In the so-called Global North, a rise in authoritarianism has gone hand in hand with a so-called “realist” approach to international relations, expressed in increased investment in defense and falling aid budgets and ‘soft-power’ more generally, where the reference to a human rights framework is replaced with an outright ‘transactional approach’. Yet what are the implications of this? How does this impact security and development prospects in the Global South?

Speakers: 

Gilbert Khadiagala (University of Witwatersrand, SA)

Nina Wilén (Egmont Institute, BE) 

Moderator: 

Hilde Deman (Search for Common Ground, BE)