The Complexities of Mediating African Conflicts: Insights from Paul-Simon Handy

China’s economy grew by 4.7% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024, after 5.3% in the first quarter of the year (Figure 1). As in 2023, the official target has been set at 5% for 2024 (Figure 2). Naturally, great attention has been paid to the decisions of the Third Plenum of the 20th Communist Party of China Party Congress on July 15-18, a four-day meeting in which the country’s leadership sets out the direction of economic policy. The last such event was held in 2018. Do ...

This paper was originally published in Project Syndicate   Fourteen high-income countries have shown how immigration can help offset declining fertility rates and maintain population levels. But with anti-immigrant sentiment on the rise, politicians in these countries face a difficult choice: welcoming foreigners or facing the economic challenges brought about by an aging population. WASHINGTON, DC – Populations around the world are aging, as mortality and fertility rates fall. Wh ...

Millions are severely malnourished in a world where there is enough for all. Hunger and malnutrition stalk more than 3.1 billion people. Yet, widespread hunger in all its forms is a problem which has been largely solved at the macro level in today’s high-income, industrialized countries. Their “escape from hunger and premature death” is a fairly recent phenomenon. It began around 300 years ago, continued for most of the 20th century and is still ongoing today. The problems faced by ...

This paper was originally published in idos-research.de   The early 1960s can be regarded as the “Big Bang” for international cooperation and development policy. The US was pushing an international system to support developing countries, and in 1961, it established the US Agency for International Development (USAID). The same year saw the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) set up its Development Assistance Committee (DAC). Germany’s post-WWII engagement ...

Venezuela holds crucial presidential elections on July 28. The results might substantially alter the political system in that country, since, for the first time since 1998, the opposition candidate has a clear chance of winning the vote. Why has the opposition been unable to win elections in that country for almost three decades now? And why is it on the verge of winning elections this time? What is the international dimension of this electoral process? How might it impact Morocco? ...

Avec un chiffre d’Affaires en hausse de 50 % par rapport à 2022, l’industrie pharmaceutique au Maroc a connu une année record en 2023. Cette étude est consacrée à l’une des trois composantes de ce secteur :la composante industrielle. Elle regroupe 50 Établissements pharmaceutiques industriels (EPI). (Source : la Direction des médicaments et de la pharmacie (DMP). L’analyse de chacun de ces EPI met en évidence un écosystème, amorcé dès 1933 avec la création de Pharma-Coo ...

In January 2024, gunmen invaded a TV studio in Ecuador, seized journalists and staff as hostages, and interrupted the regular programs. That episode highlighted the rise of violence in Ecuador, a country that was until very recently calm and peaceful. In this paper, I place the rise of violence in Ecuador within the context of what some refer to as the endemic violence in Latin America. I explore its risks, consequences, and the ways it could be tackled. I also emphasize some of the ...