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The document outlines ten demands for transforming the global energy system, emphasizing the need to dismantle capitalist and patriarchal structures to achieve energy sovereignty. It advocates for a transition to 100% renewable energy based on decentralized, small-scale technologies and the redistribution of climate finance from the Global North to the Global South to address historical ecological debts.

The document outlines ten demands for a systemic change in the global energy landscape, emphasizing that energy should be treated as a common good rather than a commodity. It advocates for 'energy sufficiency' to eliminate overconsumption by elites while ensuring universal access to basic energy needs. The manifesto calls for a rapid transition to 100% renewable energy, specifically prioritizing small-scale, decentralized technologies over large-scale projects that may cause land grabbing or biodiversity loss. It emphasizes a 'just transition' that protects workers' rights and addresses historical climate debts owed by the Global North to the Global South. Central to its argument is the concept of energy sovereignty, where communities—particularly women and marginalized groups—have democratic control over their energy production and use.

The document examines the scale of public money supporting fossil fuels in G20 countries and presents case studies of reforms to align these flows with the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals. It highlights the use of consumption and production subsidy removals, increased taxation, and the diversification of state-owned enterprise investments. The paper argues that shifting these resources can create fiscal space for social protection, health, and clean energy, while recommending that G20 nations adopt ambitious reform timelines and protect vulnerable groups during the transition.

The report examines how G20 countries can shift public funds away from fossil fuels through subsidy reform, increased taxation, and the redirection of state-owned enterprise investments. It highlights specific national examples, such as Indonesia's consumption subsidy reform and the EU's transition funds, while arguing that the current scale of public support for fossil fuels hinders decarbonization and sustainable development.

The report examines the gap between the official goal of freedom of movement in Southern Africa and the reality of securitised border management. It identifies key barriers including a lack of political will, unreliable data, and the prioritisation of national sovereignty over regional integration. The authors argue that migration should be viewed as a developmental opportunity rather than a security threat, noting that remittances contribute an average of 3.7% to SADC countries' GDP. South Africa is highlighted as a primary destination for migrants but a major obstacle to regional integration due to its restrictive 'detain and deport' policies and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

The report argues that Zimbabwe's economic decline is rooted in the conflation of the state with the ZANU-PF party, leading to state capture, patronage, and corruption. It highlights how government profligacy, excessive borrowing through Treasury Bills, and a protectionist import substitution strategy have fueled inflation and foreign exchange shortages. Despite President Emmerson Mnangagwa's 'open for business' rhetoric, the report finds that investment claims are often unsubstantiated and that the government continues to prioritize prestige projects and party loyalty over market-based principles. The author recommends a transition to a market-oriented, export-led economy with an independent central bank and secure property rights.

The paper examines how 'softer' operational issues, rather than hard infrastructure, drive high transport costs in SADC, specifically focusing on standing time at the Beitbridge and Chirundu borders. It highlights that border delays account for up to 60% of uncompetitive logistics costs and identifies causes such as poor coordination, staffing shortages, and driver behaviour. The research also explores the tension between trade facilitation and the sustainability of local border economies, which rely heavily on informal trade—predominantly by women—and logistics services. It argues for a holistic approach to corridor development that integrates economic growth with customs modernisation.

The commentary argues that the IRP 2018 is a form of 'climate denial' that lacks a meaningful carbon constraint and continues to prioritize coal and gas over cheaper, cleaner renewables. It highlights the severe health costs of air pollution from Eskom and criticizes the public consultation process as exclusionary. The authors advocate for a total phase-out of coal, the rejection of new extractive gas projects, and a transition to a socially owned renewable energy system that creates jobs and ensures energy justice for the poor.

The Freshwater Research Centre (FRC) reviewed the MCWAP Phase 2A Draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report (DEIR) and found it inadequate in its assessment of operational phase impacts on rivers and wetlands. Key criticisms include the failure to account for cumulative climate change risks, the lack of consultation with neighbouring states in the Limpopo River Basin, and the use of a risk matrix that does not assess the significance of impacts as required by NEMA. The FRC highlights significant risks regarding the transfer of poor-quality water and invasive species, such as Water Hyacinth, from the donor Crocodile (West) River and Hartbeespoort Dam to the recipient Matlabas and Mokolo River catchments.

This research paper evaluates the feasibility of establishing a state-owned export credit agency (ECA) in South Africa, concluding that such an institution is unnecessary due to the existence of a robust trade finance market and current fiscal constraints.

