Malaria is a ‘disease of poverty’, and is spreading as the parasite’s resistance to cheap medicines grows. There are hopes that public–private partnerships will help in the development and testing of new drugs, diagnostic tests and vaccines. But the most vulnerable groups, including pregnant women and children, must be involved in clinical trials.

Developing countries lower their taxes to attract foreign investment. Rich individuals and multinationals use tax havens to evade taxes. Both of these processes are eroding the tax base of many governments. Yet development policy makers and researchers have so far ignored the issue of taxation.

The Broker is currently hosting an international debate on the thorny questions that surround the politics of aid and poverty alleviation. The contributors agree that pro-poor policies affect the interests of many groups, not only the poor, and are essentially political. By failing to address the root causes of poverty, the technocratic approaches of many donors are unlikely to succeed.

Can peace and justice be achieved at the same time? This old dilemma has acquired a new dimension with the creation of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Is the ICC a spur or an obstacle to peace and reconciliation? In northern Uganda, an answer to this question is beginning to emerge.