Recently, the public got thunderstruck by a report that went viral about a cargo ship that got stranded in the Chesapeake Bay. On March 13, 2022, the Ever Forward ship, a fleet member of the Evergreen Marine Corp. reportedly got stuck in the shallow waters of Chesapeake Bay. According to NPR, Ever Forward was departing from Baltimore after loading their cargo when the crew miscalculated the ship’s navigation. Eventually, the Ever Forward arrived in the Chesapeake Bay and was stuck in shallow waters near the beach for four weeks. Various efforts have been made to set this cargo ship free so that it will be able to sail as per normal in accordance with the trade routes. However, until this exact day, the ship still shows no avail of going back on the sail and still remains stranded in the Chesapeake Bay.

Although it did not cause any loss and damage to other cargo ships, this incident caused delays in the supply of raw materials and products of essential commodities for life due to the time-consuming ship rescuing attempts. As reported by CBS News, the Ever Forward ship currently wields 5000 containers on the deck and by being stuck in the same position for a month, they have caused a loss of 1 billion USD per day. In order to avoid a greater amount of loss, the crew and the Chesapeake Bay coastal guards took the initiative to evacuate the containers using another ship for immediate distribution to respective recipients.

The incident that happened to Ever Forward again made the public aware that maritime transportation is crucial in supporting export and import activities in trade. Export and import activities are essential processes in international trade to channel the produced commodities to consumers in order to meet their daily needs. To make the whole process more efficient, transportation facilities are required, especially sea transportation which has been deemed to be the most efficient transportation for various types of products at the same time.

Quoted from a press release on the UN's official website, Former UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon conveyed the importance of maritime transportation in the realm of international trade in his speech on September 29, 2016, coinciding with World Maritime Day. Ban Ki-Moon stated that maritime transportation is the backbone of global trade activities. Maritime transportation helps ensure that the benefits of trade are more evenly distributed due to its large capacity and relatively lower costs compared to other types of transport. In addition, the shipping industry has also played an important role in the improvement of global living standards that have brought millions of people out of acute poverty in recent years. This article will discuss further the importance of maritime transportation in the world of international trade.

Importance of Maritime Transport in Trade

Barely any economic activity and industrial sector in the world can last for an eternity without the involvement of maritime transport in their export and import activities. This statement was reinforced by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) which explained that the international maritime transportation industry is responsible for the transportation of around 90% of commodities produced from world trade activities. In this figure, 80% of them are commodities destined for export and import activities. The statement implies that trading activities are completely dependent on sea transportation which is an important component to drive their economic activities.

ICS also stated that among the 90%, there are 11 billion tons of commodities transported by cargo ships every year, of which 1.5 tons represent the necessities of life for every single person in the world per year. Every year, the shipping industry transports nearly 2 billion tons of crude oil, 1 billion tons of iron ore, and 350 million tons of wheat, where these raw materials are the basic ingredients of almost all basic human needs such as clothing, food, and shelter. This proves that a person's survival is highly dependent on world trade activities, especially on the process of export and import through maritime transportation.

In addition, ICS also mentioned that currently, there are more than 50,000 international cargo ships that carry every type of commodity in their cargo capacity. There are 150 countries in the world that have a fleet of registered cargo ships as a means of distributing commodities in the economy. In addition, each existing fleet employs more than one million human resources from almost every country. The statement elaborates that the maritime transportation industry in expedition activities is strongly supported by its existence to keep world trade activities alive.

What Happened the Year Before

During this year, the world of commerce and the general public was shocked by news about cargo ships that got stuck in the waters where they sailed. Prior to the stranded incident of the Ever Forward ship in the Chesapeake Bay, there was an incident that happened to another Evergreen ship, where this incident was considered far more fatal. Reporting from The Washington Post, at the end of March 2021, one of the Evergreen Marine Corp. ships, Ever Given, was reportedly caught in the Suez Canal which caused a blockade of the canal for 6 full days. The blockade caused by the snagging of the giant carrier managed to disrupt the shipping activities of more than 300 ships so some ships were forced to take alternative routes, requiring them to circle the African continent to reach Asia and increase their sailing time by three weeks.

Reporting from CNBC, the amount of losses borne by Evergreen Marine Corp. After experiencing this incident, of course, not a few, because not only their companies suffered losses, but also the economy around the world. Despite paying a fine that includes compensation for damage and loss of revenue for the Suez Canal, as well as rescue costs totaling $916 million, Evergreen Marine Corp. cannot immediately restore the state of world trade as before. The losses caused by the entanglement of Ever Given to the world economy did not only last a day or a week after that but the impact was felt for months.

According to Business Insider, the losses caused after the Ever Given snagged were estimated at 400 million USD per hour. Lloyd's List, a shipping news journal based in London, estimates the value of cargo goods passing through the canal daily at an average of 9.7 billion USD, with a total of 5.1 billion USD moving into the western hemisphere and 4.6 billion USD moving into the western hemisphere. moving to the eastern hemisphere. Multiplied by more than 300 other cargo ships, of course this number of losses is not something trivial. This event affects global supply chains that have been struggling with shortages and delivery delays since the pandemic began in 2020.

