Partnerships for the Goals

Recent decades have seen the emergence of global value chain (GVC) production arrangements in which firms fine-slice production processes and disperse activities over multiple countries. This paper analyses how the rise of GVCs affects trade politics in developed countries. Our theoretical model shows that GVCs drive a wedge between the interests of workers and of managers in unskilled-labourintensive industries, upsetting a traditional coalition that has favoured protectionism against competing imports. Managers of GVC firms switch towards favouring trade promotion since they can substitute foreign for local unskilled workers. The loss of their management ally further weakens the position of low-skilled workers, whose jobs and income are threatened by foreign competition. This new trend may help to explain the recent surge in anti-trade sentiment, while indicating the importance of an active policy response to deal with the economic challenges for affected

A single short document of 30 articles”—the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights—“has probably had more impact on mankind than any other document in modern history,” said Navi Pillay, then United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in 2008. Half a century ago, in December 1966, the United Nations formally translated the rhetorical promises from that declaration into legally binding obligations with the adoption of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Since then, global efforts to monitor and track human rights violations have grown exponentially.

Owing to rising unemployment among Saudi nationals, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has instituted Saudization, a localization policy that strives to induce the employment of more Saudi nationals in the private sector. A major gap in the literature is the lack of empirical investigation regarding the relationships between indigenization and the underlying principles of its process. This study seeks to fill this gap. The study assesses the success or otherwise of the Saudization initiative empirically and uncovers several features. It finds that TNCs that experience the external pressures to “localize” their workforce, and those that wish to enhance their social legitimacy, are more likely to comply with Saudization. Furthermore, TNCs do not believe that the process of localization provides them with economic gains. Legal coercion to adhere to the Saudization initiative turns out to be a highly significant instrument in making TNCs adhere to the localization process. The study also finds that neither age nor the size of the firm have an impact on the Saudization programme. Implications for theory and practice are drawn out.

This is a time of great challenge. We have pledged to “leave no one behind” but the goals of peaceful coexistence and inclusive development are at risk in many countries. The norms and values of the United Nations are being disregarded. Millions flee in search of safer, better lives, even as doors are closing. Brutal conflicts rage, taking countless lives and displacing millions. Terrorism and violent extremism are affecting all regions. Climate-related natural disasters are becoming more frequent, and their destructive powers more intense.

The shuttering of commercial activity in the face of the Corona (Covid-19) pandemic will have a dramatic effect on the global economy. UNCTAD’s Division on Investment and Enterprise has been monitoring the impact on investment, as well as its implications for development.1 In the face of the unprecedented circumstances, this issue of the Transnational Corporations furnishes a brief overview of this work, notably from the perspective of foreign direct investment (FDI) and investment policy. UNCTAD’s World Investment Report (forthcoming, June 2020) will provide an expanded and in-depth analysis of FDI trends and investment policy developments that also accounts for the impact of the pandemic.

My disability awareness journey started in the early 1990s, when I worked as an elementary school teacher in a little neighbourhood in Beirut, Lebanon. As my students helped me realize that they each have unique abilities, I had to acknowledge that our education system lacked policies, resources and professional training necessary to address existing barriers that inhibit successful and inclusive classroom instruction. This sparked my interest and passion for research in special education.

How can we seek social justice and peace amidst widespread corruption, rising military expenditure, the systematic violation of human rights and a preponderance of predatory business interests

The study examines the relationship between performance and patterns of autonomy and the network relationships used by the foreign subsidiaries of transnational corporations (TNCs) in world cities compared to those subsidiaries outside these locations. This is done by exploring if these patterns differ in foreign subsidiaries in Greater Copenhagen compared to elsewhere in Demark. The findings reveal that there are important differences in the relationships between performance and the autonomy and network structures in foreign subsidiaries. These findings are discussed and policy implications distilled. The study finds that the scope of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) policy could be usefully extended to encompass urban development thereby helping cities develop assets, institutional support and infrastructure that can enhance agglomeration benefits and global connectivity. The findings indicate policies, aimed at helping subsidiaries embed in host location networks and incorporate these networks into other parts of the parent company, could be beneficial. The paper also discusses economic and social inequality that can stem from network patterns and the inclination of subsidiaries to operate autonomously in world cities. It proposes policy options that can lead subsidiaries to undertake high-value activities and innovation in world cities.