The United Nations Volunteer: From Global To Local

Today 05 December is International Volunteer Day, and every year we recognize the invaluable contributions of volunteers to peace and development.

G77 Reiterates Call for IMF Reforms & Equitable Voting Power

The Group of 77 joined by China have reiterated their call for the full implementation of the 2010 International Monetary Fund (IMF) Quota and Governance Reforms.

G77 Introduces 13 Draft Resolutions on the UN’s Development Agenda

The Group of 77 introduced 13 draft resolutions at the current sessions of the UN’s Economic and Financial Committee. The resolutions, introduced by the Thai delegate, covered a wide range of socio-economic issues on the UN agenda, including the protection of global climate for present and future generations of mankind and ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

Pakistan and India Unlikely to Move to All-out War: Musharraf

High levels of both conventional and nuclear deterrence are likely to prevent the recent surge in clashes between India and Pakistan from escalating into all-out war, according to Pakistan’s former president and army chief Pervez Musharraf.

Civil Society On Aleppo: UN General Assembly Must Act 

Hundreds of civil society organisations from around the world have united to call on UN member states to step in and demand an end to unlawful attacks in Aleppo.

Managing Diversity

One hundred and seventy-odd children, four teachers, and two old and dingy rooms. We visited a government boy’s primary school in a village just outside Sargodha. The two rooms had been built quite some time back and were not really fit for classes. Most of the classes were held in the open with children sitting on the ground. The weather was pleasant at the time, but what must children go through in the summer or the height of winter?

Unleashing Africa Full Potential

Africa, the cradle of mankind and home to the youngest population in the world, has a historic opportunity to realise its full potential, in sharing our potential prosperity, by enhancing economic growth, promoting and entrenching democratic ideals. That is why I am so passionate to be running for the coveted African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson.

New Effort to Assist People Displaced by Conflict in the Borno Region in Nigeria

As hundreds of thousands flee their homes in northeastern Nigeria to seek safety from intensifying conflict between Boko Haram and the Nigerian military, the IKEA Foundation has given Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) €1 million to provide lifesaving medical assistance.

Fidel Castro: The Revolutionary Outlived His Revolution

A tyrant to some and a liberator to others, Fidel Castro of Cuba died on November 25, a decade shy of a century. While his own countrymen stay divided on his legacy on two sides of the Straits of Florida, the revolutionary icon was a towering figure for the rest of the world. The cigar chomping, fatigues-clad, bearded man, who famously survived more than 600 assassination attempts, was the last stalwart defending communism to his last breath.

UN “Profoundly Sorry” for Haiti Cholera Outbreak

For the first time, the United Nations issued a formal apology for their role in the cholera outbreak in Haiti and announced new steps to alleviate the ongoing health crisis.

ISDS Corporate Rule of Law

Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions in ostensible free trade agreements (FTAs) and bilateral investment treaties (BITs) have effectively created a powerful, privileged system of protections for foreign investors that undermine national law and institutions. ISDS allows foreign corporations to sue governments for causing them losses due to legal or regulatory changes.

Fidel Castro, a Larger-than-Life Leader in Tumultuous Times

Among the many leaders who left their mark on history in the 20th century, Fidel Castro - who died Nov. 25 at the age of 90 - stood out for propelling Cuba into a global role that was unexpectedly prominent for a small country, in an era when arms were frequently taken up to settle national and international disputes.

No Fair Deal for Women

This year, Pakistan’s women activists are observing 16 days of activism against gender violence (Nov 25 to Dec 10) with greater fervour than previously. At the same time, no sooner is a law to curb forced conversions adopted in Sindh than the orthodoxy is out in battledress to kill it. The fight for women’s rights in this country is going to get even more bitter.

Ending AIDS Needs Both Prevention and a Cure

Eighteen million people, just slightly under half of the people living with HIV and AIDS globally, are now taking life-saving medication, but global efforts to end the disease still largely depend on prevention.

Don’t Rob Our Girls of Their Childhood

We were indeed better off when the first draft was charted out back in September 2014. At that point in time, the government had expressed intent to keep a two-year leeway for girls getting married off early. In subsequent months, the government kept saying that it would finalise a law prohibiting the marriage of girls under 18. And it would just keep a provision in the law that would allow a 16-year-old girl to get married with her parents' consent' or a court's consent obtained on “justified grounds”.

Pervez Musharraf Sets out ‘Higher’ Comeback Plans

Pakistan’s former President Pervez Musharraf says he intends to make a second bid for a political comeback next year, aiming to return from self-imposed exile to forge a new party that would bridge ethnic and sectarian divides.

Subway Will Modernise – and Further Gentrify – Historic Centre of Quito

Success can kill, when it comes to cities. Spain’s Barcelona is facing problems due to the number of tourists that it attracts. And the historic centre of Ecuador’s capital city, Quito, a specially preserved architectural jewel, is losing its local residents as it gentrifies.

Rohingya Refugees Trapped in Limbo

Amid growing persecution by Myanmar's military, thousands of minority Rohingya Muslims in its western state of Rakhine have fled their frontier villages and are languishing along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border for lack of shelter and emergency supplies.

Looking into the Eyes of Central American Refugees in a Time of Hate and Fear 

Ten years ago I arrived in Mexico for the first time. A heavy backpack strapped around my waist, I toddled over a large, concrete bridge that divides Mexico and Guatemala.

Journalists Honoured for their Courage, Resolve

Journalism has become one of the world's most dangerous professions, making the courageous achievements of this year's four International Press Freedom Award winners particularly meaningful.

Debate Roils India Over Family Planning Method

The Indian government's decision to make injectable contraceptives available to the public for free under the national family planning programme (FPP) has stirred debate about women's choices in the world's largest democracy and second most populous country.