Comments

Hi Shailendra The point that you raise is an important and interesting one. Looking around the region we can see numerous instances of 'stability' being prioritised (both in terms of rhetoric and practice) and one of the ways this plays out is in relations between the state and the media - both mainstream media and online spaces such as blogs and Facebook groups. My feeling is that development is a process not a product so all countries are always developing and the roles played by the media are a part of that journey. Thanks for adding your thinking to this discussion

Thanks for this item which provides some interesting insights. I was particularly struck by the last point about the opportunities for donors (including but not limited to Australia) improving their coordination in this area. This is a key point especially when it comes to working with the private sector in the Pacific island region. One of the biggest challenges to this type of activity is the high transaction costs and if donors can innovate to share knowledge, resources and expertise, there is the potential for these to be reduced. I have examined this point (and others) in the following items for those who would like to see more: <a href="http://www.lowyinterpreter.org/post/2014/04/14/Pacific-Private-Sector-Engagement-where-to-begin1.aspx" rel="nofollow">'Pacific Private Sector: Where to Begin?'</a> <a href="http://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/role-private-sector-promoting-economic-growth-and-reducing-poverty-indo-pacific-region" rel="nofollow">'The Role of the Private Sector in Promoting Economic Growth and Reducing Poverty in the Indo-Pacific Region'</a>

My research interest is the relationship between media, politics, social conflict and development in the Pacific. The discussion about political stability likely to be the stand-out issue in 2015 caught my attention. Instability and violent conflict are rightly seen by some as a major threat towards the achievement of millenium development goals, and a drawback for Australia's $1billion regional aid program, especially in Melanesia. Fiji is curbing the media in the name of social stability, with other island nations showing a keen interest in how this pans out, before following suit. Depending on how things unfold, there could be short and long term repercussions for good governance and development. Some believe in, 'development first, media freedom later', but the link is fuzzy at best, and may not be sound doctrine for the region.

Hi Paul You make a good point and I think we will see more this year that will illustrate that in terms of establishing, embedding and maintaining democratic culture in the states of the Pacific, elections are necessary but far from sufficient

I think this ODI paper by May Miller-Dawkins (http://www.odi.org/publications/8813-global-goals-international-agreements-lessons-design-sustainable-development-goals) provides an interesting take on why "it’s possible that Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)-fatigue will lead to settling for practical, achievable goals and targets over ambitious principles that strengthen norms and give national groups a further point of leverage". She argues that we might need to look at the SDGs as more like international human rights and environmental agreements than international development programmes or targets.

Excellent review of what's ahead; 2015 begins the first year in many when all 26 or so Pacific Islands states, territories and areas with self government have elected leadership. One hopes this tremendous accomplishment will magnify the potential achievements of regional bodies, but also local community-economic decision making.

Policy change as well as induction of local population to impart their hands and skills should be encouraged along with free skill training so that the local people will feel ownership in the development and improvement in their life styles.

For a poor nation like Timor Leste, the best option is to slowly improve their existing living conditions giving due consideration to the local population priorities. Community participation is THE KEY for a success in these cases as I have witnessed in poor areas project in Pakistan.

It is immaterial as to how much portion of aid you spend and how much you keep in reserve. The main criteria should be the investment should have a possible higher tangible returns - else the nations get into the burden of loans that keep on increasing to a staggering proportion with time.

We should be careful to learn from the past experience as nations loose their investments without them and get deeper and deeper in financial burden with time with little tangible returns.

Hello! It is not uncommon in deprived communities that aid money gets lost within the process. I had been involved in such irrigation projects in Balochistan area of Pakistan for 6 years and have observed that without community participation, the chances of success are very small. I studied Social Engineering later and came to know that a comprehensive Monitoring & Evaluation consultancy for community welfare projects is a necessity. Moreover, at least a basic level Value Engineering analysis should also be carried out at the time of initial planning and design of projects to see if the investments goes in the right direction and choose best available options. I am planning to establish a consultancy office for Value Engineering and Monitoring & Evaluation in Dili (Timor Leste) and would appreciate if anyone can share their views on the same with me and with possible local partnership. You can always contact me directly through my email: mohsiniqbal1957@gmail.com

Thanks Scott, Interesting post. One other intriguing way of thinking about poverty lines (similar to your suggestions above) is to fit them round some of the stylised 'kinks' that exist in development outcomes. One of these being the inflection point of the Preston Curve --> the point beyond which a dramatic reduction in the marginal health benefits of increased income occurs. There's a good discussion of this from page 14 onwards in at the link: http://www.ipc-undp.org/pub/IPCPovertyInFocus9.pdf Hope all's good. Terence