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 explores the nature, significance and policy implications of spillovers in international corporate taxation—the effects of one country’s rules and practices on others. It complements current initiatives focused on tax avoidance by multinationals, notably the G20-OECD project on Base Erosion and Profit shifting (BEPS). The paper draws on the …
Rising levels of CO2 around the world will significantly impact the nutrient content of crops according to a new study. Experiments show levels of zinc, iron and protein are likely to be reduced by up to 10% in wheat and rice by 2050. The scientists say this could have health …
Minster of State for Environment Mr. Abdullahi Majeed is participating in the ’Abu Dhabi Ascent’ a two day high level meeting laying the groundwork for the 2014 climate summit to be held this September. The meeting is co-hosted by the UN and UAE, and has been described by Shaikh Abdullah …
Data for the causes of maternal deaths are needed to inform policies to improve maternal health. We developed and analysed global, regional, and subregional estimates of the causes of maternal death during 2003—09, with a novel method, updating the previous WHO systematic review.
Robert Bain and colleagues conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether water from "improved" sources is less likely to contain fecal contamination than "unimproved" sources and find that access to an "improved source" provides a measure of sanitary protection but does not ensure water is free of fecal …
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Sunday he was hopeful that a goal of limiting global temperature rises to a maximum 2 degrees Celsius could be achieved, but urged governments to take practical action before it was too late. "We have to ask the leaders to commit to bold …
The fifth Millennium Development Goal (MDG 5) established the goal of a 75% reduction in the maternal mortality ratio (MMR; number of maternal deaths per 100 000 livebirths) between 1990 and 2015. Aimed to measure levels and track trends in maternal mortality, the key causes contributing to maternal death, and …
Remarkable financial and political efforts have been focused on the reduction of child mortality during the past few decades. Timely measurements of levels and trends in under-5 mortality are important to assess progress towards the Millennium Development Goal 4 (MDG 4) target of reduction of child mortality by two thirds …
Hydropower is back in the spotlight. Many large dams are now being built after a lull at the end of the last century. And some are being built in the name of climate change mitigation and adaptation. New sources of finance – from China and private banks internationally – and …
For millions of people living in the world’s poorest countries, access to land is a matter not of wealth, but of survival, identity and belonging. Most of the 1.4 billion people earning less than US$1.25 a day live in rural areas and depend largely on agriculture for their livelihoods, while …
This paper re-examines the roles of changes in income and inequality in poverty reduction. The study provides estimates of the relative effects of inequality reduction versus growth promotion in reducing poverty for countries with different levels of initial poverty. The analysis uses country panel-data for 1980–2010. The results indicate that, …
This guide provides an introduction and simple overview of the issues related to international standards in the refrigeration and airconditioning sector and how they can be useful in the context of the phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) in developing countries as required by the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the …
Social protection measures are policy instruments that are widely used across a broad range of developing countries in pursuit of many different development objectives. In many cases social protection measures such as food or cash transfers were first introduced to ensure minimum levels of food security for vulnerable households. However, …
This book helps connect the dots between economic theory, the role of capabilities, the lessons from history and the practical challenges of design and implementation of industrial policies. In so doing it provides an excellent policy roadmap for anyone interested in the challenge of promoting catch-up growth and productive transformation.
Climate change and the injustice of hunger require urgent attention, and investment in a model of agriculture that is truly sustainable. Agro-ecology is the science of applying ecological concepts and principles to the design and management of sustainable agriculture. An agro-ecological approach provides a range of social, economic, and environmental …
Communities across the developing world have a wealth of local knowledge and ingenuity to adapt more successfully to climate change but they urgently need greater international support to unlock their ambitions, Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said on Wednesday. “In the …
Industrialized nations' greenhouse gas emissions fell by 1.3 percent in 2012, led by a U.S. decline to the lowest in almost two decades with a shift to natural gas from dirtier coal, official statistics show. Emissions from more than 40 nations were 10 percent below 1990 levels in 2012, according …
Thirty donor countries on Wednesday 4.43 billion for the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to support developing countries over the next four years to prevent degradation of the global environment, said a press release on Thursday. Promised in Geneva, Switzerland, the funding will support projects in more than 140 countries to …
The world's urban areas are set to grow by almost twice the size of Manhattan a day until 2030 and the design of future cities in Asia and Africa will be crucial to slow global warming, a U.N. study showed on Monday. The breakneck expansion means billion-dollar opportunities for companies, …
The countries of the world have dragged their feet so long on global warming that the situation is now critical, experts appointed by the United Nations reported on Sunday, and only an intensive worldwide push over the next 15 years can stave off potentially disastrous climatic changes later in the …
