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Publications (60)
The UNU-WIDER research programme on foreign aid (ReCom) began in 2010, in a period of strong aid scepticism. Dambisa Moyo’s well-known book, Dead Aid (2009), is just one example. The aid sceptics of the twenty-first century maintained that since economists could not find an aggregate relationship...
Blog
In academic discourse, it has become almost ritualistic to begin a piece on foreign aid by highlighting the sharp controversies over its effectiveness as a tool to promote social and economic progress in developing countries. This has happened even though evaluations of development aid at project...
Blog
– The Role for Aid in Africa
Aid’s future, its history, and its impact were the topics of a policy workshop held by UNU-WIDER in co-operation with the Embassy of Denmark in Dar es Salaam on 8 June. The Dar symposium brought together a range of international and local participants, including donors and policy makers, and was...
Blog
Just over a year ago, in March 2014, UNU-WIDER published a report entitled: What do we know about aid as we approach 2015? It notes the many successes of aid in a variety of sectors, and that in order to remain relevant and effective beyond 2015 aid must learn to deal with, amongst other things, the...
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Climate change adaptation funding is frequently characterized as reparations or compensation for costs imposed by historical emissions. This characterization derives from the ‘polluter pays’ principle. The flows associated with climate finance are thus frequently conceived of as payments owed that...
Blog
I’m writing this editorial from Dar es Salaam, while at the 20th anniversary workshop for Tanzania’s REPOA, one of our research partners. UNU-WIDER has been active in the African development debate throughout its 30 years, and our engagement has deepened even more over the last five years. Finn Tarp...
Blog
We are now into 2015, and the year is already gathering speed. 2015 is of course the 70th anniversary of the United Nations, and a major year in global development with the conclusion of the MDG process, and the start of a new chapter with the SDGs. For UNU-WIDER it is the year of our 30th...
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26 March 2014 Finn Tarp Foreign aid is often seen as different from other forms of investment, and some argue that rather than having a positive effect it tends to distort economies and may potentially slow growth and development. UNU-WIDER research shows that foreign aid has had a positive effect...
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21 February 2014 Rachel M. Gisselquist Earlier this month, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof published a scathing critique of the role of academics in public debate. ‘Professors, We Need You!’ he moaned, noting that ‘some of the smartest thinkers on problems at home and around the world are...
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28 January 2014 Tony Addison As we near the end of the second month of 2014, I fear already that this year is going to go in a flash. Certainly 2013 whizzed by for UNU-WIDER with all the events, publications (including 144 working papers), and then the 2013 Global Go-To Think Tanks Report—which...
Blog
28 February 2014 In this interview Sam Jones summarizes the findings of original UNU-WIDER work on the impact of aid on growth. Using data covering longer time frames, the overall picture is that aid amounting to 10% of GDP can, on average, lead to 1% higher GDP. Drawing on his experience of...
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10 December 2013 Tony Addison Our November-December Angle comes amid intense activity on our ReCom—Research and Communication on Foreign Aid—programme, which is drawing to a close. We also have the last of our ReCom results meetings, on the theme ‘Aid for Gender Equality’, taking place in Copenhagen...
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31 October 2013 Tony Addison October finds Angle in New York, for our event on ‘Fragility and Aid–What Works?’ at the Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN. Just before that we were in Copenhagen for the ReCom results meeting on ‘Challenges in Fragility and Governance’. At both meetings we met a...
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24 September 2013 Tony Addison As Helsinki moves into a crisp sunny autumn, Angle brings you news of two big UNU-WIDER events. ‘Egalitarian Principles: The Foundation for Sustainable Peace’ was the topic of the 17th WIDER annual lecture, given by former President of Finland and Nobel Peace Prize...
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22 August 2013 Tony Addison Angle returns from its Nordic summer break, to bring you more news and results from UNU-WIDER’s programme. Coming up in September is the WIDER Annual Lecture, given this year by President and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Martti Ahtisaari, on 'Egalitarian principles – the...
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– An Interview with Wisdom Akpalu
29 August 2013 Carl-Gustav Lindén Since 1997 the University of Gothenburg, Sweden has been running a unique PhD programme on environmental and development economics with a large participation of graduate students from developing countries. This long-term capacity-building programme has been financed...
Displaying 16 of 60 results