Viewpoint by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies* NEW YORK (IDN) — A report in Covert Action Magazine from the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic in Eastern Ukraine describes grave fears of a new offensive by Ukrainian government forces, after increased shelling, a drone strike by a Turkish-built drone and an attack on Staromaryevka, a […]
Key to Ending the Fighting in Kiev Is Ukraine Giving up Donbass
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — As Russia/Nato passions are stirring once again, we should wind the clock back to seven years ago when the Ukraine crisis began. What’s it all about? The demonstrators in the Maidan, the central square of the capital, Kiev, were motivated by the arguments over a trade agreement […]
US Secretary of State Blinken Finds ‘Vibrant Democracy’ In Violence-Stricken Nigeria
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — A whiz-bang tour through Africa had some discordant notes for US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken who was treated to wide vistas of Chinese-built infrastructure as his motorcade zipped from airport to airport. In Nigeria, he zoomed past the China Chamber of Commerce in […]
Climate Change Engulfs Historic Venice of Africa
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Saint-Louis, the old colonial capital of Senegal, was built in the 17th century at the mouth of the Senegal River and was the capital of French West Africa until 1902. But these days rising sea levels have created a flooding threat that has already seen […]
Achieving The Possible Against the Odds: “A Middle East Nuclear and WMD Free Zone”
Viewpoint by Tariq Rauf[1] VIENNA (IDN) — In normal times, the second session of the “United Nations Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction”, scheduled to take place from 29 November to 3 December 2021, would have been an in-person event at the […]
Killer Tobacco Losing Ground, But Millions Still Threatened
By Jamshed Baruah GENEVA (IDN) — Despite the COVID-19 pandemic creating havoc worldwide, the World Health Organization (WHO) has good news in public health. Its Global Tobacco Epidemic 2021 report says progress is being made in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at […]
Policy Making Should Be the Final Destination for All Young Climate Activists and Their Peers
Viewpoint by Simone Galimberti Simone Galimberti is the Co-Founder of ENGAGE, a not-for-profit NGO based in Nepal. He writes on volunteerism, social inclusion, youth development and regional integration as an engine to improve people’s lives. KATHMANDU (IDN) — As forecasted by many, the Glasgow Summit has been, eventually, a flop on most counts.
The Global Pandemic Pushing Africa into A Severe Job Crisis
By Johann Ivanov* ACCRA (IDN) — Africa is facing a severe employment crisis. But if nothing is done to find a solution, it could get much worse in the not-too-distant future, as World Bank projections from 2017 show: By 2035, Africa’s working age population will expand by 450 million. At the same time, however, only […]
Intra-African Trade Fair Aims to Strengthen the Continent’s Industrial Base
By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW | DURBAN (IDN) — South Africa is hosting a weeklong Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2021), which provides a unique and valuable platform for businesses to access an integrated African market of over 1.2 billion people with a GDP of over US$2.5 trillion. Organized by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), in collaboration […]
Africa Faces A “Perfect Storm” Due to Under-Investment in Children
By Ronald Joshua ADDIS ABABA (IDN) — Child deprivation “has a lasting and detrimental impact on nations’ political stability, prosperity and sustainable development”, warns a new report. Titled The Economic Case for Investing in Children in Africa: Investing in our Common Future, the report was launched on November 18 at a pan-African virtual event involving […]