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The Lendable Decarbonization Fund (LDF) is an innovative financial instrument designed to provide sustainability-linked loans (SLLs) to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and middle market companies (MMEs) in emerging economies. By utilizing the proprietary Maestro technology for real-time monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV), the LDF aims to reduce the administrative costs that typically prevent smaller firms from accessing SLLs. The fund also includes a Carbon Project Preparation Facility (CPPF) to provide technical assistance and grants for developing carbon offset projects. LDF targets an initial assets under management (AUM) of USD 250 million by year three and USD 500 million by year five, focusing on sectors such as energy access, energy efficiency, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and transport across Africa, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Latin America.

The report examines how voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) can be integrated into trade policies to foster sustainable South-South trade. It identifies key barriers, such as high compliance costs and lack of demand, and provides case studies from Africa, Asia, and Latin America to demonstrate successful integration strategies, including mutual recognition agreements and participatory guarantee systems.

The guide 'Creative Climate Justice in Norway' calls on the Norwegian performing arts and cultural sectors to shift their focus from individual environmental measures to systemic change. It highlights the contradiction between Norway's domestic green initiatives and its role as a major oil and gas exporter, arguing that this policy disproportionately harms the Global South and reinforces colonial and racist structures. The document provides a roadmap for cultural workers to advocate for climate justice, divest from fossil fuels, and amplify the voices of frontline communities.

The report finds that TotalEnergies' 2030 oil and gas production targets and carbon intensity are significantly higher than those required by the IEA's 1.5°C-aligned Net Zero Emissions (NZE) scenario. It highlights a substantial investment gap, noting that in 2022, the company invested more than three dollars in oil and gas for every dollar invested in its Integrated Gas, Renewables and Power division, while distributing over four dollars to shareholders for every dollar invested in that same division. The analysis concludes that the company's reliance on carbon capture and offsets, combined with continued expansion into unconventional resources like Arctic and ultra-deep water, poses a material risk to its ability to meet decarbonization targets.

The report examines how the perception of risk increases the cost of capital, thereby hindering renewable energy deployment in developing countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. It details the project development process from a developer's viewpoint, categorizes various investment risks, and analyzes RMT instruments—divided into policy and financial de-risking—designed to make projects financially viable by reducing the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) and increasing Net Present Value (NPV).

This report examines the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on MEFMI member states in sub-Saharan Africa, detailing how public health measures and external shocks led to GDP declines and increased fiscal pressure.

The report argues that existing social contracts are broken, exclusionary, and ignore planetary boundaries, necessitating a transition to 'eco-social contracts'. These new frameworks are proposed to be grounded in human rights, gender justice, and a 'contract with nature'. The document explores various pathways for implementation, including rights-based economies, the recognition of the rights of nature, and the inclusion of marginalized groups such as informal workers and Indigenous peoples. It provides specific regional analyses and case studies from Nepal, the MENA region, India, and Australia to illustrate how participatory processes and communitarian imaginaries (such as Ubuntu and Sumak kawsay) can inform these new societal agreements.

The document argues that while Africa's shift toward renewable energy is essential for climate goals and poverty reduction, it risks a "green resource curse" where green energy projects and mineral mining fuel conflict. It identifies three primary conflict trajectories: the establishment of projects (often involving land disputes and "green grabbing"), the mining of critical minerals (linked to weak institutions and rebel financing), and energy production (related to grid access and geopolitical shifts). While most conflicts are local and non-violent, the authors warn of potential for large-scale civil unrest and geopolitical tensions as the global energy balance shifts away from fossil fuels.

The text defends environmental protest and civil disobedience as essential democratic instruments for addressing the climate and biodiversity crises. It highlights the role of movements like Fridays for Future and Extinction Rebellion in mainstreaming climate action while warning against a global trend of criminalising activists through repressive legislation. The author criticises 'greenwashing' and 'citizenwashing' by private and public sectors, particularly within the COP framework, and calls on the EU to uphold the Aarhus Convention to ensure genuine public participation in environmental decision-making.

The author contends that Africa can leverage the transition to a circular garment industry to drive economic growth and industrial upgrading. Key opportunities include producing sustainable cotton and alternative fibres, greening manufacturing processes to gain a competitive advantage, and repurposing the high volume of second-hand clothing imports into new products and recycled yarns. The author emphasizes that without a proactive industrial policy or circular economy roadmap, African nations risk missing these opportunities and failing to meet Sustainable Development Goals 9 and 12, particularly as the European Union introduces stricter eco-design regulations.

