ONE OCEAN SUMMIT – An Opportunity For Blue Transformation

The ocean covers more than 70 percent of our planet. There is no question it is critical for our health and well-being. It provides half the earth’s oxygen supply and every organism in existence depends on it to survive.

Call for Increased Global Efforts to Ease Africa’s Climate-Induced Water Crisis

When years ago warnings were sounded that future wars would be fought not over oil but water, the predictions were dismissed as alarmist.

Responding to New Threats to Poverty Eradication in Asia

With consistent, robust economic growth, countries across Asia have made monumental strides in eradicating extreme poverty over the past 30 years. In Bangladesh, for example, the population living in extreme poverty dropped from 43% in 1991 to 10.5% in 2019. Similarly in Cambodia, poverty incidence fell from 53% in 2004 to below 10% by 2016.

The Global South Moves Towards Vaccine Sovereignty

In 2021, Global South countries came out on the short end of vaccine supply deals. In 2022, they are building capacity to produce vaccines themselves.

Nobel Prizes and Donation Pledges

While living and working in Paris I joined the Cercle Suédois, a social club founded in 1891, at a time when Sweden and Norway were unified in one kingdom. By that time, Alfred Nobel was a frequent guest and in one corner I sometimes ended up standing in front of the writing desk where he in November 1895 had written his famous testament, stipulating that 94 percent of his total assets (equivalent to 120 million USD in today’s money value) was to be allocated to the establishment of five prizes. These prizes would every year be awarded to deserving individuals, who ”irrespective of their nationality” had contributed to ”the progress of humanity and preservation of peace in the world.”

UN’s Investigative Arm Launches Survey to Probe Racism & Discrimination in World Body

The Joint Inspection Unit (JIU)-- the UN’s only independent external oversight body mandated to conduct evaluations, inspections and investigations-- is conducting a survey probing the widespread racism and discrimination in the world body.

Storybook Apps Turn African Learners Into Writers

Suwaiba Hassan published an engrossing story. She used digital apps that are giving literacy a boost.

An International Treaty on Pandemic Prevention?

The global consensus about an international treaty on pandemic prevention is certainly a milestone towards the creation of a global health security framework.

From Zero Yield to Bumper Harvest

In the past, the people of Sande Village in Chikwawa district, Malawi, would go to bed with empty stomachs even when the rest of the country harvested bumper yields.

Three Key Questions for Understanding Shifts in Global Poverty

In 2010 and the following years, there was attention to the fact that much of global poverty had shifted to middle-income countries (for example here, here, and here).

Power of Connection & Collaborations to Fight Modern-day Slavery

The Covid-19 pandemic affected countries and people globally, at the same time exacerbated vulnerabilities such as modern-day slavery. There are over 40.3 million people estimated to be in modern-day slavery, and certain population groups, sectors and geographies such as children, migrant workers, women and girls that were already vulnerable, became more vulnerable to recruitment and exploitation during the pandemic. The United Nations has called the pandemic more than a health crisis, “it is an economic crisis, a humanitarian crisis, and a human rights crisis.”

Inconsistent Laws Perpetuate Unsafe Online Spaces for Children & Young People

The internet and digital technology have allowed children and young people to connect, exchange knowledge and information, and truly turn the world into a global village.

‘Whole Life Cycle of Plastics’ Approach Could Reduce Pollution – WWF expert

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected plastic waste management, as the world saw a rise in single-use sanitary products, and many cities abandoned their recycling and waste management efforts in the first few months, Eirik Lindebjerg of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) told IPS.

Resist Inflation Phobia Coup

Calls, even screams, to fight inflation above all else are getting shriller. Thankfully, even The Economist (5 Feb. 2022) reminds all, Fighting inflation could put the world in a slump. No inflation consensus International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva doubts the world faces a runaway inflation threat. She urges policymakers to carefully calibrate fiscal and monetary policies, with more “specificity”, as not ‘one size fits all’.

Long-haul SADC Action Needed to Counter Mozambican Insurgency and Humanitarian Crisis

Ongoing insecurity and an unfolding humanitarian crisis in northern Mozambique need a strategically planned response to deal decisively with the insurgency that has plagued the area since October 2017.

Looking to the Future: China’s Priorities for Food Security in 2022 and Beyond

Safeguarding food security has long been a critical priority for the Chinese central government. President Xi’s latest comments and meetings demonstrate continued concerns at the top about China’s food security. Ahead of the 20th National Congress this year and the release of the No 1 policy document, there are already several hints regarding what the Chinese central authorities could prioritise in terms of food security for this year and beyond. Other factors, including the potential influences of gene-edited plants, commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) crops, and of a Russia-Ukraine conflict should also be considered.

An Unending & Uncertain Battle Against the Covid

The year 2021 began with several new vaccines showing efficacy in randomized trials, but despite 26 authorised Covid-19 vaccines globally, and at least another 200 in development (The Lancet, 2021), the first few weeks of year 2022 brought a sense of uncertainty.

It is Time for a More Inclusive & Democratic UN

The global challenges we face are too complex for governance as usual. It is high time to strengthen the United Nations’ (UN) democratic and participatory character.

Is it Time to Bar Coup Leaders from the UN?

A rash of military coups in Africa has resurrected a long dormant question: should leaders who take power through armed insurrections be barred from addressing the United Nations—an institution which swears by, and promotes, multi-party democracy?

Increased Investment Critical to End Female Genital Mutilation as COVID-19 Rages On

“Multiple overlapping crises are putting millions of girls at increased risk of female genital mutilation. “Countries already grappling with rising poverty, inequality and conflict are seeing the COVID-19 pandemic further threaten years of progress to end the practice, creating a crisis within a crisis for the world’s most vulnerable and marginalized girls.

‘End Leprosy Discrimination Now, For the Sake of Our Children’

Seidu Ishaiku lives in the hope that his children will succeed. He and his family live with about 300 other residents in the Alheri leprosy colony outside Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory Abuja.