Great Expectation along the Silk Road

We live in a world of increasing interdependency and complexity, where international cooperation is necessary, however increasingly multifaceted and complicated. Global challenges such as climate change, global health and security issues require ever higher degrees of global effort and collaboration if they are to be overcome. This calls for new ideas on how to make global governance work better for all countries and people.

Rape as an Act of Genocide: From Rwanda to Iraq

The governments of Rwanda and Iraq have agreed to work together to fight rape as a weapon of genocide, noting disturbing similarities between sexual violence in Iraq today to the Rwandan genocide twenty years ago.

Inequality and Its Discontents

Global income inequality among different regions began to increase about five centuries ago, before accelerating about two centuries ago, according to the great economic historian Angus Maddison. After the brief reversal during the ‘Golden Age’ quarter century after the Second World War, higher commodity prices in the decade until 2014, despite protracted slowdowns in most rich countries following the 2008 financial crisis, reduced international disparities between North and South.

Trump’s Offensive Against Undocumented Migrants Will Fuel Migration Crisis

“Donald Trump will not stop me from getting to the U.S.,” said Juan, a 35-year-old migrant from Nicaragua, referring to the Republican president-elect who will govern that country as of Jan. 20.

Coordinates of Safety

If we go by the National Crime Records Bureau reports, incidence of serious crimes against women rose from 237 per day in 2001 to 313 per day in 2015. These crimes include rape, kidnapping and abduction, dowry deaths and cruelty by husbands and relatives. Minor girls, adolescent and old women are frequently victims of brutal rapes and murders. Of these crimes, 30 per cent were rapes (including intent to rape). Higher incidence of crimes during 2001-2015 coupled with low conviction rate of 21 per cent of cases reported suggests that women are more vulnerable to serious crimes.

Mideast: ‘Climate Change Will Make a Difficult Situation Much Worse’

“Climate change will make a difficult situation much worse, and will affect millions of people in the Middle East and North Africa region,” World Bank MENA Vice-President Hafez Ghanem stated at the 22nd Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Marrakech, Morocco on 7-18 November.

Phosphate Mining Firms Set Sights on Southern Africa’s Sea Floor

A persistent fear of diminishing phosphorus reserves has pushed mining companies to search far and wide for new sources. Companies identified phosphate deposits on the ocean floor and are fighting for mining rights around the world.

SDGs: Making the Universal Agenda Truly Universal

One of the key features of the 2030 Agenda which the United Nations and member states identified in the lead up to the SDG agreement was the principle of universality.

Thriving Rural Communities Is a Recipe for Healthy Cities

As the dust has settled on Habitat III and the summit in Quito, Ecuador, we now have a clear vision and a concrete road map for how to transform our cities into inclusive, safer and more productive environments. The New Urban Agenda comes at a propitious time. Urbanization is growing at a fast pace, particularly in developing countries, where the urban population is expected to double by 2050. In South Asia alone, the urban population grew by 130 million between 2001 and 2011, according to recent World Bank study. Another 250 million are expected to join them by 2030.

Why Kenya’s Engagement with the UN Is a Big Deal

President Uhuru Kenyatta warmly welcomed dozens of U.N Agencies, development partners and senior Government officials to the State House on 02 November 2016 to discuss the joint development plan from 2014 – 2018.

1 in 3 Europeans Believe Their Lawmakers and Officials Are Highly Corrupt

One in three people living in Europe and Central Asia think that corruption is one of the biggest problems facing their country, a figure that rises to two in three in Spain, Moldova and Kosovo, showing that urgent action against the abuse of power and secret deals is needed.

Convincing Investors to Unlock Africa’s Green Energy Potential

Lowering investment risks in African countries is key to achieving a climate-resilient development pathway on the continent, say experts here at the U.N.-sponsored Climate Conference.

A Cuban Economy Facing Grim Forecasts Awaits Impact of Trump

Cuba’s economic difficulties will be aggravated by the uncertainty regarding how U.S. president-elect Donald Trump will deal with the thaw inherited from President Barack Obama.

Civil Service Reform

An effective public service has remained key to the achievement of national economic and social goals across the world. A capable and motivated bureaucracy has played an instrumental role in economic growth and overall prosperity in many countries.

Celebrating Global Entrepreneurship Week

In November we celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week, a celebration of all of the innovators and job creators who launch startups that bring ideas to life, drive economic growth, and expand human welfare. Since the first Global Entrepreneurship Week in 2007, millions of people have participated in thousands of exciting events held in more than a hundred countries around the world. Last year alone, US embassies and consulates hosted or participated in more than 125 events in at least 75 countries, including here in Bangladesh where last year we launched the one-of-a-kind Makerspace, a co-working space that convenes entrepreneurs, engineers, audio and visual artists, and computer scientists to innovate and problem solve, at the Edward M. Kennedy Center for Public Service and the Arts.

Anti-Boeing Bill Offers Early Iran Test for Trump

Will a President Trump intend to put U.S. business first and preserve and expand the U.S. manufacturing workforce as part of his plan to make America great again? Or will he hold to the reflexive anti-Iran positions of the Republican Congressional majority, Sheldon Adelson, and the neoconservatives, including the NeverTrumpers who, with Democrats marginalized across the board, are already seeking ways to gain influence with whomever the president-elect chooses to advise him?

UAE Promotes Tolerance, Rejects Violence: Lubna Al Qasimi

On the occasion of the International Day for Tolerance, a United Nations-led campaign celebrated on November 16th each year, the UAE's Minister of State for Tolerance, Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid Al Qasimi, has issued a statement on how the state follows the values of tolerance, as laid down by the founding fathers of the nation.

No Climate Justice without Gender Justice – the Marrakech Pact

The historic Paris Agreement on Climate Change last year is a breakthrough commitment to respect, promote and consider gender equality and women's empowerment obligations while taking climate change action. It also committed to gender-responsive adaptation and capacity building. A year later, with the Agreement entered into force on 4 November, vigorous efforts are being made at COP 22 in Marrakech to make sure that gender equality is systematically integrated into all aspects of the implementation of the Agreement.

Trump’s Threat on Multilateral Treaties Keeps UN Guessing

At the height of the US Presidential campaign in early 2015, Republican nominee Donald Trump made a rash of public pronouncements -- some threatening internationally-agreed UN conventions-- which set off political reverberations throughout the United Nations.

Climate Change, A Goat Farmer’s Gain

Bongekile Ndimande’s family lost more 30 head of cattle to a ravaging drought last season, but a herd of goats survived and is now her bank on four legs.

Understanding Unauthorized Migration

Growing numbers of men, women and even children in every major region of the world are joining international streams of unauthorized migration. This global movement of humanity’s desperate is taking place despite walls, fences, barriers, guards, patrol ships, warnings and nativist political rhetoric. Governments of origin, transit and destination countries are struggling on how best to manage unauthorized migration flows.