GIGA Focus. Automation and Inequality: Social Safety Nets in the Age of AI

Benefits of #AI automation are distributed unequally. Without broad access to capital and income stability, automation risks deepening #inequality.

➡️ In this #GIGAFocus, Tetiana Schipper explores the emergence and increase of global inequalities in the age of AI: www.giga-hamburg.de/de/publikati...

Image: October 26, 2025, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: U.S. President Donald Trump, left, speaks to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, right, during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center. Text: "GIGA Focus. Autonomy and Its Limits: Brazil’s Response to Trump’s Threats"

US #tariffs: #Lula managed to negotiate, forcing #Trump to back off from intervening in domestic affairs and to lower the tariffs.

➡️ In this #GIGAFocus Tomás C. A. Marques and Filipe Mendonça analyse #Brazil's response to Trump’s threats: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Featured in EADI Newsletter: "China’s Global Security Initiative and Its Reception in the Global South", #GIGAFocus by Julia Gurol-Haller and Sebastian Biba. 👇

Religion and the Dynamics of Farmer–Pastoralist Conflict in Nigeria Religion is crucial to understanding the violent clashes occurring between nomadic pastoralists and sedentary farmers over land and water in Nigeria. Neglecting this dimension prevents a holistic unde...

🌍 This #GIGAFocus provides crucial insights into one of #Africa’s deadliest conflicts. While #farmer–pastoralist violence in #Nigeria is often framed as a climate‑driven resource struggle, this study shows that religious identity shapes how communities perceive, experience, and mitigate conflict.

Visual GIGA Focus: From Screens to Streets: A New Wave of Youth-Led Protests

From Screens to Streets: In our latest #GIGAFocus, #GIGA's Adhiraaj Anand, Abdil Mughis Mudhoffir & Theodora Benesch analyse youth-led #protests from Asia to Africa to Latin America, and how social media has served to inspire and connect movements.

➡️ Read now: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Ten Things to Watch in India in 2026 Im Jahr 2026 wird Indien Handelsverhandlungen mit den USA und der EU führen und gleichzeitig den Vorsitz der BRICS-Staaten innehaben. Komplexe Beziehungen zu China und den USA, Regionalwahlen und Span...

#India struggles to balance its interests within #BRICS amid ongoing trade talks, while ties with #China and the #US remain complex.

➡️ In our latest #GIGAFocus, Soumya Chaturvedi and Johannes Plagemann share ten things to watch in India in 2026: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Visual GIGA Focus: Ten Things to Watch in Latin America in 2026

A US military strike on #Venezuela and mounting pressure on Colombia, Cuba, and Mexico signal a return to coercive power politics. 10 things to watch in #LatinAmerica this year - outlined in the latest #GIGAFocus by @berthoffmann.bsky.social.

➡️ Read now: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Visual GIGA Focus: Ten Things to Watch in Africa in 2026

#Africa enters 2026 at a crossroads: Gen Z protests, debt crises, Chinese and Russian expansion – Yet African states will leverage critical partnerships to assert agency. In our latest #GIGAFocus, Tevin Tafese and @cvonsoest.bsky.social present 10 things to watch: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Ten Things to Watch in the Middle East and North Africa in 2026 Europe plays a limited role in Gulf investments and the geopolitical considerations behind them. International mediation is urgently required in Gaza and Sudan. Lebanon and Syria are threatened by fra...

Europe plays a limited role in Gulf investments & geopolitical considerations behind them. International mediation is urgently required in #Gaza & #Sudan. #Lebanon & #Syria are threatened by fragmentation. In our #GIGAFocus, we present 10 things to watch in #MENA: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

GIGA Focus GIGA Focus – concise analyses and policy recommendations on current developments worldwide.

These analyses offer insights into conflict dynamics, international justice, regional transformations, and global security challenges.

➡️ Explore all GIGA Focus analyses here:
www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

#GIGA #GIGAFocus #ForeignPolicy #MiddleEast #Africa

Gaza, Israel, and German Foreign Policy: A View on Public Opinion A survey conducted in August 2025 found that the majority of people living in Germany support a foreign policy towards Gaza and Israel that is guided by international law and seeks to uphold universal...

