Gender equality is a crucial component of successful development, yet austerity puts a disproportionate burden on women, increasing their economic vulnerability and affecting societal outcomes. Conversely, economic growth that leads to increased female labor force participation without compensatory investments in social care provisioning and better distribution of caregiving responsibilities will ultimately compromise investment and growth. […]
Dollar borrowing outside the United States has over generations grown to be very large, with US policy providing some inducement and, in critical episodes, support. In a new paper published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Policy Hub, Robert N. McCauley highlights three instances where the US Federal Reserve (Fed) has backstopped markets as […]
By Ishana Ratan On May 14, 2024, the United States Trade Representative’s office revealed a new round of tariffs on imports from China. Notably, these trade barriers impact electric vehicles (EV) and batteries, among a host of other industrial products including steel and medical devices. Tariffs on EVs will jump from 25 percent to 100 […]
By Rebecca Ray and Jörg Haas Without a stepwise injection of capital into developing countries, meaningful progress on addressing climate change and meeting the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement targets will remain out of reach. The Group of 20 (G20) Independent Experts Group estimates that emerging market and developing […]
Overlapping global shocks faced by African countries have caused severe liquidity challenges in recent years. Many countries are currently experiencing low real gross domestic product (GDP) growth, higher inflation, exchange rate instability, balance of payments crisis and a high risk of debt distress. The most critical is the increasing disruption that climate change risks pose […]
By Daniella Luna and Samantha Igo The Spring 2024 Global Economic Governance Book Talk Series brought together four distinguished scholars with recent books, spanning India’s economic history to social protection and austerity in International Monetary Fund (IMF) programs. Ashoka Mody opened the series with a discussion on the economic history of India through the lens […]
By Rachel Thrasher On Tuesday, May 7, the Boston University Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center) hosted Alexandros Kentikelenis and Thomas Stubbs, co-authors of the new book, “A Thousand Cuts: Social Protection in the Age of Austerity,” as part of the Spring 2024 Global Economic Governance Initiative Book Talk Series. Kentikelenis is Associate Professor of […]
By Tim Hirschel-Burns In March, New York lawmakers submitted the “Sovereign Debt Stability Act” to the New York State Assembly with the goal of “providing effective mechanisms for restructuring sovereign and subnational debt.” Proponents of the bill will seek to move it through both chambers of the legislature and receive a signature from the governor […]
By Samantha Igo On Thursday, April 11, the Boston University Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center) hosted a webinar to discuss findings from a recent report on the role of development finance institutions (DFIs) in the early phase-down of coal plants. The webinar featured a presentation on the report from Niccolò Manych, GDP Center Post-doctoral […]
The global community’s efforts on climate change have yet to demonstrate the urgent need for immediate action. However, there is now a growing convergence that increasing levels of sovereign debt are inhibiting bold and necessary action on climate and development. The Vulnerable Group of 20 (V20) Ministers of Finance, comprising 68 climate vulnerable economies, are […]