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 …
This paper aims to provide a review of the organisations and governments involved in supporting other countries to reform their fossil fuel subsidies and the approaches being undertaken. It builds a comprehensive understanding of which actors are working in the area of FFSR, what in-country advice and technical assistance is …
Modern bioenergy is a core ingredient of sustainable economic development as it plays an important role in poverty reduction and green growth. This makes bioenergy innovations critical, especially in developing countries where many households and rural communities rely on traditional bioenergy. Managing the multiple tradeoffs among bioenergy use, agricultural productivity, …
This publication explores the vulnerability and capability assessment (VCA) in light of growing institutional VCA experience and changing risk patterns, in particular to assess its relevance in addressing issues linked to climate change and to conducting a VCA in an urban area. The VCA is composed of a set of …
Cities worldwide generated more than 1.3 billion tons of solid waste in 2010. As drivers of economic activity and recipients of millions of rural migrants every year, cities expect to see this number to grow to 2.2 billion tons annually by 2025 –the equivalent weight of the Great Pyramid of …
The increasing demand for agricultural products and the uncertainty of international food markets has recently drawn the attention of governments and agribusiness firms toward investments in productive agricultural land, mostly in the developing world. The targeted countries are typically located in regions that have remained only marginally utilized because of …
The Fifth Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is the most up-to-date, comprehensive and relevant analysis of our changing climate. Climate change impacts on the extractives and primary industries sectors are wide ranging and may affect aspects of exploration, extraction, and production of industrial commodities. This briefing …
The illicit trade of wildlife worth as much as $213 billion a year that’s partly funding anti-state militias needs a stronger coordinated response, United Nations Environment Programme Executive Director Achim Steiner said. “The illegal trade in natural resources is depriving developing economies of billions of dollars in lost revenue and …
Renewable energy (RE) trade among developing countries is growing faster than global and north-south RE trade as developing countries, led by China, take advantage of decreasing manufacturing costs, increased investment, and the falling costs of renewables, says a new report released during the first United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA). Solar …
This edition of the World Investment Report provides valuable analysis that can inform global discussions on how to accelerate progress toward the Millennium Development Goals and shape a long-range vision for a more sustainable future beyond 2015. The Report reveals an encouraging trend: after a decline in 2012, global foreign …
A central feature of many developing countries is the presence of significant gender differentials in health outcomes. Two potential factors that can account for this are that females access treatment later than males and that they receive differential care at the medical facility. This paper explores both of these in …
Move is in stark contrast to India's stated position on the matter; such a pact would allow Japan to outsource its emission reduction efforts to India Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) officials have agreed in-principle to a bilateral carbon-trading climate change deal with Japan without a formal approval from …
In what may be a strong signal to rich nations on the issue of climate change, New Delhi on Tuesday said the developing countries, including India, have a "right to grow" and in the process their "net emission (of greenhouse gases) may increase". Though India reiterated its commitment to reduce …
While the last several decades have witnessed tremendous advances in cure rates for childhood cancer, these improvements have not translated to low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs), where the majority of children reside. In this article, we outline why pediatric cancer should now be considered a global child health priority, describe the need …
Coal dominated world energy markets last year by supplying the biggest share of demand since 1970, making it the fastest growing fossil fuel, according to an annual review by BP Plc. Consumption grew 3 percent last year, driven by coal use in developing nations, according to a statement today from …
The use of carbon markets to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions was dealt a blow on Sunday after two weeks of United Nations talks on designing and reforming the mechanisms ended in deadlock. The negotiations, held as part of U.N. climate negotiations in Bonn, Germany, made scant progress as envoys …
The talks, which were heading to a close on Saturday, drew some 1,900 diplomats from 182 countries to Bonn to line up what their leaders will be prepared to sign up to next year to tackle emissions that U.N.-backed scientists say will cause more severe flooding, droughts and the sea …
The Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) is an index of acute multidimensional poverty that covers over 100 developing countries. It assesses the nature and intensity of poverty at the individual level, by directly measuring the overlapping deprivations poor people experience simultaneously. It provides a vivid picture of how and where …
The U.K. government may use its Green Investment Bank to lend money to projects in emerging markets that fight climate change. The government is exploring the possibility of using the bank to help manage some of the money from its 3.87 billion-pound ($6.5 billion) International Climate Fund, Greg Barker said …
Developing countries are headed for a third consecutive year of disappointing growth below 5 percent, as first quarter weakness in 2014 has delayed an expected pick-up in economic activity, says the World Bank’s latest Global Economic Prospects report, issued on June 10, 2014. In contrast, recovery in high-income countries is …
Any near-term regulation of China's greenhouse gas emissions would likely allow for future emissions growth, a senior government official said on Monday, discounting any suggestion of imminent carbon cuts by the biggest-emitting nation. Sun CuihuaSun Cuihua, deputy director of the climate change office at the National Development and Reform Commission, …
