Rural Economies

Reimagining the Future of Entrepreneurship Support in East Africa: 25 Solutions that Could Change the Game

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(tl;dr) East Africa’s startup scene is booming – but many incubators and accelerators are stuck in a cycle of donor dependence, generic programmes and weak investor trust. A new William Davidson Institute study maps these system failures and, more importantly, presents 25 concrete solutions: from revenue-generating “acceleration as a service” and sector‑specific support, to venture … Read more

Bioeconomy: Charting a Course Between Climate Action and Sustainable Development

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As a Policy Advisor, it was a privilege to reflect on the vital discussions held at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference on June 3, 2025. This round table, expertly moderated by Melina Walling of the Associated Press, brought together a distinguished panel of experts – Jukka Kantola, Roberto Jaguaribe Gomes de Matos, Éliane Ubalijoro, Rosalie Matondo, … Read more

How is phytosanitary knowledge managed globally?

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Juice

A recent STDF project evaluation on developing training manuals and kits on IPPC standards scored highly on relevance and efficiency. With 20+ global manuals now published, National Plant Protection Organizations have greater access to technical resources. View the guides online and download the evaluation report.  The World Trade Organization has contracted Karsten Weitzenegger to evaluate a phytosanitary … Read more

IDEAs International Development Economics Associates

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IDEAs International Development Economics Associates

IDEAs or the International Development Economics Associates is committed to building a pluralistic network of committed researchers,  teachers and other economists interested in advancing progressive heterodox approaches to critically analysing and addressing the problems of economic development processes. IDEAs was established in New Delhi, India with a purpose of building a pluralist network of economists … Read more

The European External Investment Plan to boost jobs and growth in developing countries

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EU External Investment Plan

The European Fund for Sustainable Development (EFSD) is the heart piece of the EU’s new External Investment Plan (EIP). Its role is to help boosting private and public investment in our partner countries to address some of the obstacles to growth and some root reasons for irregular migration. The EFSD Strategic Board includes the EU … Read more

World leaders look for ways to spark a new green revolution #PAGEBerlin

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Leading economists, CEOs, ministers, heads of UN agencies and high-level representatives from nongovernmental organizations meet in Berlin to boost the green economy and set a path to the 2030 Agenda. Countries have donated close to €15 million so far while Uruguay and Guyana have joined the Partnership for Action on Green Economy. BERLIN (ILO News) … Read more

Angola needs to strengthen social protection

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With the ending of the war in 2002, Angola has recorded tremendous progress in relation to poverty reduction, reduction of maternal and child mortality, children enrollment in the educational system and an increase in access to drinking water. However, large pockets of the population still remain in poverty and without adequate access to basic services … Read more

Evaluation of Finland’s Aid for Trade

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Finland’s Aid for Trade (AFT) projects in the past years have produced results and contributed to impact in specific sectors, in which Finland has competitive advantages and can bring added value. These sectors are water, energy, environment, ICT and innovation, forestry and fisheries.  Evaluation Aid for Trade (PDF, 272 pages, 343 kb) Finnfund’s investment portfolio shows good … Read more

Why Evaluations Fail: The Importance of Good Monitoring

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Evaluation reports frequently blame poor monitoring data for preventing a full assessment of programme outcomes. Meanwhile, programme staff often complain that evaluations come too late, too infrequently, and don’t contain much useful information. This illustrates a common problem: the disconnect between monitoring and evaluation reduces the effectiveness of both. A new paper from the DCED … Read more