Culture Becomes Latest Front in Afghanistan’s War

Another kind of war, less explosive than bombs and more subtle than night raids, is taking place in the Central Asian country of Afghanistan: a war of cultural influence. Its means are financial sponsorships and other support for cultural and artistic events.

Scolding with One Hand and Bribing with the Other

When a Southeast Asian country was riddled with corruption in a bygone era, there were rumours that government officials routinely offered receipts every time they accepted a bribe.

Still Homeless, Two Decades Later

The camp should not have been difficult to find. We were told to drive straight on the road that leads north away from the town of Puttalam, 140 kilometres from Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, and we would come upon the settlement of internally displaced people.

Hunger Rises in Great Britain

The social consequences of austerity economics have been most visible in Europe’s southern periphery. In the UK, the coalition government has brought in sharp cutbacks in welfare state provision in the name of dealing with the financial crisis. Their impact is becoming increasingly visible.

Fragile States Show Signs of Progress Toward MDGs

Twenty of the world’s most fragile states, including those currently affected by conflict, have achieved one or more of the development targets outlined under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the World Bank said this week.

U.N. Says Somalia Famine Killed Nearly 260,000

Almost 260,000 people, half of them young children, died of hunger during the last famine in Somalia, according to a U.N. report that admits the world body should have done more to prevent the tragedy.

From Rags to Penury

India’s planners worry about ‘jobless growth’, but perhaps nothing illustrates this phenomenon better than a policy of handing over the collection and disposal of the capital’s refuse to large private corporations, leaving close to 50,000 ragpickers unemployed.

Japan’s Aid Programme Takes a Selfish Turn

As Japan slips from its former top spot as the world’s biggest donor, experts here are worried about long-term changes in the country’s development assistance programme, which has played a crucial role in global poverty reduction efforts.

Monetising Human Waste and 101 (Slightly) Crazy Other Ideas

One, two or more of the 102 newly launched out-of-the box ideas to improve global health could be world-changing breakthroughs.

Activists Fight U.S. Aid to Develop El Salvador’s Pacific Coastline

Community leaders in El Salvador are opposed to the government's plans to use U.S. aid funds to develop the country’s Pacific coastline, on the grounds that it would threaten the environment in a vast area.

Malawi’s Maize Shortage Hits Women

Each night Esnart Phiri, a widow with five children, sleeps outside the gates of the state-run maize trader or Admarc market, in Malawi’s capital Lilongwe, as she waits for days on end to buy maize.

Cell Phones Yes, Toilets No, World Body Laments

Speaking of the widespread sanitation crisis, U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson was quick to produce staggering numbers: of the world's seven billion people, about six billion have mobile phones but only about 4.5 billion have access to toilets.

Israeli Cloud Hovers Over Green Energy

A quiet diplomatic war is being waged by several European governments against the Israeli authorities, specifically the Israeli Civil Administration which controls the Israeli occupied West Bank.

Tackling Malawi’s Doctor Deficit

In Malawi, where the healthcare system frequently makes headlines for its shortages of drugs and medical workers, a fact that is often overlooked is that two out of four central hospitals do not have a specialist physician in attendance.

Educating Mothers to End South Africa’s Newborn Deaths

A young mother – who only wants to be identified as Karren – beamed as she nursed her newborn baby at the University of Witwatersrand’s Reproductive Health and HIV Institute, in Hillbrow, South Africa. 

World Bank Urged to Include Human Rights in Safeguards Review

Backed by the German government and prominent civil society voices, United Nations experts are calling for the World Bank to explicitly incorporate international human right standards into its "safeguards" to minimise negative impacts of bank financing on vulnerable communities and environments.

Learn From the Children

“Recall the face of the poorest and weakest man you have seen, and ask yourself if this step you contemplate is going to be any use to him.”

Insecurity the “Achilles’ Heel of Development” in Latin America

Development experts here are warning that widespread, unchecked violence against citizens in Latin America is posing a threat to the development of the entire region.

World Bank, IMF Link Urbanisation with Development

Two of the world’s largest multilateral institutions have released new data linking greater urbanisation with higher levels of human development, and are announcing that they will place greater priority on issues of urbanisation in coming decades.

Mauritians Unprepared for Effects of Climate Change

Mauritius may be one of the best-prepared countries in the world when it comes to cyclones, but recent heavy rains and flooding due to climate change have brought the country’s readiness for coping with increased rainfall into question. 

High Stakes for Engaging Morsi’s Egypt

Women and minorities should be a top priority in U.S. policy toward Egypt and its Muslim Brotherhood government leaders, experts here said on Friday, despite increasingly unfavourable public views towards Egypt.