WASHINGTON DC / NEW YORK, July 8 (IPS) – Almost half of the world’s population now lives in countries that spend more money paying interest on their debts than on education or health. New data shows the cost of borrowing for African countries in particular rose 91% since 2020. Rising debt payments have reduced governments’ capacity to invest in children and build their human capital.
KABUL, July 7 (IPS) – Kabul barber Ahmed (name changed) used to keep a collection of pictures of different hairstyles on his phone. He would show them to his customers before cutting their hair so they could choose the style they liked. Some young men would bring their own pictures, and Ahmed would cut their hair according to their wishes. The business was particularly busy a few days before Eid.
UNITED NATIONS, July 7 (IPS) – In recent weeks, Venezuela’s humanitarian situation has deteriorated sharply following the twin earthquakes on June 24. Marking the strongest seismic event since 1990, the earthquakes and subsequent aftershocks have resulted in a significant loss of life, widespread damage to critical infrastructure, and considerable disruption to livelihoods and humanitarian response efforts.
GROS ISLET, Saint Lucia , July 6 (IPS) – Caribbean leaders are meeting in Saint Lucia for their annual summit, confronting a convergence of global and regional challenges ranging from rising living costs and climate change to crime, food security and geopolitical tensions.
UNITED NATIONS, July 6 (IPS) – A new assessment from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) warns that the Ebola outbreak could cost Africa USD 3.6 billion, push 985,000 people into poverty, and put 300,000 jobs at risk.
When people think of the world’s deadliest threats, armed conflicts usually come to mind first. Yet every year, organized crime quietly claims a comparable number of lives.
As Uganda works to contain an Ebola outbreak that is also affecting neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), health workers are doing more than responding to a deadly virus. They are helping families navigate fear, misinformation and stigma.
Described as “sometimes modest, sometimes historic,” UN special political missions have quietly been preventing the escalation of conflicts during the organization’s 80-year history, becoming a key instrument for maintaining peace.
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, July 3 (IPS) – Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori has won Peru’s presidential runoff, narrowly defeating leftist Roberto Sánchez to become the country’s ninth president in a decade. She inherits a system so engineered for dysfunction that rather than making compromises, she may decide the concentration of power is her only means of survival. The constitution that created this trap was written by her father.
Read the full story, “Peru’s Gridlock a Licence for Autocracy?”, on globalissues.org →
PORTLAND, USA, July 3 (IPS) – Demographic realities are well documented, and governments have long been aware of the profound demographic changes now underway. Nevertheless, many policymakers continue to discount or ignore these demographic trends.
Read the full story, “Discounting Demographic Realities”, on globalissues.org →
