UNU-CRIS Working Papers

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The Working Papers Series on Comparative Regional Integration Studies is devoted to the study of regional integration from a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective. It covers theory, empirical work and policy analysis, and includes contributions on the political, economic, social and cultural aspects of co-operation at the level of both macro-regions and micro-regions. While committed to the highest academic standards, the series aims to be accessible to policy-makers and practitioners and seeks to encourage informed debate on comparative regional integration.

W-2010/3: North-South vs. South-South Asian FTAs: Trends, Compatibilities, and Ways Forward

The last decade has seen an unprecedented surge in free trade agreements (FTAs) in economically important Asia as a part of efforts to deepen Asian regionalism by centering on sophisticated regional production networks....
By: Ganeshan Wignaraja and Dorothea Lazaro [more]

W-2010/2: Identity Construction in Europe: A Discursive Approach

Proposing a discursive approach to studying identity, this paper presents Positioning Theory as a theoretical framework for conceptualizing the construction of identity in discourse. A case study is presented, in which the...
By: Nikki Slocum-Bradley [more]

W-2010/1: Is the EU's Governance 'Good'?: An Assessment of EU Governance in its Partnership with ACP States

Distinguishing between ‘(good) governance’ as a process and an outcome, this paper examines both the processes and outcomes of governance in the context of the EU’s relationship with ACP States within the period of the Cotonou...
By: Nikki Slocum-Bradley and Andrew Bradley [more]

W-2009/24: La contribución de la cepal al pensamiento sobre la integración en latinoamérica

El documento presenta un análisis de la contribución de la CEPAL al pensamiento sobre la integración regional en Latinoamérica desde el inicio de sus actividades en 1948.  Muestra como el primer regionalismo latinoamericano...
By: Edgard Moncayo Jiménez [more]

W-2009/23: FDI Policies in Times of Conflict: The Case of Colombia

This paper looks at how open FDI policies have been put in place in Colombia since the beginning of the 1990s. The authors look at the relative capacity of Colombia to attract FDI, the cost of the conflict on the economy and...
By: Philippe De Lombaerde and Luis Jorge Garay [more]

W-2009/22: Developing Indicators for Regional Economic Integration and Cooperation

We develop indicators to measure the degree of economic integration and cooperation among East Asian economies and compare these with similar measures for other regions. Our indicators cover regional integration in trade,...
By: Giovanni Capannelli, Jong-Wha Lee and Peter Petri [more]

W-2009/21: The Employment Effects of North-South Trade and Technological Change

Many advanced countries have seen the emergence of new types of contractual arrangements, undergone technological change and increased imports from developing countries during last decades of the twentieth century.  The...
By: Nomaan Majid [more]

W-2009/20: La economía política de la integración regional: el caso de Colombia

This paper focuses on the domestic determinants of the regional integration and trade policies in Colombia. The authors take the liberalisation programme (apertura) which was started by the administration of President César...
By: Philippe De Lombaerde and Luis Jorge Garay [more]

W-2009/19: Post-NAFTA North America: Three Scenarios for the Near Future

As Henry Kissinger correctly stated, the major difference between Europe and the United States (US) in terms of the scope and vision of their respective foreign policies is that Washington has traditionally neglected the balance...
By: Isidro Morales [more]

W-2009/18: Le plan d'action de la Barbade - régionalisme, interrégionalisme et multilatéralisme dans un cas concret: la coopération contre le trafic illicite de drogues

Le « Plan d’Action de coordination et coopération pour le contrôle des drogues dans la Caraïbe », dit Plan de la Barbade, a concentré les politiques de l’Union européenne, des Etats-Unis, de la Communauté des Caraïbes...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/17: Politiques régionales contre le trafic illicite de drogues. Les cas de l’Union européenne et de la Communauté andine

Le Dialogue spécialisé d’Haut niveau entre l’Union européenne et la Communauté andine en matière de drogues est fondé sur les politiques régionales contre le trafic illicite de stupéfiants de chaque groupement régional. Quelle...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/16: L’intégration régionale contemporaine: figure de coopération multidimensionnelle

Les analystes de l’intégration régionale privilégient une approche comparative comprise souvent comme l’examen d’hypothèses façonnées en fonction de l’expérience européenne. Cette approche est tellement ancrée dans les études des...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/15: Caractéristiques et conditions du processus d’intégration globale des marchés: une approche socio-historique

Les liens et les interactions entre les sociétés ainsi que les rapports de celles-ci avec l’arène globale sont signalés comme propres à notre temps. La nouveauté ne réside pourtant pas dans l’existence de ces types de liens, mais...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/14: La notion d’interrégionalisme: Une lecture critique pour en construire une autre démarche d’analyse

L’interrégionalisme est l’un des faits qui, au cours de la dernière décennie, s’est consolidé comme un trait distinctif de la scène globale. Les analystes s’y sont particulièrement intéressés, pour mener des recherches autour des...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/13: Interregional Redistribution, Growth and Convergence

Countries redistribute substantial amounts of wealth between regions through taxation and social security, even in the absence of an explicit regional policy. Economic theory suggests such redistribution might be distorting. This...
By: Damiaan Persyn & Koen Algoed [more]

W-2009/12: Measurement of regional economic disparities

Regional disparities have become a hotly debated topic in the last two to three decades. The reason for this increasing interest in regional disparities is twofold: from an applied perspective it should be an issue of political...
By: José Villaverde and Adolfo Maza [more]

W-2009/11: The "New East Asian Regionalism": A "Political Domino" Effect?

