By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 22 June 2023 (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres, in his annual report on Children and Armed Conflict,, has once again left out Israel from the list of perpetrators of grave violations and killings of children. Perhaps the only consolation this year is his decision to stand up to Russia, […]
Rich Multis Profiteer While Hunger in Africa Soars
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK, 7 March 2023 (IDN) — Once on the decline, global hunger has reversed course over the last ten years, as multinational food companies increasingly replace domestic production and leave populations “food insecure.” According to a recent Greenpeace International report, food imports from factory farms have jumped 650 […]
Indigenous Societies Draw Focus of the Arctic Circle Assembly
By Lowana Veal REYKJAVIK (IDN) — The Arctic region is a unique area among Earth’s ecosystems. The cultures in the region and the Arctic indigenous peoples have adapted to its cold and extreme conditions. Life in the Arctic includes zooplankton and phytoplankton, fish and marine mammals, birds, land animals, plants and human societies. Reykjavik—capital of […]
Despite the Recession Threat, 100 million Can Still Be Lifted Out of Poverty
By UN News NEW YORK (IDN) — A flagship UN poverty study released on October 17, the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, finds that significant poverty reduction is possible, and new ways of calculating the problem can help humanitarians and governments better target aid.
GMOs that Promote Poverty and Dependency Gain Foothold in Kenya
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Kenya has officially entered into the cultivation and use of Genetically Modified Organisms—known as GMOs—that have been banned in 26 countries. This month, Kenyan authorities announced plans to lift the country’s ban on genetically modified crops, in part to deal with a record drought that […]
A New Integrated Financing Facility to Help Achieve UN’s Development Goals by 2030
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which primarily include the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger by 2030, are in deep financial trouble. The goals have been severely undermined by the cumulative effects of several factors, including the economic fallout from the war in Ukraine and, most importantly, […]
Urgent Need to Tackle Inequalities in Financing for Development Worsened by the COVID-19 Pandemic
By Jamshed Baruah NEW YORK (IDN) — In the face of dramatic reversals in global progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), urgent action is required by the international community to improve developing countries’ access to affordable finance. Inaugurating the four-day Forum on Financing for Development (FfD Forum) on April 25, ECOSOC President Mr. […]
Ukraine War Could Drive Millions Elsewhere into Starvation
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) — While images of the war devastation in Ukraine have saturated the news bulletins around the world, a much more severe human disaster is unravelling in many other parts of the world that could throw over one-fifth of humanity back into poverty. “We have all seen the tragedy unfolding inside […]
Sustainable Development Threatened by ‘Finance Divide’ and COVID-19
By Radwan Jakeem NEW YORK (IDN) — The crippling cost of debt financing for many developing countries has hamstrung their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, forced cutbacks in development spending, and constrained their ability to respond to further shocks, according to a new United Nations report.
UN’s Goal of Poverty & Hunger Eradication by 2030 is “Highly Unlikely, if not Impossible”
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — A projected rise in global poverty this year—with over a quarter of a billion more people joining the ranks of the world’s poor—threatens to undermine the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the General Assembly back in 2015. One of the primary goals, listed high-up as […]