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This monthly Newsletter brings you news for international co-operation professionals on economic and social development. Edited by Karsten Weitzenegger, http://www.weitzenegger.de
CONTENT
- Why the WTO Doha Round talks have collapsed - and a path forward
- UNCTAD presents Trade and Development Report 2006
- Which rich countries help poor ones?
- Merger of the World Bank's environment and infrastructure networks
- World Bank sees business climate as main tool for SME support
- ADB launches strategy to strengthen poverty-reduction impact
- dropping knowledge will launch Knowledge Portal and Dialog Forum
- Training and Events
- Publications
- Websites of the Month
1. Why the WTO Doha Round talks have collapsed - and a path forward
To date, most press coverage of the Doha Round collapse has focused on the blame game - which countries' failure to make specific agricultural concessions is to blame. But the under-recognized, but extremely important story is that the underlying cause of the breakdown is the growing rejection of the WTO, and more broadly of the corporate-led globalization model, by many people worldwide based on this model's effects on their lives. Poor countries that have achieved economic growth - Argentina, Argentina, and China - did so by not following WTO policies. The 'loss' of Doha is in fact a gain. World Bank research reveals that under the ''likely'' Doha scenario, the Middle East, Bangladesh, much of Africa and (notably) Mexico would actually face net losses. Alleged gains that are projected to accrue to Brazil and India would be largely concentrated in those countries' agribusiness and manufacturing industries respectively, while subsistence farmers - a much, much larger percentage of those populations - would see tiny gains or net losses. The focus of energy now should be on how the world's governments can develop a multilateral trade system that preserves the benefits of trade for growth and development, while pruning away the many anti-democratic constraints on domestic policy making contained in the existing WTO rules. Read the full article by Lori Wallach and Deborah James at the Common Dreams News Center: http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0814-33.htm
2. UNCTAD presents Trade and Development Report 2006
Building productive capacities in developing countries
UNCTAD´s Trade and Development Report 2006, subtitled ''Global partnership and national policies for development'', contends that the multilateral trading and financial systems must take better account of the asymmetries existing between developed and developing countries, and allow the latter to pursue development policies in a flexible manner. Governments should take a proactive stance in macroeconomic, trade and industrial policies to support the process of capital accumulation, technological upgrading and structural change. Such policies should respect the specific situation of each country.
http://www.unctad.org/tdr
3. Which rich countries help poor ones?
The Center for Global Development released its updated Commitment to Development Index, ranking 21 rich countries' policies on aid, trade, migration and more. This year, the Netherlands moved into first, mainly because a conservative government in the formerly number-one Denmark has cut aid spending. Japan remains in last place as the country whose government is least engaged with developing countries. As in the past, the G-7 ''leading industrial nations'' have not led on the CDI; Germany, top among them, is in 9th place overall. Rich and poor countries are linked in many ways—by foreign aid, commerce, migration, the environment, and military affairs. The Commitment to Development Index (CDI) rates 21 rich countries on how much they help poor countries build prosperity, good government, and security. Each rich country gets scores in seven policy areas, which are averaged for an overall score.
http://www.cgdev.org/section/initiatives/_active/cdi
4. Merger of the World Bank's environment and infrastructure networks
Mainstreaming or undermining sustainability?
While mainstreaming environmental and social sustainability into Bank operations has been a longstanding goal of internal reformers and external critics for the past 20 years, certain criteria have to be met before the latest development is celebrated. The World Bank plan to merge its environmental and social development units with the department that oversees large infrastructure investment could end up leaving the ''wolf guarding the henhouse''. The new ''Sustainable Development Network'' will have to be monitored closely to ensure that the Bank does not wrongly promote oil and gas projects, frequently the target of criticism about negative environmental and social impacts, as ''development'' or ''anti-poverty'' projects. Read the full article by Bruce Jenkins at Bank Information Center:
http://www.bicusa.org/bicusa/issues/Mainstreaming_or_undermining_sustainability.pdf
5. World Bank sees business climate as main tool for SME support
New World Bank research findings break away from the traditional view that subsidizing small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) fosters growth and poverty alleviation. Researchers Beck and Demirgüç-Kunt recommend that countries focus on improving the overall business climate for all firms, while also expanding access to finance for SMEs. ''Policymakers in developing countries are very interested in helping the SME sector and the World Bank is often involved in designing SME strategies,” says Asli Demirgüç-Kunt, Senior Research Manager (Finance) at the World Bank, ''Our research takes a much-needed look at the effect of SMEs on development, their growth constraints, and policies to overcome these constraints—areas inadequately researched until now.”
