Forum for the Future of Aid - Aid Architecture

Entre la realidad y el sueño: una arquitectura financiera sudamericana

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:47:49 +0000

Autor: Oscar Ugarteche

[Introducción]: En diciembre de 2007, los presidentes de Argentina, Brasil, Venezuela, Ecuador, Uruguay y Paraguay anunciaron la creación del Banco del Sur, con un capital inicial de 10.000 millones de dólares. La iniciativa forma parte de los esfuerzos para avanzar en la construcción de una arquitectura financiera sudamericana que, además, incluya una unidad monetaria. El artículo analiza los problemas que ya han comenzado a aparecer, vinculados a las asimetrías entre los países de la región, y sugiere mirar los ejemplos de Asia y Europa para encontrar un camino adecuado que permita avanzar en la articulación financiera de la región.

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South Bulletin: Reflections and Foresights

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:41:34 +0000

South Centre, September 2008

This Issue of the South Bulletin reflects upon the Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness that took place in Accra, Ghana from 2-4 September and prepares its readers for the upcoming Monterrey review conference on Financing for Development that takes place in Doha, Qatar in end-November.
On its editorial article Yash Tandon reflects upon the Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness that took place in Accra from 2-4 September 2008 - the follow-up and evaluation of the Paris Declaration. He states that the present chaotic situation of the aid industry is a better option for the poor countries than the anticipated order of the AAA, while the best option is to get out of aid dependence.
Analysis and commentaries appearing in the Bulletin, include on Enhanced Financial Mechanism for UNFCCC: The G77 Proposal; Financing for Development from Monterrey to Doha; Keeping Developing Countries Hooked on the Aid Drug; Food Crisis in India; and Let us not Build the EPA in the Graveyard of Regionalism.

Southern discomfort

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:28:55 +0000

By Yash Tandon

While the governments of rich nations want to streamline their global-development efforts in the OECD context, those of many developing countries are less enthusiastic. Some experts even view the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (PD) as a document of new colonialist aspirations, and doubt the OECD High Level Forum in Accra in September will achieve much good.
Along the article, Yash Tandon exposes the resons why developing countries are not at all exited about the PD. He stresses that while at first glance, the PD looks benign, underlying the PD could be another agenda not readily transparent at first reading

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OMC: Una ronda para el desarrollo… ¿de los países en desarrollo? ¿O de quién?

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 17:58:39 +0100

Autor: Oriana Suárez, LATINIDADD

Desde 2001 se inició la Ronda Doha que tenía como uno de los objetivos convertirse en “la ronda del desarrollo”, para conseguir beneficios para los países más pobres. Los países desarrollados (PD) consideraron que la mejor manera de apoyar a los países en desarrollo (PED) era generar mecanismos para un comercio mundial más libre al que tuvieran acceso. Sin embargo, la Ronda lleva estancada varios años porque no ha logrado conciliar los intereses de los países industrializados y los países en desarrollo.
El aparente fracaso de la ronda de Doha evidencia una reconfiguración de poderes mundiales, con EEUU y la Unión Europea por un lado, y la aparición de las economías emergentes que han logrado un contrapeso a los intereses del norte, en pos de incorporar en algo las necesidades del sur.
El presente articulo hace un repaso del desenvolvimiento de las negociaciones hasta la fecha, haciendo hincapié en la falta de interés en concensuar y la falta de voluntad para que esta sea efectivamente una ronda para los PED.

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Bretton Woods institutions send mixed messages about China’s role in Africa

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 16:26:21 +0100

By Bank Information Centre (BIC)

[Introduction]: Since the Chinese economy has taken off and it has increasingly looked to Africa to provide raw materials, the World Bank and IMF have been confronted with the question of how to respond. Recent statements by the institutions have shown that these responses are careful and at times contradictory.
This article comments on the position taken by the WB and the IMF on the increasing presence of Chinese investment in Africa.

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After the Paris Declaration: Taking on the Issue of Power

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:46:33 +0100

By Goran Hyden

[Abstract]: The new approach to assisting developing countries inspired by the Paris Declaration emphasises greater recipient control over the funds provided, thus confining donors’ influence to upstream points in the policy process, where political aspects of development co-operation become more important. Understanding better the role that power plays in the aid relationship will be critical to the implementation of the Declaration. This article shows how the political science literature can inform this set of issues. It argues that an understanding of aspects of power illuminates the challenges involved in transforming relations between donors and recipient governments as well as between governments and civil society organisations.

