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382. Upgrading in Agricultural Value Chains: The Case of Small Producers in Honduras
- Author:
- Ingrid Fromm
- Publication Date:
- 12-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Local producers, in their interaction with local processors or exporters and international retailers have the possibility to acquire new skills and knowledge. The type of trust relationship and coordination pattern can determine how information flows and how firms upgrade. In addition, the implementation and compliance with standards provides opportunities for learning and acquiring skills and knowledge. Focusing on this kind of interactions, the study explains how local producers in Honduras engage in upgrading and whether this had an impact on the sales of those firms. The majority of the producers in the sample upgraded their products and internal processes. A limited number of producers engaged in functional upgrading. Most of the producers were aware of the important role of standards. They affirmed that in the process of implementing and complying with standards, they have gained new knowledge and were convinced that they succeeded in securing at better position in the value chain.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, and Markets
- Political Geography:
- Central America
383. Sectoral Transformations in Neo-Patrimonial Rentier States: Tourism Development and State Policy in Egypt
- Author:
- Thomas Richter and Christian Steiner
- Publication Date:
- 11-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- This article challenges claims that liberalising state regulated markets in developing countries may induce lasting economic development. The analysis of the rise of tourism in Egypt during the last three decades suggests that the effects of liberalisation and structural adjustment are constrained by the neo-patrimonial character of the Egyptian political system. Since the decline of oil rent revenues during the 1980s tourism development was the optimal strategy to compensate for the resulting fiscal losses. Increasing tourism revenues have helped in coping with macroeconomic imbalances and in avoiding more costly adjustment of traditional economic sectors. Additionally, they provided the private elite with opportunities to generate large profits. Therefore, sectoral transformations due to economic liberalisation in neo-patrimonial Rentier states should be described as a process, which has led to the diversification of external rent revenues, rather than to a general downsizing of the Rentier character of the economy.
- Topic:
- Development and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Africa, United States, Middle East, and Egypt
384. The Role and Development of Technology-Intensive Suppliers in Resource-Based Economies: A Literature Review
- Author:
- Carlos Torres Fuchslocher
- Publication Date:
- 11-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Although primary industries are important to developing countries, they have been largely unable to contribute to rapid growth. Systematically strengthening the development of local technology-intensive suppliers (t-suppliers), however, may contribute to both reinforcing the industrial base and supporting the competitiveness of primary production. Indeed, the development of t-suppliers has been common in those resource-based economies which achieved a high level of development (Scandinavia, Canada, Australia). This paper explores the role of t-suppliers in natural resource-based economies. It outlines a theoretical framework for the analysis of the factors which foster or constrain their development and defines areas for an effective promotion of t-suppliers. The proposed model of analysis distinguishes between factors influencing the development of t-suppliers on the level of the main industry (MI), the level of supplier firms or firm-level and the level of external determinants with special reference to industrial policy factors.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Emerging Markets, and Third World
- Political Geography:
- Canada, Australia, and Scandinavia
385. Oligopolies of Violence in Post-Conflict Societies
- Author:
- Daniel Lambach
- Publication Date:
- 11-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- In post-conflict societies, security is provided by a broad range of actors including the state as well as various non-state formations. The paper identifies three types of post-conflict societies and analyses dynamics of the security market in cases where international troops have intervened. A comparison of seven countries shows that intervention forces were able to establish themselves as market leaders when a disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) program was successfully conducted in the immediate post-conflict period. Such a program should be embedded in an inclusive peace agreement that is backed up by a credible and robust troop commitment from the international community.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Law, National Security, and Political Economy
386. Seeking Opportunities: Migration as an Income Diversification Strategy of Households in Kakamega District in Kenya
- Author:
- Lena Giesbert
- Publication Date:
- 09-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Migration and remittances are widely seen as major components of diversification strategies aimed at coping with risky environments in developing countries. The debate in the literature mainly concentrates on effects of and access to the strategy of migration. Against this background, the paper investigates patterns, determinants and the impact of internal migration on households based on data from a densely populated rural area in Western Kenya. The motivation behind migration is largely economic in kind. Accordingly, remittances account for a substantial share of household incomes. Results derived from a probit model estimation indicate that the likelihood of migration is independent from the wealth position of households. Instead, demographic household factors, education-related variables and migrant networks are of central importance. Migration and remittances are obviously more easily accessible than other opportunities of income diversification beyond farming for households across all levels of wealth, including the poorest households. JEL classification:
- Topic:
- Economics, Migration, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Kenya and Africa
