Little Suns

“It looks like a flower, I like it!” 16-year-old Kaira smiles as she opens the box containing her solar lamp. Examining it carefully, she pushes the button on one of the petals, turning on its bright light. Kaira is one of the 1,265 women and girls, who received a solar lamp from IOM, the UN Migration Agency, in Ethiopia’s Somali Region, through a partnership with Little Sun.

G20 Becomes G19 on Climate Change

The G20 meeting of leaders of the world's 20 biggest economies ended a few days ago in Hamburg, Germany with a strong statement of commitment for implementing the Paris Agreement on Climate Change by 19 of the leaders, with the exception of President Trump who has decided to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement.

The Lost Boys: Gabriel

“I thought that I couldn’t fulfill my dreams if I stayed in Sierra Leone. Mauritania is known to us as a country with a lot of history and knowledge. For a child who does not have his or her father or mother or a member of his family there, it is not easy to integrate.

Modi’s American Embrace

The widely circulated picture of Indian Prime Minister Modi clinging to a visibly uncomfortable Donald Trump`s breast illustrates the nature of the emerging relationship between India and the US.

Crisis in Korea: Diplomacy Misdirected

US President Trump has expressed increasing impatience with the diplomacy of patience that the United States has followed since the Obama presidency with regard to North Korea’s nuclear and missile build-up. If China is not able to induce North Korea to give up making an intercontinental ballistic missile tipped with a nuclear weapon that can reach Washington, D. C., Trump has warned, the US is ready to address the situation by its lonesome, laying all its terrible options on the table.

Feeding Hungry Children: How a School Does It Against the Odds

I am standing in the middle of a public elementary school in a rural municipality in the province of Cavite. The playground is without trees and shade. In the searing heat of a late morning sun, the cement building bakes. The steel handrails ribboning the walkways are too hot to hold. The area is nice, though. There are mountain views, fancy cafés and gourmet dining nearby. But the schoolhouse is on the wrong side of the good life. No one here can afford anything from Starbucks. I am waiting for lunchtime recess. For many of the kids, this will be the best part of their day. It will be the only time they will get to eat.

Of Boko Haram and Hindutva

Prime minister Theresa May could have easily ignored, without anyone noticing, the vengeful white Briton who drove his truck into a crowd of Muslim worshippers, mowing down a few and killing one. After all, England had not yet fully recovered from the terror carnage in Manchester and London inflicted by home-grown Muslims.

Are We Becoming Selective Activists?

It is sickening how rape is becoming a regular occurrence in our society and there is a report of an incident of sexual violence every day from various parts of the country, each more vicious and more heinous than the one before. The victim profile is so diverse indicating that no girl, no woman is safe. When I started writing this article, the number of rape cases reported in 2017 was 93. By the time this article was ready for publication, that figure had risen to 138. This was within a matter of 4 weeks. I cannot help asking myself, what is happening? Why the rise in sexual violence? Why have the men in our country become so cruel?

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum praised for initiative to help Cornish community

The decision of the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and the Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to step in and help the Cornish village of Godolphin Cross in Britain to raise funds for the purchase of a chapel has received widespread acclaim.

The Rising Stakes for Ocean Governance

World oceans play the crucial role of a life support in poverty alleviation, food security, human health, and curbing climate change. But our oceans are increasingly being threatened and degraded by human-induced climate change, natural disasters, depletion of fisheries, loss of biodiversity, etc.

The National Relaunches With Enhanced Print and Digital Platforms

International Media Investments (IMI) today announced the relaunch of The National, Abu Dhabi's first English language newspaper. The new ‘The National’ features a complete enhancement of both its print and digital platforms with a focus on digital  including  daily video content podcasts with unmissable analysis, 360 degree images bringing the reader closer to the story, interactive graphics and animation as well as live and interactive video interviews and news on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Youtube.

G77 Nairobi Chapter Underlines Importance of New Urban Agenda

Pointing out the importance of the New Urban Agenda, the chairman of the G77 chapter in Nairobi, Ambassador Raza Bashir Tarar, High Commissioner of Pakistan to Kenya, said the Agenda is a framework that lays out how cities should be planned and managed to promote sustainable urbanization.

G77 Expresses Support for UN Peacekeeping Missions

The Group of 77 reaffirmed its “strong belief that peacekeeping budgets must provide the necessary resources to enable the United Nations to fulfill its mandates”.

Sharjah named World Book Capital 2019

Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) was named World Book Capital for the year 2019 by the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, on the recommendation of the Advisory Committee which met at the Headquarters of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) at La Haye.

Deaths in Hills: Why and How

Hill cutting for illegal establishments is one of the key reasons behind the recent series of landslides in Rangamati, the worst in a decade that killed at least 120 people.