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Unity In Diversity: Governance Adaptation In Multilateral Trade Institutions Through South-South Coalition-Building

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:41:25 +0100

By Vicente Paolo B. Yu III

This paper discusses the ways in which developing countries participate in the institutional governance mechanisms of the WTO and UNCTAD, the two premier multilateral trade governance institutions.
The current global trading system exemplifies “some historical and structural inequities” in which the rules are “less advantageous for developing countries.” Changing the rules of the trading game to make them more equitable and capable of supporting developing countries’ development interests will require addressing the flaws in the institutional architecture which shapes and implements those rules.
The experience of developing countries, individually and collectively, during the more recent period of globalization has only confirmed that developing countries need to be consistent and united in promoting their views and interests, and that to succeed it is also essential for them to join forces and pursue group action in most domains on the development agenda. With a number of developing countries having made important progress and strides in development and economic growth, the collective weight of the South should be used for launching major policy initiatives, as well as to counter the systemic economic and political imbalances that favour the developed countries.

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Critical Conditions

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:30:52 +0100

By Nuria Molina and Javier Pereira

[ExecutiveSummary]: Faced with strong criticism for its expansive and erroneous use of conditionality, and in the wake of a financial crisis, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved in 2002 a set of guidelines to inform its use of structural conditionality. The Conditionality Guidelines committed the Fund to reduce the overall number of conditions attached to Fund lending and ensure that those attached respected and were drawn from nationally developed poverty plans in recognitions that developing country ownership is instrumental for successful development.
This report looks at the effectiveness of the Conditionality Guidelines in reforming IMF conditionality during the five years since the Guidelines were approved. Based on IMF figures, Eurodad examines the share of Fund structural conditions which prescribe highly sensitive and intrusive policy reforms.
This report analyses the IMF’s own figures to demonstrate that no further progress has been made since 2004, and casts serious doubts about the genuine commitment of the institution to streamlining its structural conditionality and speed up the application of their own conditionality policy. Faced with in-depth structural reforms of its own, the Fund should take this opportunity to speed up implementation of their Conditionality Guidelines and take further steps in the streamlining initiative.

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Reflexiones sobre la Cooperación Internacional

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:01:38 +0100

By LATINIDADD

El presente artículo hace una revisión de la cooperación internacional haciendo referencia a la calidad, cantidad y modalidad de la ayuda extranjera. El artículo enfatiza que aunque se han dado algunos pasos, todavía la cantidad y la calidad de la ayuda están muy lejos de ser suficientes para alcanzar los ODM y otras metas sociales y de desarrollo. Asimismo, la ayuda para el desarrollo se ha estado dando principalmente en forma de alivio de deuda y no como una transferencia de recursos frescos.

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Closing all Paths to Trade-led Development? The IMF Revises Guiding Principles on Surveillance

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:56:31 +0100

By Aldo Caliari

In June 2007, after over one year of review, the Fund modified its main guidelines on the implementation of Article IV of its Articles of Agreement. The guidelines, issued originally in 1977, regulated the Fund’s role in exercising surveillance over the exchange rate policies of member countries.
The group of G24 (group of developing country members in the IMF) expressed to be "especially concerned that expanding the principles for the guidance of members in the Decision would blur the distinction between surveillance over exchange rate policies and over domestic policies”

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Will Doha, like Dracula, Come Back from the Dead?

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:38:13 +0100

By Walden Bello and Mary Lou Malig

This article presents an overview of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiation rounds, posting a question on whether the most recent “mini-ministerial” gathering in Geneva could mean the final collapse of the Doha Round of trade negotiations.
From the Uruguay Round to the current Doha Round, WTO negotiation rounds have been failing to address the interest of developing countries in favour of developed countries. Developing countries had come to the realization that they had bargained away significant space for development and thus they are in no mood to agree in more concessions to liberalize global trade, as the big trading powers demanded. While the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) have not showed willingness to give more than minor concessions on agricultural subsidies, different alliances have been formed by Developing countries (G20, G33 and G90) to resist pressures to open up their industrial sectors and services.
In this sense, the authors stress that the “Doha Development Round,” seems to have little to do with development and everything to do with expanding developed country access to developing country markets.

