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Carbon certifier says key indigenous complaints were not on the table when credits were issued to Guyana last year

The historic issuance of ART forest carbon credits, sold by Guyana last year for USD 750 million, is being challenged by Amerindian groups who say the decision was rushed and ignored key legal issues. In the midst of the COVID19 pandemic, people were initially given just 30 days to comment. Frances Seymour, Chair of the carbon certifier ART, tells Development Today that the concerns were raised too late in the process, but will be considered in ART’s upcoming review of Guyana’s second application for credits.

News March 30, 2023

Denmark and Norway choose diverging strategies for Ukraine aid

There are key strategic differences between the Norwegian and Danish approaches to supporting Ukraine....

News March 24, 2023

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Two global health experts say the time is ripe to re-think Gavi’s mission

It is time to take stock of Gavi, two global health experts, Catherine Kyobutungi and Olusoji Adeyi,...

News March 23, 2023

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Denmark commits DKK 1.2 billion in aid to new Ukraine Fund

The Danish government has announced a new fund for military, civilian, and private sector support to...

News March 15, 2023

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Indigenous alliance pulls out of negotiations over ‘flawed’ forest carbon credit standard

An alliance of indigenous groups in Central America has walked out of negotiations over a Norwegian-funded...

News March 08, 2023

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Evaluation: revamp old-fashioned tied Danish aid scheme or it could become irrelevant

Denmark’s mixed credit scheme, which is subsidised by aid, has given billions of crowns worth of contracts...

Business March 08, 2023

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Uncertain funding future for Swedish NGOs as Sida awaits new strategy

The aid agency Sida has been given a year of grace while the new Swedish government draws up its strategy...

News March 02, 2023

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One year into war in Ukraine, Sweden prepares to boost aid efforts

As Sweden crafts a new strategy for Ukraine, it faces difficult choices, balancing long-term EU integration...

News February 24, 2023

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Norwegian Refugee Council belatedly embraces localisation

Jan Egeland has championed the call for reform of a humanitarian aid system where Northern institutions...

February 17, 2023

Sida boss Carin Jämtin steps down

Carin Jämtin, Director General of the Swedish aid agency Sida, will resign in May after six years on...

February 17, 2023

Sida implements unprecedented 87% cut in information support to Swedish NGOs

From an expected level of SEK 155 million in funding for Sida’s information activities, the Swedish government...

News February 14, 2023

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Ukraine package reshapes Norwegian aid. Sweden will no longer be the largest Nordic donor

A massive aid package for Ukraine announced Monday will reshape Norwegian aid. Civilian support for Ukraine,...

News February 06, 2023

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Equinor eyes forest carbon credits facilitated by Norway’s rainforest scheme

The Norwegian Climate Ministry has used aid financing to build up a new architecture for the certification...

News February 02, 2023

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Ukraine response could push Finnish aid to its highest level in three decades

Ukrainian refugees are coming to Finland in large numbers and the government has provided funding to...

News February 01, 2023

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Cash-strapped humanitarian system faces 2023 with shrinking donor base

As Ukraine continues to dominate headlines, the humanitarian system faces the coming year with dual challenges...

News January 20, 2023

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Brazil seeks more donor funding for Amazon Fund to fight deforestation

Brazil welcomes the unfreezing of more than NOK 6 billion in “old” Norwegian aid sitting in the Amazon...

News January 16, 2023

In brief: Danish minister to Ukraine for discussions on further support

Denmark’s new Development and Climate Minister Dan Jørgensen made his first visit abroad to Ukraine last...

News January 18, 2023

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Swedish coalition deal rolls back aid, intensifies discord over aid policy

Swedish development policy has become a hotly contested issue since the new government alliance abolished...

News December 31, 2022

End of a rocky year for Swedish aid

NGO leaders describe the SEK 13.8 billion roll back in Swedish aid to fund refugees from Ukraine last...

December 31, 2022

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Indigenous groups in Guyana raise alarm over historic issuance of carbon credits by Norwegian-funded certifier

The government of Guyana has been issued 33 million tonnes worth of forest carbon credits by ART, a certifier...

News December 23, 2022

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Evaluation: Big Pharma shies away from CEPI due to equitable access requirements

The Oslo-based vaccine initiative CEPI has over a few short years grown into a “credible and prominent...

News December 19, 2022

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Local humanitarian actors still poorly funded. After 7 years, UN agencies and NGOs hold tight to donor funds

Direct funding to local NGOs has not increased despite a global pandemic, Black Lives Matter, and seven...

News December 15, 2022

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New Danish centrist government opens for a more consensus-driven aid policy

A historic Red-Blue government has taken office in Denmark, pledging to hammer out a new development...

