COVID-19

Photo: Bill and Melinda Gates have committed funds to research the disease and manufacture a vaccine when one becomes available. Credit: Kjetil Ree, CC BY-SA 3.0

COVID-19: Why We Should Be Sceptical of the Benevolence of Billionaires

Viewpoint by Gwilym David Blunt*

LONDON (IDN) – The coronavirus pandemic has produced a surge in philanthropic giving from some of the world’s wealthiest people. Bill and Melinda Gates, longstanding champions of global health, have committed funds to research the disease and manufacture a vaccine when one becomes available. Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter, has pledged one billion dollars for “global COVID-19 relief”. Then there are Jack Ma, Li Ka-Shing, George Soros, Giorgio Armani and Jeff Bezos – other examples of billionaires giving staggering amounts of money to help alleviate the suffering caused by this global crisis. It is not surprising that they have enjoyed widespread praise and acclaim.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 22 April 2020

Image credit: Independent Online (IOL), South Afruca.

New Initiative to Fight COVID-19 with Information Technology

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – With support from UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations specialized agency for information ((ITU) are set to work with telecommunication companies to text people directly on their mobile phones with vital health messaging to help protect them from COVID-19.

These text messages, as part of the joint 'WHO-ITU Be initiative', will reach billions of people who are not in a position to connect to the internet for information, said a joint statement on April 20.

: J Nastranis; UN INSIDER; 21 April 2020

Photo: Onset of COVID-19 pandemic boosts support for international cooperation Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President of the 74th session of the General Assembly, closes the annual General Debate on 30 September 2019. Credit: UN Photo/Cia Pak

Redefining Cooperation, Development and Prosperity

Reflections on the International Day of Multilateralism

Viewpoint by Dumiso Gatsha

The writer is a human rights defender, feminist and part-time PhD (Law) candidate.

GABARONE, Botswana (IDN) – 75 years of cooperation, mutual engagement and improving lives. Heralding the decade of action, 2020 has brought many challenges and opportunities for relooking how the systems we live in can be improved for the better. April 24 marks a day for us to deeply reflect, within our homes or essential service work; on what truly matters in humanity.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 21 April 2020

Photo: Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, who was in Beijing for the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, at the Great Hall of the People on April 24, 2019. Credit: Xinhua/Ding Lin.

The Chinese Experience in Fighting COVID-19 and the Imperative of a Global Coalition – Part 2

Viewpoint by Teshome Toga Chanaka

This is the second of a two-part article by Teshome Toga Chanaka, currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia to China. Click here for Part 1. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the government and IDN, the flagship of non-profit International Press Syndicate.

BEIJING (IDN) – Can the Chinese experience be replicated elsewhere? No two social, economic, political and cultural settings are identical.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 19 April 2020

Photo: China opened Wuhan early April after 76-day lockdown. Credit: Anadolu Agency.

The Chinese Experience in Fighting COVID-19 and the Imperative of a Global Coalition – Part 1

Viewpoint by Teshome Toga Chanaka

This is the first of a two-part article by Teshome Toga Chanaka, currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia to China. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the government and IDN, the flagship of non-profit International Press Syndicate.

BEIJING (IDN) – The outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was significant in the calendar of Chinese as it coincided with the beginning of the new Chinese spring festival, with an estimated movement of over 60 million Chinese throughout the country.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 19 April 2020

Photo: A lone passenger rides an escalator on the New York City subway at one of the network's busiest stations. The city's tourist industry is likely to be decimated by COVID-19 for the rest of 2020. United Nations/Katya Pugacheva

UN Travel Organization Predicts Revival of Holiday Traffic

By Ronald Joshua

ROME | MADRID (IDN) – Tourism has been brought to a near-standstill by COVID-19, but the World Travel Organization (UNWTO) believes that once the pandemic has passed, the industry, which accounts for 10 per cent of global GDP, is in a unique position to help put the global economy back on its feet.

UNWTO is closely monitoring the new coronavirus crisis from its Madrid headquarters and collaborating with other UN agencies in finding ways to mitigate its impact.

: Ronald Joshua; UN INSIDER; 18 April 2020

Photo: Hu Wei (4th R), charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy, attends a ceremony with Sri Lankan Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi (4th left front) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 1, 2020. China has handed over its first donation of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to Sri Lanka to strengthen the solidarity between the two countries as Sri Lanka fights the COVID-19 pandemic. Credit: Xinhua/Tang Lu

COVID-19 : An Unprecedented Crisis and Also an Exceptional Opportunity

Viewpoint by Dr Palitha Kohona

The writer is former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and former Foreign Secretary.

Henry Kissinger, in one of his infrequent statements said, "When the COVID-19 pandemic is over, many countries' institutions will be perceived as having failed. Whether this judgment is objectively fair is irrelevant. The reality is the world will never be the same after the coronavirus. To argue now about the past only makes it harder to do what has to be done". Countries must adjust and adapt and also move with the times. Responding proactively to the challenge of COVID-19 is key.

: Dr. Palitha Kohona; OPINION; 18 April 2020

UN Institute Expects COVID-19 Fallout to Push Half a Billion People into Poverty

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – New research published by the UNU World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) warns that the economic fallout from the global pandemic could increase global poverty by as much as half a billion people, or 8% of the total human population. This would be the first time that poverty has increased globally in thirty years, since 1990.

The authors of the UNU-WIDER study – Andy Sumner and Eduardo Ortiz-Juarez of King’s College London and Chris Hoy from Australian National University – find that a setback of this size would reverse a decade of global progress on poverty reduction.

: J Nastranis; SUSTAINABILITY; Poverty; 17 April 2020

Photo: Police across the world have been given new powers. Credit: Yuri Kochetkov/EPA

Coronavirus Shows World Not Prepared for Security Threat of Climate Change

Viewpoint by Kate Guy*

OXFORD (IDN) – How might a single threat, even one deemed unlikely, spiral into an evolving global crisis which challenges the foundations of global security, economic stability and democratic governance, all in the matter of a few weeks?

My research on threats to national security, governance and geopolitics has focused on exactly this question, albeit with a focus on the disruptive potential of climate change, rather than a novel coronavirus. In recent work alongside intelligence and defence experts at the think-tank Center for Climate and Security,

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 17 April 2020

Collage with map of Brazilian states by population (from Wikimedia Commons) and Basic Income card (from Vox).

COVID-19: Brazil Implements Basic Income Policy Following Massive Civil Society Campaign

By Pedro Telles

The writer is 2018-19 Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity at the International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics.

SÃO PAULO (IDN) – Tens of millions of Brazilians have begun receiving basic income payments aimed at addressing the economic impact of COVID-19, following Congress' approval of a bill prompted by a country-wide grassroots campaign that began just three weeks ago.