COVID-19 deaths in Africa have risen sharply in recent weeks, amid the fastest surge in cases the continent has seen so far in the pandemic, the regional office for the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday. 

A UN-appointed independent rights expert has spoken out following the death in custody of a renowned Catholic priest, who suffered from Parkinson’s Disease.

ROME, Jul 15 (IPS) - Europe, the United States and other countries have made important progress in reducing the dramatic impact of COVID-19 in key sectors of the economy and population. However, in some parts of Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East, the devastating effects of the pandemic continue to severely affect these sectors. One sector in particular, the food and agriculture sector, has been deeply impacted.

BANGKOK, Thailand, Jul 15 (IPS) - Last year, the Asia-Pacific region recorded its worst economic performance in decades. With the pandemic far from over, the region’s recovery is slow, fragile and highly uneven both across and within countries. As the region struggles to recover, how can countries rebuild their economies and revive their development?

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a major backsliding in childhood vaccinations, with 23 million children worldwide missing out on routine immunizations last year, two UN agencies reported on Wednesday. 

The variant’s spread, along with increased social mobility and the inconsistent use of proven public health measures, is driving an increase in both case numbers and deaths, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

Deaths of migrants travelling by dangerous sea routes to Europe have soared in the first six months of the year. At least 1,146 people died attempting to reach Europe by boat from January to June, the UN migration agency, IOM said on Wednesday.

Although a new European Union (EU) climate initiative unveiled on Wednesday could change global trade patterns to favour countries where production is relatively carbon efficient, its value in mitigating climate change will likely be limited, the UN trade and development agency, UNCTAD, has warned. 

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Jul 14 (IPS) - The only Planet in the Universe with living beings, including animal and plant life is the Planet Earth. Can we transform it to a Utopia, more or less, a Paradise. Yes, we can. Why not? If all Nations of the Planet have a genuine desire to have eternal peace and harmony, without recourse to a course that will lead to the destruction of the Planet to smithereens.

A new report issued on Wednesday by the UN agency leading the fight against HIV/AIDS shows that people living with the human immunodeficiency virus face the double jeopardy of HIV and COVID-19 – as widening inequalities continue to prevent them from accessing services.