The proliferation of regional economic agreements involving East Asian economies in the years since the financial crises is usually explained in the political economy literature by reference to economic factors. These agreements...
By: John Ravenhill [more]

W-2009/10: Incidencia de las Secretarías del Mercosur y de la CAN en los Respectivos Procesos de Integratión Regional

The objective of the paper is double. On the one hand, it seeks to analyse and compare the impact of the Secretariats of Mercosur and the Andean Community on the respective integration processes. In other words, to what extent is...
By: Mario J. Filadoro [more]

W-2009/9: Measuring Trade Regionalisation: The Case of Asia

This paper takes stock of the literature on the measurement of regional trade integration, showing that traditional indicators, based on bilateral trade intensity indices, are biased by some statistical problems and fail to take...
By: Lelio Iapadre and Francesca Tironi [more]

W-2009/8 New Regionalisms Post-Epas: What Prospects for Sustainable Development in Africa & the Caribbean?

Increasingly, there are multiple definitions of regions & their development in Africa & the Caribbean. Who so defines: the EU and/or the South? This paper advances a discussion about alternative definitions with reference to the...
By: Timothy M. Shaw [more]

W-2009/7: Dynamique, Themes et Acteurs: Des Relations entre la Communauté Andine et l’Union Européenne

« L’interdépendance entre les hommes donne naissance à un ordre spécifique, ordre plus impérieux et plus contraignant que la volonté et la raison des individus qui y président » Norbert Elias, La Dynamique...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2009/6: Global Transparency: Fighting Corruption for a Sustainable Future

The primary focus of corruption studies and anti-corruption activism has been corruption within sovereign states. However, over the last twenty years ‘globalization’, the flow of money, goods, people and ideas across borders, has...
By: Charles Sampford [more]

W-2009/5: The Asean Community: Dilemma's of a Shallow Trading Club

After three decades of growing 'economic and development cooperation' as well as regular, institutionalized foreign policy consultation between the EU and ASEAN, the two can be regarded as distant but warm friends. ASEAN has...
By: Jacques Pelkmans [more]

W-2009/4: Una Salida al Mar para Bolivia y el 'Acta de Lovaina': Una Experiencia de Negociacion Informal

From 8-14 September 2006, several intellectuals met in Leuven, Belgium. The group consisted of four Bolivians, four Chileans and four Peruvians, all of whom were invited by the Catholic University of Leuven (ucl) to reflect on a...
By: Jorge Magasich [more]

W-2009/3: Globalizacion Asimetrica y Desarrollo Precario: Una Perspectiva Andina

Globalization is a highly asymmetric and heterogeneous process that could represent benefits for some societies, but, at the same time, severe negative effects for others. This paper carries out an empirical evaluation of the...
By: Edgard Moncayo Jiménez [more]

W-2009/2: La Desigualdad Departamental como Determinante del Comercio Exterior en Colombia

Frecuentemente se argumenta que el proceso de globalización en curso, particularmente el flujo de comercio exterior, tiene un impacto desestabilizador sobre economías regionales de países en vías de desarrollo. En este...
By: Néstor Garza [more]

W-2009/1: Macro-Regions and Micro-Regional Inequalities: The European Union and the Cohesion Funds

The grouping of countries into a bloc, macro-regions, is a frequently used strategy for countries to increase their political power and enhance the competitive position of their organizations in the context of globalization...
By: Lidia Hernández López [more]

W-2008/13: Regional Integration, Decent Work, and Labour and Social Policies in West and Southern Africa

The West and Southern areas of Africa (W&SA) are confronted with enormous challenges to maintain peace and stability, to organise good governance, and to fight against contagious diseases. Reduction of poverty is the prevalent...
By: Bob Deacon, Karel Van Hoesteberghe, Philippe De Lombaerde & Cristina Macovei [more]

W-2008/12: The Emergence of International Fragmentation and Global Outsourcing of Production: Theories and Empirical Evidence

The emergence of international fragmentation of production as a contemporary phenomenon of international trade is evident from the rapid expansion of global production sharing and the impressive growth of trade in parts and...
By: Lurong Chen [more]

W-2008/11: Interrégionalisme, sécurité et politique mondiale - le rôle des groupes interrégionaux dans la régulation globale de politiques contre le trafic illicite de stupéfiants

En 2004 « le trafic illicite de drogues » a été déclaré comme une menace à la sécurité par l’Organisation des Nations Unies. Toutefois, le paradigme de coopération international, adopté en 1988 dans le cadre des...
By: Giovanni Molano Cruz [more]