Maritime transportation is the best transportation option for distribution activities in world trade in terms of its function. As the main driver of commodity distribution activities in international trade, human needs are almost entirely dependent on the smooth running of the process. However, if trading activities involving maritime transportation are disrupted while carrying out their functions, the losses incurred will be fantastic. In the future, maritime transportation companies must be better prepared to face situations that can endanger international trade flows.

Friday (8/4/22), the Center for World Trade Studies (CWTS) Universitas Gadjah Mada held an online writing workshop which was attended by UGM PSPD interns from various departments. On this occasion, PSPD UGM invited Raras Cahyafitri, M.Sc as the head of the Research Division of PSPD UGM who is experienced in journalism and writing as a speaker. This workshop aims to improve the writing skills of interns and PSPD UGM staff to be able to produce quality and trustworthy writing. The material presented includes discussions related to techniques and how to write for various outcomes.

The workshop was opened with a discussion regarding the important and main steps in starting a writing, namely writing the main sentence. In her presentation, Raras said that there are two types of placement of the main sentence, namely inductive (placed at the end of writing) and deductive (placed at the beginning of writing). To make writing more interesting, writing with comprehensive and coherent paragraphs is needed. Raras introduced three ways of composing paragraphs known as SMS––sort, match, and structure, namely sorting information, grouping, and determining the writing structure.

At the end of the session, the workshop participants were taught how to process data in a text and put it into a written framework to be developed into paragraphs by providing space for the workshop participants to practice this. In this session, participants learn how to present scientific statistical data into an informative and easy-to-understand reading. Some workshop participants had difficulty putting this into practice because the participants had to understand well the data presented and practice drawing general conclusions. However, these skills are important for interns to have, especially in terms of presenting data-based information in various outputs at CWTS UGM.

The workshop activities were enthusiastically followed by the participants, which was shown by the active participation of the participants in the question and answer sessions and practice sessions. In the presentation session on material related to processing data into writing, the intern on average had difficulty putting the material into practice. Thus, reflecting on this activity, it is expected that in the future there will be similar programs that can help improve the ability of writers. 

Starting from April 2, 2022, Lithuania will no longer import natural gas from Russia for the nation’s energy supply. As quoted from ABC News, Dainius Kreivys, the Lithuanian Minister of Energy, stated that Lithuania is the first European Union country out of 27 other countries to completely stop importing gas from Russia. The President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, posted a statement via his official Twitter account that he confirmed the fact and stated that Lithuania had decided to stop cooperation in the energy sector with an 'aggressor'. This statement refers to their form of solidarity with Ukraine, which has been a victim of Russia’s invasion since late February 2022. In the statement, the President of Lithuania invited other European Union countries to take the same steps.

What Underlies the Decision

Reported by PBS, Lithuania was a country with a 100% dependence on Russian natural gas imports. In fact, it was noted that before 2014, Lithuania was always on the list of countries with the highest amount of natural gas transactions in the European Union. After 2014, they started to establish their own gas production terminal at the Klaipeda port, despite the fact that they were still dependent on Russian gas supply by 26% in 2021.

The gas trade cooperation relationship between Russia and Lithuania resumed decently until early 2022, when Russia started an attack on Ukraine. Bloomberg reported that President Vladimir Putin suspended gas exports to countries that showed no support to Russia in the attack, which includes Lithuania. Starting on April 1, 2022, according to President Putin's edict, Russia also urges EU countries to pay the cost of gas imports in rubles if they still wish to continue to import gas. Lithuania strongly condemned the attack and immediately took action by severing gas trade cooperation with Russia.

Forecasts on What Will Happen

Obviously, Lithuania’s actions as their response to the tense relations between Ukraine and Russia will have a huge impact on the country's economy. Based on data from Trading Economics, Lithuania is experiencing inflation of 14.2% since the end of February 2022, the highest inflation rate since 1996. This has led the country to a drastic increase in the price of all sorts of fuel, including natural gas. Gas for household purposes and electricity generated from natural gas experienced a dramatic price increase as the effect.

Reporting from Delfi, at the end of 2021, the price of household gas in Lithuania has increased by 27-36% from its normal price, while the price of electricity has also increased by 10%. Until now, the price has not shown any signs of decrease. It is concerned that this condition will worsen after Lithuania decided to stop gas import cooperation with Russia. In this tense situation, the Lithuanian government cannot remain silent and must ensure the availability of gas supplies in the country considering that Lithuania is one of the countries that are highly dependent on the supply of natural gas as an energy source for electricity and heating fuel for their buildings.

Actions Taken by Lithuanian Government

The Lithuanian government took several steps to maintain the availability of natural gas to anticipate shortages due to the end of natural gas imports from Russia. The following are the efforts made by Lithuania after cutting off gas supplies from Russia as of April 2, 2022.

1. Independent Gas Production

Reporting from Euronews, the Lithuanian Ministry of Energy has stated that from April 1, 2022, they will no longer import Russian gas and will increase the production of liquefied natural gas from their own state-owned gas production terminal as an alternative to gas import activities. Data from transmission system operators specifically show that as of April 2, 2022, Russian gas imports for Lithuania's needs via the Lithuanian-Belarus gas interconnection have reached 0. Currently, they independently rely on natural gas production from their own state-owned gas terminals in Klaipeda. In the future, Lithuania will increase gas production in Klaipeda to achieve complete independence in their domestic gas supply without having to rely on gas imports from other countries, especially Russia.

