Extreme poverty persists in large parts of the world despite decades of economic growth and efforts for poverty eradication. The recent financial, food and economic crises have brought new setbacks in the fight against poverty. Initiatives aimed at greening the economy in different parts of the world have been shown to improve the quality of life, stocks and flows of natural capital, and GDP, especially the GDP of the poor.
The focus of this chapter is to determine the manner in which Aid for Trade projects and programmes can assist countries in southern and eastern Africa to mitigate and adapt to the impact of climate change in moving to a green economy by focusing on green growth and sustainable development. First, a brief overview of Africa’s climate change vulnerabilities on the regional and sectoral level is provided to establish the urgent necessity for a transition to a green economy. Due to their critical importance for economic growth, development and trade in Africa, the sectors focused on are agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, and tourism. Second, the chapter focuses on the important contribution of a green economy in generating economic and environmental benefits for African economies. Third, the concept and categories of Aid for Trade are outlined, and the flow of Aid for Trade commitments and disbursements to African countries is analysed.
This paper highlights three principal areas for work on green economy indicators and the key challenges to developing a framework for metrics for a green economy. While countries require flexibility to meet their different needs and green economy pathways, the development and coordination of enabling conditions at the international level require some degree of standardization and comparability;
· Indicators of economic transformation
· Indicators of resource efficiency
· Indicators of progress and well-being
Building on the existing indicators, UNEP, in consultation with national and other international agencies and stakeholders, is developing options for measuring progress towards a green and inclusive economy.