The paper argues that while mass international tourism often excludes local entrepreneurs through all-inclusive enclave resorts, economic inclusion can be achieved by targeting budget, domestic, and regional tourism markets or by integrating local SMEs into the supply chains of larger accommodation establishments. It recommends improved data collection, strengthened research capacity, and the use of IORA structures to promote inclusive tourism policies.

The Youth Employment Service (YES) is a private sector-led initiative launched in March 2018 to combat South Africa's youth unemployment crisis, which reached 39% for those aged 15-34 in Q2 2018. The programme aims to create 330,000 jobs annually, targeting one million opportunities over three years by providing inexperienced youth with one year of work experience to increase their marketability. To incentivise private sector participation, the Department of Trade and Industry integrated YES into the broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) measurement codes on 28 August 2018, allowing participating businesses to improve their B-BBEE scorecards by up to two levels. However, the document notes that the initiative's success is threatened by a technical recession, a poor-quality education system (ranked 137th out of 139 by the World Economic Forum in 2016), and the need to align skills with the 4th Industrial Revolution.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted a formal request (CER-2018-DMR-0002) to the Department of Mineral Resources on 8 October 2018, seeking a wide range of records concerning the Operation Phakisa marine protected area network and offshore oil and gas activities.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted a formal request to Eskom on 8 October 2018 for records and reports concerning the Medupi and Kusile coal-fired power stations. The request focuses on environmental compliance, Flue Gas Desulphurisation (FGD) installation progress, water supply arrangements, and communications with the World Bank and African Development Bank.

The Centre for Environmental Rights submitted a request to the Department of Environmental Affairs on 8 October 2018 for records concerning the Operation Phakisa marine protected area network. The request seeks public participation reports, representations from the Department of Mineral Resources and the Petroleum Agency of South Africa, justifications for a phased declaration approach, economic growth projections, and environmental authorisations for offshore oil and gas producers since 2006.

The report analyzes Mpumalanga's spatial status, identifying a resource-rich province dominated by coal mining and agriculture but facing severe environmental degradation and infrastructure backlogs. Key findings highlight that while the province is a national energy hub, it suffers from poor air quality in the Highveld, critical water scarcity, and significant housing shortages. The analysis emphasizes the need for urban restructuring, agrarian transformation in rural areas, and the protection of strategic water source areas and biodiversity corridors against mining encroachment.

The proposal argues that existing national and international legal mechanisms are insufficient to hold multinational corporations accountable due to corporate complexity, state collusion, and the non-binding nature of current guidelines. It advocates for a permanent, itinerant international tribunal with broad jurisdiction over parent companies and their supply chains, featuring a reversed burden of proof and cost-free access for victims. The document includes a detailed draft statute for the 'International Tribunal on Multinationals, Other Enterprises and Human Rights' (TIMEDH), emphasizing complementarity with national courts and the use of class actions to secure reparations for affected communities.

This report, produced by Friends of the Earth Africa with support from Friends of the Earth Europe and International, proposes the creation of a legally binding international tribunal to hold transnational corporations accountable for human rights violations. The document argues that existing national and regional mechanisms are insufficient to protect victims, particularly in the Global South, and provides a detailed draft statute for a 'sui generis' court designed to ensure access to justice and reparations.

The document examines how host governments can stimulate direct local employment in mining to drive socioeconomic growth and maintain a social licence to operate. It outlines a five-step process for developing local employment policies: assessing the sector's role in national development, evaluating labour supply and demand, setting goals, formulating policies, and monitoring outcomes. The report categorizes interventions into regulatory 'stick' policies—such as employment quotas, mandated training, and visa restrictions—and facilitative 'carrot' policies, including bidding preferences, fiscal incentives, and support for training facilities. It emphasizes the need for context-specific strategies that address gender inequality and the inclusion of Indigenous Peoples, while warning that automation and technological trends may shift future workforce requirements.

The document identifies a significant gap between South Africa's stated goal of harnessing the strategic potential of African migration and its implementation of restrictive policies. While the Department of Home Affairs has proposed progressive measures like SADC visas and regularisation schemes, these have stalled. Instead, the government is fast-tracking the Border Management Authority Bill and the Refugees Amendment Act of 2017, and pursuing the construction of expensive asylum processing centres. The author argues that these measures are based on unsubstantiated claims that low-skilled migrants and asylum seekers pose security risks, and that they distract from endemic administrative corruption and management failures within the Department of Home Affairs.