This Working Paper analyses opportunities and threats for low-income countries, and the business case for low carbon investment. The study sets out to answer the following questions:
i) How will climate change, international mitigation, and scarcity of natural resources affect trade opportunities and the competitiveness of the most important economic sectors in low-income countries?
ii) How can policymakers and businesses in those countries best respond to the opportunities and threats identified?
iii) When do these three competitiveness-related drivers create a business case for low carbon investment, and when do they create a trade-off? What are the implications for policy?
This paper argues that least developed countries (LDCs) are greatly threatened by human induced climate change, because their dependence on rain-fed agriculture and forestry as sources of employment and income make them vulnerable to climatic changes and variability. Many LDCs are already subject to climatic stress due to their location in the tropics and other areas subject to a high incidence of weather-related shocks. The paper notes that the most important source of greenhouse gas emissions in LDCs is land use change, in particular deforestation. Halting deforestation is, thus, a key priority for low carbon development.
This book provides a much needed look at the impact of climate change on the poor. It convincingly demonstrates that issues of poverty and livelihoods must be integrated into climate change policies to help achieve sustainable development gains. The high incidence of natural disasters, growing urbanization, and increased water scarcity combined with the acute impact of these phenomena on the poor and vulnerable complicates the already enormous challenge of reducing poverty and inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean. This publication lays bare the social implications of climate change and equips the reader with a framework for understanding how climate change and climate variability affect livelihoods, poverty, income, health, and migration. These scenarios call for greater efforts to incorporate poverty, livelihood, and social considerations into climate change adaptation and mitigation policies. Purposefully targeted policies and investments can support economic growth and poverty reduction efforts and help achieve sustainable development goals. In other words, good climate change adaptation policies can also be good development policies.
China and India are heavily dependent on high-carbon fossil fuels. This article elaborates the implications of low-carbon energy transitions in the two countries, which can mitigate their serious contribution to climate change while allowing economic growth. Three modelling case studies are presented: for the Chinese power sector, the economy of Beijing and rural Indian households without access to electricity. They demonstrate a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and energy use, while costs are likely to increase. Financial assistance and technology transfer will be needed to support their efforts towards a climate-friendly lowcarbon economy.
This summary was prepared by Eldis.
By analysing both the risks and potential benefits of China’s shift to a low carbon economy and society, this Human Development Report hopes to contribute to China’s rapidly evolving policies in this area. It highlights that, if China can fully grasp the opportunities at hand, it could move to a society which is not only environmentally sustainable, but which also creates the conditions for greater job creation, enhanced resource efficiency and energy security, better food security and health outcomes for the people. The report points out that the benefits of China’s rapid growth have not come without some serious costs, including damages to the country’s environment and natural resources. Climate change adds new complexities to China’s quest for sustainable and equitable development. The report urges China to work on two fronts: it must deal with the existing and inevitable effects of climate change, and lower the growth of greenhouse gas emissions to prevent even greater threats.
This summary was prepared by Eldis.