News headlines in August 2014

AMMAN, Aug 31 (IPS) - As the region is rocked by violence against a backdrop of the rise of radical groups, Jordan's lesbian gay bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community fears that new instability in the Hashemite kingdom could lead to increased intolerance towards the community. 

NAGAPATTINAM, India, Aug 31 (IPS) - As the United Nations gears up to launch its newest set of poverty-reduction targets to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2015, the words ‘sustainable development' have been on the lips of policymakers the world over.

LEIDEN, Netherlands, Aug 30 (IPS) - Is this one of those rare occasions where policy-makers self-critically correct a gigantic blunder? Or is it a cold turnabout guided by pure self-interest?

MOSCOW, Aug 30 (IPS) - The recent call from Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev for "tightening belts" has convinced even optimists that something is deeply wrong with the Russian economy.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 30 (IPS) - As the United Nations commemorated the International Day Against Nuclear Tests this week, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon lamented the fact that in a world threatened by some 17,000 nuclear weapons, not a single one has been destroyed so far.

SAN SALVADOR, Aug 29 (IPS) - Two of the promises made 16 years ago when El Salvador's pension system was privatised have failed to materialise: There was no expansion of social security coverage and no improvement in pensions. Now pressure is growing for a reform of the system.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 29 (IPS) - Civil society leaders and U.N. development experts gathered on Wednesday to discuss the role of education for global citizenship in the post-2015 development agenda.

MONTEVIDEO, Aug 29 (IPS) - "Survival migration" is not a reality show, but an accurate description of human mobility fuelled by desperation and fear. How despairing are these migrant contingents? Look at the figures of Central American children travelling alone, which are growing.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 29 (IPS) - Today is the fifth observance of the International Day against Nuclear Tests.