Humanitarian Emergencies

UN Assessed Contributions Needed to Generate Core Funding for Climate Loss & Damage

By Inge Kaul
For decades, there have been non-conclusive deliberations regarding how the international community could support poor and vulnerable countries in their efforts to cope with and recover from the havoc wreaked on their territory by the ill-effects of global warming such as severe droughts, floods, storms, or rising sea levels.

UN Deploys Unarmed Weapon in Humanitarian & Peacekeeping Operations

By Thalif Deen
A sign outside the United Nations reads, perhaps half-seriously, that it is a “No Drone Zone”—and “launching, landing or operating Unmanned or Remote-Controlled aircraft in this area is prohibited”. The “warning” comes even as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) – or drones – are some of the new weapons of war deployed mostly by the US, and more recently, by Iran, Ukraine and Russia in ongoing military conflicts.

Pan-African Approach Needed to Tackle Food Insecurity Arising from Conflict and Climate Shocks

By Joyce Chimbi
Upheaval on the global stage, the war in Ukraine, conflict in the Horn of Africa, severe climatic shocks, high international inflation, increasing global commodity prices, high prices of agricultural inputs and low intra-continental trade are fuelling food insecurity across Africa.

COP27: Landmark Win on Loss and Damage Fund

By Meena Raman
COP 27 delivered on what was the ‘litmus test’ for its success – consensus on the establishment of a fund on loss and damage. What seemed impossible was made possible, largely due to the unity of the G77 and China and the role of the Egyptian Presidency. Also important were efforts by civil society groups who put pressure on the United States, the main blocker to having the fund.

COP27: Climate Change’s Dire Consequences in the World’s Most Water-Scarce Region

By Hisham Allam
The Middle East and North Africa are the world’s most water-scarce regions – with 11 of the 17 water-stressed countries on the globe. According to UNICEF, nine out of 10 children live in areas with high or very high-water stress, resulting in significant consequences for their health, cognitive development, and future livelihoods.

COP27: Climate Change Exacerbates Vicious Loop of Human Rights Inequity

By Busani Bafana
Climate change is worsening injustice globally, and the poor and vulnerable communities are the most affected. It is time the world acted on fulfilling human rights and building a liveable planet, says Yamide Dagnet, director for Climate Justice at Open Society Foundations.

Launch of EBRD Climate Adaptation Action Plan at COP27

By Vanora Bennett
As it moves to increase its climate adaptation finance, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has launched the EBRD Climate Adaptation Action Plan (CAAP) at COP27, the global climate summit taking place in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

Climate Change is No ‘Future Scenario’ for Pacific Island Nations; Climate Change is ‘Real’

By Busani Bafana
Pacific island countries are highly vulnerable to climate change, and several have disappeared – and more could sink under the sea owing to a rise in water levels.

COP27: Cyclone Nearly Washed Away All My Dreams, says Vanuatu Youth Activist

By Busani Bafana
The only thing Taren Chilia remembers about Cyclone Pam was that it flattened his school in Vanuatu, washing away books, equipment, and – well, almost his dreams too.

Why COP27 Matters to Sierra Leone

By Babatunde A. Ahonsi
Sierra Leone is among the 10 percent of countries in the world that are most vulnerable to the adverse consequences of climate change, and presently one of the least able to cope with the effects.

COP27: Climate Justice: Where do the Religiously Marginalised Fit in?

By Mariz Tadros
Climate change reductionism – assuming the causes and the redress for those suffering the worst impacts of extreme weather lies with climate change alone - undermines the rights of religiously marginalised persons, but broadening whose rights are being advocated for in climate change can offer redress.

COP27: Religious Multilateralism: An Endangered Species in the Age of Triple Planetary Crises

By Azza Karam
In this year’s COP 27 two-weeklong summit in Egypt, which concludes November 18, a rough count indicates there will be 40 different sessions organised by, for, and about, religious engagements in/on climate change and related issues. This is likely the highest number of events by and around religious actors, organised at a COP event.

COP27: Bolsonaro’s Defeat is a Triumph for Climate Change Advocates

By Alon Ben-Meir
The electoral defeat of Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro is a triumph for everyone who is concerned about the peril of climate change. Bolsonaro’s well-deserved defeat could help save the Amazon rainforest, which has been ravaged under his criminal rule, and the process of reversing the looming climate change catastrophe can begin

Younger Generation Needed in Efforts to Change the Leprosy Perceptions, Says Miss World Brazil

By Joyce Chimbi
Deep-rooted discrimination against persons affected by leprosy or Hansen’s disease has marginalized individuals and communities. As social pariahs, opportunities to pursue their dreams are limited because, at best, they live at the periphery of society and, more often than not, are ostracized.

COP27: Egypt’s Repressive Regime Under Fire—While it Hosts a Key Climate Summit

By Thalif Deen
The COP27 climate summit in Sharm el-Sheikh has triggered a negative fallout for Egypt’s authoritarian regime which stands accused of human rights abuses -- and has been widely condemned for its longstanding repressive campaign against dissidents and civil society organizations (CSOs).

COP27: Why Global Action is Needed to Decarbonise Industries Everywhere

By Rana Ghoneim
Ahead of this year’s COP27 in Egypt, industry and government representatives from 15 developing countries across Asia, Latin America and Africa met in a series of consultations about the challenges and opportunities they face in decarbonizing some of their most energy intensive industries like steel, cement and concrete.

COP27: The Thorny Road to Sharm El Sheikh

By Gadir Lavadenz and Lidy Nacpil
The 27th Conference Of Parties (COP27) on Climate Change comes at a time when we are facing unprecedented challenges due to the magnitude and the interconnected nature of our multiple structural crises. The world's average temperature is now at 1,1℃.

Myanmar and ASEAN: Time is not on the Side of Democracy

By Jan Servaes
For 10 days in November, the world's diplomatic attention will largely be focused on three major diplomatic meetings in Southeast Asia. These include the Group of 20 (G-20) Summit on November 15-16 in Bali, Indonesia, and the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, which will be held November 18-19 in Bangkok, Thailand.

COP27: A Climate Summit Following Empty Promises & Funding Failures

By Thalif Deen
The COP 27 climate summit is taking place amid a rash of political, economic and environmental upheavals, including missed funding and emission targets, increased pollution and climate devastation, rising global inflation, cuts in Western development assistance and the negative after-effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Anti-Microbial Resistance Strategies Need Urgent Attention to Prevent Unnecessary Deaths in Africa

By Francis Kokutse
African countries must find a way of fighting Anti-Microbial Resistance in the healthcare system to avoid unnecessary deaths.

Tackling Recurring Hunger Crises at the Horn of Africa – Beginning with Somalia

By Esther Ngumbi
The statistics are stark. The crisis is unprecedented. Yet again, according to the United Nations, famine looms in Somalia, with hundreds of thousands already facing starvation. In addition, droughts, and catastrophic hunger levels have left over 500,000 children malnourished and at risk of dying. This is already nearly 200,000 more than the 2011 famine. Urgent immediate actions must be taken now, both to address the crisis in the short-term and long-term.
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