Special Report No. 7
By Piyush Verma, Medha Prasanna, Caroline Arkalji, Erlijn Van Genuchten, and Siddharth Sharma
By Udaibir Das
Global financial institutions continue to frame the 2026 outlook for emerging markets through a familiar cyclical lens. The consensus assumes U.S. monetary easing, a softer dollar and a modest global slowdown will favor local-currency assets, credible disinflation paths and balance-sheet repair. This narrative is historically grounded and internally coherent. It is also increasingly insufficient.
By Medha Prasanna
Without intentional strategies to strengthen energy infrastructure, the Global South will remain largely a consumer of AI technologies.
Background Paper No. 37
By Anit Mukherjee and Caroline Arkalji
By Brian Webster, Alan Gelb, and Anit Mukherjee
Shifting the payment of social transfers from cash to direct deposit via bank or mobile money accounts can directly improve efficiency for governments and convenience for beneficiaries. It may also produce positive spillovers such as boosting financial inclusion and empowering women. But do these spillovers materialize, and under what circumstances?
By Dhruva Jaishankar
While both recognise the value of democracy and the importance of demonstrating the success of democratic governance, the two differ on their approaches to democratic promotion and coalition building
By Dr. Andreas Kuehn & Vaibhav Garg
A centralized, prescriptive approach may struggle with scalability, device diversity, and deployment complexity.
Originally published in Digital Frontiers, Observer Research Foundation
By Dr. Andreas Kuehn and Jan-Peter Kleinhans
Originally published by Council on Foreign Relations
Dhruva Jaishankar in conversation with Irina Faskianos
Dhruva Jaishnakar on how four geopolitical contests are coming into clearer focus. First published in The Hindustan Times.
Observer Research Foundation America, 1100 17th St. NW, Suite 501, Washington DC 20036 USA
