Search Climate Insights Directory

The report examines the integration of ACP countries into global value chains (GVCs) and regional value chains (RVCs), highlighting significant heterogeneity across the group. It identifies critical barriers to entry, including poor infrastructure, weak institutional frameworks, and low business sophistication. The analysis suggests that while some countries like South Africa and Mauritius are more globally integrated, many others face fundamental challenges in basic trade-enabling requirements. The authors argue against protective industrial policies, instead recommending horizontal measures such as improving the rule of law, investing in workforce skills, and enhancing transport and energy infrastructure to attract multinational corporations.

The paper argues that Africa's institutional crisis stems from a mismatch between Western-imported formal institutions and local socio-cultural realities, compounded by a colonial legacy of authoritarianism and neo-patrimonialism. It identifies operational failures such as weak state capacity, toxic leadership, and political apathy. Using Botswana as a positive example, the author suggests that resilient institutions require economic diversification to reduce rent-seeking, the establishment of 'embedded autonomy' for the bureaucracy, and a new generation of ethical, visionary leaders.

The paper examines the dynamics of China-Africa economic cooperation, noting a significant increase in Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) from $500 million in 2003 to nearly $15 billion by 2012. While acknowledging the role of Chinese firms in hiring local labour—such as the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation and Chinese National Minerals Corporation—the author highlights a lack of transparency regarding training, health, and environmental standards. The document reviews several academic and scientific initiatives, including the Confucius Institutes and the 20+20 Cooperation Plan, concluding that while these signal a move beyond purely commercial interests, they have often failed to yield tangible results. The author recommends the establishment of a tighter African regulatory framework and an autonomous monitoring mechanism to ensure sustainable and inclusive growth.

The briefing examines the shift in SADC's focus from trade integration to a region-wide industrialisation policy via the Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (ISR). It highlights significant obstacles to implementation, including the economic dominance of South Africa, the lack of alignment between national and regional policies, and the historical failure of previous trade integration efforts. The author suggests that success depends on incorporating private sector insights and developing regional value chains (RVCs) that prevent economic polarisation by ensuring smaller states benefit from hub economies' access to global markets. Specific recommendations include linking Special Economic Zones (SEZs), regionalising local content requirements, and using fiscal incentives to lower input costs for beneficiation.

The document examines the proposal by Karadeniz Holdings to provide power ships to South Africa to address a depleting reserve supply margin caused by inadequate investment in generation capacity since 1994 and delays at Medupi and Kusile. While power ships are presented as a more efficient and cheaper alternative to Eskom's diesel-powered open cycle gas turbines (OCGTs)—costing R2.00 to R2.50/kWh compared to R3.00 to R4.50/kWh—Eskom has expressed skepticism, arguing that a 310MW capacity is too small for the national grid. The author notes that power ships remain significantly more expensive than solar and wind power from Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and suggests that opening the market to IPPs may offer better short- and long-term benefits.

This report examines the limited integration of African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries into global value chains (GVCs) and explores the potential of regional value chains (RVCs) and South-South cooperation as viable pathways for these nations to enter world trade.

The policy brief examines the transition of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) from initial 'base' reviews to 'second-generation' periodic reviews. It identifies systemic weaknesses in the first-generation process—including excessive costs, cumbersome reporting, and poor implementation of National Programmes of Action (NPoAs)—and recommends institutional reforms to regain momentum. Key suggestions include maintaining National Governing Councils (NGCs) for institutional memory, improving continental leadership at the Secretariat, and tailoring future reviews to emphasize specific issues identified in previous assessments to ensure greater accountability.

Botswana faces a critical need to diversify its economy due to expected declines in diamond revenues. The report evaluates the viability of exporting coal via the proposed Trans-Kalahari Railway (TKR) and extracting iron ore near the Okavango Delta. It concludes that raw coal exports are risky due to high infrastructure costs and a narrowing global demand window. Instead, it recommends using coal and iron ore for domestic beneficiation to create a regional steel industry in Selebi-Phikwe and prioritising eco-tourism as a sustainable primary revenue generator.

The document examines the ACIRC, a proposed rapid deployment instrument for the African Union (AU) initiated by South Africa to address capability gaps in crisis response. It highlights operational hurdles, including political opposition from key member states, funding shortages, and a lack of strategic airlift capacity. The briefing argues that the ACIRC must be integrated into the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and coordinated with the UN to avoid becoming a reactive, short-term tool, while recommending a shift in deployment authority to the AU Peace and Security Council to ensure speed.

The policy brief proposes that South Africa shift its Latin American engagement from a Brazil-centric approach to a broader 'South Atlantic Zone' framework. This strategy aims to leverage shared developmental trajectories and maritime interests to bolster the 'blue economy' and regional security. The authors highlight the Zone of Peace and Cooperation of the South Atlantic (ZPCSA) as a key mechanism for collaboration, alongside maritime exercises like IBSAMAR and Atlasur. While trade between South Africa and Latin American South Atlantic countries remains low, the document identifies significant potential for growth in ocean economics, specifically through initiatives like Operation Phakisa, and cultural ties via the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).