The report identifies systemic barriers to gender equality in the off-grid solar (OGS) sector across sixteen Sub-Saharan African countries, highlighting a critical lack of sex-disaggregated data and the prevalence of restrictive social norms. It finds that women generally have less access to OGS technologies and are underrepresented in technical and leadership roles within the workforce. To address these gaps, the Hardest-to-Reach (H2R) initiative proposes a strategy focused on elevating women as customers, employees, and entrepreneurs through gender-lens investing, technical assistance for portfolio companies, and dedicated training facilities.

Twenty-five organisations have urged the IMF to revise its macroeconomic strategy for Uganda, claiming that the current Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement contradicts net-zero science by relying on oil extraction for debt sustainability. The signatories argue that the IMF has failed to assess social, environmental, and balance of payment risks, while specifically supporting public investment in oil infrastructure over renewable energy.

The document defines 'biotic eruptions' as population or biomass explosions of species driven by human alterations to the environment or the introduction/removal of species. These eruptions can lead to irreversible state shifts in ecosystems, such as harmful algal blooms (HABs) or Arctic greening, which disrupt food security and economic stability. The author argues that these ecological disruptions can cascade into social instability and conflict, particularly in regions with weak governance. Case studies on Lake Victoria and China illustrate how biodiversity loss and invasive species like the fall armyworm exacerbate vulnerabilities. The briefing recommends restoring keystone species, reducing nutrient pollution, and diversifying food systems to enhance security resilience.

The document analyzes the transition from the 'Angola model'—characterized by infrastructure-for-resources swaps—to a 'Hunan model' centered on the Hunan province's comparative advantages. This new approach focuses on agricultural technology, construction machinery, and digital trade to foster a more diversified economic relationship between China and Africa, implemented through national platforms like the China–Africa Economic and Trade Exhibition (CAETE) and the China–Africa Economic and Trade Deep Cooperation Zone.

The document details how Amani, a refugee from South Sudan living in Uganda's Bidi Bidi settlement, used services from the Financial Inclusion for Refugees (FI4R) Project to establish a handmade crafts business. Supported by FSD Africa, FSD Uganda, and financial providers like Equity Bank Uganda Limited, Amani accessed savings accounts and credit, which enabled him to achieve financial independence and mentor other refugees in financial literacy and entrepreneurship.

The "Hardest-to-Reach" (H2R) programme aims to provide clean, climate-resilient off-grid solar (OGS) energy to 72.4 million people across 16 sub-Saharan African countries. The initiative utilizes a two-pronged financing approach: a $50 million grant-funded Market Support Facility (MSF) to support market entry and capacity building for new players, and a $200 million blended finance Market Expansion Facility (MEF) providing impact-linked loans to scale existing OGS companies. The programme targets a mitigation outcome of 5.1 million tCO2eq avoided and an adaptation outcome of 54.3 million first-time energy access beneficiaries. It emphasizes gender inclusivity, targeting 32% female customers and creating approximately 13,922 green jobs, including 4,641 for women.

The document is a formal request to World Bank President Ajay Banga to halt financial assistance to Uganda due to the Anti-Homosexuality Act. The signatories argue that the law violates the World Bank's own non-discrimination policies and will hinder inclusive economic development. They cite previous World Bank actions in Uganda (2014) and Tanzania (2018) as precedents for suspending aid in response to discrimination against LGBTI people.

The paper analyzes the shift in German-African energy relations from a focus on development aid to a complex mix of energy diplomacy, foreign policy, and technical cooperation. It highlights a tension between Germany's goals for a green transition (including hydrogen partnerships) and its strategic interests in diversifying fossil fuel imports. The author critiques 'energy colonialism' and the financialization of projects, recommending that future cooperation be grounded in 'energy justice' and a value-chain approach to ensure local benefits and social standards.

The Horn of Africa faces severe challenges including governance failure, chronic food insecurity, and high poverty rates, with no countries on track to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030. The region is characterized by a very young population and high dependence on rain-fed agriculture, which is increasingly threatened by climate change and conflict. While Ethiopia and Sudan dominate the regional GDP, most nations suffer from poor infrastructure and dysfunctional health and education systems. The report models an 'Integrated Development Push' scenario involving improvements in governance, agriculture, and human capital, which could significantly increase regional GDP and reduce extreme poverty by 2040.

Methane mitigation is severely underfunded, with current annual spending at only 10% of the $119 billion required to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. The report identifies structural barriers, including a lack of donor prioritization, absence of dedicated funding windows, and a shortage of bankable project pipelines in developing countries. It recommends that development finance institutions designate methane 'champions', that donor governments increase funding for project preparation, and that developing nations create enabling policy environments to attract private investment.