2. Cooperation with Other Countries

In line with President Nauseda's statement on his Twitter account encouraging other European Union countries to stop importing gas from Russia, the Lithuanian government has also promoted cooperation with neighboring countries in the natural gas trade, one of which is the construction of gas pipelines to Poland natural gas sources. Reported to Reuters, the Gas Interconnection Poland–Lithuania (GIPL) connecting Poland and Lithuania will be officially opened on May 1, 2022, to carry out natural gas trade cooperation by distributing natural gas produced by Lithuania to Poland and vice versa. With the construction of this natural gas pipeline, the two countries will keep each other's natural gas supplies safe. The construction process has started in early 2019 and was hampered by construction in 2021, this facility was inaugurated earlier than scheduled, namely in mid-2022.

3. Exploring Alternative Energy Sources

The possibility of a decrease in Lithuania's natural gas supply after the termination of cooperation in gas imports from Russia has prompted the Lithuanian government to look for other alternative energy sources which is wind energy. Reporting from Offshore Wind Biz, on March 31, 2022, the Lithuanian Parliament established a law for the development of offshore wind energy in the Baltic Sea. The license application process to develop a wind energy harvesting field marks the beginning of the construction of the first offshore wind energy harvesting facility in Lithuania.

Lithuania will soon become an independent country in the production of natural gas and a source of natural gas for other countries with various efforts that have been made. Independent gas production and gas distribution to other countries can also improve diplomatic relations between Lithuania and countries that directly benefit from gas export activities. The alternative resource exploration policy has also become the key to Lithuania's energy dependence after the termination of cooperation in the export and import of Russian gas.

As a system that tries to bridge economic development and sustainability, the circular economy has gained enormous attention from developing countries as in the African continent. In the progression, African nations are fostering cooperation to enhance the implementation of a circular economy, particularly with countries that have implemented a circular economy, such as countries in European Union. Cooperation with European Union nations will not only enhance the capacity in innovation and technology for implementing a circular economy but also can be utilized to forge good public policies and alter African countries' societies to adopt circular economy values in their economic activities.

Since the joint declaration between African Union and European Union was signed in 2017, the government of both regional countries has coincided with the cooperation on accelerating the circular economy in African nations. This commitment has been implemented through various initiatives namely funding, technology advancement, public policy dialogues, and market access to the African circular economy. In 2014, European Union and African countries' cooperation has also been implemented through the SWITCH Africa Green mechanism which is funded by European Union that also involves United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to support green economic development and sustainability in the African region.

Regionally, some African nations have arranged several multilateral cooperation fora to proliferate circular economy implementation in the region. In 2016, African Circular Economy Network (ACEN) is formed by practitioners and experts in order to enhance the technology and innovation capabilities through collaboration between developed and developing nations. In 2017, African Circular Economy Alliances (ACEA) is formed by an agreement between three nations namely; Rwanda, Nigeria, and South Africa. ACEA is aimed as a coordination forum between the nations to implement the projects and programs related to the circular economy. Besides the involvement of government officials, circular economy acceleration is also supported by professionals. Lately, in 2019 African countries through African Ministerial Conference on the Economy (AMCEN) have declared Durban Declaration to ramp up the policy-making efforts to enhance circular economy implementation in the region.

Nationally, African countries have developed several initiatives which could be categorized as circular economy practices, such as waste management, the efficiency of energy and water use, and the re-utilization of second-hand materials in producing products. Several countries in Africa have focused on developing a circular economy, for instance, South Africa which focuses on enhancing circular economy implementation in manufacturing, renewable energy, and waste management (Tahulela & Ballard, 2020) while Ghana and Nigeria have started to focus on e-waste management (Maphosa & Maphosa, 2020). Despite some initiatives, in the public policy aspect, there is impreciseness in categorizing practices as the circular economy. Furthermore, the public policy related to the circular economy has not been comprehensively arranged.

Even though the discussion of African countries and European Union cooperation still revolves around the aspects of technology and financial aid, in several cooperation agreements and discussions, both parties agreed that aspects of public policy-making and society recognizant in African societies are of the utmost importance to develop and enhance the circular economy implementation in the region, especially in doing cooperation with European Union both regionally and nationally.

In public policies, African nations are still unable to compose holistic policies to enhance the circular economy practices and mechanisms. According to Desmond and Asamba, the discussion of policy proposals to accelerate the implementation of a circular economy has been discussed widely in some African countries in recent years yet is still debated to be legalized (Desmond & Asamba, 2019). In South Africa for example, the circular economy in the manufacturing industry has not yet been holistically ruled by the government. The absence of holistic policy, clear standardization, and also rules for manufacturing companies become obstacles for the companies to implementing the circular economy (Ohiomah & Sukdeo, 2022).

Through the international cooperation mechanism with European Union, African nations have the potential to develop a more holistic public policy in order to develop circular economy implementation as some of the European nations have accomplished in their domestic economic system. As Wadee and Tilkanen argue that despite the circular economy is a new terminology within African nations, practices that are considered circular economy have been implemented in African countries. However, circular economy policies in African nations have not been implemented in an inclusive manner by not involving various parties who should have taken part in the policy-making of the circular economy. Hence, the cooperation with European Union may give reference to African nations in shaping public policy to implement a circular economy. Furthermore, the success of the European Union in developing a circular economy system is determined by the mechanism that propels society and companies to adopt circular economy principles in their business enterprises and community activities.