http://econ.worldbank.org
6. ADB launches Medium-Term Strategy II to strengthen poverty-reduction impact
ADB has launched its Medium-Term Strategy II (2006-2008) to strengthen the poverty-reducing impact of its assistance. It will focus on five priorities: (i) catalyzing investment, (ii) strengthening inclusiveness, (iii) promoting regional cooperation and integration, (iv) managing the environment, and (v) improving governance and preventing corruption.
http://www.adb.org/Media/Articles/2006/10047-poverty-assistance/
7. dropping knowledge will launch Knowledge Portal and Dialog Forum
dropping knowledge is a global initiative that promotes the free and open exchange of knowledge. On the Internet platform droppingknowledge.org people from all over the world will be able to ask and answer questions, exchange ideas and opinions, engage in dialogs, and start their own initiatives. On 9 September 2006, 112 of the world's most compelling thinkers, artists, writers, scientists, social entrepreneurs, philosophers and humanitarians from around the world will come together in Berlin, Germany, as guests of dropping knowledge. On 10 September, dropping knowledge will launch a freely accessible Copyleft knowledge portal and dialog forum, seeded with Audivisual content from the first Table of Free Voices.
http://www.droppingknowledge.org
8. Training and Events
The Master's Programme ''Transition Studies''
http://www.uni-giessen.de/zeu/TS/
of the Center for International Development and Environmental Research (ZEU) of the University of Giessen aims to train professionals to be able to work in interdisciplinary and international teams contributing to the improvement of the situation of transition countries. Application deadline for a start in the summer term of 2007: 15 January 2007.
International Migration and Development: Patterns, Problems, and Policy Directions
http://www.wider.unu.edu
UNU-WIDER Seminar by Anthony Shorrocks (chair), George J. Borjas, Jeff Crisp, and Andrés Solimano.
United Nations Headquarters, Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, New York, 12 September 2006.
Community Mobilisation & SHG Formation for Economic & Integrated Development
http://aidmat.com/idmat/index.htm
Agra, India, 27 September - 1 October 2006,
In the mission towards development process, AIDMAT invites you to the above 9th international workshop. It will be a great opportunity to meet delegates with dimensional experiences from multi cultural regions. There are early bird group offers prevailing and the seats are limited. For a detailed brochure and a nomination form for enrolment please contact: (Ms) Anupama Senior Manager – External Linkages IDMAT (Mobile) (0091) 9899 69 7483 anupama @ aidmat.com
The Small Enterprise Education and Promotion (SEEP) Network annual general meeting
http://www.seepnetwork.org/section/ac2006
Washington D.C, 23-27 October 2006. This year, the conference theme is ''Investing in the Majority.” Most sessions are open to all.
The UK's Development Studies Association Annual Conference
http://www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm
Reading, 11 November 2006, on the theme ''The Private Sector, Poverty Reduction and International Development''
'Development Days' of the European Commission
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/world/
The European Commission will launch its 'Development Days' from 13-17 November to establish stronger links with the public and further the cause of development cooperation. Location: Brussels; Theme: Africa on the Move. Please contact patrice.lenormand @ cec.eu.int, georges.eliopoulos @ cec.eu.int.
