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The US has become more proactive in engaging with the international community to address cyberSpace challenges ever since the policy shift in 2009. However, it still maintains its opposition to the need for an international treaty to govern cyberSpace.

As an emerging power in the current multipolar global order, India can use the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to protect, promote, and project its geostrategic and geoeconomic interests. The SCO is also a platform for India to reaffirm its commitment to revive and deepen its centuries-old civilisational, spiritual, and cultural ties with other member countries. This paper explores India's priorities at the SCO, chiefly connectivity, coun

The emergence of Bangladesh as the new hub of international Islamist terrorism, insurgency in Nepal and Maoist militancy across several states, add new challenges to national security threats that India traditionally tackles. Despite these, India's defence expenditure continues to decrease in real terms and as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) every year.

With the Delhi Durbar at its weakest in decades and the national parties in a funk, India's ability to deal with externally induced challenges in the run-up to the elections and after is being undermined by an irresponsible domestic discourse.

For decades, global agriculture has pursued an extractive model of relentless yield maximisation—at a devastating cost. Soil degradation, water scarcity, and deepening inequities have made it clear that the promise of perpetual growth in a finite world is an illusion. This brief challenges the dominant narrative of industrialised, high-input farming and reimagines Indian agriculture through the lens of ‘degrowth’—an emerging concept that

By 2041, Delhi’s population is expected to reach 28-30 million. To meet the requirements of a massive population in a systematic and sustainable manner, the Fourth Master Plan for Delhi (MPD) is being prepared and expected to be completed in 2021. This paper describes the progress and preliminary focus areas of the forthcoming plan, highlighting current challenges during preparation, as well as future ones expected in the implementation

India will assume the presidency of the G20 in 2023. One of the key policy challenges for India and other member states is how to regulate the global digital economy. Once a fringe policy issue, the global digital economy is now central to the G20 agenda, with significant implications for individuals, corporations, and governments. Bilateral cooperation within the G20 system can provide additional resources and capability to any presidency, which

Given the enormity of challenges, there is a need for all the space-faring powers to unite in this exercise. It is important for India and others to debate and decide on what it thinks the norms should be and what sort of future it wants to achieve in space.

The benefits of strengthening physical connectivity in a geographically contiguous region are increasingly being recognised. These links are expected to increase economic activity and people-to-people interaction, leading in turn to regional and sub-regional integration. In this backdrop, the Motor Vehicle Agreement (MVA) signed among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal is expected to facilitate cross-border movement of vehicles, thereby reducing

India and the countries of Africa share common challenges in their education systems, among them, weak teacher capacities and lack of basic infrastructure. In India, technological interventions have been able to address some of the challenges at scale. Africa has met with less success in this regard, as governments prioritise the provision of hardware without addressing the systemic issues that hamper the adoption of such technologies. Cu

Non-conventional weapons, specifically, Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN), pose threats to civilian safety, national security, and environmental sustainability. These threats are amplified by the use of emerging technologies such as Large Language Models, 3D printing, and drones, which can make the development and deployment of CBRN weapons easier and the implementation of countermeasures more challenging. This brief discusses

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has already made inroads into healthcare. The increasing availability of healthcare data has allowed for the deployment of powerful AI techniques to assist drug development as well as clinical practice. These run the gamut from machine learning (ML) techniques that analyse structured data, to natural language processing (NLP) that can extract meaningful information from unstructured data, such as doctors’ notes. Thi

After improving between 2000 and 2013, hunger levels have significantly worsened in Africa in the years since. While global food insecurity is currently at an all-time high, Africa's record in addressing undernutrition was not impressive even in the pre-pandemic era when growth rates were higher. There are several challenges to food security in Africa, including short-term external shocks such as the pandemic and the Ukraine-Russia war, and long-

Distributed production and consumption of RE by households and industries, primarily using solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, is projected as a potential driver of RE generation and consumption but challenges remain

This brief discusses the challenges faced by urban local bodies (ULBs) in India in accessing urban climate finance (UCF), and proposes solutions based on successful strategies used by some of them. The hurdles include institutional barriers and limited capacity. The brief finds that ULBs that have met with success in accessing UCF overcame the obstacles through early sensitisation programmes and global network connections. It offers plausible sol

The borders that divide countries into geographical entities also serve as channels of interconnection between the very same territories. Borders divide and connect, at the same time; they present both opportunities and challenges: How do sovereign nations realise the potential of cross-border engagement, while managing the various issues that arise out of opening up these borders? This is a challenge that is true for the BBIN countries —

