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Reduced Inequalities
Editorial
I am pleased to introduce the first issue of 2024 of the Asia Pacific Sustainable Development Journal (APSDJ Vol. 31 No. 1). The issue contains a thematic section “Sustainable development in Pacific small island developing States: The role of regional cooperation”. The theme fulfils not only our promise to focus on countries in special situations such as Pacific small island developing States but also our commitment to promote regional cooperation for sustainable development.
Submitted papers: Post-COVID-19 socioeconomic recovery in Fiji: A narrative with lessons for the future
This paper focuses on major socioeconomic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in Fiji. It includes a discussion on the country’s crisis management initiatives and on the view that the post-COVID-19 socioeconomic recovery is likely to be stressful for this small and vulnerable economy. It also provides imperatives for improving socioeconomic welfare by accelerating economic activity in the new normal and presents the following suggestions for moving the economy forward: promote economic diversification; develop and commercialize economic activity in neglected industries; and deepen technology for manufacturing. Some of these suggestions are also applicable to other small and vulnerable economies.
A review of the impact of climate change on cocoa production in the Pacific Islands
Cocoa beans are a valuable export commodity for Pacific island Countries. Cocoa is mainly cultivated by smallholder farms operated by families. Cocoa bean exports generates income employment opportunities and export revenue. Smallholder cocoa farmers however face constraints on the production quality of cocoa caused by climate change which exacerbates the effect of pests and diseases on cocoa trees and causes variations in weather patterns and environmental conditions. Regional collaboration on developing quality standards and infrastructure that enhances climate resilience and improves sustainability in cocoa production is therefore needed.
Pacific preview: Current trends and trajectories
This paper provides an overview of the ongoing trends in economic growth and sustainable development policies in the Pacific. The importance of contextualizing country differences through the lens of their own historical circumstance and development priorities are key to understanding the development trajectories. Amid the climate emergencies and post-COVID-19 pandemic recoveries the analysis indicates that countries can balance their economic growth vis-à-vis sustainable development opportunities while taking full advantage of their growing voice in regional and international platforms. The opportunities of regional cooperation and solidarity are at the heart of ensuring implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Education, child health, and mining: Evidence from Papua New Guinea
This paper examines sustainable development challenges in Papua New Guinea focusing on education and child health. Regional disparities between mining and non-mining areas are assessed and the economic potential and social concerns associated with mining are reviewed. Using data from the Demographic and Health Survey the results of the study indicate that mining provinces exhibit poorer outcomes on proxies for human capital child health asset ownership access to public goods and state capacity. In addition a comparative analysis with Papua Indonesia sheds light on the multifaceted challenges faced by Papua New Guinea in achieving sustainable development.
Upgrading Mongolia’s camel wool industry: Opportunities and challenges
The rising popularity of camel wool among apparel manufacturers has prompted Mongolia to firmly embed wool-processing facilities. Based on a literature review an avenue for upgrading the camel wool industry and challenges involved are examined in this paper. Despite clear market opportunities the challenging institutional dynamics and the country’s physical landscape have complicated the trajectory to upgrade the camel wool industry. Studies on global value chains commonly prescribe policies targeting firms and stakeholders; however insights gained from this review suggest that equal if not more attention should be devoted to improving the broader institutional milieu that firms are embedded in.
Natural resource extraction and sustainable development: A case involving Pacific Island countries
This paper presents results from an investigation on the impact of resource rent on sustainable development in three Pacific countries from 1990 to 2019 using the autoregressive distributed lag bounds testing approach. The results show a significant negative relationship between natural resource rents and sustainable development in Fiji and Solomon Islands and no such relationship in Vanuatu. These findings have important policy implications suggesting the need for strategies to enhance the value of resource revenue through value addition and to allocate a greater proportion of the revenue to investment in human and physical capital in line with the "Hartwick rule".
Special theme: Sustainable development challenges in the Pacific small Island developing states: The role of regional cooperation: Urbanization, climate change and sustainable development in the Pacific small Island states: The role of regional cooperation and integration
The future of human development depends considerably on sustainable inclusive and climate resilient urban expansion. Pacific small island developing States are urbanizing rapidly and prone to environmental and climate change vulnerabilities. The role of regional cooperation and integration is critical to meet urban challenges. The present paper covers the theoretical discourse between urbanization environmental/climate change and sustainable urban development. Urbanization trends in Pacific small island developing States are examined from the perspective of the environmental/climate change vulnerabilities along with the challenges opportunities and the role of regional cooperation and integration in meeting the urban challenges to achieving sustainable urban development.
Role of environmental factors in the maternal health problems among slums: Evidence from hlaing thar yar township of Myanmar
This paper reviews the environmental factors related to the maternal health prolems in slum areas of Hliang Thar Yar township Myanmar using descriptive statistics the Chi-square test and a binary logistic regression model. The results indicate that antenatal care visits and women’s age affect the abortion rate and drinking water cooking fuel and antenatal care visits have an effect on low birth weight while distance from dump sites toilet facilities cooking fuel and occupation affect urintary tract infection rates among women. For better health outcomes steps should be taken to reduce poverty improve conditions in slum areas disseminate health-related information.
