“3-For-1 for the Black Sea: 3x Development, 3x Soft Power” by Ilia Roubanis. Against the backdrop of a global economic crisis, the Black Sea is likely to suffer from the decline of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and/or remittances. Because most of the states in the region are very dependent on these capital flows, this is likely to have tremendous socioeconomic effects. This paper proposes a response founded on the idea that less capital could be more productive if deployed in the right manner. The policy framework proposed is inspired by the Mexican “3-for-1” model of collective remittances, proposing the reframing of development aid policy to work in synergy with migrant remittances. Such an approach would treat ODA as “seed capital,” thereby increasing the donor’s “soft power” and the growth of the receiving state. Focusing on the Black Sea region, this paper takes note of the conflicting interests, relative strengths and weaknesses of policy actors competing for soft power leverage in the region: the European Union (EU), Russia, Turkey, the United States (US), and corporate actors. It makes the case that such policy framing would, for those who would endorse it, provide a competitive edge.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 06:38:18 +0000