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THE ORGANISATION for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) has made a lot of noise about its anti-bribery convention. But some countries are failing to comply, and where others do – otherwise honest companies can lose trade. David Hayhurst and Keith Nuthall report.…

JUST as the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) was launching its consultation on the draft International Integrated Reporting Framework in London, the European Commission was pushing in Brussels for large companies to disclose information on social and environmental matters.

The European Union’s internal market Commissioner Michel Barnier tabled on April 16 an amendment to the EU’s fourth (78/660/EEC) and seventh (83/349/EEC) directives on annual and consolidated accounts.…

A SLOW revolution in the use of biomass for firing or co-firing power generation is picking up pace this year as a number of competing technologies for the production of ‘biocoal’ move more convincingly towards full commercialisation.

Biocoal produced through torrefaction – in which dry biomass such as wood, paper, food waste and even sewerage waste is slow-heated anoxically (to avoid combustion) at 200C to 300C to reduce moisture and drive off low-energy volatile chemicals – offers slightly degraded fuel with lower emissions and carbon footprints (it is carbon neutral) than traditional biomass and, certainly, than coal.…

French branded food giant Danone has introduced a second infant formula brand to China, targeting its soaring imported infant formula demand. Aside from maternity stores, Danone has made Nutrilon available at Tmall, a business-to-consumer site run by China’s largest online shopping platform Taobao. …

THE ANNUAL conference of the European University Association (EUA) has debated how rankings systems need to become more sophisticated benchmarks as the higher education system worldwide becomes more internationalised.

Speaking to University World News after last week’s event in Ghent, Belgium, Ms Lesley Wilson, the EUA’s Secretary General, said that while “everyone has a different view” about rankings, they need to deliver sophisticated benchmarking systems with which institutions will be able to compare themselves against other learning bodies.…

IRELAND has the most higher education graduates per head of population in all 27 countries of the European Union (EU), a report from EU statistical agency Eurostat has revealed.

Looking at the proportion of people aged 30-34 who had completed tertiary education, Eurostat said in 2012, 51.1% of Ireland residents had degrees.…

THE QUESTION of whether publicly-supported refuelling and recharging stations are needed to jump-start demand for electric, hydrogen and other alternatively-powered vehicles seems almost as old as the conundrum about the chicken and the egg. Yet, a clear answer has yet to be supplied – and with green vehicle sales still generally weak – the European Commission has decided that for Europe, it might as well push ahead with proactively creating refuelling/charging networks anyway.…

THE EUROPEAN Commission looks set to propose binding legislative standards for the 27 European Union (EU) member states to follow in exploring unconventional fossil fuel resources amid public concern over the environmental and social impact consequences of the main production method – hydraulic fracturing or fracking.…

BANGLADESH and Turkey are knitwear rivals, with differing levels of development. Bangladesh overtook Turkey in 2010 becoming the world’s second largest knitwear manufacturer (by output) in the year ending June 2010, pushing the Turks into third place.

In the year ending June 2010, Bangladesh exported 7.78 billion pieces of knitted items or USD 6.48 billion worth of knitwear, overtaking Turkey’s shipment of 7.74 billion pieces, according to BKMEA.…

A DEAL has been struck on the shape of a European Union (EU) directive aimed at preventing major oil and gas offshore drilling accidents happening in EU waters. Under the text agreed by European Parliament and EU Council of Ministers representatives, oil and gas firms seeking a drilling licence must submit major hazard reports and emergency response plans proving they can deal with potential accidents.…