On financial prudence and the re-configuration of generosity

The first Managing Global Governance (MGG) Public Lecture this year featured Andrew F. Cooper, Professor of Political Science at the University of Waterloo, Canada, and Distinguished Fellow at the Waterloo-based Centre for International Governance Innovation. A leading researcher into global governance, he has considerably shaped the international debate on changing global hierarchies and new forms of trans-border cooperation such as the G20. For more of his work on global governance issues, please refer to Coopers blog "Worlds of Global Governance".

In his lecture, Cooper challenged the view that global political debate in the context of debt crisis is all about ‘austerity versus growth’. The framework that he has developed in response to the recent G20 summit in Los Cabos is based on the notions of financial ‘prudence’ and ‘generosity’ instead, shifting the debate from false and narrow dichotomies to a more nuanced, comprehensive and global level.

Can financial prudence and generosity go hand in hand globally? Do relatively well-off EU countries deserve generosity through IMF channels as long as countries in the global South struggle to meet basic needs of their citizens? Is there a risk of rich countries moving away from their global responsibilities, translating financial prudence into a neglect of development cooperation? These are just some of the issues that discussed with Cooper and the audience.

Imme Scholz, Deputy Director of the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE), was discussant for this session. Johannes Blankenbach, Researcher of the DIE Training Department, chaired it.

Cooper’s lecture is part of the MGG Public Lecture series featuring eminent scholars as well as high-ranking officials from partner institutions. The MGG programme, which goes on to the 10th round in 2012, engages highly qualified young professionals from eight emerging economies (Egypt, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan and South Africa) in a global governance dialogue. The programme starts off with a two-month academic module, the Global Governance School (GGS). Subsequently, participants move on to research-based practice projects at German or European host organisations.

MGG is jointly implemented by DIE and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the German Ministry for Economic Co-operation and Development (BMZ).