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Source: http://www.ipsnews.net/feed/

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<title>Adaptation Finance Shortfalls Leave Developing World Exposed</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/adaptation-finance-shortfalls-leave-developing-world-exposed/</link>
<comments>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/adaptation-finance-shortfalls-leave-developing-world-exposed/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Oct 2025 12:24:17 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Cecilia Russell</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Aid]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Action]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Change]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Change Finance]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Change Justice]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[COP30]]></category>
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<category><![CDATA[United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ipsnews.net/?p=192789</guid>
<description><![CDATA[<img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty puts the adaptation finance gap at about USD 284-339 billion per year—12 to 14 times as much as current flows.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="179" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-300x179.png" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Jamaica in the eye of Hurricane Melissa, the strongest tropical cyclone on record. Credit: X" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-300x179.png 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-1024x611.png 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-768x458.png 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-1536x917.png 1536w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-2048x1223.png 2048w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-29-at-10.41.10-629x376.png 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Jamaica in the eye of Hurricane Melissa, the strongest tropical cyclone on record. Credit: XBy Cecilia Russell NAIROBI & JOHANNESBURG, Oct 29 2025 (IPS) Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica yesterday—the strongest hurricane to impact the island on record since 1851—with expectations of tens of thousands of people being displaced and devastating damage to infrastructure. The tropical storm, slightly downgraded but nevertheless devastating, made landfall in Cuba today as UNEP’s newly released Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty shows that the finance needed for developing countries to adapt to the climate crisis is falling far behind their needs.
<a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/slow-climate-adaptation-threatening-lives-and-economies">The report</a> estimates the adaptation finance needs of developing countries will range from between USD 310 billion to USD 365 billion per year by 2035.
But international public adaptation finance from developed to developing countries fell from USD 28 billion in 2022 to USD 26 billion in 2023. The data for 2024 and 2025 is not yet available.
“This leaves an adaptation finance gap of USD 284-339 billion per year—12 to 14 times as much as current flows,” the report released ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, says.
However, adaptation finance plays a crucial role in countries and communities coping with the impacts of the climate crisis.
“Climate impacts are accelerating. Yet adaptation finance is not keeping pace, leaving the world’s most vulnerable exposed to rising seas, deadly storms, and searing heat,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his message on the report. “Adaptation is not a cost—it is a lifeline. Closing the adaptation gap is how we protect lives, deliver climate justice, and build a safer, more sustainable world. Let us not waste another moment.”
<div id="attachment_192792" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192792" class="size-full wp-image-192792" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Inger-Andersen-Executive-Director-of-UNEP.png" alt="Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. Credit: IPS" width="630" height="352" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Inger-Andersen-Executive-Director-of-UNEP.png 630w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Inger-Andersen-Executive-Director-of-UNEP-300x168.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px" />Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP, at the launch of Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty. Credit: IPS</div>
Yet investments in climate action far outweigh the costs of inaction, the report points out. For instance, every USD 1 spent on coastal protection avoids the equivalent of USD 14 in damages; urban nature-based solutions reduce ambient temperatures by over 1°C on average, a significant improvement during the summer heat; and health-related capacity-building can further reduce symptoms of heat stress.
“Every person on this planet is living with the impacts of climate change: wildfires, heatwaves, desertification, floods, rising costs and more,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “As action to cut greenhouse gas emissions continues to lag, these impacts will only get worse, harming more people and causing significant economic damage.
The report finds:
<ul>
<li>The adaptation finance needs of developing countries by 2035 are at least 12 times as much as current international public adaptation finance flows.</li>
<li>The Glasgow Climate Pact goal of doubling 2019 USD 40 billion will be missed if current trends continue.</li>
<li>The new collective quantified goal for climate finance (NCQG) is insufficient to meet developing countries’ adaptation finance needs in 2035.</li>
<li>There is evidence of improving adaptation planning and implementation, but it is limited.</li>
</ul>
The Brazilian COP 30 Presidency has called for a global “effort”—mutirão global—to implement ambitious climate action in response to accelerating climate impacts. This includes bridging the finance gap and requiring both public and private finance to increase their contributions.
When asked at a press conference how Jamaica will fare in terms of adaptation, Anderson said, “The reality is that in the sort of low-income bracket of developing countries, no one is prepared, unless they are on very high ground and have no tendency for fires, landslides, floods, etc.
“The reality is also that those who are the small island developing states exposed to high winds, those who are with 
front towards the ocean, or those that have lots of human population in exposed areas are obviously the most at risk, and so when we are looking at countries like Jamaica or other small island developing states, clearly they stand to be very, very hard hit, as we are seeing; some are losing territory due to sea level rise, others are being hit again and again and again by these storms.”
She called for a broad discussion on adaptation at COP30.
While the report reflects on the opportunities presented by the Baku to Belém Roadmap to achieve 1.3 trillion, clear evidence of accelerating climate impacts, along with geopolitical priorities and increasing fiscal constraints, is making it more challenging to mobilize the necessary resources for climate mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage.
The adaptation report also notes that the New Collective Quantified Goal for climate finance, agreed at COP29, which called for developed nations to provide at least USD 300 billion for climate action in developing countries per year by 2035, would be insufficient to close the finance gap.
<ul>
<li>Projected inflation rates extended to 2035 the estimated adaptation finance needed by developing countries goes from USD 310-365 billion per year in 2023 prices to USD 440-520 billion per year.</li>
<li>The USD 300 billion target is for both mitigation and adaptation, meaning that adaptation would receive a lower share.</li>
</ul>
The report also warns that while the Baku to Belém Roadmap to raise USD 1.3 trillion by 2035 could make a huge difference, care must be taken not to increase the vulnerabilities of developing nations. Grants and concessional and non-debt-creating instruments are essential to avoid increasing indebtedness, which would make it harder for vulnerable countries to invest in adaptation.
The private sector is urged to contribute more to closing the gap. Private flows estimated at USD 5 billion per year could reach USD 50 billion—but this would require “targeted policy action and blended finance solutions, with concessionary public finance used to de-risk and scale-up private investment.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
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Excerpt: <img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty puts the adaptation finance gap at about USD 284-339 billion per year—12 to 14 times as much as current flows.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>A Power Imbalance Frozen in Time: The Case for Security Council Reform</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/a-power-imbalance-frozen-in-time-the-case-for-security-council-reform/</link>
<comments>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/a-power-imbalance-frozen-in-time-the-case-for-security-council-reform/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Oct 2025 06:09:56 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>I. R. King and Janeel Drayton</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Editors' Choice]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[Ambassador I.R. King is Permanent Representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the UN Security Council Reform Group L69]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/haiti_reso__-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/haiti_reso__-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/haiti_reso__.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Credit: UN Photo/Loey FelipeBy I. R. King and Janeel Drayton UNITED NATIONS, Oct 29 2025 (IPS) In June 2025, the international community celebrated the 80th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter. On October 24, we celebrated UN Day, commemorating its ratification. This is an opportune moment to reflect on how far we have come, and the ground we have yet to traverse.

Countries of the Global South particularly find themselves at a critical juncture, as we experience firsthand the shifts of the multilateral system and bear the brunt of its effects.
The UN Charter, as the foundational document of the United Nations (UN), affirmed belief in a multilateral system and formally established an international organization aimed at curtailing future suffering in a post-World War context. The UN’s Security Council, one of the principal organs created by the Charter, which is primarily tasked with the maintenance of peace, became the cornerstone of the international peace and security framework. 
Comprised of five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) with veto power, and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms, the Council has locked into place a power imbalance, which perpetuates the historical injustices of a bygone era.
Today, the world is not as it was in 1945. We are witnessing escalating conflicts in real time – from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan, unprecedented global security threats, and rapidly shifting geopolitics – all challenging the lofty ideals and aspirations that underpinned the UN’s founding. 
In light of the critical mandate of the UN Security Council, and the far-reaching consequences of its decisions, (and its paralysis), it is necessary to ask: is the United Nations Security Council currently equipped to meet these evolving challenges and retain its legitimacy? 
There may be varied views on the way forward, but for a majority the short answer to this question is “No.” It is not equipped in its current form.
The L.69, a diverse pro-reform coalition of developing countries from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, views reform as both urgent and essential. Our group is united by the call for comprehensive reform of the Security Council, specifically by expanding the membership in both the permanent and non-permanent categories of membership. 
We believe that we must confront the reality that developing countries, which are home to the majority of the world’s population and are often on the frontlines of global crises, remain unrepresented and underrepresented on the Council. 
The power to influence war and peace, to enforce international law, to decide where injustice is condemned or overlooked, and where humanitarian aid is delivered, should not continue to rest in the hands of a few powers, which includes those with a colonial past, who once held dominion over the very nations now seeking representation. 
The exclusion of the perspective of those populations most affected by the conflicts is not only unjust, but also dangerous.
There is now a kind of ennui around the discussions on Security Council reform, which may be inevitable in a conversation that has been ongoing in various forms for decades. However, though the road to reform may be difficult we cannot afford to give up. The cost of inaction for the peoples of the world is a weighty matter that states will have to answer for. 
There are pathways that have been identified for how the United Nations can go forward. The process can build on the only successful reform achieved in 1965, when the Council, in response to the growth of the UN membership, expanded from 11 to 15 members with the addition of four non-permanent seats.
The case is simple. Just as the world has changed, so too must the Security Council evolve. This is not only necessary to reflect today’s geopolitical realities, but to create a world where every voice counts. Security Council reform is about the global community fulfilling their commitment to the foundational promise of the United Nations: to uphold peace, dignity, and equality. Time is running out. 
The question is not whether the Security Council will be reformed, but whether it will be reformed in time to remain relevant.
IPS UN Bureau
 
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Excerpt: Ambassador I.R. King is Permanent Representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the UN Security Council Reform Group L69]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Indigenous Communities Are the Frontlines of Climate Action—It’s Time COP Listened</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/indigenous-communities-are-the-frontlines-of-climate-action-its-time-cop-listened/</link>
<comments>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/indigenous-communities-are-the-frontlines-of-climate-action-its-time-cop-listened/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 28 Oct 2025 15:55:15 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Biodiversity]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Action]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[<img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> Each year, billions are pledged for climate action, but less than 1 percent reaches Indigenous-led initiatives. This is not just unjust—it’s inefficient, argues Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu Founder of Land Rights Defenders Inc.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-man-farms-in-rural_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-man-farms-in-rural_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-man-farms-in-rural_.jpg 548w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />A man farms in rural Ghana. Credit: Courtesy of Land Rights Defenders Inc.By Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu COLUMBUS Ohio, USA , Oct 28 2025 (IPS) I had hoped to attend this year’s Conference of the Parties (COP) in person, to stand alongside fellow Indigenous leaders and advocate for the rights of our communities.

However, due to my ongoing political asylum proceedings before the U.S. immigration court, it is not advisable for me to leave the United States until a final determination is made. While I may not be there physically, my voice—and the voices of those I represent—remains firmly present in this dialogue.
The founding of <a href="http://landrightsdefenders.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Land Rights Defenders Inc.</a> was born from a deep conviction: that Indigenous peoples, despite being the most effective stewards of biodiversity, are too often excluded from the decisions that shape our lands and futures.
Our territories hold over 80 percent of the world’s remaining biodiversity—not because of external interventions, but because of centuries of careful stewardship rooted in respect, reciprocity, and resilience.
We do not protect the land because it is a resource. We protect it because it is sacred.
<div id="attachment_192772" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192772" class="size-full wp-image-192772" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Nana-Kwese-Osei-Bonsu.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="190" />Land Rights Defenders Inc. Founder Nana Kwese Osei Bonsu. Courtesy: Land Rights Defenders Inc.</div>
Land Rights Are Climate Rights
The evidence is clear: where Indigenous communities have secure land tenure, deforestation rates drop, biodiversity thrives, and carbon is stored more effectively. In the Amazon and across Africa, Indigenous-managed lands outperform even state-protected areas in preserving forest cover and absorbing carbon.
Yet, these lands are under constant threat—from extractive industries, infrastructure projects, and even misguided conservation efforts. Too often, climate solutions are imposed without consent, displacing people in the name of progress.
As I’ve said before, “For Indigenous communities, land rights are not just a legal issue but the very foundation of our cultures, livelihoods, and futures.”
A Story of Hope and Impact
One of the most significant victories we’ve achieved at Land Rights Defenders Inc. was our successful intervention in the Benimasi-Boadi Indigenous Community Conserved Area in Ghana. This ancestral land, stewarded by the Huahi Achama Tutuwaa Royal Family—descendants of King Osei Tutu I—was under threat from unauthorized exploitation and institutional land grabs.
This case is especially personal to me. The Benimasi-Boadi community is part of my ancestral lineage, and witnessing the threats to its sacred lands was one of the driving forces behind my decision to found Land Rights Defenders Inc.
We submitted spatial data and a formal case study to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) through the UNEP-WCMC, advocating for the enforcement of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC). This action helped establish international recognition of the community’s rights and halted further encroachment.
We also supported the community in appealing a biased ruling influenced by the Kumasi Traditional Council and filed a Special Procedure complaint to the UN Human Rights Council, seeking redress for victims of human rights violations by local authorities and police forces.
This wasn’t just a legal win—it was a cultural and spiritual victory. It affirmed the community’s right to protect its sacred heritage and inspired broader advocacy for the enforcement of Ghana’s Land Act 2020 (Act 1036), which we continue to champion today.
Climate Finance Must Reach the Ground
Each year, billions are pledged for climate action, but less than 1 percent reaches Indigenous-led initiatives. This is not just unjust—it’s inefficient. Indigenous peoples have proven time and again that we know how to protect our environments. What we need is direct support, not intermediaries.
Climate finance must be restructured to empower Indigenous communities as decision-makers. We need flexible funding that respects our governance systems and supports our solutions.
From Consultation to Consent
I’ve seen how governments and corporations “consult” Indigenous communities after decisions have already been made. This practice violates the principle of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), which is enshrined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
We must move beyond symbolic inclusion. Indigenous communities must have the power to say no—to projects that threaten our lands, cultures, and futures.
Indigenous Knowledge Is Climate Wisdom
Our knowledge systems are not relics of the past—they are blueprints for the future. From controlled burns in Australia to water harvesting in the Andes, Indigenous practices offer time-tested strategies for climate adaptation and resilience.
As Great-Grandmother Mary Lyons of the Ojibwe people said at COP28, “We must be good caretakers and not bad landlords. It’s not just Indigenous Peoples; it’s all human beings. It’s all plant life, it’s all water bodies, our sky relatives. We are all related.”
We must protect Indigenous knowledge from misappropriation and ensure that partnerships are built on mutual respect. Our science is equal to Western science, and our voices must be heard.
A Call to Action
To ensure climate justice is more than a slogan, I urge COP30 negotiators, governments, and civil society to take the following steps:
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>● Guarantee Indigenous land rights through legal recognition and protection.</ul>
</li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>● Ensure direct access to climate finance for Indigenous-led initiatives.</ul>
</li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>● Embed FPIC into all climate-related agreements and mechanisms.</ul>
</li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>● Elevate Indigenous leadership in decision-making spaces, not just side events.</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
● Protect Indigenous knowledge systems through ethical and equitable partnerships.
As I reflect on my journey—from fleeing persecution in Ghana to building a global movement for Indigenous land rights—I am reminded that resilience is not born from comfort, but from conviction. While our current work is focused on the Benimasi-Boadi community due to limited resources, it is our hope to expand this mission to other communities as we work to secure sustainable funding.
Though I may not be present at COP in person, I am there in spirit—with the elders who taught me to listen to the land, the youth who carry our legacy forward, and the global allies who believe that justice must begin with those who have protected the Earth the longest.
Let this be the COP where Indigenous voices are not just heard—but heeded.
IPS UN Bureau
 
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Excerpt: <img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> Each year, billions are pledged for climate action, but less than 1 percent reaches Indigenous-led initiatives. This is not just unjust—it’s inefficient, argues Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu Founder of Land Rights Defenders Inc.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Tanzania’s Pandemic Fund Ushers in a New Era of Health Preparedness</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/tanzanias-pandemic-fund-ushers-in-a-new-era-of-health-preparedness/</link>
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<pubDate>Tue, 28 Oct 2025 06:13:40 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Kizito Makoye</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[When COVID-19 hit Tanzania in 2020, Alfred Kisena’s life was torn apart. The 51-year-old teacher still remembers the night he learned that his wife, Maria, had succumbed to the virus at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He wasn’t allowed to see her in her final moments. “The doctors said it was too dangerous, and […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/DSN-1498-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A Community Health Worker in a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate people in communities in Nanyamba village, Mtwara Region, in southeastern Tanzania. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPSA Community Health Worker in a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate people in communities in Nanyamba village, Mtwara Region, in southeastern Tanzania. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/DSN-1498-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/DSN-1498.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />A Community Health Worker in a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate people in communities in Nanyamba village, Mtwara Region, in southeastern Tanzania. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPSBy Kizito Makoye DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, Oct 28 2025 (IPS) When COVID-19 hit Tanzania in 2020, Alfred Kisena’s life was torn apart. The 51-year-old teacher still remembers the night he learned that his wife, Maria, had succumbed to the virus at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He wasn’t allowed to see her in her final moments.
“The doctors said it was too dangerous, and the virus was contagious,” Kisena said, gazing at a faded photo of her hanging on the wall. 
Maria’s burial took place in eerie isolation. Municipal workers dressed in white protective gear lowered her body into a tomb at Ununio Cemetery on the city’s outskirts.
“Saying goodbye to a loved one is sacred, but I didn’t get a chance,” he said.
Across Tanzania, many families endured the same pain—losing loved ones and being denied the rituals that give meaning to loss. The government imposed strict measures: banning gatherings, restricting hospital visits, and prohibiting traditional burial rites. Schools shut down, and for three months, Kisena’s five children stayed home, their education abruptly halted.
“I was not working, so it was hard to meet the needs of my family,” he said. “We survived on the little savings I had.”
Five years later, as the scars of that crisis linger, Tanzania is charting a new path toward resilience. Earlier this month, the government launched its first-ever Pandemic Fund Project, aimed at strengthening the country’s capacity to prevent and respond to health crises.
Supported by a USD25 million grant from the global Pandemic Fund and USD13.7 million in co-financing, the initiative marks a shift from reactive crisis management to proactive preparedness. It unites local and international partners—including WHO, UNICEF, and FAO—under a “One Health” framework that recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health.
<h3>Learning from the Past</h3>
The memories of COVID-19 and the more recent Marburg outbreak remain vivid. When the pandemic first struck, Tanzania’s laboratories were under-equipped, surveillance systems were weak, and community health workers were overwhelmed.
Tanzania’s Deputy Prime Minister, Doto Biteko, said during the launch that the lessons from those crises shaped the country’s new determination.
“For the past 20 years, the world has battled multiple health emergencies, and Tanzania is no exception,” he said. “We have seen how pandemics disrupt lives and economies. Strengthening our capacity to prepare and respond is not optional—it is a necessity.”
That necessity has only grown as Tanzania faces rising risks of zoonotic diseases linked to deforestation, wildlife trade, and climate change. The new project aims to address these vulnerabilities by upgrading laboratories, expanding disease surveillance, and training health workers across the country.
<h3>The Human Frontlines</h3>
In southern Kisarawe District, 38-year-old community health worker Ana Msechu walks along dusty roads with a backpack containing medicine, gloves, and health records.
“Sometimes I walk for three hours just to reach one family,” Msechu said. “During the pandemic, people stopped trusting us. They thought we were bringing the disease.”
With no protective gear or transport allowance, Msechu faced villagers’ suspicion head-on. At the height of the pandemic, she lost a colleague to the virus. Yet she continued, delivering messages about hygiene and vaccination.
“Sometimes we didn’t even have masks—we used pieces of cloth instead,” she recalled.
The new initiative, she believes, could change that. Implementing partners plan to supply personal protective equipment (PPE), digital tools for data collection, and regular training sessions.
“If we get proper support and respect, we can save many lives before diseases spread,” she said.
“Community health workers are the backbone of resilience,” said Patricia Safi Lombo, UNICEF’s Deputy Representative to Tanzania. “They are the first point of contact for families and play a critical role in delivering life-saving information and services.”
UNICEF’s role will focus on risk communication and community engagement—ensuring that people in rural and urban areas understand preventive measures, recognize early symptoms, and trust the health system.
<h3>Between Fear and Duty</h3>
Hamisi Mjema, a health volunteer in Kilosa District, remembers how fear became his biggest enemy.
When the Marburg virus hit last year, his job was to trace suspected cases and educate families about isolation.
“I was insulted many times, and some families wouldn’t even let me into their homes,” he said.
Without transport or communication tools, Hamisi walked from one remote village to another with his bicycle, often relying on farmers to share their phone airtime so he could report cases to district health officials.
Under the new initiative, local health officers say community health workers will receive field kits, digital disease-reporting tools, and risk communication materials in local languages.
“It will make our work safer and faster,” he said. “When we detect something early, the whole country benefits.”
<h3>Fighting Misinformation</h3>
In a lakeside village in Kigoma, volunteer health educator Fatuma Mfaume recalls how rumors once spread faster than the virus itself.
“People were afraid,” she said. “They said vaccines would make women barren. Others believed doctors were poisoning us.”
Armed with a megaphone, Mfaume moved through villages trying to dispel falsehoods—often facing insults. But her persistence paid off. Slowly, women began bringing their children for immunization again.
With the new project, she hopes community workers like her will gain formal recognition and training in communication skills.
“Many of us work without pay,” Mfaume said. “If this project can train us properly and give us materials, we can fight not just disease but fear and lies too.”
<h3>Animal-Borne Threats</h3>
At the same time, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is strengthening animal health systems, recognizing that most pandemics originate from animals.
“By improving coordination between veterinary and public health services, Tanzania is taking vital steps to prevent zoonotic diseases before they spill over to humans,” said Stella Kiambi, FAO’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases Team Lead.
These measures include upgrading veterinary laboratories, improving disease surveillance in livestock markets, and training field officers to detect early signs of outbreaks.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is also supporting efforts to strengthen human health systems—from expanding testing capacity to developing rapid response teams.
“This project marks a bold step forward in health security,” said Dr. Galbert Fedjo, WHO Health Systems Coordinator. “It advances a One Health approach that links human, animal, and environmental health.”
<h3>Rebuilding Trust and Hope</h3>
For Priya Basu, Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund, Tanzania’s project represents “an important step in strengthening the country’s preparedness to prevent and respond to future health threats.”
Across Africa, the Fund—established in 2022—has supported 47 projects in 75 countries with USD 885 million in grants, catalyzing more than USD 6 billion in additional financing.
According to the World Bank, every USD 1 invested in pandemic preparedness can save up to USD 20 in economic losses during an outbreak.
For Tanzania—a nation that lost thousands of lives and suffered deep economic shocks during COVID-19—the stakes couldn’t be higher.
“Preparedness is about saving lives and livelihoods,” said Dr. Ali Mzige, a public health expert. “It’s about making sure families don’t suffer when a pandemic strikes.”
For Kisena, the government’s new initiative is a quiet promise that the lessons of loss have not been forgotten.
“Maria’s death taught me how precious life is,” he said. “If this project can protect even one family from that kind of pain, then it will mean her death was not in vain.
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>UN Agencies Calls for Urgent Action as Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis Reaches Breaking Point</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/un-agencies-calls-for-urgent-action-as-sudans-humanitarian-crisis-reaches-breaking-point/</link>
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<pubDate>Tue, 28 Oct 2025 05:06:25 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Oritro Karim</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[In recent weeks, Sudan’s humanitarian crisis has deteriorated considerably, as escalating hostilities, mass displacement, disease outbreaks, and a widespread lack of access to basic, essential services continue to endanger civilians across the country. The situation has been further compounded by a sharp increase in attacks on healthcare facilities throughout October, which has severely weakened the […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/This-UNICEF-supported_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/This-UNICEF-supported_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/This-UNICEF-supported_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />This UNICEF-supported nutrition site focuses on delivering lifesaving interventions for the prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition among children under five and pregnant and lactating women. Credit: UNICEF/Ahmed Mohamdeen ElfatihBy Oritro Karim UNITED NATIONS, Oct 28 2025 (IPS) In recent weeks, Sudan’s humanitarian crisis has deteriorated considerably, as escalating hostilities, mass displacement, disease outbreaks, and a widespread lack of access to basic, essential services continue to endanger civilians across the country. The situation has been further compounded by a sharp increase in attacks on healthcare facilities throughout October, which has severely weakened the country’s already fragile health system and deprived thousands of people of lifesaving care.

On October 23, several United Nations (UN) agencies—including the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Food Programme (WFP)—issued a <a href="https://www.iom.int/news/iom-unhcr-unicef-and-wfp-urge-immediate-action-address-escalating-humanitarian-crisis-sudan" target="_blank">joint statement</a> highlighting the rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in Sudan and calling for urgent, coordinated international action. According to the organizations, over 900 days of protracted conflict and the collapse of lifesaving services have “pushed millions to the brink of survival”, with women and children being disproportionately affected.
“This is one of the worst protection crises we’ve seen in decades,” said Kelly T. Clements, Deputy High Commissioner at UNHCR. “Millions are displaced inside and outside of the country and returning families have little support with the absence of other options. I spoke with families who recently fled El Fasher with horrific stories of being forced to leave everything behind, taking treacherous routes at great risk. It’s a dynamic environment and support is needed everywhere.”
An estimated 30 million people in Sudan are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, including nearly 15 million children. The conflict has forced more than 9.6 million people to flee their homes, making Sudan the largest internal displacement crisis in the world. At the same time, approximately 2.6 million people have returned to areas of active conflict—such as Khartoum, where around one million have returned—only to find their homes and livelihood destroyed and essential services virtually wiped out.
According to IOM, Khartoum currently hosts nearly 900,000 refugees, while Tawila shelters more than 600,000—many of whom lack adequate housing or access to protection services. Aid organizations have expressed growing concern over rising anti-foreigner sentiment, stressing that protection assistance remains “lifesaving for hundreds of thousands” of displaced individuals facing heightened risks of violence and discrimination.
“This scale of return to Khartoum is both a sign of resilience and a warning,” said Ugochi Daniels, IOM’s Deputy Director General for Operations. “I met people coming back to a city still scarred by conflict, where homes are damaged and basic services are barely functioning. Their determination to rebuild is remarkable, but life remains incredibly fragile.”
After three years of conflict, Sudan’s education system has been among the hardest hit, with an estimated 14 out of 17 million school-aged children without access to schooling. Additionally, hunger levels remain catastrophic, with famine having been confirmed in parts of Sudan last year. Children continue to face heightened risks of malnutrition and thousands are projected to be at an “imminent risk of death” if nutritional support is not secured soon. 
“It was a really grave moment when famine was first confirmed in parts of Sudan, and given the scale and growing intensity of the crisis, we have all been investing significant effort in enhancing our operational capacity to meet the huge and growing needs,” said WFP Assistant Executive Director Valerie Guarnieri. About 25 million people in Sudan, or half its population, face acute food insecurity. WFP has been able to support 4 million people in recent months, including 85 percent of the population living in famine or famine-risk areas. Yet Guarnieri warned on Friday that they have “reached the limits, not of our capacity, but of our resources.”
For over 16 months, El Fasher has experienced heightened levels of insecurity, with over 260,000 civilians, including roughly 130,000 children, trapped under siege and cut off from food, water, and healthcare. On October 20, UN sources reported that a siege in one of the most densely populated areas of El Fasher led to intense shelling and the displacement of more than 109,000 people across 127 sites. The UN has also received numerous reports of extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, and forced recruitment.
October has been particularly volatile for Sudan’s already fragile healthcare system, with a surge in attacks targeting medical facilities in the Kordofan and Darfur states. On October 5, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out two drone strikes on hospitals in El Obeid City, North Kordofan. 
Two days later, the RSF conducted an artillery shelling in the maternity ward of the Saudi Hospital for Women and Maternity in El Fasher’s Al Daraja neighborhood—the last functioning medical facility in the city. Thirteen civilians, including several children, were killed, and sixteen others were injured, among them a female doctor and a nurse. The hospital sustained significant damage to much of its medical equipment.
Additionally, Sudanese families continue to struggle with aggressive outbreaks of cholera, dengue, malaria, and measles, which have been exacerbated by non-functional healthcare systems and destroyed water systems. According to updated figures from <a href="https://data.unhcr.org/en/documents/details/119285" target="_blank">UNHCR</a>, the Darfur and Kordofan regions have been among the hardest hit by cholera. In North Darfur’s Tawila locality alone, more than 6,000 infections and 11 deaths have been recorded since May—most within displacement shelters. In South Darfur, UNHCR has documented 3,229 confirmed cases and 177 deaths since late August.
“What I witnessed in Darfur and elsewhere this week is a stark reminder of what is at stake: children facing hunger, disease, and the collapse of essential services,” said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director. “Entire communities are surviving in conditions that defy dignity. Children are malnourished, exposed to violence, and at risk of dying from preventable diseases. Families are doing everything they can to survive, showing extraordinary resolve in the face of unimaginable hardship.”
The 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan for Sudan calls for USD 4.2 billion, but remains severely underfunded, with only 25 percent of the required amount secured so far. Despite these gaps, aid groups have been able to reach over 13.5 million people this year, including those in the most crisis-afflicted regions, such as Darfur, Khartoum, and Al Jazira. The UN stresses the need for continued humanitarian cooperation and increased donor support, as funding shortfalls are projected to force several key humanitarian agencies to scale back or suspend critical operations, putting millions of lives at risk.
UN officials also made the call for development investment to rebuild critical infrastructure and services in health, sanitation and energy. “Sudan urgently needs to rebuild and rehabilitate its key infrastructure, restore access to public services, and provide direct support to vulnerable returnees, IDPs, and the communities that host them,” Daniels said on October 24.
“We can’t wait for longstanding peace to take hold. Development actors are needed now to come in for bigger rehabilitation and construction and investment, so that people can rebuild their lives with dignity,” Clements said. She remarked that development actors would be critical in devastated areas like Khartoum where at present, more than a million people have returned and require basic services. “It’s that kind of reconstruction, rehabilitation, bringing back basic services, where development actors have a much larger role to play than humanitarian actors like ourselves.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>Data Centre Investments Bad Deals</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/data-centre-investments-bad-deals/</link>
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<pubDate>Tue, 28 Oct 2025 04:42:27 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Kuhaneetha Bai Kalaicelvan</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Development & Aid]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[Opposition to data centres (DCs) has been rapidly spreading internationally due to their fast-growing resource demands. DCs have been proliferating quickly, driven by the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI). Who are data centres for? Already, the AI boom has overwhelmed other ‘cloud’ uses and drives the rapid growth of DCs, imposing fast-expanding resource demands. This […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[By Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Kuhaneetha Bai Kalaicelvan KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Oct 28 2025 (IPS) Opposition to data centres (DCs) has been rapidly spreading internationally due to their fast-growing resource demands. DCs have been proliferating quickly, driven by the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI). 

