SPOTLIGHT: Africa

Reuters/Feisal Omar - Gunmen from Hizbul Islam head for Somalia's southern port of Kismayu.
Mwangi S. Kimenyi, February 03, 2010
For the last few years, Somalia has held the top spot in both the Index of Failed States and the Fragile States Index. Mwangi Kimenyi discusses the number of factors that make Somalia an increasingly volatile country and urges for a broad international mandate to build a new state.
In Focus: Africa
Africa, Developing Countries, Development, Global Poverty, Governance
Happiness

Reuters/Caren Firouz - An Afghan Jughi girl carries her nephew on her back in Mazar-I-Sharif in northern Afghanistan.
Carol Graham, January 30, 2010
What measures of human wellbeing are the most accurate benchmarks of economic progress and human development? Carol Graham presents new research suggesting that while people can adapt to be happy at low levels of income, they are far less happy when there is uncertainty over their future wealth.
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Economics of Happiness, Quality-of-Life Issues, Global Economics, Global Poverty, Economic Development
Global Economics

Reuters/Denis Balibouse - Schwab founder and Executive Chairman of WEF at a news conference at the WEF headquarters in Cologny.
Raj M. Desai and James Raymond Vreeland, January 26, 2010
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, global cooperation is at the top of the agenda. As the governance of international organizations is at odds with the global distribution of economic power, this goal for Davos could prove difficult. Brookings expert Raj Desai and Georgetown University Professor James Raymond Vreeland discuss global governance issues among economic institutions and urge that regional organizations might be the best path for economic governance.
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Global Economics, Global Governance, International Organizations, International Finance, Global Financial Crisis
Development Aid

Reuters/Logan Abassi - U.N. handout shows a group of tents standing amidst the rubble after an earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Homi Kharas, January 21, 2010
The recent earthquake in Haiti caused a staggering number of casualties, with the greatest loss of life and destruction in the poorest areas of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Homi Kharas highlights three valuable lessons from the recovery effort after the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami that can be applied to the current rebuilding efforts in Haiti.
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Haiti, Foreign Aid, Global Poverty, Natural Disasters, Development