National investment laws are increasingly replacing international treaties as the primary tool for shaping sustainable development. However, many of these domestic frameworks inadvertently replicate the high financial and legal risks of international arbitration through provisions that give "advance consent" to investor–state dispute settlement. 

This report provides a framework for policy-makers to move beyond these risks. It offers a data-driven guide to strengthening domestic judiciaries and designing dispute mechanisms that protect national interests while maintaining investor confidence in the 21st century.

Canada holds the world’s eighth-largest nickel reserves, estimated to be 2.2 million tonnes, or approximately 2% of global reserves. In 2024, Canada produced 125,364 tonnes of nickel, making it the fourth-largest global producer. 

In Canada, mining legislation is primarily developed and administered at the provincial level, resulting in variation across provinces. This case study focuses on Ontario because it is Canada’s largest provincial nickel producer, accounting for almost 40% of national nickel production.

This report explores how governments regulate data—including rules on cross-border data flows and data localization—while examining the role trade agreements play in shaping these frameworks. The primer also highlights the challenges developing countries face as they seek to balance the benefits of open data flows with the policy space needed to pursue development, security, and regulatory objectives, and offers practical insights for policy-makers and trade officials. 

The report is part of a policy primer series, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), aimed at deepening understanding of the key policy and regulatory foundations that shape today’s digital economy. 

This is the fourth report of the Building Blocks of Digital Trade Regulation series. You can continue exploring the series here:

• Report No. 1: Consumer Protection and E-Commerce: Issues for Developing Country Policy-Makers
• Report No. 2: Cybersecurity and International Trade: Understanding the Policy Landscape
• Report No. 3: Setting International Technical Standards to Shape Digital Trade Policy: Approaches, Challenges, and Opportunities for Developing Countries

At the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, the historic UAE Consensus called upon all parties to the Paris Agreement to contribute to transitioning away from fossil fuels in a just, orderly, and equitable manner, accelerating action in this critical decade so as to achieve net-zero by 2050 in keeping with the science. This transition must include both consumption and production of fossil fuels. In this publication, we focus on the production of fossil fuels, since it is an area that is under-researched and under-equipped, but increasingly prominent in policy and academic debates on transitioning away from fossil fuels. 

The subnational state and region level is critical to achieving this transition. While the vast majority of global fossil fuel production is managed by national governments and/or the private sector, their extraction facilities, workforces, and communities exist within states and regions. 

Given the high economic and political dependence of certain states and regions on fossil fuel extraction, they will be critical movers in the transition. In addition, as the global energy transition unfolds, global demand for fossil fuels will decline, leading to lower revenues for subnational governments, and specific policies will be needed to actively diversify the economy and government revenue streams away from fossil fuels, alongside protecting regional workers and communities. 

This report aims to explore and document the role of subnational governments in advancing a just, orderly, and equitable transition away from fossil fuel production as a critical element of the overall transition away from fossil fuels. Drawing on desk research and interviews with subnational governments, it presents a policy toolkit with practical guidelines and actionable insights for these governments.

The Government of India introduced the PM-KUSUM scheme in 2019 with a total outlay of INR 34,422 crores to add ~34,800 MW of solar power in the agriculture sector by March 2026. The scheme has three broad objectives: improving irrigation access through solar-powered irrigation, increasing farmers’ income by enabling them to become energy producers, and reducing the agricultural power subsidy burden on states. 

This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the performance and outcomes of PM-KUSUM’s two grid-connected components: Component A and Component C-FLS. These two components promote medium-scale (typically 1–10 MW) decentralized solar power plants, connected to rural distribution substations and deployed on farmers’ land to support irrigation. While they have generated strong interest among states due to their potential to lower subsidy burdens and enable reliable daytime power for agriculture, progress has remained gradual, underscoring the need for targeted measures to enable scale-up. 