UNCTAD trade and development training course in Bangkok
http://p166.unctad.org/
Academics and researchers from universities and research institutions at UNCTAD member States in the Asia and Pacific region are invited to submit their candidatures for the next Training on Key issues on the International Economic Agenda to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, November 13 - December 1, 2006. Info: mohan.panicker @ unctad.org
Workshop on Migration Latin America - Europe
http://www.eadi.org/detail_page.phtml?page=wg_europelatinamerica_call_2006
Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium, 8 November 2006
by the EADI working group on "Europe and Latin America".
Second development conference: Which financing for which development?
http://beagle.u-bordeaux4.fr/jourdev/AppelCommEN.html
Bordeaux, France, 23 November 2006, Deuxième journées du développement du GRES + ADEK
Since the beginning of the debt crisis in 1982, most developing countries have applied structural adjustment programs and have followed poverty reduction strategies initiated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These programs, inspired by the Washington consensus, have not been crowned with success, partly because they have denied the specificities of developing countries.Faced with widespread criticism, IFIs and industrialized countries have adjusted their position. Info: berr @ u-bordeaux4.fr
Microenterprise Development in a Globalizing World: A USAID Learning Conference, June 2006
http://www.microlinks.org/ev_en.php?ID=10465_201&ID2=DO_TOPIC
The USAID Learning Conference, held from June 14-16, 2006 in Washington D.C., celebrated the achievements made in the microenterprise development field and shared ways to better address the needs of poor people by helping them harness the necessary resources to better provide for their families and enterprises. The conference webpage, hosted on the USAID microlinks site, includes presentations, session summaries, interviews with presenters and ongoing post-conference discussions.
MENA Regional Conference on Job Creation and Skills Development
http://jobsconf.filesharing.to
Proceedings of the World Bank Conference on Job Creation and Skills Development in the Middle East and North Africa region, December 2005.
9. Publications
Doing Business 2007
http://www.doingbusiness.org/?cid=1291
This fourth edition of the annual Doing Business series focuses on how to do reforms. It provides updated data and analysis on business environments in 175 economies around the world. For more information, to order copies, or to generate your own online reports using the Doing Business data visit http://www.doingbusiness.org/?cid=1291
EuropeAId's Detailed EVALUATION GUIDE
http://ec.europa.eu/comm/europeaid/evaluation/methodology/guidelines/gba_det_en.htm
The European Commission published details on their guidelines for geographical and thematic evaluations, for evaluation managers or evaluators; and for project and programme evaluations, including checklists
SEEP Network News, vol. 2 iss. 2 Network Development
http://seepnetwork.org/files/3611_file_Network_News_6_30_06.doc
The second issue of the second volume of Network News, SEEP's online newsletter for regional and country-level microfinance and microenterprise networks.
Access Finance Issue 13 World Bank
http://psdblog.worldbank.org/psdblog/access_to_finance/index.html
Each newsletter contains feature articles and highlights of selected news items, papers, events and internet resources under four main categories: Access to Financial Services, Credit Information, Payment Systems and Remittances.
Promoting the business and investment climate. Experiences of German technical assistance
http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/05-0938.pdf
Study edited by Dr. Sonja Kurz and Alena Fröde. GTZ’s work on a better Business and Investment Climate is also expected to contribute to a rise in the formation of new companies, to an expansion of existing businesses as well as to increased investment in human and physical capital thereby facilitating companies to participate in technical progress. On a highly aggregated level, a better Business and Investment Climate is expected to contribute to the development results of pro-poor growth by reducing constraints and barriers to economic growth and participation of the poor in the growth process.
Facilitating Southern African Remittance Networks, Genesis Analytics, FinMark Trust
http://www.finmarktrust.org.za/documents/2006/July/SARemittances.pdf#search=%22Facilitating%20Southern%20African%20Remittance%20Networks%2C%20Genesis%20Analytics%22
An issue paper for the 2006 SADC Commonwealth Secretariat workshop on remittances.
The SEEP Network Consumer Protection Code of Practice Template and Discussion Guide
http://seepnetwork.org/files/3504_file_THE_FINAL_Template_2.pdfSEEP.pdf
A Small Enterprise Education and Promotion Network (SEEP)guide to increase transparency in consumer policies and practices followed by MFIs.
