Busan: Hopes for more aid effectiveness after High Level Forum?

The development sphere is abuzz with anticipation, as the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness is set to take place in Busan, South Korea, November 29 to December 1st.

But previous aid effectiveness resolutions have fallen short of providing the desired impact. One of the reasons for their shortcoming is the following: by looking for identifying a universally agreeable standard (of aid transparency, for example), donors end up with a weak lowest denominator resolution. And the reluctance of some new donors like China and Brazil to increase their aid transparency could set the threshold even lower this year. As it stands now, the latest draft of the outcome document is still very general.

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Young Activists, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and Rebel Leader Discuss What is Next for Arab Awakening

This post originally appeared on Wamda.com

The Arab World’s overdue awakening is now irreversible and unstoppable. This was the feeling that dominated the 5th Harvard Arab Weekend (HAW), which took place this weekend across Harvard University. Under the theme Arab (R)evolution: What’s Next?, the weekend brought together more than 600 participants in what is the largest pan-Arab conference in North America. In place of the usual royals and government figures, this year’s conference showcased opposition figures, rebel leaders, and young activists – in whose hands lies the future of the region.

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