<div id="attachment_157782" style="width: 190px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-157782" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2018/09/jomo_180.jpg" alt="" width="180" height="212" class="size-full wp-image-157782" />Jomo Kwame Sundaram</div>Who are data centres for? 
Already, the AI boom has overwhelmed other ‘cloud’ uses and drives the rapid growth of DCs, imposing fast-expanding resource demands. This has triggered a <a href="https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2025/10/data-centres-spark-bipartisan-fury-oCver-as-energy-costs-soar.html" target="_blank">bipartisan public backlash</a> in the US due to higher energy, water, and land use, as well as rising prices.
In October 2024, McKinsey projected that global energy demand by DCs would rise between 19% and 22% annually through 2030, reaching an annual demand between 171 and 219 gigawatts. 
This greatly exceeds the “current demand of 60 GW”. “To avoid a [supply] deficit, at least twice the [DC] capacity built since 2000 would have to be built in less than a quarter of the time”!
As tech companies are not paying for the additional energy generation capacity, consumers and host governments are, whether they benefit from AI or not.
As DCs increasingly faced growing pushback in the North, developers have turned to developing countries, outsourcing problems to poorer nations with limited resources.
Understanding these energy- and water-guzzling facilities is necessary to better protect economies, societies, communities, and their environments.
Energy needs 
With growing corporate and consumer demand for AI, DC growth will continue, and even occasionally accelerate. 
<div id="attachment_192516" style="width: 190px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192516" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/K-Kuhaneetha-Bai.jpg" alt="" width="180" height="190" class="size-full wp-image-192516" />K Kuhaneetha Bai</div><a href="https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/energy-power-supply/data-center-power-fueling-the-digital-revolution" target="_blank">Increased AI usage</a> will significantly increase energy and water consumption, accelerating planetary heating both directly and indirectly.
As demand for AI and DCs increases, supporting computers will require significantly more electricity. This will generate heat, needing the use of water and energy for cooling. Much energy used by DCs, from 38% to 50%, is for cooling. 
Electricity generation, whether from fossil fuels or nuclear fission, requires more cooling than renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic solar panels or wind turbines.
A small-scale DC with 500 to 2,000 servers consumes one to five megawatts (MW). For tech giants, a ‘hyperscale’ DC, hosting tens of thousands of servers, consumes 20 to over 100MW, like a small city! 
Data centres not cool 
As the popular focus is on DCs’ enormous energy requirements, their <a href="https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2025/08/data-centres-consume-massive-amounts-of-water-companies-rarely-tell-the-public-exactly-how-much.html" target="_blank">massive water needs</a> to cool equipment tend to be ignored, understated and overlooked. 
Locating new DCs in developing countries will further heat local microclimates and the planetary atmosphere. Worse still, heat is more environmentally threatening in the tropics, where ambient temperatures are higher. 
Establishing more DCs will inevitably crowd out existing and other possible uses of freshwater supplies, besides reducing local groundwater aquifers.
Unsurprisingly, DC investors rarely warn host governments about the amount of locally supplied energy and water required. 
DCs require much freshwater to cool servers and routers. In 2023, Google alone used almost 23 billion litres to cool DCs. In cooling systems using evaporation, cold water is used to absorb severe heat, releasing steam into the atmosphere. 
Closed-loop cooling systems absorb heat using piped-in water, while air-cooled chillers cool down hot water. Cooled water recirculated for cooling requires less water but more energy to chill hot water. 
Investors expect subsidies 
Like other prospective investors, DCs have relocated to areas where host governments have been more generous and less demanding. 
Led by US President Trump’s powerful ‘tech bros’, many foreign investors have profited from subsidised energy, cheap land and water, and other special incentives. 
Prospective host governments compete to offer tax and other incentives, such as subsidised energy and water, to attract foreign direct investment in DCs.
The US pressured Malaysia and Thailand to stop Chinese firms from using them as an “<a href="https://energynews.oedigital.com/electric-utilities/2025/09/11/malaysia-restricts-data-center-growth-to-china-blocking-ai-chips" target="_blank">export-control backdoor</a>” for its AI chips. Washington alleges that DCs outside China buy chips to train its AI for military purposes. So far, only Malaysia has complied.
This limits Chinese firms’ access to such chips. Washington claims that Chinese substitutes for US-made chips are inferior and seeks to protect US technology from China. 
High-tech DC jobs? 
Data centres are emerging everywhere, but <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-data-centres-are-popping-up-everywhere-but-a-jobs-boom-is-unlikely/" target="_blank">not many jobs</a> will be created. Advocates claim DCs will provide high-tech jobs. 
DCs are largely self-operating, requiring minimal human intervention, except for maintenance, which they determine independently. Thus, job creation is <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01972243.2023.2169974#d1e436" target="_blank">minimised</a>.
Construction and installation work will be <a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai-data-center-job-creation-48038b67" target="_blank">temporary</a>, with most managerial functions being performed remotely from headquarters. A <a href="https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/ai-and-the-future-of-workforce-training/" target="_blank">Georgetown University report</a> estimates only 27% of DC jobs are ‘technical’. 
While the DC discourse mainly focuses on foreign investments, there is little discussion on growing national desires for data sovereignty. 
Acceding to so many foreign requests will inevitably block national capacity ambitions to develop end-to-end DC capabilities and not just host them. 
Thus far, there is limited interest in the ‘afterlife’ of DCs, such as what happens after they have outlived their purpose, or the disposal of waste materials. 
Higher energy and water costs, subsidies, tax incentives and other problems caused by DCs are hardly offset by their modest employment and other benefits.
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>George Soros Receives Prize for Work Supporting Roma, Sinti Rights</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/george-soros-receives-prize-for-work-supporting-roma-sinti-rights/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 27 Oct 2025 07:22:18 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ed Holt</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Billionaire philanthropist George Soros has been awarded the European Civil Rights Prize of the Sinti and Roma for his decades of work supporting Roma rights. Through sustained philanthropic efforts, Soros, who founded the Open Society Foundations (OSF), has supported projects across the continent advancing the rights, dignity, and empowerment of Roma—Europe’s largest ethnic minority. His […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/20251023-welters-berlin-roma-award-ceremony-4798-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Prize of the Sinti and Roma on behalf of his father, George. Credit: Gorden Welters" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/20251023-welters-berlin-roma-award-ceremony-4798-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/20251023-welters-berlin-roma-award-ceremony-4798.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Alexander Soros accepts the European Civil Rights Prize of the Sinti and Roma on behalf of his father, George. Credit: Gorden WeltersBy Ed Holt BRATISLAVA, Oct 27 2025 (IPS) Billionaire philanthropist George Soros has been awarded the European Civil Rights Prize of the Sinti and Roma for his decades of work supporting Roma rights.
Through sustained philanthropic efforts, Soros, who founded the Open Society Foundations (OSF), has supported projects across the continent advancing the rights, dignity, and empowerment of Roma—Europe’s largest ethnic minority. 
His son Alexander, who is chair of the board of directors of the OSF, accepted the prize, which was established in memory of Holocaust survivors and pioneers of the Roma civil rights movement, Oskar and Vinzenz Rose, in Berlin on October 23, on his father’s behalf.
He said, “My father’s partnership with Roma communities has always been grounded in a deep belief in justice, dignity, and self-determination. This prize is a powerful recognition of that shared journey—and a call to continue the fight against prejudice and exclusion.”
Soros’s philanthropy has supported Roma-led organizations to confront discrimination, expand access to education and justice, improve early childhood development and healthcare, and amplify Roma voices in public life.
Among some of the most significant projects have been the creation of the <a href="https://www.errc.org/">European Roma Rights Centre</a>, the <a href="https://roma.education/">Roma Education Fund</a> (REF), and the Decade of Roma Inclusion, which collectively helped more than 150,000 Roma students attend school, challenged segregation before the European Court of Human Rights, and elevated Roma voices in public discourse.
Meanwhile, the 2024 launch of the <a href="https://romaforeurope.org/">Roma Foundation for Europe</a> (RFE)—an independent, Roma-led institution established with a 100 million EUR pledge from the Open Society Foundations—was a key moment in support for Roma across the continent.
Speaking after the prize was awarded, those involved in some of these institutions highlighted not just how these projects have changed the lives of Roma individuals and advanced Roma rights more widely, but also the impact Soros and his work have had on Roma communities in Europe.
“Over the past two decades, REF has supported thousands of young Roma across 16 countries to complete higher education and build successful professional careers,” Ciprian Necula, Executive President of the REF, told IPS.
“Today, there are Roma doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers, IT specialists, economists, social workers, journalists, and artists whose professional journeys began with REF’s support. Our most meaningful contribution has been creating genuine pathways to education and employment, proving that talent exists in every community when access and opportunity are fair.
“The work of George Soros has been extremely important to Roma communities. No other individual or institution has supported Roma communities with such consistency and vision. His contribution went far beyond financial support; he helped us build institutions, nurture leadership, and develop long-term strategic perspectives.
“His legacy is one of trust, solidarity, and shared responsibility, a reminder that real progress happens when marginalized communities are not only supported but empowered to lead their own change.”
Zeljko Jovanovic, RFE President, told IPS, “Without the Open Society Foundations, the Roma movement as we know it simply wouldn’t exist.”
“George Soros put Roma issues on Europe’s agenda and helped build the first networks of activists, researchers and policymakers working together for change. Over time, his support helped cultivate a generation of Roma professionals and advocates able to design and run their own initiatives. That legacy made today’s Roma-led institutions possible, including the Roma Foundation for Europe,” he said.
“The Roma Foundation for Europe is the most important step in building a Roma-led institution on a European scale in decades. It builds on the long tradition of support for Roma civil society that started with the Open Society Foundations but takes it further—focusing on leadership, education, economic participation, culture and political voice. There’s been a strong sense of ownership and hope [among Roma towards the Foundation]. Many Roma see the Foundation as something long overdue—a space where Roma lead, set the agenda and work with others as equals. It’s not just another organization that speaks about Roma but one that gives structure, power and voice to Roma-led ideas, from business and education to culture and politics,” he added.
Soros has said that he would be donating the 15,000 EUR endowment that comes with the award to the Roma Education Fund.
Necula said the money would be used to expand the Fund’s digital education program.
“This initiative will give Roma children and youth access to technology, digital skills training, and new learning opportunities. In essence, we will turn vision into action, transforming education into opportunity for our children. By investing in digital education now, we ensure that no child is left behind in the transformation shaping our economies and communities,” he said.
In comments after being awarded the prize, Soros spoke of his long-standing relationship with the Roma and highlighted the continued discrimination they face.
“The Roma have endured centuries of discrimination and marginalization, rooted in a long history of violence—from the Holocaust to forced sterilization, child removals, and evictions. These injustices continue to resurface, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, when Roma fleeing the war in Ukraine faced barriers to shelter and aid,” he said.
“I’ve always believed that open societies must protect the rights of all people—especially those who are excluded. Working alongside Roma leaders and communities has been one of the most meaningful parts of my life’s work,” he added.
Meanwhile, Alexander has pledged to continue his father’s fight for Roma rights, equality, and support for communities’ empowerment.
“As a child, I accompanied my parents on visits across Europe to meet Roma leaders and their families. Those experiences left a lasting impression on me and shaped my own commitment to human rights. Today, as chair of the Open Society Foundations, I am proud to carry forward this vital work and stand alongside Roma communities in their pursuit of equal rights and freedom. The discrimination that Roma experience is a threat to all of Europe. None of us is free until we are all free,” he said.
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>The Time for a Decade of Island Resilience is Now</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/the-time-for-a-decade-of-island-resilience-is-now/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 27 Oct 2025 04:45:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Penny Becker - Ralph Regenvanu - Safiya Sawney</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Biodiversity]]></category>
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<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ipsnews.net/?p=192752</guid>
<description><![CDATA[As biodiversity loss including ocean degradation, pollution and climate change threaten our planet, islands, and particularly global small island nations, often don’t get the spotlight they deserve. Often labeled as vulnerable, the world’s small island nations are in fact powerful beacons of resilience. Their urgent challenges are sparking bold innovation, deep collaboration, and some of […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="263" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-Rock-Islands_-300x263.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-Rock-Islands_-300x263.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-Rock-Islands_-539x472.jpg 539w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-Rock-Islands_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />The Rock Islands, Palau. Credit: Island ConservationBy Penny Becker, Ralph Regenvanu and Safiya Sawney GRENADA / VANUATU / USA , Oct 27 2025 (IPS) As biodiversity loss including ocean degradation, pollution and climate change threaten our planet, islands, and particularly global small island nations, often don’t get the spotlight they deserve. Often labeled as vulnerable, the world’s small island nations are in fact powerful beacons of resilience.

Their urgent challenges are sparking bold innovation, deep collaboration, and some of the most remarkable ecological recoveries on Earth. That’s why we are calling for the United Nations to establish a <a href="https://www.islandconservation.org/decade-of-island-resilience/" target="_blank">Decade of Island Resilience</a> for 2030-2040. 
Stories of success on islands are as abundant as the islands themselves. Although small islands are ubiquitous, global small island nations who are independent sovereign states span the global oceans. In the Pacific and Caribbean region, independent small island nations continue to advocate to the international community for equity in recognizing their special circumstances as a case to increase financing and resources to combat the triple planetary crisis of biodiversity loss, climate change and pollution.
These islands, often highly indebted, with small economies and remote geographies, are primarily dependent on their coastal assets to drive their main revenue generation – tourism and the blue economy. 
Several of these island nations have leveraged the power of collective effort and have initiated innovative approaches at the domestic and regional scale to conserve and preserve their biodiversity and cultural identities. 
<div id="attachment_192751" style="width: 634px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192751" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Brown-Booby_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="468" class="size-full wp-image-192751" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Brown-Booby_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Brown-Booby_-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Brown-Booby_-200x149.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />Brown Booby in the Marshall Islands. Credit: Bren Ram/Island Conservation</div>
Efforts like the Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity inspired by the work of the Micronesia Challenge Initiative and the 30×30 OECS Transformation Program to advance progress towards the Global Biodiversity Framework are providing a new pathway to building island resilience. 
Thanks to holistic conservation action, thousands of new native seedlings are now carpeting the forest floor and seabirds populations are surging on Bikar Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. 
The people of Ulithi Atoll in Yap State are enjoying increased food security and access to essential resources after successful restoration brought Loosiep Island back from the brink of ecological collapse. 
Restored island biodiversity, in particular coastal and marine ecosystems, have been proven to trap tens of millions of metric tons of carbon, grow corals four times faster, regenerate native vegetation thousands of times faster, and support orders of magnitude more fish biomass. Healthy and well managed biodiversity also increases the resilience of islands to combat climate change. 
Although islands continue to endure the harsh and often devastating everyday challenges of being on the front lines of the triple planetary crisis of biodiversity loss, declining ocean health, and climate change, these stories show how islands are investing in their ability to fight back—driven by incredible optimism and their right to exist. 
Because of their unique geography, islands are natural proving grounds for scalable conservation strategies, where science-based biodiversity restoration, ocean action, and climate resilience can be developed, perfected, and expanded globally driven by the needs to island communities. Their immense potential for impact means they deserve the world’s attention. 
As representatives of global small island nations, conservation science, and community-led initiatives, we are united in support of the island led United Nations-sanctioned Decade of Island Resilience to help bring islands to the front of global priorities about climate resilience and the future of holistic restoration.
 <a href="https://www.islandconservation.org/" target="_blank">Island Conservation</a>, an international NGO with more than 30 years of success working with island communities to restore their precious ecosystems, formally proposed this initiative in May of 2025 to help direct attention to the outsized role islands can play. And last month, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature adopted this call as an official Resolution. 
The <a href="https://globalislandpartnership.org/" target="_blank">Global Islands Partnership (GLISPA)</a>—a long-time convenor and internationally recognized island led platform will work in partnership with Island Conservation to transition this resolution into a platform for catalyzing island progress thorough its Island Biodiversity Coalition. 
If established, the proposed Decade of Island Resilience would serve multiple vital functions: coordinating scientific research, mobilizing financial resources, amplifying indigenous and local voices, integrating traditional and local knowledge into implementation and scaling successful approaches, such as enhancing the delivery of adequate and consistent financing and ensuring the retention of domestic capacity in the implementation of solutions across the world’s islands. 
And in doing so, it would amplify existing efforts that direct the world’s attention to islands—the globe’s nature-based solution for the delivery of high-impact resilience, restoration, and revitalization. 
The timing is critical. We are in the last five years of the 2030 Agenda. As we implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), advance the UN’s Global Biodiversity Framework including the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS, and recognize the special circumstances of small island developing states to drive ambition and action for a regenerative ocean future, and pursue the race to net zero emissions, global small islands are where we should look for integrated solutions. 
A Decade of Island Resilience wouldn’t just benefit global small islands: it would help us develop environmental solutions for our entire planet. If we can succeed in a global small island context—where problems are contained and solutions tangible—we’ll have a blueprint for addressing our global environmental crisis. 
A Decade of Island Resilience would create a global platform for ambitious partnerships to scale efforts globally between governments, scientific institutions, civil society, private sector innovators, and, most importantly, island communities. 
The choice is clear: invest in island resilience now, or lose irreplaceable biodiversity, cultural heritage, and proven solutions to our most pressing global challenges. The world’s islands are ready to lead. Are we ready to support them? 
Penny Becker, PhD., is CEO, Island Conservation; Honorable Ralph Regenvanu is Minister for Climate Change, Energy, Meteorology, Geohazards, Environment and Disaster Management for the Republic of Vanuatu; and Ambassador Safiya Sawney is Special Envoy and Ambassador for Climate Change, Government of Grenada and Board Chair for the Global Island Partnership 
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>The Only Remaining Colony in Africa Continues its Struggle for Independence</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/the-only-remaining-colony-in-africa-continues-its-struggle-for-independence/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 27 Oct 2025 04:40:36 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Thalif Deen</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Africa]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[The African continent has long been monopolized by European colonial rulers, with France having the largest number of colonies, ruling over 35 territories, followed by Britain with 32. A bygone era of colonial rule on the continent, “once carved up and ruled by European powers hungry for imperial glory,” has virtually ended—almost. Currently, they are […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="300" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_-300x300.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_-100x100.jpg 100w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_-144x144.jpg 144w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_-472x472.jpg 472w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/WesternSaharaUN_.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Credit: UN Photo/Martine PerretBy Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Oct 27 2025 (IPS) The African continent has long been monopolized by European colonial rulers, with France having the largest number of colonies, ruling over 35 territories, followed by Britain with 32. A bygone era of colonial rule on the continent, “once carved up and ruled by European powers hungry for imperial glory,” has virtually ended—almost.

Currently, they are all members of the 55-nation <a href="https://au.int/en/member_states/countryprofiles2">African Union (AU)</a>.
Described as a non-self-governing territory in northwestern Africa fighting for decolonization, Western Sahara is the last African colonial state yet to achieve independence and dubbed “Africa’s last colony.”
With an estimated population of around 600,000 inhabitants, it is the most sparsely populated territory in Africa and the second most sparsely populated territory in the world, consisting mainly of desert flatlands.
A former Spanish colony, it was annexed by Morocco in 1975. Since then, it has been the subject of a long-running territorial dispute between Morocco and its indigenous Sahrawi people, led by the POLISARIO Front.
On October 30, the UN Security Council is scheduled to vote on a draft resolution on the future of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
According to a published report, the United States has circulated a draft resolution supporting Morocco’s 2007 autonomy plan for Western Sahara as the basis for a mutually acceptable solution.
The draft, which supports extending the UN mission’s mandate, calls for negotiations to begin without preconditions based on Morocco’s proposal, framing it as the “most feasible solution” for a “genuine autonomy within the Moroccan state” and a lasting resolution.
Dr. Stephen Zunes, a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, and co-author of Western Sahara: War, Nationalism, and Conflict Irresolution, told IPS the autonomy proposal is based on the assumption that Western Sahara is part of Morocco, a contention that has long been rejected by the United Nations, the World Court, the African Union and a broad consensus of international legal opinion.
Western Sahara, he pointed out, is a full member state of the African Union, and the United Nations recognizes it as a non-self-governing territory.
“To accept Morocco’s autonomy plan would mean that, for the first time since the founding of the United Nations and the ratification of the UN Charter eighty years ago, the international community would be endorsing the expansion of a country’s territory by military force, thereby establishing a very dangerous and destabilizing precedent, with serious implications for Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine as well as Israeli-occupied territories.”
If the people of Western Sahara accepted an autonomy agreement over independence, as a result of a free and fair referendum, he argued, it would constitute a legitimate act of self-determination.
However, Morocco has explicitly stated that its autonomy proposal “rules out, by definition, the possibility for the independence option to be submitted” to the people of Western Sahara, the vast majority of whom – according to knowledgeable international observers—favor outright independence.
On October 24, the Representative of the Frente POLISARIO at the United Nations and Coordinator with MINURSO, Dr Sidi Mohamed Omar, sent a letter to Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia of Russia, current President of the UN Security Council, in which he stressed the position of the Frente POLISARIO on the US draft resolution.
“The Frente POLISARIO underscores that the draft resolution, which reflects the national position of the penholder, is a very dangerous, unprecedented departure not only from the principles of international law underpinning Western Sahara as a question of decolonization but also from the basis upon which the Security Council has addressed Western Sahara.”
“It also contains elements that strike at the heart of the foundations of the UN peace process in Western Sahara and constitute a grave violation of the international status of the Territory.”
Acting under the relevant Chapters of the UN Charter, the Security Council has firmly and consensually established the basis of the solution and the process leading to it, namely negotiations under the auspices of the Secretary-General without preconditions and in good faith with a view to achieving a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara in the context of arrangements consistent with the principles and purposes of the UN Charter, the letter said.
As confirmed by the International Court of Justice, sovereignty over Western Sahara belongs exclusively to the Sahrawi people who have an inalienable, non-negotiable, and imprescriptible right to self-determination to be exercised freely and democratically under the UN auspices.
Therefore, any approach that sets a prefixed framework for the negotiations or predetermines their outcome, circumscribes the free exercise by the Sahrawi people of their right to self-determination, or imposes a solution against their will is utterly unacceptable to the Frente POLISARIO, the letter said.
According to a Security Council report, October 2025, an immediate issue for the Council is to renew the mandate of MINURSO and consider what changes to the mission’s mandate, if any, are necessary.
The underlying issue remains how to facilitate a viable and lasting resolution to the long-standing deadlock over the status of Western Sahara.
Two fundamentally diverging positions have made a resolution to the conflict difficult.
On the one hand, the Polisario Front’s demand for the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination, which has been recognized by the International Court of Justice in its 16 October 1975 advisory opinion and supported by several member states.
And numerous UN General Assembly resolutions, such as resolution <a href="https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/A_RES_34_37.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A/RES/34/37</a>, have affirmed the “inalienable right of the people of Western Sahara” to self-determination and independence. The Council has also called for a “just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.”
On the other hand, Morocco claims sovereignty over the territory, and its Autonomy Plan has received support from an increasing number of member states in recent years. In 2007, the Council adopted <a href="https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/MINURSO S RES 1754.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">resolution 1754</a>, which, in its preambular paragraphs, took note of Morocco’s proposal and welcomed Morocco’s efforts as serious and credible to move the process forward towards resolution.
Significant obstacles remain in the peace process. Hostilities have persisted at a low to medium intensity, falling short of large-scale confrontation. Moreover, Morocco controls over three-quarters of the Western Sahara territory and has made substantial investments in the region, including a $1.2 billion port project in Dakhla.
In addition, settlers of Moroccan origin account for nearly two-thirds of the approximately half-million residents of Western Sahara
Elaborating further, Dr Zunes said: “even if one takes a dismissive attitude toward international law, there are a number of practical concerns regarding the Moroccan proposal as well: One is that the history of respect for regional autonomy on the part of centralized authoritarian states is quite poor, as with Eritrea and Kosovo, which only gained independence after a long a bloody struggle, and more recently with Hong Kong.”
Based upon Morocco’s habit of breaking its promises to the international community regarding the UN-mandated referendum for Western Sahara and related obligations based on the ceasefire agreement in 1991, he said, there is little to inspire confidence that Morocco would live up to its promises to provide genuine autonomy for Western Sahara.
“A close reading of the proposal raises questions as to how much autonomy is even being offered. Important matters such as control of Western Sahara’s natural resources and law enforcement (beyond local jurisdictions) remain ambiguous.”
In addition, he pointed out, the proposal appears to indicate that all powers not specifically vested in the autonomous region would remain with the Kingdom.
Indeed, since the king of Morocco is ultimately invested with absolute authority under Article 19 of the Moroccan Constitution, the autonomy proposal’s insistence that the Moroccan state “will keep its powers in the royal domains, especially with respect to defense, external relations and the constitutional and religious prerogatives of His Majesty the King” appears to afford the autocratic monarch considerable latitude of interpretation.
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>‘Turkmen Authorities Are Carrying out a Systematic Campaign to Eliminate Independent Voices’</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/turkmen-authorities-are-carrying-out-a-systematic-campaign-to-eliminate-independent-voices/</link>
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<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2025 16:36:09 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>CIVICUS</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[CIVICUS speaks about the disappearance of Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov with human rights defender Diana Dadasheva from the civil movement DAYANÇ/Turkmenistan and with Gülala Hasanova, wife of Alisher Sahatov. On 24 July, Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov were abducted in Edirne, Turkey, after being labelled a ‘threat to public order.’ […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Photos-G-Hasanova_D-Dadashev_-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Photos-G-Hasanova_D-Dadashev_-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Photos-G-Hasanova_D-Dadashev_-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Photos-G-Hasanova_D-Dadashev_.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By CIVICUS Oct 24 2025 (IPS) CIVICUS speaks about the disappearance of Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov with human rights defender Diana Dadasheva from the civil movement DAYANÇ/Turkmenistan and with Gülala Hasanova, wife of Alisher Sahatov.

