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The 2020 Energizing Finance report finds a widening gap between actual and required investment for universal energy access, with funding failing to reach the countries with the greatest need. In 2018, only USD 16 billion of the required USD 41 billion for residential electrification was tracked in high-impact countries, and clean cooking finance remained far below the USD 4.5 billion annual requirement. The report highlights a concerning shift toward fossil fuel-generated electricity and a lack of private sector investment in clean cooking, urging a move away from business-as-usual approaches toward coordinated, sustainable financing.

The author contends that COVID-19 has exposed vulnerabilities in African governance and that current responses are too reactive and focused solely on health security. The pandemic is projected to cause Africa's first recession in 25 years, significantly increase food insecurity, and lead to substantial job losses, particularly among youth. The document advocates for a 'whole-society approach' to security that balances health, economic, and political priorities to build resilience against future pandemics.

The document records the disclosure of environmental and social impact assessments and management plans for the Miro Forestry & Timber Products subproject in Ghana and Sierra Leone, as well as the broader Arbaro Fund programme operating in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative, supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), proposes a framework for measuring climate finance flows to small-scale agriculture in developing countries and provides a snapshot of international financial commitments for 2017 and 2018.

The report finds that climate finance for small-scale agriculture is disproportionately low, averaging USD 10 billion annually in 2017/2018, which represents only 1.7% of total tracked global climate finance. This funding is overwhelmingly public (95%) and primarily delivered via grants (50%). The analysis highlights a significant gap between these flows and the estimated annual financial needs of small-scale farmers, which are approximately USD 240 billion. The report identifies critical barriers, including limited land tenure, high transaction costs for dispersed customers, and a lack of private sector investment. It recommends enhancing public-private collaboration through blended finance, implementing weather-indexed insurance, and improving data collection on domestic and private financial flows to better target climate-smart agricultural investments.

The report concludes that Goal 6 was met through the adoption of SDG 15, but highlights significant gaps in how forest conservation is measured and reported. It notes that indicators for SDG target 15.2 measure net rather than gross deforestation, failing to capture the extent of natural forest loss. Furthermore, the report warns that SDG targets 15.1 and 15.2 were set to expire in 2020 without adopted revisions. Reporting challenges persist at national levels, with many countries lacking the data and statistical systems needed to track progress, while corporate reporting on SDGs remains largely superficial.

The report proposes that sub-Saharan African countries utilize COVID-19 recovery stimulus to invest in clean energy technologies. By focusing on short-term, scalable interventions, the region can reduce its dependence on oil imports, stabilize national budgets, and create jobs while moving toward carbon neutrality.

The authors contend that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed fragilities caused by a global economic focus on productivity over resilience, disproportionately impacting informal workers and vulnerable regions. They advocate for post-pandemic stimulus packages to prioritize inclusive governance by empowering grassroots organizations, diversifying concentrated food, energy, and finance value chains, and recognizing the interdependence of human and planetary wellbeing.

The document discusses how the perceived risk of illicit financial flows (IFFs) leads to de-risking in regional economic hubs, which negatively impacts capital flows and developmental outcomes for both hubs and integrated spoke countries. It emphasizes the need for regulatory frameworks that ensure financial integrity without undermining financial inclusion.

The document argues that Sub-Saharan Africa's high dependence on traditional biomass, such as fuelwood and charcoal, leads to negative sustainability outcomes, including increased vulnerability to climate change and poverty. To transition toward modern bioenergy, the text proposes four strategies: strengthening linkages between Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and bioenergy across sectors, developing context-specific markets rather than importing external models, increasing land productivity through integrated landscape approaches, and better integrating climate change mitigation with adaptation strategies.

The Africa Energy Guarantee Facility (AEGF), a risk-sharing instrument launched by the European Investment Bank in 2018, aims to unlock $1.4 billion in clean energy investment across Africa by providing insurance against political and sovereign risks. While the facility leverages the EU's position as a major investor and supports the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI), its effectiveness may be hindered by high transaction costs, partial risk coverage, and low investor awareness. The document argues that for the AEGF to succeed, African policymakers must establish enabling regulatory frameworks and promote reforms that facilitate foreign direct investment and technical exchanges in climate-resilient infrastructure.

