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Image: Collage of Hubble Ultra Deep Field includes galaxies of various ages, sizes, shapes, and colours (left) and Atomic bombings of Nagasaki.

The Creative and Destructive Aspects of Homo Sapiens

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

The writer is Ambassador, former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs and current President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs

NEW YORK (IDN) — We do not know exactly how many millennia ago human beings started their ascent among other species to become dominant over the planet. We can, however, pinpoint with certainty in the Industrial Revolution the beginning of the rapid development of science, manufacturing techniques, trade and other skills that allowed unprecedented material progress particularly since the second half of last century.

: Sergio Duarte; OPINION; 25 February 2021

Image: Sunrise, Fog, Landscape, Mountains, Mist, Morning, Dawn as in diplomacy. Source: Pixabay.

The Great Game of Vaccination Diplomacy Targets Africa

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW (IDN) — Russia is committed to helping eradicate the rapidly increasing coronavirus infections in Africa amounting to approximately 3.8 million with its latest developed Sputnik V vaccine. Such a step will enable Russia to reassert its geopolitical influence that involves a keen competition with other foreign players on the continent.

An official media release in mid-February said that the Africa Vaccine Acquisition Task Team — set up by the African Union to acquire additional vaccine doses so that Africa can attain a target immunization of 60% — has received an offer of 300 million Sputnik V vaccines from the Russian Federation.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Africa; 25 February 2021

Image: Collage of Munich Security Conference and G7 logos by IDN-INPS

Two Major Conferences Resolute in Combating COVID-19

Viewpoint by Somar Wijayadasa*

NEW YORK (IDN) — The leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) and the Munich Security Conference (MSC) held two meetings virtually on February 19, 2021, as these had to be postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The G7 countries — Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States — meet annually to discuss major world crises issues and to resolve global problems. The virtual meeting was hosted by the UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson.

: Somar Wijayadasa; OPINION; 24 February 2021

Photo: Some countries using COVID vaccine to enhance their soft power. Credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe

Response to COVID-19 Embedded in Global Power and Diplomatic Wrangles

Viewpoint by Michael Jennings*

LONDON (IDN) — The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to various new, repurposed or newly popular terms. The newest entry to the pandemic lexicon might be “vaccine diplomacy”, with some countries using their jabs to strengthen regional ties and enhance their own power and global status.

In early February, half a million doses of the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Pakistan, before soon also reaching 13 other countries including Cambodia, Nepal, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe.

: Phil Harris; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 24 February 2021

Image: The Great Wall of China at Jinshanling. CC BY-SA 3.0

Still Much to Be Done to Make Immigration More Palatable

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — The Mexicans had a joke about ex-President Donald Trump’s planned wall along its border with the US. “It’s not being built to keep Mexicans out of the US; it’s built to keep Trump out of Mexico!” If this be so, then President Joe Biden can relax. No longer is there the need to dismantle the wall built by Trump.

The US media reports say that Mexico has to deal with another migrant “caravan” of fleeing Central Americans pouring into the south of the country, hoping to somehow crash their way into the US.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 23 February 2021

Photo: Niamey, Niger's capital and economic hub. CC BY-SA 2.0

Heavily US-Armed Niger Faces Electoral Violence

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — The country that drew worldwide attention over a now-debunked U.S. theory linking Saddam Hussein with the purchase of “yellowcake” uranium powder is in the spotlight again.

On February 21, unidentified attackers set off a landmine that exploded under a car full of election commissioners in the Tillaberi region of the landlocked West African nation of Niger, killing seven.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 23 February 2021

Photo credit: USAID Farmer-to-Farmer Program.

The Ascendency and Mainstay of Participatory Development

Viewpoint by Dr Yossef Ben-Meir

The writer is President of the High Atlas Foundation, which is an implementer of the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer Program in Morocco.

MARRAKECH (IDN) — Participatory community movements found a contemporary impetus in post-World War II reconstruction of Europe and decolonization, primarily in Africa. The approach of locally managed change, however, was highly distrusted during these initial years, during which the dominant view was that central-level policymakers are in a better position than the people to make highly productive decisions regarding development projects.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 23 February 2021

Photo: An artist’s impression of Columbus arriving in America by Wilhem Berrouet. Credit: Salon de la Mappemonde/Flickr/CC)

Europe Slow in Recognising Global Impact of Colonialism

Viewpoint by Michael McEachrane*

LUND (IDN) – Centuries of European colonialism have had a tremendous impact on shaping inequities within and among countries, many of which are yet to be effectively addressed. This may seem like a trivial statement, but it is only recently being recognised by EU countries.

In 2019, the European Parliament passed a resolution on the Fundamental Rights of People of African Descent. It called for a comprehensive perspective on colonialism and slavery, which recognises their historical and contemporary adverse effects on people of African descent.

: Phil Harris; HUMAN RIGHTS; Racism; 23 February 2021

Photo: Scores killed in a stampede at a church crusade in Tanzania. Source: africanquarters.com

Tanzania President Acknowledges the Menace of COVID-19

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — For months, Tanzanian President John Magufuli stuck to a controversial stand that COVID-19 would only be defeated by prayer.

This Sunday (February 21), the President amended his position. He urged citizens to wear masks — only locally made ones — and take other preventive measures against the virus.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 22 February 2021

Photo: Workers construct a solar panel array structure in Malawi. CC BY-SA 4.0

An Inclusive Energy System Key to COVID-19 Recovery

Viewpoint by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana

Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

BANGKOK (IDN) — The past year is one that few of us will forget. While the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have played out unevenly across Asia and the Pacific, the region has been spared many of the worst effects seen in other parts of the world. The pandemic has reminded us that a reliable and uninterrupted energy supply is critical to managing this crisis.