On 24 July, Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov were abducted in Edirne, Turkey, after being labelled a ‘threat to public order.’ Despite applying for international protection, they were unlawfully deported to Turkmenistan. Orusov and Sahatov, prominent voices in the diaspora through their YouTube channel Erkin Garaýyş, are now being detained, starved and denied a fair trial, while authorities are deliberately delaying proceedings to exclude them from an upcoming amnesty. Their cases highlight the growing risks faced abroad by Turkmen activists, who are being targeted beyond their country’s borders. The international community must push to secure their immediate release and end such abuses.
What happened to Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov?
Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov are Turkmen civil activists and bloggers who reported on human rights violations, corruption, migrant issues and social hardships faced by people in Turkmenistan. They were among the few who dared to speak when most were forced into silence.
Last April, Turkish police came to their home under the pretext of checking their documents. Acting on Turkmenistan’s request, they detained both men on false terrorism charges, claiming they posed a threat to Turkey’s national security. They were taken to a deportation centre in Sinop and later transferred to Edirne.
The Turkish Supreme Court ruled that returning them to Turkmenistan would put their lives in danger and ordered an end to the deportation process. But on 24 July, immediately after their release, they disappeared. Reliable sources told us they had been secretly flown to Turkmenistan on a cargo plane, under the supervision of Officer Amangeldiyev Amangeldy, who was later awarded a medal for the operation.
To this day, we don’t know where they are or in what condition. Their abduction is a serious crime and a blatant violation of international law.
Are there other examples of such human rights violations?
Over recent years, many Turkmen activists who were brave enough to speak up have disappeared in Turkey and Russia, including Malikberdy Allamyradov, Azat Isakov, Rovshen Klychev, Farhad Meymankuliev and Merdan Mukhammedov. Activist Umida Bekjanova is currently detained in a Turkish deportation centre and we fear she may face the same fate.
Turkmen authorities are carrying out a systematic campaign to eliminate independent civic voices. In today’s Turkmenistan, anyone who refuses to stay silent risks being branded a terrorist or enemy of the state. These labels have become tools of repression, used to justify abductions, fabricate criminal charges and force people to return to Turkmenistan.
What risks do Abdulla, Alisher and other activists face after being forcibly returned?
Their lives are in danger. We receive reports of torture, starvation, humiliation and psychological abuse. They are held in isolation, denied legal defence and a fair trial.
In Turkmenistan, there are no independent courts, lawyers or free media. People disappear into secret prisons for years, cut off from their families and the world. We don’t know where they are or if they are still alive. For their relatives and loved ones, this means endless waiting and despair, a slow, silent form of torture.
How has this affected your families?
Having my husband abducted has destroyed our lives. I am raising four children who ask every day when their father will return. We live in pain and fear, under constant surveillance and threats.
Being a Turkmen activist means facing harsh living conditions. Some, like Diana, live without documents or means of subsistence or social protection, caring for small children under the constant fear of being abducted.
Still, we refuse to stay silent; if we did, others would disappear too. Together with the DAYANÇ/Turkmenistan Human Rights Platform, we have declared a hunger strike until Abdullah and Alisher return home safely. We have also launched a campaign ‘If I Disappear – Don’t Stay Silent’ where we publicly name those who will be responsible if we too disappear. This is how we protect ourselves and our loved ones, because today it’s Abdulla and Alisher but tomorrow it could be any of us.
What do you expect from the international community?
The international community must act urgently to secure the release of Abdulla, Alisher and other disappeared activists. They must also demand Turkmenistan put an end to the criminal practice of labelling people as terrorists for simply speaking the truth.
But statements aren’t enough. We need real action. We call for an independent investigation into illegal deportations and abductions, and for those responsible for abductions, torture and repression, in Turkmenistan and Turkey, to be held accountable for their actions. We also demand the creation of a ‘Green Corridor’ for at-risk activists and families and the issuance of emergency documentation and financial support for migrants left without legal status and vulnerable to exploitation, trafficking and recruitment by criminal networks or extremist groups.
The world has no right to remain silent or look away. The international community must stand with Turkmen activists deprived of their basic rights to identity, movement and freedom of expression. Their silence only empowers the perpetrators and fuels impunity. Every moment of inaction breaks another life. The international community must act now.
GET IN TOUCH 
<a href="https://x.com/Kaska261694/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter/Diana Dadasheva</a> 
<a href="https://x.com/GAltibay1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter/Gülala Hasanova</a>
SEE ALSO 
<a href="https://monitor.civicus.org/explore/forced-loyalty-fear-and-censorship-turkmenistans-relentless-assault-on-civic-freedoms/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Forced loyalty, fear, and censorship: Turkmenistan’s relentless assault on civic freedoms</a> CIVICUS Monitor 26.Jun.2025 
<a href="https://lens.civicus.org/turkmenistan-tyranny-mutates-into-dynasty/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Turkmenistan: tyranny mutates into dynasty</a> CIVICUS Lens 18.Mar.2022 
<a href="https://civicus.org/index.php/media-resources/news/interviews/5659-turkmenistan-there-is-nothing-resembling-real-civil-society-and-there-are-no-conditions-for-it-to-emerge" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Turkmenistan: ‘There is nothing resembling real civil society – and no conditions for it to emerge’</a> CIVICUS Lens | Interview with Farid Tukhbatullin 10.Mar.2022
 
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<title>Eyes in the Sky: How Satellites Are Helping to Reduce Emissions from Livestock</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/eyes-in-the-sky-how-satellites-are-helping-to-reduce-emissions-from-livestock/</link>
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<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2025 16:09:57 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Lindsey Sloat</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Combating Desertification and Drought]]></category>
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<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ipsnews.net/?p=192741</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Thousands of years ago, we looked to the stars for guidance — constellations like Taurus and the Pleiades signalled the changing of the seasons and the best times to plant, harvest and move animals. Today, we may soon turn skyward once again, but this time to satellites that reveal in near-real-time when and where grasses […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Eyes-in-the-sky_-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Eyes-in-the-sky_-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Eyes-in-the-sky_-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Eyes-in-the-sky_.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Time2Graze will use Sentinel-2 satellite data to track pasture biomass and support farmers and land managers to make informed decisions about grazing management, resource allocation, and sustainable land use.By Lindsey Sloat LANCASTER, PA, Oct 24 2025 (IPS) Thousands of years ago, we looked to the stars for guidance — constellations like Taurus and the Pleiades signalled the changing of the seasons and the best times to plant, harvest and move animals.

Today, we may soon turn skyward once again, but this time to satellites that reveal in near-real-time when and where grasses are most nutritious and digestible. Feeding livestock at these peak moments not only boosts growth but also cuts methane, since animals release the most methane during digestion, a process known as enteric fermentation.
Globally, enteric fermentation from livestock accounts for nearly <a href="https://www.ccacoalition.org/projects/enteric-fermentation#:~:text=Enteric%20methane%20emissions%20from%20ruminant%20animals%20raised,methane%20an%20animal%20produces%20if%20left%20unchecked.&text=Between%202%2D12%%20of%20a%20ruminant's%20energy%20intake,typically%20lost%20through%20the%20enteric%20fermentation%2" target="_blank">one third</a> of methane emissions generated from human activities. This matters because methane has <a href="https://www.ccacoalition.org/short-lived-climate-pollutants/methane#:~:text=Methane%20is%20a%20powerful%20greenhouse,within%20a%20matter%20of%20decades." target="_blank">86 times</a> the heat-trapping power of CO2 over a 20-year period; yet it breaks down much faster. This means that methane reduction is one of the fastest ways to slow down the rate of global temperature rise.
Smarter grazing is a major opportunity. Farmers already rotate herds so pastures can recover but often rely on guesswork. When cattle graze younger, more digestible grasses, they produce less methane per unit of milk or meat. Yet in many regions, farms capture only <a href="https://fontagro.org/en/proyectos/agtech-escalando" target="_blank">40 to 60 percent</a> of their pasture’s potential. Unlocking this potential would improve productivity and cut emissions.
<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/global-land-for-agriculture" target="_blank">Two thirds</a> of all agricultural land worldwide is devoted to livestock grazing, so even small efficiency gains can have a big impact. A <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969721009992" target="_blank">10 percent</a> improvement in feed digestibility, for example, can reduce methane emissions per unit of feed or product by 12 to 20 percent.
Closing this pasture productivity gap by optimizing grazing would not just significantly reduce methane emissions, but also improve livestock keepers’ livelihoods, because increases in livestock productivity translate into more milk and more meat per animal.
The newly launched <a href="https://www.globalmethanehub.org/2025/09/10/the-global-methane-hub-launches-international-project-to-develop-satellite-guided-grazing-to-cut-livestock-emissions/" target="_blank">Time2Graze project</a>, funded by the Global Methane Hub and in partnership with Land & Carbon Lab’s <a href="https://landcarbonlab.org/about-global-pasture-watch/" target="_blank">Global Pasture Watch research consortium</a>, will apply Sentinel-2 satellite data and modelling to track pasture biomass.
This near-real-time data, combined with rancher observations and digital decision support tools, will provide important information for farmers and land managers, helping them to make informed decisions about grazing management, resource allocation, and sustainable land use.
This new data will offer free, open, up-to-date information that will be available on Google Earth Engine and other platforms to guide when and where animals should graze to consume the most abundant and digestible forage. To ensure usefulness to livestock farming and pastoralism, Time2Graze partners will conduct on-farm trials at more than 100 sites across eight countries in Latin America and Africa.
Alongside other <a href="https://www.wri.org/insights/reducing-agricultural-methane-new-solutions" target="_blank">livestock sector advances</a> — improved feed additives, manure management, and animal health and genetics included — digital and data-enabled livestock management is essential to delivering climate solutions at the necessary speed and scale. Within the food system, these advances sit alongside improvements to rice production, reducing food loss and waste, and shifting high-meat diets toward plants.
Livestock management data innovations arrive at a pivotal moment in the development of international policies around methane emissions. More than 150 countries have signed the <a href="https://www.globalmethanepledge.org/" target="_blank">Global Methane Pledge</a>, committing to cut methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Livestock enteric fermentation is the single largest source they must tackle. Likewise, the UN COP28 climate talks’ <a href="https://www.cop28.com/en/food-and-agriculture" target="_blank">Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems</a> and many countries’ climate strategies, or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), now emphasize methane mitigation and climate-smart agriculture as cornerstones of their strategies.
Yet, climate finance dedicated to global livestock systems languishes at just <a href="https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/climate-finance-roadmap-for-livestock-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean/" target="_blank">0.01 percent</a> of total spend, equivalent to a US$181 billion funding gap, lagging far behind the ambition demonstrated by these international initiatives.
Innovations in satellite-based grassland and forage monitoring are emerging as powerful tools to cut methane while improving productivity. Governments, climate finance institutions, and development banks should prioritize and expand support for these kinds of solutions to accelerate their impact across the livestock sector.
Redirecting a fraction of agricultural subsidies and climate finance toward such efficiency gains could not only unlock rapid, measurable methane reductions, but also additional co-benefits, such as reducing deforestation and ecosystem conversion, safeguarding future food security, and strengthening rural livelihoods. Realizing this potential will depend not only on data, but also on farmer adoption, political will, and the ability to scale solutions across diverse grazing systems.
For generations, the stars helped farmers decide when to move their animals. Today, satellites can do the same, but with far greater precision. With more investment and adoption, these new guides can help agriculture deliver on its climate promises.
Lindsey Sloat, Research Associate, Land & Carbon Lab and World Resources Institute
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>Tackling the Hidden Toll of Breast Cancer in the Pacific Islands</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/tackling-the-hidden-toll-of-breast-cancer-in-the-pacific-islands/</link>
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<pubDate>Fri, 24 Oct 2025 07:16:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Catherine Wilson</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[The burden of breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, is global, and the projected increase in cases in the coming decades will affect women in high- and low-income countries in every region. That includes the Pacific Islands, where it is the top cause of female cancer mortality. Now, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CEWilson-Image-2-Women-Rural-Markets-Hela-Province-PNG-Highlands-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="In Hela Province, in the distant interior of the PNG mainland, rural women would need to travel considerable distances by road or air to reach a hospital that provides breast screening mammograms. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CEWilson-Image-2-Women-Rural-Markets-Hela-Province-PNG-Highlands-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CEWilson-Image-2-Women-Rural-Markets-Hela-Province-PNG-Highlands-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CEWilson-Image-2-Women-Rural-Markets-Hela-Province-PNG-Highlands.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />In Hela Province, in the distant interior of the PNG mainland, rural women would need to travel considerable distances by road or air to reach a hospital that provides breast screening mammograms. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPSBy Catherine Wilson SYDNEY, Australia , Oct 24 2025 (IPS) The burden of breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, is global, and the projected increase in cases in the coming decades will affect women in high- and low-income countries in every region.
That includes the Pacific Islands, where it is the top cause of female <a href="https://gco.iarc.who.int/media/globocan/factsheets/populations/976-pacific-islands-hub-fact-sheet.pdf">cancer mortality</a>. Now, during <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2025/10/01/default-calendar/breast-cancer-awareness-month-2025">Breast Cancer Awareness Month</a>, islanders talk about tackling the disparities they face and reversing the trend. 
“Breast cancer is a significant health concern in Madang Province,” Tabitha Waka of the Country Women’s Association in Madang Province on the northeast coast of Papua New Guinea told IPS. “Most of our women residing in urban centers have access to enough information and facts about cancer, but at least half who live in rural areas don’t.”
Current global trends indicate that new breast cancer cases could reach <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/02/1160391">3.2 million</a> every year by 2050, reports the World Health Organization (WHO). In the <a href="https://gco.iarc.who.int/media/globocan/factsheets/populations/976-pacific-islands-hub-fact-sheet.pdf">Pacific Islands</a>, which comprise 22 island nations and territories and 14 million people, more than 15,500 cases of cancer in general and 9,000 related deaths were recorded in 2022. But experts warn that the true numbers are unknown.
“It is currently not possible to accurately estimate the true burden of breast cancer in the Pacific Islands due to significant challenges in cancer data collection and the incomplete coverage of population-based cancer registries,” Dr. Berlin Kafoa, Director of the Pacific Community’s Public Health Division in Noumea, New Caledonia, told IPS, adding that it was an issue that countries were working to rectify.
Lack of cancer data is one sign of the funding and resource constraints experienced by national health services. And women are being affected, especially in rural communities where they have less access to knowledge about breast cancer and live far from urban-based health clinics and hospitals. These are major factors in <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/02/1160391">global disparities</a>, and while 83 percent of women in high-income countries are likely to survive following a breast cancer diagnosis, the likelihood of survival declines to 50 percent in low-income countries.
<a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/breast-cancer">Breast cancer</a> occurs when cells in the breast change, multiply and form tumors. Symptoms can include unusual lumps or physical changes in the breasts. If the cancer is detected early, the chances of successful surgery and treatment are high. At a more advanced stage, it can spread to other parts of the body. Risk of breast cancer increases after 40 years and with a family history of the disease, as well as lifestyle factors, such as tobacco and alcohol use and lack of physical exercise. However, this is not prescriptive and about half of all breast cancers are diagnosed in women with no significant risk criteria, apart from their age.
Importantly, being diagnosed with breast cancer today is not fatal and many women can enjoy long and productive lives. The key to this outcome is <a href="https://www.who.int/activities/promoting-cancer-early-diagnosis">early detection</a>, but one of the hurdles for women in the Pacific is that specialist services are centralized in main cities. In Papua New Guinea (PNG), women can seek mammograms, the main method of breast screening, in hospitals in the capital, Port Moresby, and the cities of Lae and Kimbe on the northeast coast of the mainland. But most of the 5.6 million women, who make up 47 percent of the population, live in rural areas, whether densely forested mountains or far-flung islands. And it could entail a long and costly journey by road, air or boat for many to reach a hospital with a mammogram machine.
But it is also not uncommon for women to hold back from seeking medical advice or proceeding with treatment because of cultural and community taboos.
“There is evidence to suggest that cultural and community taboos, personal inhibitions and fears surrounding medical examinations are significant factors contributing to the low levels of early breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among women in Pacific Island societies,” Kafoa said.
Modesty and privacy are important to many women in traditional Melanesian societies. In Palau, for example, a study published by Australia’s <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8408407/">Griffith University</a> in 2021 revealed that ‘low screening rates were, at least in part, explained as being due to women feeling uncomfortable during examinations due to its personal nature.’
There can also be pressure from families that may encourage or dissuade women from taking treatment. “If the family disagrees with the treatment, women might comply due to cultural norms,” and concerns about mastectomy and how it changes women’s bodies “can cause resistance to surgical procedures,” reports a breast cancer study in <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39068561/">Fiji</a> published last year.
Taking action now is imperative to save women’s lives across the region and, globally, achieve <a href="https://globalgoals.org/goals/3-good-health-and-well-being/">Sustainable Development Goal No. 3</a> of good health and well-being. The <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/02/1160391">International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)</a> predicts that breast cancer cases could increase globally by 38 percent and mortality by 68 percent by 2050. Experts project that cancer incidence in the <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7746436/">Pacific Islands</a> could rise by 84 percent between 2018 and 2040. Kafoa says that the “Pacific Island governments are not yet sufficiently prepared to confront the projected surge in breast cancer by mid-century.”
The PNG government’s national health plan includes strengthening health services to reduce cancer morbidity and mortality, but a population-wide breast screening program is yet to be rolled out. Waka says there is a need for more investment in breast cancer services. “One or two facilities is not enough to cater for the large numbers of women living with breast cancer,” she stressed.
But efforts to transform the quality and outreach of healthcare in the country, through the ‘glocal’ approach of combining global technology and local pathways to action, have begun. “This process is already underway,” <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/global-vision-local-impact-how-glocal-thinking-png-dr-grant-how5c/?trackingId=7Px%2FSEOmfZ5jckvp8foRvg%3D%3D">Dr. Grant R. Muddle</a>, ML, a global healthcare expert who has worked to assist health system transformation in Australia, the Pacific and other regions, told IPS. He is now working with health services in PNG.
Two years ago, a collaborative project was set up with an Australian health agency that “is providing PNG with proven cancer registry software and technical support, while local officials adapt it to PNG’s context. The result is a win-win: PNG quickly gains a modern data system and trained personnel, rather than building from scratch,” Muddle explained.
Mobile technology could also be used to help expand the recording of cancer cases. “Village health workers or clinic nurses, even in isolated areas, could be trained to input basic patient and tumor details into tablets or smartphones,” he continued.
A major step in improving rural health services occurred this year when a <a href="https://pnghausbung.com/pm-marape-opens-new-enga-provincial-hospital/">new public hospital</a> opened in the remote Highlands province of Enga. It is expected to have an operational mammography unit by the end of this year. But there is also a need to “take the screening technology to women, rather than expecting women to travel to the technology,” Muddle emphasized. “Globally mobile mammography clinics in vans or portable units have been used to bring breast cancer screening to underserved communities…these could be truck-mounted clinics or portable equipment that can be flown by small plane or ferried by boat to regions with no road access.”
And telemedicine, another proven strategy, can link isolated clinics to specialist doctors at provincial hospitals via video consultations.
As PNG celebrates its 50th anniversary of Independence this year, these initiatives support better outcomes for women’s breast cancer survival and the long journey ahead of meeting the nation’s healthcare goals.
“What needs to be done, we must do. Let us not compromise basic healthcare but at the same time provide specialist care. Together, let us secure a functioning health system for the 10 million people of PNG,” <a href="https://pmjamesmarape.com/pm-marape-calls-for-stronger-health-services-as-png-marks-50-years-of-independence/">Prime Minister James </a>Marape advocated to the Medical Society of PNG in September. 
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>Gaza Shows Subtle Signs of Recovery as UN Agencies Work to Meet Aid Needs</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 23 Oct 2025 17:21:50 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Oritro Karim</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Since the declaration of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 10, families in the Gaza Strip have begun returning to previously inaccessible areas, as humanitarian organizations work to scale up aid operations to meet growing needs on the ground even amid security risks, including unexploded ordnance. Displacement shelters across the enclave continue to […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/On-10-October-2025_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/On-10-October-2025_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/On-10-October-2025_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />On 10 October 2025, thousands of Palestinian families are moving along the coastal road back to northern Gaza, amid the extreme devastation of infrastructure. Credit: UNICEF/Mohammed NateelBy Oritro Karim UNITED NATIONS, Oct 23 2025 (IPS) Since the declaration of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 10, families in the Gaza Strip have begun returning to previously inaccessible areas, as humanitarian organizations work to scale up aid operations to meet growing needs on the ground even amid security risks, including unexploded ordnance.

Displacement shelters across the enclave continue to bear the brunt of the crisis, with most severely overcrowded and resources stretched to their limits after two years of conflict. Displacement has surged since the implementation of the ceasefire, with the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (<a href="https://www.unocha.org/news/todays-top-news-occupied-palestinian-territory-sudan-ukraine-13" target="_blank" rel="noopener">OCHA</a>) recording roughly 13,800 displacements toward Gaza City and north Gaza, and approximately 4,100 movements toward the eastern region of the enclave.
As the winter season threatens to exacerbate already harsh living conditions, the United Nations (UN) and its partners are working to expand winterization support through the distribution of makeshift tents, warm clothing, hygiene kits, blankets, and other essential bedding materials. A spokesperson for OCHA stated that winterization support is currently limited by the number of humanitarian deliveries that have been authorized by Israeli authorities, with only a select few UN agencies and partner organizations receiving clearance.
“We need thousands of trucks getting in every day, we need all the crossings open, and we need the bureaucratic obstacles lifted,” said Tom Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. “Aid must never be a bargaining chip, we shouldn’t have to ask for access, we shouldn’t have to make deals to make aid go through.”
As of October 19, the UN and its partners have collected over 10,638 metric tons of essential humanitarian supplies from the Kerem Shalom and Kissufim crossings through the <a href="https://info.un2720.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UN2720 mechanism</a>. Between October 17 and 19, humanitarian groups have offloaded over 6,455 pallets of aid—two-thirds of which being food and a fifth being water, sanitation, and hygiene supplies.
Concurrently, UN partners working on a food security assessment in the enclave reported that food parcels have been distributed across more than two dozen locations in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, reaching over 15,000 families. The parcels include essential items that Gazans have been deprived of for months—such as rice, lentils, beans, tomato paste, and sunflower oil.
Humanitarian groups have also prepared and distributed more than 944,000 meals through 178 community kitchens, marking an increase of over 286,000 daily meals compared to three weeks ago. The UN and its partners are now working to expand distribution points to improve accessibility and ensure that families can access food closer to their homes.
On October 20, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that it had transported four pallets of essential medical supplies from its southern warehouse to health facilities across the enclave, including medications for diabetes, chronic illnesses, infections, malnutrition, and pain management. Another UN partner agency also delivered reproductive health kits to patients in southern Gaza, assisting more than 8,300 people. Additionally, 1,500 postpartum kits were distributed to Al Awda Nuseirat Hospital to support maternal health services for the next three months.
That same day, Australian philanthropic organization Minderoo Foundation <a href="https://www.minderoo.org/media/joint-press-release-andrew-forrest-and-tom-fletcher/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> its pledge of AUD 10 million to humanitarian efforts in Gaza. Minderoo’s founder, Dr. Andrew Forrest, said that this pledge would have an “urgent focus on care environments for Palestinian children and the huge psycho-social needs caused by the war.”
“This is more than a donation: it’s a vote of confidence in the lifesaving work of the United Nations and our partners, and in humanity’s ability to act when it matters most,” said Fletcher. “Dr. Forrest and the Minderoo Foundation are helping us scale up in response to the ceasefire. We will match their commitment with every ounce of effort to get food, water, medicine, shelter and dignity to families in Gaza.”
Maternal and newborn health has suffered dramatically without essential food and health supplies, with 11,500 pregnant women facing catastrophic starvation conditions. Addressing this in the immediate sense, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has brought in aid through the Kerem Shalom crossing and distributed medical supplies, including incubators and fetal monitoring machines. UNFPA Deputy Executive Director Andrew Saberton told reporters on October 22 that much more assistance was waiting at the borders, such as supplies for safe births and hygiene items, and this would require all border crossings to be opened and for all impediments to be removed to bring aid into the north and south of Gaza.
“Looking ahead to recovery, we need to restore Gaza’s healthcare and protection services for women and girls. This means rebuilding maternity wards for the 130 births that happen every day,” said Saberton.
Despite ongoing humanitarian efforts, the security situation in Gaza remains highly volatile, with experts underscoring continued hostilities and vast amounts of explosives on the ground that pose daily threats to thousands of Palestinians. On October 21, Luke David Irving, Chief of the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told reporters that the agency has identified more than 560 explosive remnants of war in areas now accessible to civilians, emphasizing that “the full extent of contamination in Gaza will not be known until a comprehensive survey can take place.”
As of October 21, UNMAS has recorded approximately 328 fatalities as a direct result of contact with explosive ordnance, noting that the true number is projected to be much higher. According to Irving, these risks are projected to exacerbate as recovery and reconstruction efforts begin, with increased movement setting off ordnance hidden in rubble.
It is estimated that 50 to 60 million tons of debris may have been contaminated with explosive ordnance over the past two years. Irving stated that UNMAS has reached over 460,000 people with risk-education services, including communities in displacement shelters and health facilities, and has produced over 400,000 informational materials, including flyers and stickers. Irving also stressed the need for increased funding for clearance efforts, estimating that over 14 million to 15 million USD will be needed to continue operations for the next six months.
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>In Zimbabwe, Secondhand Clothes From the West Are Collapsing the Local Textile Industry</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/in-zimbabwe-secondhand-clothes-from-the-west-are-collapsing-the-local-textile-industry/</link>
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<pubDate>Thu, 23 Oct 2025 08:40:27 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Farai Shawn Matiashe</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Shamiso Marambanyika assists a male customer in selecting a pair of jeans on a Saturday morning in Mutare, a city in the eastern part of Zimbabwe. The 38-year-old mother of three showed the customer a brand of Marks and Spencer, commonly known as M&S, a British retailer based in London. “I can give you this […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-vendor-speaks-to-a-customer-at-a-second-hand-clothes-market-in-Mutare-Zimbabwe.-Photo-Farai-Shawn-Matiashe-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A vendor speaks to a customer at a second-hand clothes market in Mutare, Zimbabwe. Credit: Farai Shawn Matiashe/IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-vendor-speaks-to-a-customer-at-a-second-hand-clothes-market-in-Mutare-Zimbabwe.-Photo-Farai-Shawn-Matiashe-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-vendor-speaks-to-a-customer-at-a-second-hand-clothes-market-in-Mutare-Zimbabwe.-Photo-Farai-Shawn-Matiashe.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />A vendor speaks to a customer at a second-hand clothes market in Mutare, Zimbabwe. Credit: Farai Shawn Matiashe/IPSBy Farai Shawn Matiashe MUTARE, Zimbabwe, Oct 23 2025 (IPS) Shamiso Marambanyika assists a male customer in selecting a pair of jeans on a Saturday morning in Mutare, a city in the eastern part of Zimbabwe.
The 38-year-old mother of three showed the customer a brand of Marks and Spencer, commonly known as M&S, a British retailer based in London. 
“I can give you this for 5 dollars,” Marambanyika screamed to the customer, who later picked out a different pair of jeans. She is a vendor at a popular market for secondhand clothes in Sakubva, a densely populated suburb in Mutare, near the border with Mozambique.
Some of the popular brands of jeans Marambanyika had in her stock include Hennes & Mauritz, known as H&M from Sweden, and Levi’s and Old from the United States. These secondhand clothes are dumped in Western countries like the United Kingdom, shipped to Africa, and smuggled into Zimbabwe through Mutare, the gateway to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique.
The clothes are so cheap that one can get three T-shirts for USD 1. This has had repercussions not only on the local textile industry but also on the environment in Africa.
Pushing Local Clothing Manufacturers and Retailers Out of Business
Some clothing companies left by the British are struggling because of secondhand clothes and Zimbabwe’s ailing economy. Truworths Zimbabwe, a fashion retail chain established in 1957, closed about 34 of the 101 stores it operated in the late 1990s. To cut its operating costs, Truworths also reduced its workforce at its manufacturing division in the capital, Harare.
Bekithemba Ndebele, chief executive officer at Truworths Zimbabwe, confirmed to IPS that the company was sold because it was struggling. After going insolvent, Truworths was sold for USD 1 and officially delisted from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange in July 2025.
Last year, Truworths released a statement that the company could not compete with cheap imports. Ndebele declined to give further details. These formal clothing businesses cannot compete with thousands of individuals who sell smuggled secondhand clothes at markets in cities across the country, in the streets and from car boots.
At Marambanyika’s market in Sakubva, there are more than 1000 vending stalls, each vocally advertising their goods to attract potential customers. In Mutare city center, tens of vendors pay USD 6 per day to sell secondhand clothes on weekends. Unlike these vendors who do not pay taxes, retailers like Truworths pay taxes and are forced to use volatile local currency.
Rashweat Mukundu, a social commentator based in Harare, says economic hardship forces many to resort to secondhand clothes. “This is an overall economic challenge. Many people have no choice but to go and buy secondhand clothes because they cannot afford the new clothes sold in the organized retail sector,” he says.
In retail outlets, a pair of jeans costs at least USD 20.
Marambanyika, who hails from Buhera in Manicaland Province, was pushed into the secondhand clothing trade in 2023 after failing to secure a job. She pays USD 115 to a middleman known as a transporter who will buy a bale weighing 45 kilograms from Beira, a city and one of the business ports in Mozambique. “Prices vary with the quality of the jeans. There are about 100 pairs of jeans in a bale. I make a profit of USD 55 from each bale, and it takes two weeks to sell them all,” Marambanyika says, adding that she pays USD 22 monthly to the local authority.
Anesu Mugabe, a clothing designer and manufacturer based in Harare, says these secondhand clothes are often sold at extremely low prices, making it impossible for local manufacturers to compete.
“For instance, you can find a pair of jeans for as little as USD 2. This is unheard of in local retail stores. This has led to a significant decline in sales for us, forcing us to scale down our operations or even shut down altogether,” says Mugabe, who is now targeting corporates as a survival strategy.
Threat to the Environment 
Across Africa, from Kenya to Nigeria, cheap secondhand clothes are polluting the environment, according to a new report, <a href="https://changingmarkets.org/report/trashion-the-stealth-export-of-waste-plastic-clothes-to-kenya/">Trashion: The Stealth Export of Waste Plastic Clothes</a> to Kenya, published in February 2023.
Other recycling companies argue that the trade reduces waste in the Global South, but some environmental experts believe the trade is doing the opposite. Research shows that in Kenya, secondhand clothes are dumped in rivers and landfills. “What we are seeing is not recycling but dumping second-hand clothing from the West,” says Nyasha Mpahlo, executive director at Green Governance. “Unfortunately, there is no mechanism to dispose of the waste from secondhand clothes. Secondhand clothing is found in landfills. The industry is also causing carbon emissions.”
Amkela Sidange, an environmental education and publicity manager at the state’s Environmental Management Agency, says the textile waste is very minimal in Zimbabwe, contributing an estimated 7% to the total waste generated on an annual basis.
“An analysis of the source of the textile waste indicates it is coming from various sources, mostly coming from the textile industry and nothing on record is linked to secondhand clothes,” she tells IPS, citing a Solid Waste survey conducted in 2023.
Attempts to Ban Secondhand Clothes
Other countries, like Rwanda, successfully banned secondhand clothes in 2016 to protect the local textile industry. Zimbabwe did the same in 2015 but introduced import taxes in 2017 after pressure from the locals. But these measures and arrests by police did not tame the smuggling of secondhand clothes.
Local textile industry players are calling for the government to ban the importation of secondhand clothes and to reduce taxes on local suppliers to protect the local textile industry. In August, Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe instructed local authorities to enforce the ban on the sale of secondhand clothes. But traders have defied the minister’s efforts.
Marambanyika says if she is forced to pay import duty and other taxes, she will go out of business. “I feed my one son and two daughters and pay school fees for them using proceeds from this business. I cannot afford to pay those punitive taxes,” she says. “I will close and relocate to the village.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>The Dangers of Green Mining</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 23 Oct 2025 04:07:54 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Stephanie Dowlen</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Biodiversity]]></category>
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<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ipsnews.net/?p=192728</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Even amidst the regressive resistance of the current U.S. administration, the world is shifting toward a green energy future. As governments pledge to phase out fossil fuels, companies tout electric vehicles, and financiers pour billions into solar, wind and batteries, it seems the necessary transition from fossil fuels to clean energy is finally picking up […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="169" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Drone-photo-of-nickel_-300x169.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Drone-photo-of-nickel_-300x169.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Drone-photo-of-nickel_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Drone photo of nickel mine in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Courtesy Gecko ProjectBy Stephanie Dowlen MALMO, Sweden, Oct 23 2025 (IPS) Even amidst the regressive resistance of the current <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/" target="_blank">U.S. administration</a>, the world is shifting toward a <a href="https://www.undp.org/kosovo/projects/inclusive-and-just-pathway-2030-green-energy-future" target="_blank">green energy future</a>. As governments pledge to phase out fossil fuels, companies tout electric vehicles, and financiers pour billions into solar, wind and batteries, it seems the necessary transition from fossil fuels to clean energy is finally picking up pace.

