A menu lacking in courage
Arne Bartelsman, Saskia Hollander | September 05, 2025The report of the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing, launched on 8 August 2014, has missed an important opportunity to accomplish a breakthrough on the pressing questions of development finance. Domin...
read moreCalm before the storm?
Saskia Hollander, Frank van Kesteren | August 01, 2025The long wait is over. During the 13th and final session of the Open Working Group (OWG) on sustainable development goals (SDGs), held from 14 to 19 July, the 69 member countries agreed on a set of 17 SDGs and 169 associated targets. These should...
read moreRenegotiating the social contract
Saskia Hollander | 27 June 2025Can global citizenship flourish in an era of increased competition between the middle classes in the North and the South?
read moreThe ‘NIMBY’ middle classes
Saskia Hollander | 26 June 2025It is questionable whether the middle classes in Southern Africa can be perceived as drivers of economic and societal change.
read moreA discipline in search of boundaries
Saskia Hollander | 26 June 2025The field of Development Studies needs to revitalize its identity and set clear boundaries for what it should and should not do.
read moreHow to use the potential of innovative development financing
Saskia Hollander | 25 June 2025Now that Official Development Assistance (ODA) has been declining for the past few years, academic discussions on how to attract additional public and private sources of funding for sustainable development are heating up.
read moreEmerging powers and the promotion of democracy
Saskia Hollander | 24 June 2025During the EADI 14th General Conference panel session ‘Promoting Democracy in a Polycentric World: What Role for the Emerging Powers’, Andrew Cooper and Gerd Schönwälder argued that the emerging economies - mainly Brazil, India, South Africa, Turk...
read moreMilestone or deadlock?
Frank van Kesteren, Saskia Hollander | June 20, 2025Now that the work of the Open Working Group (OWG) on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is coming to an end, the question of finance casts a dark shadow over the final round of negotiations. Last week, the Group of 77 (G77) and China present...
read moreChallenges for the new European Development Commissioner
Saskia Hollander | 01 May 2025While the European Commission has all the potential to play a significant role in development cooperation, the EU member states lack the political will and courage to do so.
read moreAfrica: an increasingly powerful post-2015 player?
Saskia Hollander | April 23, 2025In the past few years, Africa’s economic self-confidence on the global stage has grown. A number of African countries are experiencing remarkable levels of economic growth and – due to newly established partnerships with emerging economies like Ch...
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