Stories about Economics & Business from October, 2007
Slovenia: Media Business
Sleeping With Pengovsky writes about recent developments in Slovenian media business.
Sri Lanka: Outsourcing and Exploitation
Sampath's Mindspace on the exploitation of outsourcing partners in countries like India and Sri Lanka.
Guyana: Local Food Prices
“Why is Guyana’s food so damn expensive for Guyanese?” asks The Guyana Groove.
China: Sex-Related Advertisements
Earlier in September, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television announced the ban on sex-related advertisements, however, sex-related advertisements are still running amok in China. ESWN translated an article from Southern Weekend to explain why.
Japan: Veggie Characters
You can take a look at the Japanese vegetable packaging culture from Pingmag.
Russia: Tatarstan
Window on Eurasia comments on Moscow's complex relationship with Tatarstan.
Africa: Coming to a donation box near you
Diary of a Mad Kenyan Woman writes takes a critical look at Western philantrophy in Africa: “I am intrigued by the recent proliferation of web-based giving and I have been keeping a curious eye on sites such as Kiva.org and Heifer International, in an attempt to understand what is going...
South Africa: Is online business a good idea?
Ramon Thomas believes that there is a future in online business in South Africa: “And even through less than 10% of South Africans have Internet access that is going to change with huge investment in infrastructure for the 2010 Worldcup. Don’t wait any longer, get broadband, get a website and...
Barbados: Regional Air Fares
Notes From The Margin has heard talk about lowering the cost of regional air travel several times over – and this time, he's not holding his breath.
Caucasus: Corruption Perceptions Index
Social Science in the Caucasus, the blog of the Caucasus Resource Research Center in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, looks at Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index for 2007. The blog notes significant improvements in Georgia in the struggle against corruption, but no real progress in Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Georgia: Saakashvili's New Initiative
On its newly launched and very welcome blog on Georgia, Transitions Online takes a look at amendments to the electoral code and political system proposed by Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili. These include lowering the electoral threshold, lessening presidential power, and extending the term of parliament from four to five years.
Japan: NOVA on the brink of collapse
Despite numerous statements to the contrary from an increasingly evasive management, the collapse of Japan's largest English language school operator NOVA appears imminent as bloggers have been reporting lesson cancellations, school closings, and busy phone lines. Read about the thoughts and first-hand experiences of Japanese bloggers in today's post.
Latvia: Protest Rallies
All About Latvia writes about the rallies taking place in Riga and about the imminent end of the current government: “Foreigners here observed that to make Latvians come out in such large numbers, you have to really piss them off. And people are pissed.”
Cambodia: Cambodian Currency
Mongkol looks at the history of Cambodia's currency.
Japan: Starving in the Land of Plenty
The recent story of a man starving to death as a result of not being able to receive welfare assistance, made famous thanks to his having documented his last days in a diary, sparked many Japanese bloggers to reflect on the broader implications of their country's welfare policy. Read some of their thoughts on the issue in today's post.
Guyana, Brazil: Building a Bridge
Living Guyana posts photos of the progress that has been made on the construction of the bridge that will link Guyana and Brazil.
Iranian bloggers say Russia is offering Iran unfair deal
Several Iranian bloggers shared their concerns that Russia wants to allow Iran only a very small share in the wealth of the Caspian Sea. Iran used to exploit 50 per cent of Caspian Sea resources before the collapse of Soviet Union. The heads of state of all five Caspian littoral...
Bahamas: Engaging the Americans
“Engaging the Americans, our most important trading partner and neighbour is a good thing,” writes Rick Lowe at WeblogBahamas.com, on learning that the island's Prime Minister will address The Caribbean-Central American Action organisation at their Miami Conference on the Caribbean Basin in December.
Haiti: Celebrity Philanthropy
In light of the attention being given to former Playboy Playmate Susie Scott Krabacher's philanthropic work, Haiti Innovation writes, “Haiti needs all the friends it can get…at the same time, though, I am frustrated that the need for such celebrity philanthropy exists.”
Bahamas: Political Gamesmanship
“I want a Bahamas that I can be proud of, but at the present time I can’t say that this is the case”: Craig Butler at Bahama Pundit thinks the behaviour of the island's two major political parties is counter-productive.
China: 40 Million Stock Investors
Zhou Mingshing blogs about the implication of 40 million stock investors in China (zh). It is obviously that China economy is undergoing rapid transformation. The new economy required rational investors and good legal system, both are not yet well-developed.