Renewable energy consumption, financial development, and environmental sustainability in Pacific Island economies
The present paper reviews the effects of renewable energy consumption economic development and financial development on environmental sustainability in the Pacific. A non-stationary panel data modelling framework is used to investigate the effects in a balanced sample of six major small island economies from 1990 to 2020. The findings reveal that renewable energy consumption improves environmental sustainability and economic development and financial development worsen it. Accordingly the findings suggest that enhancing environmental sustainability in the Pacific requires significant financial sector reforms adoption of sustainable development practices and investment in renewable energy infrastructure in the Pacific.
Readiness stocktaking of multi-hazard early warning systems in Pacific small Island developing states
Pacific small island developing States are in unique geoclimatic settings making them highly susceptible to hydrometeorological hazards. Safeguarding lives livelihoods and infrastructure in these highly vulnerable countries requires the implementation of well-designed and functional early warning systems. For the present paper an assessment is made of the early warning systems in the seven Pacific island States: Cook Islands; Fiji; Kiribati; Nauru; Niue; Tokelau; and Tuvalu. Specific challenges and distinctive requirements for each country or territory in establishing an effective early warning system are identified and recommendations are given to strengthen and advance the multi-hazard early warning system.
A delicate balancing act for aid effectiveness in small Island developing states: Performance-based selectivity or vulnerability-based allocation?
This paper examines the effectiveness of aid allocation by considering (a) policy and institutions as the traditional criteria for aid allocation and (b) the level of vulnerability as a new paradigm focusing on 35 selected small island developing States over the period 2002−2020. Using the generalized method of moments the findings show that vulnerability-based allocation is the most relevant criterion for aid allocation. They indicate that regional cooperation can be a path to “raise the voice” of Pacific small island developing States to rethink the aid allocation mechanism in favour of a vulnerability-based allocation.
World Migration Report 2024
Since 2000 IOM has been producing its flagship world migration reports every two years. The World Migration Report 2024 the twelfth in the world migration report series has been produced to contribute to increased understanding of migration and mobility throughout the world. The last two years saw major migration and displacement events that have caused great hardship and trauma as well as loss of life. In addition to the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza millions of people have been displaced due to other conflicts such as within and/or from the Syrian Arab Republic Yemen the Central African Republic the Democratic Republic of the Congo the Sudan Ethiopia and Myanmar. There have also been large scale displacements triggered by climate- and weather-related disasters in many parts of the world in 2022 and 2023 including in Pakistan the Philippines China India Bangladesh Brazil and Colombia. Further in February 2023 south-east Türkiye and northern Syrian Arab Republic experienced powerful earthquakes resulting in more than 50000 deaths. By March an estimated 2.7 million people had been displaced in Türkiye and many had been left homeless in the Syrian Arab Republic. This new edition presents key data and information on migration as well as thematic chapters on highly topical migration issues and is structured to focus on two key contributions for readers. Part I includes key information on migration and migrants (including migration-related statistics); and part II includes balanced evidence-based analysis of complex and emerging migration issues.
Growing migration inequality: What do the global data actually show?
International migration is strongly associated with opportunity for positive advancement most typically in economic terms. A long-standing influential international migration narrative is deeply intertwined with the notion of betterment whether this relates to individual attainment household income or community resilience and coping strategies. People migrate for better lives.
A post-pandemic rebound? Migration and mobility globally after COVID-19
The impact of COVID-19 on human populations cannot be overstated. The pandemic caused 12 per cent of worldwide deaths in 2020/2021. In Western Europe the 2020 mortality increase was the highest since the Second World War and in Eastern Europe it was the highest since the break-up of the Soviet Union. COVID-19 vaccines were able to prevent approximately 19.8 million excess deaths. But this did not prevent COVID-19 from altering overall life expectancy in many countries: life expectancy at birth declined for males in the United States of America by 2.2 years in Lithuania by 1.7 years and comparable declines were recorded in 11 countries for males and 8 countries for females.
Migration and migrants: A global overview
The significant variation and diversity in migration and displacement around the world make capturing global trends a challenge. We know from the increasing amount of information at our disposal that migration is often a highly politicized topic making it increasingly prone to misinformation and disinformation by interest groups with political or commercial gains in mind. Straightforward accurate accounts of migration assist in enabling us to question migration myths and critically engage with mis- and disinformation materials. Against this backdrop describing and analysing how migration around the world is changing from a range of different perspectives including those entailing economic social and security dimensions (and associated legal policy frameworks) must start with an understanding of fundamental metrics. Human migration may well be an age-old activity touching almost every society around the world; however it is changing in important ways. Examining the shifts in scale direction demography and frequency can illuminate how migration is evolving while also pointing to long-term trends that have been shaped by historical events as well as more recent developments.
Acknowledgements
The editors are particularly grateful to the authors of the thematic chapters and to all of the IOM and academic reviewers who provided constructive feedback on the draft chapters. We are especially grateful to IOM’s Director General Amy E. Pope and members of IOM’s senior leadership team who supported this edition including Ugochi Daniels Eva Åkerman Börje Mohammed Abdiker Kristin Dadey Maryline Py Michele Klein Solomon Othman Belbeisi Diego Beltrand Marcelo Pisani Ashraf El Nour Sara Lou Arriola Ola Henrikson Manfred Profazi Pär Liljert Alejandro Guidi Aissata Kane and Dejan Keserovic.