In 2022, the Department of International Development celebrated its 10th anniversary
Since our establishment in 2012, first as an institute and later as a department, our agenda has differed from that of traditional development studies institutions.
Our founders, Peter Kingstone and Andy Sumner recognised that for middle income countries, otherwise known as emerging economies, international development assistance no longer matters due to the growth of domestic resources and productive capacities. Nonetheless, middle-income countries contain large disparities of income and spaces of absolute poverty alongside new wealth, making development in emerging economies an important subject for critical study in scholarship and practice.
Over the past decade we have addressed global change in Brazil, India, China and South Africa, as well as much of Latin America, East and Southeast Asia and parts of Africa and the Middle East. Today, we see that post-pandemic growth is weak in most countries, fuel and food prices are rising due to the war in Ukraine, and populist nationalism has taken root around the world. Questions have also arisen around fairer or greener types of development, alongside protest and resistance to the persistent inequality within and between countries.
Our team and students represent our global community, and our programmes reflect our multidisciplinary approach to understanding emerging economies and wider development issues. More than 1,000 students have graduated with us, and many have gone on to work in government, NGOs, the private sector and international institutions in the UK and globally – with a significant impact development challenges and achievements.
Watch the replay
C.P. Chandrasekhar speaks about the reshaping of the world order, with the rise in power of countries like China and India. He speaks about the increase in vulnerability and growing divisions within the Global South, and the implications for any reshaping of the current unequal global order, among other things. C.P. Chandrasekhar is a Professor of Centre for Economic Studies & Planning at Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Elena Camilletti, Emerging Economies and International Development MSc
Elena talks about the passionate professors at King's, how they encouraged her interest in the subjects, and the skills she developed during her course.
Fikri Zaki Muhammadi, Emerging Economies and International Development MSc
Fikri talks about how studying at King's has shaped his thought process on public policy and development, and how it helped his professional career as an analyst in this field.