Helen Clark discusses the 2013 Human Development Report, The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World. The report identifies more than forty developing countries that have done better than expected in human development in recent decades, with their progress accelerating markedly over the past ten years

In 2012, China imported nearly 60 million tons of soybeans, most of which were genetically modified. In that sense, even if GM foods are found to have any long-term hazards, one probably should not worry too much about only China's GM foods, but about those from all countries, including the United States, the largest producer and consumer of GM foods.

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Foreign ministers from the G8 nations declared "rape and other forms of serious sexual violence in armed conflict are war crimes," violate the Geneva Conventions, and are a priority to address. Adopted on April 11, 2013, the declaration outlines how to investigate and prosecute rape and provide services for victims.

UNICEF produced this report card, Child Well-Being in Rich Countries, on April 10, 2013. The report card uses measures such as material well-being, health and safety, education, behaviour and risks, and housing and environment, and analyzes how recent government financial policies affect children.

Isobel Coleman, CFR's senior fellow and director of the Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy initiative, discusses transitions to democracy and market economies, as part of CFR's Academic Conference Call series.

Reza Aslan discusses the connection between women's empowerment and economics, as part of the Council on Foreign Relations' roundtable series on religion and the Middle East.

This meeting was cosponsored by the Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy Initative.

The recent announcement of a BRICS development bank raised many questions. Isobel Coleman writes about the potential structure and purpose of the BRICS development bank and its implications for international development and the global economy.

After former secretary of state Hillary Clinton's speech on April 5, Gayle Tzemach Lemmon observes, "the Clinton megaphone no longer requires a Washington translator."

Twenty-eight representatives signed a letter on April 5, 2013, to President Obama, regarding the White House budget proposal's changes to the Food for Peace Program.

Peter Orszag writes that the link between life expectancy and college completion is not well understood, but they appear to be related to growing income inequality.

The IMF launched this report in March 2002, in order "to provide a regular assessment of global financial markets and to identify potential systemic weaknesses that could lead to crises."

President Obama met with President Sall from Senegal, President Banda from Malawi, President Koroma from Sierra Leone, and Prime Minister Neves from Cape Verde on March 28, 2013. The four presidents discussed the progress their countries have made in democracy and economic development.

The Brazilian government faces a number of challenges and opportunities concerning its economic forecast in the coming years. After peaking at 7.5 percent growth in 2010, Brazil's recent economic slowdown has caused worry that the dream of a new high-growth economy had slipped out of reach.

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The fifth summit of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) countries met in Durban, South Africa March 26 and 27, 2013, to discuss "political and economic coordination." They released their fifth summit declaraction, "BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Development, Integration and Industrialisation," which includes plans for a BRICS development bank.

Isobel Coleman writes that while it is widely recognized that food and fuel subsidies in Egypt are expensive and inefficient, Egyptian leaders do not want to touch the political third rail of subsidy reform. But they also realize that the country's fiscal situation is untenable without it. Sooner or later, serious subsidy reform is inevitable, and a well-planned process is preferable to the alternative.

Joshua Kurlantzick explores why the "Beijing Consensus" has attracted so many admirers in recent years in this excerpt from his new book Democracy in Retreat.

Jendayi Frazer, Juergen Voegele, and Gary Weir flesh out the drivers of scarcity and security challenges related to natural resources in Africa, focusing on natural resource management. This meeting is part of the Global Resources, the U.S. Economy, and National Security symposium, sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations and Conservation International.

Jendayi Frazer, Juergen Voegele, and Gary Weir flesh out the drivers of scarcity and security challenges related to natural resources in Africa, focusing on natural resource management. This meeting is part of the Global Resources, the U.S. Economy, and National Security symposium, sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations and Conservation International.

Michael Spence examines what options the Italian government has for restoring economic growth as eurozone efforts at stabilization the banking sector and sovereign-debt markets founder.

Peter Orszag highlights research findings that reinforce the usefulness of test scores in evaluating teacher performance.