But beneath the celebratory headlines lies a darker, inconvenient truth: the race to extract “transition minerals” widely used in current clean energy technology — is unleashing a new wave of destruction. 
And unless we change course, this mining boom will push us closer to collapse as it entrenches poverty, inequality, exploitation, violence and destruction. Expecting the same “extraction at all costs” model that created the planetary crisis we face today to solve it is a fallacy. 
In <a href="https://forestsandfinance.org/publications/mining-and-money-financial-fault-lines-in-the-energy-transition/" target="_blank">a new report from the Forests & Finance Coalition</a>, analysts found that banks and investors are rewarding bad behaviour by financing some of the worst polluters and human rights offenders in operation. 
Over half of the $493 billion in loans and underwriting provided between 2016 and 2024, and over 80% of the $289 billion held in bonds and shares went to just ten transition mineral mining companies. Among the winners are Glencore, Vale and Rio Tinto.
Proponents argue transition minerals are indispensable for renewable energy. But focusing on raw extraction rather than reducing demand, recycling or reuse, has fueled a rapid expansion of new mines. Too often, the narrative of “green” or “clean” energy obscures the real costs and justifies an extractive model mirroring the worst parts of the fossil fuel era.
The harms linked to mining are extreme. In Brazil, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/victims-demand-justice-over-deadly-brazilian-dam-collapse-uk-lawsuit-closes-2025-03-13/" target="_blank">Vale has caused two catastrophic dam collapses</a> killing hundreds and destroying the environment as toxic waste spilled. Undeterred, banks increased their financing since Vale’s second dam collapsed in 2019. 
In Indonesia, <a href="https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/major-nickel-supplier-harita-knew-about-water-contamination-at-indonesian-operation-for-a-decade" target="_blank">Harita Group</a>’s nickel complex is powered by coal, increasing emissions and damaging public health. Local communities on <a href="https://maritimeoptima.com/public/ports/pages/IDOBI?country=Indonesia&name=Obi_Island" target="_blank">Obi Island</a> have been poisoned as carcinogenic waste has leached into the island’s drinking water.
Recent investigations show that Harita’s executives knew about this contamination and covered it up for over a decade while financiers backed its expansion and successful Initial Public Offering in 2023. 
These are not isolated scandals but symptoms of a system where corporations are unaccountable, and where financiers choose profit over life again and again. Consider this: nearly 70 percent of transition mineral mines <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-022-00994-6#:~:text=Combined%2C%2069%25%20of%20ETM%20projects,Indigenous%20peoples'%20and%20peasant%20land." target="_blank">overlap</a> with Indigenous or community lands and over 70 percent are located in high-biodiversity regions already facing climate stress.
Meanwhile, wealthy countries are demanding more minerals to produce EVs for affluent markets, while <a href="https://unsdg.un.org/latest/stories/decoding-africa%E2%80%99s-energy-journey-three-key-numbers#:~:text=access%20to%20electricity-,Around%20600%20million%20Africans%20still%20lack%20reliable%20access%20to%20electricity,seasons%20and%20boosting%20agricultural%20output." target="_blank">600 million</a> people in Africa and 150 million in Asia still lack basic access to electricity. 
This is not the blueprint for a just energy transition. It’s a new extractive frontier – powering Teslas for the rich while leaving behind exploited workers, poisoned rivers, and displaced communities. Urgent reforms are needed to ensure the energy transition addresses the climate crisis instead of greenlighting destructive practices.
There needs to be a transformation of how minerals are sourced, financed, and governed. Banks and investors must respect human rights by requiring <a href="https://www.ihrb.org/resources/what-is-free-prior-and-informed-consent-fpic" target="_blank">Free, Prior and Informed Consent</a> (FPIC) for Indigenous Peoples, protecting defenders, and ensuring remedy for harmed communities. 
They must protect nature through enforceable zero-deforestation safeguards, strict toxic waste controls, and bans on high-risk practices like deep-sea mining. They must strengthen accountability by disclosing financing, enforcing ESG policies across corporate groups, and ensuring grievance mechanisms are fit for purpose. 
And they must align finance with climate goals by ending reliance on coal-powered smelters, phasing out harmful practices, and demanding credible transition plans from mining companies.
Governments must also step up with strong regulations to equitably reduce mineral demand, prevent overconsumption in wealthy countries, and prioritize renewable access for the billions still excluded. International frameworks — like the UN’s emerging principles on critical minerals — must be strengthened and enforced.
We can still choose a just energy transition – one built on equitable access to clean power and respect for people and ecosystems. A just transition requires just finance: capital that flows toward equity, accountability, and sustainability, not deeper extraction and harm. 
Such a transition would not just cut emissions but also break from the exploitative model that created today’s crisis.
If banks and investors refuse to change course, they will be remembered as champions of the next great wave of environmental destruction and human rights abuses. The choice is stark: a clean energy revolution that delivers justice, or one that repeats the mistakes that brought us to the brink? The time to decide is now.
Stephanie Dowlen is Forest Campaigner with Rainforest Action Network which is part of the Forests & Finance Coalition
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>New Climate Goal: To Quadruple Sustainable Fuels</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/new-climate-goal-to-quadruple-sustainable-fuels/</link>
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<pubDate>Wed, 22 Oct 2025 23:46:23 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mario Osava</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Climate Action]]></category>
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<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ipsnews.net/?p=192721</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Quadrupling the production and use of sustainable fuels by 2035 is the goal of a new international initiative to drive energy transition and mitigate the climate crisis, which will be launched during Brazil’s climate summit in November. The Belem Commitment on Sustainable Fuels, led by Brazil with the support of India, Italy, and Japan, awaits […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Brazil has become a major producer of ethanol, a biofuel that competes with gasoline. Monocultures of sugar cane form a monotonous landscape in the southern state of São Paulo and in the country's central-west region, but they help decarbonize transport in the country. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-768x576.jpg 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-629x472.jpg 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-1.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Brazil has become a major producer of ethanol, a biofuel that competes with gasoline. Monocultures of sugar cane form a monotonous landscape in the southern state of São Paulo and in the country's central-west region, but they help decarbonize transport in the country. Credit: Mario Osava / IPSBy Mario Osava RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 22 2025 (IPS) Quadrupling the production and use of sustainable fuels by 2035 is the goal of a new international initiative to drive energy transition and mitigate the climate crisis, which will be launched during Brazil’s climate summit in November.
The Belem Commitment on Sustainable Fuels, led by Brazil with the support of India, Italy, and Japan, awaits the support of other countries after its official launch during the so-called Climate Summit on November 6 and 7 in Belem, northern Brazil.
The meeting of heads of state and government will this time precede the <a href="https://cop30.br/en">30th Conference of the Parties (COP30)</a> on climate change, which will be hosted by Belem from November 10 to 21. The unusual separation between the COP and the summit aims to mitigate the accommodation problems of the Amazonian city.
The commitment, nicknamed “Belem 4x,” is based on a report by the International Energy Agency that points to the possibility of quadrupling the volume, adding new alternatives such as green hydrogen, sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), and shipping and synthetic fuels to ethanol and biodiesel.
At COP28, held in 2023 in Dubai, it was agreed to initiate “a transition away from fossil fuels” as an indispensable measure to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. In Belem, the goal is to implement that consensual decision.
“Brazil was careful not to limit the initiative to biofuels in order to include various sustainable fuels, an important distinction because there are countries, especially in Europe, that oppose biofuels,” warned Claudio Angelo, international policy coordinator for <a href="https://www.oc.eco.br/en/">Climate Observatory</a>, a Brazilian coalition of 133 social organizations.
Objections to biofuels include potential environmental damage, land conflicts, and competition with food production, he said by phone to IPS from Brasilia.
<div id="attachment_192722" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192722" class="wp-image-192722" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2.jpg" alt="Extensive cattle ranching has degraded 100 million hectares in Brazil. One third of this area can be recovered for the cultivation of sugar cane, corn, and oilseeds to double biofuel production, according to a study by the Institute for Energy and Environment. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS" width="629" height="472" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2.jpg 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2-768x576.jpg 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2-629x472.jpg 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-2-200x149.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />Extensive cattle ranching has degraded 100 million hectares in Brazil. One third of this area can be recovered for the cultivation of sugar cane, corn, and oilseeds to double biofuel production, according to a study by the Institute for Energy and Environment. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS</div>
Biofuels market
It is an old Brazilian dream to create a large international biofuels market, due to its large ethanol production and its potential to expand it.
Brazil tried, unsuccessfully, to promote this market in the 1990s and early 21st century, based on the existence of many sugar cane producing countries, the crop with the highest productivity for this biofuel.
Cuba, once the world’s largest sugar exporter, rejected the proposal with the argument of prioritizing food, despite the decline of its sugar industry and its lack of energy, due to its dependence on imported oil, which became scarce after the fall of the Soviet Union, its major supplier, in 1991.
Brazil became the largest sugar exporter in the mid-1990s, two decades after launching its National Alcohol Program to replace part of its gasoline with ethanol.
It sought to mitigate the economic crisis caused by the rising oil prices, which tripled in 1973 and doubled again in 1979. At that time, the country imported about 80% of the crude oil it consumed; today it exports oil and ethanol.
Many countries use ethanol, blended into gasoline, as a way to reduce pollution. In Brazil, the blend already reaches 30%, and pure ethanol is also used as automotive fuel.
But most passenger cars in the country today are “flex,” consuming gasoline or ethanol and blends in any proportion.
In 2023, the Global Biofuels Alliance was born in New Delhi during the annual summit of the Group of 20 (G20) most relevant industrial and emerging economies, in a new attempt to promote its production.
<div id="attachment_192723" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192723" class="wp-image-192723" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3.jpg" alt="The City Park, under construction in January, in the Amazonian city of Belem, which will host the debates and negotiations among government delegations and the United Nations at COP30, from November 10 to 21. Credit: Rafa Neddermeyer / COP30" width="629" height="354" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3.jpg 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3-300x169.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3-768x432.jpg 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-3-629x354.jpg 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />The City Park, under construction in January, in the Amazonian city of Belem, which will host the debates and negotiations among government delegations and the United Nations at COP30, from November 10 to 21. Credit: Rafa Neddermeyer / COP30</div>
Ambitious goal
Now, at COP30, the aim is to expand the attempt to replace fossil fuels with an ambitious goal: to quadruple the current production of alternative fuels within 10 years.
This follows the path charted at COP28, held in Dubai in 2023, where it was agreed to initiate “a transition away from fossil fuels” as an indispensable measure to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. In Belem, the goal is to implement that consensual decision.
Currently, this production, basically of biofuels, reaches 175 billion liters, about two-thirds ethanol and one-third biodiesel. The United States surpasses Brazil as the largest producer.
Brazil produced 36.8 billion liters of ethanol and 9.07 billion liters of biodiesel in 2024. In recent years, production of corn-based ethanol has grown, utilizing the surplus of this grain in the country’s central-west region. Its share is already close to 20% of the total.
A study by the<a href="https://energiaeambiente.org.br/home-page"> Institute for Energy and Environment</a> (Iema), released on October 9, states that Brazil will be able to double this production by 2050 without deforesting new areas. The utilization of degraded pastureland would be sufficient to achieve the goal.
The country has about 100 million hectares of such pastureland, almost entirely abandoned. This is equivalent to twice the territory of Spain and is set to increase, as Brazil has 238 million cattle, far exceeding its 213 million human inhabitants.
From this total, the cultivation aimed at doubling biofuels could occupy 25 to 30 million hectares. Plenty of land would remain for the expansion of food agriculture, emphasized Felipe Barcellos e Silva, a researcher at Iema and author of the study.
According to his calculations, a portion of the pastureland would be allocated to reforestation for biome restoration and environmental protection areas, another part to the recovery of the pasturelands themselves for more productive cattle ranching.
Between 55 and 60 million hectares would remain for energy and food agriculture, with about half for each.
The area for biofuels would vary depending on the choice for more biodiesel, which requires the cultivation of oilseeds, or more ethanol, in which case expanding the area of sugar cane or corn.
The alternatives comprise six scenarios that combine priorities for different raw materials and the option to produce other fuels, such as SAF and green diesel, which is different from biodiesel.
<div id="attachment_192724" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192724" class="wp-image-192724" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4.jpg" alt="Soy is another monoculture that occupies vast expanses of land in central-western and southern Brazil. Its oil fuels the biodiesel industry by offering surpluses at a low price, since soybean bran is the most in-demand byproduct for livestock feed. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS" width="629" height="472" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4.jpg 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4-629x472.jpg 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Biocombustibles-en-la-COP30-4-200x149.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />Soy is another monoculture that occupies vast expanses of land in central-western and southern Brazil. Its oil fuels the biodiesel industry by offering surpluses at a low price, since soybean bran is the most in-demand byproduct for livestock feed. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS</div>
Persistent alternatives
“Biodiesel has a problem because it is a degradable organic compound,” unstable, while green diesel is a product of the same vegetable oil but subjected to hydrotreatment and has “physicochemical properties similar to mineral diesel,” explained Roberto Kishinami, a physicist and strategic specialist at the non-governmental<a href="https://climaesociedade.org/en/who-we-are/"> Institute for Climate and Society</a>.
Green diesel, he assured, fully replaces fossil diesel without damaging vehicles and has the advantage of emitting fewer urban pollutants than biodiesel, such as fine particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxide.
“The dozens of biodiesel plants (installed in Brazil) will disappear at some point. They were a temporary solution, favored by the soybean oil surplus, when soybean bran had growing demand,” as livestock feed, Kishinami told IPS by phone from São Paulo.
In his assessment, the energy transition and the decarbonization of transport and industry need sustainable fuels, since electrification is not economically viable for all activities. A combination of the two solutions will have to prevail.
The creation of an international market for these fuels, especially biofuels, depends on standardizing norms and patterns worldwide, a difficult task especially given the rigid European demands.
Furthermore, it faces geopolitical issues, such as “the US-China trade war that will dominate the coming decades,” concluded Kishinami.
Biofuel production in Brazil is growing not only through the expansion of crops but also through technological advances and the utilization of waste.
Second-generation ethanol is already being produced from cane straw, and biomethane, which is equivalent to natural gas, is produced through the biodigestion of vinasse generated in ethanol production, noted Silva.
There is also the beginning of cultivation of the macauba palm (Acrocomia aculeata), which has different names in Latin America and has high oil productivity.
Electrification will take time. It is relatively fast for light vehicles but slow for heavy vehicles, whose useful life reaches about 20 years. This is where decarbonization is achieved through biofuels, argued Silva.
“The transition in transport will continue until at least 2050,” after which biofuels will be able to meet other demands, including power generation, he concluded in a telephone interview with IPS from São Paulo.
The commitment to quadruple sustainable fuels is positive, but it cannot in “any way” dominate the energy debate at COP30, warned Angelo.
“The success of COP30 depends on promoting the implementation of a just, orderly, and equitable transition to eliminate fossil fuels, which are the main cause of global warming,” he concluded.
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<title>International Day for Climate Action, 2025</title>
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<pubDate>Wed, 22 Oct 2025 16:45:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>External Source</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[  We are in a climate emergency. The Earth is already over 1.3 °C warmer than pre-industrial times. 2024 was the hottest year ever recorded. More than 150 climate disasters struck the world last year. Extreme weather displaced over 800,000 people. Wildfires and floods now define the new normal. We are failing the 1.5 °C […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="168" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/International-Day-for-Climate-Action-2025-300x168.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/International-Day-for-Climate-Action-2025-300x168.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/International-Day-for-Climate-Action-2025.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By External Source Oct 22 2025 (IPS-Partners)
We are in a climate emergency. 
The Earth is already over 1.3 °C warmer than pre-industrial times. 
2024 was the hottest year ever recorded. 

More than 150 climate disasters struck the world last year. 
Extreme weather displaced over 800,000 people. 
Wildfires and floods now define the new normal. 
We are failing the 1.5 °C goal unless we act now. 
COP30 is coming to Belém, Brazil, in November 2025. 
But talk is not enough. 
We must shift systems, not just carbon. 
From blind targets to equitable transitions. 
From fossil lock-in to regenerative energy. 
From climate policy at arm’s length to climate justice at the core. 
Every fraction of a degree matters; now more than ever. 
Women, Indigenous Peoples, and low-income communities pay the highest price. 
We need mass decarbonization, climate finance, and rights-based adaptation. 
We need unity across sectors, borders, and generations. 
The choices we make today will decide the severity of tomorrow. 
October 24 | International Day for Climate Action. 
Act now. For Justice. For Survival.
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<title>Community Volunteers Working to Safeguard Bangladesh’s Last Wild Elephants</title>
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<pubDate>Wed, 22 Oct 2025 10:09:53 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Rafiqul Islam</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[When wild elephant herds come down from the hills in search of food, Sona Miahm, with community volunteers, steps forward to help prevent human-elephant conflicts. Miah is leading a 14-member elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar, one of the last natural elephant habitats in Bangladesh. […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Elephant-conservation-bangladesh-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Members of the elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar. Credit: Rafiqul Islam/IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Elephant-conservation-bangladesh-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Elephant-conservation-bangladesh-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Elephant-conservation-bangladesh.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Members of the elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar. Credit: Rafiqul Islam/IPSBy Rafiqul Islam COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh, Oct 22 2025 (IPS) When wild elephant herds come down from the hills in search of food, Sona Miahm, with community volunteers, steps forward to help prevent human-elephant conflicts.
Miah is leading a 14-member elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar, one of the last natural elephant habitats in Bangladesh. 
“For lack of food in reserve forests, wild elephants often rush to localities and damage crop fields. And, once we get informed, we go to the spot and try to return the elephant herd to the forest,” he said.
According to the Forest Department, there are now about 64 wild elephants in the reserve forests in Ukhiya and Teknaf in Bangladesh’s southeastern coastal district, Cox’s Bazar.
Community volunteers often risk their lives in returning the wild elephants to the forests, but they do so to protect the country’s last wild mammoths.
He explained how they mitigate human-elephant conflicts in their locality in the Inani area.
“The elephant response teams use hand-mikes and torches to encourage the elephants to return to the forest,” he said.
<div id="attachment_192717" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192717" class="size-full wp-image-192717" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bangladesh-elephant-conservation.jpg" alt="Members of the elephant response team (ERT) examine an elephant believed to be electrocuted. " width="630" height="840" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bangladesh-elephant-conservation.jpg 630w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bangladesh-elephant-conservation-225x300.jpg 225w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bangladesh-elephant-conservation-354x472.jpg 354w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px" />Members of the elephant response team (ERT) examine an elephant believed to be electrocuted.</div>
With a small grant from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP),<a href="https://www.arannayk.org/"> Arannayk Foundation</a>, a Dhaka-based conservation organization, formed four elephant response teams (ERTs) in Inani and Ukhiya forest ranges in Cox’s Bazar, comprising 40 men.
Working alongside the Bangladesh Forest Department, these ERTs aim to minimize human-elephant conflicts and support wildlife rescues. The ERTs have helped prevent 127 potential human-elephant conflicts in the past two years.
Dr. Mohammed Muzammel Hoque, national coordinator of <a href="https://sgp.undp.org/">UNDP’s GEF Small Grants Program</a>, said the UNDP provided a small grant of USD 39,182 in September 2023 to the Arannayk Foundation to implement its two-year Ecosystem Awareness and Restoration Through Harmony (EARTH) project.
Programme coordinator Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal said the project was implemented to restore forest ecosystems and involve local communities in wildlife conservation.
Human-Elephant Conflicts Rise
Due to the destruction of their natural habitats caused by deforestation, hill-cutting, and unplanned industrial expansion, the wild elephants come into localities in search of food, resulting in the rise of human-elephant conflicts.
Conflicts have resulted in the deaths of both community members and elephants.
Elephants are often being killed by electrocution in the Bangladesh southeast region since farmers install electric fences around their crop fields to protect crops from damage.
The most recent incident of an elephant being killed occurred in the Dochhari beat within the Ukhiya forest range in Cox’s Bazar on September 17, 2025. Mozammel Hossain, a resident of Ukhiya, said farmers had used electrified traps around their croplands and this electrocuted the elephant
He said food shortages push elephant herds to enter crop fields, while some farmers resort to illegal and lethal methods against the mammoths.
The Ukhiya and Teknaf regions have reported at least four elephant deaths in the past year.
Abdul Karim, an ERT member in the Boro Inani area of Cox’s Bazar, said elephants often attack human settlements and damage crops and orchards, increasing their conflicts with humans.
“We try to mitigate human-elephant conflicts and save both humans and mammoths. But, since 2021, four people have been killed in elephant attacks near the Inani forest range,” he said.
According to the Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division of the Bangladesh Forest Department, from 2016 to January 2025, 102 elephant deaths were recorded alone in Chattogram.
Retaliatory killings, electrocution, poaching, and train collisions have caused many of these deaths.
Saiful Islam, a resident of the Inani area, said wild elephants have been trapped within their habitat too after the influx of Rohingyas there in 2017.
Introduce Elephant Non-Preferred Crops
Crops typically eschewed by elephants, including citrus, pepper, bitter gourd, chili, cane, and okra, should be introduced around the elephant habitats.
“We are encouraging farmers to start such crops to avoid conflicts with elephants. We are also making them aware of elephant conservation,” Saiful Islam, also a community volunteer at Choto Inani, told IPS.
Firoz Al Amin, range officer of the Inani forest range in Ukhiya, said the Forest Department arranged 12 awareness programmes on elephant conservation in the Inani range.
Arannayk Foundation identified elephant non-preferred plots adjacent to high human-elephant conflict zones within the buffer area. With community involvement, five demonstration plots were created on portions of land belonging to five beneficiaries to mitigate elephant crop raiding.
It established four chili-coated rope bio-fences: two at Mohammad Shofir Bill and one each at Boro Inani and Imamerdeil to reduce crop damage caused by elephants. These bio-fencing interventions have benefited 85 vulnerable households in these locations. The fences consist of coconut ropes coated with a deterrent blend of chili powder, tobacco, and grease, suspended at human height between trees to prevent elephant access to agricultural and residential areas.
Urgent Measures Needed to Save Elephants
A 2016 survey by the <a href="https://portals.iucn.org/library/sites/library/files/documents/2016-085.pdf">International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)</a> said that there were only 457 elephants left in Bangladesh, of which 268 were wild, 93 were migratory, and 96 were captive.
However, about 124 wild elephants died across Bangladesh’s main elephant habitats—Cox’s Bazar, Chattogram, Chittagong Hill Tracts and Mymensingh—over the last decade.
Experts suggest a comprehensive strategy for restoring elephant habitats to prevent their extinction, which requires long-term planning, reducing encroachment on forest areas, and removing unlawful occupants.
Dr. Monirul H. Khan, a zoology professor at Jahangirnagar University, said forests and elephant habitats must be protected at any cost to save the mammoths, as their number is dwindling day by day in Bangladesh.
Many new settlements and crop cultivations have taken place inside the country’s elephant habitats, he said, accelerating human-elephant conflicts.
Growing crops that elephants typically do not prefer, improving bio-fencing with trip alarms, and creating salt lick areas can all help reduce human-elephant conflicts.
The experts say implementing beehive fencing not only safeguards crops but also generates job and income opportunities for the local community. Therefore, it is possible to achieve elephant conservation while simultaneously minimizing human-elephant conflicts.
Monirul said the Bangladesh government has taken on an elephant conservation project with its own funding for the first time. “I hope the project will help conserve the mammoths in Bangladesh,” he added.
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<li><a href="https://www.ipsnews.net/2024/06/climate-change-pollution-push-karnaphuli-fishermen-to-change-their-ancestral-fishing-profession/" >Climate Change, Pollution Push Karnaphuli Fishers Out of the Profession</a></li>
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<title>When Taliban Shut Down the Internet, Women Lost their Lifeline to Aid, Education & Each Other</title>
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<pubDate>Wed, 22 Oct 2025 04:54:11 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>UN Women</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[When the Taliban recently cut off the Internet and phone networks across Afghanistan, millions of women and girls were silenced. For those with connectivity, the blackout severed their last link to the outside world – a fragile connection that had kept education, work, and hope alive. Many women in Afghanistan still lack access to the […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="136" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Womens-rights-have_-300x136.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Womens-rights-have_-300x136.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Womens-rights-have_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Women’s rights have steadily eroded in Afghanistan since 2021. Credit: UN Women
   
The recent blackout exposed how vital the Internet has become for Afghan women and how, when that connection is lost, hope fades and isolation takes hold.By UN Women NEW YORK, Oct 22 2025 (IPS) When the Taliban recently <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/afghanistans-cellphone-internet-services-down-monitoring-shows-2025-09-30/" target="_blank">cut off the Internet and phone networks across Afghanistan</a>, millions of women and girls were silenced. For those with connectivity, the blackout severed their last link to the outside world – a fragile connection that had kept education, work, and hope alive.

