Browse Research

The paper Scale and Sustainability: Toward a Public-Private Paradigm in Powering India assesses the Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) market in India by looking at the supply, demand and framework conditions for the sector, and spells out potential approaches to levelling the playing field.

The report Financing for SMEs in Sustainable Global Value Chains demonstrates how governments, financial institutions and businesses can work together to support financing models that encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to upgrade their production processes to comply with sustainability standards in global value chains (GVCs).

Part 1 explores the importance of SMEs and GVCs for emerging economies. It also examines the rise of sustainability standards and the challenges and opportunities they pose for SMEs. Part 2 reports findings from a stocktaking exercise conducted through a survey administered to governments, financial institutions, businesses and information technology platforms in G20 and non-G20 economies. Lastly, Part 3 outlines policy considerations for the various stakeholders, governments, financial institutions and businesses to develop new financing models to support sustainability-oriented SMEs in GVCSs. 

The paper How the WTO Can Help Tackle Climate Change through Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform: Lessons from the Fisheries Negotiations assesses whether the WTO should have a role within the broader context of climate change and, more specifically, in advancing fossil fuel subsidy reform (FFSR).

The paper Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform in the WTO: Options for Constraining Dual Pricing in the Multilateral Trading System discusses the practice of energy dual pricing in the broader context of fossil fuel subsidy reform. The contribution explores avenues for constraining dual pricing, which is approached as a fossil fuel subsidy, within the framework of the WTO. It does so by proposing options under existing rules, as well as suggesting changes to the system beyond current rules.

The piece suggests that WTO members wishing to take action against dual-pricing policies maintained by other members could explore bringing a case to dispute settlement on the basis of specific provisions under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM) and/or the Anti-Dumping Agreement (ADA). Bringing a case would send a strong signal that dual-pricing policies are not immune to being challenged in a WTO dispute. Moreover, it is likely that this would function as a trigger to rapidly include talks on broader fossil fuel subsidy reform on the WTO agenda.

The Briefing Paper Accelerating Green Infrastructure Financing in Mexico: Towards Sustainable Economic Growth looks at the rationale for a new approach and the case for a green investment strategy.