical aspects of these three visions highlighting the differences in the defense and criticism, but also seeking to compare the concentrations in common and how they can see the same problem through different perspectives.

Account for the difficulty in achieving a universally-accepted definition of a ‘terrorist’ and ‘terrorism’.

by Owais Rajput

Terrorism is the unlawful or threatened use of force or violence on people or property to compel or intimidate... more Terrorism is the unlawful or threatened use of force or violence on people or property to compel or intimidate governments or societies, often to achieve political, religious, or ideological objectives. However it is difficult to define terrorism because all acts of terrorism are open to interpretation.

Targeted Aid and Capture in Development Projects

by Matthew Winters

If development projects are to be effective, a minimum requirement is that the funding reaches its intended... more If development projects are to be effective, a minimum requirement is that the funding reaches its intended destination. Yet the history of international development is replete with examples of this not happening. I propose that there will be fewer problems with corruption or other diversions of funding --- which I jointly label capture --- in more precisely targeted projects. More well-defined targeting results in end-user constituencies that have a clearer sense of the lines of responsibility for a project, more information about project outputs and lower collective action costs. I use an original cross-country, cross-project dataset on the incidence of capture in World Bank investment projects to explore the theory. The data show a negative relationship between targeting and capture, and I demonstrate that this relationship is robust to the inclusion of a set of potentially confounding country- and project-level covariates. In addition, at the country level, I find that there is a higher likelihood of capture in projects in those countries perceived as more corrupt according to commonly used survey-based measures from Transparency International and the Worldwide Governance Indicators, cross-validating those measures and my own.

The Evolving Definition of the Refugee in Contemporary International Law

by William Worster

Many scholars of international refugee law assert that there is no definition of refugee under international law... more Many scholars of international refugee law assert that there is no definition of refugee under international law except that given in the Refugee Convention. This assertion, however, overlooks the dynamic way that the Refugee Convention is interpreted and is usually made without a detailed analysis of customary international law. This article attempts to address this shortcoming in the literature by examining conventional and customary international law contributing to the contemporary definition of refugee. Furthermore, it will attempt to do this is an even-handed manner, concluding that the definition has expanded in favor of claimants in some aspects, but, actually, contracted against the favor of claimants in others.

First, the article will examine the definition of refugee under the Refugee Convention, especially the evolving technique for interpreting the Convention, to determine whether the definition has outgrown its conventional shell.

Second, the article will undertake a comprehensive analysis of state practice and opinio juris on this question, examining the most up-to-date sources. In particular, it will reflect on the role of specially interested or specially affected states in the formation of customary international law and the growth of “subsidiary” protection. Also the article will consider the contribution of the practice and opinio juris of international organizations in the frame of the contemporary international law’s understanding of the contribution international organizations can make.

Lastly, the article will look at the opposite side of the coin: the ways in which customary international law may have narrowed the definition beyond the terms of the Refugee Convention.
It will conclude by proposing the new definition of a refugee under conventional and customary international law based on the findings.

Transition to school: Reflections on readiness

by Sadaf Shallwani

Arnold, C., Bartlett, K., Gowani, S., & Shallwani, S. (2008). Transition to school: Reflections on readiness. Journal of Developmental Processes, 3(2), 26-38.

Although globally primary school enrollment has increased dramatically in recent years, primary school completion... more Although globally primary school enrollment has increased dramatically in recent years, primary school completion rates remain disappointing. In many countries, the highest rates of dropout and repetition are at the Grade 1 level. In such a context, it becomes critical to examine children’s entry into, adjustment to, and success in their earliest years of primary school—in other words, children’s transition to school. This paper explores the notions of transition and readiness in international contexts, with a focus on the Majority world. It considers children’s readiness for school, schools’ readiness for children, and the challenges around both. Examples of policies and programs that appear promising in supporting children’s successful transition are highlighted. As part of this, the paper draws upon the experiences and lessons learned of the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) in early child development and school improvement efforts in the Majority world. Lastly, implications for policy and practice are explored.

Study on the role of social media for enhancing public transparency and accountability in CEE and CIS: Emerging models, opportunities and challenges

by Piotr Drozd

Collaborated on the study while at the UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

In many countries of Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the executive branch of the... more In many countries of Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the executive branch of the government dominates and sometimes even controls legislative and judiciary branches and media, the executive also controls the flow of information between the public administration and the citizens that in many cases can exchange critical information only privately. The rapid development of social media is considerably changing this pattern. Blogs, forums and social networking sites can transform personal conversations and individual opinions into a subject of public debate.

