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The integration of human rights into the practice of development cooperation has been increasingly debated during the last decade, particularly thanks to Amartya Sen and UNDP work. However, while a consensus seems to exist around the core principles of an "appropriate" development process, there are still a number of different interpretations of how human rights and development relate, and what is meant by rights-based approaches. This paper addresses the idea that the concept of right to development, correctly understood as "the right to a process of development in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms can be fully realized", following the definition of Arjun Sengupta, can be a very useful tool to provide a common normative framework to this discussion. Little attention has been given to identifying the extent to which the concept of the right to development and a human rights-based approach to development differ. Whether the two paradigms have many common points, as the emphasis given to concepts like equality, freedom, participation and non discrimination, there are also some important differences. Expressed simply, the right to development is broader that the human rights-based approach, because it involves a critical examination of the overall development process, including financial allocation, and priorities in international development cooperation. Thus, the right to development cannot be equated with a rights-based approach to development, because it not only prescribes certain rules according to which development should be realized, but also defines development itself as a human right. This definition has important consequences not only in terms of theoretical debate, but also in its practical implications related to policy-making and international cooperation. The most important of these consequences is a shift, in the discourse of international development cooperation, from a context of need/charity/aid to a context of right/respons

'This paper argues that mobility and migration have always been an intrinsic part of human development. Migration can be considered as a fundamental capabilities-enhancing freedom itself. However, any meaningful understanding of migration needs to simultaneously analyse agency and structure. Rather than applying dichotomous classifications such as between forced and voluntary migration, it is more appropriate to conceive of a continuum running from low to high constraints under which migration occurs, in which all migrants deal with structural constraints, although to highly varying degrees. Besides being an integral part of human development, mobility also tends to affect the same structural processes of which it is part. Simplistic positive-versus-negative debates on migration and development can be overcome by integrating agency-structure dialectics in the analysis of migration impacts. This paper argues that (i) the degree to which migrants are able to affect structural change is real but limited; (ii) the nature of change in sending and receiving is not pre-determined; and (iii) that in order to enable a more focused and rigorous debate, there is a need to better distinguish and specify different levels and dimensions at which the reciprocal relationship between human mobility and development can be analysed. A critical reading of the empirical literature leads to the conclusion that it would be naïve to think that despite their often considerable benefits for individuals and communities, migration and remittances alone can remove more structural development constraints. Despite their development potential, migrants and remittances can neither be blamed for a lack of development nor be expected to trigger take-off development in generally unattractive investment environments. By increasing selectivity and suffering among migrants, current immigration restrictions have a negative impact on migrants' wellbeing as well as the poverty and inequality reducing pot

by Ben Block on April 2, 2009 As leaders of the world's 20 largest economies gathered in London this week, international financial institutions announced that the world economy would likely deteriorate more in 2009 than was previously feared. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development predicted that economic activity would shrink 2.7 percent; the World Bank projected a slightly more optimistic contraction of 1.7 percent. To gain perspective about today's many interrelated sustainability issues, Worldwatch staff writer Ben Block pulled aside Björn Stigson, president of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), for an interview this week at a U.S. National Academies of Science climate change summit. Stigson has overseen the global coalition of some 200 leading corporations since 1995. How do you expect the ongoing recession to affect sustainable business efforts, such as reducing pollution, water consumption, and energy use? Are businesses turning away from corporate responsibility? The question I get from around the world is: Has sustainable development fallen off the table given there is a recession? My response is the opposite. What has happened is that sustainable development has come to a tipping point, in my view, and that the focus on the strategic aspect on sustainable development, climate change, and so on - that focus is even stronger than before. It's stronger in companies, and it's stronger in governments. The recession is not really a barrier or a blockage.

Learning for Change in ADB The rapidly changing-and, at times, excessively complex-nature of development work demands diverse competences from aid agencies such as the Asian Development Bank. The learning challenges these present require the ability to work more reflectively in a turbulent practice environment. Learning for Change in ADB broadly defines a learning organization as a collective undertaking, rooted in action, that builds and improves its own practice by consciously and continually devising and developing the means to draw learning from its own (and others') experience. It identifies the 10 challenges that ADB must overcome to develop as a learning organization and specifies practicable next steps to conquer each. It can help deliver the increased development effectiveness that Strategy 2020, ADB's long-term strategic framework for 2008-2020, seeks.