Mapping the Market: A framework for rural enterprise development policy and practice
http://practicalaction.org/?id=mapping_the_market
This Practical Action (ITDG) paper lays out a framework and visual tool for ''mapping'' a rural market in which small enterprises and/or poor people are involved. The central component of the Market Map is the economic actors who actually own and transact a particular product as it moves through the market-chain from primary producer to final consumer. The second component of the Market Map is a charting of the cirtical factors and trends shaping the market-chain environment and operating conditions - the enabling business environment. The third component of the Market Map describes the services that support or could support the market chain's overall efficiency. The paper also describes a participatory strategy for conducting the market map analysis. The authors Mike Albu and Alison Griffith emphasize that markets are central to the challenge of tackling rural poverty. They advocate for greater ''market literacy'' among donors, national policy makers and development agencies to improve the effectiveness of rural poverty-reduction policies and programs.
Trade Support Services Checklists
http://www.intracen.org/instasptp
A series of practical checklists to help private and public trade development managers of trade support institutions assess the strengths of their strategies and services. Checklists are available on: national trade strategy development; market information services; foreign trade representation; matching grant schemes; and results-based management. Contact: williams @ intracen.org
Facilitation of the market for BDS for fish farmers in Vietnam, GTZ 2006
http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/06-0284.pdf
GTZ’s SME Promotion Programme assists local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to benefit from the growing aquaculture sector in a sustainable way. One of the Programmes objectives in An Giang province is to improve the provision of Business Development Services (BDS) to SMEs in the aquaculture sector. The rationale behind this approach is to increase their business capacities in areas such as production technology, marketing and access to international markets.
The Health Care Service Market for the International Consumer
http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/gut/12952.pdf
An Analysis of the Philippines by Katharina Kaiser, Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable Employment Program (SMEDSEP).
Shaping value chains for development. Global value chains in agribusiness
http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/05-0280.pdf
This GTZ study by John Humphrey analyses these challenges from a global value chain perspective, examining their implications for policies at both the micro and meso levels (technical assistance, local institutional capabilities, producer organisations, etc.) and the broader, macro level of the framework of institutions and policies that regulate agricultural production and trade, including standards-setting, intellectual property rights and global competition policy, as well as trade capacity building and trade promotion initiatives.
The value chain approach in development cooperation
http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/05-1037.pdf
This GTZ study by Bettina Merlin was updated with the objective of checking and updating all existing links to present only recent information. Additionally, new internet research was completed without the strong agriculture focus of the first study. The updated version also integrates institutions working in different sectors relevant to development cooperation. Moreover, the data sheet was revised.
Regions and Municipalities in Focus. Outlook for Development Cooperation
http://www2.gtz.de/urbanet/pub/rekoment_en.pdf
The GTZ working group ReKomEnt (Regional Development and Local Governance in Development Co-operation) - where AGEG Consultants eG is a member - presents this brochure as an introduction into the subject of Regional Development and Local Governance in Development Co-operation. The brochure has been written against the background of forty years of German experience in Development Cooperation with projects and programmes in Rural Regional Development. We also refer to the debate on decentralization in the last two decades and the current discourse on good governance.''
McKeever Institute of Economic Policy Analysis (MIEPA)
http://www.mkeever.com
is pleased to announce the publication of several new country studies. New studies of Turkmenistan and Croatia are added to the 45 countries already published. Both the new studies and the earlier studies are available on the website. Additionally, the studies on Indonesia, Hong Kong and the USA have been revised with new information as of this Spring. The USA study features three separate analyses placed consecutively on the page.
Educating and training out of poverty? A status report
http://www.norrag.org/pdf/NN37-7.pdf
There has been a widespread interest in the international community in the potential for education and training initiatives to assist in breaking the cycle of poverty. This aspiration lies behind the Millennium Development Goals, as well as the Education for All agenda. Education is often included, for similar reasons, in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers. Of course, a great deal depends on what kind of access the poor get to education and training systems, and what quality they find there, and what they can do in the labour market as a result.
