Courtesy: Government of South Africa/ Flickr
Internal political constraints dog it currently, but if overcome, South Africa can be a good chairman to BRICS and IORA in 2018. It also has a tough balancing act to perform between two great Asian powers, China and India
Courtesy:
Indian President Ram Nath Kovind leaves for Africa on his first foreign visit as president on October 3. His first port of call will be Djibouti, which occupies a strategic location in the Horn of Africa. The country has assumed significance for hosting multiple foreign military bases on its territory, the latest entrant being China. This infographic illustrates Djibouti’s ‘military base’ diplomacy.
Courtesy: BBC
Germany and India have revealed a dual priority for Africa: creating opportunities for prosperity and promoting stability. For both, these are uncharted waters and represents a shift in the locus of global dynamism, away from an Anglo-Saxon world order to a more diverse yet potentially fissiparous one
Courtesy: Gateway House
In his interview, Dr. Peter Wolff discusses the pillars and objectives of Germany's Marshall Plan for Africa and the need to integrate it into the global value chain. In the sphere of renewable energy, he argues that the most effective way of establishing a solid renewable sector is through market based strategies rather than government based ones. Although in some industries public private partnerships are the best measure, in others a more corporate lead approach is better.
Courtesy: Gateway House
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement on November 8 to demonetise notes of the denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 has a precedent. This infographic traces some interesting demonetisation initiatives around the world. From discontinuation of high denomination notes due to lack of circulation, to the use of beer and water as 'real assets' in place of hyper-inflated currency.
Courtesy: The Independent/AP
France's state policy of 'laïcité' (secularism) and its military interventions in Islamic countries has made it the prime target of IS in the West. The hardline French response to step up bombing campaigns against jihadis in Syria, Iraq, and Mali will likely continue, but conversely feeds IS strategy, which is to foment anti-Muslim sentiment among the non-Muslim French population.
Courtesy: Narendramodi.in
Narendra Modi’s landslide victory in India's 2014 general elections, despite his hardline nationalist image, was viewed as a localised phenomenon. But two years later, voters across the world from Europe to Philippines seem to be tilting towards leaders with the same nationalist tag.
Courtesy: Vito Manzari/Wikimedia Commons
A refugee policy that absolves more capable and resource rich nations of any responsibility towards transnational asylum seekers is archaic and has lived beyond its time. Keeping in mind the EU's receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize for advancing causes of peace, reconciliation, democracy and human rights, it is incumbent upon it to set new standards and reform its refugee policy
Courtesy: Rama/Wikimedia Commons
The year 2014 will witness elections in some of the biggest countries including India, Brazil and Indonesia. Like in India, the participation of youth voters is likely to be an important determinant in the outcome of the elections. Gateway House examines the presence of issues common to India and the major countries going to the polls in early 2014
Courtesy: W123/WikimediaCommons
Whether backdoor geopolitics rather than careful negotiations brought about the interim agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme, the next six months will determine its fate. Reactions have ranged from a furious and mistrustful Israel to collective relief by many countries, and a worried India welcoming the agreement