Publications - Economic Governance

Mother and daughter are carrying a heavy load of beans

Policy Paper

What is “Country Ownership"? Do Social and Environmental Safeguards Destroy It?

January 26, 2012 - Do development institutions have a choice between safeguards and "country ownership”? The World Bank’s new lending instrument – the Program-for-Results – abandons binding safeguards in the name of “country ownership.” This paper asserts that both country ownership and safeguards are necessary to achieve development results. Nancy Alexander more»

Policy Paper

How Policymakers Can Help Firms Get Rights Right

 - January 27, 2012 - Susan Ariel Aaronson, Associate Research Professor of the Elliott School, George Washington University, underscores how firms often operate in states where human rights may not be respected. For these and other firms, the Guiding Principles (GP) on Business and Human Rights, adopted by the UN in 2011, delineate their human rights responsibilities. This paper identifies how policy-makers can help firms meet these responsibilities.   Susan Ariel Aaronson more»
Climate change causes Women's crisis

report

The Future We Want. A Feminist Perspective

 - January 26, 2012 - The multiple crises – the financial crash, hunger, climate change and resource scarcity – demonstrate emphatically that neoliberal market globalization cannot fulfill its promises: namely to bring about the optimal allocation of resources on the entire planet and thus be a win-win game for all. Christa Wichterich more»

Beyond the Public Eye: High-Level Panel on Infrastructure To Unveil its Recommendations for G20 Leaders

 - October 26, 2011 - On November 3-4, when the G20 Leaders gather for their Summit in Cannes, they will review recommendations from a High-Level Panel (HLP) on Infrastructure, which proposes a global process for scaling up and streamlining public-private partnerships (PPPs) for large-scale, regional infrastructure projects. This paper describes this top-down initiative, which is disconnected from efforts to promote sustainability and, instead, takes a “bigger is better” approach to development. Nancy Alexander more»
The Wheel of Life

Report

Wheel of Life - Food, Climate, Human Rights, and the Economy

- September 15, 2011 - The links between climate change and industrial agriculture create a nexus of crises—food insecurity, natural resource depletion and degradation, as well as human rights violations and inequities. This report unravels the interrelated causes of and effects on these issues. Debbie Barker more»

Article

The Position of IMF Managing Director

 - July 12, 2011 - Christine Lagarde is the first woman to head the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Undoubtedly, this is a step forward in the right direction, and would have been difficult to imagine only a few years ago. Barbara Unmüßig and Rainer Falk more»

Report

The G20: "Maestro" of the Development Finance World?

- June 21, 2011 - This paper describes the G20's Development Action Plan (DAP) to promote economic growth in some 80 low-income countries. The DAP would deploy existing bilateral and multilateral aid to offset risks to private investment in infrastructure and agriculture projects that promote regional integration. more»

Article

G20: Confusion About the Current Crisis

 - June 20, 2011 - This article on the G20 argues that, to date, the centers of capitalism are rejecting proposals which limit or meaningfully regulate excessive financial speculation. However, there are positive proposals, such as the Financial Transactions Tax (FTT), that may gain traction. Andrés Peñaloza Méndez and Manuel Pérez-Rocha more»

Report

The G20, Latin America, and the Future of Regional Integration

 - June 17, 2011 - This publication examines questions such as: What are the roles of Argentina, Brazil and Mexico in the G20?  What are the implications of the G20 agenda for Latin America relating to monetary policy; regulation of commodity speculation; employment and social protection; and trade integration? Nancy Alexander more»

Report

“Relevant” Regulation of Food Derivatives

 - April 7, 2011 -

This paper examines how the current WTO negotiations propose limits or disciplines on governmental regulations. The paper focuses on regulations that limit or discourage speculators from participating in commodity markets, which contributes to volatility in the prices of food commodities. To demonstrate this point, the paper presents a case study of a specific policy option for regulation of derivatives. It concludes with a description of options for resolving the ambiguity of selected disciplines.

Daniela Garretón, Mary Arutyunyan and Robert Stumberg more»

Policy paper

The World Bank's Proposed Program for Results (P4R)

 - April 7, 2011 - This paper critiques the World Bank's proposed Program for Results (P4R) instrument by examining protections of the environment and affected communities and control of corruption (Part I); the effectiveness of proposed mechanisms of accountability (Part II); and the integrity of the consultation process on the proposed P4R instrument (Part III). Part IV presents conclusions. Nancy Alexander more»

Report

Transatlantic Cooperation for Post-Crisis Financial Reform: To What End?