Many women in Afghanistan still lack access to the Internet, a basic phone, or the literacy to use digital tools. For those that do, that connection is a rare lifeline to life-saving services and the outside world.
For now, access has largely been restored. But the message was clear: in Afghanistan, this valuable gateway to learning, expression, and services for women and girls can be shut down at any moment.
Afghan women are already banned from secondary and higher education, from most forms of work, and public spaces such as parks, gyms, and sports clubs.
Many women are also receiving humanitarian aid, including in earthquake-affected eastern Afghanistan, and among those returning – many forcibly – from Iran and Pakistan.
The digital and phone blackout intensified feelings of stress, isolation and anxiety among women and girls.
Women entrepreneurs participate in business development training in a UN Women-supported Multi-Purpose Women’s Centre in Parwan province, eastern Afghanistan in January 2025. Photo: UN Women/Ali Omid Taqdisyan
What happens when Afghan women and girls go offline?
In Afghanistan, the impact of Internet and phone blackouts falls more heavily on women and girls. It eliminates what is, for many, a final means of learning, earning, and connecting.
When women and girls lose Internet access, they lose the ability to:
<ul>• Access aid: Those who are connected can use the Internet or phones to find out about support available, and aid agencies rely on connectivity to continue operations. 
• Learn about disasters: Recent data shows 9 per cent of women use the Internet to access information on climate disasters. 
• Seek services and reporting mechanisms for survivors of gender-based violence or those at risk. 
• Learn: Online classes and study groups were a lifeline for girls banned from secondary schools, and women banned from universities. 
• Work: Online businesses are a vital source of income for many women to sustain their families after being pushed out of many formal roles. 
• Connect: Social apps and social media provided safe spaces to support one another and exchange information. 
• Be visible: For women already excluded from public life, the digital world is one the last places to exist and resist. </ul>
For more on what life looks like for women in Afghanistan today, see our <a href="https://word-edit.officeapps.live.com/we/LINK" target="_blank">FAQs</a>.
Going dark in the middle of humanitarian crises
The national internet blackout started a month after a 6.0 earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan on 31 August, with major aftershocks continuing throughout September and the emergency response and early recovery continuing.
Despite facing many challenges, women-led organizations have played a crucial role delivering life-saving aid and services to women and girls affected by the <a href="https://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2025/09/earthquake-in-eastern-afghanistan-un-women-humanitarian-update" target="_blank">earthquake</a>, and Afghan women and girl <a href="https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/feature-story/2025/08/many-forced-to-return-afghan-women-expelled-from-iran-and-pakistan" target="_blank">returnees</a> from neighbouring Iran and Pakistan.
During the blackout, NGOs were forced to halt humanitarian operations and cease field missions to emergency sites. Staff could not process payments or place orders for essential goods destined for women and their families.
When banks went offline, women affected by humanitarian crises were unable to access emergency cash assistance to buy essentials such as food.
The shutdown also made it much harder for survivors of gender-based violence to access help at a time when household tensions were rising across the country, and the risk of violence was escalating.
A UN Women team assessed the earthquake damage in Nurgal, one of the worst affected districts in Kunar province, northeastern Afghanistan. 
Online livelihoods switched off
In Afghanistan, waves of directives banning women from most jobs and restricting their movement without a male guardian have systematically pushed them out of public life.
For many women entrepreneurs, the Internet offers a rare space to work, build small businesses, and sell their products – such as nuts, spices, handicrafts, clothes and artworks – to customers within Afghanistan and overseas.
“There is no space for us to work outside our homes,” explained business owner Sama*, from Parwan in eastern Afghanistan. “There’s also no local market where we can display and sell our products.”
With the support of UN Women, Sama <a href="https://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/stories/news/2025/07/against-the-odds-afghan-women-are-building-livelihoods-and-resilience" target="_blank">built an online shop</a> selling knitted bags, purses and jewelry. 
“Through my online shop, I became well known,” she says. “I’m earning money, solving my financial problems, and becoming self-sufficient.”
When the blackout struck, women like Sama lost their only source of income overnight – a warning that for many Afghan women, connectivity is not a luxury, but a lifeline.
From blackout to global action
The Internet blackout in Afghanistan was a stark reminder that the digital world is not neutral. It can be space of empowerment. It can also be a tool of exclusion and isolation.
The stories of Afghan women remind us what is at stake: education, mental health, livelihoods, and hope. When women are silenced online, they are cut off further from opportunity and from the world. 
How UN Women is supporting women and girls in Afghanistan
Through its flagship programme, <a href="https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/feature-story/2024/05/rebuilding-the-womens-movement-in-afghanistan" target="_blank">Rebuilding the Women’s Movement</a>, UN Women in Afghanistan partnered with 140 women-led organizations across 24 provinces and supported 743 women staff with salaries and training – amplifying resilience even as public life is restricted.
<a href="https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/feature-story/2024/08/women-in-afghanistan-have-not-stopped-striving-for-their-rights" target="_blank">Read more</a> about our work in Afghanistan.
*Name was changed to protect her identity.
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>Desalination is Booming in Chile, but Farmers Hardly Benefit</title>
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<pubDate>Wed, 22 Oct 2025 00:14:53 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Orlando Milesi</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Desalination projects are booming in Chile, with 51 plants planned to process seawater and a combined investment of US$ 24.455 billion. However, these initiatives hardly benefit small-scale farmers, who are threatened by the prolonged drought, and cause environmental concerns. A survey by the Capital Goods Corporation and the Chilean Desalination and Reuse Association (Acades) revealed […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="163" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/desalination-300x163.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="View of a plant owned by Aguas Antofagasta, a company created 20 years ago that now has three desalination plants to supply drinking water to 184,000 families in that desert city in northern Chile. Credit: Courtesy of Acades" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/desalination-300x163.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/desalination.jpg 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />View of a plant owned by Aguas Antofagasta, a company created 20 years ago that now has three desalination plants to supply drinking water to 184,000 families in that desert city in northern Chile. Credit: Courtesy of AcadesBy Orlando Milesi SANTIAGO, Oct 22 2025 (IPS) Desalination projects are booming in Chile, with 51 plants planned to process seawater and a combined investment of US$ 24.455 billion. However, these initiatives hardly benefit small-scale farmers, who are threatened by the prolonged drought, and cause environmental concerns.
A survey by the <a href="https://www.acades.cl/">Capital Goods Corporation and the Chilean Desalination and Reuse Association</a> (Acades) revealed that these projects, already in the engineering and construction phases, will add 39,043 liters of water per second in production capacity."Using seawater, desalinated or saline, and reusing wastewater relieves pressure on rivers and aquifers, ensuring water for people, ecosystems, and productive activities" –Rafael Palacios.
Fifteen of these projects belong to the mining sector, eight to the industrial sector, eight to the water utility sector, and 20 are linked to green hydrogen, a clean fuel but very water-intensive, which the country aims to be a major producer of.
Of the future plants, 17 are located in the desert region of Antofagasta, in the far north of this elongated South American country, which lies between the Andes mountain range and the Pacific Ocean.
There are 11 projects in the southern region of Magallanes, followed in number by the regions of Atacama, Coquimbo, and Valparaíso, in the north and center of Chile, which concentrate most of the investment.
Rafael Palacios, executive director of Acades, told IPS that this country “faces a scenario in which water availability in northern and central Chile could decrease by up to 50% by 2060, so we cannot continue to depend solely on continental sources.”
“Using seawater, desalinated or saline, and reusing wastewater relieves pressure on rivers and aquifers, ensuring water for people, ecosystems, and productive activities,” he emphasized.
Currently, 23 desalination plants are already operating in Chile with a capacity of 9,500 liters per second. They primarily serve mining needs, but also industrial and human consumption.
<div id="attachment_192703" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192703" class="wp-image-192703" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-2.jpg.webp" alt="One of the large greenhouses for the hydroponic cultivation of vegetables irrigated with desalinated water, on the farm of one of the 90 members of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada, in the northern Chilean region of Antofagasta. Credit: Courtesy of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada." width="629" height="354" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-2.jpg.webp 996w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-2.jpg-300x169.webp 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-2.jpg-768x432.webp 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-2.jpg-629x354.webp 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />One of the large greenhouses for the hydroponic cultivation of vegetables irrigated with desalinated water, on the farm of one of the 90 members of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada, in the northern Chilean region of Antofagasta. Credit: Courtesy of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada.</div>
Small-scale farmers benefit
Dolores Jiménez has been president for the last eight years of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada, in Antofagasta. The association has 90 active members who collectively own 100 hectares where they have created a <a href="https://www.indap.gob.cl/noticias/ciudad-hidroponica-altos-la-portada-le-gana-terreno-al-desierto-en-antofagasta">Hydroponic City</a>.
“We have no water problems thanks to an agreement with Aguas Antofagasta. We have an oasis which we would otherwise not have without that agreement,” Jiménez told IPS by telephone from Antofagasta, the capital of the region of the same name.
Aguas Antofagasta is a private company that desalinates water in the north of this country of 19.7 million inhabitants. The company draws water from the Pacific Ocean using an outfall that extends 600 meters offshore to a depth of 25 meters.
In desalination, outfalls are the underwater pipes that draw seawater and return and disperse the brine in a controlled manner, far from the coast and at an adequate depth.
Founded 20 years ago, the company currently desalinates water in three plants in the municipalities of Antofagasta, Tocopilla, and Tal Tal, supplying 184,000 families in that region.
<div id="attachment_192710" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192710" class="wp-image-192710" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-3.jpg-1.webp" alt="Dolores Jiménez, president of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada, shows the strength of the crops thanks to the use of desalinated water that reaches small farmers due to an agreement with Aguas Antofagasta. Credit: Courtesy of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada" width="629" height="971" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-3.jpg-1.webp 632w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-3.jpg-1-194x300.webp 194w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-3.jpg-1-306x472.webp 306w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />Dolores Jiménez, president of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada, shows the strength of the crops thanks to the use of desalinated water that reaches small farmers due to an agreement with Aguas Antofagasta. Credit: Courtesy of the Association of Agricultural Producers of Altos de la Portada</div>
In its project to supply the general population, it included the association of small-scale farmers who grow carrots, broccoli, Italian zucchini, cucumbers, medicinal herbs, and edible flowers.
“They support us with water from the pipeline that goes to Mejillones (a coastal city in the region). They financed the connection for us to fill six 30,000 liter tanks, installed on a plot at the highest point. From there, we distribute it using a water tanker truck,” informed Jiménez.
“Now, thanks to a project by the (state) National Irrigation Commission, we were able to secure 280 million pesos (US$294,000) for an inter-farm connection that will deliver water through pipes to 70 plots,” she added.
This will mean significant savings for the farmers.
<div id="attachment_192705" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192705" class="wp-image-192705" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg.webp" alt="Jesús Basáez in his farm in Pullally, on the central coast of Chile. There he grows quinoa, which he irrigates with highly saline water that the grain tolerates without problems. Previously, that saline water forced him to stop producing strawberries. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS" width="629" height="472" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg.webp 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg-300x225.webp 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg-1024x768.webp 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg-768x576.webp 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg-629x472.webp 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-4.jpg-200x149.webp 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />Jesús Basáez in his farm in Pullally, on the central coast of Chile. There he grows quinoa, which he irrigates with highly saline water that the grain tolerates without problems. Previously, that saline water forced him to stop producing strawberries. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS</div>
In Pullally, in the municipality of Papudo, in the central Valparaíso region, 155 kilometers northwest of Santiago, Jesús Basáez used to grow strawberries alongside a dozen other small farmers. But the crop failed due to the salinity of the groundwater, apparently caused by the drought affecting the La Ligua and Petorca rivers and proximity to the sea.
He then switched to quinoa, which tolerates salinity well. Today he is known as the King of Quinoa, a grain valued for its nutritional properties and versatility, which was an ancestral food of Andean highland peoples and has now spread among small Chilean farmers.
Basáez has three hectares planted with white, red, and black varieties of quinoa, which he irrigates with water obtained from a well, as he told IPS during a visit to his farm.
The public University of Playa Ancha, based in the city of Valparaíso, installed a mobile desalination plant on his farm that uses reverse osmosis to remove components from the saltwater that are harmful for irrigation. Pressure is applied to the saltwater so that it passes through a semipermeable membrane that filters the water, separating the salts.
After successful tests, Basáez is now about to resume his strawberry cultivation.
“It was three years of research, and it was concluded that it is viable to produce non-brackish water to grow strawberries again. The problem is that the cost remains very high and prevents replicating this experience for other farmers,” he said. The mobile plant cost the equivalent of US$ 84,000.
<div id="attachment_192706" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192706" class="wp-image-192706" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg.webp" alt="The mobile desalination plant installed on Jesús Basáez's farm to research the high salinity of the water at the site. For three years, teachers and students from the University of Playa Ancha, in the central Chilean region of Valparaíso, researched how to reduce the water salinity on this agricultural property. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS" width="629" height="472" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg.webp 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg-300x225.webp 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg-1024x768.webp 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg-768x576.webp 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg-629x472.webp 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-5.jpg-200x149.webp 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />The mobile desalination plant installed on Jesús Basáez’s farm to research the high salinity of the water at the site. For three years, teachers and students from the University of Playa Ancha, in the central Chilean region of Valparaíso, researched how to reduce the water salinity on this agricultural property. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS</div>
Debating the effects of desalination
Since 2010, Chile has been facing a long drought with water deficits of around 30%. There was extreme drought in 2019 and 2021, and the country benefited from a normal period in 2024, although the resource deficit persists, in a country where water management is also privatized.
A report from the <a href="https://www.cr2.cl/">Climate and Resilience Center</a> of the public University of Chile, known as CR2, indicated that current rates of groundwater use are higher than the recharge capacity of the aquifers, causing a decline in reserves.
In the 23 already operational desalination plants, seawater is extracted using outfalls that are not very long, installed along the coastline of a shore that has numerous concessions and uses dedicated to aquaculture, artisanal fishermen, and indigenous communities.
The main problem is the discharge of brine following the industrial desalination process.
“I will never be against obtaining water for human consumption. Although this highly concentrated brine that goes to the seabed has an impact where a large part of our benthic resources (organisms from the bottom of water bodies) are located. On a local scale, except in the discharge area, this impact has never been evaluated,” Laura Farías, a researcher at the public University of Concepción and at CR2, told IPS.
“There is literature that points out that there is undoubtedly an impact. There are different stages of biological cycles, from larvae to settled organisms. There is even an impact on pelagic organisms that have the ability to move. And also an impact at the ecosystem level,” the academic specified by telephone from Concepción, a city in central Chile.
She added that this impact is proportional to the volume of desalinated water.
<div id="attachment_192707" style="width: 639px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192707" class="wp-image-192707" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg.webp" alt="Jesús Basáez, in the municipality of Papudo, poses showing a mature quinoa plant in one hand and in the other a container designed to sell each kilogram of the grain he produces in its white, red, and black varieties. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS" width="629" height="472" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg.webp 1200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg-300x225.webp 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg-1024x768.webp 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg-768x576.webp 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg-629x472.webp 629w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Bum-en-Chile-de-desalanizacion-de-agua-6.jpg-200x149.webp 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px" />Jesús Basáez, in the municipality of Papudo, poses showing a mature quinoa plant in one hand and in the other a container designed to sell each kilogram of the grain he produces in its white, red, and black varieties. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS</div>
According to Farías, the water crisis has led to desalination being part of the solution, despite its impact on marine ecosystems, coastal vegetation, and wildlife.
“It is a maladaptation, because in the end it will have impacts that will affect the coastal inhabitants who depend on those resources,” she emphasized.
There are currently initiatives to legislate on the use of the coastal zone, but according to Farías, they seek to “normalize, regularize, and standardize those impacts, after these plants already exist and there are others seeking approval.”
Palacios, the director of Acades, has a different opinion.
The concerns about the environmental impact of desalination on coastal ecosystems are legitimate, but current evidence and technology demonstrate that this impact can be managed effectively, he says.
“In Chile, recent studies show no evidence that the operation of desalination plants has so far caused significant environmental impacts, thanks to constant monitoring and advanced diffusion systems,” he detailed.
He added that “in most cases, the natural salinity concentration is restored within two or three seconds and at less than 20 meters from the outfalls.”
Palacios explained that research by the Environmental Hub of the University of Playa Ancha “confirms increases in salinity of less than 5% within 100 meters.” And in areas like Caldera, a coastal city in the northern Atacama region, they are “less than 3% within 50 meters, limiting the areas of influence to small zones.”
“We are already implementing the first Clean Production Agreement in desalination and water reuse, promoted together with the (state) Agency for Sustainability and Climate Change, advancing towards voluntary standards for sustainable management, transparency, and strengthening the link with communities,” he emphasized.
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<title>Foreign Agent Laws: The Latest Authoritarian Weapon Against Civil Society</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/foreign-agent-laws-the-latest-authoritarian-weapon-against-civil-society/</link>
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<pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2025 19:13:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ines M Pousadela</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[When thousands of Georgians filled the streets of Tbilisi in 2023 to protest against their government’s proposed ‘foreign agents’ law, they understood what their leaders were trying to do: this wasn’t about transparency or accountability; it was about silencing dissent. Though the government was forced to withdraw the legislation, it returned with renewed determination in […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="207" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Irakli-Gedenidze_-300x207.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Irakli-Gedenidze_-300x207.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Irakli-Gedenidze_.jpg 623w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Credit: Irakli Gedenidze/Reuters via Gallo ImagesBy Inés M. Pousadela MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, Oct 21 2025 (IPS) When thousands of Georgians filled the streets of Tbilisi in 2023 to protest against their government’s proposed ‘foreign agents’ law, they understood what their leaders were trying to do: this wasn’t about transparency or accountability; it was about silencing dissent. Though the government was forced to withdraw the legislation, it returned with renewed determination in 2024, passing a <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/09/19/foreign-agent-laws-authoritarian-playbook" target="_blank">renamed version</a> despite even bigger protests. The law has effectively frozen Georgia’s hopes of joining the European Union.

Georgia’s repressive law is just one example of a disturbing global trend documented in CIVICUS’s new report, <a href="https://civicus.org/downloads/Foreign-agents-laws-report_EN.pdf" target="_blank">Cutting civil society’s lifeline: the global spread of foreign agents laws</a>. From Central America to Central Asia, from Africa to the Balkans, governments are adopting legislation that brands civil society organisations and independent media as paid agents of foreign interests. Foreign agents laws are proliferating at an alarming rate, posing a <a href="https://monitor.civicus.org/globalfindings_2024/" target="_blank">growing threat to civil society</a>. Since 2020, El Salvador, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Nicaragua and Zimbabwe have all enacted such laws, while many more states have proposed similar measures.
Russia established the blueprint for this architecture of repression in 2012, when Vladimir Putin’s government introduced legislation requiring any civil society organisation that received foreign funding and engaged in broadly defined ‘political activity’ to register as a foreign agent. This offered an impossible choice: accept a stigmatising designation that effectively brands organisations as foreign spies, or cease operations. Russia <a href="https://www.icnl.org/wp-content/uploads/Russia-Foreign-Influence-Law-in-Eng_fv_Jan_1_2024-up-to-date_.pdf" target="_blank">repeatedly expanded</a> its crackdown, and by 2016, at least 30 groups had chosen to shut down rather than accept the designation. The <a href="https://ishr.ch/latest-updates/reprisals-european-court-of-human-rights-affirms-that-foreign-agents-law-violates-freedom-of-association/" target="_blank">European Court of Human Rights</a> has unequivocally condemned Russia’s law as violating fundamental civic freedoms, yet this hasn’t prevented other states eagerly adopting the same model.
The pretence that these laws promote transparency is fundamentally disingenuous. Civil society organisations that receive international support are already subject to rigorous accountability requirements imposed by their donors. In contrast, governments often receive substantial foreign funding yet face no equivalent disclosure obligations. This double standard reveals the true purpose of these laws: not transparency, but control. In practice, almost any public interest activity can be deemed political under foreign agents laws, including human rights advocacy, election monitoring and efforts to strengthen democracy. States deliberately leave definitions vague and broad to allow discretionary enforcement and targeting of organisations they don’t like.
The impacts can be devastating. Nicaragua provides a particularly extreme example of the use of foreign agents laws to dismantle civil society. President Daniel Ortega has used such legislation as part of a comprehensive repressive arsenal that has <a href="https://libertadasociacion.org/estadisticas-y-datos/" target="_blank">shuttered over 5,600 organisations</a>, roughly 80 per cent of all groups that once operated in the country. State security forces have raided suspended organisations, seized their offices and confiscated their assets, while thousands of academics, activists and journalists have been driven into exile. With only state-controlled organisations remaining operational, Nicaragua has become a <a href="https://lens.civicus.org/nicaragua-a-dynasty-in-the-making/" target="_blank">full-blown authoritarian regime</a> where independent voices have been eliminated and civic space has slammed shut.
In Kyrgyzstan, a foreign agents law passed in March 2024 has had an <a href="https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/report/kyrgyzstan/april-2024" target="_blank">immediate chilling effect</a>. Organisations have scaled back their activities, some have re-registered as commercial entities and others have proactively ceased operations to avoid fines for non-compliance. The Open Society Foundations closed its long-established grant-making office in the country. Meanwhile, in El Salvador, <a href="https://lens.civicus.org/el-salvador-bukeles-authoritarianism-goes-global/" target="_blank">President Nayib Bukele’s</a> government imposed a punitive 30 per cent tax on all foreign grants alongside stigmatising labels and registration requirements, forcing major civil society organisations to shut down their offices.
Foreign agents laws impose systematic barriers through complex registration processes, demanding reporting requirements and frequent audits that force many smaller organisations to close. The threat of harsh penalties – including heavy fines, licence revocations and imprisonment for non-compliance – creates a climate of fear that frequently leads to self-censorship and organisational dissolution. By restricting foreign funding while offering no measures to expand domestic funding sources, governments make civil society organisations dependent on state approval, curtailing their autonomy. And by forcing them to wear the stigmatising ‘foreign agent’ label, governments ensure they lose public trust, making it harder to mount a defence when further crackdowns follow.
Yet there are grounds for hope. Civil society has shown remarkable resilience in resisting foreign agents laws, and street mobilisation and legal challenges have sometimes stalled or rolled back these measures. Ukraine’s rapid <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/01/18/ukraine-repeal-repressive-new-legislation" target="_blank">reversal of its 2014 foreign agents law</a> following mass protests showed that immediate pushback can come when the political moment is right. Ethiopia <a href="https://www.fidh.org/en/issues/human-rights-defenders/ethiopia-a-new-era-for-human-rights-organisations" target="_blank">changed its restrictive 2009 law</a> in 2019, while Hungary was forced to drop its 2017 law following a 2020 <a href="https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/newsroom/open-society-welcomes-court-of-justice-of-eu-ruling-on-hungary-anti-ngo-law" target="_blank">European Court of Justice ruling</a>. In May 2025, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Constitutional Court <a href="https://balkaninsight.com/2025/05/29/bosnias-constitutional-court-scraps-serb-entitys-disputed-laws/" target="_blank">suspended a foreign agents law</a>, recognising it violated freedom of association.
International legal pressure has been vital. The European Court of Human Rights’ <a href="https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=001-217751" target="_blank">categorical condemnation</a> of Russia’s legislation established crucial precedents. These decisions provided a foundation for challenging similar laws elsewhere. However, authoritarian governments may adapt their strategies and implement new versions of restrictive legislation, as seen in Hungary’s 2023 <a href="https://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-REF(2024)006-e" target="_blank">introduction of a new ‘sovereignty protection’ law</a>.
The acceleration of this trend since 2020 reflects broader patterns of <a href="https://publications.civicus.org/publications/2025-state-of-civil-society-report/democracy-regression-and-resilience/" target="_blank">democratic regression</a> around the world. Authoritarian political leaders are capitalising on legitimate concerns about foreign interference to create legal tools that serve their repressive agendas. The danger extends beyond current adopters. Bulgaria’s parliament has <a href="https://sofiaglobe.com/2025/02/05/bulgarias-parliament-again-rejects-pro-kremlin-partys-foreign-agents-bill/" target="_blank">rejected foreign agents bills</a> five times, yet a far-right party keeps reintroducing them. Turkey’s autocratic government shelved its <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/11/turkiye-proposed-agents-of-influence-law-is-attack-on-civil-society-and-must-be-rejected/" target="_blank">proposed law</a> following public backlash in 2024, only to reintroduce an amended version months later.
Coordinated resistance is essential before foreign agents laws become normalised. There’s an urgent need for international courts to expedite consideration of cases and develop emergency procedures for situations where civil society faces immediate threats. Democratic governments must avoid adopting stigmatising legislation, impose targeted sanctions on foreign officials responsible for enacting foreign agents laws and provide safe haven for activists forced to flee. Funders must establish emergency mechanisms with rapid-disbursement grants, while civil society must strengthen international solidarity networks to share resistance strategies and expose the true intent of these laws.
The alternative to coordinated action is to watch idly as independent voices are systematically silenced. Civil society’s right to exist and operate freely must be defended.
Inés M. Pousadela is CIVICUS Head of Research and Analysis, co-director and writer for <a href="https://lens.civicus.org/" target="_blank">CIVICUS Lens</a> and co-author of the <a href="https://publications.civicus.org/publications/2025-state-of-civil-society-report/" target="_blank">State of Civil Society Report</a>.
For interviews or more information, please contact <a href="mailto:research@civicus.org" target="_blank">research@civicus.org</a>
 
