460 results found
Video streaming applications are said to be a replacement to traditional television. Therefore, it shouldn’t be a surprise that digital streaming ap
The female workforce in India is changing as younger women with higher levels of education enter the workforce
The adoption of digital payments has risen exponentially over the past decade in many countries including India and those in the African continent. In India, the growth has run parallel to rapid mobile penetration, aided by initiatives like Aadhaar, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), and IndiaStack, as well as the unintended push factor created by demonetisation in November 2016. This brief discusses the landscape of fintech—‘finan
It is the ongoing changes in the international system and impact of global recession that have laid bare the challenges before Russia.
India is witnessing a phenomenal increase in urbanisation and it is essential that this process is studied and analysed thoroughly to provide for a better quality of life, said Mr. Strobe Talbott, President of the Brookings Institution, while formally releasing ORF Mumbai Vision 2015: Agenda for Urban Renewal, published by Observer Research Foundation in ORF Mumbai on September 20.
Care work, both paid and unpaid, is at the heart of most economies. The care sector comprises formal healthcare, childcare services, early childhood education, disability and long-term care, and eldercare. Two-thirds of care workers globally are women, and women and girls perform more than three-quarters of all unpaid care work. The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the vulnerability of care workers and deepened the gender gap. This paper a
Economic growth has historically been dependent on fossil fuels. Climate change mitigation, therefore, is often an obstacle for developing countries. Although efficiency in the use of energy sources has increased dramatically over the last decades, GHG emissions remain at steep levels. This brief argues that developed countries should increase pressures on the Global North for more robust emission cuts and greater provision of aid related to clim
Emergency humanitarian aid, which aims to save lives and reduce people’s suffering in times of crises, has grown considerably over the last century to become a central feature of international relations and of the multilateral system. It is estimated that over 400 million people depend on such aid today. The future of these people and of the humanitarian aid they depend on are fraught with risks, in light of five palpable trends: exponentially
India requires the strategic aid of its private medical sector to reach its vast and segregated population.
India’s financial aid to the Philippines to fight the Islamic State signals a reworking of its Asean outreach
Despite the previous impediments to the MCC-Nepal Compact, it has finally been given the green light.
Despite developing economic ties and sending humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, Russia has adopted a dual approach towards Taliban-rule Afghanistan
The impact of the Kachin conflict should also be evaluated in terms of Myanmar?s ties with other nations, especially Japan ? a nation that is one of the principal aid providers and architects of Myanmar?s path to development.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had widespread global economic impacts, and countries are gearing up for recovery. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be crucial. Given that the SDGs incorporate the four pillars of capital — human, social, natural and physical — these targets will be useful in the post-pandemic economic recovery process. This brief utilises econometric analysis to illustrate how the implementation of the SDGs is a stat
Russia-China’s voting congruence at the UNSC on issues relating to Syria and North Korea sets a vexing precedent for cooperative multilateralism
For Ukraine to win this war, successful diplomatic and military approaches, a stable economic recovery, and the aid of partners are needed.
Chinese development diplomacy not only offers alternative sources of finance, but also presents a model that seems to overcome the major criticisms of
As the country that hosts the EU institutions with Brussels known as the EU’s de facto capital, Belgium has been instrumental in the EU’s evolutio
Can emerging technology and the fourth industrial revolution aid in the increasing water insecurity in India and globally?
United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to be complimented for her candour. Her press conference in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov unavoidably focussed on Iran's nuclear plans and Mr. Lavrov said Iran had the right under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) to the nuclear fuel cycle. Dr. Rice said, "this is not a question of rights but whether or not the fuel cycle can be trusted in Iran."
Speaking recently in New Delhi, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the Government was committed to modernise the armed forces, but "that there is a need to exercise financial prudence and optimise all available resources".
Despite advancements in legislation and representation over the last decades, women continue to face barriers in accessing sexual and reproductive healthcare, legal protection against violence, and leadership roles. In the economic sphere, gender disparities persist in labour force participation, job sectors, wages, and unpaid care work. Women are constrained in participating in the labour market as their social role remains attached to domestic
The three organs of the State, as laid down in the Constitution, are the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. Reforms are about examining the
Discussing Dr. C Raja Mohan's book 'Modi's World: Expanding India's Sphere of Influence' in Kolkata, former Foreign Secretary K. Srinivasan said foreign policy has to be a combination of aspirations and capabilities. He said translating aspirations into policy would be a key challenge for the government.
