Programme leader: Prof. Isa Baud

Transformations in political, social, cultural and economic landscapes are widespread. Linked to processes of uneven development and globalisation, they underpin the need for rethinking the governance of development capacities in low-income nations. Countries in the global South play an increasingly important role in international discussions on development, putting forward their own perspectives and claims.

GID's aim is to gain deeper insight into the way in which governance processes influence the capabilities actors have at various scale levels, as well as how actors and institutions influence the governance of transformation processes within countries, urban and rural localities and globalising networks. Focus falls on issues of socio-economic inequality (e.g. poverty), space and place, scaling of governance, the dynamics of governance networks, institutions, regimes and livelihoods and the impact of interventions aiming at so-called ‘resilient development'.

The programme group identifies three strategic areas of development in low-income countries, namely:

• Governance of natural resources and well-being
• Urban governance and resilient development
• Governance resources for human development (education, knowledge, rights and social justice).

The mission of the programme group is to promote research on governance issues from the perspective of the global South, and to provide a better inter-disciplinary understanding of how processes of governance can deal with inequalities and poverty issues at both differing and linking scale levels.