This Briefing summarises preliminary findings from research conducted for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

The Overseas Development Institute has coordinated a 10-country study on the effects of the global financial crisis and country level policy responses in Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Cambodia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia.

This case study is part of the ODI HPG research programme on the role of the affected state in humanitarian action and aims to describe the essential elements of approach to disaster management as seen in its response to the 2001 Gujarat earthquake and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. It also analyses policy trends in Disaster Management Act.

Water is the key medium that links atmospheric temperature rises to changes in human and physical systems. Climate change will alter the hydrological cycle in many ways. The trigger is the warming of the atmosphere and oceans, which will change major weather systems.

Urban population growth does not always reflect urban economic growth or the expansion of employment opportunities, but population growth is propelling structural changes in urban economies, with major implications for urban poverty dynamics.

This report assesses the options available to developing countries in a

This paper considers practical mechanisms for moving towards an operationalisation of benefit sharing in transboundary water management. The focus is on steps for putting the concept into practice using lessons learned from existing cooperative efforts.

This paper looks at two interfacing trends shaping devolution of forest management in India: appropriation of space for forest management by diverse self-initiated community formations at the grass roots level despite state seizure of forests; and state-driven devolution where government policies define the scope of local authority in forest management.

This briefing paper synthesises recent debates, focusing on socio-economic factors. To what extent were biofuels to blame for the food price spike? What opportunities do biofuels offer for the poorest farmers in the developing world? What are their socio-environmental risks? The paper concludes with policy recommendations to reduce the risk and maximise the opportunities

Pages