The Global Subsidies Initiative of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) has recommended that UN member States pledge to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies that compromise sustainable development, as well as to assist other countries and commit to a transparent annual report and review.
August 2011: In a policy brief titled “A high-impact initiative for Rio+20: A pledge to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies,” the Global Subsidies Initiative of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) has recommended that countries adopt a pledge to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies that compromise sustainable development, as well as to assist other countries with such a phase-out.
The Global Subsidies Initiative aims to illuminate subsidies and their potentially corrosive effects on environmental quality, economic development and governance. The brief notes that the recommendations are directed at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), and that it is preparing a proposal for submission to the process. The Conference, according to IISD, should “focus on a few high-impact initiatives that will help create the enabling framework for sustainable development.”
Countries taking the pledge would commit to a transparent annual reporting and review, and providing technical and financial assistance for developing countries. [Publication: A high-impact initiative for Rio+20: A pledge to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies]