false 493371 6 Global poverty, Paul Collier points out, is actually falling quite rapidly for about eighty percent of the world. The real crisis lies in a group of about 50 failing states, the bottom billion, whose problems defy traditional approaches to alleviating poverty. In The Bottom Billion, Collier contends that these fifty failed states pose the central challenge of the developing world in the twenty-first century. The book shines a much needed light on this group of small nations, largely unnoticed by the industrialized West, that are dropping further and further behind the majority of the world's people, often falling into an absolute decline in living standards. A struggle rages within each of these nation between reformers and corrupt leaders--and the corrupt are winning. Collier analyzes the causes of failure, pointing to a set of traps that snare these countries, including civil war, a dependence on the extraction and export of natural resources, and bad governance. Standard solutions do not work against these traps, he writes; aid is often ineffective, and globalization can actually make matters worse, driving development to more stable nations. What the bottom billion need, Collier argues, is a bold new plan supported by the Group of Eight industrialized nations. If failed states are ever to be helped, the G8 will have to adopt preferential trade policies, new laws against corruption, and new international charters, and even conduct carefully calibrated military interventions. As former director of research for the World Bank and current Director of the Center for the Study of African Economies at Oxford University, Paul Collier has spent a lifetime working to end global poverty. In The Bottom Billion, he offers real hope for solving one of the great humanitarian crises facing the world today. 481548 book 27 4 2007 The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It total:378|5:68|4:165|3:117|2:21|1:7| 378 1400 988 81 2 7 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 27 08:17:40 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 30 08:52:21 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 15 11:55:41 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 15 11:58:34 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun May 17 22:33:19 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 10:34:02 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Nov 07 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 07 05:35:10 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 07 05:48:03 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 20 05:45:31 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 27 15:11:34 -0700 2009
It is a good book and I recommend it to anyone. It is clear and well written but…
Ok, the title states: “why the poorest countries are failing and what it can be done”. Well, as Paul Collier says, this book aims to put forward a new agenda for the G8 and it ...more...]]> 5 1 false false Sat Oct 04 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 25 06:54:05 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 06 13:24:48 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Jul 20 16:14:25 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 20 16:18:38 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Nov 02 04:49:29 -0700 2007 Fri Nov 02 04:50:24 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 06:18:46 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 06:22:01 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Apr 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 05 11:52:01 -0800 2009 Tue Apr 14 14:36:47 -0700 2009 The Economist and probably would have thought it was brilliant even if it was twaddle, such is my reverence.

I was really impressed by how sensible it was. I honestly believe that it's one of the cardina...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jul 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Feb 24 06:44:09 -0800 2009 Mon Jul 06 17:09:28 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu May 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jan 28 14:33:58 -0800 2009 Mon May 18 09:43:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Sep 12 06:26:37 -0700 2008 Thu Oct 16 07:15:18 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 2 false false Sun Sep 07 09:04:31 -0700 2008 Sun Dec 28 21:05:56 -0800 2008
While I have no doubt that his research has produced some fruitful insights into poverty, I don't think his book is the amazing must-read d...more...]]> 3 1 false false Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 12:23:07 -0700 2008 Sun Oct 05 15:02:31 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jan 22 13:32:19 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 22 13:48:14 -0800 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Dec 20 12:38:57 -0800 2007 Sat Jul 19 11:44:08 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun Oct 28 03:06:56 -0700 2007 Sun Oct 28 03:27:50 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Mar 17 20:07:09 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 12 08:21:49 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 17 20:06:59 -0700 2008 ...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Feb 14 18:19:23 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 14 18:22:31 -0800 2009 more...]]>