Dynamics of state mining enterprises during the 1980s and the outlook for the 1990s

This paper examines the evolution of the control by the state of mining and smelting from 1975 to 1989. In 1950, there was little state-owned mining capacity outside the centrally planned economies. A wave of nationalizations of mine assets swept over the developing countries in the late 1960s and early 1970s. State control continued to rise, in developing countries as well as in the developed market economy countries, until the mid-1980s, when the trend reversed. At present some 20% of Western world mineral production is state controlled. The level of control is highest for those minerals mined mainly in the developing countries, and lowest for those minerals mined mainly in the developed market economy countries. The current trend is toward privatization of state-owned mining enterprises in developed countries and it is expected that as the 1990s progress, privatization of such enterprises will also begin to take place in developing countries.     

Natural zeolites

Zeolites, a suite of porous, fine-grained minerals commonly found in certain near-surface, sedimentary rocks, have special physical and chemical properties that could make them valuable to farmers in developing countries. Zeolites have been used to improve soil fertility; develop slow-release fertilizers; improve animal waste disposal; and improve animal health. To date most research on zeolite deposits and their various applications has been undertaken by the industrialized nations. Some zeolite deposits, however, also exist in developing countries and the likelihood of the existence of additional deposits in those countries is high. However, thorough assessment of the mineralogy, geology, and various agricultural uses is still needed. Strengthening developing countries' geological surveys in non-metallic mineral exploration and assessment will improve the likelihood that the use of zeolites will reach their full potential in developing country agriculture.     

The geographic concentration of world mineral supplies

Mineral reserves are unevenly and erratically distributed throughout the world; those countries which were intensively explored in the past — the USA, Canada, the USSR, Australia, South Africa, and a limited number of Asian, African, and Latin American countries — control a large share of many of the industrially important metallic minerals. Current attitudes towards exploration and the mining industry in both the developed and the less developed countries should clearly encourage rather than discourage new exploration. Given an increase in exploration, new reserves may well be found in previously unexplored areas, but any major increase in world mineral supplies will probably come from mining very low- grade deposits and developing new methods of mining and processing non-conventional ores. While it is vital to increase research and development in exploration techniques and mining and processing technology, it is also critical to maintain current levels of consumption and trade by reversing the trend towards trade restriction on the part of some of the less developed countries who are important mineral exporters.     

Privatizing the minerals sector

The end of the Cold War presents new challenges for the dynamics associated with mineral resources development. Broader approaches are needed to help mineral rich developing countries develop their minerals sector. These countries need to embark upon programmes of policy reform and privatization in order to make their mineral resources industries more efficient and responsive to free market forces (such as supply and demand and price), and to turn mineral sector decision making over to the private sector. This article examines the use of policy reform and privatization strategies to increase mineral resource production in developing countries, thereby contributing to both developing country economic growth and developed country access to mineral supplies .     

Cogeneration in Developing Countries: Prospects and Problems

The analysis reveals that although cogeneration alone will not resolve power-shortage problems, it could produce more scheme in developing countries. The paper estimates the cogeneration potential in selected countries and identifies the technical, economic/financial and institutional issues of importance to cogeneration development in developing countries. The analysis reveals that although cogeneration alone will not resolve power-shortage problems, it could produce more than a 10% increase in the electricity-generation capacity in developing countries. Most of this potential is in the industrial sector and can be economically developed.     

Energy and environmental challenges for developed and developing countries

A supply-oriented strategy which accepts current projections of development energy demands, and seeks to satisfy them, based on acquiring capital-intensive technologies requiring imported fuels is doomed to failure. Developing countries which follow such a strategy will be unable to meet either their energy needs or the basic development needs of their people. To the extent that their energy needs are thus met, it will be at horrendous cost of capital desperately needed for economic and social improvement in non-energy sectors and with tragic environmental consequences to the developing countries and to the world [17]. The opposite of a supply-oriented strategy is a demand-control one. Commercially available or near commercial energy efficient technologies will permit the developing countries to raise the standard of living of their people with only a modest increase in per capita energy consumption.     

The illegal trading of high unit value minerals in developing countries

Attracted by the high unit value and low barriers to entry in terms of capital requirements, technology, infrastructure, minimum reserves and implementation time, the artisanal and small-scale mining of high unit value minerals, such as gemstones, diamonds and gold, has grown to significant proportions in developing countries. This is manifested by the value of output and large numbers of miners engaged in this activity. Despite the expansion of the subsector, its national economic role in many developing countries has largely been disappointing, primarily due to high levels of illegal trading activity. The objectives of this paper are to identify major factors responsible for the declaration problem. The economic impact of such activities is pointed out. To conclude the discussion, options are presented that provide a basis for eliminating illegal marketing practices and thereby strengthening the economic role of the subsector in meeting national development objectives of developing countries .     

