Help rural poor with small scale bioenergy

There are ways of helping rural poor with energy-based projects, such energy efficient cooking stove to small scale bioenergy.

A joint study of FAO and DFiD shows, when produced on a small-scale in local communities, bioenergy can play a significant role in rural development in poor countries. The study refers to 15 bioenergy projects in Latin America, Africa and Asia involving 12 countries.

Most poor areas in rural area are depending on biomass for cooking and heating. About 80 percent of them sources from wood.

The study highlights possible benefits for rural poor:

Forestry creates more jobs in financial crisis

More countries are fighting the current economic recession as we can see in this week’s London Summit of Group of 20 meeting. Leaders of the world’s 20 largest economic powers discuss the global recession and decide new measures establishing the world on a more stable economic footing. In facts, many countries are facing the facts that their economic growth is decreasing, less exports and more jobs are loss. Many governments then made a plan of new economic stimulus for various sectors, including natural resources business such forestry. The new economic stimulus is expected to create more jobs.

I noted a press release of FAO referring recent report on Green Jobs by ILO. According to the study, unemployment worldwide could increase from 179 million in 2007 to 198 million in 2009 under the best case scenario.  With the worst case scenario, it reach higher as 230 million.

Another estimation of  job losses in US says it spread from construction, retail, professional services until manufacturing. The number were varies from 12,000 to 51,000 for each sector.

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Related terms
    crises in forest