South Asia
The Foundation was established in Germany in 1958. It aims to promote the goal of making the principle of freedom valid for the dignity of all people and in all areas of society, both in Germany and abroad. The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom works in over 65 countries worldwide. In South Asia we have offices in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Additionally we work with partners in Nepal. We promote civic education, trainings and the exchange of ideas in the region in four focal areas. These are economic freedom, human rights, urban governance and digital transformation. In addition to the country projects, the Foundation supports regional programs.
News
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Lessons from Bhutan: The Bhutanese Economy and the Private Sector
The Bhutanese economy commercialized only after 1961 when the first development plan began. Prior to that, it was a small and scattered population relying heavily on subsistence agriculture. The little trade that existed was bartering and exchange of surpluses within communities. Records show that external trade with Tibet in the north and the Indian state of West Bengal existed.
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Nepal: Himalayan country in crisis?
“Official stats” on COVID-19 cases have reached half a million mark with daily new counts of around 10,000. Medical facilities are already operating at full capacity and many have been forced to deny admission of new patients in the absence of basic facilities like beds, oxygen cylinders, and ventilators.
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Lessons from Bhutan: Nurturing Democracy
Bhutan has been an example of how good governance can form the backbone of democracy if nurtured deftly. In many respects, Bhutanese democracy is a success story in good governance. For a small landlocked country in South Asia, between India and China, Bhutan has carved out an exemplary approach to development and democracy. It has gone on to demonstrate how good leadership and foresight can sow the seeds of democracy.
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Tourism for Global Recovery
The Covid-19 pandemic has hit the tourism industry very hard, both globally and in this region. The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) estimates that 100 million jobs are at risk and US$2.7 trillion in revenue could be lost globally in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Peace for Afghanistan!?
How can the distrust among the main stakeholders be overcome and a sustainable agreement reached, which will finally give Afghans a positive perspective for the future? What needs to be done to develop a sustainable roadmap for peace and nation building?
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Liberty and Happiness in Bhutan
The panellists in the event will deliberate on how Bhutan measures Gross National Happiness, its uniqueness and its limitations - especially against the background of the pandemic in order to understand what other countries could learn from the Himalayan Kingdom.
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Politics to drive power in South Asia
Regional trade and cooperation in the energy sector would strengthen bi-lateral and multi-lateral ties within the region and complementarities in energy sources need to be explored. Encouraging and strengthening private sector cooperation would strengthen people-to-people ties and complement the current Govt-to-Govt monopoly in the energy sector in South Asia.
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Call for proposals for Copy Editor
The Regional Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF) in New Delhi is looking for a freelance copy editor in an effort to optimize the quality of our content from 20.04.2021 till 31.12.2023.
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Call for Applications: Consultant for the administrative support of our work
The Regional Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, South Asia in New Delhi is looking for a consultant for the administrative support of our work for the period of 15th April 2021 till 30th September 2021.
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Reimagining Education in South Asia Post COVID-19
The world is facing one of the biggest challenges of recent times with the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. One of its major victims is the delivery of education to students as the schools are closed in most of the countries across the world. The uncertainty around the re-opening of schools and conducting classes persists. South Asia, which has a sizeable population of school-going children is feared to have a huge learning deficit.
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Terms of Reference for Consultant
In support of the communications work, the Regional Office South Asia of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom is looking for a consultant who, on a regular basis, writes articles relevant to the work of the Foundation.
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COVID-19: A Global Stress Test for Governance and Resilience
We live in strange times. While probably half of the world—the US, over Europe to Asia—is in a lockdown, it is well worth giving a thought to what lessons this crisis can teach us. Every generation has its defining moments and for the 21st century, the current coronavirus crisis can be a major tipping point for the collective memory.
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More Governance than Government
The South Asian countries studied in this report—Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka— achieved a robust economic growth over the past two decades. Bangladesh and India achieved annual growth exceeding 7 % while Pakistan and Sri Lanka averaged around 5 % during the same period.
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Restart Asian Economies: Ideas and Actions
The adverse economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is being seriously felt across the globe. Economies are on a free fall with a precipitous decline in employment, income, and consumer demand. Regional as well as global trade (import and export) has dropped sharply. In these difficult situations, entrepreneurs will have to find ingenious ways to survive as well as to open windows of opportunities to sustain and grow.
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#BornwithPride in a hetero-normative society
In a society where homosexuality is illegal and persons are not free to determine their gender, the choice of whether to express oneself freely or continuing to live a life in secret is an everyday struggle. South Asian countries are still plagued with homophobia, biphobia and transphobia as well as legal restrictions on sexual orientation and gender identity. Homosexuality is still illegal in six out of the eight South Asian countries.
Social Media
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24 July 2021 marks the 30th anniversary of #economic #liberalisation in #India. Barun Mitra analyses why a seemingly weak coalition government was able to push through once in generation reforms that laid the foundation for sustained economic growth for decades. Read more in the link. Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit
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FNF South Asia wishes you a very happy Eid! May this day bring you peace, happiness and health! #eidmubarak #EidAlAdha Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom - Pakistan FNF Bangladesh FNF Sri Lanka Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit
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We are looking for interns to help us with our program management team. Want to work with us? Apply latest by 20th July 2021! More info in the link.
