Famine should not exist in 2022
17/10/2022: The past four rainy seasons in Somalia have failed to materialise. The UN predicts more than 300,000 people will be in famine by December, despite global commitments to never let the 2011 famine happen again.
Source: The Conversation
Fuel subsidy cuts won’t scratch Indonesian president
19/10/2022: Indonesia has remained stable in the weeks following an unpopular cut to the government’s fuel subsidy. As with all fuel subsidies, a large share of the benefits go to the middle-class. Poorer Indonesians would be better protected through targeted economic relief.
Source: East Asia Forum
The 20th Party Congress is another step in Xi’s rise
16/10/2022: The 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is scheduled to confirm Xi Jinping as China’s leader for a third term. By steering China back towards a system of one-man rule, echoing that of Maoist China or Russia under Vladimir Putin, Xi risks replicating all of their governance failures as well.
Source: East Asia Forum
Time is running out for decisions on debt relief
19/10/2022: Senior managers from the UN Development Programme warn of a rapid deterioration of an already damaging debt crisis amongst low income countries. They argue that the international community has the resources to take action.
Source: Inter Press Service
Lifting 100 million out of poverty by 2025 still possible
17/10/2022: The latest update of the Multidimensional Poverty Index demonstrates that nearly twice as many people should be recognised as living in poverty compared with those assessed by the single monetary benchmark of $1.90 per day. It suggests that cutting-edge data and analytics can pinpoint the areas where spending will have the most impact.
Source: UN News
World Food Day amid a global food crisis
16/10/2022: World Food Day falls this year as the global food security outlook is bleak, driven by Covid-19, extreme weather events, and the war in Ukraine. Funding for social protection is essential to respect that access to adequate food is a basic human right.
Source: Human Rights Watch
African Union struggling to bring Ethiopian parties to talks
16/10/2022: The abrupt cancellation of planned peace talks between Ethiopia’s warring parties has raised questions on the capacity of the African Union. Questions have emerged a to whether parties and mediators, were adequately briefed in advance.
Source: The East African
What African governments must fight for at COP27
11/10/2022: The Africa Climate Justice Collective is calling for the November COP27 conference to acknowledge the reality of "dirty energy colonialism." Countries in the Global North are indulging in $400 billion worth of new natural gas projects in Africa – while simultaneously giving lip service to phasing down oil and gas.
Source: African Arguments
End of nationwide truce renews tension in Yemen
13/10/2022: The UN Special Envoy for Yemen has warned of renewed risk of conflict now that the truce between warring factions has ended. During the 6-month pause in fighting, there have been no major military operations, and a 60 per cent decrease in casualties.
Source: UN News
Global record hunger challenges World Food Day
13/10/2022: The World Food Programme fears yet another year of record hunger caused by climate shocks, conflict and economic instability. The UN food agency seeks more funding to prevent famine in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.
Source: World Food Programme