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What Happens in Cancun Shouldn’t Stay in Cancun: Toward Transparency at the Inter-American Development Bank

Friday, March 19th, 2010

This weekend the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB*) will hold its annual meetings in the popular Mexican resort city of Cancun. Much of the focus will be on the capital increase for the Bank, which made an original request for an increase that topped US$ 180 billion. Subsequent estimates of what the main shareholders may [...]

Desastres Naturales y Deberes Nacionales: El Terremoto de Chile en una Perspectiva Internacional

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

  Un enfoque amplio de gobernabilidad comparativa conlleva a nuestra conclusión de que Chile ha respondido relativamente bien al mega-terremoto, a pesar de errores serios en la etapa inicial.  Identificamos logros, errores, y desafíos en la reacción frente al terremoto, los cuales constituyen una oportunidad de reforma para el país.
Traducción del artículo “Natural Disasters, National Diligence: The Chilean Earthquake in Perspective”, por D. Kaufmann y [...]

Natural Disasters, National Diligence: The Chilean Earthquake in Perspective

Saturday, March 6th, 2010

The Chilean earthquake that hit during the early morning hours of February 27 has brought searing images of devastation; and international news coverage has shown scenes of looting and arson incidents occurring in its immediate aftermath.  In Chile, criticism of the government’s response is widespread.
Many are wondering whether numerous deaths and severe destruction could [...]

National Disasters Today Provide Governance Lessons

Monday, March 1st, 2010

Let us consider three countries:
Country 1: Its approach to industrialization has relied heavily on a very large public sector that accounts for well over 40 percent of GDP, and on aid financing from richer countries. The country has no fiscal discipline, running a deficit exceeding 13 percent of GDP. Rather, leaders have focused more [...]

Regulatory Capture outside of Finance: NHTSA not just asleep at the Toyota wheel?

Friday, February 5th, 2010

Plenty has been written on the role of financial institutions in the global crisis, and also in how they may have influenced their own generous rescue by the government.  Many writings also touch on the ineffective role of the financial regulatory institutions.  Some of the writings, including in this space, have suggested that such [...]

Misrule of Law Matters: Time to Reboot?

Thursday, January 21st, 2010

A full fledged reboot of the Rule of Law and the Law and Development fields may be salutary, and it may also improve aid effectiveness.  I am not a legal scholar, but alongside many legal experts was invited to join a Symposium on the Future of Law and Development.   Valuable contributions ensued, now [...]

Haiti: Rescue, Recovery, and Effective Development Aid

Monday, January 18th, 2010

We are pained about the death toll and human suffering in Haiti and we share their sorrow.  With the exception of the tsunami in Asia, this tragedy is unprecedented in recent memory in a country not at war.  Current technology makes the devastation and death instantly clear around the globe.  Such technology also enables [...]

Will Profiling Make our Skies Safer?: A Governance Perspective on New TSA Guidelines

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Since profiling impinges on civil liberties, it bears a negative connotation particularly when narrowly based on nationality, race or religion. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has just instituted a nationality-based criterion, under which travelers from a list of 14 countries are subject to special airport screening procedures. Controversy has naturally ensued.
According to a TSA [...]

On the changing ethos at Goldman Sachs (they showed up to this meeting)

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

We know that key Wall Street investment bankers did not show up to this past Monday meeting called by President Obama.  We just wrote about it.   No such problem with no-shows in this other recent meeting held between the head of Goldman Sachs (Lloyd Blankfein, who was among those who did not make it [...]

Chile ingresando a la OCDE: como ir al Mundial de Futbol?

Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

  Es ya oficial ahora: Chile entrará a la OCDE, y pronto.   Un gran reconocimiento y logro.   Según la BBC, Chile festeja como un Mundial, ya que Andrés Velasco dice en París:  “Es como clasificar para el Mundial, donde están los 32 mejores equipos. Aquí en la OCDE son 30 y con Chile vamos a ser [...]

Power shifting back from Washington to New York: Recapture of the State in the offing?

Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

Imagine you hold a very high position in the US Government, in Washington, DC.  And you believe it is important to talk to the top Wall Street bankers, to nudge them to be more modest about their bonuses, and more generous about their lending.  You call a meeting with these top bankers in Washington. [...]

International Anti-Corruption Day 2009: An Hour of Silence to Reflect and Reboot

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

As Wednesday, December 9th dawns, there is a dim reminder that one is supposed to ‘celebrate’ International Anti-Corruption.   ‘Dim reminder’ to ‘celebrate’ in quotation marks indeed, because unfortunately anti-corruption continues to be largely in the back-burner for most world powers, for most international institutions, and for many of their leaders.
Or worse…

Gobernabilidad e Ingreso de Chile a la OCDE

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

Chile está por ingresar a la Organización para la Cooperación y Desarrollo Económicos (OCDE).  Un gran logro.  La OCDE decidirá formalmente en las próximas semanas, pero no quedan dudas al respecto.

Corruption Index today, Development Aid Reform tomorrow?

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

Transparency International (TI), the international anti-corruption NGO, just released its annual corruption perceptions index (CPI).  No big surprises. This is no surprise.  Corruption does not tend to change dramatically from one year to the next.  Yet it is certainly worth reviewing the new data…

Corrupción en el mundo de hoy según Transparencia Internacional

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

Según el índice de corrupción anual de TI, o Transparencia Internacional, publicado hoy, Nueva Zelandia, Dinamarca, Singapur, Suecia, Suiza y Finlandia encabezan la lista de los países menos corruptos.

El índice de TI incluye a 180 países y se basa en datos provistos por 10 organizaciones.  Como siempre, algunos países en [...]

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