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The document argues that current agri-food transition finance is often unambitious and lacks alignment with science-based pathways, particularly regarding scope 3 emissions. It introduces five Transition Principles and five Hallmarks to ensure that corporate transition plans are rooted in action rather than pledges, exclude offsets, and align with a 1.5°C trajectory. The paper also reviews various existing frameworks, such as SBTi FLAG and the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance, to identify how they address broader goals like biodiversity, water use, and just transition.

A coalition of civil society groups, including Oxfam Novib, Both ENDS, SOMO, and Recourse, criticizes FMO's October 2022 Position Statement on Impact and ESG for Financial Intermediaries. The groups argue that FMO's indirect investment model—which constitutes approximately 40% of its total portfolio—carries higher risks than direct lending but lacks sufficient safeguards against human rights abuses and environmental harm. Specifically, they highlight a gap in FMO's fossil fuel phase-out commitments, which apply to direct investments but not to those made via financial intermediaries, such as the Africa Finance Corporation. The statement also notes that a lack of transparency prevents impacted communities from accessing remedies for adverse project impacts.

The document argues that South Africa's transition from a carbon-intensive, coal-dependent economy to green energy requires a strategic focus on skills development within the TVET ecosystem. Given the country's high unemployment rate of 35.3% and the potential for job losses in fossil-fuel industries, the report emphasizes a 'just transition' that utilizes reskilling, economic diversification, and social welfare to protect vulnerable workers while preparing the workforce for new technological revolutions, including 4IR technologies.

The document analyzes a planned US$245 billion expansion of gas infrastructure in Africa, highlighting a significant imbalance where investment in LNG export terminals and pipelines far outweighs investment in domestic power generation. It warns that these projects, often driven by Europe's short-term energy crisis following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, risk becoming stranded assets while failing to address low electricity access in countries like Nigeria, Mozambique, and Tanzania.

The report highlights a significant imbalance in African gas infrastructure, where investments are heavily skewed toward LNG export terminals rather than domestic electricity generation. With an estimated $245 billion in total gas infrastructure investments underway or planned, the document warns of 'stranded assets' as the world transitions to clean energy and European demand fluctuates. It details the current and projected capacities of LNG terminals, pipelines, and gas-fired power plants, noting that while countries like Nigeria, Mozambique, and Tanzania pursue massive export projects, they continue to face severe domestic electricity shortages.

The document analyzes the current and planned gas infrastructure in Africa, highlighting a significant imbalance where the majority of investment is directed toward LNG exports to Europe rather than domestic electrification. It details the costs and capacities of LNG terminals, pipelines, and gas-fired power plants, noting that while billions are proposed for development, much of this remains in the proposal stage and faces financial risks due to the transient nature of European energy demand.

The report highlights a planned US $245 billion expansion of gas infrastructure in Africa, primarily driven by European demand following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It argues that this focus on exports, particularly LNG and pipelines, undermines domestic energy needs and the transition to renewable energy. Significant funding gaps exist for proposed projects, and the report warns that these investments may become stranded assets as the global energy transition progresses.

The report details a workshop evaluating South Africa's use of the INSPIRE framework to prevent violence against children (VAC). It identifies progress in research and policy, such as the Western Cape government's Safety Plan and the National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide. However, it highlights critical gaps, including the lack of a government focal point to maintain 'Pathfinding' momentum and poor coordination between government and NGOs. The document recommends the reappointment of an INSPIRE champion and the adaptation of the INSPIRE Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) to the South African context.

The document outlines the role of Coal Transition Mechanisms (CTMs) in accelerating the shift from coal to clean energy, particularly in emerging markets. It highlights the challenge that 93% of coal capacity is shielded from market pressures by regulation or contracts, necessitating blended finance and CTMs to manage early retirement. To address reputational risks—such as the appearance of financing coal or failing to protect workers—the authors propose a framework focused on assessing moral hazard, ensuring Paris-aligned emissions savings, supporting just transition provisions, and maintaining transparency through public disclosures.

Good Governance Africa evaluates COP27, noting the establishment of a fund for vulnerable developing countries as a major achievement but criticizing the lack of accountability from the Global North. The statement highlights that Africa is disproportionately affected by climate change despite contributing only 4% of global emissions. It identifies critical gaps in adaptation finance, noting that the $100 billion pledge remains unmet and that $300 billion is needed by 2030. The document also critiques African disunity over the role of gas in energy transitions, poor local governance in disaster management, and the failure of oil-wealthy nations like Nigeria and Angola to achieve sustainable development due to corruption.

