ARGENTINA: Football Referee School Offers Way Out of Poverty

A new school to train football referees to work amateur-level tournaments in Argentina aims at providing skills and a legitimate source of income for young people from poor homes.

RWANDA: Women Win by Formalising Businesses

The vast majority of businesses in Rwanda - like elsewhere in Africa - are informal. Government expects that a drive to register an estimated 900,000 informal enterprises will both strengthen these businesses and improve tax revenues.

Argentine Hake On the Brink of Collapse

The Argentine hake fisheries of the southern Atlantic Ocean, among the world's leaders in the white fish market, are on the verge of collapse due in part to the indifference of the Argentine people, who are apparently more interested in beef, a staple of their diet.

INDIA: 25 Years On, Bhopal Tragedy Victims Still Crying for Justice

Twenty-five years after an industrial gas leak from the factory of a U.S. multinational firm in this ancient Indian city killed thousands and impaired nearly half a million, victims are still crying for justice.

BAHRAIN: Passport Confiscation Still Hounds Migrant Workers

When Abdulkhaliq Mohammed arrived in Bahrain as a contract labourer 20 years ago, the first thing he did on setting foot in the oil-rich Gulf state was to hand his passport over to his employer.

Q&A: “Bluewashing Has Become a Very Risky Business”

The Global Compact (GC), which celebrates its 10th anniversary with a summit meeting later this month, has been described as a key initiative of the United Nations to prod private companies and blue-chip corporations to pro-actively address environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues relating to the workplace.

Windfall for Botswana Farmers

Two of Botswana's biggest breweries are putting smiles on the faces of farmers. No, they are not giving beer away: the breweries are planning to buy sorghum from small-scale farmers at prices far higher than the Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board (BAMB) is offering.

INDONESIA: Natural Fertiliser from Microbes Boosts Crop Yields

Ten years after an Indonesian agriculturist discovered microbes capable of producing natural fertilisers, farmers attest that they have boosted agricultural production.

Difficult Times Call for Dangerous Jobs

Life can be hard working in these tunnels, and it is always at risk. But many have no choice but to work in them, particularly since mid-2007, when Israel and Egypt, with the help of the international community, imposed a siege of staggering severity on the 1.5 million humans in the Gaza Strip.

Millennium Goals Need Development, Not Charity

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) came into existence in the right place, the United Nations, but at a most unpropitious time, in September 2000, when ideas about the invincibility of market forces still held sway in the world.

MEXICO: Women Electrical Workers at Centre of Struggle for Jobs

"Our male coworkers have had to acknowledge it: we have worked side by side in this struggle," says Emilia Peña, describing the role of women in driving forward the battle waged by thousands of workers to reopen a state power company in Mexico.

SRI LANKA: Garment Sector, Gov’t Optimistic about Trade Pact with EU

Relations between Sri Lanka and European Union (EU), which turned frosty around six months back, appear to be thawing as the government makes a last ditch stand to regain a crucial trade concession that has been suspended over human rights issues hounding the south Asian island state.

SRI LANKA: War-Affected Women Bewail Their Plight

Rajini Padamaraj, 32, is burdened with the responsibility of looking after the needs of her entire household, composed of her mother and two younger siblings.

Thai, Argentine Textile Workers Unite Against Slave Labour

Textile cooperatives founded by former slave labourers from Argentina and Thailand will jointly launch a new brand of clothing in June to raise awareness about exploitation and promote decent jobs in the garment industry.

URUGUAY: Job Training Moves “Trans” Off Streets to Better Future

Ruler in hand, Fabiana draws lines with a pencil on orange cardboard, occasionally pushing her curly hair away from her eyes. Next to her, Fernanda fashions a colourful cardboard box, a prototype for what their cooperative will ultimately produce in large quantities.

MALAYSIA: Encroaching Forest, Oil Palm Plantations Alarm Villagers

A increasing number of natives in Sarawak state in north Borneo are alarmed at encroaching forest and oil palm plantations, which are taking over their native customary land and destroying their traditional lifestyles and biodiversity.

RIGHTS-PAKISTAN: Green Initiative Gives Hope to the Disabled

Talib Hussain, 29, became the sole breadwinner of his family of seven after his father suffered a stroke that left him half paralysed. Hussain brings home 4,000 Pakistani rupees (about 47 U.S. dollars) monthly, which he dutifully turns over to his mother.

AFRICA: Better Data Key to Supporting Women Farmers

An accomplished farmer who won the coveted Woman Farmer of the Year Award in 2008, Thabile Dlamini-Gooday wants to uplift the standard of other women in agriculture. She believes that if women farmers were to work together they could fight hunger and significantly reduce poverty among themselves.

ENERGY: The Sun Lights Up the Night in Haiti

There are shortages of lots of things in Haiti: clean water, arable land, trees, living-wage jobs, housing, schools, fuel, reliable sources of electricity and Internet access. But one thing Haiti has in abundance is sunny days.

INDIA: One Woman’s Entrepreneurial Venture Now Employs Thousands

Shameema Wani, 40, never imagined a simple venture, begun from scratch, would grow into the 2,000-strong business enterprise, employing mainly women, that it is today in this capital city of India’s disputed Jammu and Kashmir state.

Decent Work Still a Dream for South Africa’s Domestic Workers

The abuse of domestic workers, the majority of whom are women, is still widespread in South Africa despite calls for the government to intensify the implementation of the domestic workers law.