St Valentine’s Day: Celebrating Healthy Relationships; Challenging Violence

Today, many couples, in many countries will be celebrating Saint Valentine’s Day – or ‘El día de los enamorados’ (‘Day of Lovers’) in some Latin American countries.

Ravaging Drought Deepens in Kenya

Experts warn that Kenya is in the grip of the worst drought in recent history as government estimates show the number of people who are acutely food insecure has risen to 2.7 million, up from two million in January.

ICT Signals the Cradle of Radio’s Rebirth

Over the last few decades, radio has played an important role in the realm of development. It has enabled the distribution of information on new policies, technology, products, and ideas with the potential of stimulating growth and development, largely in rural Africa.

Latin America Is a Leading Influence in the Global Fight Against Hunger

A model for fighting against hunger and malnutrition with a global reach which has been successful within and outside the region has spread worldwide, first from Brazil and then from Latin America, notes a distinction given to the current Director-General of FAO (United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation), José Graziano da Silva.

Every Year 700 Million People Fall Ill from Contaminated Food

It may sound like an endless tale of modern seven plagues: mad cows, avian flu, led-poisoned fish, swine fever, desert locusts being the most dangerous of migratory pests, let alone new, aggressive rust threatening entire wheat crops in three continents, just to mention a few. Now it is about contaminated food that every year causes illness to 1 in 10 people around the world – or around 700 million - killing 420,000 people as a result.

Argentina’s Never-ending Environmental Disaster

Is it possible to spend 5.2 billion dollars to clean up a river which is just 64-km-long and get practically no results? Argentina is showing that it is.

Kenya’s Potential in Agriculture Lies in Rural Transformation

Agriculture plays a pivotal role in the livelihoods of Kenya’s majority, providing both formal and informal employment with women accounting for about 70 percent of the agricultural labour force.

Dubai Global Centre of Green Economy in UAE’s Vision 2021

When former UN Secretary-General Ban K-moon was in Abu Dhabi for the World Future Energy Summit last year, he singled out the key role played by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in “safeguarding the future of our planet” by showcasing clean, sustainable energy --- a centre piece of the UN’s post-2015 development agenda.

Innovative Credit Model Holds Out Lifeline to Farmers in Honduras

In this village in southern Honduras, in one of the poorest parts of the country, access to credit is limited, the banking sector is not supportive of agriculture, and nature punishes with recurrent extreme droughts.

Female Genital Mutilation is a Gruesome Impediment to the Empowerment of Women

On 06 February 2017, the world marks the 14th International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).  

It’s Women’s Turn in Rural Development

Josefina Stubbs, from the Dominican Republic, may become the first woman to preside over the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty.

New, Aggressive Rust Imperils Wheat Crops in Europe, Africa, Asia

Wheat rust, a family of fungal diseases that can cause crop losses of up to 100 per cent in untreated susceptible wheat, is making further advances in Europe, Africa and Asia, according to two new studies produced by scientists in collaboration with the United Nations.

We Need a New Social Movement Against Inequality

Oxfam's latest estimate that just eight super-rich people – down from 62 last year and 388 just six years ago - own more wealth than the poorest half of the world population is a clarion call to change the way we think about and try to tackle inequality.

How a Spring Revival Scheme in India’s Sikkim Is Defeating Droughts

Bina Sharma, a member of the Melli Dhara Gram Panchayat Unit in the southern part of India’s northeastern Himalayan state of Sikkim, is a relieved woman.

Why Kenya Must Create a Million New Jobs Annually

It is estimated that 3000 Kenyans are born every day, a million a year. With a median age of 18 years, Kenya is witnessing a massive youth bulge, which could either be a demographic dividend, or a disaster.

Seeds Are Key to Improving Bean Production in Cuba

“You have to have good and varied seeds to test which one adapts best to each kind of soil,” says 71-year-old farmer Rubén Torres, who on his farm in central Cuba harvests 1.6 tons of organic beans every year, among other crops.

‘World Must Implement Pledges on Women’s Human Rights’

“Women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work” will provide concrete, practical and action-oriented recommendations that will cover significant new ground, on overcoming structural barriers to gender equality, gender-based discrimination and violence against women at work, a senior United Nations official stressed.

Kenyans Turn to Wild Fruits and Insects as Drought Looms

Too hungry to play, hundreds of starving children in Tiaty Constituency of Baringo County instead sit by the fire, watching the pot boil, in the hope that it is only a matter of minutes before their next meal.

Demonstrating the Power of Partnerships: The Potential for Universal Health Care in Kenya

Even as the global community set out the 17 Sustainable Development Goals last year, a realization that stood out is that no single unit has the wherewithal to achieve such lofty goals – they will only be achieved through partnerships.

Riverbank Populations Displaced by Dams in Brazil Miss Old Way of Life

“Now we have internet and TV. Before, we didn't even have electricity, but it was better,” said Lourival de Barros, one of the people displaced by the hydropower plants which have mushroomed aorund Brazil, mainly since the 1970s.

Farmer Field Schools Help Women Lead on Climate Change

Discussions around climate change have largely ignored how men and women are affected by climate change differently, instead choosing to highlight the extreme and unpredictable weather patterns or decreases in agricultural productivity.