In addition to policy-making cooperation, collaboration with European Union should also be carried out at the stage of implementing the policies in the development of circular economy. According to the Trinomics report,  debilitating implementation of policies and laws still widely occurs despite the existence of policies and laws that propel companies to adhere to circular economy practices.  Even in some African countries, sustainability policies and laws may be eluded through corruption (Forson et al., 2017). Accordingly, this issue should also become a concern between parties in doing cooperation especially to ensure the implementation of circular economy policies that have been shaped. Arguably, African nations should not only focus on the policy-making process but also on the supervision and the implementation of policies, particularly for business companies in Africa. 

In addition to the need for holistic public policy support, the development of a circular economy system in Africa must also pay attention to aspects of changing the behavior of people and businesses in Africa. The practice of circular economy does not merely involve business actors but also consumers who use these products. Unfortunately, the majority of African societies have not recognized circular economy practices well until now. As Zubrugg et al., (2014) argue that well recognition and understanding of circular economy practices are matter since the research reveals that the success of waste management in developing countries not only depend on good policy and state institution but also relies on the acceptance and understanding of society towards circular economy ideas. 

To resolve the problems, by enhancing cooperation with European Union as Denmark and Indonesia have done, African nations may initiate conferences or workshops to discuss the circular economy that includes important stakeholders, particularly society and businesses. Through discussions and conferences that entail European Union, the African nations may ameliorate their understanding and acceptance of the societies of circular economy. Information exchanges and workshops on practicing circular economy may raise societies’ understanding of circular economy. 

Among many complex issues which become challenges in implementing circular economy in African nations, public policy formulation and implementation related to the circular economy have become the major challenges for African countries in enhancing circular economy practices. Furthermore, societies and businesses' familiarization with circular economy principles and practices is crucial in institutionalizing circular economy values in African nations. Hence, despite the regional cooperation that has been underway through African and European Union cooperation, there is still a need to enhance cooperation with European Union countries that have developed circular economy, particularly in the process of public policy-making, and to familiarize the societies with circular economy practices. The existence of holistic public policies and circular economy practices institutionalization in society arguably will accelerate circular economy practices in African countries that can be achieved through cooperation with European countries which are at the forefront of implementing a circular economy worldwide. 

References

Desmond, P., & Asamba, M. (2019). Accelerating the transition to a circular economy in Africa (pp. 152–172). https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429434006-9

Forson, J. A., Buracom, P., Chen, G., & Baah-Ennumh, T. Y. (2017). Genuine Wealth Per Capita as a Measure of Sustainability and the Negative Impact of Corruption on Sustainable Growth in Sub-Sahara Africa. South African Journal of Economics, 85(2), 178–195.

Maphosa, V., & Maphosa, M. (2020). E-waste management in Sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic literature review. Cogent Business & Management, 7(1), 1814503. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2020.1814503

Ohiomah, I., & Sukdeo, N. (2022). Challenges of the South African economy to transition to a circular economy: A case of remanufacturing. Journal of Remanufacturing. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13243-021-00108-z

Tahulela, A., & Ballard, H. (2020). Developing the Circular Economy in South Africa: Challenges and Opportunities (pp. 125–133). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7071-7_11

Zurbrügg, C., Caniato, M., & Vaccari, M. (2014). How Assessment Methods Can Support Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries—A Critical Review. Sustainability, 6, 545–570. https://doi.org/10.3390/su6020545

Currently, Sri Lanka is being confronted by mass demonstrations as a form of protest against the economic crisis. Over the past few months, since late 2021, Sri Lanka has been grappling with the worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948. This crisis has caused prices of basic necessities to rise sharply and stocks of basic foodstuffs, fuel, and medicine to run low. The inability of the government of Sri Lanka's President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, to pay for imports and deliveries of fuel caused by a foreign exchange shortage led to a power outage in parts of Sri Lanka that lasted for 13 hours on Wednesday (30/3/22). The blackout happened in the culmination of a wave of mass protests marked by the blocking of major roads in various cities and calls for prosecution for the sacking of Governor Ajith Cabraal outside the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The peak of the crisis and demonstrations caused the ranks of the government's cabinet to resign en masse from Tuesday (4/4/22) to Wednesday (5/4/22) yesterday.

Critics say that the root of Sri Lanka’s crisis lies in continued economic mismanagement by governments that created and maintained twin deficits––a situation in which the country's expenditure is greater than its income and when the production of goods and services is insufficient. However, the current economic crisis was accelerated by the adoption of a tax cut policy to stimulate the economy by Rajapaksa during the 2019 general election, shortly before the spread of the COVID-19 virus which also worsened the Sri Lankan economy. According to Murtaza Jafferjee, head of the think-tank Advocata Institute, the policy was a misdiagnosis of the economic problems Sri Lanka was facing at that time.

