Presents a discussion of the programs and activities funded by the international affairs budget. Provides an overview of the six categories into which the international affairs programs have been placed -- security and peacekeeping operations, bilateral assistance, foreign affairs management, public diplomacy, multilateral assistance, and trade and investment. Outlines a framework for assessing the activities and their funding, and discusses some of the critical issues and questions that should be examined in each of the six categories. Charts and tables.

For the diplomat of the 21st century, success hinges on proficiency in a multitude of areas and familiarity with a variety of technological tools. Today's diplomats also require strong teamwork skills to collaborate with other groups, such as humanitarian organizations operating in the same host country. The U.S. Department of State currently uses 13 dimensions, covering a wide area of competencies, to gauge the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of prospective applicants. The department has recently added a quantitative skills requirement, but technology competencies are not yet part of the dimensions. A comparative analysis of human resource (HR) requirements among public, private, and nonprofit organizations with international missions reveals that State competes for similar sets of individuals. In many areas, its practices also lag those of the Defense Department and other federal agencies, and it is facing an uphill struggle to recruit highly qualified individuals with sought-after characteristics. The study recommends creating an integrated HR strategy, speeding up the recruitment process (e.g., by widening chokepoints in the clearance process), and boosting retention programs.

Africa in Global Power Play: Debates, Challenges and Potential Reforms is a compilation of insightful and analytical articles that were published in different issues of the journal, African Renaissance, between 2004 and 2006. Most of the articles are from established academics, researchers, development practitioners and policymakers as well as stakeholders in Africa. Though the perspectives are as varied as the contributions, the underlining themes are the current scramble for Africa and the various development trajectories vis-à-vis those of other regions of the world. Contributors also address the continuous interactions and inevitable contradictions between Africa and the rest of the world. The various contributions seek answers to a number of fundamental questions around Africa's position in the global political economy, focusing on such areas as international economic relations, political and economic reforms, democratic transitions and consolidations, human rights and security. Though contributions show that Africa faces enormous challenges in the global political economy, they also point to the current dynamism and optimism in many parts of the continent. ______________________________________________ Bhekinkosi Moyo is currently based in Dakar, Senegal, where he conducts and manages research for TrustAfrica: a grant-making foundation focusing on regional integration, peace and security as well as citizenship and identity. His research interests include Africa's political economy, international political economy, global governance, social movements and democratisation in Africa. His recent publications include China in Africa: Threat or an Asset? (2006), The Zimbabwean Community in South Africa (with Elinor Sisulu and Nkosinathi Tshuma) and Africa and the World: 2004-2005. "This book is a compelling study of the many imponderable dilemmas, challenges and imperatives that shape the contours of Africa's place in a mercurial and uncertain global order. It brings together a range of authors who reflect on the many themes that animate the African condition, in the context of the multiple centrifugal tendencies, intense structural asymmetries and disempowering pathologies that characterise globalisation. Africa in Global Power Play is an invitation to critically engage in this existential debate and is a sterling contribution to the subject." Dr. Garth le Pere Director, Institute for Global Dialogue, South Africa

There is a growing awareness that international law insufficiently protects common global interests and that States and non-State actors need to work together to protect global aims. The focus of this book is on the different fields of international law where there is a need for global cooperation to achieve common aims, for example: the law of the sea; protection of world cultural heritage; sustainable development, biological diversity and climate change; human rights; and international crimes. The volume also identifies the legal developments which have taken place, for example treaties which use the language of ’common heritage of mankind’ or ’common concern of humanity’, thereby identifying global concerns and reflecting a global set of values and interests independent of the interests of States.