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The research investigates the hypothesis that African agricultural exporters could substitute for US goods rendered expensive by tariffs. Using trade data from 2017 to 2019, the author finds that while African exports to China grew, the rate of growth declined over time and was significantly lower than that of competitors in Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean. The paper argues that Africa has been unable to fully capitalise on the trade war due to a lack of state incentives, poor manufacturing sectors, and a failure to develop specific industries like pork, despite the potential created by the African swine flu in China.

The document examines the role of local and community-based adaptation (CBA) in addressing climate risks, emphasizing that while local actions are often the most cost-effective and socially acceptable, they are frequently hindered by top-down planning and insufficient financing. It proposes a shift toward locally led processes that integrate indigenous knowledge, devolved financing, and multi-stakeholder governance to achieve sustainable and equitable resilience.

The report details how COVID-19 caused operational disruptions, reduced premium income, and accelerated digitalization within the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa. While life and health products provided some coverage, business interruption insurance largely failed to support business resilience. Insurers face prudential stability concerns and liquidity challenges, though 50% expect premium income to recover within a year.

The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process is a strategic framework established in 2010 under the Cancun Adaptation Framework to help developing countries identify and address medium- and long-term climate adaptation priorities. It moves beyond ad hoc projects to embed adaptation into national development planning, budgeting, and decision-making. The process consists of three broad phases—planning, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E)—supported by enabling factors such as financing and capacity development. It is distinct from National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs), which focused on urgent short-term needs, and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), though it can operationalize the adaptation commitments within NDCs. The document emphasizes that a NAP is both a process and a document, and that effective processes must be country-driven, gender-responsive, and inclusive of the private sector and sub-national actors.

The document defines the NAP process as a strategic approach for countries to identify and respond to medium- and long-term climate adaptation priorities. It outlines the transition from short-term project-based interventions to systemic integration of adaptation into national development planning and budgeting. The process consists of a continuous cycle of planning, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E), supported by technical guidelines from the Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LDCEG). The text emphasizes that a NAP is both a document and a process, highlighting the importance of vertical integration between national and subnational levels, gender responsiveness, and private sector engagement. It further clarifies the synergy between NAPs, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the Paris Agreement, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The document examines the gap between Africa's youth-related policy frameworks, such as the African Youth Charter, and the reality of youth participation in governance. It argues that youth are often treated as mere beneficiaries of services or tokenistic additions to processes rather than empowered stakeholders in decision-making. The author analyzes the role of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) in promoting good governance and finds that while recent efforts like the N’Djamena symposium show progress, structural barriers and policy incoherence persist. The paper recommends establishing youth quotas in National Governing Councils and integrating youth into the technical tools and review missions of the APRM to ensure meaningful engagement.

The report examines the intersection of Africa's digital economy and the AfCFTA, highlighting how ecommerce can overcome the continent's low formal retail penetration and lack of manufacturing diversity. While identifying significant barriers—including high data costs, poor logistics, and regulatory fragmentation—it argues that a unified trading bloc will provide the economies of scale necessary for SMEs to grow. The author recommends harmonising data privacy, consumer protection, and payment systems to foster trust and enable a sustainable, inclusive digital market.

The document analyzes the digital divide in Africa, exacerbated by COVID-19 lockdowns, focusing on socio-economic barriers, weak infrastructure, information access, and government-mandated internet shutdowns. It argues that while global and continental frameworks like the AU's Digital Transformation Strategy exist, a multi-stakeholder approach is required to improve affordability, infrastructure, and digital literacy while ending political internet blackouts.

The study finds that FDI in the SADC region is heavily concentrated in South Africa and primarily flows into service sectors, while many countries remain locked in primary value chain stages. While secondary activities like manufacturing and construction drive job creation, there is a mismatch between FDI levels and export potential in sectors such as aquaculture and meat. The report suggests that the region can leverage growth in agro-processing and sustainable services through targeted policies, skills development, and local content incentives to align with the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (SISR).

The analysis finds that while FDI in the SADC region is heavily driven by natural resource endowments and GDP, secondary activities (manufacturing and construction) are the primary drivers of job creation and inclusive growth. The paper highlights a mismatch between export potential and FDI in sectors like aquaculture and meat, while identifying strong growth opportunities in agro-processing and a potential revival in textiles driven by sustainable sourcing. It concludes that while services are growing, they provide significantly fewer jobs than industrial activities, validating the SISR's focus on industrialisation.

