Though a number of definitions exist, at heart Green Growth is economic growth that is environmentally sustainable. While economic growth is necessary for increased employment and poverty reduction, further environmental goals include the mitigation of climate change, adaptation to climate change, the reduction of other pollutants, and a reversal of biodiversity loss and growing fresh water scarcity. To tackle these challenges, the active participation of the private sector is needed, as firms reduce or change their resource use, minimise waste, develop new environmentally friendly products and services, and increase demand for such products and services. Meeting these needs will be a challenge, but for many enterprises in the developing world, it also presents an opportunity. In fact investment in greening our economies is already a source of growth for many, while DCED members are increasingly active in promoting private sector contributions to Green Growth.
DCED publications and other key documents
A working group on Green Growth under the DCED has been formed in 2010.The objective of the group is to share knowledge and to raise awareness on the private sector’s contribution to Green Growth, as well as green issues related to the business enabling environment. This section lists key documents published by the DCED itself as well as other organisations.
DCED publications and initiatives
The search for synergy: Business Environment Reform and Green Growth – A practical guide for policy practitioners. DCED, 2017. And related case studies on:
- Macroeconomic reform in Vietnam on ecological and inclusive growth
- Payments for Ecosystem Services in Costa Rica
- Business climate and competitiveness enhancement support provided by the Compete Caribbean Programme
- The “Eco-Agricultural Business for the Adaptation to Changes in Climate” project in Cameroon
- The Zambia Green Jobs Programme
- WWF Market Transformation Initiative (Cotton)
This research was also presented at an ITCILO conference in Zambia, September 2017. You can view the presentation here.
- Private Sector Adaptation to Climate Change and Development Agency Support. DCED Synthesis Note, 2016. This Note explores the role of the private sector in adaptation, and how development agencies are providing support.
- The OECD and DCED Green Growth Working Group co-organised a workshop ‘Engaging the Private Sector for Green Growth and Climate Change‘ in March 2016.
- Green Growth and Private Sector Development: Stocktaking of DCED Experiences, 2014. For this stocktaking assignment, DCED member agencies were invited to share information on their green PSD projects. The 120 intervention examples illustrate that development agencies address a wide range of themes and use a diverse set of approaches in their promotion of green growth.
- Skills Development for Green and Inclusive SMEs in India: Entrepreneurs’ Approaches, 2014. This paper examines the approaches of entrepreneurs in developing the skills necessary for themselves and their employees to achieve green innovation in India.
- Policy Measures to Support Inclusive and Green Business Models, DCED and UN Global Compact, 2013. This report addresses the synergies and trade-offs between green and inclusive business models. How can businesses succeed in aligning both objectives – and how they can be supported in doing so?
- Women’s participation in green growth – a potential fully realised? DCED, 2012. Ecological challenges disproportionately affect the poor in developing countries. Since women constitute the majority of the world’s poor, they suffer in particular from these effects. This study seeks to analyse opportunities and challenges for women’s participation in green growth in developing countries.
- Fact sheets on key avenues of Green Growth, 2012: Economic Policy for Green Growth, Green Growth: Risks and Opportunities for Trade and Investment, Green Industries for Green Growth, and Green Value Chains to Promote Green Growth. These fact sheets , developed by the GGWG under the auspices of GIZ, introduce different green growth approaches and illustrate relevant development agency activities.
- Green tool box: Information brief, Sida, 2017.
- Green tool box: Dialogue and assessment tool, Sida, 2017.
- Inclusive Green Growth: A reflection on the meaning and implications for the policy agenda of the Dutch Directorate-General of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Jestke Bouma and Ezra Berkhout, 2015.
- The impact of green growth on employment, Grantham Research Institute and GGGI, 2015.
- Green Jobs: Impacts of a Green Economy on Employment, GIZ, 2015.
- Is Green Growth Good for the Poor? The World Bank, 2014.
- Better Growth, Better Climate, The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, 2015.
- Research and Evidence on Green Growth, DFID, 2013.
- A Toolkit of Policy Options to Support Inclusive Green Growth, AFDB, OECD, UN and World Bank, 2012.
- Green Economy, Green Growth, and Low-Carbon Development – history, definitions and a guide to recent publications, UNDESA, 2012.
Key links
- ILO Green Initiative – 2017
- GIZ. AdaptationCommunity.net
- Green Economy Coalition
- Green Growth Knowledge Platform
- International Energy Agency, World Energy Outlook, Energy and Development section
- International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), Sustainable Markets Group
- Overseas Development Institute, Climate Funds Update
- OECD, Work on Green Growth
- UNEP, Green Economy Initiative
Green growth approaches
Finance
- Delivering real change: Getting international climate finance to the local level. iIIED, 2017.