As the year comes to an end, we reflect on developments that shaped our debates in 2025 with the most-read #GIGAFocus pieces:

1️⃣ Gaza, Israel, and German Foreign Policy: A View on Public Opinion by @christinebinzel.bsky.social & @thomaserichter.bsky.social: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Die Rolle digitaler Technologien in Afrikas Landwirtschaftssektor Von E-Commerce-Plattformen bis zu KI – digitale Technologien bieten das Potenzial, Afrikas landwirtschaftliche Wertschöpfungskette effizienter, transparenter und vernetzter zu gestalten. Doch eine bre...

#DigitaleTechnologien bieten das Potenzial, Afrikas #Landwirtschaft effizienter zu gestalten. Doch eine breite Implementierung fordert die Zusammenarbeit zwischen dem privaten und öffentlichen Sektor.

➡️ Zur vollständigen Analyse im aktuellen #GIGAFocus: www.giga-hamburg.de/de/publikati...

Venezuela between US Military Threat and Regime Survival The US military buildup along Venezuela’s coast has raised expectations that Maduro’s regime will collapse under pressure. However, this would probably not result in a democratic transition. Even if M...

The US military buildup along #Venezuela has raised expectations that #Maduro’s regime will collapse under pressure. However, this would probably not result in a democratic transition.

➡️ Read the analysis by #GIGA's Jesus Renzullo in out latest #GIGAFocus: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

#Gaza, #Israel und Deutschlands #Außenpolitik: Im aktuellen #GIGAFocus stellen @christinebinzel.bsky.social und @thomaserichter.bsky.social eine Umfrage vor – zum Hamas-Angriff und der folgenden israelischen Militäroffensive Ein Meinungsbild.

➡️ Hier lesen: www.giga-hamburg.de/de/publikati...

Image: Protest against the President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, in support of democracy and against racism in the city of Porto Alegre. Text: GIGA Focus. From Crisis to Comeback: The Global Story of Re-Democratisation

From crisis to comeback: Many countries have recovered from democratic decline and strengthened #CivicRights, even amid a global crisis of #democracy. In our current #GIGAFocus, @desireereder.bsky.social & Monika Onken analyse global #redemocratisation.

➡️ www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Smart Tech, Old Tricks: Digital Tools and Africa’s Electoral Flaws Digital technology promises to fix sub-Saharan Africa’s electoral flaws. Instead, breakdowns, opaque procurement deals, and courtroom battles reveal how the turn to technology is actually reinforcing ...

Technology promises to fix #Africa’s electoral flaws. Instead, breakdowns, opaque procurement deals & courtroom battles reveal how technology is reinforcing old problems. In our current #GIGAFocus, Martin Acheampong examines these issues.

➡️ Read here: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Visual: Left: A supporter holds an image depicting Bolivia's presidential candidate for the Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Rodrigo Paz, during the inauguration of his campaign house in a Cholet (Unique architecture from the fusion of the words 'cholo' (indigenous) and 'chalet'), in El Alto, Bolivia Right:A supporter of Alianza Libre candidate and former Bolivian President Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga wears a cap with pins featuring the candidate's face during the launch of his campaign ahead of the runoff election, in El Alto, Bolivia September 12, 2025 Text: GIGA Focus. Ballots over Streets: Bolivia’s Fragile Democratic Gamble

#Bolivia’s elections: After two decades of single-party dominance, two liberal opposition contenders in the 19 October runoff. In our current #GIGAFocus, Natalia Aparicio and Daniela Osorio Michel analyse Bolivia’s fragile democratic gamble.

➡️ Read now: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Visual "A video of Sedat Peker, a convicted Turkish mob boss whose online videos viewed over 100 million times - in which he has made uncorroborated allegations about top Turkish officials close to President Tayyip Erdogan, is played on an ipad of a customer at a cafe in Istanbul, Turkey June 14, 2021." Text: "GIGA Focus: Die narco-autoritäre Wende der Türkei: Ein Spielplatz der Mafia"

Einst als „türkisches Modell“ von Islam und Demokratie gefeiert, ist die #Türkei zu einem globalen Kokain-Drehkreuz geworden. Im neuesten #GIGAFocus analysiert @hakkitas.bsky.social wie die Türkei zum Spielplatz für die #Mafia wird.

➡️ Jetzt lesen: www.giga-hamburg.de/de/publikati...

Visual GIGA Focus "Iran in the Aftermath of the Twelve-Day War"

On 13 June 2025, #Israel launched a 12-day war against #Iran, two days before the sixth round of US–Iran nuclear talks were due to begin in Oman.

🔍 Read the latest #GIGAFocus on the aftermath of the 12-day war: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Guatemala: A Vote for Turning the Tide In Guatemala, President Bernardo Arévalo took office on 15 January 2024, raising hopes of democratic reform. Still, an entrenched elite has continuously distorted the independence of the judiciary. No...

6/6 Democracy in #Guatemala has recovered after the decline. In a #GIGAFocus, GIGA researchers @skurtenbach.bsky.social, @desireereder.bsky.social, and @ripplingeralina.bsky.social explain how this was accomplished: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Global Development of Liberal Democracy since 2000

🗳️ #Democracy is in decline. The #VDem Index shows a drop when weighted by population – GDP-weighted trends look even worse.

📊 Graphic by @evalencia100.bsky.social, based on the #GIGAFocus by Julia Gurol-Haller and Johannes Plagemann: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Aid in Unstable Times: Afghan Experiences and Future EU Engagement What went wrong with two decades of EU aid in Afghanistan and what must change? The Study Commission and Committee of Inquiry highlighted key failures. Drawing on interviews and multilayered Afghan pe...

What went wrong with two decades of EU aid in #Afghanistan? In the latest #GIGAFocus, author Nazir Ahmad Yosufi draws on interviews & multilayered Afghan perspectives to offer new insights & concrete policy recommendations for future aid intervention.

➡️ Read now: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Featured in @eadi.bsky.social newsletter: #GIGAFocus by Matthias Basedau "The Decline of Western Influence in #Africa: Three Consequences" 👇

The Decline of Western Influence in Africa: Three Consequences The recent diversification of external actors present in Africa has served to increase the agency of its governments but may also bolster poor governance and fuel conflict in the long run. Western pow...

The diversification of external actors present in #Africa has increased the agency of its governments but may also bolster poor #governance and fuel conflict.

🔍 Read the latest #GIGAFocus on the decline of Western influence in Africa and its consequences: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Global Carbon Markets and Rural Development in Madagascar Carbon offset projects promise to benefit both climate mitigation and rural communities in the Global South. Evidence from Madagascar, however, showcases that three key constraints pose a challenge to...

Carbon offset projects promise to benefit climate mitigation & rural communities. The example of #Madagascar shows that the potential is limited by three obstacles.

🔍 Read our latest #GIGAFocus on the #GlobalCarbonMarket and rural development in Madagascar: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

The International Criminal Court, Netanyahu, and Berlin’s Dilemma The International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a test of Germany’s oft-stated commitment to global rules and norms. Berlin should uphold the rule of...

Germany’s stance on the #ICC arrest warrant for #Netanyahu is a litmus test for Germany’s oft-stated commitment to global rules and norms. In our latest #GIGAFocus, @maxinerubin.com explores what’s at stake for Berlin, and the global justice system.

➡️ Read here: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

Bangladesh’s Democratic Transition: Revolution and Its Discontents Ten months since Sheikh Hasina’s ouster, Bangladesh’s interim government is racing against time to deliver key institutional reforms ahead of elections to be held by June 2026. Intense political compe...

"Bangladesh’s Democratic Transition: Revolution and Its Discontents"

Read new issue of #GIGAFocus Asia: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...

#Asia

Check out the new #GIGAFocus on Child Labour Policies by @johannapieper.bsky.social!

Child Labour Policies in the Americas: Why Progress Has Become Uncertain Across the Americas, child labour policies vary. Business interest groups push for legalisation; working children’s organisations seek regulation to secure worker protections; the ILO calls for prohib...

#ChildLabour Policies in the Americas: Business interest groups push for legalisation; working children’s organisations seek regulation; the ILO calls for prohibition.
#GIGA's @johannapieper.bsky.social analyses this matter in the new #GIGAFocus.

➡️ Read here: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/publicati...