387. Why Is Liberal Peace-building So Difficult?
- Author:
- Sabine Kurtenbach
- Publication Date:
- 09-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- The termination of war is mostly seen as a basis not just for recovery but for a fundamental transformation or change in development paths towards peace, stability and development. The Central American peace processes of the last decades were one of the first laboratories for the liberal peace-building paradigm which assumes that the threefold transformation to peace, democracy and market economy is a self-strengthening process leading to sustainable development. Although none of the three countries slipped back into war, serious deficits remain. This paper introduces an analytical framework that aims at interrelating the threefold transformation with the impact generated by four processes. These include the repercussions generated by the international system on a country's society, its historical, cultural and social foundations, the legacies of violence and the peacebuilding initiatives the country concerned has witnessed. The comparative analysis of changes in the public security sector, the political system, conflict resolution and the use of resources show why there is so much path dependency that can explain the deficits of transformation.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Relations, and Peace Studies
- Political Geography:
- America and Central America
388. Emerging Middle Powers' Soft Balancing Strategy: State and Perspectives of the IBSA Dialogue Forum
- Author:
- Daniel Flemes
- Publication Date:
- 08-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- How can weaker states influence stronger ones? This article offers a case study of one recent exercise in coalition building among Southern middle powers, the 'India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) Dialogue Forum'. The analysis outlines five major points: first, it argues that the three emerging players can be defined as middle powers in order to frame their foreign policy behavior and options at the global level. Second, soft balancing is a suitable concept to explain IBSA's strategy in global institutions. Third, institutional foreign policy instruments are of pivotal significance in IBSA's soft balancing strategy. Fourth, the potential gains of IBSA's sector cooperation, particularly in trade, are limited due to a lack of complementarity of the three economies. And fifth, IBSA's perspectives and impact on the international system will depend on four variables: IBSA's ability to focus on distinct areas of cooperation, the consolidation of its common strategy of soft balancing, the institutionalization of IBSA, and its enlargement in order to obtain more weight in global bargains.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- Africa, India, Asia, South Africa, Brazil, and South America
389. HAMBURG BLEIBT ZENTRUM DER NAHOST-FORSCHUNG
- Publication Date:
- 08-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- In Hamburg existierte eine der größten Spezialbibliotheken Deutschlands zum Nahen Osten; sie umfasst ca. 37.000 Bände und war bis Ende 2006 dem Verbund GIGA German Institute of Globaland Area Studies angeschlossen. Besitzer ist die Deutsche Orient-Stiftung, die begonnen hat, die Bibliothek aus Hamburg abzutransportieren. Die Deutsche Orient-Stiftung hat bislang nicht erklärt, ob und wod ie Bibliothek, die über Jahrzehnte mit öffentlichen Mitteln aufgebaut wurde, wieder der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht werden wird. Das GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies ist empört, wie die Deutsche Orient-Stiftung mit dieser wissenschaftlich einzigartigen Sammlung von Fachliteratur zum Nahen Osten umgeht. Für den Wissenschaftsstandort Hamburg entsteht hierdurch ein großer Schaden.
- Topic:
- International Relations
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Middle East, and Germany
390. Crises, Hegemony and Change in the International System: A Conceptual Framework
- Author:
- Dirk Nabers
- Publication Date:
- 05-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- The paper tries to shed light on the conceptual link between international crises like the one following September 11, 2001, the Asian financial crisis of 1997/1998, the end of the Cold War or major international conflicts, and processes of change in the international system. It argues that cultural structures rest on their continuous instantiation through social practices, thereby making them coterminous with process. Process is constituted by meaningful acts of social agents, and can thus only be grasped by analysing meaning. Meaning is transmitted by language. Meaningful language is never reducible to individual speakers; it is a social act. In the paper, I call this process discourse. Linking Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) with the theory of hegemony developed by Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, I will finally be able to show how hegemonic discourses serve as the nexus between crises and cultural structures and how they make cultural change possible.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Security, and Development
- Political Geography:
- Asia
391. African Migration to Europe: Obscured Responsibilities and Common Misconceptions
- Author:
- Dirk Kohnert
- Publication Date:
- 05-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- The number of migrants from conflict regions in Africa has been increasing dramatically. The European Union shares dual responsibility for the continuing migration pressure: First, because it fostered over decades corrupt and autocratic regimes with dire disregard to principles of 'good governance'. The aftermath of these regimes is still felt today and constitutes one of the underlying factors for politically motivated migration. Second, the EU contributed to Africa's economic misery due to its selfish external trade policy. Nevertheless, the prevailing perspective of the EU and of its member countries concerning African immigration remains to be focused on security, the foreclosure of its external borders and prevention. Current EU programs and concepts to fight African migration are questionable. Even development‐oriented approaches are bound to fail, if not backed by sustainable immigration policies.
