Extreme weather events, partly caused by climate change, are already wreaking havoc, especially in the South. Both floods and droughts are expected to become more frequent and more severe and more people will be forced to live in vulnerable areas. But who will pay for the measures needed to respond to the impacts of climate change?   Read more>>

In the complex field of development cooperation, where there are no silver bullets, knowledge is essential. Although NGOs are taking more interest in knowledge management, they have so far failed to recognize that they are part of a knowledge industry, of which the delivery of goods and services is only a part.   Read more>>

Malaria is a ‘disease of poverty’, and is spreading as the parasite’s resistance to cheap medicines grows. There are hopes that public–private partnerships will help in the development and testing of new drugs. But the most vulnerable groups, including pregnant women and children, must be involved in clinical trials.   Read more>>

Are shared democratic values and norms within political systems the most important factors in promoting peace between countries, or common economic interests? New econometric research shows that, in the case of India and Pakistan, trade with other countries increases the chance of peace.   Read more>>

It is a well known anecdote that NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was inaugurated back in 1949 with a small ceremony in the Department of State, during which the house orchestra played George Gershwin’s I Got Plenty of Nothing. Champagne glasses were raised and diplomats congratulated each other with promises, not guarantees.   Read more>>

Does development aid support technological learning and innovation? Or are market linkages a better boost for the development of technological capabilities in, say, Togo or Cambodia? These are some of the questions addressed in the 2007 UNCTAD Least Developed Countries report, Knowledge, Technological Learning and Innovation for Development.   Read more>>

One of the hot books in international development circles at the moment is Paul Collier’s The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It, by Paul Collier, formerly of the World Bank and currently director of the Centre for the Study of African Economies at the University of Oxford.   Read more>>