John Simon

 
John Simon

John Simon is a visiting fellow at the Center for Global Development.

Full Bio
 

President Bush’s Enduring Legacy

September 28, 2010

By in Global Development Tags: , , ,

John Simon

Bipartisanship made a reappearance in a most unlikely place last Wednesday – at the podium of the United Nations.  In his address to the United National Millennium Development Goals Summit, President Obama unveiled his “new” approach to development, emphasizing a focus on results, investing in countries committed to their own development through sound governance and democracy, tapping the forces of the economic growth through entrepreneurship and trade, and the need for mutual accountability between developed and developing countries.  In doing so, he followed precisely in the footsteps of President George W. Bush. Read More…

Comment »

 

Six Important Lessons for Disaster Relief

January 17, 2010

By in Latin America Tags: ,

The massive earthquake that struck Haiti last week has wreaked havoc on a scale that appears unprecedented. Unfortunately, there are many precedents, including several in the last five years, such as the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, which killed an estimated 220,000 people, the South Asia earthquake of 2005, which killed 86,000 people, and the Chengdu earthquake of 2008, which killed a similar number. Learning from these is critical to succeeding in minimizing the suffering in Haiti in the next few days and weeks and maximizing the opportunities for recovery over the next several years. While different people involved in the response to these disasters will draw different lessons, from my perspective at the White House during the tsunami and the South Asia earthquake, the following come most quickly to mind: Read More…

1 Comment »

 

Making Space for Economic Growth Assistance in Obama’s Aid Budget

March 2, 2009

By in Global Development, Migration and Labor Mobility, Modernizing U.S. Foreign Assistance

International Affairs Budget
While President Obama’s budget represents much of the change he promised on the campaign, his proposed $51.7 billion International Affairs Budget—a 9.5 percent increase over 2009—seems to provide more of the same: the same upward trend of the last ten years, during which international affairs budgets rose by double digits in all but two years, and the same downward pressure on long-term economic development programming. Massive increases in funding for health, and to a lesser extent for education, have squeezed much of the flexibility to address long-term economic growth out of country budgets. For instance, in Ethiopia, barely $20 million out of nearly $1 billion in annual U.S. assistance was available for economic growth. The current budget year offers few opportunities to change this dynamic, but the administration could lay the foundation for a more balanced approach to development in the future through a simple budget innovation that I explain at the end of this post.

Read More…

3 Comments »

 
 |