- Topic:
- Security and Migration
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Europe
392. Conceptualising Regional Power in International Relations: Lessons from the South African Case
- Author:
- Daniel Flemes
- Publication Date:
- 06-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Regional powers can be distinguished by four pivotal criteria: claim to leadership, power resources, employment of foreign policy instruments, and acceptance of leadership. Applying these indicators to the South African case, the analysis demonstrates the crucial significance of institutional foreign policy instruments. But although the South African government is ready to pay the costs of co-operative hegemony (such as capacity building for regional institutions and peacekeeping), the regional acceptance of South Africa's leadership is constrained by its historical legacy. Additionally, Pretoria's foreign policy is based on ideational resources such as its reputation as an advocate of democracy and human rights and the legitimacy derived from its paradigmatic behaviour as a 'good global citizen'. However, the Mbeki presidency is more successful in converting these resources into discursive instruments of interest-assertion in global, rather than in regional bargains. In effect the regional power's reformist South-oriented multilateralism is challenging some of the guiding principles of the current international system.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- Africa and South Africa
393. Boda-bodas Rule: Non-agricultural Activities and Their Inequality Implications in Western Kenya
- Author:
- Jann Lay, George Michuki M'Mukaria, and  Toman Omar Mahmoud
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Engagement in non-agricultural activities in rural areas can be classified into survival-led or opportunity-led. Survival-led diversification would decrease inequality by increasing the incomes of poorer households and thus reduce poverty. By contrast, opportunity-led diversification would increase inequality and have a minor effect on poverty, as it tends to be confined to non-poor households. Using data from Western Kenya, we confirm the existence of the differently motivated diversification strategies. Yet, the poverty and inequality implications differ somewhat from our expectations. Our findings indicate that in addition to asset constraints, rural households also face limited or relatively risky high-return opportunities outside agriculture.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, and Poverty
- Political Geography:
- Kenya and Africa
394. The Role of Southern Actors in Global Governance: The Fight against HIV/AIDS
- Author:
- Lars Kohlmorgen and Sonja Bartsch
- Publication Date:
- 03-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- This paper analyses the role of actors from developing countries in global processes of policy making and governance. To systematically examine the channels of influence of Southern actors and interactions in global governance it develops the concept of interfaces. It differentiates between organisational, discoursive, legal and resource-transfer interfaces in global governance. This approach is exemplified in the analysis of a specific field of global governance, the global fight against HIV/AIDS. The paper examines the role of the Southern governments and non-state actors in ther central organisation of global health, their influence in debates and discourses on strategies to fight HIV/AIDS, and the financing mechanisms that were introduced to fight HIV/AIDS in the developing world. It shows that albeit actors from Northern countries dominate global governance in general, in particular areas the current institutional setting of global governance provides significant opportunities for rather weak actors such as civil society organisations and governments from the South to influence strategies and policies.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Civil Society, and Health
395. Political Party and Party System Institutionalisation in Southeast Asia: A Comparison of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand
- Author:
- Andreas Ufen
- Publication Date:
- 03-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- It is generally acknowledged that a higher degree of party and party systems institutionalisation is positively correlated with the consolidation of democracy. It is, thus, useful to compare different levels and types of institutionalisation. In this article the distinction made by Levitsky ("value infusion' vs.'behavioural infusion') with reference to party institutionalisation will be employed. Moreover, institutionalised party systems are characterized, according to Mainwaring and Torcal, by 'stability of interpary competition'. The empirical research of this paper finds that the early organisational consolidaton of social cleavages, such as in Indonesia, enhances institutionalisation. Furthermore, the relation between central and local elites appears to be essential strong bosses or cliques undermine institutionalisation in the Philippines and in Thailand respectively. Most Indonesian parties are better institutionalised than those in the Philippines and Thailand with reference to 'value infusion'. In addition, the party system in Indonesia is better institutionalised in terms of 'stability of interpary competition'.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Development, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Southeast Asia
396. Crafting Political Institutions in Africa. Electoral Systems and Systems of Government in Rwanda and Zambia Compared
- Author:
- Alexander Stroh
- Publication Date:
- 03-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Scholars of institutional design attribute large importance to the choice of new institutions. The comparative analysis of how Rwanda and Zambia crafted their new electoral systems and the systems of government regards procedural, structural and rational choice variables which may influence the option for particular solutions. External influences and the type of transition are determinants that can decide which actors make their interests prevail. The degree of innovation or conservatism of new institutions is mainly a result of the speed of the process and the kind of actors involved. However, rational reflections on how to produce legitimacy and minimize personal risks which take into consideration the state of conflict in the country decide on the speed and on innovative outcomes. The structured analysis of only two cases uncovers already that it is rather difficult to realise the transfer of design recommendations into reality.