Central Asia is the next favoured destination of radical Islamists and terrorist groups. Several terrorist networks are said to be already active in the region and recent suicide bombings in Uzbekistan in the cities of Tashkent and Bukhara, in March and July, 2004 suggest that al-Qaeda and its allies are looking for safer havens in the wake of the increasing pressure on their networks in the Middle-East and South East Asia from the security force
The latest terrorist attack on Mumbai and careless comments by an Indian minister on the scrapping of aids by the United States may set back ties with Pakistan.
A new US aid package for Kyiv can’t mask the fact that its American support has been wearing out
Putin’s war against Ukraine is more about his domestic political standing, but it has already laid the foundation of a new global order that is unlikely to be of his liking
Almost 24 months after the Russian invasion, Kyiv and its NATO allies are nowhere near defining what victory would constitute
Aside from financial aid, the UK’s Rwanda bill does not offer any incentives to Rwanda and only exports the domestic challenges caused by immigratio
On 1 July 2020, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) of India celebrated #5YearsOfDigitalIndia. Given the recent call by the prime minister for Atmanirbhar Bharat (‘self-reliant India’) the IT minister found the occasion apt for trumpeting a crowning jewel of Digital India—the Unified Payment Interface that was launched almost four years ago. This indigenous innovation has prepared India for both the restrictions o
This year’s budget has laid out the framework for a digitally-led India, with special emphasis placed upon digitalising finance
Continuity rather than change may well be the mark of the second Bush administration's foreign policy.It was billed as `the liberty speech.' George W. Bush, beginning his second term as President, said: ""It is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.""
Through timely regulation, the government can aid in enlarging the ecosystem of retailers in e-commerce
The US is keen on investing in alternate energy sources, especially in Southern India where there is high potential for such innovations, says Samuel F Rothenberg, Political/Economic Officer at the US Consulate-General in Chennai. He said around $1 billion has been earmarked by the US Exim Bank to ensure the implementation of such plans.
It is said of the US that it comes to the right course of action after making all the mistakes. Unfortunately, it is others who end up paying the real price. And that includes Pakistan too. Ukraine looks to be the next candidate.
Pakistan will face severe consequences if they do not change their policies in dealing with terror networks, said Dr. Lisa Curtis during a talk on "US Policy Options in Pakistan" on October 13, 2011 at Observer Research Foundation.
The US has subjected Pakistan to a unilateral sanctions regime at several crucial junctures in the history of their bilateral ties. Though the reasons for cutting off economic and military aid to Pakistan have been contingent on strategic exigencies prevalent at different points in time and therefore not singular, countering Pakistan’s nuclear ambitions has been a recurring theme. It is widely believed that these sanctions have not been able to
At a conference on 'Building Pan Asian Connectivity' in Kolkata, US Ambassador to India Richard Verma has said the Asia policy of the United States and India's Act East policy can work in complementary ways to increase regional trade and growth.
The visit of Modi to Washington D.C. promises to be a harbinger of a major transformation in US-India defence ties
B. Raman, former head of the counter-terrorism division of India's external intelligence agency, suggested that India should continue the peace process with Pakistan and should not get involved in this matter involving the US and Pakistan. He said New Delhi should not pressure Islamabad further in Pakistan's hour of 'humiliation'.
During a discussion on the growth of militant groups in Pakistan and its effects on India, Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind general secretary Maulana Mahmood Madani laid emphasis on retaining the ethos of Muslim Indians and warned against being co-opted and manipulated by foreign minds.
In a groundbreaking speech in August this year, US President Donald Trump laid out his government’s policy for South Asia, authorising more American troops to Afghanistan and insisting that Pakistan must either “do more” to restrain Islamist militants, or face consequences. Indian and Afghan governments have welcomed the new US policy approach. The major components of Trump’s Afghanistan strategy — recognising Pakistan’s role in provi
Unlike the BJP, the focus of the AAP's campaign was not on lofty slogans, such as making a Delhi a 'smart city', but on issues that mattered to the public. No wonder it is commonly said that one should never underestimate the power of the common man.
Some two years into the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi paid a short visit to India last week.
In a recent interview, former Punjab chief minister and current Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala said India's move to export wheat seeds to Pakistan in 1978 played a considerable role in thawing the relations between the two countries.
Erdogan said that by carrying out attacks, the terrorist organisation PKK is trying to make its presence felt in Cizre.
At a conference on "Transformations in West Asia: The Next Steps" in Delhi, speakers said each country must develop its unique path to achieve democracy, based on the historical and current social, political and economic context.
