China’s increasing financial and economic assertiveness suggests its star is only set to rise on the world stage and that has prompted some major swagger on the part of its leaders. Swagger the nation’s long-term view doesn’t warrant. Commentary by John Robson.
Criminals see value of intangible carbon market – Interpol
(August 19, 2013) Vulnerable because of its intangible nature, carbon credit trading has become a haven for a new and emerging type of crime says Interpol, the world’s largest international police organization.
The UN’s Clean Development Mechanism ‘show’
The UN’s “Clean Development Mechanism” (CDM), which was essentially a fig leaf for wealth transfers from industrialized nations to poor developing nations, isn’t working according to plan.
Carbon credits and fraud: indifference keeps this pair keen
(September 29, 2011) This opinion piece by Viv Forbes of Australia’s Carbon Sense Coalition gets to the heart of the carbon market dilemma and its intrinsic vulnerability to fraud: essentially, no one cares. The carbon credit buyer wants “the bit of paper which allows him to keep operating” and the seller “just wants the money,” and anyone who should be monitoring for scammers doesn’t want to look too closely: they want the money, too.
Bond markets and good governance—a match made in heaven
(January 31, 2011) Bond markets have taken the profligate Spanish government to task. Foreign aid officials take note.
PI Exclusive: Internal documents obtained by PI show CIDA failed to detect fraud
(January 17, 2011) Probe International obtains internal CIDA documents that show the aid agency failed to detect the fraudulent use of its funds in Zambia.
A never-ending story: More Canadian foreign aid money lost to corruption, this time in Kenya
(December. 23, 2010) Canada’s foreign aid agency once again finds itself in the middle of a corruption scandal involving its funds.
Lugar Urges International Development Banks to Step Up Corruption Cases
(December 17, 2010) U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar announced today that criminal prosecution of firms and individuals caught defrauding the World Bank and the other multilateral development banks is an important deterrent, but use of this tool varies widely among the banks.
How to Best Help Haiti: Reduce Foreign Aid
(November 19, 2010) A speech given at the University of Waterloo by Probe International’s Executive Director, Patricia Adams, on the failure of foreign aid in Haiti.
Zambia corruption scandal links back to Canada
(November 15, 2010) A corruption scandal in Zambia involving top officials in the Health Ministry has links to Canadian foreign aid, writes Brady Yauch.
Foreign aid in Afghanistan: what goes in must come out
(July 2) Brady Yauch writes that Afghanistan is, once again, facing allegations of corruption.
UK to inquire into misuse of India education aid
(June 14, 2010) Britain has launched an inquiry into reports that millions of pounds of aid for education and the ‘Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’, has disappeared into the depths of corruption without any benefit to the poor children the aid was intended for.
Foreign aid takes another blow–this time in Australia
(March 3, 2010) Criticism of the high salaries being offered to contractors working with AusAID, Austrialia’s national aid agency, is the latest example of the increased scrutiny facing aid agencies around the world. The criticism comes after a recent audit showed that a number of aid workers are earning more money than the country’s Prime Minister. And they’re doing so tax-free.
Thinking outside the foreign aid box
(December 18, 2009) Foreign aid is facing more criticism this time from an official at the United Nations Millennium Campaign. According to a recent report in the Guardian UK, Sylvia Mwichuli, the UN millennium campaign communications coordinator, told an audience attending a media workshop that governments in Africa must look for different ways to finance their national budgets, rather than relying on foreign aid.
Aid’s corrupting influence in Afghanistan should be considered
(November 20, 2009) A recent article from Canwest details the sharpening criticism facing Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai from foreign leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Prime Minister Stephen Harper, concerning the country rampant corruption. But the article does little to confront the ugly reality that the massive amount of foreign aid entering Afghanistan may be playing a crucial role in supporting rampant corruption.
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