This report Food Security: Challenges and Prospects highlights the need for more efficient management of the agriculture and water sectors, enhancing the prospects of food security.
The study is far from an exhaustive examination of these issues. In many areas, the analysis is speculative, aimed at raising questions and suggesting areas where domestic and international policy makers may need to consider undertaking further analysis. Above all, it should be stressed that the study raises these matters at a very general level. Whether any given governmental measure is consistent with WTO rules is a highly contextual question, that may well depend on the exact design features of that particular measure, and its broader context – regulatory, technological and commercial. Thus, nothing in this study should be considered as a judgment that any actual measure of any particular government violates WTO rules.
The study has also been prepared at a time when countries across the income spectrum are taking a fresh look at local content requirements, after having largely phased them out in traditional strategic industries such as fossil fuel energy and automobiles. Questions explored include:
This paper proposes a simple index of economic progress that weighs in the monetary cost induced by climate change mitigation policies as well as the health benefits arising from the reduction in local air pollution. The shadow price of pollution is calculated indirectly through its impact on life expectancy. Taking into account the health benefits of mitigation policies significantly reduces their monetary cost in China and India, as well as in countries with large fossil-based energy-producing sectors (Australia, Canada and the United States).
This paper, produced through the New Climate Economy Cities Research Programme, focuses on one central aspect of urban development: transport and urban form and how the two shape the provision of access to people, goods and services, and information in cities. The more efficient this access, the greater the economic benefits through economies of scale, agglomeration effects and networking advantages. This paper discusses how different urban accessibility pathways impact directly on other measures of human development and environmental sustainability. It also presents the enabling conditions for increasing accessibility and low-carbon mobility in cities.
This paper, produced through the New Climate Economy Cities Research Programme, identifies three groups of cities that will be particularly important for the global economy and climate: Emerging Cities, Global Megacities and Mature Cities. When combined, these 468 cities are projected to contribute over 60 per cent of global GDP growth and over half of global energyrelated emissions growth between 2012 and 2030 under business as usual. Furthermore, this paper reviews the contribution of small urban areas to economic growth and carbon emissions. Finally, this paper explores the potential of the 3C model to maximise the benefits of urban growth while minimising the costs in emerging cities, global megacities and mature cities, and reviews examples of cities where elements of the model have already been implemented.
This paper, produced through the New Climate Economy Cities Research Programme, first examines the importance of the third pillar of the 3C model: coordinated governance. Governance will be particularly crucial in many emerging cities where current levels of capacity are often insufficient for implementing the policy programmes needed to move towards compact urban growth and deliver effective, connected infrastructure. Four elements of coordinated urban governance are essential: (1) multi-level governance with effective coordination of national, regional and city policies; (2) city leadership and financial authority; (3) transparency and accountability; and (4) policy integration at the local level. Municipal governments can also use international and regional networks of cities to transfer knowledge and innovation more effectively. Furthermore, this paper reviews the most promising policy tools for delivering the 3C model. These include: (1) planning policy instruments; (2) pricing instruments; and (3) finance mechanisms.