Global Voices Online » Development

Cuba: Glorious Future?

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:25:22 +0000

Both Child of the Revolution and Ninety miles away…in another country take issue with a series of articles in the Christian Science Monitor speculating about Cuba's economic future: “It is particularly galling that the resourcefulness they all laud as the sign of a changing Cuba is a harsh expedient forced on a captive population - desperate to eke out a living any way they can - by the system under which they live.”

Central & Eastern Europe: IMF Policies and TB Deaths

Vilhelm Konnander — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:52:29 +0000

Eternal Remont draws attention to a recent study from Cambridge University claiming that IMF's policies in Eastern Europe during the 1990s implicitly caused the deaths of some 100,000 people from tuberculosis.

Africa: Until when the white man's burden?

Elia Varela Serra — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:50:18 +0000

Sam O. Okello, guestblogging at Kumekucha, wonders for how long Africa “will remain the white man's burden”. In his post, that caused quite a debate in the comments section, he urges: “The time for Africa to rise up is now”.

Mozambique: On nationalization and its impact nowadays

Paula Góes — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:52:54 +0000

On July 24 1976 the Mozambican government nationalized all privately owned industries. “After 32 years, what do we make of the process of nationalization and its impact nowadays? Do buildings and business still belong to the Mozambican state? Were they returned to their owners? If not, who are the new owners? Was the process fair? What is the impact?”, questions Reflectindo sobre Moçambique [pt]

Nigeria: On the Sovereign Wealth Fund

Elia Varela Serra — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:30:22 +0000

Solomonsydelle of Nigerian Curiosity writes about the country's Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), which is “a state-owned investment fund composed of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, property or other financial instruments.” And she wonders: “Will the SWF be maintained and its funds used in a means that advances Nigeria's interests or will it be used in a way that proves detrimental in the future?”

China: Housing For Ten Thousand

Oiwan Lam — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 03:44:49 +0000

Buxi reports a collective campaign organized by Zoutao called “Housing For Ten Thousand - Group Buying Activity” in Shenzhen.

Gabon: On President Bongo's wealth

Elia Varela Serra — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 01:11:00 +0000

Jeremy Weate at Naijablog posted an article on Gabonese President Omar Bongo's taste for luxury.

Indian investment in Africa, in the shadows of China

Elia Varela Serra — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:44:56 +0000

Benin Mwangi at the Cheetah Index writes about Indian investment in Africa, which “in the West we don't hear that much about […] because so much of this growth has taken place in the shadow of China's advances”.

Angola: On Africa's oilfields

Paula Góes — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 19:20:12 +0000

Pitigrili [pt] retorts to an article about Africa's oilfields on a newspaper which stated that few will benefit from Africa's oil boom: “Of course, the Western multinationals don't like the reconstruction deals between Angola and China, where oil is the currency exchange. But the Angolan people finally see asphalt and basic education and health infrastructure making a coming back since the beginning of the 1975 civil war. If we look at the African reality, it's a unique case of reconstruction benefiting the entire population.”

“La Chinafrique”: A book review

Elia Varela Serra — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:17:53 +0000

Théophile Kouamouo [Fr] reviews in his blog the book La Chinafrique: Pékin à la conquête du continent noir by Serge Michel and Michel Beuret, about the Chinese presence in Africa. He says: “The Chinese aren't angels sent by the God of South-South cooperation and they are as racist, if not more than the Westerners living in Africa […] but they aren't demons either”.

Kazakhstan: The Rise of Kazakh Military

Adil Nurmakov — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:02:31 +0000

Adam tells that new types of ammunition, designed in Israel, but made in Kazakhstan, comply with the world trends in the sphere of design of high-precision weaponry.

China: How you feeling about the Olympics?

John Kennedy — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 06:59:44 +0000

Joel at Fool's Mountain recently took to the street where he lives in Beijing neighbor city Tianjin to ask locals what they think about next month's Olympics. He took video of it all, and has even added translated subtitles. Check it out.

Is the U.S. militarizing aid to Africa?

Elia Varela Serra — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:18:56 +0000

Regrets only: An Africa Journal comments on the recent report by Refugees International about “the increased militarization of U.S. foreign aid” and how it “is complicating the achievement of American foreign policy goals in Africa”. He also posts a response from AFRICOM to the report.

Madagascar: Family planning, baby-weighing and gospel choir.

Lova Rakotomalala — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 19:09:13 +0000

Jayne Taylor Gaubatz, a Peace Corps volunteer blogger in the southern city of Fianaratsoa, describes the impact of a well-done family planning poster, the importance of baby weighing in tandem and attending a Malagasy gospel choir [en].

Jamaica: Stolen Beach

Janine Mendes-Franco — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:22:56 +0000

“Apparently, some ‘enterprising' Jamaicans have figured out a solution to the growing problem of private ownership of our beachfront lands”: Long Bench reports on the stealing of a beach, adding: “If this kind of theft weren’t a sign of how actively we are digging a serious hole for ourselves in this country…I would salute the truckers as heroes in this ultimate sabotage.”