THE WORLD

Photo: Pearl-Qatar, an artificial island spanning nearly four square kilometres, is one of the attractions of Doha for foreigners. CC BY-SA 3.0

Intra-Afghan Dialogue Seen as A Step Towards Peace

By R. Maxwell Bone

The writer is Vice President for Political Affairs, Democracy, and Governance at the International Institute for Peace, Democracy, and Development (IIPDD). He lives in Washington, DC. Follow him on Twitter @maxbone55.

WASHIGTON, DC (IDN) – A broad delegation of representatives from Afghan society partook in an Intra-Afghan dialogue session with the militant group the Taliban on July 7-8. The talks in the Qatari capital which were jointly organized by the Gulf State and Germany marked the first time that such a diverse group formally engaged in dialogue with the Taliban.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 14 July 2019

Photo: The July 7-8 talks between the Taliban and Afghan delegates in Doha. Credit: MEMRI

Germany and EU Encouraged by Afghan Talks in Doha

Afghanistan On the Long Road to Trust and Reconciliation

By Rita Joshi

BERLIN (IDN) – As a friend to Afghanistan, Germany has supported efforts to achieve peace in the country for many years. After 40 years of almost constant violence, the main prerequisites for peace, according to the German Foreign Office, are "a willingness to engage in dialogue and a certain level of trust across deep divides."

: Rita Joshi; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 14 July 2019

Photo: The Chinese-backed Baloch port city of Gwadar – with seashores on both sides – on the southwestern coast of Balochistan, one of the four provinces of Pakistan, which has witnessed multiple attacks on its Hazara Shiite minority as well as in May on a highly secured luxury hotel frequented by Chinese nationals in Gwadar. CC BY-SA 4.0

Many More Than Just Maritime Powder Kegs in the Gulf

Viewpoint by James M. Dorsey

James M. Dorsey – a senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, an adjunct senior research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Middle East Institute and co-director of the University of Wuerzburg’s Institute of Fan Culture – offered this viewpoint to IDN.

SINGAPORE (IDN) – A recent interview in which Baloch National Movement chairman Khalil Baloch legitimised recent militant attacks on Iranian, Chinese and Pakistani targets is remarkable less for what he said and more for the fact that his remarks were published by a Saudi newspaper.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 14 July 2019

Photo: West Africa has seen impressive economic growth over the past two decades, but the benefits are going just to a tiny few elites at the top. Credit: Oxfam International

West Africa ‘Least Committed’ in Africa to Fighting Inequality

By Ramesh Jaura

BERLIN | NEW YORK (IDN) – “African countries, especially those in West Africa, are simply not doing enough” to “ensure that no one is left behind”, declares a new report, unveiling shocking figures that underline extreme inequality and poverty rampant in the region. West Africa is the African region “least committed to the fight against inequality”, says the report titled ‘The West Africa Inequality Crisis’.

And this in a year that marks the fourth year of the implementation of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to address global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change and environmental degradation – as envisaged in Goal 1, Goal 10 and Goal13.

: Ramesh Jaura; THE WORLD; Africa; 13 July 2019

Photo: Secretary-General António Guterres speaks during a dialogue with civil society organizations focused on youth and gender empowerment, women leadership, prevention and countering violent extremism and promotion of interfaith dialogue, while visiting the Kamukunji Constituency in Nairobi, Kenya, on 9 July 2019. Credit: UN Photo | Duncan Moore.

Do More to Expand African Counter-Terrorism Networks

Viewpoint by António Guterres

Following are excerpts from UN Secretary-General's remarks to the African Regional High-Level Conference on Counter-Terrorism and the Prevention of Violent Extremism Conducive to Terrorism, in Nairobi on 10 July 2019.

NAIROBI (IDN-INPS) – I would like to honour the tens of thousands of African victims of terrorism and to express solidarity with African countries that have suffered terrorist attacks that shock with their barbarity and disregard for human life. Kenya itself has endured numerous terrorist attacks. This year alone, terrorists murdered 21 people in the Dusit hotel complex in Nairobi, and in Wajir County, eight police officers were killed and others injured when their vehicle struck an improvised explosive device.

: UN Bureau; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 July 2019

Burkina Faso Orders Stiff Prison Term For 'Fake News'

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) - A law adopted on June 21 but still awaiting presidential approval would send writers to jail for up to 10 years’ jail for “demoralizing the defense and security forces of Burkina Faso.”

A fine of up to $3,500 would be imposed for publishing what the government called “fake news information compromising security operations, false information about rights abuses or destruction of property, or images and audio from a “terrorist” attack.”

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 11 July 2019

Photo: Peter Akmtter is a construction worker on one of the high-rise buildings shooting up in Ghana’s capital, Accra. He and many of the workers live with their families in makeshift houses on or close to the building-sites. Credit: Lotte Ærsøe/Oxfam IBIS

West Africa Inequality Crisis Called Extreme in New Report

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – "Inequality has reached extreme levels in West Africa, and today the wealthiest 1 per cent of West Africans own more than everyone else in the region combined." That was the finding in a new report published by Oxfam and Development Finance International (DFI).

According to the "West Africa Inequality Crisis" report, six of the ten fastest-growing economies in Africa were in West Africa, with Ivory Coast, Ghana and Senegal among the world's 10 fastest-growing economies.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 11 July 2019

Russia Keen to Boost Economic and Trade Relations with Africa

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – Chairman of the State Duma, Viacheslav Volodin, has urged African leaders to use the untapped enormous natural resources to vigorously pursue sustainable development goals as the best way through which to escape underdevelopment, economic dependency syndrome and neo-colonialism.

In order to achieve this, Russia, he said, was prepared with a new legislative supported comprehensive plan in the coming years to uplift, especially, its economic cooperation into a new stage with African countries.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Africa; 11 July 2019

Photo: The Jami Ul Alfar mosque in pettah area, one of the oldest mosques in Colombo. CC BY-SA 3.0

Moulding Muslim Culture in Sri Lanka Echoes Chinese Uighur Experiment

Viewpoint by Dr Ameer Ali

The writer is a lecturer in economics at the School of Business and Governance, Murdoch University, Western Australia.

PERTH (IDN) – The July 7 'Rally of the Un-Enlightened', that fizzled out without the expected turnout of 10,000 Buddhist monks, was the most emphatic demonstration yet by the majority Sinhala Buddhists that they would not allow hatred and bigotry to hijack the millennial legacy of peaceful coexistence of different religions and cultures in Sri Lanka.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 10 July 2019

Photo: Abdallah Nyambi and his colleagues of the ‘Plastic Recycling and Youth Organisation’, showing pavement slabs made out of plastic waste. Credit: Kizito Makoye | IDN-INPS

Tanzanian Environmentalists Turning Plastic into Paving

By Kizito Makoye with Goodhope Amani

DAR ES SALAAM (IDN) – It is a typically hot and humid afternoon in Gongo la Mboto on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam and Abdullah Nyambi is busy shoving plastic waste into a giant metal kiln with an iron rod ready to make pavement slabs.

With a shiny yellow breathing mask perched on his nose, Nyambi briskly mixes the melting plastic while methodically sprinkling sand on it to make it stiff. “We use any type of plastic to make the slabs,” says Nyambi, with trails of sweat soaking his yellow T-shirt. A plume of black smoke rises into the sky as fierce fire obliterates the plastic material and turns it into a thick liquid.