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The report examines the 'gathering storm clouds' of political and economic uncertainty in the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) region. It argues that a combination of commodity price collapses, neo-patrimonial governance, and rapid population growth is creating a volatile environment. The analysis highlights a critical gap between population growth and the provision of basic services, alongside a history of 'pseudo-democratic' regimes that resist genuine political transition. The authors warn that without strategic diversification of economies and significant investment in human capital, the region's large youth population could become a catalyst for further instability and violence.

The briefing examines the rise of agricultural growth poles, or agropoles, across Africa as a strategy to attract private investment and transition from subsistence to commercial agriculture. It identifies 36 growth poles and 9 corridors across 23 countries, covering at least 3.5 million hectares. While these tools aim to boost competitiveness and industrialization, the document highlights operational failures, such as delays in Morocco and Senegal, and risks like 'land grabbing' and the creation of economic dualism. It argues that for agropoles to be sustainable, they must be supported by robust national legal frameworks, avoid restrictive stabilization clauses, and follow a three-step development process: vision, design, and implementation, with a strong emphasis on community engagement and environmental impact assessments.

The policy brief examines the rise of agricultural growth poles in Africa, which are coordinated investments designed to shift the continent from subsistence to commercial agriculture. While these 'agropoles' aim to attract private investment and promote industrialization, the document highlights significant operational challenges, including poor coordination, financial mismanagement, and risks to small-scale farmers. It argues that for these initiatives to be sustainable, governments must implement robust legal frameworks, avoid stabilization provisions in contracts, and follow a three-stage development process consisting of vision, design, and implementation, with a strong emphasis on transparency and community engagement.

The report documents a general decline in open domestic ivory markets across Central Africa from 2007 to 2015, with trade shifting toward underground transactions and raw ivory exports to Asia, particularly China. While most cities saw a near total disappearance of displayed ivory, Kinshasa remained a significant hub. The decline is attributed to increased law enforcement, rising raw ivory prices driven by Asian demand, and crashing elephant populations. The report also highlights severe deficiencies in government stockpile management, with an estimated 56,497 kg of ivory leaking from state custody between 1990 and 2015.

Mighty Earth and Olam International conducted a series of meetings and site visits in Gabon to evaluate the social and environmental impacts of large-scale plantation agriculture. While acknowledging Olam's job creation and conservation efforts, the visit highlighted ongoing tensions regarding biodiversity, climate impacts, and local community access to essential services and water.

Tanzania possesses estimated natural gas reserves of roughly 60 TCF, with the potential to generate up to $6 billion in annual revenue. While the country has established formal governance frameworks, including the Petroleum Act and the Tanzania Extractive Industries Transparency and Accountability Act, the paper argues that the actual impact on development depends on the political will to combat 'grand corruption' and the ability of civil society to hold the ruling coalition accountable. The author warns that windfall rents could incentivize elite predation and weaken the state's incentive to maintain a broad tax base, potentially destabilizing the political equilibrium.

The Mauritius Convention on Transparency, adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 2014, provides a mechanism for States to 'opt-in' to the UNCITRAL Rules on Transparency for arbitrations brought under investment treaties concluded before April 2014. The document highlights that investor-State arbitrations often involve public interests, including policies on nuclear or alternative energy, tobacco control, and the protection of drinking water, yet typically lack the openness of legal systems governed by the rule of law. By mandating the disclosure of documents and open hearings, the Convention aims to improve democratic participation, accountability, and the ability of governments to reform international economic governance. As of January 2017, Mauritius and Canada had ratified the Convention, while several other States had signed it.

The document analyzes electoral trends in Africa between 2015 and early 2016, identifying four negative trends: constitutional alterations to extend term limits, manipulation of electoral calendars, harassment of opposition candidates, and low voter turnout. It highlights a gap between the existence of continental democratic frameworks, such as the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG), and the political will of governing elites to implement them. The authors recommend structural reforms, respect for electoral calendars, and the adoption of social media codes of conduct to protect freedom of expression.

The Reporting for Results-based REDD+ (RRR+) project is a joint initiative by the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) and the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) running from 2017 to 2019. It aims to help 21 tropical and subtropical forest countries develop the technical and institutional capacity to create accurate greenhouse gas inventories for the agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU) sectors. This capacity is essential for countries to submit reports to the UNFCCC and unlock results-based REDD+ payments. The project provides tailored training based on IPCC methods, supports the submission of National Communications and Biennial Update Reports, and promotes gender equality in natural resource management.

The report argues that Olam, a Singapore-based agribusiness, operates a 'black box' in its palm oil supply chain by concealing the identity of its suppliers, which allows the company to source oil from producers engaged in deforestation. In Gabon, the report alleges that Olam has cleared approximately 20,000 hectares of forest since 2012, violating FSC standards. In Southeast Asia, Olam's lack of transparency is linked to the 'haze' crisis caused by peatland and forest fires. The document calls for Olam to adopt a 'zero deforestation' policy, publish its supplier list, and restore destroyed habitats.