Sri Lanka's economic crisis is also exacerbated by the failure of Sri Lanka's debt management program whose status depends on aspects of the tourism industry and the payment of money from foreign workers weakened by the pandemic. With the failure of this debt management program, foreign exchange reserves fell by almost 70 (seventy) percent within two years. In addition, the Rajapaksa government's decision to ban all chemical fertilizer products by 2021 has hit the country's agricultural sector and triggered a decline in rice yields which ultimately disrupted Sri Lanka's agricultural production.

To deal with the crisis, the Rajapaksa government has planned and implemented a series of programs. In April, Sri Lanka plans to discuss a loan program with the IMF (International Monetary Fund). Prior to this move, in the last few months, Sri Lanka had gradually devalued its currency––which has been shown to have a negative impact towards society. Besides the assistance from the IMF, the Rajapaksa government is also seeking assistance from China and India, particularly for fuel assistance from India. The shipment of diesel under the $500 million credit line signed with India in February is expected to arrive on Saturday (9/4/22). In addition, Sri Lanka and India have signed a $1 billion credit line for imports of basic necessities, including food and medicine. The Rajapaksa government has also requested at least another $1 billion from New Delhi. Meanwhile, China is currently considering offering a $1.5 billion credit facility and up to $1 billion in separate loans after providing a $1.5 billion CBSL swap and a $1.3 billion syndicated loan to tackle the crisis hitting this archipelagic state. Prior to this aid program, the Sri Lanka government had a total external debt of about $4 billion by 2022, including a $1 billion International Sovereign Bond (ISB) due in July. The ISB makes up the bulk of Sri Lanka's $12.55 billion foreign debt with the Asian Development Bank, Japan, and China among the other major lenders.

Currently, Sri Lanka is being confronted by mass demonstrations as a form of protest against the economic crisis. Over the past few months, since late 2021, Sri Lanka has been grappling with the worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948. This crisis has caused prices of basic necessities to rise sharply and stocks of basic foodstuffs, fuel, and medicine to run low. The inability of the government of Sri Lanka's President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, to pay for imports and deliveries of fuel caused by a foreign exchange shortage led to a power outage in parts of Sri Lanka that lasted for 13 hours on Wednesday (30/3/22). The blackout happened in the culmination of a wave of mass protests marked by the blocking of major roads in various cities and calls for prosecution for the sacking of Governor Ajith Cabraal outside the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The peak of the crisis and demonstrations caused the ranks of the government's cabinet to resign en masse from Tuesday (4/4/22) to Wednesday (5/4/22) yesterday.

Critics say that the root of Sri Lanka’s crisis lies in continued economic mismanagement by governments which created and maintained twin deficits––a situation in which the country's expenditure is greater than its income and when the production of goods and services is insufficient. However, the current economic crisis was accelerated by the adoption of a tax cut policy to stimulate the economy by Rajapaksa during the 2019 general election, shortly before the spread of the COVID-19 virus which also worsened the Sri Lankan economy. According to Murtaza Jafferjee, head of the think-tank Advocata Institute, the policy was a misdiagnosis of the economic problems Sri Lanka was facing at that time.

Sri Lanka's economic crisis is also exacerbated by the failure of Sri Lanka's debt management program whose status depends on aspects of the tourism industry and the payment of money from foreign workers weakened by the pandemic. With the failure of this debt management program, foreign exchange reserves fell by almost 70 (seventy) percent within two years. In addition, the Rajapaksa government's decision to ban all chemical fertiliser products by 2021 has hit the country's agricultural sector and triggered a decline in rice yields which ultimately disrupted Sri Lanka's agricultural production.

To deal with the crisis, the Rajapaksa government has planned and implemented a series of programs. In April, Sri Lanka plans to discuss a loan program with the IMF (International Monetary Fund). Prior to this move, in the last few months, Sri Lanka had gradually devalued its currency––which has been shown to have a negative impact towards society. Besides the assistance from the IMF, the Rajapaksa government is also seeking assistance from China and India, particularly for fuel assistance from India. The shipment of diesel under the $500 million credit line signed with India in February is expected to arrive on Saturday (9/4/22). In addition, Sri Lanka and India have signed a $1 billion credit line for imports of basic necessities, including food and medicine. The Rajapaksa government has also requested at least another $1 billion from New Delhi. Meanwhile, China is currently considering offering a $1.5 billion credit facility and up to $1 billion in separate loans after providing a $1.5 billion CBSL swap and a $1.3 billion syndicated loan to tackle the crisis hitting this archipelagic state. Prior to this aid program, the Sri Lanka government had a total external debt of about $4 billion by 2022, including a $1 billion International Sovereign Bond (ISB) due in July. The ISB makes up the bulk of Sri Lanka's $12.55 billion foreign debt with the Asian Development Bank, Japan, and China among the other major lenders.

The conflict that occurred between Russia-Ukraine not only had an impact on the political aspect but also on the economic aspect of Russia. Since the first attack launched against Ukraine, the country has had to face the withdrawal of foreign companies. Foreign companies from various sectors––from finance, food, media, technology to energy––suspend and/or scale back their operations in Moscow. The symbolic step was taken by 4 (four) United States brand icons, namely PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, and Starbucks on Tuesday (8/3/22). Apart from these companies, there are hundreds of other companies engaged in their respective specialized fields that have also withdrawn and suspended their operations in Moscow.