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<title>Global Forest Loss: Far Off Track From Global Commitments</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/global-forest-loss-far-off-track-from-global-commitments/</link>
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<pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2025 08:19:26 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Umar Manzoor Shah</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[<img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> Closing legal loopholes that allow deforestation-linked products to enter markets and getting international lenders to align funding with environmental goals are key to ending deforestation, says Erin Matson, one of the lead authors of the Forest Declaration Assessment 2025. ]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Global forests remain in crisis, a new report says. Credit: Dirk Erasmus/Unsplash" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/dirk-erasmus-i8-3QrrYe8M-unsplash-629x419.jpg 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Global forests remain in crisis, a new report says. Credit: Dirk Erasmus/UnsplashBy Umar Manzoor Shah SRINAGAR, Oct 21 2025 (IPS) The Forest Declaration Assessment 2025 warns that global forest loss remains alarmingly high, with little sign of improvement.
The report, released on October 14, by a coalition of international research groups and civil society organizations, states that nearly 8.1 million hectares of forest were destroyed in 2024 alone, leaving the planet 63 percent off track to meet the zero-deforestation goal pledged under the <a href="https://ukcop26.org/glasgow-leaders-declaration-on-forests-and-land-use/">Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration </a>and other global commitments. 
The <a href="https://forestdeclaration.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Assessment2025.pdf">report </a>describes 2025 as a “dangerous midpoint” in the decade of forest pledges. It says, “Global forests remain in crisis. Despite the indispensable role of forests, the verdict is clear: we are off track on halting and reversing deforestation by 2030.” Forests, the report notes, are “non-negotiable infrastructure for a stable planet,” providing livelihoods to more than a billion people and sheltering 80 percent of terrestrial species.
The report says COP 30 is a “pivotal” opportunity to move to concrete action on forests from the mere commitments.
Under Brazil’s leadership, holding the COP presidency, countries are expected to forge stronger links between climate, forests, and biodiversity by expanding commitments across the land sector,” the report states, adding that this includes scaling innovative finance for standing forests, advancing deforestation- and conversion-free supply chains, supporting resilient food systems, and upholding the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
It calls for forest commitments to be embedded in the next round of NDCs so that the Global Stocktake drives tangible national and international progress.
One of the main report authors, <a href="https://events.globallandscapesforum.org/speaker/erin-d-matson-2/">Erin Matson,</a> in an exclusive interview with Inter Press Service, said that the reasons behind the failure to reduce deforestation are many and complex, but they include drastically misaligned finance stemming from an economic system that rewards activities that harm forests over conserving standing forests.
“Both public and private finance are misaligned; for example, USD 409 billion on average per year (2021-2023) is spent globally on environmentally harmful agricultural subsidies versus only USD 1.7 billion spent on payments for ecosystem services by agricultural producers. And in 2024, the 150 financial institutions assessed by Forest 500 had USD 8.9 trillion in active financing to companies most exposed to deforestation risk in their supply chains.”
According to Matson, weak governance is characterized by endemic corruption (which allows well-resourced criminal networks and elites to profit from illegal or illicit forest destruction with impunity), inadequate and mistargeted law enforcement (which often targets small-scale actors who engage in illegal or illicit forest clearing but lets the bigger culprits go free), and insecure land tenure rights for Indigenous Peoples and local communities (which severely limits their ability to manage and protect their forest territories).
“Another reason is lack of political will and short-termism. By and large, most leaders in government, business, and finance have, over the last decade, tended to prioritize policies and approaches that deliver short-term wins (like economic growth and increased profits) without tackling the fundamental risks and harms from nature loss that undermine future, medium- and long-term economic and social stability and prosperity,” Matson said.
Rising Losses, Failing Promises
According to the assessment, deforestation rates have barely shifted since 2015, when governments and companies began making strong commitments to forest protection. The 8.1 million hectares lost in 2024 were far above the annual ceiling of 5 million hectares needed to stay on track. Most of this destruction occurred in tropical regions, where 94 percent of all global deforestation took place. The resulting emissions were staggering—4.2 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, more than the annual emissions of the European Union.
“Every year the curve isn’t bent, we fall further behind. Deforestation continues at the same rate we saw ten years ago. That’s not a slowdown—it’s stagnation,” reads the report.
The hardest hit were primary tropical forests, which store vast amounts of carbon and support irreplaceable biodiversity. About 6.7 million hectares of primary forest were destroyed in 2024, releasing 3.1 billion metric tons of CO₂—nearly 150 percent of the U.S. energy sector’s annual emissions. The report calls this “an ecological and climatic emergency” and warns that much of this loss is irreversible.
“These forests take centuries to form. Once primary forest is gone, no restoration project can bring it back in a generation. The damage is permanent within our lifetime,” claims the report.
The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_basin">Amazon Basin</a> remains the epicenter of global forest degradation and fire-related emissions. Fires in the Amazon in 2024 released 791 million metric tons of CO₂, exceeding the total emissions of Germany. Bolivia lost 9 percent of its remaining intact tropical moist forests, while Brazil accounted for half of all degradation in the Amazon Basin.
Agriculture Drives Most Forest Loss
The report identifies <a href="https://www.permanent.ag/">permanent agriculture </a>as the leading cause of deforestation, responsible for 86 percent of global forest loss over the past decade. Forests are being cleared for crops, pastureland, and plantation commodities like palm oil, soy, and rubber. Mining, infrastructure expansion, and land speculation add further pressure.
Domestic consumption is a major factor. For instance, in Latin America, the region’s consumption of beef and pasture products is the primary cause of deforestation.
In contrast, deforestation in Asia and Africa is tied to a broader range of export commodities. Recent studies cited in the report show that developed nations, especially the United States and several European countries, drive substantial biodiversity loss abroad through imported goods. Between 2000 and 2015, the 24 most industrialized countries caused an estimated 13 percent of global forest biodiversity loss through international trade.
The assessment also notes that “corruption, weak law enforcement, and poor land tenure systems” contribute significantly to deforestation. These governance failures allow illegal land grabs and unregulated clearing, undermining conservation efforts.
According to Matson, commodity-driven deforestation is complex because it is caused by several factors, including patterns of commodity demand, both for domestic consumption and international trade; trade regulations and tariffs that can shift commodity production areas and flows; domestic land use dynamics like land speculation, where the value of land is considered to increase once forest has been cleared; and weak law enforcement (69-94% of tropical deforestation is estimated to be illegal).
“To change this pattern, we need multiple actions that would complement each other. An investment in just, equitable, and responsive law enforcement to tackle illegal deforestation and make it unprofitable to clear land illegally. Trade regulations that disallow the import of commodities produced on land deforested after a certain date (like 2020), combined with investments in traceability systems and due diligence regulations to ensure that these regulations can be enforced,” she said.
Matson pitched for the adoption and enforcement of due diligence regulations to address deforestation related to domestic consumption of commodities.
“We need efforts and campaigns that aim to shift consumption patterns, where culturally appropriate, for example, reducing meat consumption in high-income, high-consuming countries, shifting to plant-based proteins, and shifting to consumption of certified deforestation-free commodities.”
Fires and Degradation Multiply the Threat
While deforestation removes entire forests, degradation weakens those that remain. In 2024, about 8.8 million hectares of tropical moist forests were degraded, twice the level compatible with halting degradation by 2030. The report calls degradation an “invisible crisis,” often overlooked in policy debates but just as damaging to biodiversity and climate stability.
Fire-induced degradation, particularly in the Amazon, was the primary driver of these losses. Extreme droughts, poor forest management, and deliberate burning for land clearing have made fires more destructive.
As per the report, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Amazon_rainforest_wildfires">Amazon burned on a scale we haven’t seen in decades</a>. These fires are no longer isolated events—they are symptoms of a stressed ecosystem pushed beyond its limits.
The report warns that degraded forests are far more likely to be deforested later, creating a cycle of decline. Data from Latin America, Africa, and Asia shows that once canopy cover falls below 50 percent, the risk of full deforestation rises sharply.
Degradation is a red flag. The report says that when forests start losing structure, deforestation often follows.
Monitoring degradation remains a major challenge due to limited global data. Most national reporting focuses only on tree cover loss, not on forest health or ecosystem function. The report urges governments to integrate degradation indicators into climate and biodiversity frameworks.
“We consider forest degradation a ‘silent crisis’ because forest degradation is extremely widespread and damaging to forest health and resilience, but it often goes unnoticed because it’s harder to detect and track than deforestation. Unlike deforestation, there is no globally agreed definition or standardized monitoring approach for forest degradation. Countries reporting to the FAO’s Forest Resources Assessment can set their own national definitions under the FRA 2025 guidance. This makes it difficult to compare data across regions or to capture the cumulative impacts of logging, fires, and other disturbances on forest quality,” Matson said.
She added that other frameworks have encouraged countries to set forest degradation definitions and monitoring criteria, such as REDD+—so the countries where degradation monitoring is most advanced are the ones that have advanced REDD+ programs.
“Where there are incentives to accurately monitor and report degradation, systems do improve. Forest degradation contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and also impacts biodiversity, so countries should set relevant targets, as a first step, within their NDCs (nationally determined contributions) and in their NBSAPs (national biodiversity strategies and action plans),” Matson said.
Restoration Efforts Show Potential, But Lag Behind
Despite grim trends, the assessment highlights some positive developments. As of September 2025, restoration projects were active across 10.6 million hectares of deforested and degraded land. These efforts include reforestation, agroforestry, and natural regeneration programs, mostly in tropical regions.
However, the figure represents only 0.3 percent of the global forest restoration potential, far below the 30 percent target set under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Monitoring continues to be another area of weakness. Much of the available data comes from fragmented or overlapping sources, such as the Restor database and national observatories. The report warns that without unified global tracking, restoration progress will remain poorly understood.
The assessment calls for broader monitoring under the UN’s Framework for Ecosystem Restoration Monitoring (FERM), which combines quantitative data with qualitative information on project effectiveness and local participation. Governance and Finance Gaps Persist.
The report stresses that progress depends on systemic shifts, not isolated successes. While countries like Brazil have reduced deforestation through strong enforcement and inclusive land-use planning, others have seen gains erased by political change or weak implementation.
Financing for forest protection and restoration remains grossly inadequate. The report finds that forest-positive finance is still a fraction of the funds supporting activities that harm forests, such as fossil fuel subsidies and industrial agriculture. It calls for reforming financial systems to redirect capital toward sustainable land use.
The assessment also highlights that Indigenous and local communities remain underrepresented in forest decision-making, despite managing some of the world’s most intact ecosystems. Expanding legal recognition of land rights and ensuring community participation are described as “non-negotiable conditions” for progress.
“Like most topics covered in the report, barriers to scaled-up restoration are complex and are mainly financial, governance-related, and structural. Restoration is often underfunded because returns are only realized over the long term, and ecological benefits—like carbon storage, water regulation, or biodiversity—are not fully valued in markets. Public funding for restoration tends to be short-term or project-based, while private finance shies away due to high perceived risks, unclear revenue models, or a simple lack of investable projects or initiatives,” said Matson.
She says that on the policy side, many countries lack clear land tenure, long-term incentives, and enabling frameworks for restoration at scale.
“Integrating restoration into national climate, biodiversity, and rural development plans—and aligning finance, tenure, and monitoring systems accordingly—would incentivize and corral collective action to develop overarching, landscape-scale restoration approaches that move beyond scattered, individual projects,” Matson said.
Deforestation and Market Dynamics
With only five years left before the 2030 deadline, the report states that incremental changes will not be enough. “This crisis cannot fade into the background noise,” it states. “Isolated successes will not save the world’s forests. We need structural reform that makes forest protection the rule, not the exception.”
Experts say that reversing current trends will require coordinated action across agriculture, trade, and finance. Governments must close legal loopholes that allow deforestation-linked products to enter markets. Companies must trace and disclose their supply chains. And international lenders must align funding with environmental goals.
“In the medium to long term, we need to make preserving and sustainably managing forests more attractive and more profitable than even legal deforestation. And that requires shifting the financial incentives—subsidy reform; establishing payments for keeping standing forests standing, like the Tropical Forests Forever Facility; and increasing payments for ecosystem services programs for farmers and foresters,” Matson said. “A lot of deforestation is highly responsive to market dynamics—when the price of gold goes up, we see much more deforestation for gold mining. So, counterbalancing those harmful financial incentives with positive ones must be a part of any permanent solution to the deforestation crisis.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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</ul></div> Excerpt: <img src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/09/COP30-poster-100.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="71" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-181966" /> Closing legal loopholes that allow deforestation-linked products to enter markets and getting international lenders to align funding with environmental goals are key to ending deforestation, says Erin Matson, one of the lead authors of the Forest Declaration Assessment 2025. ]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Explaining Strong Credit Growth in Brazil Despite High Policy Rates</title>
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<pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2025 05:06:47 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Swarnali A. Hannan - Daniel Leigh - Rui Xu</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[At 15 percent, Brazil’s monetary policy interest rate (called Selic) is one of the highest among major economies. Yet in 2024, bank credit grew by 11.5 percent and corporate bond issuance rose by 30 percent. This credit expansion—in the face of high policy rates—benefited many individuals, households, and companies. But it also raised questions about […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="94" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/IMF-country-focus-300x94.png" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/IMF-country-focus-300x94.png 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/IMF-country-focus.png 522w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Higher income and fintech expansion boosted credit growth, even as monetary policy remained effective. Credit: IMFBy Swarnali A. Hannan, Daniel Leigh, and Rui Xu WASHINGTON DC, Oct 21 2025 (IPS) At 15 percent, Brazil’s monetary policy interest rate (called Selic) is one of the highest among major economies. Yet in 2024, bank credit grew by 11.5 percent and corporate bond issuance rose by 30 percent.

This credit expansion—in the face of high policy rates—benefited many individuals, households, and companies. But it also raised questions about the effectiveness of monetary policy itself. In other words, why did the central bank’s efforts to cool down the economy, by making financing more expensive, seem not to be working?
Our analysis, in the context of Brazil’s <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/CR/Issues/2025/07/16/Brazil-2025-Article-IV-Consultation-Press-Release-Staff-Report-and-Statement-by-the-568678" target="_blank">latest yearly economic review</a> (the Article IV consultation), shows that concerns have been largely unwarranted and that monetary policy transmission in Brazil remains effective. Indeed, recent data indicates that credit growth is starting to slow down.
So, what exactly has been happening? 
Even as monetary policy was doing its job as intended, we saw two other factors playing a critical role: strong income growth and the country’s success in expanding financial inclusion. These factors boosted the demand for credit and its supply. 
A committed central bank
Brazil’s was the first major central bank to hike rates during the pandemic. After a period of easing, it started a new tightening cycle in September 2024. These decisions have been appropriate and guided by the need to bring inflation and inflation expectations down to its 3 percent target.
The country’s twelve-month inflation rate reached 5.1 percent in August, down slightly from the previous month, but still well above target this year. Inflation expectations are also projected to stay above target over an eighteen-month horizon. This explains the rise in policy rates since the pandemic, in line with standard inflation-targeting principles.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="624" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-192694" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_-100x100.jpg 100w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_-144x144.jpg 144w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/brazil-raised_-472x472.jpg 472w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />
How effective is monetary policy transmission?
To gauge the effectiveness of Brazil’s monetary policy tightening, our report estimates how changes in the central bank’s policy interest rate pass through to bank lending rates paid by households and businesses.
<a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2025/07/25/Monetary-Policy-Transmission-to-Lending-Rates-Evidence-from-Brazil-568783" target="_blank">We find that</a> a 1 percentage point increase in the policy rate raises lending rates by around 0.7 percentage point after four months. To raise average lending rates in the economy by one percentage point, the monetary policy rate must increase by about 1.4 percentage points, since roughly 40 percent of total credit is comprised of government-directed loans that are less responsive to policy rate changes.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="624" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-192695" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_-100x100.jpg 100w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_-144x144.jpg 144w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/government-directed_-472x472.jpg 472w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />
The analysis also suggests that since 2020, corporate lending rates have become more responsive to changes in the basic rate. This may in part result from the 2018 reform of Brazil’s large development bank, BNDES, which aligned its lending rates with long-term market rates. 
Bank-level analysis shows corporate loans adjust faster than consumer loans, likely due to tighter margins and more experienced borrowers. In turn, payroll-backed consumer loans are the least responsive because of rate caps.
What drove credit growth
Although Brazil’s monetary policy is working, credit growth has been strong over the past few years. This was due to both cyclical factors and structural changes. On the cyclical side, Brazil’s economy has grown faster than expected, with low unemployment and rising incomes driving higher credit demand.
Moreover, Brazil has been making significant structural changes that have increased financial inclusion and credit availability.
The rapid expansion of fintech lenders gave more people access to credit. In 2024, digital banks and other fintech lenders accounted for a quarter of the credit card market and over 10 percent of non-payroll personal loans. 
Increased competition reduced banking-sector concentration and lowered average lending rates of incumbent banks. In addition, bond-market financing for corporates as a share of GDP tripled in the last decade, driven by tax-exempt debentures. All these factors supported credit growth.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="624" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-192696" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_-100x100.jpg 100w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_-144x144.jpg 144w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/fast-expansion_-472x472.jpg 472w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />
With a 15 percent basic rate, Brazil’s central bank has administered a strong dose of monetary tightening to temper credit growth and return inflation and expectations to target. New loan volumes have been falling since April, further suggesting that the treatment is working. 
More broadly, Brazil’s economy is showing signs of moderation amid tight monetary and fiscal policies and elevated global policy uncertainty. Overall, our research shows that concerns about the lack of effectiveness of monetary are proving to be largely unwarranted and that monetary policy transmission in Brazil remains active.
Daniel Leigh is IMF mission chief for Brazil; Swarnali A. Hannan is a deputy division chief in the IMF’s Western Hemisphere Department; and Rui Xu is an economist in the Monetary and Capital Markets Department
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>World Food Programme Warns of Emergency Levels of Hunger Amid Severe Funding Cuts</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/world-food-programme-warns-of-emergency-levels-of-hunger-amid-severe-funding-cuts/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 20 Oct 2025 17:01:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Oritro Karim</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[In 2025, unprecedented cuts to foreign aid and humanitarian funding have exacerbated global hunger crises, leaving millions without access to food or basic services. Funding shortfalls have forced aid agencies to scale back or suspend lifesaving programs in some of the world’s most food-insecure regions, particularly across the Global South—exacerbating already dire conditions caused by […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="201" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Mwavita-Rohomoya-sits_-300x201.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Mwavita-Rohomoya-sits_-300x201.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Mwavita-Rohomoya-sits_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Mwavita Rohomoya sits with her four children in front of her drink stall in Minova, Kalehe territory, South Kivu province, DR Congo, on 23 April 2025. Minova is one of the first areas in South Kivu to be affected by the resurgence of violence, one of the immediate consequences was the rise in prices of staple foods and essential goods. UNICEF’s cash transfer programme helped families meet their urgent needs—buying food, finding shelter, and accessing healthcare—while also enabling some, like Mwavita, to invest in small-scale income-generating activities. Credit: UNICEF/Christian Mirindi JohnsonBy Oritro Karim UNITED NATIONS, Oct 20 2025 (IPS) In 2025, unprecedented cuts to foreign aid and humanitarian funding have exacerbated global hunger crises, leaving millions without access to food or basic services. Funding shortfalls have forced aid agencies to scale back or suspend lifesaving programs in some of the world’s most food-insecure regions, particularly across the Global South—exacerbating already dire conditions caused by conflict, displacement, economic instability, and climate shocks.

On October 15, the World Food Programme (WFP) released a report, <a href="https://docs.wfp.org/api/documents/WFP-0000168974/download/?_ga=2.141267698.1131321509.1760565561-937171740.1737406888" target="_blank">A Lifeline At Risk: Food Assistance At A Breaking Point</a>, which illustrated the impact of funding shortfalls to their programs in the context of six countries: Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Haiti, Somalia, South Sudan,and Sudan. In these nations, funding cuts have had devastating consequences, with entire communities being pushed to the brink of starvation.
“We see significant reductions in our operations and the operations of our partners,” said Ross Smith, WFP’s Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response. “That goes from cutting people completely off of assistance, reducing rations, and reducing the duration of assistance. Many vulnerable people are completely without a safety net or a landing pad at this point in time.” 
The report highlighted that the number of people in urgent need of food and livelihood assistance has surged to a record high of 295 million in 2025—coinciding with major reductions in foreign aid and humanitarian funding from key donors, including the United States. As a result, WFP has been forced to drastically scale back its operations, grappling with an estimated 40 percent cut in funding that has severely limited its ability to deliver lifesaving support to the world’s hungriest populations.
WFP warns that recent funding cuts could “severely undermine global food security”. It is estimated that roughly 13.7 million people who are dependent on food assistance from WFP could be pushed into emergency levels of hunger, with children, women, refugees, and internally displaced people being disproportionately affected. 
“These cuts are triggering additional food insecurity that in itself could have impacts at both national and regional levels,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, Director of WFP’s Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Service. 
WFP notes that the full extent of the impact of these funding cuts to food assistance will not be immediate, but will unfold in the coming months. “This is why we call it a ‘slow burn’ in the report,” said Bauer. “Because the cuts haven’t fully fed through the system yet to all countries and communities.”
Bauer warned that escalating hunger amid dwindling aid could have far-reaching implications that could exacerbate existing crises, citing rising rates of child marriage, increased school dropouts, heightened social instability, increased displacement, and growing economic and political turmoil. Furthermore, WFP has recorded increased rates of malnutrition among children in refugee communities, with many of these children experiencing lifelong health challenges as a result. 
One of WFP’s most pressing challenges has been the reduction of disaster preparedness programs for some of the world’s most crisis-prone countries, as resources are redirected to sustain emergency food assistance for the most affected populations. In Haiti, WFP has been forced to suspend its hot meals program for displaced families and cut monthly rations in half, as the nation continues to struggle with record levels of hunger. 
Bauer noted that Haiti’s contingency stock of humanitarian aid has been fully depleted and, for the first time since Hurricane Matthew in 2016, WFP has been unable to replenish it. The agency continues to closely monitor Haiti’s food security situation.
Similarly, Smith reported that conditions in Afghanistan have worsened considerably over the course of the year, with fewer than 10 percent of the country’s 10 million food-insecure people now receiving humanitarian aid. “We expect pipeline breaks as early as November and can currently only provide (limited) winter assistance,” said Smith, noting that less than 8 percent of those in need of winterization support will receive it.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), WFP has been forced to cut its operations from targeting 2.3 million people to just 600,000 and warns that its resources could be entirely depleted by February of next year without additional funding. In Somalia, WFP’s reach has also been drastically reduced, with the agency now able to assist less than 25 percent of the people it supported last year.
In Sudan, WFP has managed to assist roughly 4 million people in August—half of them in hard-to-reach areas such as Darfur and South Kordofan. “We are shifting away from what used to be a very large program, in the absence of significant government support for many people, to one now that is famine prevention that is moving from hotspot to hotspot,” said Smith. In neighboring South Sudan, WFP has redirected its limited resources to prioritize civilians experiencing the most extreme levels of hunger.
According to the report, WFP has recalibrated its food assistance priorities in the face of dwindling aid budgets and shrinking staff, choosing to focus on famine prevention efforts and distributing food rations that reach fewer people but cover basic needs. Bauer added that it is imperative for humanitarian aid groups to align with local actors and continue to closely monitor levels of hunger. “The data and analytics – they’re the humanitarian community’s GPS,” Bauer said. “We’re taking the risk of losing our way without the data. So the data must flow.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>Women’s Leadership at the Heart of Disaster Risk Reduction</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/womens-leadership-at-the-heart-of-disaster-risk-reduction/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 20 Oct 2025 08:01:43 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Raquel Lagunas and Ronald Jackson</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Climate and environmental challenges are hitting harder and more often, reshaping people’s lives around the world. While disasters touch everyone, their impacts are not felt equally. The most marginalized, especially women and girls, are too often the first to suffer and the last to recover. Social roles, discrimination and economic inequalities amplify the risks women […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="214" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Disasters-touch_-300x214.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Disasters-touch_-300x214.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Disasters-touch_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Disasters touch everyone but are not felt equally. Women often take longer to rebuild their livelihoods after a crisis and may face additional barriers in accessing the resources to facilitate a quicker recovery. Credit:: UNDP NigeriaBy Raquel Lagunas and Ronald Jackson NEW YORK, Oct 20 2025 (IPS) Climate and environmental challenges are hitting harder and more often, reshaping people’s lives around the world. While disasters touch everyone, their impacts are not felt equally. The most marginalized, especially women and girls, are too often the first to suffer and the last to recover.

