- Global Stocktake: Recently, the synthesis report of the first Global Stocktake was released by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on the eve of the G20 leaders’ summit. It refers to a proposed five-year review of the impact of countries’ climate change actions. Under the Paris Agreement, every country must present a climate action plan in five-year cycles. The first global stocktake was scheduled for 2023 under the Paris Agreement. It will assess whether the net result of the climate actions being taken was consistent with the goal of keeping the increase in global average temperature from pre-industrial times to within 2 degrees Celsius.
It will help the world determine whether it needs to do more — and how much more.
It also recognizes that money needs to be made available for Loss and Damage and energy transition in developing countries.
Heads of Asian Coast Guard Agencies Meeting (HACGAM): The HACGAM is an annual event hosted by one of its member nations on a rotational basis. It was initiated by Japan to promote cooperation among regional coastguards. The forum has 23 member Coast Guard agencies and two associate members – the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).It was launched after the capture of the pirated vessel MV Alondra Rainbow by the Indian Coast Guard in November 1999.
The primary focus of the HACGAM is to foster cooperation between the coast guards of the member Asian states to ensure and promote safe, secure and clean seas in the region.The Indian Coast Guard chairs the search and rescue (SAR) working group and is a proactive member of the other working groups, which include environmental protection, controlling unlawful acts at sea, and information sharing. In 2022, the 18th edition of the meeting was hosted by the ICG in New Delhi.
India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor: The project includes India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the European Union, France, Italy, Germany and the US. The project will aim to enable greater trade among the involved countries, including energy products. The IMEC comprises of an Eastern Corridor connecting India to the Gulf region and a Northern Corridor connecting the Gulf region to Europe. It will include a railway and ship-rail transit network and road transport routes. The corridor will include a rail link as well as an electricity cable, a hydrogen pipeline and a high-speed data cable. In the coming times, it will be a major medium of economic integration between India, West Asia and Europe. The rail and shipping corridor is part of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment (PGII).
FAO Food Price Index: The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) price index fell to a new two-year low in August. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities. It consists of the average of five commodity group price indices (cereal, vegetable, dairy, meat, and sugar), weighted with the average export shares.
Base year: 2014-16
