For reference : http://www.vimeo.com/1321131

”
Economic theory had long explained why unfettered markets were not self-correcting, why regulation was needed, why there was an important role for government to play in the economy. But many, especially people working in the financial markets, pushed a type of “market fundamentalism.” The misguided policies that resulted – pushed by, among others, some members of US President-elect Barack Obama’s economic team – had earlier inflicted enormous costs on developing countries. The moment of enlightenment came only when those policies also began inflicting costs on the US and other advanced industrial countries.

Keynes argued not only that markets are not self-correcting, but that in a severe downturn, monetary policy was likely to be ineffective. Fiscal policy was required “

Prof. Sanjaya Lall (1940-2005) at Oxfrod had been an international authority in FDI and corporate development, industrialisation, technological capabilities and learning and trade.

I believe his paper “Technological Change and Industrialization in the Asian NIEs: Achivements and Challenges” presented at STEPI, Korea during 1997 is one of the most comprehensive views of Asian industrialization backed by substantial emporical evidence. We have no choice but to agree to him on page 453 negating the general capital accumulation view:

” if simple accmulation is the real explanation of growth in East Asia, then all governments have to do is to ensure the the right macro economic conditions for high rates of savings and foreign investment flows, and mount functional interventions to ensure that human capital formation takes place. There is no role for technology policy, nor for selective interventions in trade and industry”.

Joseph Stiglitz (Nobel winner for economics and was Chief Economist at World Bank) said while on a trip to India, that 600 million people from India (out of the one billion!) have been left out of the “development” fold of globalization. So, obviously, all India is not going to migrate into middle class, if anything the inequality is far, far worse now, after the advent of globalization.

Similarly newspaper reports have pointed out how Chinese workers are working in apalling conditions, to churn out the low cost products, with poor pay, cramped rooms, no accident or health insurance benefits, no job security, no overtime, long working hours.

There is an other small, but interesting book I would recommend reading, by Aronica and Ramdoo, “The World is Flat? A Critical Analysis of Thomas Friedman’s New York Times Bestseller,” which offers a counterperspective to Friedman’s theory on globalization. It is a small book compared to the 600 page tome by Friedman, and aimed at the common man and students alike. As popular as the book may be, some reviewers assert that by what it leaves out, Friedman’s book is dangerous. The authors point to the fact that there isn’t a single table or data footnote in Friedman’s entire book.

“Globalization is the greatest reorganization of the world since the Industrial Revolution,” says Aronica.

You may want to see http://www.mkpress.com/flat
and watch http://www.mkpress.com/flatoverview.html
for an interesting counterperspective on Friedman’s
“The World is Flat”.

Also a really interesting 6 min wake-up call: Shift Happens! http://www.mkpress.com/ShiftExtreme.html

There is also a companion book listed: Extreme Competition: Innovation and the Great 21st Century Business Reformation
http://www.mkpress.com/extreme
http://www.mkpress.com/Extreme11minWMV.html

Organized by LIRNEasia & the School of Economics and Management (SEM), Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunication (BUPT), supported by the International Development Research Centre of Canada (IDRC)

INTRODUCTION
Communication Policy Research South (CPRsouth) intends to build human capacity in the South by reinforcing and developing the values and commitment of scholars in the region or with interest in the region. The overall objective is to create policy intellectuals capable of informed and effective intervention in ICT policy and regulatory processes in specific country contexts.

The conference provides a forum for senior, junior and mid-career scholars to meet face-to-face and exchange ideas, network and improve the quality of their scholarly work. The long-term objective is to facilitate the fostering of the next generation of active scholars and in-situ experts capable of contributing to good ICT policy and regulation in the region. The inaugural conference, CPRsouth1, was held in January 2007 in Manila, and CPRsouth2 was held in December 2007 in Chennai, India. Future conferences will be held in early December, every year.

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
Abstracts for papers on ICT policy and regulation research carried out in the South or relevant to the South may be submitted for review and acceptance. The proposed sessions include:

Convergence
Content
Comparative studies of ICT readiness
Data and methods for research on ICTs
Governance of ICT and ICT for governance
International telecom policy
Intellectual property rights
Internet governance
ICT for agriculture
ICT for transparency
ICT for inclusion
ICT for productivity
ICT markets and competition
National and regional innovation systems
Participation in ICTs: demand side studies
Regulation
Telecom operator strategies in emerging economies
The actual program will depend on the papers received. The organizers reserve the right to combine topics and to not offer sessions for which adequate high-quality submissions are not received.

Submission Guidelines
Abstracts should be submitted to info@cprsouth.org by or before May 31, 2008 and must contain the following:

the title of the paper,
your name and contact information,
a 500-word abstract of the paper, and
a one-page curriculum vita.
The document must be named CPRsouth3_Abstract&Bio_YourLastName.

The full report and Terms of Reference are available at ADB website. http://www.adb.org/projects/project.asp?id=29125