This article uses a political settlement framework to explore the configuration of power that underpinned the establishment and maintenance of peace in Somaliland. It explores the ways in which the country's isolation fostered mutual dependence between powerful political and economic actors for their survival and prosperity, and challenges underlying assumptions of western ...» more
Library
This e-library contains more than 4500 external publications on governance, social development, conflict and humanitarian issues. It includes academic and grey literature selected for its basis in good quality research and coverage of a range of perspectives. Policy-oriented summaries of each document are provided, plus links to the full text.
World Cities Report 2016
In an increasingly urbanised world where urban populations and the challenges of urban areas continue to grow, longstanding models of urbanisation need to adapt to new social, economic and environmental realities. The World Cities Report 2016 explores persistent issues and emerging trends in urbanisation, highlighting the much-needed role of good urban governance to harness ...» more
Iraq’s displacement crisis: security and protection
The humanitarian emergency in Iraq has become more severe over the past two years as the armed conflict continues: statistics suggest there are 3.2 million IDPs in the country and more than 8 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. This report provides an up-to-date overview of the human rights situation of IDPs in Iraq since the emergence of ISIS, highlighting a ...» more
Cash-based approaches in humanitarian emergencies: A systematic review
The primary objective of this review was to assess and synthesize existing evidence on the effects of cash-based approaches on individual and household outcomes in humanitarian emergencies. The secondary objective was to assess the efficiency of different cash-based approaches and identify factors that hinder and facilitate programme implementation. The ...» more
Making women count – not just counting women: Assessing women’s inclusion and influence on peace negotiations
This report presents an analysis of women’s inclusion in peace negotiations distilled from the ‘Broadening Participation in Political Negotiations and Implementation’ project. This is an ongoing multi-year research project started in 2011 at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland, to address the lack of evidence-based knowledge on ...» more
Women’s empowerment: What works?
Empowerment is one of the most elastic development buzzwords: emerging as a call for transformative social action aimed at confronting inequalities, to a contemporary mainstream development concern more focused on provision of resources, assets or services. This paper argues that only through the former can empowerment work challenge the power relations that underpin pervasive ...» more
Tax administrations and capacity building: A collective challenge
Tax cooperation has now reached unprecedented levels. Much work has been and is being done to assist developing countries in building their tax capacity. In February 2016 the the IMF, OECD, UN and World Bank proposed to the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors that they develop a joint tax platform and recommend mechanisms to ensure effective implementation of ...» more
Time to let go: Remaking humanitarian action for the modern era
The decades since the end of the Second World War have seen a significant expansion in the number, type and size of humanitarian organisations and a proliferation of players laying claim to the humanitarian cause. Despite this progress, the humanitarian system is struggling to keep pace with the growing demands of more frequent and more enduring humanitarian crises and the ...» more
Can climate finance contribute to gender equity in developing countries?
Climate finance is generally known as financial flows mobilised by industrialised country governments and private entities that support climate change mitigation and adaptation in developing countries. This paper raises questions as to whether climate finance creates a level playing field as women and men decide how climate resources are used, and whether climate funds are able ...» more
A man’s world? Exploring the roles of women in countering terrorism and violent extremism
This edited volume provides an innovative set of national, regional, and international perspectives reflecting on the roles of women in terrorism and countering violent extremism (CVE). Contributors reflect on the lessons learned from diverse fields of practice, including development, human rights, media and advocacy, academia, and conflict prevention and mitigation, and ...» more
Digital financial services in the Pacific – Experiences and regulatory issues
This paper examines how digital financial services (DFS) can be used to improve financial inclusion in the Pacific. It looks at the current use of DFS in seven Pacific island countries, explores the regulation and supervision of DFS, and provides recommendations for the expansion of DFS in the Pacific. The paper explains the two main models for the supply of DFS: bank-led ...» more
Liberation technology: Mobile phones and political mobilization in Africa
The recent spread of digital information and communication technology has fed a wave of optimism about its use as a ‘liberation technology’ for the oppressed and disenfranchised worldwide. According to this argument, mobile phones and the Internet have the potential to foster citizens’ political activism and even lead to mass political mobilization, especially when civic forms ...» more
Southern philanthropy, social justice and human rights
This discussion paper addresses the question of how philanthropists in the global south could better support the activities of civil society organisations (CSOs) to promote human rights and social justice, including actions that focus on advocacy, accountability and mobilisation. The paper is informed by interviews conducted with 12 representatives of philanthropic foundations ...» more
PEFA: What is it good for? The role of PEFA assessments in public financial management reform
How can the PEFA framework both help and hinder our understanding of PFM systems? This paper illustrates how PEFA can be (mis)used to guide PFM system reform. While the PEFA framework remains the most comprehensive indicator of PFM to date – over 500 formal assessments have been undertaken and verified by the Secretariat since its launch in 2005 - not all elements of the ...» more
8th annual ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller Arab youth survey: Inside the hearts and minds of Arab youth.
There are 200 million young people in the Middle East and North Africa. This white paper provides a snapshot of the ambitions, hopes and fears of young people at a challenging time for the region. The survey asks young Arabs to share their views on a range of topics including: the economy, the impact of the Arab Spring and their media consumption habits. It highlights the lack ...» more
Women’s rights in the cocoa sector: Examples of emerging good practice
Many existing cocoa sector programmes have tended towards community development without understanding the links between female beneficiaries and their supply chain. This paper identifies 10 areas of emerging good practice to learn from and encourages looking at the social dimension of production and interactions between differing actors to bring a gender dimension. It also ...» more
More than just talk? A literature review on promoting human rights through political dialogue
To what extent does political human rights dialogue contribute to better human rights performance generally? This paper reviews literature on human rights promotion through political dialogue. It focuses on bilateral relations that form part of Norway's country-level dialogue. It finds there is not much evidence that dialogues are effective. The paper describes current dialogue ...» more
Gender inequality, female leadership and aid allocation: A panel analysis of aid for education
Do recipient countries with persistent gender inequality in schooling receive more aid for education? This paper explores two hypotheses based on aid allocation: need and merit. It finds that female leadership appears to have played a marginal role in the allocation of aid for education. It also finds no evidence of a needs-based allocation of aid for education; aid allocation ...» more
Countering violent extremism through media and communication strategies: A review of the evidence
Current global challenges posed by violent Islamist extremism (VIE) has increased the need for an evidenced-based understanding of how democracies can respond to such threats. This review presents a fragmented research landscape: the potential for mass media to influence communities, societies and individuals is clear yet precisely how this capacity can be employed by ...» more
Climate change and food security: Risks and responses
This publication provides an overview of the effects of climate change on vulnerabilities in food security and nutrition, and explores ways to reduce negative impacts through adaptation and resilience. Reducing vulnerability and investing in resilience, in particular through social protection at household level, is key to adaptation. The report advises that food security and ...» more
