Green Economic Growth for the Democratic Republic of the Congo

However, with 0.1 physicians per 1,000 people (compared to the global average of 1.6) and PPP per capita health expenditure of just USD30.72 (PPP) (compared to the global average of USD1,467), the nation was unequipped to deal with the magnitude of the pandemic’s potential health impacts.13 The first wave of the virus in early 2020 precipitated widespread mobility restrictions, which took a toll o. [...] 2.3 Natural capital investment DRC is home to some of the most impressive and abundant natural resources on the African continent, with its forests and river systems being some of the most biodiverse in the world.41 The history of natural resource exploitation in the country is a complex one, driven by colonial powers, unchecked foreign investment, and continued domestic conflict. [...] Agriculture is a key driver of the economy, with almost two thirds of the total working population employed in the sector, though this fraction has been slowly declining in the last two decades.42 Slash and burn agriculture has been a fixture in the DRC for decades, with communities often unaware of the long-term environmental and economic damage of the practice. [...] To define the inputs to the I3M model, the interventions (both green solutions and reference) are characterised in terms of changes to the final demand for the output of specific sectors within the Eora26 classification scheme.3 The I3M modelling framework estimates a ‘per unit’ impact of each intervention, which is then multiplied by the total amount of investment allocated to the intervention. [...] - Each of these interventions is treated in the same way: the total cost of the investment is modelled without regard to the source of the expenditure.