Discussion Paper

The European Union’s global role in a changing world: challenges and opportunities for the new leadership

Hackenesch, Christine / Niels Keijzer / Svea Koch (eds.) (2024)
Discussion Paper 11/2024

Exploring the influence of power on the governance of climate im/mobility in Accra and Dakar

Ekoh, Susan S. (2024)
Discussion Paper 10/2024

Climate change is increasingly impacting im/mobility of people in the urban context. As diverse actors collaborate to address human mobility in cities, it is important to examine the role of power in these multi-level governance efforts.

The New South: breaking with the past: West-South engagement in a changing world

Ishmael, Len (2024)
Discussion Paper 9/2024

As the world continues to fracture into different blocs, a new world order is in the making. Some even argue that a new Cold War has commenced. Countries of the South are adding more muscle to the G20, and an array of non-western groupings are gaining momentum, forging a new identity: The New South

Operationalising social contracts: towards an index of government deliverables

Loewe, Markus / Amirah El-Haddad / Tina Zintl (2024)
Discussion Paper 8/2024

Wie bedingen sich Rechenschaftslegung und organisationales Lernen in der deutschen Entwicklungszusammenarbeit?

Esser, Daniel E. / Heiner Janus (2024)
Discussion Paper 7/2024

Das Papier analysiert die deutschen Entwicklungsorganisationen, GIZ und KfW Entwicklungsbank, in Hinblick auf den Zusammenhang zwischen Rechenschaftsplicht und organisationalem Lernen.

Green hydrogen in Namibia: opportunities and risks

Altenburg, Tilmann / Anne Kantel (2024)
Discussion Paper 6/2024

Namibia hopes to benefit from green hydrogen markets. We assess the related opportunities and risks. If offtake agreements materialise, export revenues may be substantial. Job and industrial development effects will remain limited. How public revenues are used will determine development outcomes.

Universality in action: why and how United Nations development work should engage with high-income countries

Baumann, Max-Otto / Sebastian Haug (2024)
Discussion Paper 5/2024

The paper makes the case for universality in United Nations development work. It argues that the UN has an important role to play in promoting sustainable development across all member states, including in high-income countries. Ideas are proposed how that role could look like practically.

Transnational cooperation – an explorative collection

Grimm, Sven / Stephan Klingebiel (Eds.) (2024)
Discussion Paper 4/2024

This collection pursues the questions of where and how transnational cooperation proves to be effective for transformational policy-making towards the global common good. It exploratively builds on examples from IDOS research and knowledge cooperation.

The role of the consumer and systemic policy mixes for circular business models in the EU

Fuhrmann-Riebel, Hanna (2024)
Discussion Paper 3/2024

What role do consumers play for the transition to a circular economy (CE) and the development of circular business models (CBMs) in particular? Hanna Fuhrmann-Riebel zooms in on potential consumer barriers to CBM demand and discusses different options for policy making to address those barriers.

Information integrity and information pollution: vulnerabilities and impact on social cohesion and democracy in Mexico

Breuer, Anita (2024)
Discussion Paper 2/2024

This discussion paper analyses factors that enable and drive societal vulnerability towards information pollution in Mexico. It formulates national and international level recommendations to counter information pollution and mitigate its negative impacts on social cohesion and democracy.

Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) and the “greening” of high-emitting industry sectors in Brazil: mapping the sustainability efforts of the private sector

Thorstensen, Vera / Ariel Macaspac Hernandez / Rogerio de Oliveira Corrêa / Dolores Teixeira de Brito / Mauro Kiithi Arima Junior / Catherine Rebouças Mota / Tiago Matsuoka Megale / Amanda Mitsue Zuchieri / Fabio Jorge Thomazella (2024)
Discussion Paper 1/2024

Brazil seeks a global leadership that is compatible with its national identity. Its “pragmatism” is evident both in its multilateral efforts and its approach towards sustainability, particularly in the greening of its high emitting industry sectors – aluminium, chemical, steel, cement and oil & gas.

Development finance at a turning point: effects and policy recommendations

Berensmann, Kathrin / Sabine Laudage Teles / Christoph Sommer / Yabibal M. Walle (2023)
Discussion Paper 21/2023

The COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the debt crisis, the climate emergency, and other newly emerging crises have adversely affected the macroeconomic environment. This paper dissects the implications for development finance and proposes respective short-term and long-term policy responses.

Contextualising social cohesion I: an overview of concepts in Africa

Wortmann-Kolundžija, Eli (2023)
Discussion Paper 20/2023

Explore the rich tapestry of social cohesion in African societies in our paper. Merging traditional wisdom with modern theories, we offer fresh insights into African understandings of social cohesion. Join us to redefine the narrative and deepen the study of social dynamics.

On the edge: delays in election results and electoral violence in Sub-Sahara Africa

Saibu, Ghadafi (2023)
Discussion Paper 19/2023

In the complex process that unfolds across the stages of elections management, the length of time elapsing between elections and results announcement is often tensed. But, does the length of time passing between elections and announcement of elections results increase the risk of electoral violence?

Chinese firms and adherence to global ESG standards in developing countries: is there potential to create common ground?

Morris, Mike (2023)
Discussion Paper 18/2023

This paper focuses on analysing how Chinese firms operate in Latin America, Asia and Africa in regard to ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) standards and sustainability issues.

Are global value chains for sale? On business-state relations in the MENA region

Aboushady, Nora / Chahir Zaki (2023)
Discussion Paper 17/2023

How do business-state relations in the MENA region affect firms' participation in global value chains? To answer this question, this paper explores the complex relations between lobbying, political connections, and corruption in the region.

Urbanisation and social cohesion: theory and empirical evidence from Africa

Sakketa, Tekalign Gutu (2023)
Discussion Paper 16/2023

Combining a national panel data set on social cohesion from Afrobarometer with urbanisation and other socioeconomic data from world development indicators, the study shows that urbanisation is negatively correlated with the social cohesion.

The implementation of sustainability taxonomies: the case of South Africa

Hilbrich, Sören / Kathrin Berensmann / Giovanna Artmann / Sam Ashman / Theresa Herbold / Steffen Lötters-Viehof / Agnese Monti / Felix Paffhausen Stephanie Roigk / Lee-Ann Steenkamp (2023)
Discussion Paper 15/2023

Our case study on South Africa’s Green Finance Taxonomy (GFT) investigates challenges associated with the implementation of sustainability taxonomies as they are currently developed in many jurisdictions with the aim to increase transparency and redirect capital flows to sustainable investments.

Learning from KfW’s ex-post evaluations? How conflicting objectives can limit their usefulness

Dörrbecker, Nicola M. (2023)
Discussion Paper 14/2023

How can German development cooperation learn from evaluations that are primarily used to monitor success and are also rarely read? Nicola Dörrbecker analyses such conflicts of interest with a focus on ex-post evaluations (EPE) by the development bank of the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW).

What role for aid for trade in (deep) PTA relations? Empirical evidence from gravity model estimations

Stender, Frederik / Tim Vogel (2023)
Discussion Paper 13/2023

Trade agreements cover an increasing range of policy areas, but little is known about the impact of this new focus on interactions with other trade-related policies. This IDOS Discussion Paper fills this gap by examining the effectiveness of bilateral aid for trade in deep North-South PTA relations.