COVID-19

The US and EU Boost Access to Covid-19 Vaccines and Waive the Patents

Viewpoint by Lori Wallach

Lori Wallach is the director of Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch. This is a slightly abridged version of a blog post by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) New York.

WASHINGTON DC (IDN | IPS-Journal.EU) — As we see infection rates in India and other parts of the world skyrocketing, European Union (EU) and US government officials regularly declare that the Covid-19 public health disaster and resulting economic crises will not end anywhere unless people everywhere are vaccinated. Yet the two World Trade Organization (WTO) heavyweights are blocking an initiative now supported by 100 nations that could boost access to Covid-19 vaccines, treatments and diagnostic tests worldwide. On 5 May the issue will again come to a head at the WTO. The US and EU must join the rest of the world.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 04 May 2021

The State of COVID-19 in Sri Lanka: Are the Government’s Policies Effective in Controlling it?

Viewpoint by Sunil J. Wimalawansa

The writer is Professor of Medicine: Director, Cardio-Metabolic Institute, New Jersey, U.S.A.

NEW JERSEY, USA (IDN) — The SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) affected the entire world; many died, millions got sick, and the misery continues. Second and third waves of SARS.Cov-2 infection are devastating most countries.

Non-strategic lockdowns and curfews (as in Sri Lanka) further aggravated the peoples’ misery, sufferings, daily lives, and economies, more than that from the virus. The toxic combination of COVID-19 and curfews devastated local productions and supply chains, livelihoods, people welfare, food security, and the county’s economy.

: Asia Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 28 April 2021

COVID-19 Exposes Fault Lines on Protecting Vulnerable Workers

By Mahinda Seneviratne*

SYDNEY (IDN) — As twilight approaches, Rakesh (not his real name) mounts his bicycle with a large thermal backpack over his narrow shoulders. He lost his regular job at a small suburban restaurant when the family business could not sustain itself during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. With the recent shocking road deaths of three food delivery riders heavily on his mind, Rakesh pedals cautiously into the growing traffic lanes to commence his first home delivery gig.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 27 April 2021

Top Economists Urge Solidarity to Avert Worsening of the COVID-19 Impacts

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — Eminent thought leaders in economic and social fields have called for fundamental change in the multilateral system in the spirit of international solidarity to combat the severe impacts of COVID-19. They comprise the United Nations High-level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs, convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).

: Radwan Jakeem; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 25 April 2021

Photo: The General Assembly Hall during an event in 2016 to mark the one year anniversary of the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. UN Photo/Cia Pa

A Locked Down UN Plans to Gradually Return to Normal

By Razeena Raheem

NEW YORK (IDN) — The United Nations, which has remained locked down since March last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, is planning to make a “phased return to the premises in New York.”

Until now, nearly 3,000 UN staffers have been forced to work from home while virtually all meetings, including Security Council sessions, have been on video teleconferencing (VTC), turning the Secretariat building into a ghost town.

: UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 23 April 2021

World Bank-IMF Pledge Support for Pandemic Affected Countries

By Caroline Mwanga

WASHINGTON (IDN) — While planning to rebuild economies after the COVID-19 pandemic, countries would do well to lay the foundation for a green, resilient, and inclusive future. This was the message of the World Bank-International Monetary Fund (IMF) virtual Spring Meetings from April 5 to 11, 2021. World Bank Group President David Malpass outlined the major challenges facing the world, including COVID, climate change, rising poverty and inequality, and growing fragility and violence as a part of the focus on Economic Recovery: Toward a Green, Resilient, and Inclusive Future.

: Caroline Mwanga; SUSTAINABILITY; Poverty; 21 April 2021

Photo: The assembly of Vietnamese officials, foreign diplomats and the UN family led by Resident Coordinator Kamal Malhotra welcoming on April 1, the day Viet Nam assumed the presidency of the Security Council, its first shipment of 811,200 COVID-19 vaccine doses shipped via the COVAX Facility at its National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology. Source: UNAI.

Walking History Through Viet Nam's Security Council Presidency

By Ramu Damodaran

The writer is Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) hosted in the Department of Global Communications. This OpEd was first published in #WhyWeCare on April 15.

NEW YORK (IDN | UNAI) — If, as Suzanne Nossel writes, “the United Nations remains the closest thing to a system of global governance that the world has ever known and may ever achieve,” much is owed to its unique convening capacity in bringing together erstwhile adversaries, even combatants, to a shared sense of participatory purpose which, at its finest, is reflected in the unanimity of resolutions consciously conceived in common cause.

: UN Bureau; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 20 April 2021

UN Forum Highlights New Initiatives to Tackle Inequalities Exacerbated by Pandemic

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — With many economies reeling as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as inequalities continue to widen, world leaders discussed options to unlock concrete investments to support a sustainable and resilient recovery at the Forum on Financing for Development (FfD Forum) from April 12-15.

The four-day Forum, held under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), took place as many countries are facing increased financial debt and liquidity pressures because of the pandemic. The FfD Forum was held virtually, with selected in-person sessions.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Poverty; 17 April 2021

The Global South Is Swamped in Debt Pandemic

Viewpoint by Daniel Munevar *

Covid-19 is not the only pandemic ravaging across the Global South. A debt pandemic threatens to prevent developing countries' recovery, writes Daniel Munevar, an eminent debt justice advisor. This article was originally published in the Journal of International Politics and Society issued by the German Friedrich-Ebert Foundation's Brussels office.

BRUSSELS (IDN) — Without a doubt, the Covid-19 pandemic represents the most severe developmental setback in recent history. But while the virus is still ravaging across the Global South, it's not the only pandemic currently engulfing developing countries. In fact, a debt pandemic threatens to prevent them from achieving a meaningful—let alone sustainable—recovery.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 17 April 2021

Photo: US Democrats—Senators Markey and Khanna—and introduce "ICBM" Act: Invest in Cures Before Missiles. Credit: UNFOLD ZERO | PNND.

Plea for Diverting Funds from Nuclear Weapons to Combating COVID-19

By Jamshed Baruah

GENEVA (IDN) — The Nobel laureate International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a coalition of non-governmental organizations promoting adherence to and implementation of the United Nations nuclear weapon ban treaty, has been pleading for divestment in nuclear weapons. "The imminent entry-into-force of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) allows for a unique opportunity to hit the nuclear weapons producers where it hurts—their wallets," an ICAN campaign says.