Key Messages

• The SAVi analysis highlights that more effective and systemic measures for reducing pressures on the lake need to be implemented instead of treating only the symptoms of pollution. 
• If the ecological collapse of Lake Dal is to be prevented and fishing activities maintained over time, then business as usual or interventions such as a proposed road construction project and treating sewage solely from lake dwellers and houseboats are all either counterproductive or insufficient approaches.
• A hybrid infrastructure solution is most cost-effective for reducing pollution pressures and for generating economic benefits in the region. This solution combines sewage treatment infrastructure upgrades and the construction of an artificial wetland.   

IISD was invited by the state Government of Jammu & Kashmir to use the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) tool to develop the business case for the long-term conservation of Lake Dal. The lake has long suffered from anthropogenic pressures including encroachment, water extraction, discharge of untreated domestic sewage and fertilizer runoff. This has led to a sharp decrease in water quality, increased eutrophication and further cascading effects such as declining fish stocks and reduced recreational attractiveness.
 
The report presents the interim results of the SAVi simulation and analysis. By considering Lake Dal and the surrounding area as an interconnected economic, environmental and social "system," impacts of competing users and associated sources of pollution on the lake's water quality were assessed. SAVi was then used to simulate how a clean and productive lake would increase revenues for associated industries such as tourism and fisheries. The SAVi analysis is organized under a range of scenarios, including business as usual, grey infrastructure interventions, natural infrastructure interventions, relocation of lake dwellers and road construction.
 
The analysis reveals important insights for formulating policies and prioritizing conservation measures. More effective and systemic measures for reducing pressures on the lake need to be implemented urgently instead of treating only the symptoms of pollution such as algae growth. The analysis highlights that neither business as usual nor the incautious construction of a proposed road along the lake are viable options if the ecological collapse of Lake Dal is to be prevented and fishing activities maintained over time. Neither will it be sufficient to address sewage pressures caused solely by lake dwellers or houseboats. 
 
Deploying a hybrid infrastructure solution is most cost-effective for reducing pollution pressures and for generating economic benefits in the region. The scenario envisions the simultaneous implementation of four interventions: (i) establishing sewage network connectivity and sewage treatment capacity for treating sewage from inhabitants living in the periphery of the lake; (ii) installing solar photovoltaic to provide reliable and emission-free electricity to the sewage treatment infrastructure to avoid accidental discharge during power cuts; (iii) implementing on-site sewage treatment for lake dwellers and houseboats; and (iv) the construction of an artificial wetland.

The Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) is an initiative that aims to strengthen Tanzania’s agriculture sector.

IISD has carried out an economic and financial assessment of different irrigation options to deliver the outcomes of the SAGCOT initiative. IISD used the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) tool for this assessment.

SAVi is a simulation service that helps governments and investors value the many risks and externalities that affect the performance of infrastructure projects.

The distinctive features of SAVi are:

• Valuation: SAVi values, in financial terms, the material environmental, social and economic risks and externalities of infrastructure projects. These variables are ignored in traditional financial analyses.
• Simulation: SAVi combines the results of systems thinking and system dynamics simulation with project finance modelling. We engage with asset owners to identify the risks material to their infrastructure projects and then design appropriate simulation scenarios.
• Customization: SAVi is customized to individual infrastructure projects.

Key Messages

• Most of the people suffering from hunger around the world live in rural areas and engage in agricultural activity. Financing infrastructure, including roads, storage and localized energy grids, will help provide food security for the 821 million people estimated to live in hunger worldwide.
• About one third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted globally, amounting to about 1.3 billion tonnes per year. Storage facilities play a critical role in ensuring food security and ending hunger. Governments should create dedicated funds with a mandate to provide financing for storage infrastructure projects to reduce post-harvest loss.
• Agricultural productivity resulting from irrigation can be more than twice as productive on a per-hectare basis than rainfed production. Investing in water distribution, such as through public–private partnerships, is crucial. Access to reliable water sources positively contributes to women’s empowerment through increased asset ownership and control over resources, better sanitation, local job creation and food security.  

Most of the people suffering from hunger around the world live in rural areas and engage in agricultural activity. It is not just a coincidence that they also often lack basic services, such as energy and irrigation provision, due to a lack of infrastructure. This lack of infrastructure is an important reason for their vulnerability to hunger.

This is why our new report explores the importance of financing infrastructure, including roads, storage and localized energy grids: because investment in infrastructure will help provide food security for the 821 million people estimated to live in hunger worldwide.  

Investing in rural roads helps connect farmers to markets and links agricultural and non-agricultural communities; building storage bins keeps the harvest fresher longer and sustainable irrigation systems increase yields. Yet financing infrastructure has been notoriously hard historically because investors dislike the risks of agricultural production. Today, new tools are available to us.

Read this report, or our policy brief, to discover how new financial instruments can support a decentralized and robust infrastructure base for farmers, food processors and rural communities.

Pricing drives economic decision making, and subsidies (along with taxation) are one of the key tools that governments use to influence prices, and through them investment decisions and consumer behaviour.

This update highlights the most significant developments in the dynamic domain of India’s energy subsidy policies in FY 2017 and explores the role that subsidies play with respect to four themes: energy access; the role of coal; prospects for renewables; and a transport sector transition. It finds that the total value of quantified energy subsidies has declined from INR 2,15,974 crore (USD 35.7 billion) in FY2014 to INR 1,51,484 crore (USD 23 billion) in FY2017. Subsidies to fossil fuels have declined over this period, while subsidies to renewables and electric vehicles (EVs) have increased. However, the absolute value of subsidies to fossil fuels is much greater than those to renewables and EV.