The document addresses the need for credible financing to accelerate the global transition from coal to clean energy, specifically focusing on coal transition mechanisms (CTMs). It highlights that while CTMs are essential because 93 percent of coal capacity is shielded from market pressures by regulation or contracts, they face significant reputational risks and constraints from private financial institution policies. To address this, the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI), Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), and RMI have developed guidelines to ensure CTMs deliver positive climate and social outcomes, avoid moral hazard, and support a just transition for workers and communities.

This report advocates for the prioritization of decent work and employment creation in South Africa's tourism sector planning. It notes that despite the sector's capacity to employ low-skilled workers and the establishment of a dedicated Ministry in 2009, policy focus on employment has been lacking. The document highlights the need for strategies to recover from Covid-19 job losses and supports the reinstatement of the national tourism masterplan process over the Tourism Sector Recovery Plan (TSRP).

The document contends that JETP countries should leapfrog fossil gas to avoid economic volatility and asset stranding, instead leveraging their significant solar and wind resources to improve energy access and ensure a climate-safe transition.

The Institute for Economic Justice criticizes the $8.5-billion Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) in South Africa, arguing that its reliance on loans and private-sector 'de-risking' rather than grants will increase energy costs and benefit foreign investors while neglecting local manufacturing and worker protections. The document further condemns the secretive nature of the negotiations, which it claims undermines procedural justice and excludes key stakeholders.

The policy brief proposes a framework for national loss and damage facilities in Africa to manage climate-induced losses. It distinguishes between risk finance for avoidable/unavoided risks and curative finance for unavoidable risks, suggesting a diversified funding model including philanthropic funds, multilateral grants, and innovative levies. The author illustrates the need for such facilities through case studies of extreme weather in South Africa, Mozambique, and Malawi, as well as a slow-onset drought in Cape Town, highlighting gaps in current disaster response and the necessity of integrating knowledge development, resilience building, and formal compensation mechanisms.

The document outlines a mixed-methods approach to forecasting the impact of COVID-19 in Africa to 2030. It utilizes the International Futures (IFs) forecasting platform to compare three scenarios against a pre-pandemic baseline, focusing on economic growth, per capita income, poverty, and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). This quantitative analysis was supplemented by qualitative dialogues involving experts and practitioners focusing on 15 representative African countries. The methodology included validation through a project reference group, questionnaires, and presentations to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and public health experts to synthesize inter-disciplinary perspectives.

The LAC campaign urges South Africa to advocate for climate reparations and a non-fossil fuel development vision for Africa at COP27, while domestically accelerating the transition to renewable energy and phasing out coal by 2040.

This report outlines the objectives of a community of practice on African climate finance, convened by the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), and the African Development Bank (AfDB), to identify adaptation finance priorities for the COP27 conference in Egypt.

The E4N partnership, a collaboration between the Green Economy Coalition, Capitals Coalition, Green Growth Knowledge Partnership, and WWF France, worked to make 'natural capital-based green economies' a global best practice. The partnership focused on creating tools for measuring nature's value, convening multistakeholder networks, and advocating for the inclusion of nature in economic decision-making. Key achievements include the development of the Green Economy Tracker, the establishment of Business for Nature, and the integration of natural capital into the EU Green Deal and African development finance. While the report notes a shift toward 'nature-positive economies,' it highlights persistent challenges in data quality and capacity, as well as a gap between government rhetoric and actual policy implementation during COVID-19 green recovery efforts.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) criticises the South African National Treasury's 2022 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) for maintaining a path of austerity and fiscal consolidation since 2012. The IEJ asserts that prioritising debt stabilisation over developmental goals leads to declining expenditure per learner in basic education and real-term cuts in healthcare spending. The document also highlights the failure to adjust the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant for inflation and the exclusion of 3.5 million people from the grant due to stringent criteria. While noting positive infrastructure investment and Eskom debt absorption, the IEJ warns that Eskom's unbundling and private sector participation may lead to higher tariffs. The IEJ advocates for progressive taxation to fund public services and reduce income inequality.