In its action, not all companies stop their business operations completely. Some just suspend, some other stop their operations in certain fields and continue to sell other commodities. One of the universities in the United States, Yale University, managed to compile the actions of approximately 500 (five hundred) companies withdrawing from the Russian market in 5 (five) categories of reducing operations––withdrawal, suspension, scaling back, buying time, and digging in. Withdrawal is the complete cessation of the company's operations. Suspension is the opening of options for re-engagement while limiting surgery. Scaling back is the reduction of activity in certain business sectors while continuing with other businesses. Buying time is delaying investment while continuing the substantive business. Digging in is a refusal to reduce activity.

McDonald's announced on Tuesday (8/3/22) that its 850 (eight hundred and fifty) outlets in Russia will be temporarily closed, resulting in the emergence of a chain of local McDonald’s copycat restaurants in Russia called Uncle Vanya. Starbucks went further than McDonald's by suspending all business activity in Russia, including shipping its products. Meanwhile, PepsiCo will reduce sales of beverage products but will continue to sell other important products, such as formula, milk, and baby food. Of course, all these actions are not carried out without reason. According to PepsiCo CEO, Ramon Laguarta, as a food and beverage company, humanity must be applied to the business they run. McDonald’s CEO, Chris Kempczinski, added that the conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe had caused great suffering to civilians which is why his company will join forces to condemn aggression and violence and pray for peace.

In addition, some companies that hesitate to suspend their activities have to deal with encouragement and pressure from the public. Switzerland-based company, Nestle, initially refused to stop its business activities in Russia, but when a public awareness campaign was launched boldly featuring Nestle's bloodstained chocolate bars, the company later announced that it would be suspending work in Russia. However, there are also several other companies that are determined to continue their operations in Russia, including the French retail company Auchan, which defies public opinion and stated firmly to remain in Russia as well as several banks with large exposure in Russia which also ignore this exodus.

Cooperation between countries, both bilaterally and multilaterally, is a crucial step to support the progress and development of countries that cooperate with each other, especially in the field of economic cooperation. Building cooperation with developed countries is often considered more profitable in various sectors. On the other hand, cooperation between developing countries, commonly known as "South-South Cooperation", to support the development of Southern countries with each other is also an important matter. Quoted from the United Nations official website, the term “South-South Cooperation” refers to technical cooperation between developing countries to collaborate and share knowledge, skills, and successful initiatives in certain fields to support the development of certain sectors of the countries that are members of the United Nations. the cooperation.

Venezuela and South Africa are the evidence of a successful establishment of South-South Cooperation between developing countries. Cooperation between both countries began with a deal in oil trade back in 2008, when the world was hit by the global financial crisis. As developing countries struggling to survive, Venezuela and South Africa have taken the initiative to build cooperation in the trade sector. Venezuela with its superior oil potential and South Africa’s potential in natural gas offer each other their potential resources and rely on each other in cooperation agreements. Furthermore, this article will discuss thoroughly about the beginning of decently-maintained relations between Venezuela and South Africa through cooperation between countries that has continued until this present day.

Oil Trade Agreement, Circa 2008

Venezuela and South Africa signed a cooperation agreement as a form of alliance from both countries back in 2008. In the bilateral cooperation plan, the two countries agreed to manage the oil and gas stored under the surface of the Orinoco river valley that crosses the Venezuelan territory. As reported by The Economic Times, the President of Venezuela in that period, Hugo Chavez, openly invited South African oil companies to come directly to Venezuela and start cooperation as soon as possible. In this partnership, the South African Oil and Gas company, or PetroSA, works closely with Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PdVSA) on Venezuelan soil.

In return, the President of South Africa on duty, Thabo Mbeki, invited Venezuela to explore the country's natural gas resources. South Africa is also a pioneer in the technology of converting natural gas into liquids, with a stock storage capacity of 45 million barrels. This draws Venezuela’s interest in planning further collaborations with the country. The main objective of establishing bilateral cooperation in the economic field of the two countries is to help reduce the costs incurred for importing oil and natural gas and take the initiative to 'barter' for the resources needed by each country.

The moment of economic cooperation between Venezuela and South Africa marked the beginning of the close relationship between the two. As recorded in the transcript of the press conference between Venezuela and South Africa on September 2, 2008, regarding the establishment of bilateral cooperation in the economic field, President Mbeki called their cooperation a 'strategic partnership' which means that the two countries will learn from each other and take advantage of each other's strengths and weaknesses. This collaboration is expected to have a positive impact on the people of the two countries and support development.

Enhancing the Relations, for the Present and the Future

Although diplomatic relations between Venezuela and South Africa have been running since 1993 when embassies in each country were deployed, the agreement on oil and gas commodities in 2008 was a big milestone for the two countries to strengthen their good relations. Since the 2008 cooperation in the oil trade sector, which is mutually beneficial to both parties, Venezuela and South Africa have continued to intensively build cooperation in various other sectors.