News December 15, 2022

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ODA must evolve, but cautiously, says the new guardian of OECD aid Carsten Staur

Carsten Staur, the newly appointed Chair of the OECD’s aid watchdog DAC, says there is huge pressure...

News December 09, 2022

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The ‘hollow’ promise of loss and damage

In the absence of concrete financial commitments, the loss and damage fund agreed at the COP27 climate...

News November 30, 2022

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Budget deal paves way for huge Ukraine package on top of Norway’s aid budget

In a last-minute aid deal with the Socialist Left Party, Norway’s government has committed to a large...

News November 30, 2022

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OECD: Race for DAC helm comes down to a Danish-Norwegian duel

The contest to become Chair of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee is now down to a tight race...

News November 29, 2022

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Outcry from indigenous groups prompts change of rules in LEAF forest carbon scheme

Indigenous organisations in the Brazilian state of Acre were kept in the dark for almost a year about...

News November 18, 2022

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Swedish interests take centre stage in new government’s aid budget

The new Conservative-led Swedish government places the foreign policy and security interests of Sweden...

News November 20, 2022

In Brief: EDFI chief Søren Peter Andreasen moves ‘home’ to take up key position at IFU

News November 22, 2022

How Nordic donors have grown apart

While the aid policies of the four Nordic donors have grown apart over the last two decades, Denmark...

News November 11, 2022

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Growing frustration among indigenous leaders with forest carbon scheme LEAF

Indigenous leaders criticise the billion-dollar forest carbon credit scheme LEAF, backed by Norway, the...

News November 03, 2022

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Swedish aid freeze paves way for Norway to grab position as largest Nordic donor

With aid spending locked at SEK 56 billion annually for the next three years, Sweden may be about to...

News October 28, 2022

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Huge dilemmas for forest deal in Brazil as Norway bets on Lula’s win

The Norwegian Climate Ministry is hoping that a presidential win by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brazil...

News October 20, 2022

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Sweden turns away from UN, new development minister in charge

Johan Forssell has been appointed Sweden’s Minister for Development and Trade with special responsibility...

News October 18, 2022

Sweden drops 1% of GNI target, makes aid a tool of migration policy

Sweden is abandoning the goal of keeping aid at 1 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI), the incoming...

News October 14, 2022

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Evaluation calls out flaws in ACT-A, strong facility needed to meet the next pandemic

An evaluation of the ACT-A covid partnership points to multiple shortcomings, especially the exclusion...

October 12, 2022

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Norway offers no money, no plan, and no narrative for increasing aid

Norway’s economy is set to grow by 60 per cent over two years, fuelled by skyrocketing energy prices...

News October 11, 2022

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Proposes historic reduction in Norwegian aid level to 0.75% of GNI

In the state budget proposal for 2023, the Norwegian government aims to spend NOK 43.8 billion on development...

News October 06, 2022

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Climate Ministry defends Indonesia forest pact, experts double down on critique of secrecy clauses

Secrecy clauses in an agreement on reducing deforestation, signed recently by Norway and Indonesia, do...

News October 04, 2022

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NGOs reluctant to take Danish aid money for Rwanda

As negotiations over the establishment of a Danish asylum centre in Rwanda proceed, non-government organisations...

News September 29, 2022

In Brief: Fateful days for the Swedish golden standard in global aid

The Swedish aid community is holding its breath as four parties in a centre-right alliance negotiate...

News September 29, 2022

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Global Fund falls short of USD 18 billion fundraising target, no boost from Nordic donors

At the seventh replenishment of the Global Fund last week, five G7 countries announced significant increases...

News September 27, 2022

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Norwegian academics say secrecy clauses in new forest pact with Indonesia are ‘totally unacceptable’

Norway’s new forest agreement with Indonesia amounts to “political censorship” and contradicts basic...

News September 21, 2022

Danes break deadlock in climate talks, offering funds for loss and damage

Denmark is the first UN member to pledge funding to compensate poor countries for “loss and damage” due...

News September 21, 2022

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New Indonesia-Norway forest pact: sweeping confidentiality clauses, weaker language on indigenous peoples, NGOs

Norway appears to have made key concessions to reach a new forest deal with Indonesia this week. The...

September 14, 2022

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Slow progress on USD 1.7b pledge. Indigenous leaders call for more transparency from donors

At the climate summit in Glasgow last year, a handful of donors made a historic commitment to support...

News September 08, 2022

Talks continue over outsourcing Denmark’s asylum obligations to Rwanda

The controversial Danish proposal to send asylum seekers arriving in Denmark to Rwanda for processing...

News September 09, 2022

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Capital crunch forces Danish IFU to turn down new projects

The Danish development finance institution IFU has tight liquidity, poor profit over time, and faces...

