The global struggle for the right to a place to live

The problem of inadequate housing and living conditions facing one quarter of the world's population is situated in this article within the frameworkof human rights, and of international recognition of the basic rights to a place to live, and to gain and sustain an adequate standard of living. The nature and scale of the housing crisis points to a failure of governance that leads to exclusion, dispossession, and violence becoming endemic in societies: the institutionalisation of insecure and inadequate housing and living conditions. The author draws on the experience of Habitat International Coalition (HIC) in developing and supporting a comprehensive range of actions at local, national, regional, and international levels; and suggests some of the elements required if changes are not only to be promoted and campaigned for, but also sustained.     

中国与南苏丹石油合作的机遇与挑战

南苏丹是世界上最依赖石油收入和出口的国家,还面临着石油勘探前景黯淡,缺乏配套石油工业和石油基础设施、对从苏丹继承的石油合同的修改空间有限,以及与苏丹的跨界油田的管理问题尚未理顺等诸多困境。目前,在南苏丹的石油产业管理体系还尚未形成的背景下,中国石油企业应当在充分理解南苏丹的环境与社会公平等问题的基础上,积极与南苏丹商议石油合同的继承与修改问题,抓住美国继续维持对南苏丹石油投资限制的机遇,巩固在南苏丹的石油投资。中国政府应当协调与南苏丹及苏丹关系中的石油利益,依托多边声誉机制和具有正式制度的第三方机制,改善中国与南苏丹能源合作机制的单一性,维护中国在南苏丹合法的石油利益。     

中印巴三角关系与中国的南亚政策

中印巴三角关系是南亚问题的重要因素。近年来,中印巴三角关系出现积极互动的良好局面,这有利于中国与南亚开展合作与交流,维护西南周边环境的和平与稳定。目前,中印巴三角关系已有了确定的新形态,但仍难免带有旧模式的痕迹。中印巴三角关系受着多种因素的制约和影响,但当前有利的因素占主导地位。中国的南亚政策重点之一,是把握和处理好中印巴三角关系,积极推动三角互动,在维护好中巴传统关系基础上,积极发展对印关系,并推动印巴和解,促进地区局势的和平与稳定。同时,要注意应对各种不利于三角关系良性发展的潜在挑战。     

China outperforms India in the oil industry in Angola and Nigeria

ABSTRACT

The article asserts that China’s NOCs have trumped Indian oil companies in four ways. First, Chinese NOCs have more oil blocks in Angola and Nigeria relative to Indian oil companies. Second, NOCs from China are able to outbid Indian oil companies if and when they directly compete for the same oil blocks. Third, Chinese NOCs have better quality oil blocks compared to Indian oil companies. Fourth, Chinese NOCs are preferred as partners by African NOCs and international oil companies. It provides a more comprehensive explanation of the above observations by examining macro level factors such as difference in the economic, political and diplomatic support received by the Chinese and Indian oil companies from their respective governments and foreign exchange reserves and micro level factors such as access to capital, rate of return on investment, pricing of oil and risk aversion.     

International NGOs and unions in the South: worlds apart or allies in the struggle?

In the early 1980s, support for trade unions was a significant component of Oxfam GB's programmes in various parts of the world, most notably Central America and South Africa. In Central America, this was motivated both because organised labour played an important role in popular movements that were pressing for equitable political settlements to the wars ravaging the region, and because unions as such, as well as their members and leaders, were the targets of repression and political violence. This article explores the background to the rise in funding for unions in Honduras, reflects on this experience, and discusses some of the factors that might change a potentially awkward donor‐recipient relationship to one of dialogue and solidarity.     

The power triangle in the Indian Ocean: China,India and the United States

The Indian Ocean is increasingly becoming the point of focus in assessing Asia's future security challenges. As both India and China are building up their naval presence in the Indian Ocean and as China's stakes in the region (protecting its maritime trade) interact with India's aspirations (being the regional dominant power and security provider), tensions are likely to rise. The United States has an established role in the Indian Ocean, and its approach to the contestation between Indian and Chinese interests may play a key role in limiting frictions. These developments have led many analysts to foresee the emergence of a balance of power system in the Indian Ocean region and East Asia which would be comparable to that of nineteenth-century Europe. In presenting the interplay between the three major stakeholders in the Indian Ocean, this paper aims to outline the implications of a balance of power system in the Indian Ocean region and demonstrate that it may not guarantee peace and stability, but, with regard to Organski's ‘power transition’ theory, could lead to quite the contrary.     