One of the cooperations between the two countries that was established after the success of the oil trade cooperation in 2008 was the diamond mining product trade cooperation in July 2017. As reported from The Diamond Loupe, the cooperation contract was signed by the Deputy Minister of Mineral Resources of South Africa, Godfrey Oliphant, and his Venezuelan associate, Víctor Cano. Still, in the natural resource trade sector, another example of Venezuelan - South African cooperation is the massive export of 200 tons of coffee to coffee products manufacturing companies in South Africa in 2020. Not only in the natural resource trade sector, Venezuela and South Africa also worked together in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic at the beginning of its spread in 2020 ago by sharing an analysis of the evolution of the COVID-19 virus as a reference for building policies in dealing with the pandemic. Even in 2019 when Venezuela was facing a massive political and financial crisis, South Africa helped Venezuela by urging the UN Security Council to step in to help Venezuela return to normalcy.

As quoted from the official DIRCO website, South Africa will continue to forge strong brotherly relations with Venezuela. Venezuela remains South Africa's strategic partner in Latin America, especially in the context of South-South Cooperation and the potential for future economic partnerships considering its abundant oil and gas reserves. The latest development, to strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries, Venezuela and South Africa held a meeting to discuss cooperation agreements in September 2021. According to the Venezuelan government's official website, the two sides held a meeting to review the bilateral cooperation agenda and discuss the international geopolitical landscape. During the meeting, the two countries emphasized that they would continue to strengthen their brotherly ties and bilateral cooperation.

Various cooperation agreements related to trade in mining materials such as oil and gas are the main factors behind the resilience of diplomatic relations between the two developing countries. Cooperation in the oil and gas trade sector opens the door to opportunities for both countries to build cooperation in the field of trade in other commodities as well as cooperation in various fields such as security and health. Venezuela and South Africa have proven to have solid cooperation as developing countries that need each other. This cooperative relationship between Venezuela and South Africa can be used as an example for other developing countries to build long-lasting cooperative relationships. With various efforts that have been made, good relations between Venezuela and South Africa are expected to continue in the future and be able to improve the development of each country.

Based on Kompas.com's records, since the end of 2021, cooking oil supplies in Indonesia have experienced a drastic decline and price hike. Facing this phenomenon, the Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemendag RI) has set a series of policies, starting from determining the Highest Retail Price (HRP) to Domestic Market Obligation (DMO) and Domestic Price Obligation (DPO) starting January 27, 2022. DMO is a policy that requires all migrant producers who do export to allocate 30% of their production volume for domestic needs, while the DPO is applied to regulate the price of crude palm oil (CPO) in the country. With the enactment of the HRP policy of Rp. 14,000/liter with the difference in prices in several packaging variations, cooking oil supplies are increasingly becoming scarce as cooking oil prices fall in the market.

Recent developments in the government's attempts to ensure the availability of cooking oil have now led to the revocation of the HRP for packaged and bulk cooking oil and the revocation of the DMO and DPO policies. The revocation of the cooking oil HRP policy by the government aims to get a new balance through the market mechanism. The government also reported that with the implementation of DMO policy some time ago, producers found it difficult to ensure supplies of cooking oil due to higher CPO prices than HRP so that several oil processing factories were forced to close because they could no longer run their factories. The consequence of the revocation of the policy is the return of the domestic packaged cooking oil price to the world CPO price of Rp. 24,000/liter. Along with the revocation of the HRP, currently cooking oil supplies have returned to normal and are nearing an abundance. Based on information obtained from several sellers (18/3/22), the number of store requests for cooking oil needs has been met up to 100%.

In line with the revocation of the HRP, DPO, and DMO policies, the Government established a policy of increasing CPO export rates with the aim of ensuring that cooking oil raw materials are still available domestically. According to the Indonesian Minister of Trade, when the CPO price is above the level of US$1,000 per tonne, there will be a flat tariff of US$175 and for every CPO price increase of US$50 per tonne, there will be a tariff increase of US$20 per ton for CPO. Therefore, the export levy plus export duty from the original US$375 per tonne will change to US$675 per tonne. Hence, exporters will most likely choose to sell CPO domestically rather than abroad because it will be more profitable. This mechanism is considered to be able to maintain the stability of domestic supply.

Illustrated By: Marsha

Singapore is a well-known developed country with limited availability of green space due to their narrow territory. This causes Singapore to be extremely vulnerable to environmental damage caused by the slightest activities from their citizens and climate change. Therefore, the Singapore government kept themselves on the qui vive in dealing with the environmental issues to maintain their environmental sustainability in order to enhance the living quality. In developing the economic system, the Singapore government strives to innovate in creating an environmental-friendly economic system. Crafting an integrated circular economy system is one of their strategies to advance their economic activities and environmental sustainability at the same time.

Getting to Know Circular Economy’s Concept

Based on the official website of  UNCTAD, the circular economy can be defined as a restorative or regenerative industrial system that involves the act of regeneration of the used products in its implementation. The circular economy model is different from the dominant linear economic model that is widely implemented nowadays. The linear economy has an 'extraction-use-disposal' pattern, meaning that a product will eventually end up as waste after being used. A different concept is applied on the circular economy model, where all forms of waste from the production process are to be regenerated into other products or to be used more efficiently. The implementation of a circular economy can help the country to utilize the industrial resources in a more mindful manner, leading to the development of new sectors of industries ahead which help to open up more opportunities in the future.

These efforts include switching to the use of renewable energy, eliminating the use of toxic chemicals, and minimizing production waste. Circular economy can also be carried out by reusing, recycling, converting functions, donating or selling used products to people in need. Product restoration by extending its life and service life aims to reduce waste from manufacturing activities from products to keep the environment sustainable and avoid damage.