The document analyzes the state of democracy in Africa, arguing that while electoral democracy has increased since 1989, it is often constrained by neopatrimonialism and a lack of governance capacity. It explores the 'sequencing debate' regarding whether democracy precedes or follows economic development, noting that while authoritarian models have sometimes delivered rapid growth, long-term human development is robustly linked to high-quality electoral democracy. Using the International Futures (IFs) system, the author forecasts that a 'Fourth Wave' of democracy could significantly increase Africa's GDP and reduce extreme poverty by 2070 compared to an 'Authoritarian Regress' scenario.

The document examines the application of sustainable use (SU) policies for African elephants, distinguishing between consumptive use (CU)—such as ivory trade and trophy hunting—and non-consumptive use, such as photographic tourism. It argues that while CU has seen some success in Southern Africa, it is largely undermined by corruption, poor governance, and a 'partial global trade ban' that creates market confusion and encourages poaching. The author contends that the closure of major ivory markets in the US and China, combined with the inability of CITES to approve new trade, makes a permanent global ivory trade ban the most viable path. The paper recommends that African governments transition to public-private protected area management organisations (PPPAMOs) and photographic tourism, while using 'conservation hunting' only as a temporary stop-gap. Ultimately, it calls for a global biodiversity tax to compensate African states for the opportunity costs of these restrictions.

The briefing identifies six critical challenges to connecting climate action and sustainable development: creating a unified national narrative, developing integrated planning and policies, ensuring institutional coherence, adopting a whole-of-society approach, reforming finance, and aligning monitoring and reporting systems. It emphasizes that because climate change impacts development and the sectors driving development are the same as those critical for mitigation, treating these agendas as separate risks undermining both. The document highlights examples of integrated strategies in Ethiopia, Colombia, France, Gabon, and Bangladesh, while calling for a shift from fragmented bureaucratic silos toward systemic transformation and inclusive governance.

The document examines the African Union's (AU) efforts to 'Africanise' its maritime domain through AIMS 2050, specifically by proposing a continental cabotage regime to reduce foreign dominance in intra-African shipping. While proponents argue this would create jobs and economic independence, the paper identifies significant barriers, including inadequate port infrastructure, a lack of skilled seafarers, and limited political will, as evidenced by the low ratification rates of the African Maritime Transport Charter. It further analyzes the legal complexities regarding World Trade Organization (WTO) regulations and concludes that the proposed regime is currently 'ahead of schedule' due to the absence of necessary industrial and governance preconditions.

The report analyzes 384 sources in English, Chinese, and Spanish to assess the sustainability impacts of Chinese outward direct investment. It identifies a tension between the positive contributions to infrastructure and economic growth and the negative impacts related to labor conditions, environmental degradation, and governance. The review highlights a 'learning curve' where Chinese firms and policymakers are increasingly adopting corporate social responsibility (CSR) and international standards, though a gap remains between policy and project-level implementation.

The report analyzes the land-sector climate pledges (INDCs) of four major tropical-forest nations. It finds that while Brazil and Indonesia provide some transparency, their land-sector ambitions are low. India's submission lacks critical specifics on GDP and sequestration timing. In contrast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is highlighted as a model for both transparency and ambition, despite its limited national capacity. The author concludes that smaller countries are generally producing better land-sector INDCs than larger emitters.

The study finds that U.S. imports of illegal wood declined by 32% to 44% since the 2008 Lacey Act amendments, with China accounting for two-thirds of this reduction. While the law contributed to this decline, it has not eliminated illegal imports, which were estimated at $2.8 billion in 2013. The report highlights that the reduction was driven more by U.S. buyers avoiding high-risk products and countries rather than discriminating between legal and illegal wood within the same product category.

The document examines China's deepening security role in Africa, shifting from traditional military concerns to non-traditional threats. It analyzes how China protects its citizens from crime and terrorism, its response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak, and its dual role in the illegal wildlife and timber trades. The authors argue that these transnational challenges are compelling China to increase its engagement with multilateral organizations and move beyond its traditional policy of non-interference.

Indonesia's draft INDC proposes an unconditional 29% emissions reduction by 2030, rising to 41% with international assistance. The World Resources Institute identifies gaps in transparency and ambition, specifically urging the government to publish its business-as-usual (BAU) baseline, increase its unconditional target, and include quantitative carbon stock targets for the land sector to address the fact that nearly 55% of its emissions stem from deforestation and peatland destruction.

The report evaluates the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and its peace and security architecture, specifically the Central African Early Warning Mechanism (MARAC) and the Central African Multinational Force (FOMAC). It finds a significant gap between the organization's ambitions and its operational reality, noting that conflict prevention is hampered by a highly centralized, state-focused structure and a narrow military approach to security. The document highlights critical regional threats, including the Boko Haram insurgency, maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, and the instability in the Central African Republic (CAR). It concludes that ECCAS lacks a credible regional lead nation and a shared vision, remaining heavily dependent on external funding, primarily from the European Union, which undermines regional ownership of the peace and security process.