The research paper argues that South Africa lacks a concrete strategy for the BRICS process, which is currently viewed as too bureaucratic and of limited use to South African business. It examines the limitations of the Contingency Reserve Arrangement in preventing currency runs and the uncertainties surrounding the New Development Bank's Africa Regional Centre in Johannesburg.

The document evaluates the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), noting that while it has successfully provided a platform for citizen engagement and reviewed 17 countries, it is currently 'under stress'. The authors identify critical failures in leadership, funding, and political will, specifically noting that no Country Review Reports have been produced since early 2013. To remain relevant to Agenda 2063, the APRM must reform its administrative structure, establish a 'knowledge hub', and implement a more sustainable funding model based on GDP to ensure its autonomy and effectiveness.

The paper assesses the escalating poaching crisis of African elephants, driven by ivory demand in Asia, particularly China. It proposes a strategic framework prioritizing targeted demand reduction and reinforced anti-poaching efforts, while cautioning that domestic trade bans are only effective as complements. The author emphasizes the need for range states to coordinate the simultaneous disposal of ivory stockpiles to remove incentives for criminal syndicates and to increase the 'use value' of elephants for local communities through eco-tourism and payment for ecosystem services (PES) to prevent habitat conversion.

The document examines the link between presidential term extensions and political instability in Africa, citing recent crises in Burkina Faso and Burundi. It argues that the African Union (AU) must move beyond reacting to coups and instead proactively advocate for the entrenchment of term limits to ensure regional security and democratic consolidation.

The African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC) is intended as an interim tool to address gaps in the African Union's security architecture, specifically the lack of a rapid response capability demonstrated during the Mali crisis. However, the project faces significant hurdles, including political disunity—with only 13 countries committed and opposition from major troop contributors like Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria—and institutional friction with the region-based African Standby Force (ASF). The author argues that the ACIRC was established without sufficient strategic deliberation and recommends a comprehensive consultation process with stakeholders to clarify its mandate and overcome political resentment.

The document examines how South Africa used its tenure on the UN Security Council to formalise institutional links between the UN and the African Union (AU), specifically through the application of Chapter VIII of the UN Charter. It argues that South Africa's efforts helped move the AU from a position of limited capacity to one of greater strategic co-operation, resulting in the creation of joint taskforces and improved coordination for peace support operations in Africa. The author suggests this 'hub and spoke' model of devolving security management to regional organisations offers a pragmatic alternative to the stalled process of formal UN Security Council reform.

The document analyzes Turkey's G-20 presidency priorities—inclusiveness, investment, and implementation—and their application to Africa and LIDCs. It highlights a historical shift in Turkish foreign policy toward Africa, characterized by increased diplomatic missions and official development assistance. The authors argue that the G-20 suffers from a lack of African representation and a disconnect between its finance and development tracks. To address this, the brief suggests that Turkey align the G-20 agenda with UN sustainable development goals, facilitate private infrastructure investment through new asset classes, and include African policymakers in G-20 working groups.

The document examines the revival of the Indian Ocean as a commercial and geo-strategic hub, driven by the strategic visions of China, India, and Indonesia. It details China's 'maritime Silk Road', India's focus on security and the 'cotton route', and Indonesia's 'global maritime fulcrum'. The brief highlights South Africa's 'Operation Phakisa' and its goal to expand its blue economy. It concludes that Africa must coordinate its maritime strategies through the AU and IORA to avoid further militarisation and to leverage economic opportunities from these emerging power strategies.

The document examines the tension between the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) and the practice of humanitarian intervention within South African foreign policy. It contends that R2P's 'reaction pillar'—which allows for military intervention as a last resort—is politically and morally divisive. The author argues that South Africa's interests are shaped by a 'logic of appropriateness' rooted in its identity as an African leader and its history under apartheid, leading it to prioritize 'African solutions to African conflicts'. This is exemplified by the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC), an African-owned military initiative. The paper concludes that R2P fails to resolve the fundamental question of 'who should intervene and why?', and that South Africa's actions, including its controversial role in the 2011 Libya crisis, must be analyzed through the lens of evolving humanitarian intervention norms rather than R2P alone.

The author asserts that South Africa's domestication of the Rome Statute via the Implementation of The Rome Statute of The International Criminal Court Act 27 of 2002 creates a legal obligation that supersedes political resolutions from the African Union (AU). While acknowledging the ICC's perceived bias against Africa and the tension between political settlements and justice, the text argues that sovereignty should not provide a 'free-ticket' to human rights violations. It critiques the Malabo Protocol for excluding heads of state from the jurisdiction of the proposed African Court of Justice and Human Rights, suggesting that African states must build a credible internal system of international criminal justice to end the impunity of political elites.