As nations convene for the 27th UN Climate Conference (COP27), the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has set out the actions needed to ensure global efforts towards a low-carbon future don’t leave least developed countries (LDCs) behind.

The Coronavirus pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and climate change have all hampered Africa’s efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Halfway towards 2030, most African countries are struggling to meet most SDG targets.

Climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts are urgently needed across Southeast Asia. The financial sector can play a critical role in supporting countries in their journey toward greater resilience and sustainability, but it must adapt to do so effectively.

This book, explores the crucial role of subnational levels of government in accelerating progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific. Subnational governments implement public policies, facilitate partnerships among stakeholders, and act as interlocutors between communities and the state.

The African Development Bank’s East Africa Regional Economic Outlook 2022 reviews the economic performance of 13 East African countries over the past year with short- to medium-term projections. The countries are Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

The outlook for global labour markets has worsened in recent months and on current trends job vacancies will decline and global employment growth will deteriorate significantly in the final quarter of 2022, according to this new ILO report. Rising inflation is causing real wages to fall in many countries.

The UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) issued a report introducing a new global index that measures shortfalls in achievements in three areas: quality-adjusted human development; environmental sustainability; and good governance.

The report reveals that over half of companies in emerging economies have been impacted by extreme weather events over the last 12 months.The report shows that 58% of companies in Africa and South Asia have been hit by events such as extreme flooding, storms or droughts over the last year, compared with 48% of respondents in the previous year’s

Sub-Saharan Africa’s recovery has been abruptly interrupted. Last year, activity finally bounced back, lifting GDP growth in 2021 to 4.7 percent.

Rural economies are key to ensure food security and creating decent jobs. Yet the global context dominated by the impact of multiple and interlinked crises has laid bare prevailing decent work deficits, with many rural workers living in poverty and working informally.