In a time where Food Insecurity is at an all-time high, gaining a better understanding of its consequences is crucial for states to adopt the right policies. Existing literature highlighted the...Show moreIn a time where Food Insecurity is at an all-time high, gaining a better understanding of its consequences is crucial for states to adopt the right policies. Existing literature highlighted the causes of food insecurity as well as its consequences in times of sudden unrest. However, no research has investigated the gradual consequences of low food availability on institutions. This study aims at closing this gap by answering the question “How is institutional trust affected by food insecurity?”. More precisely, this paper applies the social contract theory to the issue of food insecurity in Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya. A new index regarding institutional trust is used to differentiate between institutions. The analysis is carried out through a multivariate linear regression and data is retrieved from the Afrobarometer round 7. Findings support a significant negative effect, confirming that food insecurity leads to a decrease in institutional trust, more severely in representatives one.Show less
While crises accumulate in the developing countries, major donors decrease their aid budget. Consequently, understanding determinants of aid effectiveness is crucial to improving health around the...Show moreWhile crises accumulate in the developing countries, major donors decrease their aid budget. Consequently, understanding determinants of aid effectiveness is crucial to improving health around the World. Previous research has put forward the positive influence of democratic regimes on health improvements. Nonetheless, little is known about the role of recipients' political regimes on the success of aid project implementation. This paper seeks to clarify this relationship by answering the question “What is the effect of regime type on the effective implementation of project-aid targeted to health?”. The study focuses on the World Bank projects in the health sector in Africa. An OLS approach is chosen to investigate democratic mechanisms, data is retrieved through the Independent Evaluation Group and Freedom House. The results show a positive but weak non-significant effect of democracy on aid effectiveness. Hence, findings do not provide evidence that democracies are better at implementing health aid projects. Using a larger sample is recommended for future studies.Show less
The Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) constitute a group of 20 conditions prevalent among the most the world’s poorest people. Despite their widespread impact, efforts toward their control have...Show moreThe Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) constitute a group of 20 conditions prevalent among the most the world’s poorest people. Despite their widespread impact, efforts toward their control have been inadequate, with NTDs largely absent on the global health agenda. Scholars argue that a significant reason for their neglect is that the ‘Big Three Diseases’ (BTDs) are overshadowing them, however, empirical evidence supporting this premise is missing. This study tests the suggested relationship by running a regression model examining whether a declining incidence of the BTDs affects the foreign aid allocation to NTDs over time. The findings of this paper show that there is no significant relationship between the variables, suggesting that the conventional argument may be overemphasized.Show less
A burgeoning literature is interested in exploring the relationship between religiosity and levels of political participation. Existing scholarly literature has mainly focused on two religiosity...Show moreA burgeoning literature is interested in exploring the relationship between religiosity and levels of political participation. Existing scholarly literature has mainly focused on two religiosity-related sources of levels of political participation: the associational membership theory, and the good citizen theory. These theories have focused on church attendance, and skills relevant to the political sphere, but not on religiosity more broadly. This study aims to determine the relationship between religiosity and levels of political participation by conducting a large-N observational analysis of the effect of religiosity on political participation using data from the European Social Survey Wave 10 (2020). The findings suggest that there is a statistically significant positive relationship between church attendance and levels of political participation and a non-statistically significant negative relationship between feelings of religiousness and political participation.Show less
The Ottoman Empire grew increasingly accepting of European law of nations when it became clear that its survival was at stake. In a bid to appeal to their European counterparts, the Ottomans sought...Show moreThe Ottoman Empire grew increasingly accepting of European law of nations when it became clear that its survival was at stake. In a bid to appeal to their European counterparts, the Ottomans sought to reform their existing administrative practices and governmental institutions into a bureaucratic system based on the Western model. Inspired by the European state system, the Ottoman Empire broke its long and historical streak of militaristic statecraft in favor of changing its approach to foreign affairs.Show less
