Jan-Mar 2013

A s e le ct i o n o f p u b l i c at io n s t h a t h i g h l i g h t s st u d ie s , r e p o r t s a n d o t h e r do c u m e nt s o n t o p i c s a n d is s u e s o f r e l e v a n ce fo r t h e C a ri b b e a n , w h i c h c a n i n f o r m a n d c o n t r i b u t e t o t he po l i c y d i a l o g ue , fo r m u l at i o n an d i m p l e m e n t a t io n pr o ce s se s .
ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

Chain Empowerment: Supporting African Farmers to Develop Markets KIT, Faida MaLi and IIRR, 2006 The selling point of this publication is its strategies for supporting farmers/small entrepreneurs in creating value and being essential contributors to the management of value chains and development of market opportunities. The document addresses farmers/small entrepreneurs directly and also advises on positioning in the value chain for more favourable returns. Support agencies would likewise benefit from sections on supporting chain empowerment and facilitating chain development.

<http://www.mamud.com/Docs/chains.pdf> contact: Royal Tropical Institute (KIT):- <h.verkuijl@kit.nl> Faida Market Link Company Ltd (Faida MaLi):- <faida@faidamarketlink.or.tz> International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR):- <admin@iirr-africa.org> Policy Guidebook for SME Development in Asia and the Pacific Abe, M., Troilo, M., Juneja, J. and Narain, S. 2012 This is one of those rare publications which present a good consolidation of successful experiences, policies and programmes applied in a developing country setting. Similarities between many of the economies in the Asia-Pacific region and the Caribbean such as policy advocacy, institutional capacity-building, human resource development and direct support to enterprises are addressed and accurately reflect our own needs. The publication begins with an appraisal of the realities of SMEs then details the ess ential elements of an enabling environment such as market access, business development services, financing and entrepreneurship development - noting policy recommendations and interventions at each step. It culminates with guidelines for policy prioritisation in addressing the one or two major binding constraints before addressing actionable constraints. The Annex of the document is an added treat! <http://www.unescap.org/tid/publication/indpub2621.pdf > contact: Mr. Ravi Ratnayake <escap-tid@un.org> Director, Trade and Investment Division, ESCAP Protecting the Poor: A Micro-insurance Compendium Volumes I and II International Labour Organisation (ILO), 2006 These two publications are a valuable resource for understanding the value of providing insurance services to vulnerable, low-income groups. Therein they give a very comprehensive look at conceptualising, implementing and managing a micro-insurance programme and an appropriate governance/policy environment, as well as case examples. Volume I focuses on the above in contextsetting and examination of strategies/approaches that work. Volume II is a collection of recent practices and emerging ideas in micro-insurance and covers innovative ideas for tackling recurring/persistent challenges to providing insurance to low-income people. These would be a great resource to agriculture and enterprise development, as well as social development readers/researchers as the scope of coverage directly addresses welfare protection and improvement through the proposed approaches. Volume I: <http://www.microinsurancenetwork.org/networkpublication11.php> Volume II: <http://www.microinsurancenetwork.org/networkpublication60.php> contact: <pubdroit@ilo.org>

Jan-Mar 2013
ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

Innovative Agricultural Finance and Risk Management: Strengthening Food Production and Trade in the Transition Region Rutten, L. 2012 The selling point of this publication is its appreciation of and guidance on building facilities for agri-finance, trade and risk management in developing economies. It emphasises that sustainable investments are required to address some of the more deep-seated issues affecting the agri-food system in ensuring food and nutrition security, value chain development, sustainable livelihoods and supporting broader economic development. Having made that case, it goes on to elucidate policy, institutional and operational principles for managing agri-finance not in broad strokes, but giving credence to unique challenges and interests that implementers are likely to face. < http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/tci/WP7Innovative_agricultural_finance_and_risk_management.pdf> contact: Director, Investment Centre Division, FAO <Investment-Centre@fao.org>

TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT

Global Trends 2030: Alternative Worlds National Intelligence Council, 2012 This publication is the 5th in a series presenting trends and perspectives on future development patterns. The publication takes the approach of identifying global mega trends and game changers which shape market and political thinking as well as alternative worlds scenarios which show how these are likely to collectively affect governance and enterprising. Agricultural issues actually feature prominently in the discussions (directly and indirectly) in the vulnerabilities of the potential impacts of economic instability on welfare issues such as employment, food and nutrition security as well as the growing scarcity, and thus competition for food, water and energy. Agriculture being one of the major consumers of these resources, will necessarily be called upon to improve its efficiencies; likely through technological advancements <http://globaltrends2030.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/global-trends-2030-november2012.pdf> visit: www.dni.gov/nic/globaltrends or Facebook.com/odni.nic Unclogging the Arteries: The Impact of Transport Costs on Latin American and Caribbean Trade Mequita-Moreira, M., Volpe, C., Nlyde, J. 2008 In this publication a comprehensive view of the significance of transport costs as a barrier to trade in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. Not only do these barriers make it more costly for the region to import goods, they also impact negatively on trade development prospective. While examining some of the major contributing factors, the publication also makes a case for improved public policy, adequate transport infrastructure, and better coordinated logistics which can substantially improve trade benefits. The document also presents many useful analyses which would inform on future research and is a good technical resource for students or researchers in this topic <http://globaltrends2030.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/global-trends-2030-november2012.pdf> Contact: <mauriciomm@iadb.org> A summary of the publication can be found at: <http://gcg.universia.net/pdfs_revistas/articulo_107_1227718940236.pdf>

