Why the US and Europe Have Not Managed Their Economic Crises Properly

This is the first in a series of articles by the South Centre’s chief economist on the current global economic situation. This first article analyses why the economic policies of the US and Europe have been inappropriate in getting these major economies out of the crisis. The next few articles provide more details of this. Further articles will deal with how the developing countries’ economies are experiencing the adverse spillover effects of these major economies’ policies.

Winds of change blowing in Asia

The APEC and TPPA summits in Bali recently showed the winds of change are blowing in the region, symbolised by the US President’s absence but also reflecting the aptness or otherwise of policies.

No respite, 5 years after Lehman

Five years after the Lehman Brothers collapse triggered the global financial crisis, there are still no effective financial regulations in developed countries, while the developing countries face big new challenges.

Development-led Globalization Requires De-colonizing the MDGs

By Manuel Montes

The big attraction of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), or at least the first seven of these, was their near universal acceptability. It mobilized both resources and politics, both nationally and internationally, in pursuit of reducing poverty, hunger, gender inequality, malnutrition and disease.

50 years of Development Planning in Africa: Retrospect and Prospects

By Carlos Lopes

A new era of development planning is emerging in Africa, says the new head of the UN Economic Commission for Africa, in this wide-ranging review. He gave this opening speech at the 50th anniversary conference of the African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP).

Africa Has Entered A New Season of Planning and Long-Term Development Thinking

By Adebayo Olukoshi

This article, originally a background note for the “IDEP at 50” Conference, traces the history of economic planning in Africa and concludes that there is now a “new season” of planning and long-term development thinking in the region. This analysis is by the Director of the United Nations African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP).

SDGs: Poverty Eradication

This is a brief paper on conceptual aspects of poverty eradication as an issue for the SDGs.

In line with our overall approach to the SDGs, the issue of poverty eradication should have goals and targets for countries but also for the international dimension, which includes the Global Partnership for Development (that involves policies relating to global macro-economics, debt, trade, finance, and access to technology) and the means of implementation (i.e. finance and technology for developing countries).

The United Nations’ Post-2015 Development Agenda should not simply extend MDGs, or reformulate the goals, but focus instead on global systemic reforms to remove main impediments to development and secure an accommodating international environment for sustainable development. This is a big, ambitious agenda which cannot be acted on overnight. An action plan for systemic reforms could be supplemented, but not substituted, by specific goals in some areas of economic and social development. This paper was presented to a brainstorming workshop of the G77 and China held in the UN in New York in February.

BRICS Bank: Doing development differently?

By Bunn Nagara

A prospective new financial architecture being set up by the BRICS countries promises to reform and improve development finance for the world.

The First BRICS towards a South Bank?

By Devaki Jain

A member of the South Commission (1987-1990) reflects on the moves by the recent Summit of the BRICS to establish a BRICS development bank – an idea that the Commission had promoted.