Trade Hot Topics Issue#67 - Property Rights and the Transfer of Environmentally Sound Technologies: Policy Considerations for LDCs and Small Vulnerable Economies

The impact of climate change has emerged as a major threat to development and poverty reduction efforts in many developing economies, including least developed countries (LDCs) and small vulnerable economies (SVEs). The global effort to address climate change will inevitably require changes in production systems particularly in those countries that heavily rely on sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry, and tourism. The consequences of climate change will be particularly significant for LDCs and SVEs, partly due to the relatively high cost of mitigation and adaptation measures as compared to their gross domestic product (GDP). In some African nations, for example, the cost of adapting to observed and projected climate change effects is estimated at as much as 10 per cent of national incomes, while in some SVEs the comparable estimates exceed the national GDP.