 - April 6, 2011 - This study examines the question: What are the key issues regarding financial regulation on which transatlantic cooperation (or lack of it) could have an impact? While global regulation of global financial markets can be important, for instance, to prevent arbitrage, it should not be seen as an end in and of itself.  Aldo Caliari more»

Needed: A True World Bank Development Report on Gender Equality

 - March 21, 2011 - It is certainly laudable that gender equality gets the serious consideration it deserves in the current international development discourse, and having a WDR exclusively focused on gender equality gives it yet another ‘stamp of approval’ of being an intrinsic development issue. Too bad, that the World Bank is not using this occasion to accompany the academic exercise internally with a serious reflection and reconsideration of the Bank’s own understanding of and approach to gender equality. Liane Schalatek more»
Waste water (dark areas in the center of the picture) from hog farm running off from the "spray field" (green field) into nearby creeks in eastern North Carolina. Picture by Anna Milena Jurca

Article

Our Daily Meat

 - March 15, 2011 -

Americans consumed 275lb of meat in 2010. That is more than 341 grams each day. Most Americans do not know - or care to know - where their daily meat comes from. The truth is: in the United States, 79% of pigs are raised on farms with 2,000 pigs or more. These factory farms promised better employment, affordable food for everybody and better, more efficient farming practices. They delivered the opposite.

Anna Milena Jurca and Lisa Grau more»

Film

This Land is Our Land

 - December 1, 2010 - For more than three decades, transnational corporations have been busy buying up what used to be known as the commons -- everything from our forests and our oceans to our broadcast airwaves and our most important intellectual and cultural works. more»

Newsletters

Foundation Newsletter and Resources on the G20

 - The Heinrich Böll Foundation publishes a monthly newsletter, the “G20 Update,” on the G20 Summit processes and outcomes with special emphasis on the contributions to the processes by civil society organizations (click here for the February 2012 issue. It also maintains a “drop box” of information and publications about the G20. more»

Article

Cooperation or Clash? G20 at a Crossroads

 - November 12, 2010 - Two years ago, the group of the world’s 20 major economies (the G20) announced their shared ambition: to manage the global economic crisis more efficiently and more transparently than the old industrialized nations (G8), and to prevent further financial market crises or economic downturns. Only two years later, the G20 now stands at a crossroads. At the Group’s summit meeting in Seoul on November 11 and 12, selfish interests may well gain the upper hand, pushing the group’s previous willingness to cooperate into the background. Barbara Unmüßig and Rainer Falk more»

Dossier

Official G20 Documents

- This dossier includes a) general information about the G20 Summit processes; b) official outcome documents of the G20 Development Working Group (as well as articles about these documents); and c) official outcome documents of G20 Summits. more»

Dossier

Civil Society Documents on the G20

 - This dossier features civil society documents on the G20 summits in Canada, South Korea and France. It will be updated frequently, so please check back for new materials. more»

Parliamentary Motion

More Market and More State – For Stable Financial Markets

 - October 27, 2010 - Under the heading “More market and more state – for stabile financial markets” the parliamentary group of German Alliance 90/The Greens this summer passed a comprehensive motion asking for a better regulation of financial markets and financial products. The motion demands a strengthening of supervision and banking regulation in order to allow market mechanisms to function again.  more»

More than an Add-on: the Centrality of Gender Equality for Development and Climate Solutions

- October 21, 2010 - Gender equality is highlighted as a special theme in the ongoing 16th round of replenishment talks for the World Bank Group’s International Development Association (IDA 16).   A discussion about gender equality at the World Bank group is not new. Since 2001, the World Bank has had an official gender mainstreaming strategy.  Yet there are some structural weaknesses in the way the World Bank addresses gender considerations that need to be overcome in order for IDA 16 to be able to contribute to gender-equitable development in the poorest developing countries.  Liane Schalatek more»

Article

Introduction to the G20

 - This article is a brief introduction to the G20 – its origin and power dynamic, membership, structure, mandate, and governance mechanisms for accountability. Nancy Alexander more»

Report

The Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) and Allocation of IDA Resources

 - August 16, 2010 - This paper recommends that the World Bank distribute its assistance to Africa in more equitable ways. On August 16, 2010, it was presented to the African Caucus of Finance Ministers, Central Bank Governors, and World Bank and IMF Executive Directors in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The Caucus established a Task Force to advocate that the World Bank implement the recommendations. Nancy Alexander more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #1

“Pre-established” Regulations and Financial Services

 - May 20, 2010 - The World Trade Organization is negotiating “disciplines” on domestic regulation, one of which requires regulations to be “pre-established.”  Established before what?  If this means, before government can apply regulations to an existing financial institution, the discipline would limit the government’s authority to change “too big to fail” policies or increase developmental lending mandates to serve businesses that are rural, small, or owned by women. Max Levin, Harrison Institute for Public Law more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #2

Plain Language Guide: GATS Negotiations on Domestic Regulation

 - May 20, 2010 - The World Trade Organization is negotiating “disciplines” on domestic regulation, which is essential for both development and environmental protection.  Often ambiguous, some of the draft disciplines can be interpreted as a radical departure from the practice of most nations.  They could change the course of regulation and development, particularly within federal systems and in small and vulnerable economies, where government systems are changing. Robert Stumberg, Harrison Institute for Public Law more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #3

The State of Play in GATS Negotiations: Are Developing Countries Benefiting?

