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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
The Liberal Order Needs to Be Profoundly Reformed
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – The attack on “the liberal idea” by Vladimir Putin in his long interview in the Financial Times at the end of June is still vibrating in my mind. First, I’d like to know if the Russian people share his views on immigration. In Britain and the U.S., […]
Significant Work Awaits US Cities to Achieve SDGs
By Caroline Mwanga with SDSN News NEW YORK (IDN) – The 2019 US Cities Sustainable Development Report by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network’s United States Network (SDSN USA) finds that there will be significant work to do across the board if the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 (SDGs) are to be achieved by 2030. […]
New Report Calls for Breathing Life into Global Goals
By Santo D. Banerjee NEW YORK (IDN) – A new report finds that while the global community talks a lot about sustainability goals, it does not invest enough in implementing them. The industrialized countries play an ambivalent role in their implementation. On the one hand, they come closest to fulfilling the goals, but on the […]
New York Brings Global Vision, Urban Action to SDGs
By Santo D. Banerjee NEW YORK (IDN) – As host city to the United Nations, New York is making the most of its position through its ambitious Global Vision, Urban Action (GVUA) platform that uses the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a common framework for building a better city for its people and their environment. […]
Aid for Trade Must Adapt to Needs of the Poor and Environment
By Jamshed Baruah with WTO News GENEVA (IDN) – Aid for Trade initiatives must keep up with the evolving needs of developing countries and environmental protection to remain relevant and inclusive. Least developed countries (LDCs) will need continued support even as they graduate to a higher economic status, and climate change pressures will require targeted […]