Bridges Weekly Trade News Digest • Volume 12 • Number 33 • 9th October 2008
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA 2008. UNCTAD, September 2008. This report, published by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), indicates that, despite of removal of trade barriers and two decades of trade liberalisation, Africa’s market share has fallen from 6 percent of world exports in 1980 to about 3 percent in 2007. The report notes that Africa’s inability to produce quantity and quality to meet the demands of the global market has been affected by the lack of: a well-trained workforce; investments in research and development skills; investments and banking services; and adequate infrastructure, such as reliable electricity and transportation. To access the report, please refer to http://www.unctad.org/Templates/webflyer.asp?docid=10370&intItemID=2068&lang=1&mode=downloads.
FUELLING DESTRUCTION IN LATIN AMERICA: THE REAL PRICE OF THE DRIVE FOR AGROFUELS. Friends of the Earth International, September 2008. This new report - ‘Fuelling Destruction in Latin America’ - looks at current and proposed developments in a number of Southern and Central American countries, all of which are scaling up agrofuel production at alarming rates to meet domestic and, increasingly, export demand to supply diesel and gasoline to Europe and the US.To access this report, please refer to http://www.foei.org/en/media/archive/2008/real-price-of-agrofuels-revealed.
LOW-CARBON ENERGY PROJECTS FOR DEVELOPMENT IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: UNVEILING THE POTENTIAL, ADDRESSING THE BARRIERS. World Bank, September 2008. This report “Low-carbon Energy Projects for Development in Sub-Saharan Africa: Unveiling the Potential, Addressing the Barriers,” released during the Africa Carbon Forum in Dakar, Senegal, estimates that the current minimal share of clean development mechanism (CDM) projects by the African region (1.4 percent) could be greatly enhanced. It estimates a potential for greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects in Africa that could be tapped through the CDM, amounting to 740 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year, more than the region’s current annual greenhouse gas emissions (680 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent). This report can be accessed at http://carbonfinance.org/Router.cfm?Page=News&NewsID=42646.
RECENT BILATERAL INITIATIVES FOR CLIMATE FINANCING: ARE THEY MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION? The Overseas Development Institute, September 2008. This short opinion explores the worldwide debate by Governments on how best to respond to the many challenges set by climate change. Within this debate there is growing recognition that national funding efforts need to be complemented by additional finance at the international level. Over the past year, a whole range of traditional donor countries have created new funds to support climate change in developing countries. The impetus behind these new financial mechanisms has been, partly, a frustration with existing frameworks for technology transfer and investment that are not sufficiently responsive to the global challenges of climate change. However, these initiatives raise some important questions about the underlying relationship between the North and the South. To access the article, please refer to http://www.odi.org.uk/publications/opinions/112-climate-change-bilateral-financing.pdf.
RELATIONS BETWEEN EUROPE AND LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN: THE PARTNERSHIP PHASE. The Overseas Development Institute, September 2008. This short opinion investigates trade between Latin America and the European Union and reflects on the Fifth EU-Latin American and the Caribbean summit held in May this year. To access the opinion, please refer to http://www.odi.org.uk/publications/opinions/107-europe-latin-america-caribbean-relations.pdf.
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