Triangular Cooperation: Enabling Policy Spaces

In the past decade, a number of studies, reports, and data have been produced on triangular cooperation (TrC). The focus of these publications is mainly on (i) the project level and/or (ii) political relations between stakeholders. I argue that, beyond being an effective modality for the implementation of development projects, TrC is an enabler of policy negotiation spaces. Through TrC, the clashes of traditional principles and practices with a new narrative of Southern providers are loosened, enabling spaces that do not directly confront contested political positions jeopardising the dialogue. The chapter identifies that TrC serves as a bridge for coordination between stakeholders. Findings suggest that it has been used for sharing costs and solutions as well as for the development of joint guidelines and processes.

Development Cooperation in the Context of Contested Global Governance

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has successfully set a normative framework for global cooperation, including development cooperation. Yet, the implementation of this agenda is characterised by power struggles and unresolved contestations. Hence, it is uncertain whether the 2030 Agenda will be achieved. Therefore, a key question is how different narratives and norms in development cooperation can be reconciled to achieve the 2030 Agenda. As a response and guiding framework, this chapter explores the concept of “contested cooperation”, drawing on research on contested global governance and contested multilateralism. Applying this conceptual perspective not only yields theoretical insights but also helps in better understanding the practical challenges that development actors face in implementing the 2030 Agenda.

The SDGs and the Empowerment of Bangladeshi Women

This chapter describes Bangladesh’s successes with advancing gender equality in the period of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), locating their origins in elite commitment to including women in the development process, and in the partnerships and aid that built the state and NGO capacity to reach them. The chapter reflects on the lessons of Bangladesh’s innovative and unexpected advances in the light of the new challenges posed by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably those of early marriage and the achievement of decent work. The chapter asks whether contemporary conditions suggest that the elite commitment and state capacity that drove progress on the MDGs are up to meeting the more contentious and complex goals of the SDGs.

India as a Partner in Triangular Development Cooperation

The chapter argues that India’s emerging practice of triangular cooperation does not fit easily with established definitions and concepts. India’s special brand of engagement in triangular cooperation has the potential to reshape important aspects of the global architecture of development cooperation and make significant contributions to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The chapter suggests how Indian experience can inform the analysis and international practice to increase the value of triangular cooperation for developing countries.

Partnerships with the Private Sector: Success Factors and Levels of Engagement in Development Cooperation

Partnerships with private-sector actors are widely considered crucial for achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, but the ways of how to engage best with actors from the private sector in development cooperation are contested. Often it is feared that influential companies will hijack unregulated partnership initiatives for their own benefits. This chapter investigates different levels of engagement for partnerships with private-sector actors and discusses how they can be more successful. We show that it matters whether it is envisioned to incentivise and regulate private-sector engagement at the global or at the country level. The chapter’s main findings support context-specific approaches and emphasise the need to strengthen national development agencies as focal points for private-sector engagement in development cooperation.

Measuring Development Cooperation and the Quality of Aid

Countries and governments are divided on the fora and mechanisms for agreeing on effective development cooperation. But progress can be made on measuring what countries are doing in different areas of cooperation. This chapter looks at how we can assess the quality of development cooperation. It sets out a framework for measuring development cooperation across three areas: development finance; country policies affecting the exchange of goods, people, ideas, and capital; and global public goods. It considers the availability of measures against that framework and concludes on how these measures can be developed, or where new measures are needed, to provide a holistic assessment of development cooperation.

Conceptualising Ideational Convergence of China and OECD Donors: Coalition Magnets in Development Cooperation

This chapter analyses the development discourse on foreign aid to explore areas of convergence between the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) donors and Chinese development cooperation. We apply the concept of “coalition magnets”—the capacity of an idea to appeal to a diverse set of individuals and groups, and to be used strategically by policy entrepreneurs to frame interests, mobilise support, and build coalitions. Three coalition magnets are identified: mutual benefit, development results, and the 2030 Agenda. The chapter finds that coalition magnets can be used to influence political change and concludes that applying a discursive approach provides a new conceptual opportunity for fostering closer engagement between OECD-DAC and Chinese development cooperation actors.

Russia’s Approach to Official Development Assistance and Its Contribution to the SDGs

The chapter looks at the current developments in Russia’s official development assistance (ODA). In spite of its international isolation, the Russian government has expanded its ODA allocations since 2015, which total to about $1 billion annually. The chapter describes the sectoral and channel distribution of Russian aid. Moreover, it identifies the key challenges of the Russian government in the framework of its ODA activities, such as monitoring and evaluation (M&E), achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and its engagement with the business sector. Under consideration of the government’s undertakings in its striving to address these issues, the author reflects in conclusion on the prospects of establishing a national ODA M&E system, and options to contribute towards the achievement of the SDGs by 2030.

Southern Think Tank Partnerships in the Era of the 2030 Agenda

Think tanks are important actors in global policy-making, and those from the Global South are gaining relevance. One premise of this chapter is that the 2030 Agenda’s calls for more effective partnerships and new types of knowledge. A second premise is that partnerships reflect a power distribution among partners; in some cases, these are horizontal, and in others asymmetrical. In this context, the chapter explores the relationships between think tanks from the Global South with each other, their Northern peers, and the broader international community. It concludes that think tanks can enable collaborations with a diversity of actors. To do so, however, think tanks need to adapt their business models and develop trust with other policy actors in order to remain effective.

Transnational Science Cooperation for Sustainable Development

With the 2030 Agenda, the development paradigm has shifted towards global sustainable development, but modes of cooperation between actors in the Global North and South still cling to traditional patterns of cooperation, reproducing antiquated knowledge hierarchies. Departing from technical cooperation, transnational research cooperation may be a more equitable mode of cooperation with the potential of developing innovative solutions for sustainable development. Yet, its potential is not fully realised. Science policies on the national level and global governance mechanisms need to set a beneficial framework, ensuring that expectations of partnerships and outcomes for global sustainable development can be met. The current incoherence of national science and development cooperation policies may be aggravated by existing gaps in global governance mechanisms in view of sustainability-oriented transnational research cooperation.