Business September 07, 2022

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Budget 2023: Ukraine and efforts to stem migration dominate Danish aid

Danish aid will grow by almost DKK 3 billion next year, almost equivalent to the amount of aid the government...

News September 01, 2022

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Norway bets on US charity as keystone in new forest carbon trading regime

With financing from Norwegian climate aid, a US charity – Emergent – has been established to act as a...

August 04, 2022

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Call for new World Bank business model to scale up risk taking and financing

Global investors want the World Bank to take more risk so they can scale up climate financing. A White...

Business June 17, 2022

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Norway finally releases climate forest payment earned by Guyana a decade ago

A solar power project in Guyana will be financed with Norwegian climate forest money, the Norwegian Climate...

News June 24, 2022

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Head of CEPI calls for more non-aid funds to finance pandemic vaccine research

The Oslo-based vaccine agency CEPI depends on aid for 40 per cent of its financing. CEPI’s CEO Richard...

News May 20, 2022

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Nordic aid budget round-up: Historic cuts in Sweden, Norwegian aid could sink to lowest level since 2008

Sweden, Norway, and Denmark are tapping USD 1.6 billion from their aid budgets to fund domestic costs...

News May 13, 2022

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Norfund reports a record surplus, but outlook is less positive

Norfund invested most of its funds in Africa in 2021 and had a record surplus of NOK 5.8 billion (USD...

May 16, 2022

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Calls for an independent commission to investigate Norway’s gigantic rainforest initiative

The NOK 60 billion rainforest initiative, the largest aid programme in Norwegian history, has run into...

News April 08, 2022

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Donors pledge USD 1.5b to fight next pandemic, ODA-eligibility of funding is up in the air

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI) has raised USD 1.5 billion for the next five...

News March 10, 2022

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Three days in Oslo: Norway walks diplomatic tightrope with the Taliban

The first talks with the Taliban to be held in a Western country marked a high-risk diplomatic feat for...

News February 03, 2022

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Interview. New WHO special envoy on covid: Yodi walks into the lion’s den

Ayoade Alakija has been one of the harshest critics of the international pandemic response effort – the...

News January 25, 2022

New political alliances and Ukraine war are reshaping Nordic aid

Opinion Editorial January 17, 2023

Nordic aid is up for a major remake. In Sweden and Denmark, new political alliances took power in 2022 and the war in Ukraine will dominate policymaking in all four countries in the months to come.

Read more

Support to civil society and independent scientific research appear of little importance to Norway’s new climate and environment deal with Indonesia

Opinion October 07, 2022

Espen Barth Eide, Norway’s Minister for Climate and Environment, has just signed a new climate and environment deal with Indonesia. It appears support to civil society and independent scientific research are not among the priorities, researchers from Chr. Michelsens Institute write.

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The paradox of overcapacity in Africa’s energy sector

Opinion September 16, 2022

Several African countries have a huge overcapacity in the power sector, but consumers lack electricity. Production is often locked into long-term contracts at high prices while the grid remains underdeveloped. As donors and investors push for renewable energy in Africa, they must take a more transparent and holistic approach or risk delaying the transition to clean energy, Rasmus Hundsbæk Pedersen and Ole Winckler Andersen at DIIS write. 

Read more

Nordic church leaders call on governments to stop using aid to fund global goods

Opinion September 05, 2022

Five Nordic church leaders call for Nordic governments to show solidarity in the face of growing poverty, food insecurity and climate disaster. Don’t use aid to fund vaccines, domestic refugee costs and climate, they write.

Read more

Redirecting funds to the Ukraine crisis will have devastating global humanitarian consequences if aid budgets are not increased

Opinion April 26, 2022

Diverting scarce aid resources risks worsening on-going humanitarian crises around the world. The global consequences of redirecting aid and attention towards the Ukraine response are extremely worrying, Charlotte Slente of Danish Refugee Council writes.

Read more

COVAX and the unfulfilled promise of vaccine sharing

Opinion March 07, 2022

The global vaccine initiative COVAX aimed to procure 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine in 2021 to accelerate efforts towards vaccine equity. By the end of the year, it had delivered only 910 million doses, more than half of these through donations. Antoine de Bengy Puyvallée and Katerini T. Storeng explain how donated doses came to dominate COVAX’s vaccine supply and they unpack the politics of vaccine sharing.  

Read more

Olusoji Adeyi on global health, narcissistic charity, and neo-dependency

Opinion December 31, 2021

Decades of being drip-fed on deleterious forms of foreign aid have caused African countries and institutions to wither. But they have done so blissfully, until the COVID-19 pandemic unmasked the primordial selfishness of the Global North. Olusoji Adeyi, former Director of Health and Nutrition at the World Bank, challenges donor governments and African leaders to break out of an endless cycle of ineffectual aid.

