Sustainable Development Goals were struggling before Covid-19
30/7/2021: Two international development experts argue that the UN's Sustainable Development Goals were over-ambitious from the start. Poor progress towards 2030 targets should not be blamed entirely on Covid-19.
Source: Inter Press Service
Sustainable development report shows devastating impact of COVID
6/7/2021: The world was not on track to meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals before COVID-19 struck, and now the challenge has been magnified many times over, according to a new flagship UN report. In addition to almost four million deaths due to the coronavirus, between 119-124 million people have been pushed back into poverty and chronic hunger.
Source: UN News
Reflections on humanitarian affairs by outgoing UN "relief chief"
16/6/2021: Mark Lowcock reflects on his four years as UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. His greatest single concern is whether the world can find a set of arrangements for geopolitical collaboration necessary to manage the really big crises.
Source: UN News
Sanctions: What are they good for?
4/6/2021: How to confront rogue regimes, such as Belarus and Myanmar, has long vexed governments that wish to safeguard rules-based relations and free trade. Sanctions are a popular option but are not a panacea to the world's problems. Like war, sanctions can lead to unintended consequences and collateral damage.
Source: DW
Southeast Asian states reject UN call for Myanmar arms embargo
29/5/2021: Nine Southeast Asian nations have proposed watering down a UN General Assembly draft resolution on Myanmar, removing a call for an arms embargo, in a bid to win the unanimous support of the 193-member body. The vote planned for last week was postponed at the last minute.
Source: CNA
Sanctions achieve nothing
27/5/2021: Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins argues that Belarus has become a model of the impotence of sanctions. European and American politicians reach for economic sanctions as they used to reach for gunboats or bombers. He argues for the exercise of soft power to sustain the conversation of freedom.
Source: The Guardian
Secretary-General upholds value of UN Charter for a world in turmoil
9/1/2020: Amid an era of rising geopolitical tensions and declining trust between nations, the United Nations Secretary-General has encouraged countries to “come home” to a defining document of the international community: the UN Charter.
Source: UN News
The African development model: clone of Asia?
31/1/2019: Labour-intensive export-led industrialisation worked for China, but Africa is not China. It must come up with its own strategies to reduce poverty.
Source: African Arguments
Globalization 4.0 for Whom?
19/12/2018: The elites gathering in Davos next month have yet to acknowledge the need for a new approach to governing the global economy. The neoliberal model of race-to-the-bottom competition has resulted in rising inequality and political discontent. Source: Project Syndicate
Grappling with globalization 4.0
5/11/2018: The forces of the Fourth Industrial Revolution have ushered in a new economy and a new form of globalization, both of which demand new forms of governance to safeguard the public good. Source: Project Syndicate