Affordable and Clean Energy

This report assesses recent trends in growth and poverty in the least developed countries (LDCs), as well as changes in terms of development partnership. It discusses the fact that rapid economic growth in the LDCs has been associated with a slow rate of poverty reduction and slow progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. The report also considers progress towards country-owned development strategies in LDCs and the role of recipient- led aid management policies at the country level as a practical policy mechanism to strengthen country ownership.

Natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), has clear environmental benefits over other, more carbon-intensive fossil fuels. Substituting other fossil fuels by natural gas can substantially reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and of other pollutants (particulate matter, and oxides of nitrogen and sulfur) and contribute to the decarbonisation policy objectives. Regasification terminals can play a key role in ensuring security of supply, diversification of supply, as well as enabling the integration of renewable energy. This publication looks into a case study in truck loading.

The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting for Energy (SEEA-Energy) is a multi-purpose, conceptual framework for organizing energy-related statistical information. It supports analysis of the role of energy within the economy and of the relationship between energy-related activities and the environment.

This publication represents the final report of the United Nations Framework Classification for Fossil Energy and Mineral Resources (UNFC) Mapping Task Force, however it should be seen as an interim step in an ongoing process. In particular, the mapping work was completed in the context of proposed changes to some of the definitions of the UNFC and, as these changes have yet to be adopted, it is therefore provisional in that sense. Further, it is recognized that as more detailed mapping work is undertaken, it may be necessary to make some adjustments to the mapping between systems. Key conclusions and specific recommendations are outlined in the publication.

This synthesis publication contains lessons from assessments of interlinkages, trade-offs and benefits in managing water, energy and land/agriculture, as well as protecting the environment in transboundary basins in Southern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia and North Africa. These have been drawn from the collective experience of Parties to the Water Convention and other States, joint bodies, as well as other stakeholders who participated in these nexus assessments. The synthesis publication consolidates the methodology for assessment of nexus issues and for identification of solutions in transboundary basins, developed under the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes in 2013-2015, which so far has been applied in seven basins. The publication was developed in response to the decision by the Meeting of the Parties in 2015 to promote the application of the methodology in other basins worldwide by sharing experience. The publication also aims to foster follow-up action to the nexus assessments. Coherence between sectoral policies, but also with environment and climate policies, and integrated planning are major challenges for many countries. Related shortcomings result in negative impacts causing friction between riparian countries, in inefficiencies at different levels and missed opportunities for more sustainable and cooperative development. The international community explicitly calls for a nexus approach to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The assessments applying the methodology provide a better basis to address these challenges, firstly by a structured analysis, considering technical aspects and governance across sectors, and, secondly, by an intersectoral transboundary dialogue. The resulting insights can also help reinforce national efforts to optimize resource use, including increasing efficiency, improve policy coherence and achieve co-management benefits. The main audience are sectoral authorities of countries seeking to initiate, broaden or revisit transboundary cooperation; regional organizations and cooperation organizations; International organizations and bilateral development partners.

Criteria and indicators constitute an increasingly common policy tool to implement sustainable forest management (SFM) and to define clear priorities and targets. This should improve monitoring, reporting and assessment of key aspects of SFM performance. These guidelines provide specific concepts, definitions, tools and reference materials to guide the development process of national criteria and indicator sets for SFM. These guidelines have been developed to support the project “Accountability Systems for Sustainable Forest Management in the Caucasus and Central Asia” which is implemented through the UNECE and FAO Forestry and Timber Section and funded through the UN Development Account. The guidelines and the methods described within are used and applied for the development of national criteria and indicator sets for sustainable forest management in Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. The guidelines might be also relevant for other countries.

The present publication surveys academic and policy-oriented literature on the relationship between the environmental, social and human health impacts of textile production and processing, on the one hand, and the extent to which information about such impacts reaches the final consumer. In doing so it examines the incidence of purchases of textile and apparel that may incorporate parts and components coming from environmentally harmful production processes that may have health consequences for workers and consumers. It also delves into how the textile industry relates to the concepts of transparency, traceability, supply-chain mapping and sustainable sourcing. It further attempts to answer questions such as: are there economic gains to reap for businesses becoming sustainable? Are there innovative IT solutions to facilitate textile value chains’ transparency through traceability? Lastly, is there scope for recommending regulatory action on both the public and private sectors’ side?

This report focuses on the role of access to modern energy in economic structural transformation - a critical issue both for the least developed countries (LDCs) and for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The report focuses on the particular circumstances, challenges and experiences of the LDCs. Second, the report focuses on transformative energy access - an approach to universal access that goes beyond basic household needs to provide the means for structural transformation of LDCs' economies through the development of more productive modern activities and sectors. Third, it shows the role of structural transformation in increasing energy access, by generating sufficient additional demand for electricity for productive uses. Finally, it presents new estimates of the investment costs of universal access to electricity and transformative energy access in LDCs.

Graduation is the process through which least developed countries (LDCs) cease to be members of the LDC category, in recognition of their advances in development. In principle, it marks a shift from dependency to a greater degree of self-sufficiency and emergence from the development "traps" which beset LDCs. However, the loss of access to international support measures (ISMs) tied to LDC status at graduation can give rise to important economic costs, including an estimated 3–4 per cent of export revenues in the case of trade preferences. During the 45 years since the establishment of the LDC category, only four countries have graduated from LDC status; and the Report's projections indicate that the target of half of the LDCs graduating by 2020 is unlikely to be met. This partly reflects the inadequacy of the existing ISMs. The projections also suggest a fundamental shift in the composition of the group, which by 2025 will consist almost entirely of African countries and include only one small-island economy. The Report argues that graduation should be viewed as part of a longer and broader development process, and emphasizes the need for "graduation with momentum" - an approach which goes beyond fulfilment of the statistical criteria for graduation to lay the foundations for future development. This means prioritizing structural transformation of the economy, development of productive capacities, upgrading technology and raising productivity. The Report highlights several policy areas essential to achieve "graduation with momentum" - rural transformation, industrial policy, science, technology and innovation policy, finance and macroeconomic policy, employment generation and women's empowerment. It calls on the international community to contribute by fulfilling their commitments in areas such as aid and technology. It also suggests possible revisions to the graduation criteria to reflect more appropriately issues such as structural transformation, environmental sustainability and gender equality.

The 2016 Electricity Profiles contains electricity profiles for about 230 countries and territories, providing detailed information on production, trade and consumption of electricity, net installed capacity and thermal power plant input and efficiency for most countries, on an internationally comparable basis. It is published by the United Nations Statistics Division with the aim of providing an overall picture of the electricity sector of such countries and areas. Electricity production and electric installed capacity are disaggregated by source, as coming from Combustible fuels, Hydro, Nuclear and Other sources; and by type of producer, whether from main activity producers or autoproducers.