Who’s Blowing Smoke on Energy Poverty and the Global Disease Burden?
4/30/13
Me, perhaps. In my last post on why President Obama should make electricity his signature Africa policy initiative, I claimed:
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CGD Policy Blogs
Will the United States Be Able to Go Big on the African Development Fund This Year?
3/19/13
Will donors be able to “go big” on the African Development Fund (AfDF) this year, even if they want to? Here in the United States, budget austerity and restrictive funding rules stack the deck against any bold moves when it comes to multilateral contributions. But I think boldness in support of smart multilateral investments like AfDF may still be possible, and the United Kingdom’s multilateral aid review just might offer some clues on how to get there.
Interview with WTO Candidate Alan Kyerematen
3/12/13
My guest on this Wonkcast is Alan Kyerematen, Ghana's former Minister of Trade, Industry and President’s Special Initiatives and one of nine candidates to be the next head of the World Trade Organization (WTO). In our interview, Minister Kyerematen tells me he possesses the skills and vision needed to lead the WTO.
Is Agribusiness the Key to Africa’s Growth?
3/11/13
Today, the World Bank launched a new report, "Growing Africa: Unlocking the Potential of Agribusiness." The report argues that agriculture and agribusiness should be at the top of the development and business agenda in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Bank is right to emphasize this issue--of the $25 billion of food that African countries import annually, only $1 billion comes from other African countries. The report offers a clear and well-researched exposition of the state and prospects of African agribusiness. It is broad in scope, encompassing agricultural production and upstream input markets as well as supply chains and agro-processing.
Smoke Signals from Manila?
3/8/13
Morris, a newly arrived CGD visiting policy fellow, was previously the deputy assistant secretary for development finance and debt at the U.S. Treasury Department, where he led US engagement with the multilateral development banks.
Send an Ambassador, Not an Envoy, to Khartoum
3/1/13
This week marks what some consider the tenth anniversary of the conflict in Darfur. Sadly, this is not the only conflict still ravaging the people of Sudan and South Sudan. As the White House is preparing to name the United States’ seventh special envoy to Sudan and South Sudan in the last 12 years, I believe it’s time for a different approach to US policy, one that puts the central governance challenges in each state at the forefront.
Three Reasons Why Electricity Should Be President Obama’s Legacy in Africa
2/26/13
A month after the inauguration, it’s not too early for the White House to start thinking about legacies. President Obama will surely want some signature development achievement that will outlive his Administration and help, in the public mind, to solidify the connections between Africa and the American people. To be worthy of a US President, and especially one with a family connection to the continent, it has to be something great. Bill Clinton has AGOA. George W.
Mali Folly: Three Mistakes the US Should Avoid Repeating
2/21/13
This post loosely based on my comments at the “Crisis in Mali and North Africa: Regional Dynamics and International Priorities” event at the Brookings Institution on February 6.
A New Liquidity Fund for Latin America -- Liliana Rojas Suarez
2/11/13
In December, members of the Latin American Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee (CLAAF) convened at CGD to discuss global financial and monetary developments affecting Latin America. The CLAAF, which meets here twice a year, usually offers policy and regulatory recommendations for finance ministers. central bankers and financial regulators in the region. This time the committee proposed something quite different: the five-page statement CLAAF issued after two days of deliberation recommended the creation of a new regional financial institution—a Latin American Liquidity Fund, to supplement the efforts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) when the next global financial crisis hits.
It’s (Still) Time to Try Something New to Pressure Assad in Syria
4/16/12
This is a joint post with Kimberly Elliott
The April 12 deadline for a complete ceasefire in Syria seems to have slightly damped the violence in Syria for now, but alone it will do nothing to ensure a peaceful transition to a democratic government. President Bashar Assad’s government is still not complying with other parts of the UN brokered peace plan aimed at ending more than a year of deadly violence, and world leaders are insisting that a credible political transition must take place quickly for this fragile progress to hold any weight.