Overlapping regionalism and cooperative hegemony: how China and India compete in South and Southeast Asia

This article examines the phenomenon of overlapping regionalism in South and Southeast Asia. Theoretically it rests on Thomas Pedersen’s ‘ideational-institutionalist realism’ approach. We argue that in the two sub-regions under study the proliferation of regional organizations has been greatly stimulated by hegemonic and counter-hegemonic dynamics involving Asia’s largest powers, China and India. We claim that sceptical world views highlighting vulnerability, victimization and national survival are deeply entrenched in the mental maps of the regions’ foreign policy elites. Regional institution building is thus informed by the tenets of realism. We trace how and why China and India seek to establish ‘cooperative hegemonies’ by building regional institutions for incorporating their neighbours into their sphere of influence while keeping rival powers at bay, and also show why smaller states in the region join these regional fora.     

中国、印度在俄罗斯外交中的定位--《当代全球化进程中的俄中印》介评

中国、印度均为亚洲大国 ,俄罗斯近年来奉行灵活、积极的亚洲外交政策 ,发展与亚洲各国的友好合作关系 ,同中国建立战略协作伙伴关系 ,并签署《睦邻友好合作条约》的同时 ,与印度也建立了战略伙伴关系。但在俄外交的深层考虑当中 ,将中、印视为其真正的盟友吗 ?中、印两国在俄外交政策中的地位又有哪些不同 ?1998年由莫斯科社会科学出版社出版的《当代全球化进程中的俄中印》(Россия、Китай、Индиявпроцессесовременнойглобальзации)一书可能会给我们一些启示。该书由俄著名亚洲问题专家格…     

The struggle for organisational change: How the ActionAid Accountability,Learning and Planning System emerged

Change is driven not only by good ideas, but also by disagreement and frustration. This article takes the reader through a selective organisational history of the British NGO ActionAid from 1998 to 2001, looking at events and changes that had a bearing on the introduction and initial impact of the agency'snew accountability system. Systematic change appears very unsystematic. Effective transformation took a long time to arrive, and was preceded by a number of failed experiments. It seems that the frustrations of this time were necessary to develop the creativity needed for significant change. The efforts started to bear fruit once the organisation began to realise alignment of mission, structures, procedures, and relationships.     

印度农村劳动力转移问题及其对我国的启示

本文指出印度农村劳动力无法有效向城市非农产业转移,是印度主要的劳动力转移问题,并指出不适宜的工业化战略、农业生产效率很低,劳动力文化素质不高等因素,是导致印度农村劳动力无法有效转移的主要原因。然后,运用托达罗模型从理论上进一步深入剖析了印度的劳动力转移问题。最后指出了我国从中得到的启示。     

南亚地区内贸易发展：潜力、挑战与中国的作用

近年来,南亚区域经济合作继续发展,地区内贸易往来不断扩大,其所包含的内容远比5％的比重更为丰富。制约南盟内贸易发展的经济因素是地区经济合作发展所面临的重大挑战,需切实解决才能发掘地区合作的巨大潜力。中国扩大对南亚的贸易、投资等经贸合作,有助于南亚国家提高区内贸易供给能力,从而进一步扩大区内贸易与经济合作。     

中美南海外交困境:影响及对策

伴随着亚太再平衡战略的实施,近年来美国越来越深地介入南海问题,并与越南和菲律宾等国形成内外呼应之势,致使该地区局势急剧恶化。当前,中美在南海陷入多重外交困境,尤其表现为法理困境、安全困境和信任困境。这使得美国因素成为南海问题中一个无法回避的变量。中国所能做的就是尽量限制和弱化这种因素,以免将南海问题变成中美之间的战略对抗。     

开展中国和印度农业合作的探讨

农业在中国和印度国民经济中占有极为重要的地位。在新世纪,中印两国能否实现经济、社会的跨越式发展关键在于两国能否巩固和加强农业的基础地位。中国和印度处在不同的纬度上,农业发展政策和发展历程也不尽相同,这种差异性与互补正是两国开展农业合作的基础。