 - As with many of the other WTO negotiating areas, talks on “trade in services” present serious challenges to developing countries. One challenge is the fact that – whereas tariffs are a primary barrier to trade in goods – domestic laws and regulations are the primary barrier to trade in services.   Hence, when governments make commitments to liberalize services in different sectors such as, energy, environment, basic services, domestic laws and regulations governing these services need to be re-examined to ensure that they do not conflict with WTO rules.
South Center more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #4

“Pre-established” Regulations and Development Permits

 - May 20, 2010 - The World Trade Organization is negotiating “disciplines” on domestic regulation, one of which requires regulations to be “pre-established.”  Established before what?  If this means, before a development permit is sought, the discipline would limit the government’s authority to change environmental or community impact standards before a permit is issued.  If so, this discipline could constrain changes in climate policy or environmental regulation of existing extraction industries. Loukas Kozonis, Harrison Institute for Public Law more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #5

Could a Foreign Investor Use GATS Disciplines in a BIT Claim?

- May 20, 2010 - The World Trade Organization is negotiating “disciplines” on domestic regulation that could be more powerful than negotiators realize.  They could transform the GATS, the General Agreement on Trade in Services, into the first trade agreement that foreign investors enforce through claims against governments for hundreds of millions of dollars.  If so, the magnitude of disputes could change the course of development for a small state or a vulnerable economy. Emily Sweeney-Samuelson and Solomon Ebere, Harrison Institute for Public Law more»

Trade and Investment Policy Paper #6

Free Trade Agreements Versus Bilateral Treaties

 - May 20, 2010 - The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the changes that are taking place in the international normative framework on investment through surveying the European Union and United States’ Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with developing countries. more»

Policy Paper

The World Bank Reboots

 - May 10, 2010 - The World Bank’s Investment Lending Reforms (ILR) will significantly shift the way in which the institution operates.  This re-issued paper contains updated information on the reforms and the implications of these reforms for people and the environment in recipient countries. Nancy Alexander more»

report

Are the World Bank’s Anti-Corruption Efforts Corrupted?

 - April 21, 2010 - In 2009, the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) released an unprecedented 700-page evaluation which found evidence that the institution is failing to adequately address the risks of fraud and corruption in its assistance programs. Nancy Alexander, Beatrice Edwards and Bruce Rich more»

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Standing in the Way of Development?

 - Between January 2007 and June 2009, the IMF claims that it was more flexible in terms of providing greater policy space to low-income countries to boost spending in the face of fuel, food and financing crises.  To examine this claim, scholars at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) examined the empirical evidence in 13 countries.  Learn about their findings in this report. Bhumika Muchhala, Nuria Molina and Nancy Alexander more»

article

The case for a green economy that works for all

 - According to an estimate of the U.S. Congressional Research Service, the global financial crisis destroyed 40% of the world’s GDP. Since then, stock indices show a significant recovery of the lost wealth; however, analyses are likely to show that, on the whole, the response to the crisis (government stimulus packages and especially bank bail-outs of worldwide estimated $14 trillion) redistributed wealth upward. In the U.S., unemployment has exceeded the 10% mark and one out of every nine people receives food stamps. By Klaus Linsenmeier more»

Article

Limits to Growth in China, too

 - July 2009
With its gigantic domestic market, its allure to foreign investors, and the world’s largest currency reserve, China should be better prepared to weather the financial crisis than other emerging markets. Yet China’s exports account for 40 percent of its GDP and it has thus been deeply impacted by the worldwide recession, especially by the drop in U.S. demand By Barbara Unmüßig more»

report

G 20 and the Bretton Woods Institutions: Don't just give them more money, fundamentally reform them!

 - April 2009
Following the G20 Summit, a commentary by Heinrich Böll Founddation Co-President Barbara Unmüßig and Korinna Horta from the Environmental Defense Fund argues that the G20 missed an opportunity to fundamentally reform the Bretton Woods Institutions and to steer them toward a global course that would tackle the global financial crisis and the global climate crisis together. By Korinna Horta and Barbara Unmüßig more»

policy Paper

Gender Implications of the Financial Crisis in the United States

 - August 2009
"The United States is a women’s success story in many ways... Yet for the past two decades at least, policies in other countries are catching up with and exceeding those in the United States, so that we can no longer consider ourselves the leader in women’s achievement or economic well-being." By Heidi Hartmann, Institute for Women's Policy Research more»
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