Helmut Sorge
| Posted : December 27, 2021
In life, all forests seem magical, feels Thoralya Dyer, an Australian writer. Dwarfs and ghosts floating above the autumn leaves; Robin Hood, the British cult figure, hiding in a tree trunk in a forest of the king of England, who controls all 'nature's treasures; deer and mushrooms included, bees and Oaktree's, you name it. There is hardly any culture, which does not celebrate the mystery of trees; planks of wood allowed Columbus to discover America. Cedar built Noah's arch to save the animal kingdom if you believe Lebanese tales, and with Cedarwood Solomon's biblical temple was erected and turned into a never ending saga. A million, perhaps two million years ago, the homo Erectus discovered how to light a fire by rubbing stones, and that was it. Forever forests were massacred to make room for grazing animals and crop- the feet of Cowboys warmed by the campfire, Indians on the warpath communicating with smoke signals; boy scouts holding hands around the bonfire, singing to a guitar “a world so full of love”, while Hitler's followers of a hellish Aryan Fata Morgana were burning. in May 1933, books, written by Jewish authors like Thomas Mann, Karl Marx, Albert Einstein, Erich Maria Remarque, Sigmund Freud, Franz Kafka, and Heinrich Heine, who warned the world in his play Almansor (1820),” where they burn books, they also ultimately will burn people.”
Francis Perrin
| Posted : December 24, 2021
En dépit de toutes les critiques contre les énergies fossiles au niveau international, plusieurs projets pétroliers et gaziers continuent à être lancés et à progresser en vue de prochaines mises en production. L’Afrique ne fait pas exception à la règle, bien au contraire. Des projets pétroliers importants sont ainsi en cours de développement dans plusieurs pays du continent et, pour au moins trois d’entre eux, le compte à rebours est bien engagé. Nous évoquerons dans cette Opinion les cas de la Côte d’Ivoire, du Sénégal et de l’Ouganda (voir sur ce site internet les Opinions en date du 27 septembre et du 18 octobre 2021).
Ahmed Ouhnini
| Posted : December 21, 2021
The Policy Center for The New South (PCNS) joined an inter-institutional effort between the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in an international research project called ‘’Purpose-driven companies and the regulation of the Fourth Sector in Ibero-America’’. As this project grew to cover countries outside of Ibero-America, the PCNS was invited to write a chapter about the Moroccan jurisdiction.
Helmut Sorge
| Posted : December 21, 2021
Simon Kofe, the Foreign Minister in charge of Communication and Justice of Tuvalu, a 25.9 square miles’ nation located in the South Pacific, was standing at the podium in suit and tie. But when he rolled up his trouser, he was barefoot, feeling white sand under his feet, the warm, sparkling clear water up to his knees. A PR stunt filmed at the far end of Fongafate, the primary islet of the capital Funafuti.
Morten Seja* , Omair Azam , Charlie Knight , Hadley Hilgenhurst
| Posted : December 20, 2021
A Case for Regulators to Green Financial Inclusion
Financial Inclusion is an Excellent Tool for Combating Poverty
It is well known that supporting financial inclusion is a relevant tool in lifting people out of poverty. There is plenty of empirical evidence showing that financial inclusion significantly reduces poverty and income inequality in developing countries. Concerted efforts to support financial inclusion globally have existed since the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) started doing so in the 1990s. Many people became aware of the power of providing access to financial services in eradicating poverty since Muhammed Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his pioneering work in financial inclusion in Bangladesh.
Helmut Sorge
| Posted : December 15, 2021
How do you treat a brutal dictator who had lost power after 42 years, hiding in a drainpipe, after his convoy was attacked by fighter jets from the air? It was a bloody mess and not a pretty scene. The dictator had a few seconds to beg for his life, “what did I do to you», he gasped reported the London Guardian on October 22, 2011, and then his turbulent life came to an end, shot with a pistol. Triumphantly his assassin raised Gaddafi’s golden revolver -- a few minutes of global fame, later, the shadow of death touched the rebel as well.
Sabine Cessou
| Posted : December 13, 2021
This political analyst, expert in security issues and international development, describes her personality as « down to earth, curious », and not taking herself « very seriously ». Born in Seattle, half German and half Korean-American, she was raised « between three cultures ». After a decade living and working abroad in Rwanda, China, Afghanistan, the UK, and Myanmar, she is now based in Berlin. She’s fond of cooking and is a « beer nerd » – her German side, definitely.
Yves Jégourel
| Posted : December 13, 2021
Dans le vaste univers des matières premières, il est commun de parler des « métaux de base » pour qualifier les « grands » métaux non ferreux que sont l’aluminium, le cuivre, l’étain, le nickel, le plomb et le zinc. L’homogénéité de ce groupe est, bien évidemment, toute relative et la dynamique des cours qu’ils ont suivi, chacun, depuis le printemps 2021 ne peut manquer de le rappeler. En effet, alors qu’ils avaient tous lourdement chuté au premier trimestre 2020, après le déclenchement de la pandémie de la Covid-19, et connu en suivant une forte progression qui s’est accélérée sur le premier semestre 2021, les prix de ces métaux ont, depuis, emprunté des chemins différents.
Helmut Sorge
| Posted : December 08, 2021
The Polish memory of oppression, occupation, the holocaust, Nazi occupation, and communist dictators is burned into the national soul and conscience. A Polish born Pope, Jean Paul II, supported the long national struggle for freedom, giving faith to Poland’s 38 million citizens, mainly Catholic.
Sabine Cessou
| Posted : December 07, 2021
This impact-driven young Peruvian legal scholar studies and advocates for the redesign of Corporate Law internationally through innovation for sustainable development.
What does that mean exactly? After graduating from Harvard Law School (LL.M.’19), Juan Diego Mujica Filippi has been working as academic coordinator of an international research project on purpose-driven companies and the regulation of the fourth sector sponsored by the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB, based in Spain), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
