KUFRA, southern Libya, Oct 20 (IPS) - Safia’s six-year-old body is riddled with scars from the rocket that hit her home in February. With her immediate family all killed in the violent attack, this sole survivor smiles shyly as she visits the medics that fought to save her life.

WASHINGTON, Oct 20 (IPS) - On the eve of Monday’s foreign policy debate between President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, the electorate appears increasingly disillusioned with the so-called Arab Spring, according to a new survey released by the Pew Research Center here.

DES MOINES, Iowa, USA, Oct 19 (IPS) - In a major endorsement for investment in women - the bulk of food growers in the developing world - United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said food security could not be achieved without women, and that the world's hungry also needed leaders to prioritise actions.

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, Oct 19 (IPS) - With the average age of a farmer in the Caribbean now 62 years old, there is growing concern that commercial agriculture is on a path to extinction – a dire scenario for a region already shouldering a massive food import bill.

WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (IPS) - In the aftermath of last week’s elections to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s executive board, Brazil and others are expressing frustration that a reforms process aimed at increasing the representation of developing countries is being stymied by European countries.

BUENOS AIRES, Oct 19 (IPS) - Pediatricians and nutritionists stress that there is no single factor explaining why Argentina is the country in Latin America with the highest rate of obese and overweight children.

ROME, Oct 19 (IPS) - It is a tried and tested truth that when women come together in groups they can address their issues more powerfully than they can as individuals.

HYDERABAD, India, Oct 19 (IPS) -  “With more than 60 percent of the world projected to be urban by 2030 why not prepare for it and build cities that include biodiversity preservation into planning?” asks Kobie Brand of ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability in Cape Town, South Africa.

DHARAMSALA, India, Oct 19 (IPS) - As the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) works to address some of its more immediate political problems, long-term public health issues have emerged, including high rates of hepatitis B among the exiled community.

NEW DELHI/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Oct 19 (IPS) - As gender-based violence across India becomes more frequent, and more savage, increasing numbers of women are speaking out against the cruelty.