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The Digital Initiative for Development (DID) Agency
An International Consultative
Workshop
September 11-12,
2001, Beirut, Lebanon
The Lebanese Center
for Policy Studies (LCPS), in collaboration with the Centre for Global
Studies at the University of Victoria, Canada, held a meeting of ICT
experts, consultants and practitioners, in Beirut, on September 11-12,
2001. The
main objective of the meeting was to discuss the nature, the mandate
and the areas of intervention of an international agency dedicated
to fostering the use of ICT for sustainable development. Among
the 20 participants, several belonged to major institutions dealing
with ICT for development (World Bank, UNDP, UNESCO, IFIP), while others
came from NGOs or university and research background. The participants
formed a cross-section of a wide geographical area, and came from
ten countries (Dubai, Egypt, India, Lebanon, Morocco, Senegal, South
Africa, the United States, Uruguay). Please
click here to see the Final Report
of the September 2 meeting.
This meeting
was the first in the development of a White Paper on the need for
an Agency to focus on the digital divide, being produced in collaboration
with the State of the World Forum, which will be presented to the
Commission on Globalisation for their input and comment.
MICROFINANCE: FURTHER INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT?
A Report and Policy Brief
from the Meeting of Microfinance Pracitioners
August 26-28, 2001 Victoria, BC
The Centre for Global
Studies at the University of Victoria, convened a meeting of microfinance
experts and practitioners August 26-28, 2001, in Victoria, British Columbia.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the idea of a new international
agency or initiative for promoting the microfinance sector. The twenty-six
participants at the meeting included representatives from a cross-section
of microfinance programs and organizations, plus some independent researchers
and specialists from the field. Over the course of the two day meeting,
the delegates engaged in a number of discussions related to the central
question: if we were to establish a new agency for the promotion of microfinance,
what would it look like, and what functions would it serve?
Click here
to see a Final Report of this meeting, which was
the first in the development of a White Paper on the need for further institutional
support for micro-finance, in collaboration with the State of the World
Forum. The final White Paper, due out in the spring, will be presented to
the members of the Commission on Globalisation for their input and comment.
Please click here to see
a more comprehensive Policy Brief on this work.
Commission
on Globalization Inaugural Conference
London, UK - December 13-15, 2002
The State of
the World Forum Secretariat launched the formal activities of the
Commission on Globalization at the London Business School December
13-15, 2001. More than eighty Co-Chairs and Commissioners attended
the two full days of wide ranging discussions on the strategy and
goals of the Commission; solid reports on the special projects and
Policy Action Groups which comprise the work of the Commission; energetic
business meetings in which a highly diverse and competent Steering
Committee was elected; and substantive dialogues after meals about
important global issues.
The Inaugural Meeting, attended by100 Co-Chairs, Commissioners and
special guests (click
here for the complete list of participants), brought closure to
many months of preparation and provided a sense of direction and common
purpose. A lot of hard work lies ahead, but the challenges can now
be approached with a sense of community and strength.
A Joint
Statement, signed by over 100 Co-Chairs and Commissioners, appeared
in the global edition of the Financial Times on December 13, 2001
and attracted thousands of hits on our website and numerous other
inquiries. This statement contributed to the overall press coverage
the event drew.
The next Commission meeting is planned for December 4-7, 2002. In
the interim, the Forum and its collaborating partners will seek to
strengthen the composition of the Commission's participants, expand
its political and corporate influence, enhance its thought leadership
and intellectual capacity, as well as continue to work with its Policy
Action Groups and Special Initiatives.
Click here for a .pdf file of the Inaugural report.
ENTERPRISING EUROPE: A New Model for Global Business
Enterprise is a fundamental
part of the fabric of our societies and we understand that governments
at all levels are no longer the sole actors. The involvement of other
key decision-makers is essential. Since the mid 1990s, global institutions
have agreed rules-based approaches to moderating global trade flows
and managing economic needs. These changes and developments have led
to a dominant model of how ‘to do business’.
Europe has the potential to become the world’s leading economic
powerhouse. The countries of the European Union (EU) contain over
376 million people, a hundred million more than the US. In 2000, it
exported over 780 billions euros worth of goods, 110 billion more
than the US. With the single market, competition rules, the single
currency, common social and environmental values, the EU has created
an area which promotes economic growth, trade and social values. The
establishment of the European Central Bank (ECB) and the single currency
was one of the best ways to defend European enterprise against currency
speculation and regain sovereignty over economic affairs. The EU can
also reasonably claim to have developed strong policies over environmental
and consumer protection, high levels of international assistance,
the best trade preferences, good political dialogue and the most efficient
cooperation with developing countries. In this way, we have begun
to and must continue to promote a distinctively European model of
enterprise.
The European model
offers a new agenda and culture of enterprise, which encourages its
creative, innovative, ethical, socially engaged, environmentally and
culturally-enriching dimensions. Please click
here to see the complete draft of "Enterprising Europe."
Centre
for Global Studies - Rethinking Governance
The Centre for Global Studies, has recently published Rethinking Governance,
a handbook containing an inventory of ideas to enhance Accountability, Participation
and Transparency in global governance. This project was supported by the
Ford Foundation.
Complete Text
(PDF file, 643KB)
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