Drawing on extensive research, fieldwork, and stakeholder consultations across Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, the report seeks to 

• examine the progress and limitations in implementing PM-KUSUM Components A and C-FLS;
• highlight challenges faced by state agencies, developers, and farmers, drawing from evidence from field insights;
• provide actionable recommendations to strengthen governance, operational efficiency, and financing, as well as improve infrastructure, awareness, and implementation; and
• inform the design of a post-2026 scheme architecture that is investment-ready and enables state-specific innovations, fostering a long-term, scalable impact. 

The report finds that barriers to scale fall into three interconnected categories: (a) governance challenges that limit state ownership and implementation capacity, (b) market barriers that deter potential small developers and new entrants from participating, through misaligned tariffs, thin financing, and fragmented approvals, and (c) structural constraints around land access and grid readiness that will only intensify as the scheme scales. For each barrier, the report documents what progressive states have already done and translates these lessons into actionable recommendations for the design of PM-KUSUM's next phase.

The inaugural issue of Carbon Market Insights explores the continued mainstreaming of carbon pricing worldwide, now covering over 23% of global greenhouse gas emissions through 43 carbon taxes and 38 emissions trading systems (ETSs) in force. While established markets like the European Union and the United Kingdom saw significant price momentum in late 2025, Asian markets in China and South Korea continue to navigate challenges related to allowance oversupply and low price signals. The issue contextualizes these trends for Southeast Asia with implementation-relevant insights and country-focused updates. 

A central focus of this issue is the "definitive phase" of the European Union’s CBAM, which launched in January 2026. The brief provides a detailed sectoral analysis for Indonesia, the Philippines, and Viet Nam, noting that while their economy-wide exposure remains below 1%, specific industries—particularly iron, steel, and aluminum—face potentially significant liabilities unless domestic decarbonization and robust measurement systems are prioritized. 

The publication further examines national milestones, including Indonesia's strengthened legal framework under Regulation 110/2025, which formally enables international carbon trading under Article 6. It also tracks the progress of Article 6.2 bilateral agreements, where over 100 arrangements have been announced or formalized, signalling growing interest in cross-border carbon transactions led by purchasing countries like Singapore and Japan. Furthermore, while Indonesia remains the only Southeast Asian country with an operational ETS, the implementation of its legislated carbon tax under Law 7/2021 remains postponed.

Articles

International and Regional Developments in Carbon Pricing

Carbon pricing has become mainstream globally, with 43 carbon taxes and 38 ETSs in force covering over 23% of global emissions. This section draws on Canada's experience with carbon pricing reform, offering lessons relevant to Southeast Asia.

Read the article here. 

Border Carbon Adjustments (BCAs) and Article 6 Update

The EU CBAM entered its definitive phase in January 2026. This section analyzes the sectoral trade exposure of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Viet Nam, and tracks progress on Article 6 bilateral carbon trading agreements, where Japan and Singapore have emerged as the most active purchasing countries.

Read the article here.

Indonesia Update

Indonesia is the only Southeast Asian country with an operational ETS. This section examines the significance of Regulation 110/2025 in formally enabling international carbon trading under Article 6 and the current state of market activity on IDXCarbon.

Read the article here.

The Philippines Update

Carbon pricing in the Philippines is shifting from policy debate to formal legislation, with multiple bills now before the 20th Congress. The section also examines the Department of Energy's new framework for generating and trading carbon credits in the energy sector.  

Read the article here.

Viet Nam Update

Trading on Viet Nam's carbon market has been postponed to end of 2026, but regulatory progress continues. New rules on the domestic trading exchange and national registry system are in place, and the country has taken its first steps toward international carbon trading under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Read the article here.

South African municipalities are essential to the JET, yet they remain marginal recipients of climate finance. As electricity distributors, infrastructure managers, and the primary point of contact between communities and the state, municipalities are indispensable to delivering climate resilience and renewable energy at the local level. Yet despite their critical role, South African municipalities receive less than 10% of tracked climate finance—constrained by weak creditworthiness, limited technical capacity, policy misalignment between national and local governments, and funding mechanisms that were not designed with local government in mind. 

