The International Monetary Fund (IMF) levies surcharges, or extra fees, on member countries that either draw “substantial” amounts of IMF credit to mitigate the balance of payments constraints or maintain their credit exposure with the institution for sufficiently long periods. Reportedly designed to discourage the overuse of Fund resources and ensure the IMF’s financial soundness, […]
In April 2022, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) established the Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST), its first lending facility to provide longer-term concessional financing to low- and middle-income countries to help tackle key structural challenges such as climate change and pandemic preparedness. The RST is resourced through voluntary re-channeling by Group of 20 (G20) countries […]
It is now widely recognized that emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) excluding China need to mobilize $3 trillion annually – $1 trillion from external sources and $2 trillion domestically – by 2030 to meet shared climate and development goals. These investments are not only essential to avoiding the relative catastrophic economic, social and environmental […]
The clean transition toward net zero is often constrained by inadequate finance and access to affordable climate technologies, especially for developing countries. While the Group of 20 (G20) has been at the forefront of efforts to take steps to address the financial challenges, the generation and diffusion of climate technologies must also receive due attention. […]
By Rebecca Ray In 2023, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and China continued to deepen their economic relations, with a record number of presidential visits and continued strength in Chinese investment and infrastructure in LAC. These are among the findings of the 2024 edition of the China-Latin America and the Caribbean Economic Bulletin, published […]
The climate crisis prompted the International Monetary Fund (IMF), an international lender of last resort, to implement wholesale reforms to incorporate climate policy into its operations. At the IMF, however, selected countries from the Global North, which are also historically the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, dominate decision-making. Given this, can the Fund implement an […]
With the adoption of carbon neutrality policies, an increasing number of countries have implemented diverse measures to facilitate the energy transition away from fossil fuels. However, ascertaining the efficacy of these measures towards meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement and carbon neutrality has emerged as a critical concern in recent years. In a new […]
In 2017, the Trump administration reinstated and expanded the Mexico City Policy (MCP) as the “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance” (PLGHA) policy, forbidding international organizations receiving US health assistance from promoting abortion. Existing evidence suggests that abortion rates rise under the MCP, but the direct effect of US funding restrictions on supply and use […]
By Tsitsi Musasike, Jiaqi Lu, Adjeikai Adjei, Kudakwashe Ndhlukula, Eugenia Masvikeni, Kevin P. Gallagher and Maipelo Stroh The 2024-2025 policy calendar reveals key opportunities for African countries and international stakeholders to address key challenges that are hampering the expansion of renewable energy and energy access across the continent. Prominently, this includes the Forum on China-Africa […]
In Kenya, interpersonal violence (IPV) is an issue of major public health concern, with 24 percent of Kenyan women reporting physical violence from a current husband or partner. IPV has profound impacts on physical and mental health outcomes, particularly for pregnant women; it has been found to increase the risk of perinatal mortality, low birth […]