Friday, March 7, 2014
Journalism and Communication for Global Change
Population
Dangerous Combo: Violence in Pregnancy and HIV in South Africa
When Phumzile Khoza* came to the central Johannesburg antenatal clinic on a chilly day in August 2013, she was feeling on edge. Not about the medical procedures – she already had two children – but about talking to the nurse.
Women Still Walk Two Steps Behind in Arab World
In much of the Arab world, women's participation in the labour force is the lowest in the world, according to the United Nations, while women in politics are a rare breed both in the Middle East and North Africa.
An Equal Share of Wealth Equals Lasting Peace in CAR
While wrangling over Central African Republic’s (CAR) wealth in natural resources played a role in the country's crisis, its future peace and stability still partly depends on a solution that factors in how to equitably distribute its national wealth.
Somalia’s Sacked Soldiers Threaten Mogadishu’s Security
Residents of Mogadishu have raised concerns about their safety after the Somali army recently fired hundreds of disgruntled soldiers, many of whom are believed to still be in possession of their arms.
Economic Reforms Needed for Peace in South Sudan
Gatmai Deng lost three family members in the violence that erupted in South Sudan on Dec. 15 and lasted until the end of January. And he blames their deaths on the government’s failure to use the country’s vast oil revenues to create a better life for its almost 11 million people.
Zanzibar’s Rising Violence Against Women
The story of Feiza*, an 18-year-old girl who was abducted and raped, is a bleak testament to the worsening plight of women in Tanzania’s semi-autonomous archipelago, Zanzibar.
Casting Call for Kenya’s ‘Briefcase’ NGOs
Ben Okoth, 45, was born and raised in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa, situated just outside of Nairobi, Kenya’s capital. Over the years, he has encountered many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working to improve the plight of the poor who live here.
An Environment-Wrecking Pipeline Hangs in Limbo
The Pine Ridge Reservation of the Lakota Nation, in the midwest of the United States, is one of the most abandoned places in the country and in the world.
Door Closing on Universal Justice in Spain
The pursuit of universal jurisdiction in Spain is drawing to a close because of a bill that will entail the dismissal of over a dozen criminal investigations in the country’s courts and will make it very difficult to open new cases of crimes against humanity.
Somalis Caught in Crossfire as Al-Shabaab ‘Plays to Survive’
As the Somali government plans to launch a new military campaign to wipe out the Islamic extremist group, Al-Shabaab, from its strongholds in this Horn of Africa nation, experts say that its Somalia’s innocent who live in areas controlled by the group who will suffer the most.
‘Humanitarian Crisis’ for Ogaden Living Near Ethiopia’s Oil Fields
New allegations of scorched earth evictions of the Ogaden people have raised concerns that a lack of benefit sharing could escalate instability in the region and reinforce separatist tensions as foreign energy companies prepare to extract oil and gas from troubled southeastern Ethiopia.
Chagos Islanders ‘Will Not Give Up’ Fight to Return Home
“The Marine Protected Area (MPA) created around the Chagos archipelago is a new obstacle that the British government has placed in our path to prevent us from going back to our homeland,” claims Olivier Bancoult, leader of the Chagos Refugees Group (CRG).
U.N. Focuses on Faltering Goals: Water, Sanitation, Energy
When the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) reach their deadline in 2015, there will still be a critical setback: millions of people in the developing world without full access to safe drinking water, proper sanitation and electricity in their homes.
Hope for HIV Positive Teenagers in Northern Ghana
With tears rolling down her cheeks, Zainab Salifu queued at the fevers unit of the Tamale Teaching Hospital in northern Ghana. Earlier in the day, the 18-year-old had been diagnosed HIV positive.
Growing Inequality Mars 20 Years of Women’s Progress
As the world moves closer to the 2015 end mark of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a new U.N. report illuminates how far global society has come, but also how far it still must travel to achieve its objectives.Next Page »
As the world's population grows at a pace of some 76 million people per year, so do the challenges associated with it. Increased longevity in some regions, juxtaposed with the HIV/AIDS pandemic in others, refugee movements and economic migration all contribute to a changing world demographic in ways that require unique social and policy responses. In the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), the population is expected to triple by 2050, while the ever-increasing demand on the earth's finite natural resources makes it difficult for many to live even at subsistence levels. In this context, family planning and the promotion of sexual and reproductive health have never been more important to empowering women to lead the healthy and productive lives they desire and rendering local and regional population strategies effective.
