Volume 25, number 3 (2004)
Articles
Capacity-Building: The Neoliberal Governance of Development
In the post-cold war era of trade liberalization, a wide range of new economic and social processes is influencing the mechanisms of policy decision-making and the transformations of governance at international, national, and local levels. We consider many of these developments as taking place within a form of governance that can be referred to as “neo-liberal governance.” This form of governance involves new ways of thinking about governing populations, regions, and groups that hinge on mechanisms of decentralization, privatization, and individualization. Within the context of developing a critique of neoliberal governance, in this paper we highlight the specific global knowledge practices that are linked to what we refer to as the knowledge economy of capacity-building.
The Fair Trade Network in Historical Perspective
This paper examines the fair trade network within the context of the post-war international development regime. In recent years, sales of fair trade goods — both commodities and handicrafts — have grown substantially in Europe and North America, and the fair trade network has been relatively successful at gaining the support of public institutions, international financial institutions, and transnational corporations. This paper argues that this success, when viewed historically, can only be properly understood as the flip side of the defeat of the broader fair trade movement that sought international market regulation and strong state intervention and is in fact indicative of the current triumph of neo-liberal globalization.
The Multilateral Trading System, Economic Development, and Poverty Alleviation in Africa
The focus of this paper is on the multilateral trade system as embodied in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and its impact on African economic development and poverty alleviation. It discusses how the multilateral trading system — particularly the rules and agreements in areas such as tariff barriers, access to Western markets, and intellectual property rights — has affected the efforts of African countries to chalk up economic development and address the high poverty levels on the continent. The paper argues that while African economies have not remained stagnant since becoming part of the multilateral trading system, the economic growth rates have been rather low, thereby bringing little benefits to African countries. This stems not only from the inadequate access that most African countries have to Western markets, but more importantly from the lack of personnel to negotiate at multilateral trade sessions, the perennial problem of limited experts, and mono-crop agricultural exports, which have characterized the economies of much of Africa. Hence, until there are changes in the multilateral trade system, improvements made in areas of personnel training and human capacity buildings, and efforts made to diversify their exports, it is unlikely the peripheral status of the African countries in the global economy will change.
Contradictions Between Aims and Practice in Community Economic Development: The Case of New Dawn Enterprises
In Atlantic Canada, community economic development (CED) and community development corporations (CDCS) in particular have gained legitimacy as tools for development in economically depressed communities. This paper examines the structure and activities of Canada’s oldest CDC, New Dawn Enterprises Limited, located in industrial Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. The paper argues that the case of New Dawn demonstrates that CED practice often contradicts its aims, that CED organizations like New Dawn are dependent on a weak economy and government subsidy for their profitability, and that the only method they recognize is the capitalist method.
Microcredit Programs and Women’s Decision-Making Status: Further Evidence from Bangladesh
This paper examines the impact of participation in the microcredit programs of a non-governmental organization, the Association for Social Advancement (ASA) on the decision-making status of poor Bangladeshi women, the targets of these programs. Using survey data, we examine this relationship by estimating a five-level ordered probit model in which decision-making status is represented by a ranking in six decision-making domains, controlling for the effects of other factors. We find that the improvements in decision-making status are quite modest, except in domains that reflect the existing household division of labour, and that program selection features are at least partly responsible for the observed positive impact, despite efforts to adjust for them. We conclude that ASA type credit programs are probably not especially significant in terms of improving women’s decision-making status, at least in the short to medium term, likely because social norms, which play an important role in this regard, change slowly.
Reclaimed Waste Water in Some Middle Eastern Countries: Pricing and Perspective
Countries of the Middle East are increasingly suffering from shortages and mismanagement of water, a commodity that is becoming of considerable value since water demands are fast approaching the limits of availability. Efficient solutions for water-related problems necessitate the adoption of well-planned policies. The solution must be sought in optimum use of the available water, and reuse of reclaimed waste water must play a vital part. To meet future water requirements, many countries will have no option but to increase the use of treated waste water and study the viability of waste water reuse alternatives including irrigation of agricultural lands and recharge of groundwater. The cost of waste water treatment depends on the process used and the level of treatment required for a particular use. Data on waste water in the Middle East region are scarce and scattered. The article’s main aim is to provide a summary and perspective on the subject and clarify the idea that waste water is not free. This paper describes the different aspects of the waste water — quantities, treatment, potential reuse, and pricing — of the treated effluent in some countries of the Middle East. Many of these countries will have no option but to increase the use of treated waste water — an economically acceptable resource — to reduce the exploitation of scarce water sources and resources. Finally, a set of proposed regulations and recommendations has been developed.
Walking the Talk: Decolonizing the Politics of Equity of Knowledge and Charting the Course for an Inclusive Curriculum in Higher Education
In this paper, the authors offer a dramatic presentation regarding questions surrounding the politics of equity of knowledges in higher education. The vignette invokes the perspectives of an anti-racist educator, a graduate student, and a community educator — all of whom are grounded in the academy. Through personal reflection, discussion, and anti-racist, feminist, and anti-colonial theorizing, each grapples with the multifaceted issues surrounding the politics of the academy and the politics of the coexistence of different knowledges in higher education. Finally, the implications of a non-inclusive academic system are explored, with an emphasis on development education.
Reviews
Contemporary Economic Issues in Developing Countries, John Baffoe-Bonnie and Mohammed Khayum (eds.)
Globalization of Capital and the Nation-State: Imperialism, Class Struggle, and the State in the Age of Global Capitalism, Berch Berberoglu
Empire Lite, Michael Ignatieff
Reforming Agricultural Markets in Africa, Mylène Kherallah, Christopher Delgado, Eleni Gabre-Madhin, Nicholas Minot, and Michael Johnson (eds.)
Structural Adjustement: The SAPRI Report; The Policy Roots of Economic Crisis, Poverty and Inequality, Structural Adjustment Participatory Review International Network (SAPRIN)
International Development Co-operation: Selected Essays by H.W. Singer on Aid and the United Nations System, H.W. Singer (ed.), with contributions from D.J. Shaw