The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
The global governance of food security and nutrition (FSN) has been evolving rapidly over the last 10 years. While the reform of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) in 2008-2009 has been celebrated for its “exemplarity” with respect to inclusiveness and accountability, recent trends have led to a growing …
Climate-driven water variability is a natural phenomenon observed across river basins, but predicted to increase due to climate change. Environmental change of this kind may aggravate political tensions, especially in regions that are not equipped with an appropriate institutional apparatus. This paper argues that attempts to assess the ability of …
Reducing water and power use by half and promoting renewable energy and public transport, will be the key elements of the government's urban development strategy for the next 20 years, according to a report. India’s future strategy for urban development intends to tap into the potential of rapid urbanisation for …
The National Urban Policy is a tool for government and other stakeholders that can assist with achieving more sustainable urban development. It also facilitates an enabling environment that allows stakeholders to take advantage of urban opportunity. How to address climate change in cities and human settlements represents one of the …
It is fitting that the United Nations Habitat III conference in October will be held in Quito, Ecuador. In April, the city and nearby Portoviejo and Manta suffered an earthquake that killed more than 660 people and injured at least 10,000. Around 73,000 people were displaced. Some 700,000 needed emergency …
This paper outlines how two countries with extremely different starting positions could jointly take up the challenges of developing low-carbon and sustainable futures: on the one hand, the industrialised Germany and on the other India, where rapid economic growth coexists with brutal development challenges. The paper focuses on the potential …
Digital transformation is enabling rapid change in every industry and across every aspect of our lives. As a direct result of three fundamental ICT forces— mobility, broadband and the cloud—a new service economy is emerging. Value chains are being reshaped, business models are becoming digitalized, distance is being overcome and, …
The momentum of urbanization and its impacts are so massive that we must face up to this trend. In view of the existing cognitive, technical, economic and institutional path dependencies, a policy of business as usual – i.e. an unstructured, quasi-automatic urbanization – would lead to a non-sustainable ‘world cities …
Water security in Asia and Pacific has progressed overall in the past 5 years, but major challenges remain, including overexploited groundwater, demand from rising populations, and climate variability, according to the new report from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The Asian Water Development Outlook charts progress in water security in …
The Lok Sabha passed the Lokpal and Lokayukta (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The bill seeks to amend the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 which provides Lokpal (at Centre) and Lokayukta (at States) statutory backing to inquire into allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries and for related matters.
New research published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy shows how metropolitan regions can rebuild for greater resilience during the reconstruction process after major disasters, whether earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, or terrorists attacks. After Great Disasters: How Six Countries Managed Community Recovery, by Laurie Johnson and Robert Olshansky, draws on …
New research published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy shows how metropolitan regions can rebuild for greater resilience during the reconstruction process after major disasters, whether earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, or terrorists attacks. After Great Disasters: How Six Countries Managed Community Recovery, by Laurie Johnson and Robert Olshansky, draws on …
While agriculture remains the most significant driver of global deforestation, there is an urgent need to promote more positive interactions between agriculture and forestry to build sustainable agricultural systems and improve food security says this flagship report of the FAO released at 23d Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry …
This report builds on and complements existing products and initiatives on urban adaptation in Europe. It focuses on the state of actions in the field and progress achieved since the first EEA report in 2012, and it considers this analysis in relation to current challenges: Do existing actions lead to …
This report builds on and complements existing products and initiatives on urban adaptation in Europe. It focuses on the state of actions in the field and progress achieved since the first EEA report in 2012, and it considers this analysis in relation to current challenges: Do existing actions lead to …
This case study is part of a research project by Partnerships in Practice for WaterAid to learn from sanitation planning processes of cities in developing countries that are making good progress in provision of sanitation services to all. The team focused on key drivers affecting progress, the role external agencies …
Despite a proliferation of legal instruments related to the environment, environmental challenges such as ecosystem degradation, climate change and species loss continue to accelerate. At local, national and global scales, environmental legal systems are not consistently achieving the goals for which they were designed. A publication by the IUCN Environmental …
The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has released the draft of India’s new National Forest Policy (NFP), proposing the levy of a green tax. It has also touched upon the contentious issue of human-animal conflict. The government has made public its draft National Forest Policy, to replace the one …
Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), has reviewed the performance of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the end of its two years in office on measures of environmental governance, particularly as undertaken by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC;). CSE analysis focuses on some key …
Encroaching on Land and Livelihoods examines whether national expropriation laws in 30 countries across Asia and Africa follow the international standards established in Section 16 of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries, and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGTs). Section 16 …
