NUPI replaces NRK P2's 'Ekko' this week
NUPI has produced ten hours of high quality radio about foreign policy and international relations. The programs will air on NRK P2 during week 50, Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 11.00. Tune in!
Lucas de Oliveira Paes
Lucas de Oliveira Paes is a Senior Research Fellow and a post-doctoral researcher in the Research group on Russia, Asia and international trade at...
Cristiana Maglia
Cristiana Maglia is a senior research fellow at NUPI. She is currently the post-doctoral researcher of the project Ad hoc crisis response and inte...
Democracy and Human Rights in Contemporary Latin America (2015-2020): Trends, challenges, and prospects
Through a review of scholarly and other well-informed articles as well as media reports, this CMI Report aims to summarize discussions on challenges for democracy and human rights in Latin America during the last half-decade. The region faces a highly difficult economic outlook, consisting of low commodity prices and stagnant growth, threatening a historic backlash in the access to basic goods (including food) and services (not least health). The coronavirus pandemic may have a completely devastating effect on Latin American societies. After the end of the “pink tide”, the survey registers a regional democratic decline, breakdown of democratic systems in some countries and more widespread concerns of democratic erosion; electoral success for anti-incumbent candidates but also a rise of youth protest and fundamental political reform claims. While the human rights agenda has expanded tremendously, a current trend is that fundamental political rights may be endangered. There are serious threats to security and the right to life, and an increasing authoritarian trend (most visible in Venezuela, Nicaragua, Brazil, and El Salvador). Cuba, here treated as a special case, finds itself at a critical juncture, right before the definitive end of the Castro era, leaving the fundamental challenge for younger generations to prepare for a soft landing or risking a full regime collapse. Geopolitical rivalry between the US, China, and Russia leaves a particular responsibility to Europe to facilitate conflict resolution and peacemaking as well as resolution.
WEBINAR: Covid-19 and Norwegian development policy
Minister of International Development Dag-Inge Ulstein, Professor Andy Sumner and Director for Forum for Development and Environment, Kathrine Sund-Henriksen, will discuss what implications the pandemic has for developing countries, and what this means for international and Norwegian development policy.
COVID-19 in Latin America: Challenges, responses, and consequences
While containment efforts were quickly implemented in many countries, COVID-19 may still prove to have a long-lasting effect in Latin America, a region already marked by economic disarray and political instability. Economic projections suggest that Latin American economies will be among the most affected by the current halt in global trade and consumption. As many countries have recently faced political turmoil, massive containment efforts raise a number of questions on legitimacy and citizen-state relations. In some countries, democratic processes essential for the upholding of democratic legitimacy have been halted. In Brazil, the central government’s handling of the crisis has been an important factor contributing to a severe political crisis. A geopolitical vacuum may provide China with an opportunity to increase its importance for the region.
The GeGaLo index: Geopolitical gains and losses after energy transition
This article presents the GeGaLo index of geopolitical gains and losses that 156 countries may experience after a full-scale transition to renewable energy. The following indicators are considered for inclusion in the index: fossil fuel production, fossil fuel reserves, renewable energy resources, governance, and conflict. Some of these represent potential gains; some represent losses; and some the capacity of countries to handle changes in geopolitical strength. Five alternative versions of the index are developed to work out the optimal design. First, the energy resource indicators are combined with equal weights to create two simple versions of the index. Next, governance and conflict indicators are included to create three more complex versions of the index. The index provides useful pointers for strategic energy and foreign policy choices: geopolitical power will be more evenly distributed after an energy transition; Iceland will gain most; Russia may be one of the main holders of stranded geopolitical assets; China and the USA will lose more geopolitically than foreseen by other analyses. The index also indicates a lack of emphasis in parts of the literature on space for renewable energy infrastructure and on domestically sourced coal for the current strength of countries such as China and the United States.
Tax and fragile states: Challenges for Norwegian development assistance
States need revenue to function and an efficient tax system plays an important role. Can Norwegian development assistance contribute to this?