Resources - Center for International Private Enterprise

Governing Trusted Supply Chains: Public-Private Coordination in an Era of Geoeconomic Competition

Guides & Tools

The global economy is undergoing a structural transformation in which geopolitical considerations increasingly shape trade, investment, and technology flows. The era in which economic interdependence was assumed to generate political stability has given way to a more contested environment, characterized by strategic competition, selective decoupling, and the active use of economic instruments for security purposes....

Infrastructure Financing and Democratic Resilience: A Tale of Two Railroads

Case Studies

This paper examines two flagship BRI rail projects—the Kenya Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) and the Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway (AADR)—to assess how differences in transparency, civic oversight, and media environments shape both economic outcomes and political legitimacy. Despite similar scale, cost, and timing, the two projects have acquired starkly different public reputations. The Kenyan project has been mired in controversy and litigation, while the Ethiopian project has attracted comparatively little public scrutiny. This divergence reflects not fundamental differences in project quality, but contrasting civic and institutional contexts.

Safeguarding Critical Minerals Supply Chains From Authoritarian Capture

Flyer

Critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, tungsten, and rare earth elements are foundational to U.S. national and economic security. These minerals power vital industries including healthcare and electronics, while underpinning advanced defense systems and next-generation technologies. As global demand for minerals accelerates, control over the extraction, processing, and supply of these resources has become a...

Assessment of Samoa’s Investment Security Landscape

Articles

Samoa is a small island developing state with a GDP of approximately USD 850 million and a population of 205,557. The economy depends heavily on remittances, tourism, agriculture, and foreign aid, with the tertiary sector now accounting for over 80 per cent of GDP. The formal private sector is dominated by micro and small enterprises,...

Safeguarding Economic Sovereignty in Solomon Islands

Articles

This report examines the governance architecture of Solomon Islands through the lens of economic sovereignty. Commissioned under the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) initiative on safeguarding economic sovereignty in Pacific Island countries, it aligns with CIPE’s corrosive capital framework to assess how lawful capital can distort markets, weaken institutions, and undermine long-term national wealth...

Advancing U.S.-Philippines Economic Security

Guides & Tools

The strategic partnership between the United States and the Philippines is entering a transformative phase where economic resilience is now inseparable from national security. As global supply chains are reconfigured, the Philippines stands at a crossroads of profound structural opportunity and risk.

PRC Export Controls Targeting Japan and U.S. Economic Security

Guides & Tools

New PRC export controls targeting Japan represent an aggressive extraterritorial regime and have the potential to create cascading supply chain disruptions and other negative consequences for U.S. interests.

CIPE Builds Business Resilience, Trust, and Growth in Central Asia

Articles

A delayed bank transfer. Unexpected documentation requests. A logistics partner suddenly asking pointed questions. For entrepreneurs across Central Asia, these aren't random inconveniences: they signal of a shift in how business operates. CIPE is helping these businesses comply and compete in the global economy.

Anticipating the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA)

Guides & Tools

The ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) is set to become the world’s first region-wide and binding agreement dedicated to digital economy governance. This landmark initiative seeks to position ASEAN as a global leader in the digital economy by promoting deeper digital integration, cooperation, and inclusive economic growth across the region. As a member state...

Securing the Lithium Sector from Authoritarian Capture in Latin America

Flyer

Since 2023, CIPE has worked with Latin American partners to investigate instances of malign investment in the critical minerals industry and to document the governance gaps that allow these investments to capture critical mineral markets.CIPE also works to counter authoritarian investments by strengthening governance frameworks, improving public–private dialogue, and creating better environments for U.S. enterprises...