Globalisation has been the buzzword of the roaring nineties and with the fall of the Berlin’s wall, the end of the cold war and the victory of capitalism over socialism it has opened a new era in human history. Rightly or not, globalisation has become synonymous with market economy, capitalism and development. Much discussions, books …
Category Archives: Selected writings
Challenges facing the UK Research Base
The academic year 2007 started with a “Time Bomb” uncovered by the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI): student in England are having it the easy way with an average of 26 hours a week spent studying compared to 30 in Ireland, 35 in France and 41 in Portugal. Variations are wide depending on the subject …
Gendering the Fight against Aids
Two strong messages have emerged from the 16th International Aids Conference in Toronto, Canada. The first is that with drug treatment now being rolled out in developing countries, prevention should return to centre stage in future policies and strategies. The second is that women’s lives and status need to be improved and that women need …
French Fries and Fat Kids – Asia’s next Epidemic
Popular belief has it that obesity only affects wealthier societies where food is plentiful: the curse of the developed world epitomized by hulking Americans that struggle to order their king-size Big Mac, French Fries and Coke without breaking sweat.
Obesity is no longer exclusive to the developed world
The reality is a very different. Obesity and its …
Wealth versus Health – the Thai Frontier
In the battle against HIV and AIDS, Thailand has been exemplary: since 2001, the AIDS death rate there has fallen by 79 percent, thanks to the supply of low-priced locally produced generic drugs and the 30-Baht universal health care scheme. But this success story is about to be challenged by the United States-Thai Free Trade …
