As demand for water for the 700 million people living in the world’s most densely-populated river basins – the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra – rises, new tensions are surfacing that threaten South Asia’s stability. To respond, The Asia Foundation just announced an expansion of its partnership with the Skoll Global Threats Fund, to strengthen access to information on transboundary issues and foster a regional dialogue between stakeholders on the critical issue of international water sharing. 
Posts By William Stadden Cole
Time to Rethink State-Building in Afghanistan?
May 2, 2012
President Obama’s overnight visit to Afghanistan underscores the long-term security and financial commitment of the United States to this country in advance of the NATO Summit later this month.
Open Data Opens New Potential for International Development
September 21, 2011
In recent years, a revolution in data analytics has changed the way both public and private sector institutions share, manage, and analyze information – and it’s a revolution now reaching developing nations. In Timor-Leste, the Ministry of Finance has just made current, real-time national budget statistics available online.
Topics: Economic Development | Governance | Technology & Development | Washington DC
Countries: Afghanistan | Timor-Leste
What Political Settlements Mean for International Development
August 4, 2010
The impact of international development assistance depends, to a large extent, on the ability and willingness of development actors to factor the political landscape into aid programs. It is not uncommon to hear of carefully conceived development programs, meticulously and thoughtfully designed with ample funding, that have been undermined by powerful local actors with other [...]
Topics: Conflict and Fragile Conditions | Governance
Dramatic Changes Unlikely Following Afghan Elections
August 19, 2009
The Afghanistan Presidential election being held this week, with a possible October run-off, will have a winner. But, whoever that winner is and whatever policy redirection may be in store, dramatic changes on the ground are unlikely. Despite the political rhetoric inherent in all democratic electioneering, the next President – whether Hamid Karzai, Abdullah Abdullah, [...]
Topics: Conflict and Fragile Conditions | Elections | Governance
Countries: Afghanistan