WIDERAngle

Expert commentary from our network

Enhancing economic policymaking in Africa through trusted partnerships

by Abena Larbi-Odam, Elina Penttinen, Dominik Etienne
In today’s rapidly changing economic landscape, the importance of evidence-based policymaking cannot be overstated. Across Africa, countries face challenges related to limited access to reliable data and insufficient analytical capacities, hindering efforts to drive economic growth and tackle issues such as poverty, inequality, and fiscal instability. Addressing these barriers is essential to strengthening governance, enhancing fiscal resilience, and fostering inclusive economic development.UNU...

UNU-WIDER renews focus on inequality, conflict, and creating the fiscal space for development

With less than five years remaining to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UNU-WIDER continues to increase available knowledge on how to combine national policy initiatives, global cooperation, and research results to achieve progress. In 2024, UNU-WIDER began a new work programme to address critical challenges in global development with focused research on inequalities, conflicts, and fiscal space for development. How does research on these three topics change the...

Developing a WIDER perspective on economics

amartya
In an increasingly interconnected world, economic instability, conflict, and inequality pose significant challenges. Concerns about such instability and limited solutions from academia in the early 1980s spurred the establishment of UNU-WIDER. This piece explores the foundational years of UNU-WIDER, a think tank that emerged during that economically and politically tumultuous period in the 1980s. Established with the vision to address pressing economic challenges, UNU-WIDER would evolve into a...

1236 Blogpost

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Taxing the poor or fixing the system? A better alternative to VAT increases

With just days to go before the rescheduled 2025 Budget Speech, South Africa faces a ZAR 60 billion revenue shortfall amid slowing economic growth and...

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Developing a WIDER perspective on economics
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In an increasingly interconnected world, economic instability, conflict, and inequality pose significant challenges. Concerns about such instability...

Blog
Enhancing economic policymaking in Africa through trusted partnerships

In today’s rapidly changing economic landscape, the importance of evidence-based policymaking cannot be overstated. Across Africa, countries face...

Blog
UNU-WIDER renews focus on inequality, conflict, and creating the fiscal space for development
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With less than five years remaining to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UNU-WIDER continues to increase available...

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The Beijing Declaration 30 years later – where do we stand?
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The 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action set ambitious goals for equality, development, and peace for women worldwide. Endorsed by 189...

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South Africa’s electricity crisis – governance, challenges, and reform lessons

South Africa’s energy sector is undergoing a transformation. The suspension of load shedding—planned, rolling power outages to prevent grid collapse —...

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Do minimum wages reduce inequality in India?

Wage inequality in India has declined over the past two decades. This article examines the role of rising minimum wages in driving this trend...

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Agricultural development in Mozambique – seizing opportunities using a novel dataset

Agriculture has long been the backbone of Mozambique’s economy. Over 70% of the population relies on this sector for their livelihoods, contributing...

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In their own words: A personnel exchange between African tax data labs is a small but important example of the value of cooperation

In recent years, UNU-WIDER has partnered with sub-Saharan African governments to establish secure data labs that provide researchers with access to...

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Walking the road to the Fourth Financing for Development Conference and beyond

Last week, we attended the 2025 UNDP Dialogue on Public Finance and SDGs, where we explored the most pressing topics regarding public financing for...

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Celebrating 40 Years of UNU-WIDER
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In 2025, UNU-WIDER completes four decades of work. Starting as a small think-tank in relatively remote Helsinki, it has grown into a global institute...

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Is poverty really declining again? What falling poverty doesn’t tell us
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After a temporary increase in 2020 due to COVID-19, global extreme income poverty is reportedly falling again, according to World Bank estimates...

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Opinion: It’s time to prioritize ethical practices in global development research

As the development community rethinks how to improve the lives of people in low- and middle-income countries, so too must researchers and research...

Displaying 16 of 1236 results