http://www.cmi.no/ Chr. Michelsen Institute is an independent, non-profit research institution and an international centre in policy-oriented and applied development research. http://www.cmi.no/cmi_bgwhite100x24.jpg http://www.cmi.no http://www.cmi.no/news/?601=albie-sachs Albie Sachs, Judge on the Constitutional Court of South Africa (1994-2009), and author of the book The Strange Alchemy of Life and Law, lectures on the role of courts in democratisation and social transformation. http://www.cmi.no/news/?601=albie-sachs http://www.cmi.no/news/?606=the-strange-alchemy-of-life-and-law Detained in solitary confinement, tortured, exiled and eventually blown up by a car bomb. From an early age Albie Sachs played a prominent part in the struggle for justice in South Africa. http://www.cmi.no/news/?606=the-strange-alchemy-of-life-and-law http://www.cmi.no/news/?608=flammable-societies Photographer Owen Logan illustrates how the oil economy has increasingly become a prism in which the hopes and fears of modernity are expressed and fought over. What is at stake in this very visible contest of meaning is nothing less than the possibility of democratic deliberation about the nature of modern society. http://www.cmi.no/news/?608=flammable-societies http://www.cmi.no/news/?605=crude-on-extractive-industries-and-indigenous-land The real price of oil. Crude focuses on conflicts between extractive industries and land rights of indigenous/rural population. http://www.cmi.no/news/?605=crude-on-extractive-industries-and-indigenous-land http://www.cmi.no/news/?607=the-basics-of-integrity-in-procurement Given the large and increasing quantity of research on anti-corruption in procurement, practitioners need to keep updated on the most current advice, guidelines, tools and debates. This guide builds a comprehensive overview suitable for practical use based on the latest available research contributions. http://www.cmi.no/news/?607=the-basics-of-integrity-in-procurement http://www.cmi.no/news/?604=courts-and-power-in-latin-america-and-africa This volume advances a sophisticated comparative framework that seeks to explain the changing nature of courts' accountability function across a wide range of countries. Focusing on courts as a part of a complex 'accountability nexus' involving institutions, power holders, and citizens, the authors convincingly argue that only complex, multi-causal frameworks can explain the changing behavior and role of courts http://www.cmi.no/news/?604=courts-and-power-in-latin-america-and-africa http://www.cmi.no/news/?602=siri-gloppen-new-head-of-rafto-prize-committee Siri Gloppen, Research Director at the Chr. Michelsen Institute, is the new Head of the Rafto Prize Committee. http://www.cmi.no/news/?602=siri-gloppen-new-head-of-rafto-prize-committee http://www.cmi.no/news/?600=support-to-legislatures Support to democracy building in developing countries increased after 1990. It is gradually seen less as a technical exercise and more as a challenging, politically sensitive area of cooperation. http://www.cmi.no/news/?600=support-to-legislatures http://www.cmi.no/news/?603=the-paradox-of-representation-in-sudan This brief explores the attitudes and priorities of Muslim female activists in Sudan. Disunited and politicized, they have multiple and competing priorities rather than a common gender-based agenda. http://www.cmi.no/news/?603=the-paradox-of-representation-in-sudan http://www.cmi.no/news/?594=bistandens-hamskifte Den rødgrønne regjeringen i ferd med å forlate den norske bistandens hovedmål: Å hjelpe de aller fattigste til et bedre liv. http://www.cmi.no/news/?594=bistandens-hamskifte http://www.cmi.no/news/?595=the-role-of-the-churches-in-poverty-reduction Churches have a long history in Angola intertwined with the history of colonialism. The churches are the civil society actors in Angola with the most developed organizational structures and strongest international networks. http://www.cmi.no/news/?595=the-role-of-the-churches-in-poverty-reduction http://www.cmi.no/news/?591=ottar-maestad-new-director-at-cmi The CMI board has appointed Ottar Mæstad as new director at CMI. http://www.cmi.no/news/?591=ottar-maestad-new-director-at-cmi http://www.cmi.no/news/?593=gender-justice-in-contexts-of-complex-legal To what extent can complex legal plurality favour or disadvantage women and gendered rights claims within different cultural contexts? http://www.cmi.no/news/?593=gender-justice-in-contexts-of-complex-legal http://www.cmi.no/news/?589=muslimer-i-nya-samfunn Anne Sofie Roald har skrevet bok om det multikulturelle Sveriges utfordringer; om spenninger mellom assimilasjon og autonomi, mellom individuelle og kollektive kulturelle rettigheter. http://www.cmi.no/news/?589=muslimer-i-nya-samfunn http://www.cmi.no/news/?585=statistical-evidence-on-social-and-economic The present report provides statistical evidence on what population groups are de facto excluded along a number of economic and social dimensions http://www.cmi.no/news/?585=statistical-evidence-on-social-and-economic http://www.cmi.no/news/?583=if-men-and-women-were-equal There are structural changes and more limited patriarchal control in urban Nampula. Urban women and female headed households are more likely to be economically independent from men and invest in the well-being of their household members. http://www.cmi.no/news/?583=if-men-and-women-were-equal http://www.cmi.no/news/?578=hvor-er-sentret-for-fremragende-bistandskritikk I et rikt land som Norge, på verdenstoppen når det gjelder bistand til verdens fattige, og med masse kunnskap og erfaring på området, hvorfor virker det nærmest umulig å etablere et sterkt og uavhengig miljø for kritisk analyse rundt de store bistandsspørsmålene? http://www.cmi.no/news/?578=hvor-er-sentret-for-fremragende-bistandskritikk http://www.cmi.no/news/?575=the-ugly-poetics-of-violence-in-post-accord the persisiting violence in Guatemala do not lie with the presence of gangs and organised crime, or a pathological "culture of violence" marked by war and poverty, but in its support and sanction by the continued systemic violence of elites and contradictions of international intervention. http://www.cmi.no/news/?575=the-ugly-poetics-of-violence-in-post-accord http://www.cmi.no/news/?574=climate-change-discourse-rights-and-the-poor CMI participates in a new project "Climate change discourse, rights and the poor" which received funding from the University of Bergenfunded by the Research Council of Norway. http://www.cmi.no/news/?574=climate-change-discourse-rights-and-the-poor http://www.cmi.no/news/?571=cmimozambique CMI has a history of involvement in Mozambique dating back to the time of independence, and we would like to increase our engagement in areas particularly relevant for development and poverty reduction in the country. http://www.cmi.no/news/?571=cmimozambique http://www.cmi.no/news/?565=the-pursuit-of-integrity-in-customs This paper examines recent experiences from sub-Saharan Africa in combating corruption in customs. It argues that integrity reforms have been too focused on reforming formal institutions, and too little attention has been paid to the political economy of reforms and the role of informal institutions. http://www.cmi.no/news/?565=the-pursuit-of-integrity-in-customs http://www.cmi.no/news/?551=nepal-as-the-exceptional-case The UN operation to help consolidate peace in Nepal was a 'focused mission of short duration', a minimalist operation with a razor-thin mandate. This paper explores why this was so, and what were the consequences for peacebuilding. http://www.cmi.no/news/?551=nepal-as-the-exceptional-case http://www.cmi.no/news/?567=aid-for-trade-a-misdirected-initiative Aid for Trade (AfT) measures need to demonstrate that they are effective and have a potential impact on poverty, argues Arne Wiig in this paper. http://www.cmi.no/news/?567=aid-for-trade-a-misdirected-initiative