Stories about Economics & Business from January, 2013
Peru: ls the Renewal of Telefónica's Contract a Good Thing?
On January 21st the Peruvian government, through the Minister of Transportation and Communication, Carlos Paredes, announced the renewal of the expired cellular phone contracts with Telefónica for a period of 18 years and 10 months. Here is an analysis of the consequences of this renewal.
Slovak PM's Support for 2022 Winter Olympics Bid Draws Criticism
Whereas Norway and Switzerland are planning to hold referenda before submitting their 2022 Winter Olympics bids, the fate of the Slovak-Polish joint bid already seems decided: the Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has declared his support for it, without waiting for the government's approval. Tibor Blazko reports.
Navigating Entrepreneurship in Ghana
Ghana, a sub-Saharan country, has many budding young entrepreneurs. Some have even been recognised and awarded by international organisations, including Bright Simons, Regina Agyare and Elikem Kuenyehia.
Indigenous Xavantes of Marãiwatsédé Fight for the Right to Their Land
Having inhabited the Marãiwatsédé territory in the north of Mato Grosso for centuries, natives of the Xavante ethnic group face occupation and threats from farmers who are trying to evictl them from their homeland, which was returned to them 14 years ago. On December 6, 2012, the justice department in Mato Grosso ordered the delivery of subpoenas for the removal of illegal occupants of these ancestral lands. A month and a half later the process has almost been finalized.
Hong Kong: Law Amended to Hide Company Data
The revision of company ordinance in Hong Kong will allow corporates to hide significant company data and the public is worried that the decision has been made under the influence of Chinese government. (via Asia Sentinel)
Bangladesh: Missed Call – A Tool For Protest?
An intentional missed call is a widely used method in developing countries to save money or mobile minutes. In Bangladesh this is being proposed as a way to protest and reduce the price of mobile internet. A Facebook event of a proposed protest by using "miss call" has gone viral.
Hotel Development near the Pitons Raises Concerns in St. Lucia
A planned hotel development near the Pitons in Saint Lucia has fueled more debate about the way to balance development with cultural and environmental concerns. The proposed “eco-luxury” development is “Freedom Bay”, which plans to include a five-star hotel in addition to private residences.
Spain: An Airport Without Planes?
Spain has an airport that has made both print and online headlines since its opening: Castellón airport. Netizens share their opinions on this airport that has an endless number of absurd problems.
Parallels Between Religious and Copyright Wars
Rick Falkvinge, the founder of Pirate Party, reinterprets the wars of religion that devastated Western Europe in the XVI and XVII centuries in terms of the current struggle to control information through overbearing legislation related to copyright and freedom of expression: The religious wars were never about religion as such....
France: NGOs Condemn Privatisation of Public Domain
Seven European free culture associations issued a statement [fr] protesting against a public-private partnership between the French National Library BNF and Proquest database [fr], whose aim is to digitize a large amount of Public Domain works and privatize them with an exclusivity period of commercialization of ten years. Activist Philippe...
Egypt: Why Open Source Software?
After introducing to Free and Open Source Software (F/OSS) in the previous article, one might still wonder why corporates and governments need to adoption it or encourage its adoption. Tarek Amr elaborates in this second post of a two-part series in the argument for F/OSS
Russia's Siberian State Within A State
Roughly 90% of Russian gas production originates in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, located in the northwestern corner of Siberia. In recent months, bloggers and Russian netizens have reacted to the latest in a series of changes to internal migration laws inside YaNAO that make it difficult for non-residents even to pass through the region.
Haiti: Like a Phoenix from the Ashes?
Haiti Grassroots Watch examines the pros and cons of the Phoenix Project – a “massive public-private business deal [involving] a factory that would transform garbage from the capitol into electricity, a resource so rare in Haiti, only 30 percent of the population has access.”
Guyana: Minimum Wage and Inflation
The welfare of the working poor who have seen their purchasing power steadily eroded in the past ten years, or what one must consider, after reviewing the facts, as phantom concerns over inflation? Or is there something more than money involved? Guyana Mosquito responds to Ralph Ramkarran's argument that increasing the minimum...
Peru: Government Renews Concession Agreement with Telephone Operator
The blog Globalizado [es], by Global Voices in Spanish editor Juan Arellano, collects different reactions following the announcement of the renewal of the concession agreement with Telefónica for an additional period of 18 years and 10 months. The government highlights [es] that “they have managed to triple the benefits of...
Flashmobs and Citizen Classrooms – Spain's Creative Protests Channel Discontent
Spain's anti-crisis movement- characterized by its creative protests- has been in full sway since 2011. Here we take a look at some of the movement's tactics and strategies.
Slovakia: Social Benefits for Roma
Lucia Kureková, in her blog analysis [sk], shows that in Slovakia the majority of those who receive the Benefit in Material Need (BMN) are not the “typical” Roma families with many children, but are single, of any ethnicity, and childless (62%), often young and unemployed. About two-thirds of the Slovak...
The Cultural Aspect of Wildlife Trade in China
Terroir from Beijing Cream criticizes professional photojournalist Patrick Brown's photographs series, Trading to Extinction for being over simplified in the explanation of wildlife trade in China as “naive” and “greed”: this is a way of life for some Chinese as well. It doesn’t mean it’s right – it just means...
‘Travelling with Nannies’ Proves Controversial in Brazil
A blog post with useful tips for families who travel with nannies raised controversy as the author's statements reflected a prejudiced view of domestic workers and deeper troubling issues in Brazil's work relations. The post went viral and was ultimately taken down by the site's administrators.
Slovak Antimonopoly Office Defends Obligatory Microsoft Use
European Information Society Institute, a Slovak NGO, reports [sk] that the Slovak Antimonopoly Office (AMO) does not see it as a problem that the country's Financial Directorate is forcing taxpayers to use Microsoft Windows and Internet Explorer, arguing that there is just about 10 percent of 44,000 subjects who have...
Scholars Call for an End to China's One-Child Policy
China's one-child policy is unshakeable, top family planning official announced on January 14.The announcement, which dismissed speculation that the one-child policy would be scrapped, has triggered another heated debate on Chinese social media.
