Latest content: Environment and climate change

Commonwealth member countries rich in natural gas face complex policy choices and trade-offs concerning the need to generate maximum benefits from those natural gas resources while also transitioning to a low-carbon economy. While taking account of diverse and conflicting views on the subject, this report offers succinct and holistic guidance to inform these countries’ choices and help them achieve their development and climate change goals.

This paper presents fiscal policy options for resilient and sustainable development in the context of ever-increasing and diverse shocks and uncertainties, discussing how the appropriate design and mix of national and subnational tax and public investment regimes can best ensure the stable provision of essential services and local infrastructure.

As countries recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, and face the compounding challenges of global inflation, debt, climate change and sociopolitical scenarios, there is a need to explore new investment strategies to accelerate economic development, build resilience and balance competing environmental, economic and social pressures. In this context, the concept of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) as a framework for sustainable growth has gained new relevance. This paper discusses the potential benefits of ESG in terms of enabling sustainable economic growth in the Commonwealth, including possible technical assistance, capacity building and policy development on ESG for public debt management and improved public sector sustainability, including collaboration with International Financial Institutions financing standards.

A review of ocean-based actions and commitments contained in the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) reports – the main mechanism by which countries communicate their ambitions and efforts in support of the Paris Agreement – of the 49 coastal and island states within the Commonwealth.

This blue economy Rapid Readiness Assessment (RRA) pilot project was undertaken in Antigua and Barbuda, alongside a second pilot project in Trinidad and Tobago, to establish the government’s readiness to embark on the transition to a sustainable blue economy (SBE). The RRA approach being developed is based on the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) Sustainable Blue Economy Transition Framework and is being trialled by the Commonwealth Secretariat in partnership with UNEP, Howell Marine Consulting and the University of Portsmouth, under the Commonwealth Blue Charter programme. This report presents the findings of the RRA, with recommendations.

This blue economy Rapid Readiness Assessment (RRA) pilot project was undertaken in Trinidad and Tobago, alongside a second pilot project in Antigua and Barbuda, to establish the government’s readiness to embark on the transition to a sustainable blue economy (SBE). The RRA approach is based on the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Sustainable Blue Economy Transition Framework (SBE-TF) and is being trialled by the Commonwealth Secretariat, in partnership with UNEP, Howell Marine Consulting and the University of Portsmouth, under the Commonwealth Blue Charter programme. This report presents the findings of the RRA, with recommendations.