STWR - Share The World's Resources

Rajesh Makwana is the executive director of Share The World's Resources. All his articles and reports are listed below and he can be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

The experience of Iceland, as highlighted in the film ‘Future of Hope', presents movements for social justice with a vision for creating change on a global scale. Central to this process is the need to replace self-interest, competition and greed with values that promote the development of a sustainable and equitable world - such as sharing and cooperation, argues Rajesh Makwana.

The purely market-based approach to development has failed the world's poor. If the global economy is to serve the interests of all people, it must be primarily geared towards securing basic human needs in perpetuity, founded upon a genuine form of multilateral cooperation and economic sharing, write Rajesh Makwana and Adam Parsons.

Rio+20 is a golden opportunity for civil society to influence the ‘sustainable development’ agenda. An important first step is to substitute the imperative for economic growth with more socially and environmentally sound policy objectives, argues Rajesh Makwana.

The international response to the East African crisis is far short of urgent needs, yet the extreme deprivation being reported is only the tip of the iceberg. A massively upscaled redistribution of resources from North to South is needed if we are to prevent needless poverty-related deaths worldwide, write Rajesh Makwana and Adam Parsons.

Protesters in the Arab world have much in common with those reacting to austerity across Europe, as well as the millions who have mobilised in support of ending poverty in the South. What we may be witnessing is an emerging public voice in favour of a fundamental reordering of global priorities, write Adam Parsons and Rajesh Makwana.

The financial turmoil destabilising the European Union bears a stark resemblance to the debt crises of the developing world. The failures of a debt-based global economy are become increasingly apparent, as is the need to find a humane alternative based on the redistribution of power and resources, says Rajesh Makwana.

The basic assumptions about human nature that inform economic and political decision-making are long outdated and fundamentally flawed. By acknowledging our interdependence and common ethical values, we can build a more sustainable, cooperative and inclusive global economy, argue Rajesh Makwana and Adam Parsons.

The rising tide of economic growth has failed to lift all boats and is now promising to be environmentally disastrous. In the face of anthropogenic climate change, global poverty and growing inequality, we must urgently reassess our obsession with GDP, argues Rajesh Makwana.

The endless pursuit of economic growth is unsustainable, unjust and the root cause of climate change. We need a new economic paradigm built on the foundations of sustainability, justice, cooperation and sharing, argues Rajesh Makwana.

The financial crisis presents a rare opportunity to build a system of international finance that works in the true interest of the global public, but the G20 ministers seem intent on maintaining the unsustainable growth-oriented global economy of the past, writes Rajesh Makwana.

As poor countries are disproportionately affected by the financial, food, climate and security crises, the Non-Aligned Movement's call for greater international cooperation must no longer be drowned out by the rhetoric of the G8 and the G20, argues Rajesh Makwana.

The relentless pursuit of economic growth promotes the unsustainable consumption patterns that underpin the climate crisis. Only a clearer understanding of the causes and greater public engagement can finally urge governments to act on climate change, argues Rajesh Makwana.

In light of the growing international consensus for economic reform, this article introduces economic sharing as a viable mechanism through which the international community can cooperate more effectively to end poverty and create a sustainable world.

Despite international commitment to the Millennium Development Goals, a recent UN report revealed that poverty will not be halved in any sub-Saharan country by 2015, indicating yet another failure of the system of aid and stregthening the call for a more robust international strategy to secure economic justice for developing countries.

A comprehensive proposal for how a system of economic sharing could function within a reformed world economy and the effect it would have on corporate trade, international finance and aid mechanisms.

Economic Sharing can mitigate the unsustainable aspects of the global economy, allowing essential resources to be distributed cooperatively under the democratic guidance of the global public and entirely for their benefit, thereby promoting peaceful international relations and rapidly relieving poverty.

The goal of neoliberal economic globalization is the removal of all barriers to commerce, and the privatization of all available resources and services. In this scenario, public life will be at the mercy of market forces, as the extracted profits benefit the few, writes Rajesh Makwana.

Many Developing countries are left with little choice other than to compete for trade in international markets, leaving them trapped between a rock and a hard place.

"In order to tackle climate change it is necessary for policy makers to re-examine key aspects of the global economy such as the pursuit of economic growth at all cost; unhealthy export-orientated agricultural practices; biased trade and finance structures; unsustainable over-consumption; and the excessive influence of multinational corporations on the economic and social life of the global public" - Rajesh Makwana.

A detailed report examining the history, structure and motives of multinational corporations and their excessive influence over both governments and the general public. The report proposes a framework in which commercial activity can be significantly reduced so that corporations can primarily serve the global public good. Written by STWR's Rajesh Makwana.

STWR joined over 100,000 members of the public filled the streets of central London on Saturday 5^th August, demanding an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon, Palestine and Israel.

An investigation into the inability of the current system of international aid to significantly reduce poverty over the past 35 years, with practical proposals for an alternative mechanism, based on economic sharing, which can rapidly foster self-sufficiency in the developing world.

This report analyses the negative impacts of the IMF, World Bank and WTO on sustainable development and suggests an alternative mechanism for regulating the international economy which can allow these institutions to be progressively decommissioned. 

An analysis the free trade regime and it's negative impact on the least developed countries. Equitable and alternative mechanisms for allocating essential goods and regulating international trade are proposed.

This report looks at the urgent need to cancel debt in the developing world as part of an international emergency relief program to prevent poverty and needless death.

An overview of the issues surrounding the global commons, in relation to globalization, economic justice and the need to create a more sustainable world.

This short report presents a survey and analysis of inequality around the world, it's possible causes and consequences.

Share The World's Resources would like to express its absolute support for the Commission for Africa (CfA) report and its recommendations. The question that we address here is whether the UK government is in a position to implement the report's recommendations, many of which will entail a u-turn in current UK policies.

The new study, published in Nature by a team from the University of Oxford¹ is considered to provide the most comprehensive and realistic estimates on malaria to date. Researchers now estimate that there may have been up to 660 million clinical cases in 2002 alone (over 1 million new cases each day), doubling existing WHO estimates for Africa and more than tripling estimates for countries outside of Africa.

These are the words of India's Finance Minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, as he unveiled this year's budget. In his previous budget, Mr Chidambaram pledged billions of dollars for the poor and to assist farmers. This year his budget continues to take an 'anti-poverty' approach as he provides a further boost to spending on primary education and heath care services.

Despite outright rejection by the Bush administration, the Kyoto treaty came into force this week. Altogether 128 member states have ratified the protocol to reduce greenhouse emissions over the next 7 years to levels below those of 1990.

STWR would like to express our deepest sympathies for all those affected by the Asian Tsunamis. We urge all individuals and governments to give generously to the relief operation and to maintain their levels of commitment to aid over the crucial months and years ahead.

This was the underlying message of a comprehensive speech delivered at the national seminar on "Alternative Strategies for Development" held in Bhopal, India last month, by one of STWR's contributing writers, Devinder Sharma.

There have been, and continue to be, many valuable analyses, reports and programs by the UN and other agencies, alongside calls for more aid, trade reform and debt cancellation by numerous NGOs. For the time being, the Commission for Africa's report seems to have outweighed them all.

A new UN report, entitled AIDS in Africa, was compiled over two years using more than 150 experts. It warns that 10% of Africans (an additional 90 million people) could be infected with HIV within the next 2 decades.