The Contribution of Donor Support Programs to Decentralized Development: Learning from the District Level in Ghana

Donor aid has over the years turned out to be a very decisive development component for most developing nations, but aid is often criticized for ineffectiveness. This article seeks to share perspectives on the relevance of direct project or program support and the need to refrain from homogeneity in aid research by assessing the contribution of the Government of Ghana/European Union (GoG/EU) Micro-Projects Programme in the Nadowli District of Ghana from 1997–2009. The findings acknowledge positive impacts of the program in the district. There are sector consistencies between the donor interest and local development priorities in health, education and the water and sanitation sectors. However, selectivity of project within and among sectors brings potential conflicts of interest and tradeoffs between the program and local community needs. The results imply a reexamination of decentralized development through a lens of new partnership between donors’ interest and local needs. Stepping up community awareness to ensure full participation in project design, execution, operation, and maintenance could serve as a start-up platform for new partnerships. It is imperative to align donor interest with local realities, which prompts a rethinking of adoption of new project approaches such as co-development, design, and implementation.     

Fair Trade and justice: a comment on Walton and Deneulin

In this article we first point out that the different conceptualisations of Fair Trade, which are sometimes analytically contradictory, actually form a coordinated set. Understanding the Fair Trade project is impossible without taking these interlinked conceptualisations into consideration. Second, this set basically forms a mechanism of structural, institutional and moral reforms that guide actions. In this way Fair Trade sets out to produce less injustice than is usually the case with the structures and institutions that govern conventional trade. Nevertheless, it does not try to define what a just society is or even to perfectly define ‘fair trade’. This implies the adoption of a comparative justice angle. It is precisely by linking comparative individual situations with the structures that produce these situations that relative justice can find its strength and purpose.     

Paving the way for farm animal welfare in international relations: an EU–Brazil case study

As a sensitive area in international trade, animal welfare measures have encountered resistance in negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Consequently, alternative avenues have been pursued to reach international trade policy convergence. To further understand the contemporary trade politics of animal welfare, an empirical investigation was conducted on the interplay between European and Brazilian actors in the context of livestock production. By drawing upon diplomatic studies and the global governance literature, this study identifies and analyses initiatives that parallel the WTO approach and through which the development and implementation of mutually acceptable farm animal welfare measures have been pursued. Research findings indicate that a constellation of international non-diplomatic actors are currently engaged in influencing the future development of farm animal welfare measures. Among the initiatives that enable the alignment of European and Brazilian animal welfare policies and practices, there are soft instruments such as knowledge sharing and private standards. The rise of new actors and the use of soft instruments have been, to a certain extent, able to mitigate the tardiness of a WTO consensus regarding the use of animal welfare measures. However, there are concerns that the use of private standards has become a shortcut to circumvent the rigours of the multilateral trading system. This concern deserves a closer look because instead of paving the way, private standards may hamper trade relations which in turn hamper progress in animal welfare matters.     

国际服务贸易紧急保障措施制度的建构及中国的应对析论

服务贸易领域保障措施立法是近年来引起国内外普遍关注的一个新领域.在国际上,围绕着服务贸易总协定ESM的建构引发了发达国家与发展中国家的激烈争论,反映了发达国家与发展中国家不同的利益和立场.提出我国在国际服务贸易紧急保障措施建构中所应采取的立场,分析我国服务贸易保障措施立法的成就与不足,并在此基础上提出完善我国服务贸易保障措施立法的一些建议.     

我国资本系相关法学问题初探

资本系是我国资本市场中新出现的现象。它具有五大法律特征。其法学概念可以概括为:在资本市场中以资本为核心或联系纽带形成的,具有关联或潜在关联关系的上市公司群体。资本系对我国资本市场的影响越来越大,而且对现行公法、私法制度产生强烈冲击,因此,资本系问题具有重要的法学研究价值。     

我国西南民族地区参与中国-东盟自贸区对外贸易分析——以贵州参与中国-东盟自贸区对外贸易为例

民族地区加快对外开放,发展与世界的对外贸易,推动经济发展是我国对外开放战略及民族地区经济发展战略的重要内容。中国—东盟自由贸易区的建立以及《中国-东盟全面经济合作框架协议货物贸易协议》的实施,不仅使中国企业在东盟的市场空间进一步扩展,更为具有区位优势的西南民族地区提供了发展外贸的巨大机遇。通过对贵州—东盟外贸案例的分析,证明这种机遇是现实的,且具很大的发展空间与前景。     

WTO体制下的贸易与环境若干问题评析--基于GATS与环境服务贸易的视角

环境服务谈判纳入GATS之中以及由此带来的法律适用上的冲突,从一个侧面折射出多边贸易体制下贸易与环境问题的复杂性.平衡与协调贸易与环境问题的难度与多边谈判的曲折,使许多问题已超出WTO体制的承载,通过对环境服务贸易在GATS协定中的法律适用的分析,反映出在WTO体制下处理好贸易与环境议题,尚需在理论与实践上作出进一步的探讨与努力.     

论我国商业秘密保护中的竞业禁止

商业秘密保护中的竞业禁止是指对与特定营业具有特定关系的特定人的行为予以禁止的制度。我国关于竞业禁止制度的立法颇为零乱且不具操作性,应从竞业禁止合同的有效要件诸方面进行完善。     

对竞业禁止纠纷若干问题探析

商业秘密作为企业的一种无形资产和知识产权的重要组成部分,已经成为企业技术创新的重要内容和进行市场竞争的重要手段。本文就企业与员工的利益如何达到一种相对平衡,避免员工离职后与企业发生不必要的纠纷进行初步探讨。     

电子商务对国际税法的挑战

网络促进了全球化电子商务的迅速发展。电子商务的出现,无疑为人们提供了新的商贸空间和商机,但它所引发的税收问题也是不容忽视的。电子商务的新特点使税收的传统控管手段失灵。我国应建立新的税收征管体制,以应对电子商务带来的新挑战。