The German Institute of Global and Area Studies (GIGA) is a German research institute. It emerged in Hamburg from the German Overseas Institute (founded in 1964) after a restructuring process in 2006. The GIGA defines itself as a think tank serving the academic, political and economic communities as well as the general public.
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GIGA is a foundation based on civil law and is financed jointly by the Federal Republic of Germany (Federal Foreign Office) and the State of Hamburg (Department of Economy and Labor). In addition institutions like the German Research Foundation (DFG), Volkswagen Foundation or Fritz Thyssen Foundation and other institutions (e.g. Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, BMZ) provide several research projects with third-party funds.
The main focus of research concentrates on political, economic und social developments in Africa, Asia, Latin America as well as North Africa, and the Near and Middle East. Its research also deals with developments in North-South and South-South relations. The GIGA employs about 120 scholars.
GIGA consists of the following four regional institutes:
Research at GIGA is organized into four Research Programmes: Legitimacy and Efficiency of Political Systems; Violence and Security; Social-Economic Challenges in the Context of Globalisation and Power, Norms and Governance in International Relations. GIGA is part of a national and international research network and co-operates with universities and other research institutions, as well as political foundations and associations.
GIGA is a member of the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Scientific Community and of the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR). Moreover the Institutes are members of national and regional associations like AEGIS, EuroMeSCo, the Latin American Studies Associations or the European Alliance for Asian Studies.
GIGA publishes several types of scientific publications:
[1] <Peetz, Peter: Global Focus - Regional Perspectives - Political Decisions. The GIGA German Institute for Global and Area Studies, in: Zeitschrift für Politikberatung (2009) 2: 641-647, published online: 25.03.2010, VS-Verlag 2010/ >