This paper by PERI researcher Vamsi Vakulabharanam explores the evolution of post-colonial South Asian economies. He describes how dominant classes, including landed interests, private capital, and government bureaucrats in South Asia prevented a progressive economic restructuring. Crises that threatened to radically transform the existing social order were solved through an ‘imperialist fix,’ whereby the dominant classes in conjunction with the state sought external help. Imperialist countries then used the region as a ‘spatial fix’ to solve their own crises. These two processes define the mutual engagement of imperialism and South Asian economies during this period.

In this interview with C.J. Polychroniou, PERI researcher Nancy Folbre describes the evolution of her socialist feminist perspective. She boils down her perspective as follows: “Women have some collective interests as women. The reproductive work of caring for others is productive. This work reveals the limits of individual self-interest as a principle for organizing economic life. The principle of ‘every man for himself’ is a recipe for extinction.” She also discusses her recent research on unpaid care labor and the main themes of her forthcoming book The Rise and Decline of Patriarchal Systems.

This study by PERI researcher Léonce Ndikumana and co-authors Theresa Mannah-Blankson and Angelia Esiritu Njuguna explores the drivers of recent debt accumulation in Sub-Saharan African countries. Debt ratios in the region have been rising due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is creating debt distress in countries that were already in weak financial conditions. It is imperative for Africa’s creditors and the donor community to alleviate this debt burden through robust debt restructuring. The African countries also need high levels of financing, to ‘grow with debt,’ in order to reach sustainable development goals.