Financial Times—Good governance will bolster African aid (opinion by Mo Ibrahim)
Mo Ibrahim adds his voice to the debate over foreign assistance in the Financial Times today, writing that “effective aid has an important role to play in the quest for sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction.” He adds, “The critical argument should not be about aid or no aid – no one can question the necessity of pure humanitarian aid as long as it satisfies basic good governance criteria. The argument should be about where to focus aid to achieve the best returns for donor taxpayers and aid recipients.”

BBC—US to host next G20 world meeting
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania will host the next G20 summit of world leaders in September, the White House has confirmed. The meeting will take place on September 24 and 25.

Des Moines Register—Combat hunger by investing in agricultural development (opinion by Ken Hackett)
Ken Hackett, president of Catholic Relief Services, writes in Iowa’s Des Moines Register that the global hunger crisis, which has been exacerbated by the global financial downturn, “demands that we strategically and smartly retool our thinking on how to tackle the scourge of global hunger.” Hackett argues that investment in all aspects of agricultural development, from seed to market, should be increased. Although a modest investment in the agricultural sector can pay big dividends, overall funding for agriculture has been declining for many years, he writes.

The Economist—Prudence can win
The Economist writes on the new strategy by the International Monetary Fund to loosen purse strings for poor countries during the global recession. Several economists believe that some sub-Saharan African countries are better placed to implement fiscal expansion in this crisis than in previous ones. This is due in part because, instead of overspending in the past several years, some, such as Tanzania and Mozambique, wisely built up their reserves, which were bolstered by debt relief. This may stand them in good stead now that times are tough, the paper writes.

The Guardian—Somalia: one week in hell – inside the city the world forgot
The Guardian reports from Mogadishu, Somalia today, writing that with the exception of the latest pirate drama, “Somalia is the country the world forgot, a state so broken that scenes which would elsewhere dominate international news bulletins are barely noted on the foreign pages of major newspapers.” Last year Foreign Policy magazine ranked Somalia as the state most at risk of total collapse.

-Steve Wilson