Zimbabwe: Felled Forests Lead to Wood Shortage For Villagers

Linet Makwera (28) has a baby strapped on her back as she totters barefoot, picking tiny pieces of wood on both sides of a dusty and narrow road, peering fearfully at people… Read more »

Africa: World Inequality Still Rising Despite Some Convergence

Despite earlier income convergence among nations, many low-income countries (LICs) and people are falling further behind. Worse, the number of poor and hungry has been increasing… Read more »

Africa: Sic Transit Gloria Mundi - Preserving the Cultural Heritage

More durable than bronze, higher than Pharaoh's Read more »

Africa: Voices From the Margins - Small-Scale Fishers Demand Rights, Recognition At COP16

Small-scale fishers play a fundamental role in feeding people--they use sustainable methods of catching and processing fish products and are a significant force in the employment… Read more »

Chad: Armed Violence and Floods Aggravate Humanitarian Crisis in Chad

Chad is currently in the midst of a dire humanitarian crisis due to persisting armed conflict, mass displacement, widespread hunger, natural disasters, and an overall lack of… Read more »

Africa: Africa's Most Important Election Is Underway

Africa has had a terrible record dealing with extreme poverty. The late Adebayo Adedeji, the legendary head of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), campaigned… Read more »

Africa: COP16 Delivers On Indigenous Peoples, Digital Sequencing, but Fails On Finance

The curtains fell on the 16th Conference of the Parties of UN Biodiversity (COP16) on Sunday without any formal closing. In a voice message, David Ainsworth, the Communications… Read more »

South Africa: Knife-Edge November - Teetering On the Climate Abyss

Standing high on the vertiginous edge of the future and looking down into a volcanic seething of approaching doom, it is a totally understandable desire to want to close your eyes,… Read more »

Africa: Transforming Africa With the Power of Education

Africa Youth Day Statement by Education Cannot Wait Executive Director Yasmine Sherif Read more »

Africa: UN Remains Paralyzed As 'Rogue Nations' Violate Charter & Escalate War Crimes

The United Nations continues to be virtually paralyzed - and remains politically impotent amidst two raging conflicts--as Russia and Israel keep defying the world body. Read more »

Africa: Has the United Nations Outlived Its Usefulness?

The United Nations, established in 1945 at the end of World War II, has sadly virtually outlived its usefulness as it commemorated its 79th anniversary due to its failure to reform… Read more »

Africa: Defending Biodiversity in Armed Conflict - Can COP16 Meet the Expectations?

José Aruna, a forest defender from Sud Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), remembers the night in September 2019 when a group of heavily armed men… Read more »

Tanzania: Tanzanian Students Drive Climate Action Through Tree Planting

The act of planting trees offers more than shade and fruit. It symbolizes a deeper mission--restoring soil, preserving water, and, for these students, living in Tanzania's northern… Read more »

Africa: Food Security Is Key to Making 'Peace With Nature'

As countries are meeting in Cali, Colombia, for the 2024 UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP 16), the fate of biodiversity hangs in the balance, and with it, the sustainability of… Read more »

Africa: Scientific Research Can Play a Key Role in Unlocking Climate Finance

Climate finance will come under intense scrutiny during COP29, and its distribution aligned with scientific analysis of the impacts of climate change, but the methodology ignores… Read more »

Africa: Chickens As Well As Cheetahs - Biodiversity Conservation Must Also Include Livestock

As the UN's COP16 biodiversity conference continues, the temptation is to focus on the wild flora and fauna under threat. Read more »

Africa: By Choosing What We Eat, We Choose the World We Want to Live in

"How we prepare and eat food should not be at the expense of our biodiversity," says 3-Michelin-starred chef Mauro Colagreco, who is on a mission to change our relationship with… Read more »

Sudan: Sudanese Civil War Exacerbates Economies in Neighbouring Countries

Critical levels of nationwide hunger in Sudan has only increased to critical levels since the start of the Sudanese civil war in April 2023. Escalated hostilities between the… Read more »

Africa: At COP16, Biodiversity Credits Raising Hopes and Protests

At the end of the first week at the 16th Conference of Parties on Biodiversity (COP16), finance emerges as the biggest issue but also shrouded in controversies. Read more »

Africa: IMF Isn't Doing Enough to Support Africa - Billions Could Be Made Available Through Special Drawing Rights

At the 2021 UN Climate Summit, Barbados prime minister Mia Mottley called for more and better use of special drawing rights (SDRs), the International Monetary Fund's reserve asset. Read more »

Africa: UNEP's 2024 Emissions Gap Report Warns - 'No More Hot Air, Please'

"We're playing with fire, but there can be no more playing for time. We're out of time," says UN Secretary General António Guterres Read more »

Uganda: Meet the Young Women Arrested for Fighting Corruption in Uganda

Until recently, Margaret Natabi would never have dreamed of taking her anti-corruption fight on the streets of Uganda's capital, Kampala. Read more »

Africa: Without Accelerated Action, We Will Miss the Chance to Limit Warming to 1.5°c, Says UNEP Chief Climate Advisor

Anne Olhoff, Chief Climate Advisor at UNEP, underlined the urgent need for accelerated climate action ahead of COP29 in an exclusive interview with IPS. "The next six years are… Read more »

Egypt: Egyptian Parliament Moves to Strengthen Support for People With Disabilities and the Elderly

In a significant move to address the challenges faced by people with disabilities and the elderly, six Egyptian parliamentary committees met in Cairo on October 12 to discuss… Read more »

Africa: The IMF Just Made the Case for Its Own Irrelevance

On Friday the 11th, the IMF announced policy changes that will save developing countries $1.2 billion per year. Despite the self-congratulations and fanfare, these reforms are only… Read more »