News

First KCG Seminar 2021 on Market Power in Agricultural Value Chains on Jan. 15, 2021

12th January 2021
KCG Secretary
News
News
Global value chains are widely recognised as a major driver of economic growth and poverty reduction, enabling producers around the world to participate in and source from global markets (IBRD & World Bank, 2020). Although more and more firms and countries have been integrated into GVCs over time, the link of some developing countries and particularly the least developed countries to the international trade is still weak[...]

UNIDO-IfW-KCG Joint Article about Risk, Resilience and Recalibration in Global Value Chains

22nd December 2020
KCG Secretary
Publications
Publications
Current global value chains (GVCs) are highly efficient, specialized and interconnected, but they are also highly vulnerable to global risks. The high vulnerability to global risks was made clear particularly through the COVID-19 pandemic that caused supply-side disruptions in the first quarter of 2020, as China and other Asian economies were hit by the outbreak of the virus which later spread globally, leading to business closures around the world[...]

A New KCG Paper on Foreign Trade and Sustainable Business Practices in Ghana is Published Today

5th October 2020
KCG Secretary
News
News
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Foreign trade and sustainability is high on the political agenda. German and international policy-makers undertake increasing efforts to use trade policy more effectively for sustainable development purposes. A growing toolbox is meant to facilitate these policy aims, including sustainability chapters in trade agreements, sustainable value chains and sustainability standards. Meanwhile, scientific evidence on how trading activities impact on firms’ sustainable behaviour is limited[...]

A New KCG Project on the Development of Global Value Chains in the Coffee Sector

24th August 2020
KCG Secretary
News
News
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International trade is widely recognised as a key driver of economic growth, poverty reduction and societal development. The United Nations (UN) thus considers international trade as an important instrument for individual countries and the world as a whole to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The particular attention that the UN gives to the developing countries in this regard makes it clear that some of these countries still lie strongly behind as to their integration into the international trade and thus are farther away from benefiting from trade for their development[...]

Görg: Blockchain Technologies can Help Improve Transparency of Global Supply Chains

23rd July 2020
KCG Secretary
Public Contributions
Public Contributions
The German Federal Government is working on a Supply Chain Law that will require German companies with more than 500 employees to better ensure that both human rights as well as environmental sustainability standards along their supply chains are well protected and/or followed. The Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Hubertus Heil, expects that the Draft Law can be passed by the cabinet in August and thus can enter the legislative process soon with the goal of being effective in 2021[...]

European Parliament Study on EU-China Trade and Investment Relations by BRUEGEL and IfW Available Online

2nd July 2020
KCG Secretary
Publications
Publications
European flags
On July 1 Germany took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the next six months. Under the overarching objective “Together for Europe’s Recovery”, Germany aims at working with all EU Member States to jointly overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, to support Europe’s economic recovery, to encourage innovation, social cohesion, solidarity and sustainability in Europe, to strengthen the European community of law and values as well as to further strengthen Europe’s role in dealing with global affairs (German Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020)[...]