Simply Put: Budget 2024

New economy, old habits

What will be the business model that we take to the promised green economy?

Africa’s debt crisis needs a bold new approach: Expert outlines a way forward

Africa needs to advocate more aggressively for its own interests

Union Budget 2024-25: High on claims, less on substance

The budget speech was reduced to unsubstantiated claims and dangling the carrot of prosperity in future yet again

It is a global recession with economic growth among lowest in four decades

Inequalities, lack of uniform growth among countries making global economic recovery difficult, shows UN’s Trade and Development …

Global growth to slow in 2023, trade to grow at less than a third the pace before pandemic: World Bank

Growth projections for 70% emerging markets & developing countries downgraded  

The Industrial Revolution began in Stuart Britain in the 1600s, a century before the traditional date: University of Cambridge

Britain’s service sector has been growing almost continuously for three hundred years, according to research  

ENaira: Nigeria’s digital currency has had a slow start — what’s holding it back

Nigeria was the first country in Africa to roll out a central bank digital currency

A robust maritime sector can steer inclusive development in India

Indigenous maritime sector requires a shift from current piecemeal policy architecture to a more holistic approach

Ghana’s informal mining harms health and the land — but reforms must work with people, not against them

New strategies must minimise the detrimental effects of mining while maximising the beneficial ones

Employment enigma: India’s high rate of self-employment gets reflected as a decrease in unemployment rate

The number of self-employed has increased in India, a trend usually seen in poor and developing countries with low per capita income

Need for SDG-linked outcome budgeting in India: A case of Assam

OBS, a budgetary instrument linking expenditure to specific targets, can be a crucial tool to meet aspirations within a defined time frame

Rising tomato prices made ‘thali’ dearer in July; cost of platter surged by 34%

Prices of tomatoes rose by 233 per cent — to Rs 110 per kg in July from Rs 33 per kg in June

Governments should ensure sustainable livelihood for India’s fisherfolk

There are instances of fishermen being threatened with guns for entering into channels constructed by the port authorities 

Houthi rebel Red Sea attacks, threat of escalation, supply chain chaos are a major headache — and not just for the west

Airstrikes entail further risks of regional escalation, drawing other countries in the region, such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, into the conflict &…

Global triggers: Why these five big issues could cause significant problems in 2024

Trends of global power tensions, open war, democratic decline and extreme job market fluctuations are likely to continue in 2024

New treaty to protect the world’s oceans may hurt vulnerable African fisheries

The treaty needs clear regulations; subsidies for distant water vessels can encourage overexploitation of vulnerable species.

Diversifying economy, focusing on climate resilience: Congo can reduce rural poverty by 40%, says World Bank

A $245 million investment in climate-smart agriculture can increase crop yields by 50% and cut emissions by 12 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent

Make Free Trade Agreement negotiations transparent: MPs, trade experts, activists write to Centre

Letter comes amid ongoing India’s ongoing trade negotiations with the European Union in Brussels

Europe beats Russian winter; EU upgrades continent’s growth outlook despite energy crisis

The upward revision is despite an anticipated winter slump amid Russia’s war on Ukraine coupled with a looming energy crisis

A job in a warzone or unemployment at home

Indian diplomatic missions need to closely monitor the security situation and assess the threat perceptions to its communities

Poorest countries are in debt; spent record $443.5 bln in debt service payments

Interest payments by these countries quadrupled to all-time high of $23.6 billion in 2022

Idea of green growth losing traction among climate policy researchers, survey of nearly 800 academics reveals

Researchers from the EU and other OECD nations demonstrated high levels of scepticism

Climate change, war disrupting global trade in 3 key sea lanes of Black Sea, Red Sea & Panama Canal: UNCTAD

UN body warns that prolonged interruptions, particularly in container shipping, poses a direct threat to global supply chains  

Post-pandemic blues of predatory pharma

Huge stockpiles of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, along with a steep drop in revenues, tell a sorry tale of Big Pharma’s greed