Partnerbericht

Is Development Aid Nonsense?

PANEL:

Prof Jan Nederveen Pieterse (Chair), contributor to WRR reports and studies on the future of Dutch development cooperation; Professor of global studies and sociology at the University of California, Santa Barbara

Maarten Brouwer (NL), Ambassador for development cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands

Dot Keet (South Africa), Alternative Information & Development Centre, Cape Town; key co-ordinator of the continent-wide Africa Trade Network (ATN)

Praful Bidwai (India), Indian climate specialist, former senior editor of the Times of India, author of "From What Now to What Next: Reflections on three decades of international politics and development" (Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation)

Marcos Arruda (Brazil), Director of Políticas Alternativas Para o Cone Sul (PACS), active member of the Brazilian Network for the Integration of the Peoples working on issues related to NAFTA, Mercosur and the World Trade Organisation.

Debate about the future of Dutch development cooperation is again picking up pace ahead of the general elections in June. Opinions amongst political parties vary depending on their political orientation but no one seems to be asking the countries in the South about their needs.

The Transnational Institute is bringing Southern voices into the debate. A panel from some of the rising countries of the South will discuss how Dutch aid could usefully contribute to more sustainable development, in particular building civil society in the south as the means of addressing structural poverty.

The session will be chaired by Professor Jan Nederveen Pieterse, contributor to WRR reports and studies on the future of Dutch development cooperation. He is author of 15 books and specialist in development studies and cultural studies and globalisation.

The panellists will be available for interviews on 4 June. To arrange an interview or for more information, please contact nina.brenjo@tni.org or +31 65 491 8960

The Transnational Institute (TNI) is an international network of activist-scholars committed to critical analyses of the global problems such as militarism and conflict, poverty and marginalisation, social injustice and environmental degradation. www.tni.org