Social roles, discrimination and economic inequalities amplify the risks women face in times of crisis and undermine communities’ capacity to rebuild their livelihoods. Placing gender equality at the heart of <a href="https://www.undrr.org/terminology/disaster-risk-reduction" target="_blank">disaster risk reduction</a> (DDR) isn’t only a matter of fairness, but a key to a more resilient future for all. 
UNDP is working with partners to translate this vision into action, by advancing equality and inclusion at every stage of disaster risk reduction, from preparedness to response and recovery. Drawing on our experience we see five powerful ways women’s leadership and meaningful participation can strengthen communities’ ability to withstand and recover from future shocks. 
Women’s leadership strengthens resilience  
At UNDP, we actively open doors for women to shape decisions and policies at every level, from local committees to national platforms. We draw on their expertise and perspectives while amplifying the leadership and innovation they already bring to building resilience. 
By investing in women’s ideas and supporting their initiatives, we help unlock solutions that ripple across communities, strengthening food security, sustaining livelihoods, and driving progress on every front.
In <a href="https://www.undp.org/bosnia-herzegovina/press-releases/launch-feminist-coalition-climate-justice-bosnia-and-herzegovina?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank">Bosnia and Herzegovina</a>, the Feminist Coalition for Climate Justice, supported by UNDP, has improved working conditions for over 75,000 women, trained 1,500 women officials in energy and climate management, and opened new opportunities for women-led enterprises. 
Meanwhile, in <a href="https://www.adaptation-undp.org/projects/community-based-climate-risks-management-chad?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank">Chad</a>, with support from France through the <a href="https://stories.undp.org/putting-women-peace-and-security-into-action?locale=en" target="_blank">Global Women, Peace and Security initiative</a>, women’s cooperatives have combined climate-smart agriculture, solar irrigation, and early warning systems to reduce flood risks and support recovery, showing how women-led approaches can strengthen risk reduction measures, preparedness, livelihoods and peacebuilding, even in fragile settings.
<div id="attachment_192685" style="width: 634px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192685" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Unpaid-care_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="487" class="size-full wp-image-192685" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Unpaid-care_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Unpaid-care_-300x234.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Unpaid-care_-605x472.jpg 605w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />Unpaid care responsibilities grow during crises, as disasters disrupt schools, health systems and basic services, placing even greater pressure on women. Credit: UNDP Haiti</div>
Resilience relies on care 
Resilience depends on care, and women shoulder more than three-quarters of the world’s unpaid caregiving, supporting children, older adults, people with disabilities and entire communities. These responsibilities grow during crises, as disasters disrupt schools, health systems and basic services, placing even greater pressure on women. 
Recognizing and prioritizing care in disaster management, through early warning systems, safe spaces, and continuity of essential services, helps protect lives and speeds up recovery for everyone. 
UNDP supports countries to integrate care into disaster and climate strategies. In Honduras, Cuba, Belize and Guatemala, a geo-referenced care mapping tool helps to identify gaps in childcare, eldercare and disability-inclusive services. In Honduras, this analysis helped authorities identify ‘care deserts’ in flood- and landslide-prone areas, prioritize safe-space upgrades, and ensure that care continuity is factored into evacuation and rehabilitation plans. 
In <a href="https://www.undp.org/ukraine/stories/women-ukraine-shaping-future-amid-adversities-war" target="_blank">Ukraine</a>, the ‘Mommy in the Shelter’ initiative transformed a basement into a child-friendly refuge activated during air raids, linking early warning with ongoing maternal and childcare support, even in acute conflicts. 
Gender data means better planning and better response
Good planning starts with good data. Without information that is broken down by sex, age, and disability, disaster risk reduction policies can miss the unique needs and strengths of different parts of the community, especially for marginalized groups. High-quality gender disaggregated data helps ensure that strategies are targeted, effective and inclusive.
Last year, UNDP increased sex-disaggregated data and gender analysis in <a href="https://docs.un.org/en/dp/2025/13" target="_blank">20 countries</a> affected by crisis. Cuba, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Samoa and Yemen developed early warning systems that strengthen women’s engagement and leadership. 
In Ethiopia, disaster risk reduction measures helped women-headed households recover from landslides, while in <a href="https://www.undp.org/geneva/blog/advancing-resilience-building-through-gender-equality-and-womens-leadership?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank">Armenia</a>, inclusive risk assessments led by women fed directly into local development and recovery plans. 
<div id="attachment_192686" style="width: 634px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192686" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/With-strong-data_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="416" class="size-full wp-image-192686" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/With-strong-data_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/With-strong-data_-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />With strong data, broken down by sex, age and disability, disaster risk reduction policies can address the specific needs of different parts of societies, including marginalized groups. Credit: UNDP Türkiye</div>
Institutions equipped with gender capacities are better equipped for resilience
Resilient communities start with resilient institutions. When organizations, from national authorities managing risks, to local risk committees, embed gender considerations into their policy, planning and programming, good intentions turn to real progress, moving from rhetoric to routine. 
<a href="https://www.undp.org/latin-america/press-releases/latin-america-and-caribbean-global-leader-gender-equality-eight-new-institutions-recognized-undp" target="_blank">Guatemala’s</a> national disaster risk management authority set a new standard by earning <a href="https://www.gendersealpublicinstitutions.org/" target="_blank">UNDP’s Gender Equality Seal for Public Institutions</a>. This means gender mandates, data and participation, including for Indigenous women, are woven into local risk management. Stronger institutions like these are better equipped to meet people’s needs and build lasting resilience.
Breaking down barriers, building resilience 
Despite real progress, gaps remain. Gender equality is still too often sidelined across disaster, climate, humanitarian and development efforts. Let’s work together to make women’s leadership, care and inclusion central to every plan and policy. 
Together, we can: 
<ul>• Make women’s leadership non-negotiable in DRR decision making and financing.  
• Direct more capital to women’s resilience, including through risk financing, social protection, and support to women-led enterprises.  
• Centre care in preparedness and continuity plans so alerts translate into protection for caregivers, children, older persons and persons with disabilities. 
• Strengthen national and local institutional capacities to apply a gender lens to how risks are managed, from efforts to prevent, prepare, respond to and recover from hazardous events.  
•  When these measures are consistently applied, communities everywhere will be better able to face challenges and confidently bounce back. </ul>
<a href="https://www.undp.org/authors/raquel-lagunas" target="_blank">Raquel Lagunas</a> is Global Director of Gender Equality, UNDP; <a href="https://www.undp.org/authors/ronald-jackson" target="_blank">Ronald Jackson</a> is Head of the Disaster Risk Reduction, Recovery for Building Resilience, UNDP
Source: UN Development Programme (UNDP) 
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>XDR-TB Drug Trial Participants Continue to Celebrate its Success</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/extensively-drug-resistant-tb-drug-trial-participants-celebrate-its-success-a-decade-later/</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 20 Oct 2025 07:22:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ed Holt</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Before the successful Nix-TB trial, which took place in South Africa from 2015 to 2017, patients with extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) had to follow a complicated treatment plan for the deadliest form of the disease.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="225" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_001A-300x225.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Tsholofelo Msimango pictured at her home in Brakpan, near Johannesburg. Credit: TB Alliance/Jonathan Torgovnik" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_001A-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_001A-200x149.jpg 200w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_001A.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />Tsholofelo Msimango pictured at her home in Brakpan, near
Johannesburg. Credit: TB Alliance/Jonathan TorgovnikBy Ed Holt BRATISLAVA, Oct 20 2025 (IPS) When Tsholofelo Msimango joined a small trial of a new drug regimen for tuberculosis (TB) treatment a decade ago, she had no idea whether the medicines she was about to be given would help her.
But having already spent six months in hospital after developing extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB), the most lethal form of the disease, which at the time was barely curable—three-quarters of people with XDR-TB were thought to die before they even received a diagnosis and only a third of those who got treatment survived—Msimango decided she had little to lose. 
“I had my doubts, of course, as to whether it would have any success,” she tells IPS. “But to be honest, at that point all I could think about was that it might make me better, that I might be able to get out of hospital and go home. I was ready to take that chance. I’m glad I did. That trial saved my life—I am sure of it,” she says.
Msimango, who was 21 at the time, from Brakpan in South Africa, was one of 109 participants in the Nix-TB trial of a new drug regimen that ran across three sites in the country between 2015 and 2017.
Until then, typical treatment for the most severe drug-resistant forms of TB would involve patients taking daily doses of a potent cocktail of pills—dozens in some cases—as well as injections for sometimes as long as two years.
The side effects of such regimens can be horrific—deafness, kidney failure and psychosis have been reported—and there are high rates of treatment drop-out, leading not only to a worsening of the patient’s own condition but also to the further spread of the worst strains of the disease among communities.
The Nix-TB trial tested an all-oral six-month drug regimen, which was a combination of the drugs pretomanid, bedaquiline and linezolid (BPaL).
Its <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1901814">results</a>—the regimen had a 90 percent treatment success rate —werehailed as groundbreaking by experts, and the trial proved to be a landmark moment in the fight against the world’s most deadly infectious disease.
Msimango says that until she joined the trial, she had been taking “lots of pills and having injections.” The latter, she says, had stopped working against the disease.
But not long into the trial, she noticed a change. Before the trial she had struggled to keep weight on because of her illness and treatment.
“It was when I started to gain weight that I began to think that the treatment was working. We had check-ups, including for weight, every week and when I saw myself putting on weight, I knew then that I was getting better,” she says.
By the end of the trial, she says she felt like a different person.
Tests showed she was free of TB.
“Of course I was excited about the fact that I could finally stop taking medicines, and because I was then healthy and free of TB and could live a normal life again, but I was also excited about the fact that I was going to be able to finally leave hospital after a year and go home.
“I had already been in hospital for seven months before the trial started, and then another six months for the trial, and it was hard being away from home for a year. The hospital was a long way from where I lived so it was very hard for my mother to come and visit me and bring me things,” she says.
<div id="attachment_192680" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192680" class="size-full wp-image-192680" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_139.jpg" alt="Tsholofelo Msimango and her son at her home in Brakpan, nearJohannesburg. Credit: TB Alliance/Jonathan Torgovnik" width="630" height="444" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_139.jpg 630w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_139-300x211.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px" />Tsholofelo Msimango and her son at her home in Brakpan, near Johannesburg. Credit: TB Alliance/Jonathan Torgovnik</div>
But while now healthy and free of TB, the disease has continued to play a large role in Msimango’s life.
She decided she wanted to help others affected by TB. Today she is a TB community advocate and educator and helps to recruit people for medical studies.
“I would recommend to anyone that if they get the chance to take part in a study like the one that I got to take part in, that they should go for it,” she says.
Now a mother to a young boy, she says she speaks to him about what she went through and about TB so that he understands about the disease and the risks it poses.
“I talk to my son about what happened to me, why I was in hospital and why I now work in the TB community. I tell my son and his friends about TB and what can be done to stop its spread and how they can help, for instance, by covering their mouths when they cough,” she says.
“Actually, I tell my story a lot because I hope it might help other people,” she adds.
Another participant in the trial, Bongiswa Mdaka, says the same.
“I talk to people all the time about TB and my experience with it—I’m very open about it. If I see someone has been coughing for more than two weeks, I tell them about the disease and about getting tested and treated as early as possible,” she told IPS.
Speaking from her home in Vereeniging, Gauteng, Mdaka, who was 27 when she started the trial, said that, like Msimango, it changed her life.
“The trial was a lifesaver for me. It not only changed my life but saved it. It gave me a second chance. Ten years ago, before the trial, the situation for people with XDR-TB was not good. I was diagnosed with MDR-TB and when my condition continued to get worse, I was hospitalized. I was in the hospital for three days and they told me that no, I don’t have MDR-TB; I have XDR-TB, the worst I could have. It was like hearing a death sentence.
<div id="attachment_192681" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192681" class="size-full wp-image-192681" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_154.jpg" alt="Tsholofelo Msimango’s late mother, Zeldah Nkosi. She says her mother was a “pillar of support” during her time when she had TB. Credit: TB Alliance" width="630" height="335" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_154.jpg 630w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/TB_Alliance_Johannesburg_Tsholofelo_154-300x160.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px" />Tsholofelo Msimango’s late mother, Zeldah Nkosi. She says her mother was a “pillar of support” during her time when she had TB. Credit: TB Alliance</div>
“So when the people doing the trial came to me, it seemed like a godsend. I had no major expectations—I just hoped that I would get better. Today I am healthy and free of TB. I’m strong. I have a family and a normal life. Life is good,” she said.
Speaking to experts who were involved in the trial, it becomes clear that going into it, no one knew how important it would eventually prove to be in the future of TB treatment.
Dr. Pauline Howell managed the patients during the Nix-TB trial at the Sizwe Tropical Diseases Hospital in Johannesburg, where Msimango was a patient.
“Prior to the Nix trial we knew that treatment was too long, too toxic, worked in less than half of people afflicted with TB, and in those diagnosed with XDR TB (per the pre-2021 definition), only 20 percent were still alive after 5 years. I was still junior in clinical trials in 2015, but it was clear to everyone that knew anything about XDR-TB that replacing the extended treatment, which included at least 6 months of injectables, and all the other drugs (the kitchen sink approach) with just three drugs made us more than a little anxious,” she told IPS.
But like many of the trial’s participants, she saw relatively quickly how well the treatment was working.
“When trial participants started telling newly admitted patients about this trial and brought them to the research site before we had had a chance to speak with them, that was speaking loudly. When certain patients, who had been admitted for over two years, were suddenly starting to respond to TB treatment and culture convert, it was wonderful to celebrate with them, Howell, who is now Clinical Research Site Leader at Sizwe Tropical Disease Hospital, said. “When patients were relocating from the Eastern Cape to Gauteng just to get access to the trial, we knew this was the treatment we’d also want for ourselves and our loved ones.”
“There are definitely a few [trial participants] who may not have survived without this treatment, but for the majority, they were able to get back to their lives faster, potentially cause fewer onward infections and suffer less loneliness and other repercussions of having drug-resistant TB,” she added.
However, while the trial had an immediate effect on its participants, its results, which suggested the enormous potential of the regimen, paved the way for BPaL to revolutionize TB treatment.
“I had no idea that this trial would be the first step towards changing the treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis worldwide,” Howell said.
“It’s good to remember that although TB is deadly, it is curable, and the side effects of the BPaL/M regimen are common but predictable and manageable. A decade ago, patients put an end to rental agreements for their homes, quit their jobs, told their partners to move on and their families took out funeral policies. These days, patients sit in front of me and say, ‘I have been here for two weeks already! I need to get home and back to my life’. It makes my head spin how much has changed, partially due to the Nix trial,” she added.
In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) endorsed BPaL with or without another drug, moxifloxacin (M), and BPaL(M) is today the preferred treatment option for drug-resistant TB.
According to data from the TB Alliance, the nonprofit group that developed pretomanid, BPaL and BPaL-based regimens, they treat about 75 percent of the overall number of drug-resistant TB cases treated annually. This number is projected to soon reach 90 percent.
Meanwhile, the group says, the regimens have already saved more than 11,000 lives and USD 100 million for health systems globally and by 2034 are expected to save an additional 192,000 lives and health systems almost <a href="https://www.tballiance.org/dr-tb-regimen-will-save-190000-additional-lives-and-1-29b-by-2035/">USD 1.3 billion</a>.
In some countries classed as having high-burden TB epidemics, they have already altered the TB landscape significantly.
“In South Africa, which adopted the BPaL/M guidelines in Sep 2023, we are seeing a single-digit percentage lost to follow-up for the first time in the history of our TB programme,” she says.
But the regimen’s potential may be in danger of not being fully fulfilled as richer nations cut foreign aid budgets, impacting funding that has traditionally helped support disease and other healthcare programmes in poor countries.
“The eternal challenge with TB is how closely it is tied to lack of access, poverty, substance use, being undomiciled and general lack of funding to overcome these challenges… Unfortunately, as long as there is poverty and lack of access, political will and funding, TB will continue to live side by side with us,” said Howell.
“Some people now can’t get their medications because of these cuts,” said Msimango. “They’re costing people’s lives.”
Note: This article is brought to you by IPS Noram in collaboration with INPS Japan and Soka Gakkai International in consultative status with ECOSOC.
IPS UN Bureau Report
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</ul></div> Excerpt: Before the successful Nix-TB trial, which took place in South Africa from 2015 to 2017, patients with extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) had to follow a complicated treatment plan for the deadliest form of the disease.]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Chile Aims for Sustainable Port Expansion – VIDEO</title>
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<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2025 18:01:14 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Orlando Milesi</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Maritime transport is key for Chile, which has 34 free trade agreements with countries and blocs of nations, one of the broadest trade networks in the world with access to over 86% of the global gross domestic product (GDP). In 2024, this South American country surpassed US$100 billion in exports for the first time, mostly […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="169" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/videochileportexpansion-300x169.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Chile advances its largest maritime project in San Antonio, aiming to build a sustainable port that boosts trade while protecting the environment" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/videochileportexpansion-300x169.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/videochileportexpansion.jpg 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By Orlando Milesi SAN ANTONIO, Chile, Oct 17 2025 (IPS) Maritime transport is key for Chile, which has 34 free trade agreements with countries and blocs of nations, one of the broadest trade networks in the world with access to over 86% of the global gross domestic product (GDP).
In 2024, this South American country surpassed US$100 billion in exports for the first time, mostly of copper, forest products, fresh fruits, fish, and organic foods. In turn, it imported US$78.025 billion, mostly diesel oil, clothing, accessories, and footwear.
Faced with growing trade, experts predict enormous port demand by 2036 in this long and narrow South American country squeezed between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rp8Gs1293Wk?si=KWOrv99nG1uuTNgk" width="629" height="352" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
To avoid a collapse in 10 years, the San Antonio Outer Port project will triple the capacity of Chile’s main route for the exit and entry of products.
San Antonio currently handles 29% of the tonnage of maritime foreign trade, 34% of exports, and 71% of Chile’s imports by value.
The high agricultural and mining production from Chile’s central area, which contributes 59% of the country’s GDP and is home to 63% of its 19.7 million inhabitants, passes through this port.
The outer port will allow for the movement of six million containers thanks to two new port terminals, 1,730 meters long and 450 meters wide, with eight new berthing fronts for state-of-the-art container ships.
The total estimated investment for the project is US$4.45 billion, which will be financed by the government and by international companies applying for concessions.
The first months of 2026 will be key for awarding the dredging works, the construction of the breakwater, the protective infrastructure for the new port, and for learning the authorities’ decision on the environmental impact of the San Antonio Outer Port works.
Measures will be taken to mitigate that impact, including the protection of two wetlands located on port land and support for the work of fishermen in nearby coves. To decarbonize, the port project will also use energy produced from renewable sources.
San Antonio, 110 kilometers west of Santiago and south of the historic port of Valparaiso, which it has surpassed in relevance, is aiming for a revival by promoting the largest port infrastructure project in Chile’s history.
It currently provides 10,200 direct jobs to port workers with an average monthly income of US$1,110.
San Antonio aims to consolidate its ninth place among the largest ports in Latin America and expand its role in the movement of cargo to and from Asia and the Americas.
Its managers also seek to show that infrastructure development can be harmonized with the protection and improvement of environmental conditions through a project that is a model of sustainability.
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<title>Connecting the Dots: Policy Shifts, Realities and Lessons</title>
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<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2025 04:38:13 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Sudip Ranjan Basu</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[The Asia-Pacific region has long served as a springboard for transforming socio-economic implementation gaps into development opportunities. With the 2030 deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals fast approaching, policymakers are stepping up efforts to translate policy announcements into tangible impacts. Looking back since 1970s, the region’s development trajectory has been shaped by a series of […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-female-merchant-_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-female-merchant-_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-female-merchant-_.jpg 576w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />A female merchant was crossing a bustling street in Hanoi, Vietnam. Despite economic development over five decades, development gaps in Asia and the Pacific remained. Credit: Unsplash/Jeremy Stewardson By Sudip Ranjan Basu BANGKOK Thailand, Oct 17 2025 (IPS) The Asia-Pacific region has long served as a springboard for transforming socio-economic implementation gaps into development opportunities. With the 2030 deadline for the <a href="https://www.unescap.org/kp/2025/asia-and-pacific-sdg-progress-report-2025" target="_blank">Sustainable Development Goals</a> fast approaching, policymakers are stepping up efforts to translate policy announcements into tangible impacts.

Looking back since 1970s, the region’s development trajectory has been shaped by a series of crises that triggered transformative policy responses. By engaging strategic partnerships, countries in the region are well-positioned to promote shared prosperity for both people and the planet.
Anchoring crisis-driven policy shifts 
In the 1970s, technological advances—particularly in agriculture—ushered in a new era. The introduction of high-yield crop varieties, known as the Green Revolution, boosted food production and rural incomes, laying the foundation for the emergence of a middle class. However, the decade also exposed vulnerabilities, as volatility in global commodity and energy prices exposed the risks of external shocks.
The 1980s brought further challenges. Rising oil prices and global interest rates strained national budgets across developing countries. The cost of servicing external debt crowded out investments in productive sectors, highlighting the risks of over-reliance on foreign aid.
The 1997 Asian financial crisis marked a watershed moment. Currency collapses, triggered capital flight and trade disruptions, leaving deep scars and prompting shifts in political governance and economic policy across the region.
By the early 2000s, optimism returned. Trade and investment surged, regional value chains expanded, and ICT-driven growth integrated economies more deeply into the global economy. Globalization was widely seen as a pathway to long-term prosperity. 
Yet the 2008 global financial crisis shattered this euphoria. Inflation soared, investor confidence plummeted, and trade contracted.
Fast forward to the COVID-19 pandemic, which once again exposed lingering vulnerabilities: socio-economic inequality was deepened, jobs prospects dimmed, overdependence on supply chain became more pronounced, technological monopolies were revealed, and environmental fragility was clearly manifested. The pandemic reinforced the urgent need for adaptive policy frameworks.
These crisis episodes underscored the importance of <a href="https://www.unescap.org/blog/shifting-conversations-multifaceted-policymaking" target="_blank">coordinated policy action</a> in an interconnected landscape, reinforcing the lesson that growth without adequate and shared outcomes is unsustainable. 
Adjusting to changing socio-economic realities 
The development <a href="https://www.unescap.org/kp/2022/theme-study-2022-reclaiming-our-future" target="_blank">journey</a> has been marked by complexity and diversity. A comparative analysis over recent decades reveals recurring patterns: energy and food price volatility and tightening financial conditions have consistently tested policymakers. Rising interest rates in advanced economies have reignited debt concerns in developing countries, threatening economic stability and undermining progress.
Simultaneously, intensifying geopolitical competition is reshaping trade relationships, investment flows and technology transfers. Policymakers must navigate these shifts while advancing national development priorities and adapting to evolving dynamics.
These pressures have prompted to diversify its sources of economic growth and strategic engagements. Despite impressive achievements in social development, long-term stability and impact-driven outcomes hinge on governments’ ability to manage external shocks, anticipate risks, and promote cross-border economic cooperation and accelerate climate action.
Recent policy shifts signal a move toward structural transformation. Governments are spearheading industrialization, accelerating green energy transitions and pioneering sustainable financing mechanisms. This marks a shift from short-term crisis management to building medium- and long-term socio-economic progress. 
The pandemic years further emphasised the need for adaptive policies—ones that can absorb unexpected shocks while maintaining progress toward stability.
Adapting through policy lessons 
The development <a href="https://www.unescap.org/shaping-the-future" target="_blank">experience</a>, particularly the least developed countries, the landlocked developing countries and small island developing States, offers valuable insights into building institutional capabilities and preventing future crises. Four strategic policy insights emerge:
Price stability matters: Volatile prices have repeatedly undermined development gains. Strategic foresight and balanced economic policy planning are essential to safeguard progress. 
Fiscal buoyancy is critical: Excessive external borrowing has triggered past crises. 
Creating fiscal space, mobilizing domestic resources, scaling blended finance and implementing coordinated debt management frameworks are vital for development.
Crisis preparedness requires coordination: The 1997 and 2008 crises showed that no country can respond effectively in isolation. Strengthening institutions is crucial for early warning systems, policy dialogue and coordinated action.
Sustainability is key to people-centred development: Climate change, socio-economic disparities and institutional inefficiencies pose long-term risks. Integrating sustainability into strategies and promoting technological transformation are no longer optional; they are imperative.
Turning points 
The Asia-Pacific region’s development story is one of transition, and transformation. Connecting these <a href="https://www.unescap.org/blog/policy-turns-anchoring-transition-resilient-future" target="_blank">turning points</a> reveals a region that has consistently learned from its challenges and leveraged them to advance policy solutions.
The path ahead is promising, but policies must adapt to address shifting socio-economic dynamics, structural and climate change vulnerabilities, and emerging geopolitical realignments. These efforts must be anchored in <a href="https://www.unescap.org/kp/2023/changing-landscape-regional-cooperation-asia-and-pacific" target="_blank">regional cooperation</a>, inclusive dialogue, and coordinated action, particularly through platforms such as <a href="https://www.unescap.org/commission/about-the-commission" target="_blank">ESCAP</a>.
While governments play a central role, long-term progress will depend on the collective engagement of the private sector, academia, civil society and regional institutions. With strategic convergence, the Asia-Pacific region is well-positioned to overcome today’s uncertainty and shape a better future for all.
Sudip Ranjan Basu is Secretary of the Commission, ESCAP
IPS UN Bureau
 
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<title>Is the UN “Bloated, Unfocused, Outdated and Ineffective”?</title>
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<pubDate>Fri, 17 Oct 2025 04:19:55 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Thalif Deen</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[The US hostility towards the UN is threatening to escalate, as a cash-starved world body is struggling for economic survival. Addressing the UN’s Administrative and Budgetary Committee last week. Ambassador Jeff Bartos, U.S. Representative for U.N. Management and Reform said: “President Trump is absolutely right – the United Nations can be an important institution for […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="169" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Is-the-UN_-300x169.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Is-the-UN_-300x169.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Is-the-UN_.jpg 564w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Oct 17 2025 (IPS) The US hostility towards the UN is threatening to escalate, as a cash-starved world body is struggling for economic survival.
Addressing the UN’s Administrative and Budgetary Committee last week. Ambassador Jeff Bartos, U.S. Representative for U.N. Management and Reform said: “President Trump is absolutely right – the United Nations can be an important institution for solving international challenges, but it has strayed far from its original purpose”. 

“Over 80 years, the UN has grown bloated, unfocused, too often ineffective, and sometimes even part of the problem. The UN’s failure to deliver on its core mandates is alarming and undeniable. “
The United States has been, by far, the largest funder of the UN since its founding. Based on the most recent scales of assessment, the United States provides more funding to the UN than 180 other nations combined, he pointed out.
“For the United States, the era of business as usual is over. During the Main Session, we will work with this Committee to achieve deeper cuts to wasteful spending and stronger accountability, with a relentless focus on results”. 
The reductions already proposed in special political missions, the closure of unnecessary field offices, and the consolidation of executive offices, are the kind of decisions that must become the rule, not the exception.
Addressing the General Assembly last month, President Trump remarked: “What is the purpose of the United Nations? It’s not even coming close to living up to [its] potential.”
Dismissing the U.N. as an outdated, ineffective organization, he boasted: “I ended seven wars, dealt with the leaders of each and every one of these countries, and never a phone call from the United Nations offering to help in finalizing the deal.”
But UN’s political ineffectiveness is due primarily to the role played by the five veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council—the US, UK, France, China and Russia–who are quick to protect their allies accused of human rights violations, war crimes or genocide.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has officially withdrawn or is in the process of withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and has ceased funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and from the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 
Which triggers the question: what’s the fate and economic survival of the UN against an aggressive Trump administration?
Dr Alon Ben-Meir, a retired professor of international relations, most recently at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University (NYU), told IPS there is no other way to describe how the Trump administration is treating the UN other than self-defeating and detrimental to the US’s national interests, while substantially eroding America’s influence worldwide. 
“It is hard to fathom how on earth Trump, who wants to ‘Make America Great Again,’ demonstrates such blatant hostility towards the only global organization in which the United States has, over the years, played such a pivotal and leading role that surpassed any other country since the UN’s creation in 1945.”
The statement by US Ambassador Bartos, he argued, is at best inaccurate and at worst totally wrong. It has never been a secret that the UN is overdue for significant reforms, beginning with the United Nations Security Council and many other UN agencies. 
Dismissing the UN’s vital work on many fronts in one brush, however, and cutting humanitarian assistance on which millions in poor countries depend, or withdrawing from vital UN agencies, is unconscionable and highly damaging to the US’ leadership and national interests, he said. 
“By what logic does the Trump administration justify its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO), whose primary function is coordinating global health responses to crises such as pandemics, and setting international health standards?”
“One would think that the Trump administration would strongly support such an organization that serves US interests from a global health perspective and would only bolster the US influence by playing a significant role in improving its functions”. 
How can the Trump administration explain its withdrawal from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), which promotes and protects human rights worldwide through international cooperation? 
By withdrawing from this organization, Trump forsakes any role that the US could play in preventing human rights abuses, which leads to fewer global checks on human rights abuses and weaker international standards. 
Trump may care less about human rights violations, but how does withdrawing from such an organization serve the US’ overall national and global interests? he asked.
James E. Jennings, PhD, President, Conscience International, told IPS support for the United Nations organization is vital to global health and stability.,
“Those who have worked on the front lines of UN agencies’ responses to wars, natural disasters, and famines throughout the world cannot imagine the degree of inhumanity involved in taking food out of the mouths of babies, refusing to educate children, and letting disease and epidemics rage. This is not politics, it is bullying, and the world should see it for what it is”.
He said there is a pattern in Mr. Trump’s behavior that is easily exposed, Every one of his perceived enemies, as for example in the majority Democratic states of California and Illinois, he describes in the most terrible terms as crime-ridden and out of control. 
“Within three days after he sends in ICE storm troopers to places like Washington DC who do nothing except display their muscle, suddenly that city or state is peaceable and under control.“ 
Trump brags that things are fine now in Portland, Chicago, and other such places, when no real change can be detected except that some normal citizens have been roughed up. Theatrics may win voters but does not in any way solve problems, said Dr Jennings.
The same technique can be observed on the international scene. After deprecating and sidelining UN peacemaking efforts, which go deeply into the issues, he makes phone calls to leaders of countries on the verge of hostilities and claims that he has ended seven wars, which is nonsense. 
 “By sidelining the UN, he simply wants to dominate it. With the US the biggest donor supporting the organization, there is a fair chance that he can succeed in bending it to his will unless national leaders, US citizens, and people everywhere are resolute in opposing his plans”, declared Dr Jennings. 
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>A Hungry World Knows No Borders</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 16 Oct 2025 14:31:59 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Dr Himanshu Pathak</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[Dr Himanshu Pathak is Director General, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By Dr Himanshu Pathak HYDERABAD, India, Oct 16 2025 (IPS) When crops fail, people move not by choice, but by necessity. As families are displaced by droughts and failed harvests, the pressures do not always stop at national boundaries. In short, hunger has become one of the most powerful forces shaping our century.

From the Sahel, the vast semi-arid belt stretching across Africa from Senegal to Sudan and the Horn of Africa to South Asia’s dry zones and Southeast Asia’s coastal farmlands, climate shocks are undermining food production and disrupting communities across the Global South. 
In the Sahel, prolonged drought and poor harvests, among other factors, are driving migration north through Niger and Mali toward North Africa and, for some, across the Mediterranean.
Across South Asia, recurrent floods and heat stress have displaced millions in India and Bangladesh, while in Southeast Asia, rising seas are forcing coastal farmers and fishers inland.
These pressures are magnified by rapid population growth, especially in the Sahel, where the population is projected to more than double by 2050, placing immense strain on already limited arable land.
The same story is unfolding across the globe. In Central America’s drought-stricken Dry Corridor, years of crop failure are pushing families to leave their farms and migrate north in search of food and safety.
Safeguarding the right of people to remain where their families have lived for generations, now depends on enabling communities to produce more food from every hectare, even as conditions grow harsher.
This World Food Day (October 16), we must view food security not only as a humanitarian concern, but through the prism of peace and stability. 
History shows that when people cannot feed their families, societies fracture and conflicts occur. The world’s most strategic investment today is in the hands that grow our food and not in walls or weapons.
By investing in climate resilient crops such as the drought and heat tolerant varieties developed by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and expanding access to scientific innovation and improved seeds, we enable communities to withstand climate shocks, secure their livelihoods, and remain in their traditional lands instead of being forced to migrate by a crisis not of their making.
These positive impacts are already visible, but they must now be scaled up dramatically to match the magnitude of the challenge.
The World Bank estimates that up to 216 million people could be forced to migrate within their own countries by 2050 as climate impacts intensify most of them in Africa and South Asia. 
Investing in resilient food systems in the Global South is one of the most effective and humane strategies for ensuring regional and ultimately global stability.
The UNDP estimates that every dollar invested in sustainable agriculture today saves seven to ten dollars in humanitarian aid and migration management later.
At ICRISAT we witness this every day. Across Africa and Asia, we work with governments and communities to turn drylands, some of the harshest farming environments on Earth, into zones of opportunity.
In India’s Bundelkhand region, stretching across southern Uttar Pradesh and northern Madhya Pradesh our science-led watershed interventions have turned what were once parched and deserted wastelands into thriving, water-abundant croplands.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_22.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="468" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-192660" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_22.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_22-300x225.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-Hungry-World_22-200x149.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />
In Niger, climate-resilient seed systems are now transforming uncertainty into productivity. From drought-tolerant sorghum and pearl millet to digital tools that guide farmers on planting and water management, science is helping people stay and thrive where they are.
These few examples show that solutions exist. What is missing is scale and that requires more sustained investment.
Developed nations have both the capacity and the self-interest to act. Supporting food systems in the Global South should also be seen as insurance against instability.
A world where millions are forced to move in search of food and water will be a world without stability anywhere.
FAO’s 2025 World Food Day theme, “Hand in Hand for Better Food and a Better Future”, captures what this moment demands, a deeper investment in science that make a real difference, and genuine partnership.
Across the Global South, collaboration is already strengthening through the <a href="https://issca.icrisat.org/" target="_blank">ICRISAT Center of Excellence for South-South Cooperation in Agriculture</a> as nations share knowledge, seeds, and strategies to build resilience together.
Yet the North, too, has a vital role to play in recognition that hunger and instability anywhere can threaten prosperity everywhere.
The future of food security, peace, and climate resilience must be built together. 
As the climate crisis tightens its hold, the world must choose, act now to strengthen the foundations of food and farming, or face the growing cost of displacement and unrest.
This World Food Day let us remember that peace, like harvests, depends on what we sow today.
<div id="attachment_192661" style="width: 634px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192661" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Dr-Himanshu-Pathak.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="373" class="size-full wp-image-192661" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Dr-Himanshu-Pathak.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Dr-Himanshu-Pathak-300x179.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />Dr Himanshu Pathak Director General, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)</div>
IPS UN Bureau
 
