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

 

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Securing a future for the next generations – navigating today’s global challenges

by Frederik Matthys
In an era frequently described as ‘unprecedented’, the global landscape often seems daunting. Countries classified as democracies are increasingly outnumbered by those classified as autocracies, interstate conflicts have escalated, and the multifaceted impacts of climate change—from health crises to forced displacement—continue to intensify. Meanwhile, gender inequality persists, progress in poverty and inequality reduction has stalled, or even reversed in some contexts, and multilateral co...

Quantifying the economic impact of conflict traps

by Joan Margalef
As we look towards securing a brighter future for coming generations, we must address the complex challenges that threaten sustainable development and global stability. Among these challenges, conflict stands out as a particularly destructive one. In our latest research, we find that a country that falls into conflict is expected to lose 20% of its GDP per capita after 30 years, compared to if it had always been at peace. Even for small countries, this represents a substantial economic loss...

What are foresight methods and how can they secure our common futures?

by Aicha Robei
Future tools and foresight thinking are crucial instruments to improve decision-making for a common future. As a Youth Foresight Fellow with UNICEF, I firmly believe that utilizing foresight, a sophisticated approach for anticipation and strategic planning, is essential in tackling and lessening the impacts of climate change, conflict, and inequality.Foresight allows us to think about the speculated future based on models and data to solve problems and chart a path to a prosperous and nurturing...

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    Blog
    How India’s economy has fared under ten years of Narendra Modi
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    More than 960 million Indians will head to the polls in the world’s biggest election between April 19 and early June. The ruling Bharatiya Janata...

    Blog
    Affirmative action in Brazil’s higher education system

    Evidence from Brazil shows how affirmative action students in the higher education system adjust their behaviour to catch up with initially higher...

    Blog
    The poorest countries attract few foreign investments
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    The share of the least developed countries (LDCs) in global foreign investments is less than one percent. But positive developments have taken place...

    Policy Brief
    How to create decent work for women

    Despite advancements for gender equality in some spheres, labour market outcomes for women continue to be worse than for men. Gender gaps in pay, labour force participation rates, and measures of job quality are stubbornly persistent and continue to...

    Blog
    Cash Plus: Towards poverty reduction in Zambia
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    The Zambian government wants to reduce poverty by 20% by 2030. To make this happen, the government reformed their national cash transfer programmes...

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    Affirmative action policies to increase diversity are successful, but controversial, around the world

    In a landmark judgment in June 2023, the US Supreme Court ruled against the use of race-conscious admissions in colleges and universities. This...

    Blog
    Gender pay gaps on the rise in South Africa

    New analysis of income data in South Africa shows the gender pay gap—how much more men earn than women—has increased. According to findings from a...

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    Improving early child development outcomes in low-income settings

    Improving early child development outcomes in low-income settings requires affordable, sustainable, and easily scalable solutions. The “First Steps”...

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    Realizing socioeconomic rights with a limited budget
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    The South African constitution is considered progressive and transformative in intention due to its inclusion of socioeconomic rights, such as the...

    Policy Brief
    Tasks, skills, and institutions

    Concerns about widening income inequality within countries continue to gain prominence in public debate worldwide. In the last decade, attention to the concentration of income at the very top of the distribution (top 1%) has increased. This...

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    On the road to fairer societies in Asia and the Pacific region: Four focus areas on center stage

    A recent panel discussion at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) in Bangkok set out to identify policy...

    Blog
    Will growth be enough to end poverty?: New Projections of the UN Sustainable Development Goals

    Today, October 17th is the UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (you already knew that, right?). In new analysis for UNU-WIDER, we...

    Research Brief
    Cart with collected items on the street. Photo by Gio Almonte on Unsplash
    Will the poverty-related SDGs be met? Global projections for 2030
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    SOUTHMOD family extended: Welcome to the three new Latin American teams

    How would progressive income taxation affect income inequality in Bolivia? What are the costs and benefits of implementing a state pension in Colombia...

    Research Brief
    Perceptions of inequality among young adults in Mozambique
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    The Great Gatsby Curve and the Global South: Time for a more ambitious redistribution and reparations agenda

    The famous 1920s book The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is the classic analogy for the American dream of meritocracy —that any person can...

    Blog
    The richer your neighbours, the more you borrow – the case of South Africa
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    Research on how income inequality affects borrowing behaviour reignited after the 2008 global recession. One prevailing theory is that rising income...

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    Four global problems that will be aggravated by the UK’s recent cuts to international aid

    UK economic forecasts have improved markedly since the September 2022 mini-budget. The economic recession may now be more shallow and public borrowing...

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    Is a strong middle class the secret to high levels of human development?

    Many countries today experience increasing or persistent income inequality, a major concern for citizens and politicians alike. This concern is...

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    Direct support to small scale farmers reduces poverty: What Zambia is doing right

    Over half of Zambia’s population lived below the national poverty line in 2015. In rural areas, where 89% of households are engaged in agriculture...

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    Social mobility among disadvantaged groups in India

    In recent decades, India has experienced rapid economic growth alongside radical affirmative action programs enacted since independence. This column...

    Blog
    In memory of Martin Ravallion: A global leader in development economics

    (19 March 1952 – 24 December 2022) It is with the greatest sadness and a deep sense of grief and shock that we received the news of the passing of...

    Blog
    New global estimates on profits in tax havens suggest the tax loss continues to rise

    The world has been trying to curb profit shifting to tax havens for a decade, but consistent time series evaluating the impact of these reforms have...

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    New country on the SOUTHMOD map: Meet our tax-benefit microsimulation team in Rwanda!
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    How can Global South countries improve their tax and social protection systems? One way is to take advantage of tools that help assess the impact of...

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    Not too long and not too short: Introducing the new UNU-WIDER and Cambridge University Press series in Development Economics

    Simon Kuznets’ pipe dream was to have economic inequality data that rarely existed when he was writing. What are the pipe dreams of today’s...

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    The inheritance of human capital: Rethinking how much parents’ influence children’s human capital in low- and middle-income countries
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    The measure of human capital —the economic value of one’s skills and experience— acknowledges that investments in people’s cognitive and emotional...

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    Reducing inequality — the great challenge of our time
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    Early in October 2022, international and Colombian researchers gathered together for three days at the UNIANDES campus, located at the foot of the...

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    Report from the WIDER Development Conference on reducing inequality
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    For several decades, UNU-WIDER has actively worked on pathfinding and groundbreaking research on inequalities. We host one of the most extensive...

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    Urban poverty: cities, slums, and the need for policy action

    Developing countries will be predominantly urban by 2030. While urbanization is historically associated with development and broad-based social...

    Policy Brief
    Inequality is not an inevitable consequence of economic development
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    Want to catch up on UNU-WIDER research? Here are 10 of the most interesting papers published over the last year
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    In this blog, the managing editor of the WIDERAngle shares his personal view on some of the most important —and potentially overlooked— work recently...

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    Behind the scenes: Meet our tax-benefit microsimulation team in Viet Nam!
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    How can Vietnamese policymakers improve their policy choices related to social protection and tax policies? Who are the experts providing evidence on...

    Displaying 32 of 366 results