- Topic:
- Development, Government, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Rwanda, and Holland
397. The EU's Foreign Policy after the Fifth Enlargement: Any Change in Its Taiwan Policy?
- Author:
- Günter Schucher
- Publication Date:
- 02-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- On 1 May 2004, the world witnessed the largest expansion in the history of the European Union (EU). This process has lent new weight to the idea of an expanded EU involvement in East Asia. This paper will examine the question of whether there has been a change in the EU's foreign policy with respect to its Taiwan policy after the fifth enlargement. It analyses the EU's policy statements on Asia and China to find evidence. The political behaviour of the EU has not changed, although there has been a slight modification in rhetoric. The EU – notwithstanding its claim to be a global actor – currently continues to keep itself out of one of the biggest conflicts in East Asia. The new members' interests in the East Asia region are too weak to alter the EU's agenda, and their economic priorities are rather linked to the programmes of the EU than vice versa.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- China, Europe, Eastern Europe, Taiwan, East Asia, and Asia
398. Securing Household Income among Small-scale Farmers in Kakamega District: Possibilities and Limitations of Diversification
- Author:
- Henriette Dose
- Publication Date:
- 02-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- In the debate of sustainable rural livelihoods, diversification is seen as a way to secure incomes and to increase food security. On the basis of a data set on income security, this paper analyses to what extent this applies to small-scale farmers in Kakamega District, Kenya. Using the sustainable rural livelihoods approach, this paper draws the conclusion, that (1) diversification in agricultural production is not sufficient for securing rural livelihoods in Kakamega District; (2) a sufficient income diversification depends heavily on requirements like access to education, infrastructure, as well as investment capital; and (3) small-scale farmers in Kakamega District in most cases lack these requirements, therefore not being able to achieve secure household incomes or increased food security.
- Topic:
- Security, Agriculture, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Kenya and Africa
399. Gero Erdmann and Matthias Basedau: Problems of Categorising and Explaining Party Systems in Africa
- Author:
- Gero Erdmann and Mattias Basedau
- Publication Date:
- 01-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Starting from controversial findings about the relationship between party systems and the prospects of democratic consolidation, this article argues that problems can only be properly addressed on the basis of a differentiated typology of party systems. Contradictory research results do not pose an 'African puzzle' but can be explained by different and inadequate approaches. We argue that a modified version of Sartori's typology of party systems provides an appropriate method for classifying African party systems. Based on Sartori's framework, a preponderance of predominant and dominant party systems is identified. This can partly be explained by the prevailing authoritarian nature of many multiparty regimes in Africa as well as by the ethnic plurality of African societies. High ethnic fragmentation is not transformed into highly fragmented party systems. This phenomenon can be attributed to the most frequent 'ethnic congress party' which is based on an ethnic elite coalition.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Democratization, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Africa
400. Prestando acuerdo: El Senado frente a los nombramientos del Poder Judicial en la Argentina democrá¡tica (1983-2006)
- Author:
- Mariana Llanos and Constanza Figueroa Schibber
- Publication Date:
- 07-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- Este trabajo intenta evaluar en que medida el Senado argentino cumplio su papel consti-tucional de contralor del Poder Ejecutivo en torno a los nombramientos del poder judicial entre 1983 y 2007, como tambien los factores que afectaron el cumplimiento de este rol. Para ello, se analiza el tramite parlamentario de los pliegos girados por el Ejecutivo para el nombramiento de todos los jueces federales, los pertenecientes a la llamada "Justicia Na-cional" de la Capital Federal y los miembros del Ministerio Publico. A partir de los mis-mos se concluye que los poderes del Senado dependen de varios factores, a saber, los re-cursos institucionales de los presidentes al interior de esta camara (medidos no solo a par¬tir de las mayorias legislativas sino tambien de su poder en la Comision de Acuerdos), la categoria del cargo a ser ocupado (si se trata de miembros de la Corte Suprema o de otros tribunales), las ambiciones presidenciales en otras areas de politica (como la reeleccion al cargo) y las reglas que regulan la selection y confirmation de candidatos (como el secreto o la publicidad del tramite legislativo).
- Topic:
- Government and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Argentina and South America