Read more

Martin Griffiths on UN’s grim humanitarian outlook for 2022

Opinion December 02, 2021

Forty-one billion dollars. That’s what aid agencies need to help people facing war, disease and hunger around the world next year. It’s more than this year. More than ever before, in fact, writes Martin Griffiths, UN Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs.

Read more

Supporting indigenous Afghan structures could be a lifeline in new Taliban era

Opinion October 29, 2021

Can linking NGOs to traditional Afghan community institutions create a new humanitarian paradigm, and will the international community be willing to let go? Gry Synnevåg and Karim Merchant reflect on how to support Afghanistan under Taliban rule.

Read more

Rethink financing of global public goods

Opinion Editorial October 11, 2021

As global challenges mount, politicians increasingly view development aid budgets as a source of easy money to fund any and all good things. Whether climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic or the migration crisis, global goods have become integrated with aid, based on a convoluted narrative that equates rich countries’ own interests with the mission of eradicating poverty.

Read more

Church groups call for ‘game-changing’ Food Summit

Opinion September 23, 2021

Four Nordic church groups and Christian Aid say small farmers should be the main focus of the UN Food Summit. Reforming agricultural subsidies and helping farmers transition to agroecology can reduce poverty, conserve biodiversity and address climate change, they write.

Read more

Critical reflections on ten years of the Guyana-Norway REDD+ agreement

Opinion July 03, 2021

The bilateral climate forest agreement was meant to be a model for the world. Instead, it was based on a clunky institutional architecture and stands today as a reminder of why condition-laden ODA projects have little impact on rising deforestation, Andrew Hook and Timothy Laing write.

Read more

Danish PM Frederiksen’s betrayal of Nordic values

Opinion Editorial June 04, 2021

A new Danish law opens for the export of Denmark’s asylum obligations to a third country. Having covered Nordic foreign policy for three decades, we have never seen a betrayal of joint Nordic values on this scale. Social Democratic parties have previously built and defended the UN-based human rights system at home and abroad. Now a Social Democratic prime minister has joined forces with right-wing parties to dismantle it.

Read more

Desmond McNeill: The limitation of bond schemes

Opinion May 08, 2021

A proposed bond scheme inspired by IFFIm, which aims to trigger a massive expansion in aid, won’t work, writes Desmond McNeill at the Centre for Development and Environment. The aid would not be additional and the scheme ignores the key problem of weak states in the neediest countries.

Read more

Peter Sands: We must scale-up the global response to COVID-19. This needs more than vaccines

Opinion April 28, 2021

In many rich countries, discussion of COVID-19 revolves around the pace of vaccine deployment and the steps being taken towards lifting restrictions on social and economic interaction, but in most low- and middle-income countries the picture looks starkly different. Not only are COVID-19 infections and deaths increasing as more transmissible variants take hold, but the knock-on impact on other diseases continues to escalate, writes Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Read more

Sony Kapoor: A plan to save lives, tackle climate change and finance the recovery

Opinion April 23, 2021

The international covid pandemic response, ACT-Accelerator, which marks its one-year anniversary, is short USD 20 billion. Addressing climate change will cost many billions more, far exceeding what ODA budgets can cover. Sony Kapoor, CEO of the Nordic think tank NIFTYS, proposes a plan to make these funds available now.

Read more

Jared Rowell, Evan Jones: Forced return of Afghans hampers the pursuit of durable solutions

Opinion April 23, 2021

The principles of safety and dignity must not only guide the pursuit of durable solutions, but also the return of rejected asylum seekers to Afghanistan. Successful return involves much more than putting people on a plane. Jared Rowell, Afghanistan Country Director for the Danish Refugee Council, and Evan Jones at the Kabul-based Asia Displacement Solutions Platform write.

Read more

Ulstein’s misstep on vaccine sharing may haunt him at home

Opinion Editorial March 22, 2021

Norway’s Development Minister Dag-Inge Ulstein has been a tireless advocate for global vaccine equity and the government has deployed billions of aid crowns to back up that work. We applaud these efforts, but he has made one big mistake that might now plague him at home.

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Nordic church groups: The only way out of the pandemic is equitable distribution of vaccines

Opinion March 22, 2021

More than 80 per cent of people in Norway, Sweden and Denmark think it is unacceptable for rich countries to buy their way to the front of the vaccine queue, according to a recent survey. Norwegian Church Aid, Act Church of Sweden and DanChurchAid call on Nordic governments to work harder for vaccine equity.

Read more

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