Search Climate Insights Directory

The Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI) submitted public comments on the Protected Disclosures Bill to the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development on 14 May 2026. While welcoming the Bill's expansion of protections and the introduction of financial rewards for whistleblowers, PARI identifies significant risks regarding the security and administration of the proposed central disclosure database and the restrictive criteria for calculating financial awards.

This concept note proposes the creation of a first-of-its-kind national database in Mozambique to document and protect traditional knowledge (TK) related to biodiversity. The initiative aims to prevent the loss or misappropriation of cultural and scientific resources by establishing a secure, community-governed digital repository that bridges the gap between traditional knowledge systems and modern scientific research.

This guide provides a comprehensive framework for developing countries to understand and adapt to the OECD/G20 Pillar Two Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) rules. It explains the mechanics of the 15% global minimum tax, evaluates policy options for national responses—such as implementing Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-up Taxes (QDMT)—and analyzes the impact on existing tax incentives. The document also addresses legal obstacles, specifically fiscal stabilization clauses in investment contracts and Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), offering strategies to mitigate litigation risks while mobilizing domestic revenue.

This guide provides a comprehensive framework for developing countries to understand and adapt to the OECD/G20 Pillar Two Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) rules. It explains the mechanisms of the 15% global minimum tax, evaluates national policy options for capturing top-up taxes, and analyzes legal obstacles such as fiscal stabilization clauses and bilateral investment treaties.

This report chapter analyzes the appointment and removal processes for senior leadership within South Africa's key criminal justice institutions, including the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), South African Police Service (SAPS), Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), and Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID). It argues that current frameworks allow for excessive political interference, undermining institutional independence and the rule of law, and proposes the institutionalization of independent selection panels and more rigorous, transparent criteria for appointments.

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides commentary on the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) Secretariat's second working paper (WP #2) regarding proposed amendments to the ICSID Arbitration Rules. The IISD argues that the proposed changes are insufficient to promote meaningful reform of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) and suggests that several priority reforms require amendments to the ICSID Convention itself rather than just the Arbitration Rules.

A formal letter from the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), on behalf of the Life After Coal/Impilo Ngaphandle Kwamalahle Campaign, to Eskom's Board of Directors requesting information on the status of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for two coal-fired power stations: Thabametsi and Khanyisa.

This guide by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) analyzes the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) clause in international investment treaties. It examines how arbitral tribunals have interpreted MFN to allow investors to import more favorable substantive and procedural rules from third-party treaties, a practice that has led to legal uncertainty and 'treaty-shopping.' The document provides a typology of MFN clauses, discusses the distinction between pre- and post-establishment phases, and offers recommendations for states to limit the scope of MFN in future treaties to protect national sovereignty and policy space.

This guide by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) analyzes the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) clause in investment treaties, focusing on how divergent interpretations by arbitral tribunals have created legal uncertainty. It examines the distinction between substantive and procedural rules, the risks of 'treaty shopping,' and provides recommendations for states to limit the scope of MFN clauses in new and existing treaties to protect national sovereignty and policy space.

The June 2016 edition of the South African Crime Quarterly (No. 56), co-published by the Institute for Security Studies and the University of Cape Town, examines critical intersections of crime, justice, and social norms. The issue features research on the social barriers to policing domestic violence in Khayelitsha, the poor conditions within South African women's prisons, a methodology for measuring socioeconomic risk factors in high-murder areas, and the legal landscape of private prosecutions in Zimbabwe.

The PAIA Civil Society Network (CSN) Shadow Report 2014 evaluates the implementation of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) in South Africa between August 2013 and July 2014. The report documents widespread non-compliance by both public and private bodies, characterized by high rates of ignored requests, failures to meet statutory deadlines, and a perceived shift toward government secrecy. It highlights the role of litigation in securing information and discusses legislative developments, including the Protection of Personal Information Act and the Protection of State Information Bill.

This research paper examines legal gaps in the international criminal justice system, specifically regarding the obligation of states to exercise national jurisdiction and the lack of a horizontal framework for interstate cooperation. It assesses two intergovernmental initiatives—the International Law Commission (ILC) study on crimes against humanity and the Belgium, Slovenia, and Netherlands (BSN) initiative—aimed at enhancing complementarity by establishing conventions for mutual legal assistance and the obligation to prosecute or extradite.

This research paper analyzes the 2014 Protocol on Amendments to the Protocol on the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights (ACJHPR Amendment), specifically focusing on a provision that grants immunity from prosecution to serving African Union (AU) heads of state and senior officials. The author argues that this immunity provision is a symbolic reaction to the International Criminal Court's (ICC) focus on Africa and is contradictory to the AU's own constitutive principles and other regional agreements.

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides a detailed response to the European Commission's 2014 public consultation on investment protection and Investor-to-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) within the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement (TTIP). The IISD analyzes proposed text—much of it derived from the EU-Canada Agreement (CETA)—and argues that there are significant inconsistencies between the Commission's stated goals of protecting the right to regulate and the actual legal language proposed, which the IISD suggests could still allow for expansive arbitral interpretations.

This statement by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), submitted on behalf of itself, Friends of the Earth, Sierra Club, and Center for Biological Diversity, warns that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) could undermine public health and environmental protections, particularly regarding toxic chemicals. The document argues that the pursuit of 'regulatory coherence' through harmonization and mutual recognition may lower standards to a 'lowest-common denominator,' preempt sub-national laws, and create chilling effects on the development of safety regulations globally.

This report provides a critical commentary on the February 2013 draft Investment Chapter of the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). The author argues that the draft largely ignores concerns from the European Parliament and civil society, particularly regarding the inclusion of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) and the use of broad, open-ended definitions that may limit the policy space of governments to regulate in the public interest.

This report analyzes the legal and political consequences of Malawi's June 2012 decision to refuse hosting the African Union (AU) Summit because the AU insisted on the invitation of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The document examines how Malawi balanced its international legal obligations and its need to regain Western donor support against its relationship with the AU.

This research paper by Mireille Affa’a Mindzie, published by the South African Institute of International Affairs in August 2009, examines the role of human rights in African international relations. It analyzes the tension between the formal commitment to international human rights standards and the practical application of these standards in bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, where national interests and the pursuit of 'African solutions to African problems' often take precedence.

This research paper by Paul Hoffman, published by the South African Institute of International Affairs in March 2009, examines the role of accountability in making constitutionalism a reality in Africa. Using South Africa as a primary case study, the author argues that while constitutional structures may exist on paper, the actual practice of democracy is often undermined by power struggles among elites, corruption, and the erosion of independent oversight institutions.

This research paper examines South Africa's domestication of the Rome Statute through the Implementation of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Act 27 of 2002 (ICC Act). It analyzes how the Act enables the national prosecution of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, the establishment of the Priority Crimes Litigation Unit, and the legal mechanisms for cooperating with the International Criminal Court (ICC).