The intersection between climate transition policies and geoeconomic fragmentation: A report of the International Relations Committee Network on climate change

Two phenomena are increasingly reshaping the world economy. One is the growing and well-documented importance of climate transition policies that differ across countries. The other is the stark rise of geoeconomic fragmentation (GEF) concerns. While differences in climate transition policies are not new, they could amplify GEF, which is a new, growing risk. Conceptually, GEF is a policy-driven reversal of global economic integration, guided by strategic considerations such as national security, sovereignty, autonomy, or economic rivalry. It does not include reversals to global economic integration that are driven by autonomous change, such as shifts in technology, demographics or preferences, or policies motivated primarily by prudential or environmental concerns and labour or human rights. GEF propagates via all the channels through which countries engage with each other economically and politically to provide global public goods such as climate change mitigation. The steep rise in trade and investment restrictions points to coming headwinds which could be compounded by uncoordinated climate transition policies. Conversely, GEF could make transition policies more difficult as, together with their prerequisites - such as shared regulatory approaches, knowledge sharing and financial aid to less well-off countries - they hinge on effective cross-border coordination and collaboration. There is a considerable risk that GEF may hinder climate transition policies. The report is structured as follows. The first section sheds light on how climate policies may contribute to GEF. The second section analyses the extent to which GEF could hinder the green transition. The last section discusses gaps and avenues for further analytical and model-based work

Flexible asset purchases and repo market functioning

Flexibility has progressively become a distinctive feature of the implementation of the Eurosystem's asset purchases. In its many manifestations, flexibility has also been used by asset managers in the daily selection of sovereign bonds to limit the impact of asset purchases on repo market specialness. This study shows that, since the inception of the Public Sector Purchase Programme, flexible purchases of bonds greatly mitigated the Eurosystem's footprint on the repo market

Leveraging Distributed ledger technology in Unified beneficiary registry system of Malawi: A Task-technology fit Theory perspective

Social cash transfer plays a critical role is supporting vulnerable communities to overcome poverty and shocks in Malawi. Digital technologies are integrated in social cash transfer to improve operations and deliver value to citizens. This paper analysed the potential use of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in unified beneficiary registry (UBR) system for social cash transfer in Malawi. The study used concepts from Technology-Task fit theory to understand social cash transfer tasks and characteristics of UBR system using secondary data. The findings showed that DLT may enhance the functions of UBR in supporting data sharing in a decentralised manner, maintaining transparency and accountability in transactions, supporting electronic payments, improving security, and addressing issues of infrastructure. The study highlights the significance of training and compliance with legal and regulatory frameworks. The study contributes towards understanding of the use of DLT in social protection programs in the context of developing countries. The paper suggest recommendations for practitioners and areas of further research

Assessing the role of tax-benefit systems in reducing the gender income gap in Latin America

This paper aims to assess the extent to which cash transfers, direct taxes, and social contributions help to reduce gender income inequalities in seven Latin American countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay. We apply microsimulation techniques to household survey data and allocate incomes within the household, assuming that each person retains the income they receive (e.g., earnings, benefits targeting mothers) and pays taxes and social insurance contributions on an individual basis according to each countrys rules. Then, we compare gender income ratios based on market (before taxes and benefits) and disposable (after taxes and benefits) income. Our results show that, at the bottom of the distribution, tax-benefit systems significantly reduce gender income disparities in most countries due to the effect of social assistance benefits received by mothers in poor households. Additionally, we find that women have substantially higher poverty rates than men based on individual disposable income. Gender differences in poverty fade away when income is pooled at the couple level and, even more so, at the household level

Impact evaluation: an essential tool to improve FDI promotion

This Perspective explores how impact evaluation on IPA's activities and projects can substantially improve the effectiveness and the competitive position of attracting FDI to the host country

Germany's 9-Euro ticket: Impact of a cheap public transport ticket on mobility patterns and infrastructure quality

The 9-Euro Ticket increased public transport use but hardly shifted away from car travel. Train use surged for leisure activities; car use dropped least among commuters. The 9-Euro Ticket led to overcrowding, delaying both regional and non-covered long-distance trains. A rough calculation indicates that the fuel discount minimally impacted our estimates. High costs, low car-to-train shift, and train delays call for other decarbonization strategies

A China pode afetar a transição energética na América Latina? Uma análise a partir do índice de transição energética do Fórum Econômico Mundial

The objective of this work was to explore energy transition trajectories in China and Latin America, indicating their synergies and potential. Starting from a description of the Energy Transition Index (ETI) and an explanation of its methodology, we sought to map the global energy transition, emphasizing its challenging momentum and the imperative of its acceleration. In this sense, strategies that can be designed and implemented for the decarbonization of energy systems were identified, and the importance of international cooperation was highlighted. Given national and regional particularities, the evolution and perspectives of the energy transition in China and Latin America were observed, especially with regard to the dimensions of equity, security, and sustainability. It was argued that China can constitute a key ally for the energy transition in Latin America, contributing to reducing investment gaps, diversifying energy systems, and developing green industries

Trade, jobs and technological change: What to expect in the next five years?

This Policy Brief explores the intertwined effects of trade and technological change (notably robotics and AI) on employment, highlighting a growing divergence between the number of jobs supported by exports and the declining labour intensity of exports in recent years. The decline in labour intensity may be sharply accelerated by the rise of robotics and the automation of routine tasks, displacing workers in manufacturing and logistics while enhancing productivity. For many countries that have a strong dependence on the tradejobs nexus, the historically declining labour intensity of exports combined with the rapid adoption of robotics in key economic sectors, will mean that industries could now rely on fewer workers for their exporting activities. This dual shock suggests that, in the future, the number of jobs that depend on trade may decline. The convergence of these forces may lead to certain sectors or regions bearing the brunt of such potential labour disruptions. To address these challenges, supporting policies will be required to mitigate these adverse effects

Political Spillovers of Worker Representation: With or Without Workplace Democracy?

A series of studies show that unions and works councils have an influence on workers' political activities and attitudes. However, at issue are the transmission channels through which worker representation impacts workers' political activities and attitudes. This article discusses from a theoretical and empirical viewpoint whether the influence of worker representation reflects increased workplace democracy. The article also discusses possible policy implications

Does Internet use help to achieve sustainable food consumption? Evidence from rural China

Internet use is widely studied as an important socio-economic factor influencing agricultural productivity, income, the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices, and farmer welfare, but scant attention is given to its influence on sustainable food consumption. Using longitudinal data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), this study seeks to better understand the causal effect of Internet use on sustainable food consumption measured by food carbon and food water footprints and shed light on its underlying channels. The instrumental variable estimation is used to solve the endogeneity problem of Internet use and the propensity score matching (PSM) method is used for robustness check. The results show that Internet use significantly decreases food carbon and food water footprints by 18.1 % and 10.6 %, respectively. Internet use promotes the development of sustainable food consumption mainly by reducing the consumption of animal-based food such as pork and eggs. Further heterogeneity analysis results indicate that Internet use mainly affects the sustainable food consumption of young and high-income individuals. Policy implications for reducing food carbon and food water footprints and achieving a win-win situation for consumption and the environment are also discussed