Fragile states matter, as an ODI public event in London last week confirmed. Internal conflict and instability contaminates and infects neighbouring countries and entire regions, contributing to global security problems. In development terms, a failure to address and meet the challenges presented by fragile states means that, at the current rate of progress, the global Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be met, regardless of how much progress is made in other developing countries. According to the UK Department for International Development (DFID) people living in countries affected by violent conflict, or where governments are chronically weak, are three or four times more likely to suffer from extreme poverty, or die before the age of five, than those living in other developing countries.

'The concept of mutual accountability refers to the establishment of working relations based on respect, fulfilling commitments, being transparent about development objectives, and accounting for decisions, actions and results. This paper focusses on how mutual accountability in development aid is understood and how it works in practice in Afghanistan, while also examining the challenges involved in achieving mutual accountability in aid relationships. The paper concludes that mutual accountability can make development aid more effective by, for instance, increasing public support for development policies, increasing a government's legitimacy, increasing donor accountability, and contributing to anticorruption measures. Accountability mechanisms ensure greater transparency and help to control expectations. With these mechanisms there is more clarity on what will be delivered and on what systems are in place for people to access information and enable them to voice complaints or concerns.'

How to engage more effectively in fragile states is now a key concern in the international development community, and several new books outline different diagnoses and recommendations. Seth Kaplan presented his book: Fixing Fragile States: A New Paradigm for Development, at a recent ODI public event, with ODI's David Booth as the discussant. Kaplan brings a fresh, if not entirely new, perspective to the discussion on fragile states that has, to a large extent, been missing in international development debates. He offers a critique of the existing aid paradigm in fragile states, and proposes an alternative strategy to bring security and development to such settings.

3rd United Nations World Water Development Report: Water in a Changing World 'The third edition of the United Nations World Water Development Report, 'Water in a Changing World' was presented recently at the Fifth World Water Forum in Istanbul, Turkey on March 16, 2009. This report builds on the work of previous studies, including the two previous World Water Development Reports, and has a new, holistic format. A major theme of this report is that important decisions affecting water management are made outside the water sector and are driven by external, largely unpredictable forces - forces of demography, climate change, the global economy, changing societal values and norms, technological innovation, laws and customs and financial markets. Many of these external drivers are dynamic, and changes are accelerating. The report emphasizes that decisions in other sectors and those related to development, growth and livelihoods should incorporate water as an integral component, including responses to climate change, food and energy challenges and disaster management. The report is available for download and can also be accessed online.'

Dubai International Humanitarian Aid & Development Conference The sixth Dubai International Humanitarian Aid & Development Conference & Exhibition - DIHAD - 2009 is taking place from the 7 - 9 April at the Dubai International Convention Centre, under the theme of 'Empowering Communities: From Disaster to Development'.

Pertinent questions and sound methodologies are essential for quality research, as are quality partnerships. By what criteria do we select partners and how do we build meaningful partnerships that add value to our research efforts? And that contribute to improving the overall landscape for the development and use of research? We would like to propose several areas of concern for partnership development and management that many of us deal with on a daily basis and that might seem obvious but nonetheless merit repetition as we still do not integrate them fully into our work. Drawing on personal experience in a research network, this essay invites reflections from others in grappling with questions related to the development of quality partnerships for quality research. We try to present here perspectives of research units, networks and institutions, including university-based ones, particularly in West and Central African contexts.

'As part of its strategy to increase rural incomes, USAID/Kenya has supported two projects to develop tree fruit value chains-the Kenya Business Development Services (KBDS) project implemented by the Emerging Markets Group and the Kenya Horticulture Development Project (KHDP) implemented by Fintrac. This report presents the findings from a study of the impacts of these projects on smallholder farmers who grow avocados and passion fruit in Central and Rift Valley provinces in Kenya. The study included a panel survey of 1,640 farmers including those who have participated in these projects and a comparison group of non-participating farmers. The survey was complemented by qualitative research comprising in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with over 100 individuals involved in the tree fruit value chains: farmers, producer group leaders, input suppliers, extension service providers, brokers, exporters and the KBDS project and KHDP directors and staff.'

