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 …
Eswatini’s economy has been characterized by persistent low growth, high fiscal deficits, and unprofitable state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Without significant reform, the country is unlikely to achieve its socioeconomic aspirations, and poverty and unemployment are likely to remain high. These problems are exacerbated by the difficult external environment, with subdued global …
This study evaluates the socioecological consequences of the potential trade-offs between maintaining environmental flows (e-flows) and providing water for sustainable subsistence agriculture and livelihoods to the vulnerable human communities living along the lower Great Letaba River in South Africa. Implementation of e-flows is now generally recognized as an essential part …
The 2023 Southern Africa Economic Outlook, analyses the recent economic trends and developments in Southern Africa. In line with this year’s theme for the annual outlook: mobilizing private sector financing for climate and green growth in Africa, the report also explores the potential role of the private sector in financing …
Nearly 29 million children with disabilities live in Eastern and Southern Africa. Each of them – like every child in the world – has the right to be nurtured and supported through responsive care and education, to receive adequate nutrition and social protection, and to enjoy play and leisure time. …
In 2022, G20 leaders acknowledged the need to rapidly transform and diversify energy systems while implementing the Paris Agreement on climate change. The expansion of renewable electricity generation can help address these goals but will require substantial investment. In around half of the G20’s emerging economies, stateowned electricity utilities are …
Achieving zero hunger by 2030 can be facilitated through green growth investments in the agriculture, forestry and land use (AFOLU) sector. Significant levels of finance are needed to support countries to implement such strategies, with private finance a key source. This report is a guide to shape investments by IFAD …
This report explores the role of risk mitigation and transfer (RMT) instruments for enabling renewable energy investments in Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) countries by examining empirical evidence from several projects in the region. Renewable energy has been one of the most successful sectors in using limited public funds to …
This case study series presents the evolution in national capacities and systems for anticipating drought in Madagascar, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. They outline key results from the first phase (2019-2022) of the Multi-country programme on scaling-up anticipatory action for food security (MCP-AA4FS Phase I), funded by the regional Norwegian Agency for …
South Africa has an electricity crisis where national supply is often unable to meet demand, leading to regular, planned power cuts. This report aims to explain how energy storage can provide a wide range of benefits to a constrained power system, and why grid-located batteries emerge as a strategic priority …
This paper presents a status report of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) on two crucial development parameters—inequality and poverty—that have a significant bearing on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs; especially SDG-1 and SDG-10). The paper tracks the origins and movements of absolute and relative poverty, …
South Africa-focused market report, providing a comprehensive overview of the state of play of the country’s energy sector. Serving to guide investors and project developers interested in South Africa’s immense opportunities, the report details the current challenges and upcoming opportunities across the power generation, renewable and hydrocarbon markets.
Classified as essential workers, farm workers were “lucky enough” to continue working and earning an income. Yet, this paper highlights how Covid-19 regulations exacerbated their vulnerability due to a pre-existing lack of public regulation and enforcement of basic labour and transport regulation in the sector. Apart from farm workers, the …
South Africa’s Minimum Emissions Standards (MES) for combustion installations were issued in 2010, with a phased introduction where existing sources had to meet a more lenient set of standards by 2015 and a more stringent set of standards by 2020. Most importantly, these standards would require, for the first time, …
This study estimates the costs and benefits of adopting Euro VI standards in diesel HDVs in South Africa under different timelines of fuel quality and emission standard advancements. Based on the results, also make policy recommendations that would reduce HDV emissions and improve air quality and public health in South …
This paper starts from an empirical observation that levels of hunger or food insecurity in middle-income and high-income countries are often higher than might be expected, and in some cases are rising rather than falling in recent years. Document levels and trends in selected food security indicators for three case …
In 2020, the Sustainable Mobility for All partnership applied its innovative approach for improved public decision making in transport to South Africa, using the set of tools it had developed—Catalogue of Policy Measures, and Selection Algorithm–to generate a country action plan of 31 most impactful policy measures to achieve sustainable …
This report provides a high-level assessment and concrete policy recommendations to close the most relevant gaps on gender and mobility policy and actions in the context of South Africa. For this, the report discusses the context of gender and transport in South Africa, and describes how the methodology and framework …
The economic outlook for Southern Africa will be affected by an additional threat that arises from global warming. The 13 countries are intertwined in a climate-water-energy-food nexus with a high reliance on climate-sensitive sectors. Consistent with the shift in global climate, Southern Africa is likely to observe a rise in …
This brief argues that Just Energy Transition Partnerships (in South Africa, Indonesia, India, Vietnam and Senegal) should support leapfrogging from fossil to renewable energy. Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) are a new funding model created to help South Africa, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, and Senegal transition away from fossil energy and …
As the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events rise, more needs to be done to anticipate, mitigate and prevent their impact on the food security of the world’s most vulnerable people. To support this innovative approach, WFP is working with national and sub-national governments across southern Africa to strengthen …