The strategic location of India’s North Eastern Region (NER) offers ample opportunities for enhancing the country’s economic ties. However, supply-chain constraints at the regional level hamper the trade-growth linkages, as do trade barriers, social unrest, and inadequate infrastructure. Enhancing and improving commercial exchanges with neighbouring countries, such as Bangladesh and Myanmar, will strengthen bilateral and regional networks. Th

Africa faces various challenges in ensuring equitable access to life-saving drugs. Drug prices in the continent are largely unregulated, making locally produced drugs more expensive than the imported ones. The African countries thus rely heavily on imports to meet their pharmaceutical needs. Further, the medicine delivery systems in the countries are encumbered by the poor implementation of regulatory policies, if they are in place at all. East A

The Sundarban ecoregion, straddling India and Bangladesh, is home to the largest contiguous mangrove forest in the world. Parts of the forest are designated as World Heritage Sites in both countries due to their rich biodiversity. The natural areas of the Sundarban are influenced by human use and, in recent years, increasingly by climate change. This paper explores an institutional arrangement that could help identify and implement the options th

In November 2014, India introduced a visa facility allowing foreign travellers wanting to come to India for recreational purposes, casual visits with friends or relatives, short-duration medical treatment or business visits, to apply for their visa online. Since then, the government has taken specific initiatives to improve the process, with the more recent ones including the introduction of three e-visa categories (e-medical, e-business, and e-t

Contemporary India–Australia relations can be best described as being loaded in intent but limited in action. Over the years, pledges of “common destiny” have repeatedly been made, only to remain unfulfilled. The 2018 release by the Australian government of its India Economic Strategy 2035 is an attempt to lay down a vision for capturing the opportunities offered by India’s market. Among these opportunities is mining. This brief discusses

ORF, the Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs of India and CERI - Sciences Po and Centre d'analyse Stratégique (CAPS) of France have begun an Experts Policy Dialogue to delve into key areas, opportunities and challenges that will shape, enrich and confront the India-France relationship in the coming years.

The Northeastern states of India have massive potential for harnessing hydroelectricity. While the government has rightly recognised this capacity as crucial to boosting the growth of the region, the pace of development has remained slow, and marred by many problems. This brief builds on the “43rdReport on Hydro Power” presented in Parliament in January 2019 by the Standing Committee on Energy, to assess the prospects of the hydropower sector

Delhi—a city and union territory of India containing the country’s capital, New Delhi—continues to grow in population, posing challenges to civic agencies in the provision of citizens’ essential needs. This brief examines the experience of Delhi’s water agency in obtaining raw water, amid the growing gap in supply and demand that is only being exacerbated by climate change. The brief finds multiple reasons for the inadequacy of raw wate

The COVID-19 pandemic is posing unique challenges to policymakers across the globe, necessitating efficient action in short timeframes. During such crises, having the right data at the right time is crucial to making informed policy decisions.  Traditional economic indicators can be inadequate owing to issues of timeliness, granularity, and difficulty in collection. There is a need therefore for higher-frequency and more granular data to track e

Interstate (River) Water Disputes (ISWDs) are a continuing challenge to federal water governance in India. Rooted in constitutional, historico-geographical, and institutional ambiguities, they tend to become prolonged conflicts between the states that share river basins. This paper examines the constitutional complexities, contentious political federalism, and identity-based electoral political dynamics that fuel ISWDs. It discusses the River

As the world confronts multiple challenges which are intricately connected, our path for development stands at a crucial juncture. In the context of the embroiling polycrisis, progress on the sustainable development goals (SDGs) has been steady but fragile with major and persistent challenges. Financing for Agenda 2030 has emerged as a major bottleneck with several developing economies, especially the least developed countries (LDCs), low-income

Climate change has emerged amongst India’s most formidable challenges to sustained GDP growth. To accelerate the implementation of the country’s commitments under the Paris Agreement and advance its progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, finance is key. India needs to develop a comprehensive strategy and an integrated policy approach that aligns the country’s financial systems with the long-term needs of the economy while incor

India’s target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 might appear ambitious, but it is crucial as it will have a positive impact on the country’s economic growth, energy security and the fight against climate change. Financing is emerging as the key challenge to this vision, slowing down the pace of growth; as of December 2019, over 50 percent of the 2022 target is yet to be achieved. This brief outlines India’s existing

India and Nepal have a long history of bilateral ties founded on connections of history, culture and religion, but their relationship is also beset by border conflicts. Although the two have managed to maintain their amiable relationship despite these differences, they both would benefit from finding a sustainable resolution. This brief highlights the efforts of both India and Nepal to resolve their border disputes. It recommends crucial

As the US Presidential elections unfold, Republican candidates would be thoroughly tested on their merit of thinking creatively on issue-based solutions to global challenges and exploring facets of diplomacy and non-military aspects of foreign policies in contrast to the focus on military interventionism and a hawkish vision of American policies abroad.