W-2008/10: The Assessment of Regional Governance: Principles, Indicators and Potential Pitfalls

This chapter aims to provide a set of parameters by which one may assess the quality of governance in systems of regional cooperation or integration. Some preliminary conceptual clarifications are required since the terms...
By: Edward Best [more]

W-2008/9: Quantitive Monitoring and Comparison of Regional Integration Processes: Steps towards Good Practise

It is often taken for granted that regional integration processes are progressing and that the regional governance level is indiscriminately gaining importance worldwide, at least from a longer time perspective. However, both...
By: Philippe De Lombaerde, Ettore Dorrucci, Gaspare Genna & Francesco Paolo Mongelli [more]

W-2008/8: SAARC: The Changing Dimensions

The South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was established in 1985. During these twenty three years, SAARC has prepared a robust intellectual base for regional cooperation and spread awareness amongst more than a...
By: Sukh Deo Muni and Rajshree Jetly [more]

W-2008/7: Connecting Civil Societies III: An Asia-Europe Dialogue on Economy and Society

Held in the lead-up to the ASEM 7 Summit, the Conference “Connecting Civil Societies III: An Asia-Europe Dialogue on Economy and Society” (Beijing, 17 and 18 October 2008) has explored how ASEM has promoted civil society...
[more]

W-2008/6: The European Union and Central America: negotiating an interregional agreement

Regional integration schemes have proliferated around the world and with them the interaction between regions or interregionalism. The European Union (EU) has been supporting these integration efforts worldwide, putting special...
By: Beatriz Véliz Argueta [more]

W-2008/5: The European Union Economic Partnership Agreements with Sub-Saharan Africa

This paper analyses the impacts of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between the ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) countries and those of the EU (European Union) in the specific case of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). In order...
By: Alice Sindzingre [more]

W-2008/4: Social Dimension of Integration: Guidelines for an Action Plan in the areas of health, education, housing and employment

This study is foreseen in Project I.2 of the Work Programme of the Permanent Secretariat for the year 2008, approved during the XXXIII Regular Meeting of the Latin American Council of SELA. First of all, this analytical...
By: SELA [more]

W-2008/3: Deepening the Social Dimensions of Regional Integration: An Overview of Recent Trends and Future Challenges in Light of the Recommendations of the Report of the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalisation

The report ‘A Fair Globalisation: Creating Opportunities for All’ of the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalisation claims that regional integration can contribute to a more equitable pattern of globalisation, but...
By: UNU-CRIS [more]

W-2008/2: Dynamics of Regional (non-) integration in Eastern Africa

The African continent has witnessed since the nineties a rebirth of regional arrangements aiming at furthering the integration of Africa. However the process of regional integration has faced a great variety of obstacles....
By: Emmanuel Fanta [more]

W-2008/1: Trade Agreements, Labour Standards and Political Parties. Differences between the U.S. and the EU in their Approach towards the Inclusion of Labour Standards in International Trade Agreements

The connection between labour standards and international trade has become a key issue in therelations between industrialised economies and developing countries. Both the US and the EU areadvocates of the inclusion of “labour...
By: Bart Kerremans and Myriam Martins Gistelinck [more]

W-2007/15: Building Productive Capacities for Trade Competitiveness: Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) and UNIDO's Response

The current background paper has been prepared for the High-level Panel “Building productivecapacities for trade competitiveness: Economic Partnership Agreements(EPAs)”, taking place during the 12th Session of the UNIDO...
By: Adrian Schöning [more]

W-2007/14: Preferential Rules of Origin and the Multilateral Trading System: Pro-Development Policy Options

Since the proliferation of regional trade agreements in the late 1980s and early 1990s(the so-called new regionalism wave), preferential rules of origin (RoO) have also proliferated. The discussion on these rules gradually...
By: Philippe De Lombaerde and Luis Jorge Garay [more]

W-2007/13: Regional Representation in the WTO - A New Role for Regional Trade Clubs?

This paper analyses the crisis of decision making in the WTO from the perspective ofcollective action and public goods theory. At the heart of the current policy paralysis isthe inability of WTO members to collectively provide...
By: Brigid Gavin [more]

W-2007/12: Regionalism and the Problem of Representation in the WTO

The WTO’s system of consensus-based decision making has come under increasing stress in recentyears, especially in the wake of high-profile breakdowns in negotiations at the Seattle and Cancunministerial meetings, culminating in...
By: Kent Jones [more]

W-2007/11: Trade Structure as a Constraint to Multilateral and Regional Arrangements in Sub-Saharan Africa: The WTO and the African Union

A crucial factor explains the poor economic performance of Sub-Saharan Africa, i.e. therisky market and trade structure that is entailed by commodity dependence, because ofthe volatility of commodity prices, therefore the...
By: Alice Sindzingre [more]

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United Nations University - Comparative Regional Integration Studies
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Email: pvantorre@cris.unu.edu