AbstractThe New Development Bank (NDB)'s partnership and cooperation with other international organizations and other financial institutions has been a key element of the strategic vision, design and institutional development of the Bank. For the NDB 'partnering' and 'partnerships' became part of the agenda of the NDB. But how the NDB would actually do 'partnerships' or 'partnering' was not predetermined. This article examines how the NDB responded to the challenge of strategic partnerships. It asks whether the NDB has developed its own partnership modalities, or to what degree? The main argument is that NDB adopted a varied approach of partnering, with each approach depending largely on the nature of the partner.
AbstractThe responses from Japan and India to the China‐led Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) were not positive unlike many other Asian countries. Only in late 2017 did Japan extend its cooperation with BRI and India is still on record that it does not support BRI. The positions taken by both Japan and India, together and singly, in relation to BRI as well as the interrelationship of policy, politics, and institutions at the global level are discussed. The discussion also explores how Japan supplements its central alliance with the United States till the 1980s with other key relationships such as India and Australia in security and in its initiatives with India on Vision 25 and the Asia‐Africa Growth Corridor (AAGC). The discussion also explores the shift by India following its non‐alignment policy and its friendship treaty with the Soviet Union and with the end of the Cold War, on its renewed foreign policy of diplomacy and bilateralism and multilateralism with many countries and organizations. The challenges and opportunities of collaboration by Japan and India are discussed, together with the geo‐economic and geo‐political aspects of BRI for both countries in moving forward.
AbstractInternational financial organizations (IFOs) such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and regional development banks, including the Asian Development Bank and the Inter‐American Development Bank, are covered in their charter provisions with immunity from judicial proceedings in national legal systems on employment matters. Over the years, IFOs have found a practical way to deal with employment disputes and conflict resolution. Administrative tribunals have been established to serve as judicial proceedings. Informal processes such as ombudsperson (also referred to as ombuds) services have been provided by IFOs. In recent years, growing emphasis has been placed on other informal processes such as mediation services. IFOs have collaborated with, and learned lessons from, other organizations including the United Nations, the International Ombudsman Association, multinational corporations and national agencies to improve the delivery of informal processes.
AbstractThis article focuses on directions in reshaping accountability mechanisms in multilateral development banks and other organizations. The term 'accountability mechanisms' refers to avenues for private individuals and groups to file claims against the institution for redress of their grievance on poorly designed and/or implemented projects. Since 1993, accountability mechanisms have, over the years, been revised, updated or replaced. This article highlights the salient developments in reshaping accountability mechanisms and concludes with the directions taken and their impact on other institutions and development financiers in adopting similar mechanisms.
Social Structure Adaptation to COVID-19 offers global, interdisciplinary perspectives that examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the development trajectory of schools, public health, the workforce, and technology adoption. It explores social themes in society, economy, policy, and culture and draws on a social framework to describe key functions of societal adaptation to the pandemic.
Edited by Suresh Nanwani and William Loxley, the volume is grounded in the study of system components and their objectives to improve overall well-being given the ill effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Chapters explore interconnected social networks and how sectors restructured themselves to stabilize or transform society. International contributors from 20 countries offer case studies that highlight key themes including personal connectivity, societal equality, well-being, big data, and national resilience. They predict how impactful the pandemic might be in reshaping the future and assess how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected school system shutdown, public health collapse, business closures, public policy failure, and technology-driven social media acceleration.
Offering insights into how institutions and sectors work together in times of crisis, and how COVID-19 has restructured social behavior, Social Structure Adaptation to COVID-19 will be valuable reading for scholars and students of sociology, political science, anthropology, comparative international development, psychology, and education. It will also be of interest to policymakers concerned with education, work and organizations, and media and technology.
Multilateral development banks and other development agencies have adopted environmental and social safeguard policies setting due diligence standards for the provision of project finance. Such policies are evolving in terms of the activities covered and in their normative requirements. Recent iterations incorporate human rights requirements, recognising the imperative of adopting human rights-based approaches to development. Each institution has also established independent accountability mechanisms (IAMs), variously functioning to ensure compliance with the applicable safeguards, to advise management regarding the application of the obligations involved, and to facilitate communication with affected communities and individuals with a view to resolving project-related disputes. IAMs are central to the implementation, interpretation, and ongoing elaboration of safeguard policies, and thus to the environmental and social good governance so essential for sustainable development.0This edited volume presents a series of in-depth examinations by leading experts from banking institutions, academia and civil society, of key aspects of the rapidly evolving practice of IAMs, and of the implications of such practice for environmental and social governance