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Good intentions aren’t enough (disponible también en Español)

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:14:38 +0100

By Javier Gomez Aguilar and Juan Luis Espada Vedia

Just over six years since this Monterrey Consensus (MC), only weak and limited results have been achieved, given that the Millennium Development Goals are far from being reached by 2010 and that the financial fragility and vulnerability of our countries has again been brought to light in the last few years. This is made even more notorious due to the economic disturbances generated by the bigger world economies. Within this framework, it is important to note that the MC actions are not based on principals or axes which differ from the current development model. Neither does the mobility of resources that the MC promotes prioritize the financial strengthening of our States for their autonomous management. Rather they aim to generate conditions so as these States are receptors of transnational capital and that the “goodness” of international trade only deepens economic and social concentration and differentiation.
This article explores the economic model in Latin America and the mechanism for the mobilization of internal resource and international financial resources. It also presents critics and recommendations around issues related with International Aid, Debt, International trade and the Reform of the international financial system.

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Hacia una estructura financiera regional

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 13:35:15 +0100

Autor: Dr Oscar Ugarteche

La arquitectura financiera internacional está sufriendo cambios importantes. Hay debates que se llevan a cabo en Asia y América Latina, además de Europa y medio oriente, sobre la importancia y relevancia de las instituciones financieras regionales dada la debilidad del dólar norteamericano, la inutilidad de las instituciones financieras internacionales (IFIs) y la muy urgente necesidad de tener instituciones más cercanas a la población, más democráticas y transparentes, y que estén menos sujetas a las agendas de un gobierno.
Para algunos es un complemento para las IFIs, para otros es un cambio de rumbo. La evidencia apunta en la dirección de un gran cambio alejándose de las instituciones centradas en Washington que se han debilitado, perdido ingresos, credibilidad y legitimidad.
El autor hace una revisión de las más relevantes iniciativas que aparecieron como alternativa a las IFIs: la Iniciativa Chiang Mai en Asia, el Banco del Sur y las propuestas de regionalización en Latino América y la ampliación de la Unión Europea

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Donors putting brakes on aid effectiveness?

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:14:33 +0100

Source: EURODAD

Representatives from developing country governments, donors and CSOs converged in Paris to discuss the recently released Accra Agenda for Action (AAA). The outcome has been concern among CSOs about the very weak commitments being proposed by donors while recipient countries would like to see commitments translated into action. The general claim was that the current draft of he AAA needs to be substantially strengthened if it is going to attract the high level Ministerial attendance that the aid reform process demands.
Concerns about the current draft of the AAA in were mainly related with the principle of democratic ownership, which must be included as a fundamental element of aid effectiveness and the lack of an explicit commitment to greater transparency. Additionally, they stressed three specific issues that need to be emphasised in the AAA: Conditionality; technical assistance; and tied aid.

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Alternative financing for development: Venezuela and ALBA

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:02:44 +0100

By Alejandro Bendana, ALAI (Agencia Latinoamericana de Información)

This opinion paper is critical about the role of aid and it claims that it generates dependence and inequality. It upholds the idea that it is not a question of making the present "aid" modalities more effective, but of substituting present aid system.
As an alternative to the present development order, the paper introduces the Venezuelan led international collaboration scheme known as ALBA (Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas), which pursues a new form of regional integration and greater political unity in order to achieve independent development. The ALBA Bank (created in early 2008) constitutes another piece in the construction of an alternative international economic order.
The author discusses the implications of the ALBA Bank in terms of the 2008 Aid Effectiveness Debate (Accra, 2008) and Financing for Development (Doha, Sep 2008). He stresses that it is not possible to talk about effectiveness in the context of aid used as an instrument of security and foreign policy goals. In this sense, he considers essential to denounce in the debate the failure of the international aid system. Regarding Finance for Development, the author considers the meeting should help to better identify and challenge the international impediments that stand in the way of domestic accumulation and its domestic mobilisation.
According to the author there is a need for a new development model for aid based on solidarity.

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