The document argues that off-grid solar (OGS) is a critical tool for achieving universal energy access and climate mitigation, particularly by replacing kerosene lamps and reducing black carbon emissions. Despite this, multilateral climate finance institutions have invested only a small fraction of the total capital deployed in the sector. The briefing identifies barriers such as the complexity of projects that combine mitigation, adaptation, and development, as well as a focus on large-scale projects. It recommends strategies including increased concessional financing for early-stage businesses, expanded use of blended finance to attract commercial equity, and the development of a uniform methodology to quantify the climate benefits of OGS, specifically regarding black carbon.

The Malawi National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Framework provides a structured approach to building climate resilience, integrating adaptation into national development planning, and coordinating stakeholders. It outlines five key mandates: improving community resilience through agriculture and disaster risk management, sustainable natural resource use, improving soil and land management, conserving biodiversity, and providing policy advocacy. The framework adopts a systems approach and emphasizes vertical and horizontal integration, community participation, and gender-responsiveness. It identifies critical gaps in climate modelling and institutional capacity, proposing a roadmap that includes risk and vulnerability assessments, the mobilization of private sector finance, and the integration of adaptation priorities into ministry spending plans, with support from the Green Climate Fund.

The Malawi National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Framework establishes the vision, mandates, and institutional arrangements for the country's adaptation process. It outlines a multi-pronged approach involving horizontal and vertical integration, community participation, and private sector engagement. The framework identifies five key mandates focusing on community resilience, natural resource utilization, soil and land management, biodiversity conservation, and policy advocacy. It aligns with national goals like the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy III and international targets such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The document details next steps, including climate risk and vulnerability assessments, the integration of adaptation priorities into ministry spending plans, and the mobilization of private sector finance, with the goal of producing the first full NAP by 2020.

The document analyzes how trade facilitation efforts in East Africa affect women informal cross-border traders, who constitute up to 70% of such trade in Africa. Using the Busia One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) as a case study, it evaluates the effectiveness of 'hard' infrastructure (like border facilities) and 'soft' infrastructure (like Simplified Trade Regimes and capacity building). While the Busia OSBP has reduced customs processing times by 80% and improved relations between traders and officials, significant gaps remain, including inadequate sanitation on the Ugandan side, limited access to formal finance, and the persistence of predatory middlemen. The paper recommends gender-sensitive infrastructure, simplified cross-border banking, and the use of the African Continental Free Trade Area to create continent-wide framework STRs.

The report analyzes the services sector's role in African development and the implications of the AfCFTA. It identifies Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, Ghana, and Nigeria as the continent's largest services exporters. The study highlights a significant gap in comprehensive services trade data, particularly for Mode 3 (commercial presence), and recommends implementing the 2010 Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services. For South Africa, the report finds that services value added in gross exports is more than double the share of services exports, emphasizing the sector's role as an input for manufacturing. It argues for a developmental trade strategy that integrates services with industrial policy and warns against premature deindustrialization.

The document examines how digital technologies and social media influenced the 2019 elections in four SADC member states. While these tools have opened spaces for youth engagement and increased transparency, they have also been used for disinformation and surveillance. The author argues that the region's political culture remains unresponsive, co-opting new media into traditional elite-driven systems rather than reforming governance, which could lead to instability similar to the Arab Spring.

The report finds that donors must double their current annual contributions to food security, adding 14 billion USD per year, while low- and middle-income countries must provide an additional 19 billion USD annually through taxes. These combined investments of 33 billion USD per year would prevent 490 million people from hunger and double the incomes of 545 million smallholders. The analysis emphasizes that Africa has the highest need for these funds and recommends a balanced investment strategy across three categories: enabling inclusion, on-farm productivity, and post-harvest food systems.

The report finds that achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) targets by 2030 requires an additional 33 billion USD per year in public spending. This total is split between an additional 14 billion USD from international donors and 19 billion USD from low- and middle-income countries through increased taxation. These investments, focused heavily on Africa, would prevent 490 million people from suffering from hunger and double the incomes of 545 million small-scale producers while adhering to Paris Agreement climate commitments. The proposed funding is distributed across three intervention categories: empowering the excluded, on-farm productivity, and food movement.

The report finds that donors must provide an additional USD 14 billion per year, and low- and middle-income countries must provide USD 19 billion per year, to achieve SDG 2 targets by 2030 while respecting climate commitments. This investment would prevent 490 million people from experiencing hunger and double the incomes of 545 million small-scale producers. The authors emphasize that Africa has the greatest need for these resources and that a balanced portfolio of interventions—spanning social protection, on-farm productivity, and market access—is essential for success.

The document examines the impact of COVID-19-related food export restrictions on vulnerable importing nations. It identifies high-risk areas in Central Asia, North Africa, the Middle East, and sub-Saharan Africa, noting that many affected countries already suffer from high undernourishment and calorie production deficits. The authors argue that because global food stocks remain plentiful, countries should refrain from banning staple food exports to prevent hunger and potential famines.