This report investigates why the financing gap persists and what it will take to close it. Based on survey data from 20 municipalities, key informant interviews, and analysis of national and global climate finance flows, the report maps the structural barriers blocking municipal access to climate finance and evaluates the instruments available to address them. 

The report identifies four priority areas for reform: capacity building for JET implementation; improved tracking of municipal climate finance flows; stronger financial systems and cost-reflective tariff structures; and expanded public–private partnerships. Addressing these gaps is essential if South Africa's just energy transition is to be locally inclusive, financially sustainable, and equitably distributed across all municipalities—not just the metros.

Geopark Teskei in Kyrgyzstan is experiencing growing tourism demand. While tourism presents economic opportunities, continued expansion of conventional mass tourism risks increasing waste and wastewater pressures, degrading natural assets, and undermining the long-term value of the destination. 

The Nature-Based Infrastructure Global Resource Centre conducted a SAVi assessment to compare two tourism pathways over 25 years: a Conventional Tourism Scenario and a Sustainable Tourism Scenario centered on ecosystem protection and nature-based infrastructure. 

The sustainable pathway includes investments in improved waste and wastewater management systems, restoration of degraded landscapes, soil erosion control, biodiversity protection, and low-impact tourism infrastructure. 

The analysis finds that the sustainable pathway delivers significantly stronger economic performance over 25 years. It generates USD 250 million in net benefits, compared to USD 17.6 million under conventional tourism. For every USD 1 invested, sustainable tourism returns USD 8.88 in combined economic, social, and environmental value. 

This difference is driven by a shift in the tourism model. The sustainable pathway reduces reliance on high-volume, low-spending tourism and instead attracts visitors who generate higher value per trip. At the same time, investments in nature-based infrastructure, such as wetlands and native vegetation, reduce waste management costs and help prevent environmental degradation and infrastructure damage. 

The findings show that sustainable tourism delivers stronger long-term economic results than continued mass tourism.

The inventory provides relevant information on a variety of NbS projects in Belize, including the NbS approach taken, the climate and biodiversity risks addressed, the intended beneficiaries, and the ecosystems targeted. It provides a useful compilation of NbS projects for the Belizean government, protected area managers, adaptation and conservation practitioners, civil society organizations, communities, and funders to help them understand the landscape of implementation in Belize and facilitate further adoption and mainstreaming of NbS.

Johannesburg’s Jukskei River catchment is one of the city’s most degraded urban ecosystems. Rapid urbanization, informal settlements in riparian zones, invasive alien species, solid waste dumping, and aging infrastructure have intensified flooding, sewage contamination, and extreme heat. These pressures disproportionately affect vulnerable communities and place growing strain on public health systems and municipal budgets. 

The Scaling Urban Nature-based Solutions for Climate Adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SUNCASA) project supports ecosystem restoration across the Jukskei River catchment. Implemented by the International Institute for Sustainable Development and the World Resources Institute, the project includes riparian restoration across 469 hectares, urban tree planting with 46,000 trees, removal of invasive alien species, solid waste management, and the development of multifunctional green infrastructure along the river corridor. 

The Nature-Based Infrastructure Global Resource Centre conducted a SAVi assessment to evaluate the full life-cycle costs and benefits of these interventions compared to a business-as-usual scenario. 

Over a 25-year period, the NbS interventions will generate USD 8.6 million in net benefits. For every USD 1 invested, Johannesburg will receive USD 3.06 in economic, social, and environmental returns, and the investment pays for itself within 7 years. 

The largest share of benefits comes from improved water quality. Avoided health costs linked to water pollution amount to USD 3.7 million over 25 years. Additional benefits include reduced flood damage, lower invasive alien plant management costs, carbon sequestration, and employment creation. 

This assessment shows that restoring the Jukskei River is not only an environmental intervention but a financially sound strategy that improves public health, reduces long-term municipal expenditure, and strengthens urban climate resilience in Johannesburg.