E-waste Management in Singapore

Reporting from the Center for Liveable Cities Singapore, Singapore began implementing the Zero Waste Nation master plan in 2019. This master plan aims Singapore to eliminate all waste that has accumulated in the Semakau landfill, which is predicted to reach its holding capacity by 2035. To eliminate all the waste that accumulates in these landfills, the government puts extra effort on reducing the amount of waste input which can increase to 2000 tons per year. One of the strategies that can reduce the amount of waste input into the capacity-deprived landfills is to promote a circular economy program that is considered effective in doing so.

As one of the efforts to achieve this vision, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) of Singapore has implemented an electronic waste (e-waste) management work program to improve the quality of the environment in Singapore. NEA defines e-waste as the various forms of electronic equipment that have been disposed by their user, including almost any item powered by electrical sources. Most commonly encountered forms of e-wastes consists of communication technology (ICT) equipment, household appliances, sports equipment, lighting equipment, and so on. E-waste mostly consists of metal and plastic components, yet also contains small amounts of heavy metals and substances that are considered as potential pollutants. The wide range of variety of e-waste composing materials requires them to undergo a different unconventional disposal procedure, making them almost impossible to only dispose them in normal landfills just like other forms of waste.

E-waste management is a crucial step to revitalize the quality of the environment, considering the fact that e-waste is one of the major contributing factors to environmental damage. As written in the official Elytus blog, e-waste contains hazardous chemical compounds such as mercury, lithium, and copper which can cause serious contamination of water, soil, and air that can heavily impact the health of living beings when disposed perfunctorily. Meanwhile, based on data from the NEA, a country with a small territory like Singapore can already produce 60,000 tons of e-waste per year, and only 20% or around 8.9 tons of the total e-waste has been recycled.

Seeing the inadequate condition of e-waste management in Singapore, NEA also invites Singaporeans to participate in reducing the amount of e-waste in Singapore in their freshly launched "Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) System for E-waste Management System" program back in July 2021. Through this program, the public can easily distribute their electronic waste to an e-waste processing site so that the handling of this waste no longer needs to go through the incineration process in public landfills that are not environmentally friendly. In order to reach their goal of eradicating e-waste, NEA collaborated with ALBA Group, a private company engaged in the environment, to launch a new innovation in the form of special e-waste bins.

As reported by Channel News Asia, 300 units of special e-waste bins were distributed to numerous public places in Singapore on July 1, 2021. The creation of the e-waste bins from NEA became one of the spotlighted programs considering their user-friendly nature that can engage people to participate in the program. The procedure of use starts with the e-waste donors who can simply dispose of their electronic waste based on separated categories, such as small used electronic goods (printers, keyboards, monitors, tablets, etc.), batteries (of all sizes), and light bulbs (except long fluorescent lamps). What's even more interesting is that e-waste donors can get monetary rewards after disposing of their e-waste by downloading the ALBA Step Up application and scanning the QR code on the trash can unit to confirm the collection of e-waste and later they will receive the money from the e-waste donations.

Furthermore, the electronic waste that has been collected will be distributed to domestic electronic waste processing facilities. Through its official Youtube channel, NEA elaborated the process of processing electronic waste by Cimelia, one of the electronic waste processing facilities in Singapore. It is explained that the process of processing electronic waste is an extremely complicated process, involving the processes of material sorting, disassembling, and classifying based on their main ingredients. The final outcome of the whole process will be in the form of ready-to-process raw materials and will be distributed to other industrial manufacturers, such as the technology industry, automotive, construction, and even for the production of luxury goods.

The Impact on Society

The EPR System for E-waste Management System work program can significantly increase public awareness of the impact of electronic waste on the environment. The citizens can possess enhanced knowledge on managing their owned electronics and what to do when they become an e-waste. However, in reality, there are still many obstacles faced by NEA in increasing the awareness of the people who participate in donating their e-waste for the success of the work program.

As reported by The Straits Times, some citizens are not fully aware about the types of electronic waste that can be accepted by the e-waste collection bins. E-waste sorters from ALBA admitted that they still found a lot of other types of waste, such as breastfeeding equipment, children's toys, and massagers that were thrown into a special e-waste bin. They also still found the original packaging made out of plastics and cardboards that is still encasing the electronic waste inside some bins.

What is more concerning is that the trash bins have provided instructions on how to properly dispose e-waste into the bin, as well as information on what items can still be accepted by the trash can. This can increase the level of difficulty in the waste sorting process and will eventually slow the whole recycling process. Therefore, education regarding the management of electronic waste by the NEA should be further encouraged in the future in order to avoid misperceptions by the society.

The Singapore government has carried out an outstanding effort to reduce e-waste through their variative programs in order to maintain environmental sustainability. This program can indeed provide great benefits to society, especially in the economic field, where this program is a milestone for Singapore to implement an environmentally friendly circular economy. In the future, Singapore Government needs to promote socialization and education to the community regarding their contribution towards this program to increase the effectiveness of this work program with maximum community participation. Through a more integrated system that involves many parties and the community, Singapore will become an epitome for other countries to implement a circular economy, particularly in a better e-waste management system