PSD Blog - The World Bank Group

China stat of the day; plus, a turnaround in Zimbabwe?

While IFC is strengthening its involvement in India, China is deepening its economic ties in Africa.

In his opening speech at this week's Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Egypt, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao announced Beijing's latest commitment to its African trading partners, which includes $10bn in fresh loans (on top of $5bn already pledged in 2006):

We will help Africa build up its financing capabilities...we will provide 10 billion US dollars for Africa in concessional loans... China is ready to deepen practical cooperation in Africa.

China will also set up over 100 clean energy programs, and relieve or cancel the debt of 31 countries. Chinese direct investment in Africa has increased from nearly $500m in 2003 to $7.8bn in 2008.

Wen claims that this latest round of assistance comes with no strings attached:

Africa is fully capable of solving its own problems, in an African way

There is one story floating around the blogosphere that seems to highlight an African economy solving its own problems. The Telegraph is reporting an economic turnaround in Zimbabwe, which has been buoyed by the dollarization of the local economy:

The Obstacle to Renewable Energy (hint: it isn't about costs)

Columbia University's Geoffrey Heal asks, "can renewable energy save the world?". The answer is dependent on infrastructure and technology, rather than cost:

Where does this leave us with renewables as a solution to the problem of climate change? We can replace some fossil fuel power with renewable power without a major cost increase, but we cannot hope to replace a major fraction of our fossil power with intermittent power sources such as wind and solar – unless we can develop storage technologies. Being able to store power and smooth the output of intermittent power sources would greatly enhance the attractions of renewable power.

The bottom line is that neither costs nor capital requirement will prevent us from decarbonising the electricity supply. The real obstacle to doing this largely with renewables is our current inability to store power, and as long as we cannot store power we will need to use non-renewable sources like nuclear and coal with carbon capture and storage.

Probably a good place to invest some stimulus money.

Now hanging in IFC

I was walking through the lobby of IFC today, and there was something pretty unusual hanging—a bunch of oversized, transparent garbage bags. I took a snapshot with my phone (apologies for the modest quality of the photo). From a distance, I couldn't tell what was inside, but when I got up close I saw they were filled with tons of plastic bottles—all used by IFC staff. The sign below the bags reports that IFC staff consume some 80,600 plastic bottles every year.

So why put them on such dramatic display? The IFC Footprint campaign is putting on an event entitled "What a Waste" to promote environmental awareness in the organization. They'll also be screening the film Addicted to Plastic. (For World Bank Group staff, here is a full schedule of events.) At the behest of one of my (greener) colleagues, I bought an L.L. Bean bottle a couple of months ago at a cost of $21.95. I'm pretty sure I have recouped the purchase price by this point.

Weekend Links

A new look at the tragedy of the commons.

The Halo Effect, explained.

Mongolia is in the news this week.

A societal preference for boys has become an unlikely source of power for Indian women.

Consumption versus Income Inequality.

What's the opposite of a boycott?

The answer is a "carrotmob".

Imagine going around to the shopkeepers in your neighbourhood and asking them what percentage of their sales they would be willing to invest in improving their energy efficiency. Identify the highest bidder and, using social media, you mobilise the local community to "mob" their shop on a mutually agreed date. Document everything on YouTube and get others to repeat the experiment around the world.

Corporate social responsibility and activism, the development 2.0 way. (Via the Guardian)

P.S. As well as being the opposite of a boycott, carrotmobs might also be an antidote to "slacktivism".

Energy efficiency, the web 2.0 way

First there was the announcement of Google PowerMeter, an online tool that displays information about residential electricity use. Imagine logging on to your email account and being confronted with how much energy your dryer is consuming, real time. Initial studies indicate that access to this information can lead to savings between 5-15% on monthly electricity bills.

Now Michael Bauwens at the P2P foundation points to the emergence of more social energy tracking systems. Open Shaspa, in particular, turns energy efficiency into a game that "creates a 3D model of your house, thereby making power consumption a visually navigable space. If you go on vacation, an avatar friend can keep tabs on energy use."

Pollution for breakfast, lunch and dinner

Editor's Note: The following post also appears on Dave Lawrence's personal blog, Out of Mongolia.    

The winter air in Ulaanbaatar is hard to imagine. It is basically a thick blanket of smoke spewing out from the stoves of thousands of people living in gers, which are traditional Mongolian homes made from wooden frames covered in felt. Raw coal is the main fuel, since it is much cheaper than wood. Traffic and power plants play their part too, but it's the smoke from the gers that makes breathing such a challenge at this time of year.

Half a million people in the city live in the ger districts. They are mostly poor; recent migrants from the countryside in search of better lives. The poorest cannot even afford coal, and burn whatever they get their hands on.  Even garbage and old tires. Just think of what's going into the air.

Are virtual worlds a tool for better government?

As virtual worlds gain increasing popularity, what should policy makers do with them (beyond, of course, visiting the Doing Business island)?

A report by IBM, Government in 3D: How Public Leaders Can Draw on Virtual Worlds attempts to provide some answers. The authors identify several areas where virtual worlds could benefit policy makers: from reaching out to citizens to emergency training, from recruitment to fostering tourism and economic development.

The report is full of interesting (if, admittedly, still isolated) examples: from the first US congressional hearing in Second Life to five tons of carbon emissions saved by teleporting a speaker to the UNCCC meeting in Bali (always in Second Life); from "beta testing" the impact of policies through games such as a World Without Oil to SecondHealth, a 3D tool to educate the British public about a new health plan and its implications for citizens.

Financial wizardry has its uses

Financial wizardry has gotten a bad name lately - some in the U.S. have even called for a Financial Product Safety Commission. Innovation in financial products clearly has its uses, though. One case in point is the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility. Established in 2007, the facility provides insurance against natural catastrophes for 16 Caribbean nations. And it just recently won two industry awards in quick succession.   

Web 2.0: Ignore it at your peril

As the Global Environmental Management Initiative releases its Guide to Successful Corporate-NGO Partnerships, the Economist recently reminded us that in a Development 2.0 world, the balance of power in environmental campaigning is shifting. Thanks to the viral nature of tools such as blogs and Youtube, local issues can gain visibility and quickly become global. Here's my favourite example from the Economist article, Revolutions Coloured Green:

Take the fallout from a deal between the Russian aluminium concern Rusal and the government of Guinea to mine bauxite. Green protests were the last thing Rusal expected. But Kamara Secu, a leader of the Guinean community in Russia, was undaunted. He rang Rusal’s press officers and taped their response; they were dismissive and mocked his accent. Mr Secu then posted a recording of the exchange on YouTube, the video-sharing site; it was picked up by green bloggers, and helped to rally support for a demonstration against Rusal.