Towards improved policy and institutional coherence in the promotion of sustainable biofuels in Mali

Interest in the promotion of biofuel investments to mediate the energy crisis and assist rural development is growing across sub-Saharan Africa. However, empirical evidence on how policy can effectively promote sustainable biofuels is largely lacking. This paper presents new, multi-level assessments of the implications of the Malian Strategy for Biofuels Development for the promotion of the oil-bearing, non-edible tree Jatropha curcas (Jatropha) as a sustainable development tool in Mali: a sub-Saharan African country that has led Jatropha-derived biofuel policy initiatives. In doing so, the paper addresses knowledge gaps on the role of national policy instruments in the uptake of biofuel activities. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with government departments, international organizations, private sector representatives, non-governmental organizations and farming communities. Data show that mainstreaming internationally agreed principles into national policies is key to attract monetary, institutional and technical support from international organizations and donors. However, there are gaps between policy targets, actual yields and land cover. Jatropha oil supplies remain insufficient for improving access to fuel and substituting national consumption. Ambitious land cover targets set within national policies could risk land use shifts away from food towards biofuel production. Improved cooperation and coordination among state departments, enhanced monitoring of programmes and projects, as well as the establishment of adequate regulatory and fiscal frameworks governing private biofuel investments are needed to achieve sustainable outcomes

DETERMINANTS OF CHILD NUTRITION IN MALAWI

This paper investigates factors that determine child malnutrition in Malawi. Measuring child nutrition using anthropometric measures, the study finds that child malnutrition worsens with age until a certain critical age beyond which it starts to improve and that boys are more at risk than girls. We also find evidence that child malnutrition is more prevalent in children that fall sick regularly and in households that draw water from a well, protected or not. In addition, children who come from households that have mother/female household heads who are economically empowered, in terms of being in salaried employment or working in a family business, tend to be better nourished. Copyright (c) 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation (c) 2008 Economic Society of South Africa.