Julio de 2013 (Continuación)

Hong Kong, so often trapped under the shadow of a rising China, was suddenly thrown into the spotlight when Edward J. Snowden sought refuge from the U.S. government in our city. The speculation over the 30-year-old whistleblower’s fate, and Beijing’s role in the matter, stirred curiosity over how this territory of seven million has fared in the 16 years since it was returned to China by Britain.

Curious outsiders will have their answer on Monday. While the city’s pro-Beijing elite are celebrating the anniversary of the handover, thousands of people will take to the streets to protest their frustrations with the government, and its eroding autonomy from the mainland.…  Seguir leyendo »

The news on the population front sounds bad: birthrates are not dropping as fast as expected, and we are likely to end up with an even bigger world population by the end of the century. The last revision of the United Nations’ World Population Prospects, two years ago, predicted just over 10 billion people by 2100. The latest revision, just out, predicts almost 11 billion.

That’s a truly alarming number, because it’s hard to see how the world can sustain another 4 billion people. (The current global population is 7 billion.) The headline number is deceptive,and conceals another, grimmer reality. Three-quarters of that growth will come in Africa.…  Seguir leyendo »

Even by the standards of a sports-mad country in which politics is a blood-sport, the events have been extraordinary and the bloodletting continues. At last count, the prime minister, deputy prime minister-cum-treasurer, and six other Cabinet ministers had moved to the backbench.

There is a sense of schadenfreude in that Kevin Rudd has done to Julia Gillard what she had done to him three years ago. Much of the instant online comment ran along the lines of: “Gillard got what Gillard gave — karma at its finest.” There is also a sense of voters having been cheated of the opportunity to boot out Gillard with grim vengeance.…  Seguir leyendo »

“A path is made by walking,” so an old proverb states. Africa, in the 50 years since most countries won independence, has walked a path toward stability and prosperity now appreciated by millions on our continent through increased life expectancy and the opportunities work and education bring. Yet sometimes is it difficult to feel or appreciate a journey of progress while it is happening. It is far easier to look back on success and forget how great a journey has been.

Last week, Ghana received the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization award for meeting Millennium Development Goals on decreasing hunger and undernourishment two years before the 2015 deadline, one of only 18 countries to have done so.…  Seguir leyendo »

Never before have the security and economic fate of the African continent been so intertwined with our own, and President Obama’s current trip offers an opportunity to highlight why U.S. global development and diplomacy efforts are more important than ever. How we choose to engage with the world in the 21st century has enormous implications not just for the health and welfare of millions of children, women and men across the African continent, but for all of us at home, too.

We’re not just talking altruism. We’re talking sound, smart business. The developing world is already the destination for more than half of all American exports, and these countries represent some of the best potential growth areas for American entrepreneurs and innovations.…  Seguir leyendo »

Les 4 et 5 juillet prochains, François Hollande effectuera une visite officielle en Tunisie, la première d’un président français depuis la chute de Ben Ali, le 14 janvier 2011. Derrière l’apparente unité que ne manqueront pas d’afficher les membres de la troïka au pouvoir – le président Moncef Marzouki (CPR, nationaliste), le premier ministre Ali Lârayedh (Ennahda, islamiste) et le président de l’Assemblée constituante, Mustapha Ben Jaafar (Ettakatol, social-démocrate) –, il visitera un pays en crise, plus divisé que jamais, et qui s’interroge sur son identité et son avenir collectif.

Cette crise est d’abord économique. Certes, la Tunisie a survécu à sa révolution et son appareil productif n’a pas connu les destructions observées chez le voisin libyen.…  Seguir leyendo »