Reports and Documents

This brief summarizes findings of a project entitled “Food Security in Developing Countries: Gender and Spatial Interactions’” undertaken by researchers from the University of Alberta.

Over the last decade, the combined impact of multiple drivers and shocks including food demand growth, stagnant crop yields, climate change, rising insecurity, and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in worsening food and nutrition insecurity across West Africa.

A strikingly large percentage of workers and firms operate outside the line of sight of governments in emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs)—a challenge that is likely to hold back the recovery in these economies unless governments adopt a comprehensive set of policies to address the drawbacks of the informal sector, a new World Bank

2020 will be remembered as a year that revealed some important truths for a young CREWS Initiative — but ones that should embolden us. COVID-19 did impact work and timelines. It will continue to do so for some time still. The global travel ban tested our business model.

While the global growth outlook has improved, led by robust rebound in China and the United States, surging COVID-19 infections and inadequate vaccination progress in many countries threaten a broad-based recovery of the world economy, says the latest United Nations forecast released.

The scientific and policy debate on the potential benefits and risks of biotechnologies remains polarized.

Renewables were the only energy source for which demand increased in 2020 despite the pandemic, while consumption of all other fuels declined. Will renewable energy source uptake therefore expand more quickly as the global economy recovers from the crisis?

In China, the outbreak of the African Swine Fever is expected to result in a 27% drop in the production of pigmeat, the country’s most consumed meat product.

Electric vehicle sales are rising fast in Europe and a growing number of governments have set targets for phasing out new internal combustion vehicle sales. A fundamental input in deciding the feasibility of such policies is how quickly battery electric vehicles can reach price parity with their internal combustion counterparts.

To be in line with the 1.5°C limit of the Paris Agreement, Germany’s new 2030 domestic reduction target should aim for national emission reductions of at least 69% below 1990 levels. To fully contribute its fair share Germany would have to significantly increase its international climate finance.