Comprising an estimated total population of nearly 3.21 billion people, the BRICS nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa constitute the world’s five major emerging economies and are a significant influence on global affairs. In 2012, the BRICS took the momentous decision to establish their own financing mechanisms, including a new monetary […]
The area of family planning is unique in that the patient, rather than the provider, is seen as the key decision-maker in determining the best course of treatment. As such, family planning programs strive to afford women and couples the greatest degree of choice over contraceptive methods, and consequently invest significant resources into providing patients […]
Women who become pregnant less than 24 months after giving birth face numerous risks to their own health and the health of their child. As such, postpartum family planning services can help women to better space pregnancies and mitigate health risks. However, little is known about how postpartum family planning impacts women’s contraceptive use, fertility […]
Applications are closed for the 2026-2027 Global China Fellows Program. Want to stay informed about the program news? Subscribe to the Global China Fellows Mailing List. The Global China Fellows Program is a flagship program of the Global China Initiative (GCI) at the Boston University Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center). Since its inception in […]
By Natalie Ellis As the two-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic approaches, many people may be looking towards the future of returning to a “new normal.” However, one data group, the CoronaNet Research Project, will continue to look back at the apex of the pandemic in an effort to paint a complete picture of the […]
By Flavia Roscini Climate change is a challenge that can only be overcome if it is addressed at the international level. Global leaders have attempted to collaboratively mitigate climate change since 1972, and these negotiations produced several important accords, including the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and […]
By Pamela Icyeza In recent years, Eurobonds have seen a spike in activity in Africa. These international bonds, typically issues in euros or dollars, offer countries an alternative funding source from foreign aid and multilateral institutions. With the exception of South Africa and the Seychelles, most Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries had not issued sovereign bonds […]
In November 2020, Zambia became the first African country to default on its Eurobonds during the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing the country’s debt distress into headlines around the world. Bondholders’ refusal to provide debt suspension rested largely on fears that Zambia was not disclosing significant liabilities to Chinese creditors. In August 2021, national elections led to […]
It has been some 20 years since Stanley Fischer, then First Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), pointed out that a world with international capital mobility needs an international lender of last resort for countries facing an external financing crisis. He went further to suggest that the IMF might itself play that […]
By Patricia Cortés A decade ago, unemployment in Saudi Arabia reached unprecedented levels – 33 percent of young adults or women who wanted to work could not find a job. Threatened by the social and political consequences of this phenomenon, the government implemented a series of aggressive policies to reform the country’s labor market and, […]