Editor's Pick 

Civil registration and vital statistics in conflict and emergencies
In fragile regions affected by conflict, Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) - the recording of vital events such as births, deaths, and marriages – is increasingly being seen as an essential tool for statebuilding and good governance. But to make it work, ECDPM’s Matthias Deneckere, Tony Land and Volker Hauck argue that decision-makers will need to face up to the technical challenges of CRVS and the politics of proper implementation for real and meaningful change. At the Third Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration, held this week in Yamoussoukro, Cote D’Ivoire, CRVS’s contribution to good governance was the main topic of discussion. Volker Hauck participated in the expert group meeting that preceded the ministerial meeting. ECDPM is part of the CAERUS consortium that aims to bring ideas and innovative practices to the table on ways to better link humanitarian relief and post-crisis recovery with resilience and development, particularly the special role that health and education systems can play.

Policy News

Linking ‘Food Security’ and ‘Peace & Security’
One cannot ignore the role of conflict in the genesis of food insecurity. However, the question of whether it is competition for access to limited resources that is causing “food wars” or if it is the conflicts that cause food insecurity, remains open. This conference, hosted by the The Royal Higher Institute for Defence, aimed to bridge the gap between research and policy and to encourage discussions on how to optimise the international food aid system. ECDPM’s Francesco Rampa made a presentation on the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) showing how it is an attempt at fully implementing the new approach to development cooperation in the case of food security. It is more about development effectiveness and public private partnership than just aid effectiveness.

Sahel Watch
Sahel Watch analyses blind spots in policy and seek solutions for policymakers and practitioners. It has been created together with a large number of experts to respond to the changing dynamics of the conflict. It will gradually include more contributions to the analysis and will be expanded to the larger Sahel region. The analysis is updated with new experts’ contributions, multimedia content, policy reports, academic studies and local information. Curated by The Broker, ECDPM’s Damien Helly also contributes on how to ‘Think and Act Regionally in the Sahel-Sahara’. 

How international institutions cut the Gordian knot of economic reform
Why do leaders of countries opt to sign on to international institutions that constrain their freedom to enact domestic policy? Leonardo Baccini and Johannes Urpelainen address this enduring question of international relations by looking at liberal economic reforms. Failure to implement liberal economic reform can have disastrous economic and political consequences, but liberal economic reforms can also provoke intense political controversy domestically. This book argues that international institutions help to cut this Gordian knot by allowing leaders to credibly commit to liberal policies while also creating domestic political support for reform.

Local governance integrity: principles and standards
Citizens, civil society, the media and the private sector play an increasingly important role in local policy-making, oversight and service delivery and are essential for reducing corruption. Civil society organisations can use principles and standards to monitor the progress of local governance. The purpose of the Anti-Corruption Principles and Standards for Local Governance Systems is to provide clear guidance as to how to prevent corruption and deal with it when it occurs. This living document from Transparency International will be updated as new standards emerge or are identified.

A long road to peace
The redistribution of power, the world’s increasing physical and informational connectivity, and the resulting decline of the state as the centrepiece of the international system are three long-term trends that are redefining conflict and security, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG). These trends have radical implications, as they challenge the role of states and intergovernmental organisations as the building blocks of global order. And they will shape the conflicts of 2015 and present immediate challenges to Western powers. Today’s conflicts demand an engagement that is both more modest and more imaginative than in the past, ICG says.

-The approach taken by both the OECD and IMF with targeted measures to curtail base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) would not fully replace arm’s-length rules with a formulated system, according to ICTSD.

-Countries are running out of industrialisation opportunities sooner and at much lower levels of income compared to the experience of early industrialisers. Dani Rodrik argues that premature deindustrialization has potentially significant economic and political ramifications, including lower economic growth and democratic failure.

-Phil Vernon of International Alert argues that from the literature and his personal experience, peace-conducive economic development can be recognised by four broad outcome indicators - decent livelihoods, capital, revenue, sustainability.

-The Group of 20 (G20) finance ministers and central bank governors released a Communiqué from their first meeting under Turkey's presidency. The Communiqué expresses their full support to the G20-OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project (BEPS).

-Have Aid for Trade (AfT) programmes assisted the process of structural transformation in African countries? The results suggest that factors other than AfT flows explain different experiences in relation to structural change in sub-Saharan Africa.

-This ISS paper uses the International Futures forecasting system to explore the MDG goals and finds that many African states are unlikely to make this target by 2030, even when modelling a package of aggressive poverty reduction interventions.

-Another ISS report takes a deeper look into proceedings at the 24th African Union Summit, and shows that positions agreed to are not quite how they have been communicated by the African Union Commission itself.

-A third ISS paper questions the continued relevance of external interventions for peacebuilding in Africa. For peacebuilding to be relevant, it needs to engage with the harbingers of violence.