The resource curse haunts countries whose economies have become dangerously specialized in the exploitation of a single resource. This curse threatens countries whose economies are poorly diversified and oriented mainly towards the export of their non-renewable natural resources, such as oil....

The United Nations General Assembly declared 2012 the "International Year of Sustainable Energy for All", officially recognising the urgent need to put energy at the centre of the global development agenda. In parallel, a strong international policy effort is being made to achieve the goal of...