Jan-Mar 2013
TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT

Achieving the New Vision for Agriculture: New Models for Action World Economic Forum, 2013 The World Economic Forum is best known for its annual World Competitiveness Reports, but surprises here with this report which focuses on country-led actions as the strategic approach for transforming agriculture and building resilience to the systemic risk which permeates global agri-food systems. This is referred to as the New Vision for Agriculture. The core elements of this approach are refining partnership strategies, engaging and activating key stakeholders and strengthening implementation capacity. Real-world cases are brought in to demonstrate the approaches and outcomes for recommended practices. Importantly, it addresses issues such as financing, and support to smallholder businesses which are consistent with the proposed strategies. <http://www3.weforum.org/docs/IP/2013/NVA/WEF_IP_NVA_New_Models_for_Action_report.pdf> contact@weforum.org

ADVOCACY AND AWARENESS

Let Them Eat Junk Albritton, R., 2009 This book is a very in-depth look at how capitalist theory motivated by short-term profit has influenced food production systems for the worst in contributing to the massive increase in diet-related diseases. The fundamental argument is that capitalist structures/systems cannot deliver on the promise of cheap and nutritious food for all and that they are in fact ill-suited to the effective and equitable management of agriculture. To that end, a very convincing case is made for agriculture, food and the fight for democracy, social justice, health and sustainability issues directly related to food that are seldom judiciously discussed. It also has an excellent review of economic theory on capitalism and consumerism which would be appreciated by the casual reader or researcher, alike. <http://www.scribd.com/doc/87993816/Let-Them-Eat-Junk-How-Capitalism-Creates-Hunger-andObesitydf> www.arbeiterring.com The Youth Guide to Biodiversity FAO 2013 This unique publication is aimed at getting youth active in environmental and natural resource management and is published through the UN FAO and the Youth and United Nations Global Alliance (YUNGA). It gives a very comprehensive look at biodiversity, its value to human livelihoods and enterprises and steps that can be taken to contribute to its sustainable use. The publication is clearly aimed at a young reading audience and features clear illustrations, and definitions of terms and concepts for proper understanding of the developing dialogue. However, it is educational for professionals in designing similar material. In particular, the art-work and layout of the document is extremely reader-friendly. This is a useful resource for communicating environmental issues and would be a good reference to secondary and early tertiary education students. <http://www.fao.org/docrep/017/i3157e/i3157e00.htm> <www.yunga.org>

Jan-Mar 2013
ADVOCACY AND AWARENESS

Lessons and Experiences from the Urban Youth Fund UNHABITAT, 2012

This report is the fifth in a series representing initiatives for broader inclusion of youth in urban development. It presents case stories from 30 Urban Youth Fund grantees from Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The projects include 22 youth-led organisations from Africa, 7 from Asia Pacific and 1 from Latin America. The report has been compiled to give some basic guidance on the Urban Youth Fund and the different types of project it funds. The report is written to share lessons-learned, experiences and recommendations from these projects and is a good reference for developing youth-focused initiatives in the Caribbean.

<http://ledna.org/links/lessons-and-experiences-urban-youth-fund-global-youth-led-development-series> Find this and other reports in the series at: <http://www.unhabitat.org/categories.asp?catid=531 > School Feeding Programs: Improving Effectiveness and Increasing the Benefit to Education A Guide to Program Managers Del Rosso, J. 1999 Although this publication focuses largely on using school feeding programs (SFPs) for education, it is a valuable publication for those interested in leveraging SFPs to support broader health, nutrition and welfare goals through its conceptualisation and approach to integrating the SFPs as an implementation tool. In this way it may provide useful ideas for developing and implementing national food and nutrition policies or SFPs. The document is very practical in the treatment of desired goals/objectives in light of limited resources as well as the opportunity to positively impact on child/youth health and development. It also makes a strong case for actively pursuing and developing integrated interventions which are more easily sustained and also more beneficial < http://www.ovcsupport.net/s/library.php?ld=635 > contact: Partnership for Child Development (PCD) <child.development@ceid.ox.ac.uk> <http://www.ceid.ox.ac.uk/child/> Managing Climate Extremes and Disasters in Latin America and the Caribbean: Lessons from the IPCC SREX Report Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), 2012 The Special Report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation (SREX) highlighted implications of a changing climate for sustainable development summarising them into 10 key messages surrounding a reduction of vulnerability and exposure to disaster risks, as well as coping with climate change. This report, further condenses these major concerns and relates them to the Latin America and Caribbean reality, providing guidance on appropriate courses of action for mitigation and adaptation. The document is only 20 pages long. It provides perspective, firstly, by identifying current and future challenges that small island developing states (SIDS) face. This is followed up with recommended responses at the policy/governance and operational levels. < http://www.fapesp.br/ipccsrex/upload/SREX-Lessons-English-LAC.pdf> contact: Dr. Tom Mitchell; , Overseas Development Institute UK. <t.mitchell@odi.org.uk>