INVESTMENT REQUIREMENTS IN THE NON-FUEL MINERAL SECTOR IN THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIE

Concern over the financial requirements for the long-term expansion of the world non-fuel minerals industry has led to growing interest in estimates of the magnitude of the requirements. The authors focus on the requirements in the developing countries for nine major minerals and deal with the most important among these, copper, in an appendix.     

External Debt and Prospects for Minerals-exporting Developing Countries

This article examines the extent to which selected non-fuel minerals-exporting developing countries can rely on their traditional source of hard-currency earnings to promote future economic growth and to facilitate payments for interest and amortization of accumulated debt. The countries (and minerals) under consideration are: Chile (copper), Bolivia (tin) and Jamaica (bauxite). Incorporated into the study are sets of alternative assumptions regarding global demand for these minerals to the end of the century, market shares, mineral prices, external debt levels and interest rates. More specifically, the study examines the likely ranges of future export revenues of these countries from these minerals in the years 1990 and 2000, and the role that these future export revenues may play in servicing external debt.     

LORENDAS: A COMPUTER BASED SYSTEM FOR THE MODELING OF LONG-RANGE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT AND SUPPLIES*

This paper reviews a time-dynamic linearprogramming modeling system designed for quantitative analysis of worldwide energy resource development and processing activities over a 25 - 30 year time horizon. The model includes explicit representation of exploration and production operations for energy minerals, as well as of the downstream supply, conversion and distribution of different energy forms, accounting for interfuel substitution. The uses of this model, which include forecasts of resource development, assessment of new technologies and analysis of energy policies, are discussed. The paper outlines a series of smaller, national or regional energy planning models which can be derived from the worldwide LORENDAS modeling structure and tailored to the needs of individual developing countries.     

Harnessing the bonanza: economic liberalization and capacity building in the mineral sector

Over the past decade many developing and transition economies have liberalized their investment regimes for mining and privatized formerly state-owned mineral assets. In response, these economies have witnessed increased foreign investment in exploration and development, growth in the number and diversity of mineral projects, and the opening up of new channels for harnessing increased economic and social benefits from development in the minerals sector. The restructuring of fiscal and regulatory regimes to encourage foreign investment, and the associated influx of mining capital, technology and skills, is transforming traditional relationships between mining firms, local communities and the government. This transformation necessitates a re-evaluation of the most effective policy approaches to capture increased economic and social benefits from mineral production. This article considers effective mechanisms for improving the capacity of developing and transition countries to maximize the economic and social benefits of mineral production. Common challenges associated with minerals economies are reviewed. Consideration is given to the opportunities for harnessing foreign direct investment and the possibilities for creating new partnerships between local communities, industry, government, and multilateral development agencies through social investment projects. The article concludes with a series of recommendations for the design and implementation of policy approaches towards harnessing mineral production for economic and social benefit following the liberalization of investment regimes for mining.     

Development of appropriate technologies: A possible way forward for environmental protection of developing countries like China

Summary To solve environmental problems a vast amount of manpower, material and financial resources has been spent. Some people consider that this is necessary, and a reasonable price which human beings must pay for development, especially industrialisation. Maybe it is true. But can people solve the environmental problems of developing countries better when they have learned the experiences and lessons of developed countries? One possible way is proposed in this paper, which makes a special reference to the real situation in China. The fundamental idea is to develop and apply appropriate technologies in the phase of national industrialisation. This will help developing countries to achieve desired environmental effects more economically. The appropriate technologies mentioned in the paper are of two kinds: appropriate industrial production technologies and appropriate environmental technologies. The development of the former will help to reduce environmental pollution and other problems caused by industrialisation. The development of the latter will enable developing countries to keep an acceptable environmental quality within a controlled cost. In the paper the definition of appropriate technologies is clarified, and the criteria for the selection and evaluation of appropriate technologies are proposed. The possibility of a realisation of developing the economy and protecting the environment at same time is then analysed. The conclusion is that development and application of appropriate technologies is an optimal strategy when the real conditions of developing countries like China are considered. Finally, some of the initial appropriate environmental technologies which should be developed are suggested.Professor Ranjie Hou has recently been working as a Research Fellow at the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Karlsrube University, Federal Republic of Germany.     

Road transport fuel demand in the LDCs

Over the last decades, oil consumption in the developing countries hus been increasing rapidly. Road transport has accounted for most of this increase in demand. It is the thesis of this paper that future growth in oil demand in developing countries will occur mainly in the road transport sector and that this growth will be surprisingly strong. Estimated income and price elasticities for several developing countries are presented and forecasts for oil consumption in road transport in the developing countries up to 2010 are given.     

