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Saturday, June 20, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
South-South
‘Slum Cities’ Need Better Planning
Sri Lanka’s capital city Colombo, the vibrant economic and administrative heart of the bustling island nation, is rapidly turning into a city of slums. Home to over 30 percent of the country’s population, one in every two people living in the Greater Colombo Area is a slum dweller.South Africa Looking to Make the Most of BRICS Membership
South Africa needs to stop agonising over whether it deserves to be in BRICS and start focusing on making the most of its membership to leverage better trade deals.
BRICS Ministers Say New Trade Narrative Sinks Development
Trade ministers of the BRICS countries - Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa – say that at the G20 trade ministerial summit later this month in Mexico they will try to ensure that attempts by industrialised countries to frame a new trade agenda do not drown development-led trade liberalisation and the World Trade Organization talks.
The Downside of China’s Lifeline to Brazil
Over the last decade, China has become Brazil’s main trading partner and source of foreign investment. But this apparent lifeline at a time of global crisis could actually aggravate longstanding problems faced by Latin America’s biggest economy.
Brazil and South Africa Hit Hard by Exchange Rate Complications
Brazil and South Africa have experienced a widespread contraction of their manufacturing industries, with the latter suffering massive unemployment as well, thanks to the rampant volatility and misalignment of dominant global currencies like the dollar, trade experts from the two countries say.
BRICS Tighten United Front
At their summit in the Indian capital on Thursday, leaders of the coalition known as BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – made several noteworthy decisions that experts say hint at the converging of economic and political interests of a disparate regional bloc.
South Africa No Longer the Gateway to the Continent
South Africa’s membership of the bloc of leading emerging economies and its unique position in Africa heralded the country’s role as a gateway into the African continent. However, trade experts question whether it can live up to this position as investors begin to increasingly look towards other African markets.
Development Deficit Compounds Indian Sundarbans Crisis
Sahara Bibi, a 47-year-old poor Muslim woman living on one of the climate- impacted islands of Eastern India’s fragile Sundarbans archipelago in West Bengal state, was forced to pull her two young sons out of school and send one of them to the Southern state of Kerala to earn a decent income.Tale of Two Approaches – the WTO Torn Asunder?
Trade envoys of India, Brazil, and South Africa have warned industrialised countries not to hijack the Doha multilateral trade negotiations by adopting the controversial plurilateral approach to liberalise trade in services.Opinions Divided Over Chevron Trial in Brazil
Opinions are divided in Brazil over the prosecution of U.S. oil giant Chevron for two oil spills. While some argue that the legal action is an over-reaction triggered by nationalism, others say it is necessary to show that Brazil is serious about protecting the environment.Anti-Discrimination Bill Fast-Tracked After Brutal Gay Bashing
"We shouldn't have to live in fear. We're citizens and voters of Chile, we have jobs, and yet we live in daily fear of being attacked," said 33-year-old Carla Oviedo, a victim of discrimination on the grounds of her sexual orientation.
India Affirms Role as Developing World’s Pharmacy
By allowing a generic manufacturer to produce a patented cancer drug at a fraction of its current cost, India has declared that it is not about to abandon its role as the ‘pharmacy of the world’s poor'.BRICS Bank Could Change the Money Game
India’s proposal to set up a bank of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) will top the agenda at the summit of the group in New Delhi Mar. 28.
An Assault on Multilateral Trade Negotiations
India, Brazil, and South Africa, the international grouping for promoting international cooperation among the three countries known as IBSA, along with China and several other developing countries, have denounced the ongoing attempts to craft an exclusive, plurilateral agreement to liberalise trade in services without concluding the multilateral trade negotiations of the World Trade Organization.
Those Bodies in Baghdad Are of Gay Men
Dozens of bodies bludgeoned to death pop up in Baghdad’s dusty streets like the remains of a wreckage on a beach. They are the corpses of homosexuals and followers of the ‘emo’ fashion who dare to break with the strict canons of the Shia orthodoxy in power.
Evangelist Sued in U.S. for Inciting Anti-Gay Hatred in Uganda
A major U.S. civil rights group filed a federal lawsuit in Massachusetts Wednesday on behalf of a Ugandan gay rights organisation, the Sexual Minorities of Uganda (SMUG), against a right-wing evangelist leader for inciting hatred against homosexuals that has led to increased violence against LGBT persons in the East African country.
Indian Farmers Hostage to Middlemen
Agriculture experts blame the crisis faced by India’s small farmers on a highly inefficient supply chain for perishable farm produce, a situation exploited by traders and middlemen.
Simple Steps to Improving Aid Effectiveness
As donors struggle to meet their aid commitments, and the number of people around the world in need of direct humanitarian and development assistance skyrockets, many experts and activists are asking the tough question: are donors being effective?
Q&A: “Social Unrest Can Be a Creative Force”
Social unrest and demands for change are not a negative thing during times of crisis like today, says Rubens Ricupero, a Brazilian diplomat and thinker.
Tense Tug-of-War over Peru-Brazil Energy Agreement
Brazil is keen to move ahead quickly with the construction of hydropower plants in neighbouring countries to supply its demand for electricity. But Peru is still stalling on an agreement between the two countries, due to a number of conflicting interests and demands.
Q&A: Needed: Common Caribbean Strategies Against Climate Change
Subject to the double impact of the global economic crisis and climate change, the Caribbean island nations are in need of adaptation strategies in which international cooperation and citizen participation play key roles, says Cuban expert Ramón Pichs.« Previous Page — Next Page »
South-South cooperation – collaboration between developing countries - is a growing and dynamic phenomenon, an important process that is vital in confronting shared challenges. Led by emerging giants India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) the South is a tremendous source of tested solutions to development challenges including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Nairobi Outcome of the 2009 High Level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation in Nairobi, Kenya highlights growing political and economic ties within the developing world, as countries from the South assume leading roles in decision-making on hot global issues ranging from economic recovery to food security and climate change.
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