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 …
I t's official. Bill Clinton will not be coming to India to discuss the nuclear issue, or the Indo-Pak issue. Environment and energy will top his list of priorities. This may come as a surprise to Indian politicos, who consider this a 'soft agenda'. But Clinton will be addressing an …
CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY In force December 29, 1993, Ratified by 175 countries The convention The Convention on Biological Diversity ( cbd ) recognises the rights of countries on their genetic resources. It emphasises - the conservation of biodiversity - its sustainable use - fair and equitable sharing of benefits …
UN CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION In force from December 1996, Ratified by 145 countries The convention The persistence of countries from Africa, where two-thirds of the land area is either desert or dryland, led to the decision to adopt the Convention to Combat Desertification ( ccd ) at Rio in …
Ongoing negotiations on a legally binding instrument for international action on certain PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS Deadline for the treaty to be signed:2001 The negotiations National governments have now come together to negotiate a global treaty to control and eventually eliminate pop s from the environment. - European countries have been …
INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS ON FORESTS Intergovernmental Panel on Forests set up in 1995 Intergovernmental Forum on Forests set up in 1997 Forest diplomacy Forest trade, particularly of finished wood products, is dominated by a few Northern countries in both exports and imports. Their timber lobbies have prevailed upon their governments to …
INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS ON TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT History of conflict - The world initiated a multilateral trading system with the establishment of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ( gatt ) in 1946 to promote trade liberalisation. - The Uruguay Round, held between 1986 and 1994, led to the creation of …
THE MULTILATERAL AGREEMENT ON INVESTMENTS Attempted agreement The first suggestion for a multilateral agreement on investments came during the Uruguay Round in 1994. It was strongly opposed by Southern countries as it threatened to take away regulatory control over foreign investment. The eu made an unsuccessful attempt to introduce the …
GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL FACILITY Established in October 1991, number of members: 165 The institution The World Bank designed the institutional structure for the Global Environmental Facility (gef ), initiated in 1990. The us made sure gef began on a temporary three-year term. With Australia and Canada, the us maintained that such …
EVOLVING INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE UN Reform to perform The un 's attempts to streamline its environment programme have been consistent. The results have not. The reform process began in 1992. It involved extensive reassembling and bringing all units dealing with economic and social matters under …
UN FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE In force from March 1994, ratified by 176 countries KYOTO PROTOCOL Signed by 84 countries, not yet in force A political process driven by climate scientists, which began in the mid-1980s, resulted in the Framework Convention on Climate Change ( fccc ), signed by …
The adverse effects of climate change will be felt more in the South than the North. If preference for fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas is not curbed, developing nations will have to bear the brunt of an environmental catastrophe. While the developed nations of the Organisation for Economic …
at a meeting of international scientists and non-governmental organisations ( ngo s) at the Netherlands recently, a list of controversial issues related to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( unfccc ) was put to vote, to prioritise discussions. The list contained a range of issues, from the …
in an event hailed as a "major breakthrough" by Klaus Topfer, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme ( unep ), a liability protocol which offers monetary compensation to victims hurt in the process of handling toxic wastes came into being in December 1999. While it is the first …
A task force to assist developing countries integrate environment, trade and development policies has been set up with the assistance of the United Nations Environment Programme (unep) and the un Conference on Trade and Development (unctad). The task force will use the technical expertise of the two agencies and their …
Global warming is caused by the use of fossil fuels, common examples being burning coal in power stations, running automobiles, etc. What would you then call an instrument that ends up subsidising this same energy economy, making it cheaper, and therefore, even more attractive. And what if the instrument, like …
There is a continuing preference for energy sources like coal, oil and gas among the industrialised nations. This trend persists against the use of more environment-friendly energy sources like geothermal, solar, hydro and combustible renewables and waste. Even today, despite the environmental concerns expressed worldwide, the total primary energy supply …
for the first time ever, an international framework has been set up to regulate the trade in genetically-modified ( gm) products. Following a week of intense negotiations in Montreal, Canada, delegates from over 140 countries framed rules which will allow countries to ban the import of gm seeds, microbes, animals …
What causes desertification in impoverished developing nations? Trade policies. The very nations who suffer from desertification are forced to indulge in intensive cultivation of cash crops in order to earn foreign exchange through export and hence lose out on the benefits of growing food crops. South African nations like Somalia, …
