https://www.ips-journal.eu/topics/economy-and-ecology/energy…
South Africa:half the nation lives in poverty, 44% unemployment, income inequality highest in the world. 85% of S Africa’s electricity is derived from coal. Some areas have 6 hours of no electricity. Inflation is running at 7%. Grocery inflation is at 13%. Fuel prices are up 45%. “Social tensions are continuing to grow as a result of increasing economic pressure.”
Vietnam:“average price of a bowl of pho is up 30 to 45%.” The main driver is rising fuel prices or rather knock-on effects of the kind observed at German filling stations. Fuel prices are now already at the same level as in February, partly as a result of a cut in the environmental tax. But falling production costs are not being passed on directly to consumers. Furthermore, the high price of gas, which is often used in cooking, is 24 percent more expensive than it was last year.
Half of Vietnam’s electricity is generated by imported fossil fuel. The rapidly growing middle class can weather the storm. It is a different story for the poor. Vietnam’s economy is managing as there is increased economic growth from transplanted factories. But those factories drive an ever increasing need for energy.
Ecuador:Social unrest. A state of emergency has been declared. The nation is highlt indebted & the economy is in decline. High income inequality & poverty.
The labour market doesn’t offer much hope either. More than half of all working-age people are employed informally and often precariously. They have no entitlement to health care or social insurance, no employment contract and are paid below the minimum wage. All these indicators are far worse for rural dwellers, indigenous people, Afro-Ecuadorians and women, reflecting the structural racism and patriarchal social structure in Ecuador.