Beyond training: Organizational and Institutional Capacity 'Capacity development' means different things to different people. However, it is generally considered essential to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) relating to water and sanitation. The slow spread of safe water and sanitation is commonly attributed to a shortage of skilled people. Hence capacity development is predominantly associated with training staff in constructing physical assets such as toilets and water systems, particularly but not only in rural areas.

The purpose of this working paper, a think piece on governance in water services, is twofold. First, it aims to provide a basis for discussion and debate as to how the Department for International Development (DFID) should improve its approach to governance in water services.1 Second, it aims to develop a more comprehensive and structured approach to the analysis and the development of governance in water services by applying DFID's current governance thinking at the sector level. The paper therefore draws on internal DFID governance thinking, terminology and approaches and is, in this first version, targeted primarily at a DFID audience interested in governance, basic services and water.

Improving the reproductive health of young women in developing countries requires access to safe and effective methods of fertility control, but most rely on traditional rather than modern contraceptives such as condoms or oral/injectable hormonal methods. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative research to examine the limits to modern contraceptive use identified by young women in developing countries. Focusing on qualitative research allows the assessment of complex processes often missed in quantitative analyses.

By 2025, three billion people will live in water-stressed countries. Management of the world's limited water resources, especially for food production, remains one of the most pressing issues in development. As part of its mandate for innovation in capacity development, the World Bank Institute (WBI) has been building and implementing several creative tools to foster more effective water management. The WBI Water Program is using role plays, games and hands-on simulations, as well as multimedia, to help organizations increase their capacity and skills so they can implement effective management solutions, improve their economic growth, and deliver better water services. These inventive techniques can be used in various settings and can easily be scaled up through local organizations.

'The effects of the recent financial crisis are only beginning to be felt in many developing countries, but economic activity is declining rapidly with far reaching impacts. It is estimated that the high food and fuel prices alone have increased the number of extremely poor in the world by at least 100 million. While impacts of the crises affect both urban and rural populations, the urban poor have been hit hardest in this recent food and fuel crisis, and in previous financial crises, given their heavy reliance on the cash economy, no agricultural production to fall back on, and wage reductions and employment losses at urban based industries. This has resulted in social unrest in a number of cities earlier in 2008 all over the developing world.

'Growing demand for energy and natural resources has led many low-income, resource-rich countries to open remote areas to industrial development. Even as a financial crisis engulfed the global economy in 2008 and 2009, projects such as oil pipelines, roads, and mines continued to remain key development priorities.' Source: WRI

'This paper presents an analysis of Official Development Assistance (ODA) flows to the water and sanitation sector, based on data gathered from the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and Creditor Reporting Systems (CRS) databases, as well as current knowledge in the sector. As part of this analysis, ODA flows to the health and education sectors, as well as to broader topics including governance and finance, are also considered. Where possible, policy implications and specific discussion about small towns is provided, however there is a general lack of information about financing flows to small towns, due to the nature of the accounting systems used by donors (and reported to the OECD).'

'The economic turmoil brought about by the financial crisis of 2008, compounded by the impacts of a food crisis and pending climate change, has exacerbated many of the existing development challenges in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). This paper explores the idea that inclusive, sustainable business partnerships hold the potential to address multiple development needs within MENA.'

The UNU-WIDER project 'Fragility and Development' explored state fragility and its relationship to household vulnerability, noting that there is a lack of research on the economic dimensions of conflict, aid, and development in fragile states. This Research Brief provides a summary of the various contributions made by this project, including case studies on Iraq, Kosovo, Palestine, and Somalia. It also addresses a number of pertinent questions such as; when are states fragile? What are the costs that fragile states impose on their people and the international community? Should the sovereignty of fragile states be reconsidered? And how can aid flows to fragile states be made more effective?