IDN-InDepthNews

PLANET EARTH2011-09-222023-07-10

Irene Sounded Strong Climate Change Warning

By Ernest Corea*
IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

WASHINGTON DC (IDN) – Goodbye, Irene. Other tempests, too, will straddle parts of the U.S. during the 2011 hurricane season which, as usual, began in June and will run through the end of November. But Irene, though gone, is not forgotten.

Many cannot forget how Irene took away precious lives, destroyed homes, plans and livelihoods. Others remember it for their fearful moments of anticipation when they followed its every move and wondered whether it would affect and alter their lives. Some remember it for the dislocation of their holiday plans by the enforced evacuation of potential hurricane victims from perceived danger zones.

GLOBAL ISSUES2011-09-222023-07-10

UK Banks Bracing for Radical Overhaul

By Raul de Sagastizabal*
IDN-InDepth NewsEssay

MONTEVIDEO (IDN) – The United Kingdom proposes to overhaul the country’s banking system to diminish risks to taxpayers and public finances in future financial turmoil, by acting upon recommendations of the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB), which presented its report on September 12, 2011.

Europe2011-09-222023-07-10

UK Banks Bracing for Radical Overhaul

By Raul de Sagastizabal*
IDN-InDepth NewsEssay

GLOBAL ISSUES2011-09-212023-07-10

China is Not a Cash Cow for Eurozone

By Steffen Dyck*
IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint

While media reports are emphasising the role China could play in assisting to resolve the Eurozone debt crisis, a Deutsche Bank research analyst, Steffen Dyck, warns that expectations pinned on China might be far from realistic. The amount needed when looking at estimated refinancing needs for 2012 is huge, totalling EUR 730 billion for the GIIPS countries – an acronym for Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

ECONOMY2011-09-212023-07-10

China is Not a Cash Cow for Eurozone

By Steffen Dyck*
IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint

GLOBAL ISSUES2011-09-192023-07-10

Palm Oil Fuelling Scramble for Land in Africa

By Joan Baxter*
IDN-InDepth NewsReport

Palm oil is expected to be the world’s most produced and internationally traded edible oil by 2012. At what price? As foreign investors descend on Africa to develop large-scale palm oil plantations, the survival of local people is being threatened. They are losing control of the land and water on which they depend for their food production and livelihoods.

Africa2011-09-192023-07-10

Palm Oil Fuelling Scramble for Land in Africa

By Joan Baxter*
IDN-InDepth NewsReport

GLOBAL ISSUES2011-09-182023-07-10

The Sisyphean Task of Managing the Euro Zone

By Peter Wahl*
IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

BERLIN (IDN) – In spring 2011 it became more and more obvious that Greece would not be able to comply with the conditionality of the 2010 rescue package of €120 billion. Targets were not reached since the budget cuts and austerity measures had stalled growth, and the recession was deeper than calculated. Spending for unemployment went up while tax revenues fell.

Finance2011-09-182023-07-10

The Sisyphean Task of Managing the Euro Zone

By Peter Wahl*
IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

GLOBAL ISSUES2011-09-122023-07-10

African Leaders Urge New Approach to Development

By Jerome Mwanda
IDN-InDepth NewsReport

NAIROBI (IDN) – In run-up to an important global forum on aid effectiveness, African leaders from fragile and conflict-affected countries have called for new approaches to development in the region and a reassessment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The call emerged from a regional meeting on peace- and state-building in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, September 7-9, 2011. Recognizing that not a single fragile state has achieved any of the eight MDGs, the African Development Bank (AfDB), along with the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Union Commission (AUC), organized the meeting.