- Mind the Gap: Bridging the Climate Financing Gap with Innovative Financial Mechanisms. Global Green Growth Institute, December 2016.
- Mobilising Investment for Inclusive Green Growth in Low-Income Countries, GIZ, 2013.
- Mobilising International Climate Finance: Lessons from the Fast-Start Finance Period, ODI/WRI, 2013.
- Private Investment in Inclusive Green Growth and Climate-related Activities: Key Messages from the Literature and Bibliography, IFC, 2012.
- Making Carbon Markets Work for the Poor in Vietnam, Practical Action et al., 2009.
Business Environment Reform
- See DCED publication on the Synergies between Green Growth and Business Environment Reform above.
- Making the Switch: From fossil fuel subsidies to sustainable energy. Nordic Council of Ministers, 2017.
Green Industrial Policy
- Greening Africa’s Industrialization, UNECA, May 2016.
- ‘Green growth’ and the new Industrial Revolution, GGGI, January 2016.
- Korea’s Green Growth Experience: Process, Outcomes and Lessons Learned, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), January 2016.
- Building Competitive Green Industries: The Climate and Clean Technology Opportunity for Developing Countries, The World Bank, 2014.
- Green Industrial Policy. Managing transformation under uncertainty, German Development Institute, 2014.
Green Innovation
- Informality and inclusive green growth, IIED, August 2016.
- Policy instruments for Eco-Innovation in Asian countries, in: Sustainability, September 2015
- Fast-tracking Green Patent Applications: An Empirical Analysis. ICTSD Issue Paper 37, 2013.
Climate Change Adaptation
- Keeping Track of Adaptation Actions Africa: Targeted Fiscal Stimulus Actions Making a Difference, UNEP, 2014.
- How can donors advance climate change adaptation, AFD, 2011.
- Business leadership on climate change adaptation: Encouraging engagement and action, PwC, 2010.
Green Growth and Gender
- Community–based adaptation to climate change: A theoretical framework, overview of key issues and discussion of gender differentiated priorities and participation, IFPRI, 2013.
- Women’s participation in green growth – a potential fully realised? DCED, 2012.
Green Jobs and Skills
- TVET for a Green Economy, GIZ, 2013.
- Sustainable development, decent work and green jobs , ILO, 2013.
- Working towards sustainable development: Opportunities for decent work and social inclusion in a green economy, UNEP et al., 2012.
- International Labour Organisation (2012) Methodologies for Assessing Green Jobs.
Political Economy
- The Political Economy of Green Growth: Cases from Southern Africa, Danielle Resnick et al., 2012.
- The Political Economy of Renewable Energy, UNDP, 2011.
Sector Resources
Agriculture
- Topic Guide: Climate Change, Food Security and Agriculture, DFID, 2015.
- Case Study: Malawi’s Agriculture, Climate Change and Food Security Country Analysis and Programming Recommendations, DFID, 2015.
- The Decarbonization of China’s Agriculture, UNU-WIDER, 2012.
Livestock
Manufacturing
Energy
- Poor People’s Energy Outlook, Practical Action, 2014.
- DFID (2013) Evidence brief: Factors influencing large-scale uptake of cleaner and more efficient household energy technologies, DFID, 2013.
- From Gap to Opportunity: Business Models for Scaling up Energy Access, IFC, 2012.
Tourism
Urban Areas
- IIED (2014) Urban informality and building a more inclusive, resilient and green economy, IIEDS, 2014.
- Opportunities for Private Sector Engagement in Urban Climate Change Resilience Building, Intellecap, 2010.
Country and Regional Studies
- Measuring Inclusive Green Growth at the Country Level: Taking Stock of Measurement Approaches and Indicators, Green Growth Knowledge Platform (GGKP), February 2016.
- Achieving Sustainable Development in Africa through Inclusive Green Growth, UNECA, June 2015.
- The economy-wide effects of climate change on Philippine agriculture, IFPRI, September 2015.
- Aid and environment in Africa: the case of Tanzania, UNU-WIDER, 2014.
Impact stories
For further stories on green growth, visit our Impact Stories page.
Videos on green growth
This short film profiles IFC’s Lighting Africa initiative, which aims to develop markets for cleaner, more affordable and safer lighting products in Sub-Saharan Africa. Further videos on private sector development are available on the DCED YouTube account.