This study identifies the following models of social media use to enhance public transparency and accountability:

(1) Information sharing: individuals and groups of civic activists use commercial social media platforms (forums, blog platforms, social networking and video hosting websites) to disseminate information about the quality of the public services, eventual mismanagement and corruption;
(2) Crowdsourcing: individuals and groups of civic activists create their own specialized social media platforms through which users can publish information about instances of corruption or other public interest information;
(3) Crowd-to-community model takes crowdsourcing one step further by stimulating cooperation between website users and offering to them various ways to engage for achieving a common objective.

The study also looks at the approaches used in Eastern Europe and the CIS to promote the use of social media to enhance public transparency and accountability and contains recommendations for UNDP programming in the area of public administration reform, anti-corruption and local governance building on the phenomenon of social media.

2012, « The Historicity of the Neoliberal State », in Social Anthropology, volume 20, n° 1, pp. 80-94

by Mathieu Hilgers

Debate with Loic Wacquant “Three Steps to a Historical Anthropology of Actually Existing Neoliberalism." Social Anthropology, 20, 1, with responses in the next issue: Jamie Peck, Nick Theodore, and Neil Brenner, Stephen Collier, Daniel Goldstein, Johanna Bockman, Don Kalb...

Oxford Transitional Justice Research Debating International Justice in Africa

by Phil Dines

Oxford Transitional Justice Research

Drawing together academic and practitioner contributors from Africa and beyond, this collection highlights the... more Drawing together academic and practitioner contributors from Africa and beyond, this collection highlights the challenges that international justice has faced in addressing atrocities in Africa.


Assembling nearly two years of critical debates convened by Oxford Transitional Justice Research, the collection of nearly 60 essays explores the work of the ICC and other judicial processes at a crucial stage in the development of international justice in Africa.

The June 2010 review conference of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in Kampala provides an opportunity to identify the successes and shortcomings of these processes and to lay the foundation for more effective approaches in the future.


The debates in this volume highlight that there is major disagreement over the performance and legacies of international justice institutions in Africa. The purpose of this collection is to deepen discussions of these issues and to provoke new questions about the past and future directions of international justice in Africa.

Infrastructure: A long road ahead

by Felix Faulhaber

Co-authored with Rod Cloete and Markus Zils, published in the "McKinsey on Africa" report. 2010

Relaciones internacionales y cooperación al desarrollo. Políticas, actores y paradigmas

by Carlo Tassara

En: Agudelo Taborda, Jairo (Editor). 2012 (enero). “Debates sobre cooperación internacional para el desarrollo” (pp. 15-81).
Escuela Latinoamericana de Cooperación y Desarrollo (ELACID). Bogotá.
Enero 2012

Es una versión más larga del ensayo “Paradigmas, actores y políticas. Breve historia de la cooperación internacional... more Es una versión más larga del ensayo “Paradigmas, actores y políticas. Breve historia de la cooperación internacional al desarrollo”.

Riflessioni sull'assistenza umanitaria e i diritti umani in Colombia

by Carlo Tassara

Carlo Tassara, Luigi Grando e Giuseppe Ferrando.
In: "Forum Valutazione" N° 13, CISP, Roma.
Marzo 2002

La migrazione forzata è un fenomeno sociale che riunisce varie tipologie di violazione dei diritti umani e ha come... more La migrazione forzata è un fenomeno sociale che riunisce varie tipologie di violazione dei diritti umani e ha come effetto la negazione di diritti economici, sociali e culturali, come il diritto all’educazione, al lavoro, all’accesso ai servizi di salute e ad una casa.
Il saggio analizza la situazione colombiana nel periodo compreso tra la fine degli anni '90 e i primi anni 2000.

Paradigmas, actores y políticas. Breve historia de la cooperación internacional al desarrollo

by Carlo Tassara

En: UNAULA 31, Revista de la Universidad Autónoma Latinoamericana, N° 31, Octubre 2011 (pp. 41-97).
UNAULA. Medellín
Octubre 2011

La cooperación internacional al desarrollo ha ido modificando su filosofía, enfoques y metodologías. Según los... more La cooperación internacional al desarrollo ha ido modificando su filosofía, enfoques y metodologías. Según los análisis de los años ’50 y ’60, el “subdesarrollo” se debía a la baja capacidad de inversión y la cooperación era una “ayuda a los países pobres” para que aumentaran su producción industrial y crecimiento. Los únicos actores eran los estados centrales.
Hoy en día, la cooperación internacional se concentra en la lucha contra la pobreza. Por otro lado, el diálogo sobre las políticas globales, el interés mutuo, el partenariado, la participación activa y la apropiación por parte de los actores locales, son enfoques y criterios compartidos. En este marco, también los actores se han diversificado. Entre ellos: gobiernos sub-estatales, organizaciones de la sociedad civil, universidades, centros de investigación, y sector privado.
¿Cómo se han producido cambios tan profundos? ¿Cuáles han sido las fuerzas y los intereses que los han generado? ¿Cuál ha sido el papel del Sur? El ensayo intenta contestar a estas preguntas, trazando una breve historia de la cooperación internacional al desarrollo a través de la presentación de los contextos políticos, económicos y sociales de cada periodo, por un lado, y de los principales paradigmas y actores que los han caracterizado, por el otro.

Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio, políticas públicas y desarrollo humano en América Latina. Análisis de un caso exitoso en Antioquia

by Carlo Tassara

En: Investigación & Desarrollo [Revista Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales y Desarrollo Humano], Vol. 19 N° 2 (pp. 414-451), Diciembre 2011.
Editorial Universidad del Norte. Barranquilla
Diciembre 2011

The paper is mainly addressed to debate the new paradigms of international development aid, with a specific focus on... more The paper is mainly addressed to debate the new paradigms of international development aid, with a specific focus on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and their implementation within the context of Latin America. The paper will start drawing both the conceptual framework and the international environment and will after provide readers with an analysis of a success story occurred in the Department of Antioquia (Colombia).
A further analytical approach will be proposed to appraise the potential of the North-South and South-South developmental co-operations. These may be linked one to each other with the first strengthening and widening up the second, thus creating innovative enabling environments for fruitful exchanges between local actors and organized civil societies of the North and the South of the world.

Experiencias exitosas de desarrollo social en la cooperación internacional. Lecciones aprendidas en el caso de Colombia

by Carlo Tassara

En: Said Hung, Elias (editor). Migración, desarrollo humano e internacionalización (pp. 85-109).
Editorial Universidad del Norte. Barranquilla.
Marzo 2011

La cooperación internacional – o por lo menos una parte de ella - se parece cada vez más a un “multiplicador” de los... more La cooperación internacional – o por lo menos una parte de ella - se parece cada vez más a un “multiplicador” de los procesos endógenos de desarrollo económico y social, y se orienta a dar apoyo a las experiencias más avanzadas que ya se están realizando en los distintos países, valorizando al mismo tiempo los recursos humanos locales. Este ensayo presenta algunas experiencias exitosas, realizadas en el Departamento de Antioquia y en otras zonas de Colombia, concernientes la promoción del desarrollo territorial con enfoque participativo e interinstitucional.

Poverty, Risk and Families' Responses: Evidence from Young Lives

by Kirrily Pells

This paper brings together existing Young Lives research and policy analysis, alongside new findings, to argue that... more This paper brings together existing Young Lives research and policy analysis, alongside new findings, to argue that poverty and inequalities are at the heart of childhood risk, shaping
which children are at risk, access to sources of protection, and children’s life chances. Drawing on the rounds of survey and qualitative data collection conducted to date, it illustrates
how risk is mediated through poverty and structural disadvantage, meaning that children from groups with low social status, from rural areas and the poorest households, have increased risk of having poorer outcomes in education, health and subjective well-being indicators. Policymakers concerned with reducing risk and improving protection should not focus on
enabling individual children to ‘beat the odds’ but instead on ‘changing the odds’ (Seccombe, 2002). This means targeting the root causes of children’s poor life chances, namely poverty
and inequalities, rather than just the symptoms of risk.

Poverty and Gender Inequalities: Evidence from Young Lives

by Kirrily Pells

Tackling gender inequalities has become central to poverty reduction strategies, including the Millennium Development... more Tackling gender inequalities has become central to poverty reduction strategies, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, gender dynamics between children growing up in poverty, and how these change over time, are poorly understood, yet a number of assumptions prevail. Young Lives is a study of childhood poverty which is following two cohorts of children over 15 years in Ethiopia, India (Andhra Pradesh), Peru and Vietnam. Analysis of Young Lives data challenges assumptions and suggests that gender is one source of inequality, alongside poverty, geographical location, ethnicity or caste status, which can intersect to impact negatively on children’s life chances and on girls differently from boys. To improve equality of life chances, policy interventions will have most success by targeting absolute poverty and broader structural inequalities.