WIDERAngle

Expert commentary from our network

About

The WIDERAngle publishes expert commentary and analysis of the latest research in global development. The WIDERAngle supports UNU-WIDER’s missions to undertake research and policy analysis on the most pressing concerns affecting humanity and provides a forum for knowledge sharing, discussion, and debate.

 

To see past newsletters, visit our WIDERAngle archive.

 

Write for the WIDERAngle

We accept submissions that represent sincere efforts to advance knowledge on topics related to the promotion of sustainable and equitable development for all. Although many of our writers are established in their fields, we particularly encourage submissions from early-career researchers, policy professionals, and writers who represent Global South countries and perspectives.

 

For guidelines on WIDERAngle submissions, please refer to our Guidelines for submissions.

 

Send submission queries to editorialteam@wider.unu.edu.

 

EDITORIAL TEAM

Executive Editor: Annett Victorero

Managing Editor: Timothy Shipp

Assistant Editor: Tristan Reid

 

Subscribe to the newsletter

Research in focus – country profiles: Indonesia and Ecuador

by Tristan Reid
flashcom-indonesia-unsplash
Our Institute’s expansive international research contributions, consisting of over 800 WIDER Working Papers in the 2019–23 work programme, delve deep into the development challenges the world faces. In the following country profiles, we pivot our focus towards Ecuador and Indonesia, serving as examples of our unique collaborative approach to development.Utilizing our vast network of researchers, policymakers, and institutions, we not only assess pressing development issues, but actively work...

Nigeria: botched economic reforms plunge the country into crisis

by Kunal Sen, Chisom Ubabukoh
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, is facing an economic crisis. From a botched currency redesign to the removal of fuel subsidies and a currency float, the nation has been plunged into spiralling inflation and a currency crisis with far-reaching consequences. The question now is: how long before the inferno consumes everything?On October 26, 2022, the Central Bank of Nigeria announced a bold move – that it had redesigned the country’s highest denomination notes (₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000) and would...

Are Sovereign Wealth Funds fit for purpose in Africa?

by Tony Addison, Amir Lebdioui
Tanzanian coins. Image: Imani Nsamila / UNU-WIDER
Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) have become a symbol of national success and a means for global, commercial and geopolitical influence. But how well do they contribute to national development goals? Furthermore, global decarbonization threatens the future of many fossil fuel-financed SWFs. Here, we report research evidence to assess the state of SWFs in Africa and how to maximise their impact.Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs)are at the core of considerable policy and academic debate. Once heralded as...

74 Blogpost

Filter by...

Reset all
UNU-WIDER topic
    Blog
    Unlocking efficiency – overcoming challenges in South Africa's rail freight sector
    Placeholder

    The South African rail freight sector is currently facing a crisis of operational efficiency, which is having a significant economic impact. In the...

    Blog
    Indonesia, the developer’s dilemma, and Vision 2045

    According to the World Bank, Indonesia has reached the upper-middle income status in 2019 after spending almost two decades in the lower-middle income...

    Policy Brief
    Inequality is not an inevitable consequence of economic development
    Blog
    Mozambique's difficult decade: Three lessons to inform next steps

    At the start of the last decade, Mozambique’s prospects looked stellar. Following from the early 1990s, when peace finally arrived after a devastating...

    Research Brief
    Unlocking a regional plastics value chain between Mozambique and South Africa

    Plastics are universal and integrated into different sectors of the economy. Industrial policy requires countries to look at moving up the value chain and producing progressively more sophisticated products to contribute to improved economic...

    Research Brief
    Special economic zones in Zambia and South Africa

    East Asia’s successful experience in accelerating the process of industrial development with SEZs paved way for the use of SEZs as policy instruments in Africa. In southern Africa, Zambia and South Africa instituted SEZs in legal and institutional...

    Research Brief
    Solutions for designing better special economic zones programmes in Africa

    Special economic zones (SEZ) in Africa are generally regarded as underperforming relative to their peers in the rest of the world. To explain this underperformance and to support success in the future it is important to analyse the key features and...

    Research Brief
    Turnin’ it up a notch

    Since the end of apartheid, South Africa’s economic challenges have disrupted efforts to establish a society of inclusive growth and prosperity. Understanding how South Africa can break the pattern of sluggish growth, high unemployment, inequality...

    Blog
    Solving the PhD puzzle: My experience as a visiting PhD Fellow
    Placeholder

    I am now in my fourth year as a PhD student in development studies at SOAS, University of London, working on my thesis, ‘The Dynamics of Chinese...

    Blog
    Book review of Resurgent Asia: Diversity in Development: Completing a trilogy on Asia’s transformation
    Placeholder

    Deepak Nayyar — economist, thinker, leading scholar — has written yet another splendid book. Resurgent Asia: Diversity in Development, together with...

    Research Brief
    Can trade in services bolster regional development in Southern Africa?

    Service exports are the fastest growing portion of world trade and now account for nearly a quarter of global exports. Tradable services contribute to economic growth and development by bolstering industrial capabilities, facilitating productivity...

    Research Brief
    Firms with high-growth episodes in South Africa

    The analysis of firm growth has been a topic of consistent economic interest as a growing body of literature has lent support to the possibility that the majority of growth and new employment creation is the result of a small sub-sector of high...

    Research Brief
    Dancing with dragons

    China’s growing edge in export manufacturing has caused concern for low-income and middle-income countries seeking to develop robust manufacturing sectors. China’s recent transition from an exporter of lower-tech goods, such as garments, to more...

    Blog
    Industrial policy in the 21st century: The challenge for Africa
    Placeholder

    Why is there so little industry in Africa? Does it matter? What can be done about it? These were questions I put to Finn Tarp and Louis Kasekende...

    Research Brief
    Deepening regional integration in Southern Africa

    Regional integration is making steady progress in Southern Africa, leading to the development of regional value chains (RVCs) that could strengthen the competitiveness of the region. Importantly, the development of RVCs also creates pressure for...

    Blog
    The ins and outs of African industrialization: UNU-WIDER provides open access to a wealth of information
    Placeholder

    The question ‘why is there so little industrialization in Africa?’ has been a key focus of UNU-WIDER researchers and research partners for the last...

    Displaying 16 of 74 results