Latin American Studies Programme | Welcome to Jawaharlal Nehru University

p { font-size:14px_!important; text-align:justify; line-height:_19px; margin-bottom:_10px_!important; }

Evolution_of_the_Programme

Although_Latin_American_Studies_as_a_full-fledged_programme_was_introduced_in_1971_in_the_School_of_International_Studies_(SIS),_academic_interest_in_the_area_and_preparatory_work_towards_this_end_began_as_far_back_as_1955_when_the_Department_of_American_History_and_Institutions_was_established._Intended_to_stimulate_interest_in_the_North_American_affairs,_in_time,_the_study_of_'special'_historic_relations_that_the_US_had_with_its_neighbouring_countries_inevitably_prompted_some_forward-looking_faculty_members_of_the_Department_to_underline_the_special_need_for_training_in_Latin_American_Studies_too_and_emphasise_the_favourable_expertise_that_the_Department_enjoyed_to_provide_such_training.

Under_the_Fulbright_Exchange_Programme_of_Scholars,_eminent_Latin_American_historian,_late_Harold_E._Davis_from_the_American_University,_Washington,_D.C_was_invited_to_offer_courses_and_seminars_for_one_academic_year_during_1965-66._At_the_same_time_useful_discussions_were_held_with_the_visiting_scholars_with_a_view_to_organising_eventually_a_modest_programme_of_Latin_American_Studies.

In_the_year_1966,_with_the_appointment_of_lecturer_in_Latin_American_Studies,_a_small_programme_consisting_of_two_courses--A_Survey_of_Latin_American_History;_and_Government_and_Politics_of_Major_Latin_American_Countries_was_offered_to_students_in_the_Department_of_American_History_and_Institutions.

The_historical_fact_that_South_American_countries_shared_in_many_respects_the_socio-economic_and_colonial_experiences_of_India,_and_amongst_them_some_continental-sized_countries_such_as_Argentina,_Brazil_and_Mexico_experiencing_parallel_processes_in_economic_development_and_international_outlook_led_the_School_to_initiate_efforts_to_focus_attention_on_major_South_American_countries_than_on_the_region_as_a_whole._With_the_active_cooperation_of_two_Brazilian_scholars,_efforts_were_made_to_promote_studies_on_Brazil_focusing_attention_especially_on_contemporary_political_and_economic_developments_as_well_as_on_the_foreign_policy_of_Brazil.

The_special_interest_of_the_research_scholars_admitted_to_the_programme_so_far_has_been_in_areas_such_as:

Economic_integration_processes_in_Latin_America_importantly_Mercosur_and_NAFTA;_structural_adjustment_programmes;_external_debt:_its_management_and_consequences;_structural_adjustment_and_the_changing_'capacity'_of_state_in_Latin_America;_role,_direction,_and_sectoral_distribution_of_foreign_investments;_operations_of_multinational_corporations;_trade_relations_of_select_Latin_American_countries;_Latin_America_and_the_WTO;_G_20.

►_Potential_and_prospects_of_Indo-Latin_American_trade_and_economic_cooperation;_Foreign_policy_initiatives_and_trends_in_select_major_Latin_American_countries;_commonality_of_interest_and_perception_between_Latin_America_and_India_on_developments_in_international_economy_and_trade;_and_potential_and_prospects_of_Indo-Latin_American_cooperation_in_select_areas_such_as_science_and_technology,_trade-related_issues_etc.

►_Nuclear_energy_programmes_and_non-proliferation;_regional_security;_Latin_American_and_the_UN.

►_Challenges_and_dilemmas_of_transition_and_consolidation_of_electoral_democracy;_democratic_institution-building;_electoral_process;_civil_society;_grass-roots_movements_including_the_role_of_NGOs_and_INGOs;_political_parties_and_movements.

Objectives_of_the_Programme

One_of_the_principal_objectives_of_the_Latin_American_Studies_programme_is_to_develop_eventually_an_independent_Indian/Third_World_perspective_on_political,_economic_and_foreign_policy_aspects_of_contemporary_Latin_America._Accordingly,_the_programme_emphasises_in_particular_those_aspects/issues_which_have_relevance_for_India's_own_developmental_and_democratic_experiences._Issues/themes_which_are_of_interest_to_scholars_and_policy_planners_in_Latin_American_countries_are_discussed_at_length_in_weekly_seminars_of_the_programme_before_identifying_and_working_out_themes/areas_of_research_interest._The_themes_identified_above_are_broad;_depending_upon_the_availability_of_the_source_material_and_relevance_of_the_subject,_suitable_themes_are_worked_out_for_study_and_research.

Future_plans_of_the_Latin_American_Studies_programme_of_the_School_also_include_collaborative_study_and_research_with_research_institutions/_universities_in_India_and_in_Latin_American-Caribbean_countries_involving_comparative_study_in_areas_of_mutual_interests_that_would_cover_major_Latin_American_countries,_India_and_possibly_select_countries_of_Asia_and_Africa.

List_of_MA_Course

Sl._No.

Course_Code

Course_Title

Semester

Credits

Name_of_Faculty

IA_507

Political_Economy_of_Latin_America

Monsoon_(Third)

Dr._Aprajita_Kashyap

IS_574N

Foreign_Policies_of_Major_Latin_American_Countries

Winter_(Fourth)

Prof._Priti_Singh

List_of_PhD_Course

Sl._No.

Course_Code

Course_Title

Semester

Credits

Name_of_Faculty

AW_604N

Government_&_Politics_in_Latin_America

Monsoon

Dr._Aprajita_Kashyap

AW_606N

A_Survey_of_Latin_American_History

Monsoon

Prof._Priti_Singh

AW_646N

The_Process_of_Political_and_Economic_Restructuring_in_Latin_America

Winter

Dr._Aprajita_Kashyap

AW_659

Brazil_in_Global_Affairs

Monsoon

Dr._Anshu_Joshi

AW_658

Contemporary_Issues_in_Latin_America_and_the_Caribbean

Winter

Prof._Priti_Singh_and_Dr._Aprajita_Kashyap