The research paper examines the relationship between climate change and global instability, asserting that while climate change may not cause conflict in isolation, it intensifies problems like food and water insecurity, economic loss, and ethnic tensions. It highlights that the risk of conflict is heavily dependent on regional sociopolitical contexts, such as government corruption and historical grievances. The document also notes a correlation in the U.S. between residents of disaster-prone areas and higher levels of concern regarding climate change, suggesting that these insights should inform government policies on mitigation and conflict prevention.

The chemical industry is a major global energy consumer and carbon emitter that externalizes significant social and health costs. Current international chemicals agreements are severely underfunded, relying on public taxpayers rather than the industry. The document proposes a 0.5% production fee on basic chemicals—the early-stage building blocks of the industry—to operationalize the 'polluter pays principle'. This mechanism could potentially raise US$11.5 billion annually, far exceeding current funding levels, to support sound chemicals management globally.

The report argues that current funding for chemicals and waste management is inadequate, particularly in developing and transition countries, and proposes a coordinated international tax on basic chemicals to operationalize the 'polluter pays' principle. It suggests that a 0.5% tax on the production value of basic chemicals could raise approximately $11.5 billion annually, significantly exceeding current funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Special Programme. The authors recommend an origin-based excise tax on a specific list of basic chemicals (such as ammonia, benzene, and chlorine) to ensure administrative simplicity and minimize economic distortion. The document evaluates this option against other potential taxes—including income, asset, and transaction taxes—concluding that an excise tax is the most feasible and effective mechanism for internalizing the social and environmental costs of chemical production.

The Sub-national Climate Finance Initiative (SnCF) is designed as a blended finance private equity fund paired with a grant-funded Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) to support mid-sized sustainable infrastructure in developing countries. The Fund targets a total raise of USD 750 million, consisting of a USD 150 million concessional tranche and USD 600 million in commercial capital, aiming to invest in sustainable energy, waste and sanitation, and nature-based solutions. The TAF, targeting USD 28 million, focuses on project preparation, impact certification via Gold Standard, and local government capacity building. The initiative aims to mobilize up to USD 3.8 billion in total finance, with a target of 35-50 projects across up to 20 countries. Key target markets identified include Chile, South Africa, North Macedonia, Mexico, and Jordan. The Fund projects a net IRR of 9.4% for commercial investors and 5.4% for the concessional tranche, with a goal to avoid 77 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent over the infrastructure lifetime.

The research examines low-cost modifications to open wood fires in marginalized communities where clean-cooking fuels are inaccessible. While interventions like rock beds and ceramic or metal grates reduce fuelwood consumption and emissions, they are unlikely to reduce the adverse health impacts associated with household air pollution.

The report examines the impact of COVID-19 on insurance regulators across sub-Saharan Africa, noting a shift toward remote supervision and a balancing act between providing regulatory relief and maintaining prudential soundness. It highlights that while the pandemic disrupted operations and exacerbated existing market vulnerabilities—such as high expense ratios and fragmented competition—it also created opportunities for digitalisation, the adoption of regtech and suptech, and responsible market consolidation to enhance long-term efficiency and consumer protection.

The report examines the nascent gender bond market, which as of March 2020 consisted of 13 issued bonds. It identifies a lack of universal standards, with most issuers relying on the Social Bond Principles or UN Sustainable Development Goals. The analysis categorises gender bonds into 'corporate behaviour' and 'financial inclusion' types, noting a significant gap in bonds funding products and services that directly benefit women. In sub-Saharan Africa, the report finds that while there is interest in gender lens investing, no gender bonds have been issued. South Africa is identified as the most viable market for commercial issuance due to a receptive investor base, while Kenya and Nigeria face challenges related to conservative institutional investors and debt capital market instability.

The document examines how regional economic hubs in sub-Saharan Africa facilitate capital flows and how the interplay between de-risking and illicit financial flows (IFFs) undermines this process. It argues that de-risking—the termination of business relationships to avoid AML-CFT risks—often drives users toward unregulated shadow banking and informal channels, which in turn exacerbates IFFs. This creates a vicious cycle that reduces legitimate capital inflows, impairs financial inclusion for SMEs and NGOs, and weakens the overall financial integrity of both hub and spoke countries.

The document describes a participatory research project in Kitulu, Kenya, where community members used backcasting to imagine a 2030 scenario of universal electric cooking. Participants linked electric cooking to broader development gains, such as improved infrastructure and food security, while emphasizing a stepwise transition through 'stacking' different cooking technologies. The study highlights the importance of building community social capacity and civic engagement to demand public services and manage the transition.