Overseas Development Institute (ODI) update

How will EU trade policy respond to new challenges in the coming decade? (ODI Blog Posts, 6 February 2012)

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

'There are good ideas in this timely communication, but some proposed actions could turn out to be protectionist and harm development, whilst further concrete actions are needed to promote policy coherence for development.'

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Tricky transitions to democracy (ODI Podcasts, 2 February 2012)

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Reflecting on our event with Lord Paddy Ashdown, which discussed Libya's transition from an authoritarian to democratic regime, this ODI Podcast discusses issues raised and explores: the nature of Libya's political uprising; what a successful democracy might look like and how it might be achieved; what lessons and experience we can draw upon from previous democratic transitions and provides some top tips for donors supporting countries in the midst of such change.

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The birth of a new Libya? (ODI Blog Posts, 2 February 2012)

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

‘…issues need to be addressed through an ongoing national conversation that is as participatory and inclusive as possible of the many forces that now comprise the Libyan political landscape – but it is bound to take time.’

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Improving maternal health when resources are limited: Safe motherhood in rural Rwanda (Africa Power and Politics Policy Brief 5, February 2012)

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:00:00 GMT

Over the past decade, Rwanda has managed to overcome many of the critical bottlenecks to make impressive progress on maternal health. This policy brief documents the progress being made and indicates that service delivery bottlenecks can be overcome without additional material resources.

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Technically sound and politically achievable? A taxonomy of knowledge types and their influence on governance in three South-East Asian countries (ODI Background Notes, February 2012)

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:00:00 GMT

This Background Note classifies different types of knowledge that aim to influence policy, which is then used to analyse case studies from three South-East Asian countries: Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. The study concludes with suggestions on the usefulness of the development of classifications – a taxonomy – of knowledge types.

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Islamic agencies battle the odds in Gaza (Quoted in Integrated Regional Information Network, 30 January 2012)

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:00:00 GMT

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Citizen voice and state accountability: Towards theories of change that embrace contextual dynamics (ODI Working Papers 343, January 2012)

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:45:00 GMT

This Working Paper provides a critical analysis of a series of citizen voice and accountability (CV&A) cases from the Mwananchi Governance and Transparency Fund (GTF) programme in order to develop some patterns of observation and thought lines which, when put together, form an analytical framework for developing theories of change (ToCs) for CV&A projects.

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'Stand-off' over Sudan's oil (Quoted in Radio 4, 27 January 2012)

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:55:00 GMT

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‘What works’? Systematic reviews in international development research and policy (ODI Blog Posts, 27 January 2012)

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

'Systematic reviews can ultimately add value to development research: in addition to reducing researcher bias and increasing rigour, they place empirics centre-stage within literature reviews. But their strengths must be balanced against a number of practical and fundamental limitations.'

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New donors chip away at aid industry status quo (Quoted in Reuters Alertnet, 26 January 2012)

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:00:00 GMT

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Gates and innovation in agriculture – is money the issue? (ODI Blog Posts, 26 January 2012)

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

‘While more needs to be spent on generating better technology for farmers in the developing world … efforts to implement new solutions must focus not only on constraints to delivery but also those to uptake.’

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Coping with climate change (Quoted in Integrated Regional Information Network, 25 January 2012)

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT

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The climate-security nexus: ‘operation enduring narrative’ (ODI Blog Posts, 25 January 2012)

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

'2012 is set to be an interesting year for unpacking the climate-security nexus, but the overriding framing of that nexus is still very much up for grabs.’

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Transforming disaster risk management: a political economy approach (ODI Background Notes, January 2012)

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:40:00 GMT

This Background Note looks at research undertaken in recent years by disaster researchers on the complex role of institutional arrangements in shaping policy decisions. In doing so it identifies some key research issues that need to be addressed to promote the kind of institutional transformation required to deal with current and future climate extremes, including the need for more multidisciplinary perspectives on disaster risk management (DRM).

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Climate change in UK security policy: implications for development assistance? (ODI Working Papers 342, January 2012)

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:30:00 GMT

This paper explores changes related to the inclusion and framing of climate change in UK security policy and the possible implications for overseas development assistance (ODA).

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Resilience: A risk management approach (ODI Background Notes, January 2012)

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT

This Background Note explores the concept of 'resilience' in relation to framing current thinking about sustainable futures and investigates whether a common definition and understanding can be reached and whether resilience can be translated into a practical set of tools and approaches.

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Scaling up rural sanitation in Vietnam: political economy constraints and opportunities (ODI Working Papers 341, January 2012)

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:00:00 GMT

This Working Paper presents findings from an analysis of the governance and political economy of water and sanitation service delivery in Vietnam. The objective of the research is to develop the utility of political economy analysis (PEA) for the water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector, with a focus on improving the operational impact of the UK Department for International Development (DFID) (and other donor) country programming.

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Where does the Green Climate Fund stand now? (Articles and blogs, 12 January 2012)

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

The Green Climate Fund documentation talks explicitly of funding mitigation and adaptation... However, we have argued consistently in CDKN that a mitigation/adaptation framework is incomplete and misleading, given the scale of change in the global economy that will result from climate change or the measures taken to deal with it.

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An agenda for change in service delivery (ODI Blog Posts, 19 January 2012)

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

"Understanding why teachers do not show up in schools or what motivates health professionals to keep up with latest professional standards and procedures is key to better supporting service delivery."

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Little Tobin, Less Robin (Quoted in Inter Press News Service, 18 January 2012)

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT

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Making systematic reviews work for international development research (Discussion papers, January 2012)

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:00:00 GMT

This briefing paper reflects upon the use of systematic reviews in international development research. It attempts to identify where a systematic review approach adds value to development research and where it becomes problematic.

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Development Policy Review theme issue: Tracking development in South-East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa (Development Policy Review vol.30, supplement 1, January 2012)

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:00:00 GMT

This theme issue examines the divergent development trajectories of South-East Asian and sub-Saharan African countries, providing insight into the political and social processes that lead to particular policy choices and economic outcomes.

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This year we need a bolder approach to energy (ODI Blog Posts, 16 January 2012)

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

' ‘The Future We Want’ contains much that is to be welcomed ... However, in this year particularly, a bolder approach to energy for sustainable development is required.'

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Big thinking and big ambition: but a rocky road to Rio (ODI Blog Posts, 16 January 2012)

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

'Sustainable consumption patterns would almost certainly mean some people on the planet consuming less so others could consume more.'

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Rio+20: The future we want, the debate we need (ODI Blog Posts, 16 January 2012)

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

‘The outcome document has already sparked comments ... so let’s use the time from now until the Summit in June 2012 to debate the key issues.’

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