Do it yourself

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank designed the Debt Sustainability Framework (DSF), to assess and manage the debt sustainability of low-income countries (LICs). DSF is a key tool in the overall global financial architecture. It analyzes a country's indebtedness and its vulnerability to shocks through regular analysis of a country's present and projected (over the next 10 years) debt burden. The analysis involves conventional solvency analysis (Debt to GDP, Debt to Export, Debt service ratio, fiscal balance, etc.) and stress testing for potential crisis situations. The idea is to detect potential debt crises early and implement appropriate preventive actions. DSF, inter alia, guides— (i)      borrowing decisions of LICs by assessing their financing needs and repaying abilities; (ii)     LICs how to maintain a balance between their development goals and financial stability; (iii)    the process of identifying countries un...

The National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) released results of the   Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey 2022-2023   a few weeks ago. The survey made many interesting findings. Some of the key findings could be listed as follows: Primary school enrollments:  Among persons of age group 6 to 10 years, about 90.5% in rural areas and 89.2% in urban areas are currently enrolled in primary education. 25% of rural children and 20% of urban children who never enrolled in school, did it because they were not interested in studies. Another major reason for non-enrollment was “parents not interested in sending them to school”. Among persons aged 15-24 years, around 97.8% of males and 95.9% of females are able to read and write short simple statements in their everyday life with understanding and are also able to perform simple arithmetic calculations. Secondary education:  In urban areas, only 56.6% persons of age 25 years and above have some secondary education. Whereas, i...

‘Climate Change’, ‘Clean Energy’, ‘Renewable Energy’ and ‘Sustainability’ have been the primary topics of discussions in most global summits, symposiums, bilateral and multilateral talks & agreements, political discourses, academic projects and even election campaigns for over a decade now. “The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, also lays significant emphasis on “Affordable and Clean Energy”, “Sustainable Cities and Communities”, and “Climate Action”. Most countries have made significant progress in increasing the share of renewable/clean energy in their respective energy mix. Reportedly, in 2022 alone 268 GW of new solar energy capacity will be added worldwide. As per various estimates, globally, solar installations are expected to cross 300 GW in 2023. IEA expects global solar PV capacity to rise by nearly 1500 GW in the 2022-27 period, surpassing natural gas by 2026 and coal by 2027. ( see here ) As per the Internation...

 Recently, the government published the progress report on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The “Sustainable Development Goals - National Indicator Framework Progress Report, 2021 highlights the progress made so far by India in attaining SDGs. The SDGs are a comprehensive list of global goals integrating social, economic and environmental dimensions of development. These goals lay the blueprint for achieving a better and sustainable future for all by providing “an international framework to move by 2030 towards more equitable, peaceful, resilient, and prosperous societies - while living within sustainable planetary boundaries”. United Nation General Assembly adopted the document titled "Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" consisting of 17 Sustainable Development Goals and associated 169 targets, in September 2015. This agenda came in to force from January 2016. India is committed to implement the SDGs based on the nationally defined ...

A prima facie look at the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the programs and schemes announced/implemented so far by the government to achieve the SDGs ( see here ), and the performance of various state governments in achievement of these goals highlights some interesting points. For example, consider this— (a)    The 58 centrally sponsored schemes assigned to meeting of SDGs are apparently classified into three categories (i) Core Schemes (ii) Core of Core Schemes and (iii) other schemes. Almost all the Core and Core of the Core schemes are old and in operation since prior to the India committing itself to the SGDs in 2015. Some of these schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Mid Day Meals and PMGSY are more than 20yr old. MNREGA classified as Core of the Core itself is more than 10yr old. (b)    All government since the Vajpayee led NDA-1 government, have made related interventions through targeted programs at regular intervals. Many of these...