When asked whether they think that their children will have a better or worse future than themselves, a Gallup poll in 2022 found Europeans to be the most pessimistic, in comparison to people from other continents. Remarkably, the most optimistic were people from Sub-Saharan Africa. Still, migration flows from Africa continue to put a heavy […]
The opportunities for Europe of closer cooperation with Africa Read More »
Writing for Euractiv, Francesco Sassi, a research fellow in energy geopolitics and markets at Ricerche Industriali ed Energetiche (RIE) in Bologna, comments on the events in Niger and the implications for Europe. “Rome is seeking US and EU support for its “new” and “peer-to-peer” approach towards continental instability – a plan dubbed the “Mattei Plan”,
“Coup in Niger is the consequence of Western neglect of Africa” Read More »
The Renewable Energy Sources Act In 1999, a group of German parliamentarians drafted the Renewable Energies Sources Act, known as EEG, a simple but revolutionary policy that fundamentally transformed the renewable energy market. The EEG stipulated that anyone who constructed a renewable power plant, such as a solar PV project or a wind farm,
How to create a hydrogen market: keep it simple Read More »
Experts have warned that EU’s carbon border scheme is punitive, and dramatically reduces the space for developing countries to achieve growth and to create jobs. The so-called CBAM enters into force on a transitional basis in October and it introduces a carbon tax on exports to the EU. A study carried out by the African
“Cost of EU CBAM climate tariff for Africa is four times higher than EU developmend aid” Read More »
The European Parliament has voted to approve the Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), as part of a whole range of proposals, including the new CBAM carbon border tariff. The new rules create new trade barriers and bureaucracy for wood imports, and have angered trading partners in South East Asia. 🌳Deforestation Parliament adopts new regulation to fight climate
At the end of February, the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo agreed a provisional deal to normalise relations, without however signing it. More talks are planned, with the two leaders, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti, schedulded to meet in North Macedonia’s lakeside city of Ohrid on March 18, under EU
Lars Patrick Berg MEP urges not to forget Kosovo Read More »
This month, ambassadors of seven European Union member states have been meeting with the Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Anisul Huq of Bangladesh in its capital, Dhaka, to discuss the upcoming elections in the country, which will be held in January 2024. This follows a high-profile meeting at the G20 summit in India
EU turns the focus on upcoming elections in Bangladesh Read More »
In a new analysis, leading rating agency S&P Global warns that the EU’s external climate tariff CBAM, which stands for “Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism” will hit developing economies the hardest. It explains: “Phasing in from 2026, CBAM will levy a carbon tax on imports of selected energy intensive materials and products into the EU, removing
“Developing economies hit hardest by EU’s carbon border tax” Read More »
By Pieter Cleppe After Liz Truss’s brief interlude as British prime minister, the British Conservative Party is still struggling. In the opinion polls, the Tories are no less than 24 percentage points behind the Labour opposition. The new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, and 15 of his ministers even risk losing their seats in the upcoming
The Brexit debate continues Read More »
Tensions between the EU and South East Asia over its deforestation now also affecting trade ties. By the end of 2023, the EU aims to agree the Indonesia-EU Comprehensive Trade Agreement (IEU-CEPA). According to EU ambassador Vincent Piket, this is being complicated by the EU’s deforestation regulation. He stated: “We have lots of explaining to
Indonesia and Malaysia to send joint delegation to Brussels to address trade tensions Read More »