Drivers of agricultural sustainability in developing countries: a review

Agricultural development has been an effective instrument for poverty alleviation and economic development in developing countries over the latter half of the twentieth century, and over 80 % of rural people globally still depend on agriculture for their living. However, issues such as water availability, land degradation and an increasing dependence on chemical fertilisers and pesticides continue to be on-going threats to sustainable agricultural development. These threats are being driven by the pressing need to ensure food security in the face of rapidly growing and urbanising populations. Developing countries will therefore continue to need improved methods for planning sustainable agricultural development. This paper presents a review of agricultural sustainability assessment in developing countries. The review highlights some of the key weaknesses that persist in sustainability assessment and the need to consider not only indicators of sustainability but also the drivers that influence indicator behaviour. We argue that without a good understanding of the drivers of sustainability and their systemic relationships to indicators, sustainability assessments run the risk of focusing on symptoms without addressing underlying causes of adverse indicator trends. Drivers of agricultural sustainability in developing countries encompass a range of demographic, natural, socio-economic, political, institutional and management factors. Understanding these and their relationships to sustainability indicators is needed in order to develop agricultural development policy that supports sustainability. The paper presents a conceptual framework for guiding systemic agricultural sustainability assessment and agricultural development planning in developing countries that includes both sustainability indicators and drives, and considers the broad relationships between them.     

Coal Receiving Terminals in Relation to Electricity Generation in Developing Countries

With the rapid increase in the price of oil in the 1970s, many developing countries are beginning to look to steam coal as an energy source. Much of this coal will have to be transported from coal-producing countries to coal-consuming countries by sea and coal-receiving terminals will have to be built especially in those countries which have not been coal importers in the past. The international market in steam coal is examined and predictions are made as to the amount of coal that developing countries are likely to import from electric power generation. The operation of a coal-receiving terminal is discussed and estimates are provided as to the size and cost of coal terminals required to meet the coal import needs of developing countries.     

Adaptation to Climate Change in Developing Countries

Adaptation to climate change is given increasing international attention as the confidence in climate change projections is getting higher. Developing countries have specific needs for adaptation due to high vulnerabilities, and they will in this way carry a great part of the global costs of climate change although the rising atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations are mainly the responsibility of industrialized countries. This article provides a status of climate change adaptation in developing countries. An overview of observed and projected climate change is given, and recent literature on impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation are reviewed, including the emerging focus on mainstreaming of climate change and adaptation in development plans and programs. The article also serves as an introduction to the seven research articles of this special issue on climate change adaptation in developing countries. It is concluded that although many useful steps have been taken in the direction of ensuring adequate adaptation in developing countries, much work still remains to fully understand the drivers of past adaptation efforts, the need for future adaptation, and how to mainstream climate into general development policies.     

Small stand-alone windpower systems

The main purpose of this paper is to review opportunities for the use of windpower in remote areas where there is no electricity grid, which of course is a common feature of the rural areas of many of the poorer developing countries. It should also be mentioned that similar situations arise in the remoter areas of some of the larger and richer developed countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia, the USSR and even parts of Western Europe. Hence, generally speaking the wind systems appropriate in the remoter parts of the developing countries are equally applicable in the remoter parts of the industrialized countries for similar purposes. Therefore, this paper will deal exclusively with small stand-alone windpower systems and will also highlight one or two significant factors of special importance for the use of the technology in developing countries, such as the potential importance of local manufacture of equipment.     

A new approach to sustainable tourism development: Moving beyond environmental protection

Tourism is one of the largest and fastest growing industries in the world. It is an increasingly important source of income, employment and wealth in many countries. Its rapid expansion has, however, had detrimental environmental (and socio-cultural) impacts in many regions. In this article, I examine the main economic benefits and environmental impacts of tourism, and review the development of the international sustainable tourism agenda. While much of international tourism activity takes place within the developed world, this article will focus on the (economic) development of the industry in developing countries I conclude that new approaches to sustainable tourism development in these countries should not only seek to minimize local environmental impact, but also give greater priority to community participation and poverty alleviation. I argue, in particular, that more emphasis should be given to a 'pro-poor tourism' approach at both national and international levels.     

Valuing natural resources and the implications for land and water management

New models of sustainable development stress the importance of the efficient management of resources, including labour, capital equipment and natural resources. Overuse of the resource base today will lead to shortages tomorrow; yet it can be a difficult task persuading politicians and planners in developing countries of the importance of resource management. This paper suggests methodologies for doing so and argues the urgency of the task.     

Environmental attitudes in less developed countries

Environmental policies in the developing countries are the product of circumstances quite different from those found in advanced nations. As a result, such policies have thus far been rather permissive. There is, however, considerable variance among developing countries in this respect, as well as substantial change over time. Not much evidence has been uncovered pointing to a migration of industry and mining to ‘pollution havens’ in developing countries—the reverse in fact seems to be the case. Nevertheless, it is likely that environmental policies will remain less stringent in developingthan developed countries for the foreseeable future. Indeed, the gap may well widen substantially.