05 July 2012 - Private sector-led agribusiness brings with it opportunities but also dangers.
The G8 summit last May ended with a pledge to end hunger in Africa and a plan to inject $3 billion into African agriculture with the aim of “catalysing private sector investment in African agriculture”. This record investment, derived entirely from the private sector, appears to stem from a realisation that previous aid commitments have failed, as well as perhaps an assessment of government priorities in an environment of Western austerity.
The G8’s position represents a significant leap of faith in market-friendly agriculture four years after the 2008 global food crisis when increasing food prices led to unrest in a number of developing countries. For its alleged ability to promote business opportunities in low income markets, offer inputs and links to markets for small-scale producers, agribusiness was recently elevated by the International Fund for Agriculture and Development as a key driver of hunger reduction. The primary objective of the G8’s New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition is a shared commitment to increase investment into African agriculture, luring investors to Africa’s food markets on the premise of favourable returns and low tax rates. It will initially be launched in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania.
For the complete article, please see ThinkAfricaPress.
As part of this year’s online World Water Week at Home, adelphi and IHE Delft convened the workshop "Water diplomacy: a tool for climate action?". The workshop reflected on the role that foreign policy can play in mitigating, solving and potentially preventing conflicts over the management of transboundary water resources, especially in a changing climate.
The Cerrado, a tropical savannah region located in Central Brazil, is nearly half as large as the Amazon and a deforestation hotspot. Yet little attention is paid to this important biome. That has to change.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative projects may exacerbate the risk of climate-related instability across the Middle East in the long term.
With the European Green Deal, the European Commission under President Ursula von der Leyen has committed to accelerating decarbonisation in Europe as a major priority. The report "The Geopolitics of Decarbonization: Reshaping European Foreign Relations" shows how the EU’s external relations need to evolve to adequately reflect the political, economic and social outcomes of this process.