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Excerpt: Dr Himanshu Pathak is Director General, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)]]></content:encoded>
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<title>They Have Known Nothing but War—The Plight of Syria’s Out-of-School Children</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 16 Oct 2025 10:20:13 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Sonia Al Ali</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[The war has deprived thousands of Syrian children of their right to education, especially displaced children in makeshift camps. Amidst difficult economic conditions and the inability of many families to afford educational costs, the future of these children is under threat. Adel Al-Abbas, a 13-year-old boy from Aleppo, northern Syria, was forced to quit his […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-devaxstating-school-in-the-city-of-Saraqib-south-of-Idlib-due-to-the-bombing-of-the-Syrian-regime-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="The community gets together to repair a school in the city of Saraqib, located south of Idlib, that was destroyed by bombing during the Assad regime. Credit: Sonia Al Ali/IPS" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-devaxstating-school-in-the-city-of-Saraqib-south-of-Idlib-due-to-the-bombing-of-the-Syrian-regime-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/A-devaxstating-school-in-the-city-of-Saraqib-south-of-Idlib-due-to-the-bombing-of-the-Syrian-regime.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />The community gets together to repair a school in the city of Saraqib, located south of Idlib, that was destroyed by bombing during the Assad regime. Credit: Sonia Al Ali/IPSBy Sonia Al Ali IDLIB, Syria, Oct 16 2025 (IPS) The war has deprived thousands of Syrian children of their right to education, especially displaced children in makeshift camps. Amidst difficult economic conditions and the inability of many families to afford educational costs, the future of these children is under threat.
Adel Al-Abbas, a 13-year-old boy from Aleppo, northern Syria, was forced to quit his education after being displaced from his city and moving to a camp on the Syrian-Turkish border. He says, “I was chasing my dream like any other child, but my family’s poverty and the harsh circumstances stood in my way and destroyed all my dreams.” 
Adel had hoped to become an engineer, but he left school and gave up on his goal. He replaced books and pens with work tools to help his impoverished family secure life’s necessities. He adds, “We are living in extremely difficult conditions today; we can’t even afford food. So, I have to find a job to survive and help my family, especially after my father was hit by shrapnel in the head, which caused him a permanent disability.”
Adel’s mother is saddened by her son’s situation, saying to IPS, “We need the income my son brings in after my husband got sick and became unable to provide for our family. In any case, work is better than an education that is now useless after he’s been out of school for so long and has fallen behind his peers.”
Reem Al-Diri, an 11-year-old, left school after her family was displaced from rural Damascus to the city of Idlib in northern Syria. Explaining why, she speaks with a clear sense of regret: “I loved school very much and was one of the top students in my class, but my family decided I had to stop my education to help my mom with the housework.”
The young girl confirms that she watches children on their way to school every morning, and she wishes she could go with them to complete her education and become a teacher in the future.
Reem’s mother, Umayya Al-Khalid, justifies her daughter’s absence from school, saying, “After we moved to a camp on the outskirts of Idlib, the schools became far from where we live. We also suffer from a lack of security and the widespread kidnapping of girls. So, I feared for my daughter and preferred for her to stay at home.”
Causes of school dropout
Akram Al-Hussein, a school principal in Idlib, northern Syria, speaks about the school dropout crisis in the country.
“School dropouts are one of the most serious challenges facing society. The absence of education leads to an unknown future for children and for the entire community.”
Al-Hussein emphasizes that relevant authorities and the international community must exert greater efforts to support education and ensure it does not remain a distant dream for children who face poverty and displacement.
He adds, “The reasons and motivations for children dropping out of school vary, ranging from conditions imposed by war—such as killings, displacement, and forced conscription-to child labor and poverty. Other factors include frequent displacement and the child’s inability to settle in one place during the school year, as well as a general lack of parental interest in education and their ignorance of the risks of depriving a child of schooling.”
In this context, the Syria Response Coordinators team, a specialized statistics group in Syria, noted in a statement that the number of out-of-school children in Syria has reached more than 2.5 million, with northwestern Syria alone accounting for over 318,000 out-of-school children, with more than 78,000 of them living in displacement camps. Of this group, 85 percent are engaged in various occupations, including dangerous ones.
In a report dated June 12, 2024, the team identified the key reasons behind the widening school dropout crisis.
A shortage of schools relative to the population density, a shift towards private education, difficult economic conditions, a lack of local government laws to prevent children from entering the labor market, displacement and forced migration, and a marginalized education sector with insufficient support from both local and international humanitarian organizations are seen as the causes.
The team’s report warned that if this trend continues, it will lead to the emergence of an uneducated, illiterate generation. This generation will be consumers rather than producers, and as a result, these uneducated children will become a burden on society.
Initiatives to Restore Destroyed Schools
The destruction of schools in Syria has significantly contributed to the school dropout crisis. Throughout the years of war, schools were not spared from destruction, looting, and vandalism, leaving millions of children without a place to learn or in buildings unfit for education. However, with the downfall of the Assad regime, several initiatives have been launched to restore these schools. This is seen as an urgent and immediate necessity for building a new Syria.
Samah Al-Dioub, a school principal in the northern Syrian city of Maarat al-Nu’man, says, “Syria’s schools suffered extensive damage from both the earthquake and the bombings. We have collected funds from the city’s residents and are now working on rehabilitating the school, but the need is still immense and the costs are very high, especially with residents returning to the city.” She explained that their current focus is on surveying schools and prioritizing which ones need renovation the most.
Engineer Mohammad Hannoun, director of school buildings at the Syrian Ministry of Education, states that approximately 7,400 schools across Syria were either partially or completely destroyed. They have restored 156 schools so far.
Hannoun adds, “We are working to rehabilitate schools in all Syrian regions, aiming to equip at least one school in every village or city to welcome returning students. The Ministry of Education, along with local and international organizations and civil society, are all contributing to these restoration efforts.”
Hannoun points out that the extensive damage to school buildings harms both teachers and students. It leads to a lack of basic educational resources, puts pressure on the few schools that are still functional, and causes a large number of students to drop out, which ultimately impacts the quality of the educational process.
As part of their contingency plans, Hannoun explains that the ministry, in collaboration with partner organizations, intends to activate schools with the available resources to accommodate children returning from camps and from asylum countries. This effort is particularly focused on affected areas that have experienced massive waves of displacement.
The <a href="https://www.unicef.org/syria/situation-children-syria">United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)</a> said in 2025, 16.7 million people, including 7.5 million children, are in need of humanitarian support in the country, with 2.45 million children out of school, and 2 million children are at risk of malnutrition.
The phenomenon of school dropouts has become a crisis threatening Syria’s children, who have been forced by circumstances to work to earn a living for their families. Instead of being in a classroom to build their futures, children are struggling to survive in an environment left behind by conflict and displacement.
 
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<title>The Inescapable Reality the Israelis Must Face</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 16 Oct 2025 07:26:04 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Alon Ben-Meir</dc:creator>
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<description><![CDATA[The ceasefire agreement and the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are only the first steps on the long and treacherous road that could end the calamitous, decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In my recent article, “A Rare Alignment:The World Stands Ready, Are the Palestinians?” I tackled what the Palestinians must do to realize their national […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="136" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-UN-General_-300x136.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-UN-General_-300x136.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/The-UN-General_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />The UN General Assembly endorses New York Declaration on a two-State solution between Israel and Palestine. 12 September 2025. Credit: UN Photo/Loey FelipeBy Alon Ben-Meir NEW YORK, Oct 16 2025 (IPS) The ceasefire agreement and the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are only the first steps on the long and treacherous road that could end the calamitous, decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In my recent article, “A Rare Alignment:The World Stands Ready, Are the Palestinians?”

I tackled what the Palestinians must do to realize their national aspirations. In this article, I address what the Israelis must do not only to end their conflict with the Palestinians, but also to salvage Israel’s moral standing, which lies in ruin in Gaza.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has reached a new breaking point, more precipitous now than any time before. Although Israelis have experienced unfathomable trauma as a result of Hamas’ horrific attack, now is the time for all Israelis to carefully examine the circumstances that have brought them to this fateful crossroads.
Decades of violent conflict and the persistent denial of each other’s rights culminated in Hamas’ savagery, followed by the longest and most devastating war, which has reframed the nature of the conflict. It made it clearer than ever before that those who wrote the obituary for a two-state solution must now rewrite their script. As much as co-existence is inescapable, so is the inevitable rise of a Palestinian state.
Choosing the right path would require courage and a new vision. The Israelis must first disabuse themselves of several beliefs embedded in their psyche and push for a just solution to the conflict with the Palestinians, which is central to gradually restoring Israel’s shattered moral standing, which only the Israelis themselves can reclaim.
Existential Threat 
The Israelis have been indoctrinated to believe that a Palestinian state would pose an existential threat and must be prevented at all costs, which has been falsely promulgated for decades by egocentric, nationalist and corrupt politicians like Netanyahu. At this juncture, the Israelis need to accept the irrevocable reality of Palestinian existence and take action to mitigate their fear rather than perpetuate enmity.
Israel was created as a sanctuary for any Jew who wishes to live in peace and security. This millennium-old dream however, cannot be realized, as time has shown, as long as the Palestinians are denied a state of their own.
The Israelis need to overcome their anxieties and misguided beliefs by finding meaning and self-affirmation, which does not hinge on denying the Palestinians their own state. They should step away from the deeply rooted, misguided fear that a Palestinian state indeed poses an existential threat, because without it, Israel renders itself permanently insecure, as time has shown.
Hatred Toward the Palestinians 
The Israelis’ hatred of the Palestinians is rooted in a century-old conflict, which has only deepened due to the continuing acts of violence and the prevalence of mutually acrimonious narratives. This is further compounded by the Israelis’ belief that the Palestinians refuse to accept Israel’s right to exist. Instead of focusing on practical measures of reconciliation necessitated by the inescapable coexistence, they clung to hatred, which subconsciously justifies their continuing resistance to Palestinian statehood.
A well-known proverb notes that “Hatred is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.” Indeed, hatred is self-destructive, and letting go of it is essential for peaceful coexistence. The Israelis must live in the present to free themselves from the shackles of past prejudices against the Palestinians and reach out rather than shun them. 
Such an approach may surprise many Israelis, who will find that generally the Palestinians are a willing partner eager to engage, albeit only if they believe they stand a good chance of realizing their national aspirations.
Refusing the Reality of Coexistence 
The Israelis need to come to terms with the fact that accepting what cannot be changed and embracing it with understanding and even compassion would ultimately serve their own interests. In essence, Israelis must use their collective power to create the conditions that produce mutual political, economic, and security gains, which is the only way to coexist peacefully. Israelis must ask what the alternative to peaceful coexistence is. 
Has anyone come up with a viable and mutually acceptable alternative whereby both can live in peace, short of a two-state solution?
The irony is that while Netanyahu spent decades trying to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, his devastating onslaught on the Palestinians has only produced precisely the opposite. It has rallied the international community to support an independent Palestinian state like never before.
Israel can annex all the West Bank and Gaza, assuming that it could live with international isolation, sanctions, expulsion from various international organizations, etc., but where will the Palestinians go?
For how long can seven million Israeli Jews suppress seven million Palestinians living in their midst and around them? How many Palestinians can they kill, displace, or starve to death? What choice would the Palestinians be left with other than armed struggle?
Since coexistence is inescapable, under what kind of an umbrella do the Israelis want to live? Hamas’ savagery and Israel’s devastating retaliation only attest to the consequences of decades-long mutual systematic dehumanization. 
Unless the Israelis accept coexistence as an unmitigated reality, they will have to raise generations of warriors trained to kill Palestinians, destroy their properties, and live by the sword for as far as the eye can see.
The Catastrophic Loss of Israel’s Moral Standing 
There are no words to describe the lasting damage that the Netanyahu government has inflicted on Israel as a country and the Israeli people. The whole world was astounded to see Jews, of all people, committing crimes against humanity in broad daylight beyond the capacity of any human being with a conscience to grasp.
Yes, the world applies a double standard when it comes to the Jews, and for good reason. The Jews have suffered for millennia from persecution, discrimination, and expulsion, culminating with the Holocaust, and are expected, because of their tragic experience, to uphold the sanctity of life. 
And while the Jews have lived by and spread the values of caring, compassion, empathy, and altruism—values that have shielded them throughout their dispersion—the barbaric Netanyahu government has betrayed these tenets of Judaism. It has left Israel, and by tragic extension, Jews round the world, with no moral ground to stand on while precipitating the exponential rise of antisemitism.
 It is hard to imagine how any Israeli government would desert these values and perpetrate this inconceivable cruelty and vengeance upon the Palestinians. The killing of tens of thousands of women, children, and the elderly, the bombing of hospitals and schools, and the deliberate starvation of a whole people as a weapon of war, sent shock waves throughout the world, bewildering friends and foes. 
The countries that admired Israel for its incredible achievements in all walks of life are now looking at it as a pariah state that has lost its moral compass and its way.
My Plea to the Israelis—Facing a Moral Reckoning 
No one can make light of the trauma and the horrendous suffering so many of you have and continue to endure because of Hamas’ butchery and heartless imprisonment of the hostages. But your government’s retaliatory war, which quickly became a war of revenge and retribution that killed tens of thousands of innocent civilians, did not do justice to your sacrifices by committing horrific war crimes in your name.
The war in Gaza and its consequences demand that Israel face a moral reckoning. You need to confront your government’s actions that plundered the depths of human immorality. Your moral obligation is to rise against Netanyahu’s government.
Remember, the Palestinians will recover from the catastrophe they have endured, rebuild their lives, and coalesce around a renewed effort, with the mounting support of the international community, to realize their aspiration for statehood. 
Israel, however, has sustained a far greater catastrophe by forsaking Jewish values. It will take a generation (or more) before your country can regain a measure of moral standing, and that is only if it ends the conflict with the Palestinians in a fair and just way based on a two-state solution.
Now it’s time for accountability. Following the release of the hostages, you now need to embark on bringing an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Pour into the streets by the hundreds of thousands and demand the immediate resignation of Netanyahu and force him to face a commission of inquiry about his conduct before and after Hamas’ attack.
What you need to pursue now is building on the ceasefire and demanding that a newly-formed government move step-by-step toward implementing the Trump peace plan, which must culminate in establishing a Palestinian state.
This will not be a gift to the Palestinians. Rather, this is what you must do to transform the calamitous war in Gaza and the horrific pain, suffering, and losses you have sustained into a breakthrough on the road toward the long-awaited and desperately needed peaceful Israeli-Palestinian coexistence.
Dr. Alon Ben-Meir is a retired professor of international relations, most recently at the Center for Global Affairs at NYU. He taught courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies.
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<title>With Ceasefire in Effect, Tonnes of Aid Expected to be Delivered into Gaza</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/with-ceasefire-in-effect-tonnes-of-aid-will-be-delivered-into-gaza/</link>
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<pubDate>Wed, 15 Oct 2025 16:27:38 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Oritro Karim</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Aid]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[After two years of conflict with Israel, Hamas has released the remaining 20 living hostages, while Israel has freed 250 Palestinian prisoners and over 1,700 detainees who have since returned to Gaza. Following a ceasefire agreement that took effect on October 10, Israeli forces are set to withdraw from designated areas within the Gaza Strip […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/10-October-2025_-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/10-October-2025_-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/10-October-2025_.jpg 624w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />On 10 October 2025, thousands of Palestinian families moved along the coastal road back to northern Gaza, amid the extreme devastation of infrastructure. Credit: UNICEF/Mohammed NateelBy Oritro Karim UNITED NATIONS, Oct 15 2025 (IPS) After two years of conflict with Israel, Hamas has released the remaining 20 living hostages, while Israel has freed 250 Palestinian prisoners and over 1,700 detainees who have since returned to Gaza. Following a ceasefire agreement that took effect on October 10, Israeli forces are set to withdraw from designated areas within the Gaza Strip as humanitarian organizations mobilize to assist Palestinians in urgent need.

For the past two years, Gaza has endured relentless bombardment, while aid deliveries have been largely obstructed throughout the course of the war. Over the past three days, the United Nations (UN) and its partners have been operating on the ground to provide lifesaving assistance to displaced civilians—many of whom are finally returning home and receiving access to basic services for the first time in months.
“After so much horror and suffering, there is finally relief at last,” said Olga Cherevko, the Spokesperson in Gaza for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). “Since the ceasefire took effect, the UN and our humanitarian partners have moved swiftly to scale up the delivery of humanitarian assistance across Gaza. The bombs have stopped falling and with that silence came an opportunity and the responsibility to act. The ceasefire has allowed those who are suffering during the two years of war, Palestinian and Israeli families, a breath of fresh air and a light of hope after many dark months.”
On October 13, OCHA confirmed that Israeli authorities had approved the delivery of more than 190,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid—roughly 20,000 tonnes above the previous agreement—including food, medicine, and shelter materials. According to Cherevko, 817 aid trucks have successfully entered Gaza without obstruction, offering a moment of relief for Palestinian families devastated by the conflict.
<div id="attachment_192647" style="width: 634px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192647" class="size-full wp-image-192647" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/UNICEF-trucks_.jpg" alt="" width="624" height="416" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/UNICEF-trucks_.jpg 624w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/UNICEF-trucks_-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" />UNICEF trucks bring life-saving supplies into Gaza for children and their families. Credit: UNICEF/Mohammed Nateel</div>
For the first time since March, cooking gas has been delivered to households in Gaza, while many residents have also gained access to frozen meat, fresh fruits and vegetables, and flour—essentials that had been out of reach for months. “All these items, we’ve been needing for so long,” Cherevko told reporters on Tuesday. “This is going to make a massive difference in people’s lives because we’ve been seeing families and kids collecting garbage to cook with. This will be a huge breakthrough.”
As a result of improved security conditions within the enclave, humanitarian agencies have gained greater mobility, allowing them to reach several previously inaccessible areas—including the north, where access had been most restricted and needs are most severe. OCHA has fully mobilized to deliver aid across all regions of Gaza as part of its 60-day scale-up plan for the ceasefire, which has so far proven effective.
“We’re offloading and collecting critical supplies and reaching areas we haven’t been able to access for months,” said Cherevko. “With the commercial sector reinforcing our response and bilateral assistance alongside us, we’re working to restore access to clean water and ensure people receive bread and hot meals.”
The UN and its partners have been working to resupply hospitals and field clinics that have been left without fuel or medical supplies for months, many of which were left only partially operational during the war. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), within 24 hours of the ceasefire taking effect, an emergency medical team was deployed to Al-Ahli Hospital.
Additionally, eight aid trucks carrying critical medical supplies, including insulin, cancer medicines, incubators, ventilators, patient monitors, and solar panels for desalination units, have reached the European Gaza and Nasser hospitals. Additional deployments are planned for Gaza City as displaced civilians begin returning to their areas of origin.
“Improving access to health facilities and expanding our operational missions are vital first steps toward delivering urgent health assistance to Palestinians throughout Gaza,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO. “Gaza’s health system must be rehabilitated and rebuilt. This crisis gives us the opportunity to rebuild it better: stronger, fairer and centered on people’s needs.”
Rubble and unexploded ordnance pose a significant threat to Palestinians returning home and remain one of OCHA’s top priorities during its sixty-day scale-up plan. Specialized OCHA teams are currently conducting assessments along key roads and crossings, making sure explosive ordnance is clearly marked and that communities know to stay away. The full extent of unexploded ordnance across the enclave has yet to be determined.
Despite marked improvements over the past several days, the scale of needs remains immense and additional funding is urgently required to support lifesaving services and ensure a sustained path for recovery. In addition to unexploded ordnance, displacement, destroyed infrastructure, lawlessness, damaged roads, and the collapse of basic services stand as significant challenges for humanitarian organizations.
“The ceasefire has ended the fighting, but it has not ended the crisis,” noted Cherevko. “Scaling up responses is not just about logistics and more trucks. It is about restoring humanity and dignity to a shattered population. We’re working around the clock with all parties to ensure predictable safe and sustained access.”
On October 14, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced that an estimated USD 20 billion will be required over the next three years to initiate Gaza’s reconstruction efforts—part of a broader recovery plan that could span decades and ultimately cost more than USD 70 billion. UNDP Representative Jaco Cillers told reporters in Geneva that while there are “good indicators” of support from potential donors in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States, no commitments have yet been confirmed.
Numerous humanitarian experts have affirmed that lasting peace is the only viable solution to the crisis, warning that conditions in Gaza are extremely fragile and could deteriorate further—especially with the onset of the winter season. “Let me be clear, humanitarian aid alone will not be a substitute for peace,” said Cherevko. “The ceasefire must hold. It must become the basis for broader political efforts that bring the end of cycles of violence and despair.
“The ceasefire has opened the door to a future in which children can go to schools safely, hospitals are places of healing and not suffering, and aid convoys are ultimately replaced by commerce and opportunity.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
 
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<title>From Burundi to Washington: Recognizing the Warning Signs</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/from-burundi-to-washington-recognizing-the-warning-signs/</link>
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<pubDate>Wed, 15 Oct 2025 14:33:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Carine Kaneza Nantulya</dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Africa]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Development & Aid]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[Carine Kaneza Nantulya is deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="200" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/protestslosangeles-300x200.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/protestslosangeles-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/protestslosangeles.jpg 629w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />The forced deportations of immigrants without due process, violent crackdowns against protesters in Los Angeles, ICE raids, and the deployment of military forces in Washington, D.C. are chilling reminders of the authoritarian playbook.
For those of us who have lived through repression, these are unmistakable warning signs. Credit: ShutterstockBy Carine Kaneza Nantulya WASHINGTON DC, Oct 15 2025 (IPS) I moved to the United States in 2012 with great reluctance. I wasn’t sure why I should uproot myself to a country thousands of miles away from my hometown. The move reminded me of a childhood I hadn’t fully embraced—growing up in faraway countries like Russia and China, making constant adjustments, encountering racism, forging and losing friendships along the way. I had promised myself I would not impose the same cycle on my children.
This is the moment for the continent to claim leadership, to strengthen multilateralism, and to shape a global order rooted not in interventionism, self-centeredness but in Ubuntu -- a vision of shared humanity, community, and interdependence 
 But the U.S. turned out to be different. It wasn’t China, and it wasn’t Russia. It was, and still is, a mosaic of cultures, languages, and nationalities unlike anywhere else. Most important, it was a country rooted in the fierce belief that people are free to speak, dissent, and live as they choose.
That bedrock principle, however, is eroding. The US is changing in ways eerily reminiscent of my home country, Burundi. In 2015, when President Pierre Nkurunziza <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/05/26/april-2015-june-2020-chronology-repression-media-and-civil-society-burundi">defied the constitution to seek a third term</a>, peaceful protesters were met with bullets, political opponents were silenced, and journalists fled. Many of those journalists found refuge in the US—at Voice of America, for instance—only to lose their livelihoods recently when the government <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/africa-press-freedom-voa-usaid-media/a-71993282">shuttered</a> most of VOA’s Africa department.
The <a href="https://www.hrw.org/the-day-in-human-rights/2025/03/03">dismantling of USAID</a> has left social workers and health experts reeling, their efforts to uplift millions crushed overnight. Yes, the US has long had a complicated role abroad. I grew up hearing about its <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/10/world/us-raises-pressure-on-mobutu-a-longtime-ally-to-step-down.html">support</a> for abusive leaders like Mobutu in what was then Zaire and its <a href="https://www.csis.org/analysis/why-are-foreign-powers-scrambling-court-africa">meddling</a> in countries’ internal affairs in the name of fighting communism.
But those contradictions always existed alongside a powerful counterforce: freedom in journalism and academia, and activism that relentlessly exposed America’s own wrongs. Writers like Alfred McCoy and critics like Noam Chomsky built careers by holding the U.S. government accountable—something unthinkable in today’s Burundi, Moscow or Beijing.
Equally powerful was the struggle within: the <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/06/18/us-address-slaverys-legacy-juneteenth" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/06/18/us-address-slaverys-legacy-juneteenth&source=gmail&ust=1760703780234000&usg=AOvVaw19LqPU2e8HUT7CA5BWUyaS">legacy of slavery and segregation</a> revealed how deeply entrenched structural barriers could be, yet it also showed how determined citizens were to resist them. Activists like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and John Lewis embodied that paradox—forcing the US to confront its original sin of racial oppression while expanding the horizons of what freedom and equality could mean.
That commitment to truth and liberty was precisely why, when Burundian security forces fired live bullets into protesters, students instinctively <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-32548350#:~:text=Hundreds%20of%20students%20in%20Burundi,for%20re%2Delection%20in%20June.">ran</a> to the US embassy—not the Russian or Chinese one. For decades, US soft power was rooted in the promise of human rights and democracy.
<div id="attachment_192644" style="width: 410px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192644" class="size-full wp-image-192644" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CarineKanezaNantulya.jpg" alt="" width="400" height="404" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CarineKanezaNantulya.jpg 400w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CarineKanezaNantulya-297x300.jpg 297w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CarineKanezaNantulya-100x100.jpg 100w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/CarineKanezaNantulya-144x144.jpg 144w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px" />Carine Kaneza Nantulya, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch</div>
Today, that promise is faltering. The <a href="https://www.hrw.org/report/2025/05/22/the-strategy-is-to-break-us/the-us-expulsion-of-third-country-nationals-to-costa">forced deportations</a> of immigrants without due process, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/08/18/us-excessive-force-against-la-protesters">violent crackdowns</a> against protesters in Los Angeles, <a href="https://abc7chicago.com/post/ice-chicago-federal-agents-surround-south-shore-apartment-building-dhs-requests-military-deployment-illinois/17908911/">ICE raids</a>, and the <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/08/11/us-military-deployment-in-washington-dc-unwarranted-dangerous">deployment</a> of military forces in Washington, D.C. are chilling reminders of the authoritarian playbook.
For those of us who have lived through repression, these are unmistakable warning signs. Dictatorships do not emerge overnight; they take root when fear replaces voice, when courts surrender independence, when social movements fracture. Above all, they thrive on apathy and isolation.
Defending human rights and democratic principles is never easy—as my organization, Human Rights Watch, knows too well. But it is the only way to safeguard the dignity of the vulnerable and the cohesion of our shared humanity. So if Washington retreats from that responsibility, who will step up?
The answer lies, in part, with African governments. This is the moment for the continent to claim leadership, to strengthen multilateralism, and to shape a global order rooted not in interventionism, self-centeredness but in Ubuntu — a vision of shared humanity, community, and interdependence. Many Africans applauded when South Africa took Israel to the International Court of Justice saying Israel violated the Genocide Convention in Gaza. That same courage is needed in <a href="https://www.hrw.org/africa/sudan">Sudan</a>, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/africa/democratic-republic-congo">eastern Democratic Republic of Congo</a>, and <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/09/24/sahel-countries-icc-withdrawal-endangers-civilians">the Sahel</a>, where civilians face atrocities while the U.S. limits itself to <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/07/07/minerals-for-peace-how-to-make-the-rwanda-drc-deal-stick">mineral deals</a> or silence.
“African solutions to African problems” cannot remain a slogan. It needs to become a policy agenda with concrete commitments. That means building stronger regional institutions with the authority and resources to act, supporting accountability mechanisms like the African Court and the International Criminal Court, and investing in early warning systems that can prevent crises before they spiral into atrocities.
It means protecting independent media and civil society so that governments are held accountable at home as well as abroad. And it means engaging at the United Nations and other multilateral forums not just as individual states but as coordinated blocks capable of shaping outcomes.
The US retreat is not simply a void; it is a test. If African leaders want to claim greater influence in the global order, they need to demonstrate it through pragmatic policies that protect civilians, strengthen the rule of law, and prioritize human dignity over mineral contracts and short-term business deals. This is less about replacing America and more about safeguarding Africa’s future on its own terms.
Excerpt: Carine Kaneza Nantulya is deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch]]></content:encoded>
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<title>International Day for the Eradication of Poverty</title>
<link>https://www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/international-day-for-the-eradication-of-poverty/</link>
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<pubDate>Wed, 15 Oct 2025 11:48:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>External Source</dc:creator>
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<category><![CDATA[Poverty & SDGs]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[  Poverty is not just scarcity. It is exclusion, stigma, and invisibility. Poverty is not a personal failure. It is a systemic failure. A denial of dignity and human rights. Families in poverty often endure intrusive surveillance, burdensome eligibility checks and systems that judge, not support. Single mothers, Indigenous households, marginalized groups face increased scrutiny, […]]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="300" height="169" src="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Day-for-the-Eradication-of-Poverty-300x169.jpg" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Day-for-the-Eradication-of-Poverty-300x169.jpg 300w, https://www.ipsnews.net/Library/2025/10/Day-for-the-Eradication-of-Poverty.jpg 630w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />By External Source Oct 15 2025 (IPS-Partners)
Poverty is not just scarcity. It is exclusion, stigma, and invisibility. 
Poverty is not a personal failure. It is a systemic failure. A denial of dignity and human rights. 

Families in poverty often endure intrusive surveillance, burdensome eligibility checks and systems that judge, not 
support. 
Single mothers, Indigenous households, marginalized groups face increased scrutiny, suspicion and separation. 
Over 690 million people live in extreme poverty. 
Nearly half the world lives on less than USD$6.85 per day. 
Around 1.1 billion people suffer multidimensional poverty. 
Two-thirds of people in extreme poverty are in Sub-Saharan Africa. 
Progress has slowed and the path to 2030 is fragile. 
Social and institutional maltreatment is structural. 
It lives in rules, routines and default practices. 
When people avoid help because of fear, the system has already failed them. 
This year’s “International Day for the Eradication of Poverty” calls for three fundamental shifts: 
From control to care: 
– Designing systems based on trust, not suspicion. 
– Reducing punitive conditions and simplify documentation. 
From surveillance to support: 
– Prioritizing family-strengthening: income support, childcare, housing, mental health and justice 
From top-down to co-created solutions: 
– Including families in design, budgeting, delivery and evaluation. 
Supporting families strengthens many goals: 
– Poverty Reduction 
– Health & Wellbeing 
– Quality Education 
– Gender Equality 
– Decent Work and Social Protection 
– Reduced Inequalities 
– Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions 
“Too often, people living in poverty are blamed, stigmatized, and pushed into the shadows.” – UN Secretary 
General, António Guterres. 
2030 is looming. We must act now.
<iframe loading="lazy" width="630" height="354" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4yTySVsVxUE" title="International Day for the Eradication of Poverty" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
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