Why low-income nations are cracking under debt pressure
6/6/2023: Debt interest payments for the world’s poorest 28 nations have doubled over the last decade, according to World Bank data. The Bank is calling for creditors from the Group of 20 major economies to offer debt relief to these countries.
Source: Devex
India’s population question
1/6/2023: India is expected to overtake China to become the world’s most populous country sometime in July. However, India's total fertility rate has dropped below the replacement level of 2.1 and population is not the only determinant of environmental problems; it is their consumption pattern that leads to environmental degradation.
Source: Down to Earth
UN agency for Palestine refugees close to financial collapse
2/6/2023: Chronic underfunding over the past decade has put the lifesaving programmes of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees at risk. Nearly six million people in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, depend on its services.
Source: UN News
Top five arms exporters hit yearly sales of $85 billion
22/5/23: Global military spending reached a record $2.2 trillion in 2022, enough to cover the year’s UN global humanitarian appeal more than 42 times. Across the world, ongoing conflict has been the primary driver in pushing 117 million people in 19 countries to extreme hunger.
Source: Oxfam International
Last chance to save the Amazon
22/5/2023: The Amazon biome has already lost about 20 per cent of its original area, and experts say it is rapidly reaching a "point of no return", pushing it towards becoming a savannah. There are four key elements that could trigger a rapid and systemic transformation for the protection of the Amazon and its peoples.
Source: UN Environment Programme
G7 owes huge $13 trillion debt to Global South
17/5/2023: Wealthy Group of Seven countries owe low- and middle-income countries $13.3 trillion in unpaid aid and funding for climate action, according to new analysis from Oxfam ahead of the G7 Summit. Despite failing to pay what they owe, G7 countries and their rich bankers are demanding that Global South countries pay $232 million a day in debt repayments.
Source: Oxfam International
Executions skyrocket to highest figure in five years
16/5/2023: Amnesty International's annual review of the death penalty reveals that a total of 883 people were known to have been executed across 20 countries, marking a rise of 53% over 2021. Saudi Arabia executed 81 people in a single day.
Source: Amnesty International
Russia-Ukraine renew grain deal, but doubts persist
17/5/2023: The Black Sea Grain Initiative, a deal between Ukraine and Russia that allows for the continued export of grain and other food products has been extended for 60 days. Since the deal was introduced in July 2022, it has helped stabilize global food prices.
Source: DW
Maternal mortality: why has progress stalled?
10/5/2023: A new report by UN agencies shows that, from 2016 to 2020, the global rate of maternal mortality barely changed. If that pace of progress continues, the rate in 2030 will be 222 per 100,000 live births – over three times the target of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Source: Inter Press Service
Amnesty International calls for universal social protection
10/5/2023: Amnesty International is calling for social security to be made available to everyone worldwide after a series of crises is leaving hundreds of millions trapped in a cycle of poverty and deprivation. About 55% of the world’s population have no recourse to even the most basic social protection.
Source: Amnesty International