ESCAP Repository (United Nations ESCAP)
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Financing a sustainable recovery from Covid-19 and beyond in small islands developing states: a glance at climate finance
Get PDFSmall islands developing States (SIDS) are characterized by small-sized economy with weak economic fundamentals and heavy reliance on a few industries or sectors for growth including agriculture, fisheries and tourism which make them most vulnerable to external economic shocks. They are most affected by the climate change and its related disasters such as cyclones, flooding, droughts, causing profound human and economic losses. With their unique geographical and resource challenges, SIDS lagged behind other groups of countries in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. They actually regressed in several Goals, including in Goal 13 on climate change which has registered the most regression. With the current pace of development progress, SIDS will not be able to attain any Goals by 2030. Accelerating climate actions will not only reverse the impact of climate change that SIDS have been experiencing, but will also contribute to supporting livelihoods and a sustainable recovery for SIDS. It will thereby contribute to the achievement of other Goals. However, doing so will require extraordinary increases in investment and financing resources as well as strong financing capacities, all of which is increasingly constrained for SIDS, especially in the light of COVID-19 pandemic. To bridge the huge financing gaps for SIDS, there is a need for greater efforts to improve existing sources of finance and at the same time, to explore new sources. The following section will review challenges and opportunities for mobilizing traditional and innovative sources of finance for SIDS to support their climate actions
Energy transition pathways for the 2030 agenda : sustainable energy transition road map for Udon Thani province of Thailand
No full textESCAP is also supporting the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency (DEDE), Ministry of Energy in its “Energy for ALL” programme, by furthering the NEXSTEP initiative to three Thailand provinces. This Sustainable Energy Transition (SET) road map, developed for the province of Udon Thani, identifies the technological options and policy measures that will help the province navigate the transition of its energy sector in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, national targets and commitment towards the Paris Agreement.
This SET road map has two main objectives. First, it aims to establish a scenario baseline for 2019-2030, by considering the current policy settings. Second, it identifies the measures and technological options that could raise Udon Thani’s efforts to align with the SDG 7 targets, national targets as well as achieving deep decarbonisation of its energy system. The three scenarios that are presented in detail in this road map are:
- The current policy scenario (CPS), which has been developed based on existing policies and plans, and used to identify the gaps in existing initiatives in aligning with the SDG 7 targets and national targets as well as the commitment towards the Paris Agreement;
- The sustainable energy transition (SET) scenario, which presents technological options and policy measures that will help the city to align its development with the SDG 7 targets and national targets;
- The Towards Net Zero (TNZ) scenario, the most ambitious scenario, which looks at a pathway of moving towards a net zero society in the near future, through decarbonising the electricity supply, fuel substitution and more ambitious electrification.
An additional scenario – business as usual (BAU) – has also been modelled to provide a BAU baseline where no enabling policies/initiatives are implemented, or the existing policies/initiatives are failing to achieve their intended outcomes. </p
2022 : Leaving no one behind : Afghanistan country brief
No full textLeaving No One Behind (LNOB) tool helps discover how different circumstances interact to create unequal access to basic opportunities in Asia and the Pacific. The LNOB country brief for Afghanistan provides insights into which groups are further ahead and further behind in various SDG indicators and where the biggest gaps are found in terms of access to opportunities or prevalence of barriers between the furthest behind and the furthest ahead groups in Afghanistan. </p
Inclusive digital development
No full textDigital Development is the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to empower communities to achieve social, political and economic development. The World Bank’s Digital Development Global Practice “focuses on addressing supply and demand side constraints to digital transformation, around key pillars including inclusive access to fast, reliable, safe and affordable internet”.
For Plan International – an international NGO – it means “applying technology for social, economic and political development with a focus on supporting the most vulnerable children, especially girls”. For the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) - a not-for-profit organization working in agriculture and the environment - “Digital development can help bring practical agricultural knowledge to smallholder farmers and help them grow more healthy, nutritious and profitable crops.</p
Demystifying impact of food losses in international trade of food products : building narrative for developing countries from Indian perspective
Get PDFFood loss remains one of the central points of collective action around the world, as reflected in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, but this issue is far more concerning for the developing countries. Several studies highlight the level and stages of food losses. However, there is limited work on understanding the food losses in the context of international trade. With ever-increasing volume of international trade of food products and understanding the levels and stages of food losses, this study aims to understand food losses in international trade from the context of developing countries. The study is based on a primary survey of three largest traded food products of India and examines the nature, causes, level and stages of food losses. It maps-out the entire journey of international movements of exported as well as imported food products, from the stage of packing to the stage of delivery at the last tradable point(s), excluding the final retail. The findings of the study are of immense relevance to developing countries in understanding the food losses and undertaking the policy, infrastructural and operational action(s) to reduce the food losses. Based on extensive consultation with traders, it was found that up to 19.5% of food is lost in India’s international food supply chain, in particularly in the import-country (trade partner) food supply chain stage. The study suggests the generic as well as specific measures for exporting & importing firms, logistical agencies and institutions, and policy level regulatory actions for public agencies. These include capacity development on multiple levels, incorporation of good manufacturing practices, process improvements among agencies involved, as well as deeper understanding of the various factors leading to food losses in international trade.</p
The research ecosystem of Cambodia
Get PDFResearch is vital for the socio-economic development of Cambodia. This background report provides an overview of the research ecosystem of Cambodia and outlines several recommendations to strengthen research capacity and quality. The analysis of the research ecosystem was conducted around nine building blocks: Research organizations, research topics, researchers, research funding, research quality and performance, researcher mobility and international collaboration, academia-industry collaboration, academic input for policy and research policy and regulatory frameworks.
Based on the analysis of these blocks, the following recommendations are proposed: Align research topics with national developmental needs; introduce a research fund to finance the national research agenda; clarify the roles, mandates, means, objectives and budgets of government research institutes; select some publicly-funded research and training organizations to become centres of excellence in research, providing them with adequate funding; introduce an attractive research career system and incentives for researchers; incentivize the private sector to conduct research in collaboration with academia; develop strong international university networks; and inform and train policymakers to integrate research into policymaking.</p
North-East Asian Subregional Programme for Environmental Cooperation (NEASPEC) : brochure
No full textNEASPEC member States play critical roles in all dimensions of global sustainable development. With 23% of the world’s population to support, they contribute 28% of the global GDP, 30% of Foreign Direct Investment and 33% of the world’s primary energy supply. While driving global economic growth, the six member States also account for a large share of global environmental challenges including around 40% global CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and 20% of global tree cover loss.
As the first intergovernmental mechanism in North-East Asia, NEASPEC has been promoting environmental collaboration between developed and developing countries with a permanent secretariat established in ESCAP-ENEA.
Serving as the most comprehensive multilateral mechanism connecting global goals, subregional priorities and national needs on the environment and sustainable development in North-East Asia, NEASPEC takes a step-by-step and practical approach to progress subregional cooperation and currently works on five programmatic areas jointly identified by member States as subregional priorities.</p