With support from the Government of Canada, the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF) is working with a voluntary selection of its member states to help them operationalize practices consistent with the IGF’s Mining Policy Framework (MPF).

The first assessments were carried out in 2014 in the Dominican Republic, Madagascar and Uganda. Based on the success of these initial evaluations, the IGF will conduct three or four assessments each year in response to member requests.

The MPF assessment process is made up of two main steps. First, the MPF assessment team evaluates relevant national, regional and international laws, policies, conventions and administrative frameworks for mining and minerals development and management relative to the six themes of the MPF: the Legal and Policy Environment, Financial Benefit Optimization, Socioeconomic Benefit Optimization, Environmental Management, the Post-Mining Transition, and Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM). This work is done both through desk- and field-based research involving diverse stakeholders. The second phase involves working with the government to develop and deliver capacity building and technical support that address priority gaps identified during the assessment.

This report presents the mining policy framework assessment for Kyrgyzstan, with a view toward helping the government target its efforts in implementing the MPF, informing capacity-building efforts and allowing for monitoring of progress over time.

IISD is proud to partner with CONECC German-Mexican Energy Partnership on this report which identifies and evaluates options for reforming Mexico’s electricity subsidies.

In 2016 electricity subsidies amounted to MXN 130 billion (USD 6.8 billion). Households received 78 per cent of this subsidy, followed by the agricultural sector (11.3 per cent), industry (10 per cent) and services (0.7 per cent). The options are drawn from public reform discussions that have been taking place in Mexico and have been proposed by Mexican experts, focusing on the two most subsidized categories of electricity consumer: residential and agriculture. The evaluation is conducted considering a series of possible socioeconomic impacts on different income groups.

Reposted with the permission of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

Energy transitions are about people—workers, consumers, businesses, communities, taxpayers and voters—who make decisions that lead to transitions and are ultimately affected by them.

The world has seen many transitions in the past, from automation to the decline or relocation of entire industries that led to job losses and the economic decline of regions. This has created a fear of future transitions being similarly painful. Low-carbon energy transitions are already happening in many countries, often due to economic factors or health concerns, but also supported and accelerated by climate change policies. Nevertheless, the actors involved, including governments, businesses, workers and communities, have a tendency to protect the status quo and keep carbon-intensive industries alive. Inaction can be costly. Experiences with past transitions have shown that prolonging the lifetime of declining industries often leads to subsidies, higher costs for worker retraining and unemployment, health and environmental costs, and missed opportunities for the diversification of an economy.

Early action on a just transition can minimize the negative impacts and maximize positive opportunities. The Paris Agreement on climate change includes a just transition as an important principle. A just transition is not a fixed set of rules, but a vision and a process based on dialogue and a tripartite agenda shared by workers, industry and governments that needs to be negotiated and implemented in its geographical, political, cultural and social context. It is implemented with a set of guiding principles, such as the Guidelines for a Just Transition of the International Labour Organization.

Energy transitions can seem daunting, making it difficult to act early. This report aims to support governments of both developed and developing countries in their endeavour to make energy transitions just. It brings together political and communications strategies for a just transition, building on research and case studies of energy transitions that have happened or that are happening in Canada, Egypt, Indonesia, India, Poland and Ukraine.

Key Messages

• Subsidies to butane in Morocco are expensive: around 3.9 per cent of the Morrocan government budget was spent on butane subsidies in 2017.
• Proposals to reform butane subsidies could have a significant impact on consumers. Mitigation measures are needed to reduce social impacts and improve targetting.
• A swap from fossil fuel subsidies to renewable energy could help to reduce subsidy costs and prompt a clean energy transition.

In Morocco's agricultural sector, subsidized butane gas is used for irrigation and household tasks.

A proposed reform of the system of butane subsidies could substantially increase energy costs for some consumers, potentially increasing energy poverty and pushing some rural consumers toward cooking on open fires. 

A subsidy swap replacing subsidies to fossil fuels with renewable energy could allow the removal of fossil fuel subsidies and promote a transition to clean energy. Two technologies—solar irrigation pumps and solar thermal collectors—could potentially offset the use of butane and reduce the cost of butane subsidies. However, policies are needed to overcome high upfront costs. This report reviews how butane subsidies can be reformed, how the impacts on consumers can be managed and how some of the savings can be reallocated to promote a transition to clean energy.       

ONLY AVAILABLE IN FRENCH  

The climate is changing. Impacts are being felt, and adjustments today and in the future are necessary.

More and more countries are defining and addressing their medium- and long-term climate adaptation priorities through National Adaptation Plan (NAP) processes.

The NAP Global Network was created to support developing countries in advancing their NAP processes, and help accelerate adaptation efforts around the world.

This progress report focuses on our activities from November 2017 to November 2018. It also provides an update on the Network’s overall progress.

In Zambia’s electricity sector, demand has risen faster than supply.

In response to rising demand, several new power plants have been commissioned, including the 300 MW Maamba coal power plant and the 120 MW Itezhi Tezhi hydropower plant in 2016. Subsidies, particularly in the form of under-recovery of electricity sector revenues caused by below-cost pricing, have led to electricity sector deficits and threatened the financial sustainability of the sector.

Price increases in the electricity sector in 2017 of 75 per cent have reduced electricity sector subsidies, but costs remain higher than revenues. This report explores how subsidy reform could help to reduce the cost of subsidies and promote a transition to energy efficiency and clean energy. The report focuses on the mining sector, which is responsible for more than half of all electricity consumption, and the potential of solar PV.