After years of placing faith in the markets, we are seeing a revival of interest in statist economic policy across the world, particularly with regards to finance. How much policy autonomy do previously liberalised developing counties still have to conduct activist financial policies, where the...

Can foreign aid be used to enhance good governance in recipient countries? This paper looks at the history of donor efforts to strengthen public institutions in developing countries, and how these have evolved in response to accumulated learning, changing fashions and donor interests. Systematic...

In 2004, developing countries and civil society groups called for a new Development Agenda at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). After three years of debate, they secured the adoption by WIPO Member States of the 2007 WIPO Development Agenda, comprising 45 recommendations for...

A growing political science literature studies the significance of emerging powers as key players in development. However, these studies have almost all considered the phenomenon from the perspective of donors. This paper assesses how recipient governments respond to the rise of new donors,...

In 1995, the launch of the WTO provoked a chorus of criticism from environmental advocates. After 20 years, how has the trade and environment debate evolved at the WTO and where does it currently stand? Although much has been written over the past two decades on the politics of trade and...

Demand for global trade governance that supports development is high. Developing countries have long called for a greater role in governing the global economy and its trading system. As the importance of developing countries in global trade rises and South-South trade among them grows (UNCTAD...

One of the most noteworthy achievements of the establishment of the WTO in 1995 was the introduction of its binding dispute settlement system. Building upon GATT dispute settlement practice, the Understanding on the Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes ("DSU") contains...

While the rules-based multilateral trading system represents an important part of the international governance framework, concerns have long been expressed about the legitimacy and accountability of the WTO. In 1999, the dramatic breakdown of the Seattle Ministerial placed the marginalisation of...

This article describes the political consequences of aid, intended and unintended. It argues that the foreign aid system in Ghana is embedded with in its state and society, and that contemporary Ghanaian politics is characterized by the way aid dependency intermingles with the practices of its...