Legal risks of electronic commerce
http://perry4law.blogspot.com/2006/01/legal-risks-of-electronic-commerce.html
The aim of this article is to analyse the trade off between the benefits and risks associated in the engagement of e-commerce activities. The discussion though is covering all those who are engaged in the e-commerce activities, but a special emphasis has been laid down on the rights and liabilities of the Network Service providers and the web-site owners
UNESCO's Creative Cities Network
http://portal.unesco.org/culture/en/ev.php-URL_ID=29032&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html
What are Creative Clusters? Business and culture are uniting as creativity and culture are become essential raw materials in production. Creative enterprises are increasingly grouping together into Creative Clusters, pooling their resources into networks and partnerships to cross-stimulate activities, boost creativity, and achieve economies of scale. UNESCO’s Global Alliance for Cultural Diversity has launched the Creative Cities Network, which connects cities around the world in order to harness their creative potential for social and economic development, and supports the concept of Creative Clusters. This promotes cultural entrepreneurship.
10. Websites of the Month
Aid Workers Network is a free service set up to enable aid workers to share practical advice and resources with each other
http://www.aidworkers.net
When working in relief and development, we often face situations and problems that others have already encountered. Aid Workers Network is your starting point for finding out how they dealt with those situations and solved those problems - and for you to contribute your own experience to help others. Aid Workers Network is supported by British Red Cross and Oxfam.
Capacity Development Network
http://www.capacitywhoiswho.net
CDNet is an open source virtual workspace providing opportunity for dialogue, exchange and learning on capacity development. Registered users can create their own discussions, working groups and libraries on CD topics of their choosing. ''Resource Corners” serve as managed incubators for collective work around specific themes.
Caribbean Graduates Network for Regional Integration
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PRCNU/
The CULP Network shall facilitate the development of Caribbean graduates as skilled professionals committed to the development of the Region consistent with the highest standards of professionalism. CULP aimed at developing a regional capability for supplying competent professionals to public and private sector organisations in the region, as a contribution to the overall objective of promoting integration and sustainable social and economic development in the Caribbean. Master’s courses in key applied disciplines were developed by five participating.
UNjobs -Job Vacancies in United Nations and International Organizations
http://unjobs.org
Vacancy Announcements from the United Nations and other International Organizations, compiled by UNjobs Association of Geneva.
WorkSavvy! Business Startup
http://www.worksavvy.ws
This website provides you with helpful information on the following topics: Support for the would-be & early-stage entrepreneur, guidance on personal & business plan development; getting your business to start sooner, grow stronger and last longer; free material on business startup and how to get help & advice - cost-effectively.
Doing Business Law Library
http://www.doingbusiness.org/LawLibrary/?cid=1291
This online library is a new, online collection of business laws and regulations from 175 countries. The library links to official government sources wherever possible and will be updated continually – currently the database holds 4,158 laws. The laws featured in the database relate to the 10 Doing Business indicators and cover: banking and credit, bankruptcy and collateral, civil codes, civil procedure codes, commercial and company, labor, land and building, securities, tax, and trade.
Traidcraft PLC: Working with Producer Groups Around the World in Fair Trade
http://www.traidcraft.co.uk
Traidcraft PLC as the UK's leading fair trade organisation, works with more than 100 producer groups in over 30 countries around the world, helping them build sustainable livelihoods for the future. Traidcraft Exchange, the charity arm, develops projects and offers training and consultancy services to promote pro-poor business development. This organisation engages in policy work and campaigning to influence UK and EU policy-makers and raise public awareness of poverty and trade issues.
The European Union Development Policy New Website
http://www.europe-cares.org/africa/
The Commission has launched a new website on EU Strategy for Africa
EADI New Student Forum
http://www.eadi.org/detail_page.phtml?page=dossier_students
EADI aims to facilitate greater networking and information exchange amongst students and young researchers in the field of development.
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