Observer Research Foundation organised a lecture by Shivshankar Menon, Foreign Secretary, Government of India, on "Indian Foreign Policy: The Challenges Ahead" on Tuesday April 10, at the ORF Delhi campus.

India's total trade deficit with the world now is USD 13472.18 millions. A major component of Indian exports is agricultural commodities. The northeastern region performs well in horticulture. However, challenges to the produce finally turning into exports remain unaddressed for long.

As India and Taiwan complete 30 years of informal relations this year, there is scope to deepen cooperation in the domains of trade, technology, digitalisation, and security. This paper offers a framework for India’s engagement with Taiwan, identifies the pillars of their current relationship and areas for future collaboration, and explores the limitations and challenges. The dual-track engagement—proactive engagement and soft balancing with

With Male facing increasing domestic and foreign policy challenges, Mohamed Muizzu is possibly aiming at a reconciliation with India

The Vice-President of Maldives, in his address to the ORF faculty, recounts the long and bitter-sweet struggle against autocratic rule in his country. With an elected government now at the helm and democracy gradually taking roots in different spheres of society, he outlines the crucial challenges that lie ahead for the island nation.

The BCIM Forum has come a long way, but there are still challenges. Clearing the geopolitical air may prove more beneficial on both domestic as well as international levels, than keeping them in the shadows.

Floods are a recurrent phenomenon in many parts of India, and human and economic losses are consistently rising with increased exposure to the hazard. These losses can be significantly reduced by eliminating the encroachment on floodplains and regulating the land use within it through floodplain zoning, a widely accepted and effective non-structural policy measure. Despite its benefits, floodplain zoning has not been widely adopted in India, main

The 2023 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime report highlights a surge in drug production in Myanmar, posing serious security challenges. The cultivation of poppy, key for heroin production, increased by 33 percent in 2022, reversing a downward trend seen since 2014. Experts attribute the rise largely to livelihood challenges: Myanmar’s economy contracted by 18 percent in 2021, with only a modest rebound in 2022, and there are the compound

Angola is rich in natural wealth, with massive petroleum and diamond deposits across its territory. Most of its people, however, continue to live in poverty. Since its independence in 1975, Angola has had a tumultuous journey: from being a war zone, to becoming a poster child for Chinese engagement in the continent, and since 2015, declining to its current state where the challenges are so massive—negative growth rates, high external debt, risi

After President Donald Trump’s 2017 visit to Asia, the Indo-Pacific region assumed greater significance in the United States’ foreign policy calculus, as articulated in the ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy Report’ released by the US Department of Defence. On 31 December 2018, Trump passed the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (ARIA), which authorises US$1.5 billion in spending for a range of US programmes in East Asia and Southeast Asia to “develop

जिन मुद्दों पर बात हुई, वे काफी हद तक वही थे जिन्हें भारत ने अपनी लीडरशिप में आगे बढ़ाया था. चाहे ग्लोबल गवर्नेंस रिफॉर्म्स की बात हो, जलवायु परिवर्तन की बात हो या टिकाऊ विका�

Gaiko Forum, Japan's prominent think tank sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan, has published a detailed report on the symposium on "Security and Strategic Challenges in Asia: Prospects of Japan-India Cooperation" organised by Observer Research Foundation in association with the Gaiko Forum and the Embassy of Japan in New Delhi, on March 18, 2008.

India introduced Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB) in financial year 2005-06 to design public spending in a way that ensures that the benefits accrue as much to the country’s women as they do to the men. India’s effort has influenced both the government’s expenditures and its revenue policies—such as additional tax rebates on properties owned by women, for instance—at the levels of both central and state governments. However, 18

Women make up a majority of the four billion people excluded from the digital economy. Policy narratives assert that the digital economy has the potential to transform the world of work. Conversely, there are concerns that the existing ‘digital divide’ within and across nations will simply exacerbate existing social inequalities and reinforce gender hierarchies. G20 member states have repeatedly committed to bridging pervasive gender gaps in

This article explores the role played by General-Purpose Technologies (GPTs) on the ebbs and flows of countries’ heft throughout history. From the printing press to artificial intelligence (AI), countries that embraced and innovated on these technologies have gained economic, military, and geopolitical advantage in various forms. Today, AI stands as the defining GPT of the current era, presenting both unprecedented opportunities and massive cha

Health policy is classically associated with the allocation of resources for healthcare services and the affordability and effectiveness of interventions, and is thereby confined to national strategies. Over the last couple of decades, however, there has been growing awareness about the interlinkages of health policy with key aspects of international relations, including diplomacy, trade, and foreign policy. Similarly, health features as a promin