By Kalinga Seneviratne VIENTIANE, Laos | 15 July 2024 (IDN) — Laos, the land-locked country of 7.5 million people, with scenic mountainous terrain, traversed by the Mekong River that flows through both Vientiane and the UNESCO World Heritage Buddhist city of Luang Prabang, and home to many remote hill tribes is now in the crest […]
Slavery Still Ingrained in Mauritania, Activist Says
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 2 July 2024 (IDN) — Mauritanians have re-elected President Mohamed Ould Ghazaouni with over 56% of the vote in a 6-way race. With provisional results from over 99.27% of polling stations, President Ghazaouni, a retired army general and current president of the African Union, is serving […]
Why Minimum Wage Is a Bad Idea
By Azu Ishiekwene The writer is Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP and author of the new book Writing for Media and Monetising It. ABUJA | 7 June 2024 (IDN) — I’m opposed to minimum wage. And I know I’m saying this at the risk of losing readers. The minimum wage hurts the poor and vulnerable in whose […]
Microsoft Shuts Down Center in Lagos, Leaving Hundreds in the Lurch
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 19 May 2024 (IDN) — A Microsoft development center is shutting down in Lagos, where hundreds of staffers had nursed high hopes for training opportunities and the prospect of a good job in the high-tech industry. Just two years ago, the Development Center was opened with […]
UN Report Cautiously Optimistic About Global Economic Outlook
By Rodney Reynolds NEW YORK | 16 May 2024 (IDN) — A United Nations report expects a sustained rebound in tourism to improve the economic prospects for small island developing States (SIDS), leading to GDP growth from 2.4 per cent in 2023 to 3.3 per cent in 2024. However, SIDS remain vulnerable to spikes in […]
Sri Lanka: Between Gratefulness to Iran and Reservations of a Community
By Kalinga Seneviratne ALIKOTA ARA, Wellawaya, Sri Lanka | 2 May 2024 (IDN) — Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi made a one-day visit to Sri Lanka on 24 April amid tight security to declare open an Iran-assisted mega power and agricultural development project that would provide power to the national grid and water to farmers in […]
Colonial Era Crimes: Call for Reparations at a UN Conference
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 29 April 2024 (IDN) — At the “Second International Decade for People of African Descent: Addressing Systemic Racism, Reparatory Justice and Sustainable Development“, a European leader spoke out in support of reparations, saying that his country, Portugal, needed to pay the costs for slavery and colonialism. […]
Vienna Conference Considers Boundaries and Frontiers in Human Trafficking
By Aurora Weiss VIENNA | 29 October 2023 (IDN) — Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings remains a global phenomenon that requires intensive collaboration between governmental and non-governmental entities. Interdisciplinary cooperation, awareness raising, and proactive efforts on national, regional, and international levels are essential in this context. An effective preventive measure is the professional exchange of […]
Zimbabwe Grieves Young Miners Trapped Underground
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | HARARE | 24 October 2023 (IDN) — Dozens of mothers have been sleeping on the floor just outside Bay Horse Mine, hoping for any signs of life of their husbands and sons. When the disaster occurred, the men had been working in an inactive gold mine […]
UN Peacekeepers in The DRC Suspended Over Misconduct Charges
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | 16 October 2023 (IDN) — South Africa’s military has ordered home a group of soldiers accused of operating a system of mass prostitution in front of their base in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Some nine South Africans, part of a UN peacekeeping mission, were […]