UNITED NATIONS, Feb 18 (IPS) - A former Indian ambassador once told an American audience that one of the biggest misconceptions about the Indian Ocean is that it belongs to India. “Not so, but we wish we did”, he said, amidst laughter.

Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia will be the first countries on the African continent to receive the technology needed to produce game-changing mRNA vaccines, which have proved crucial to the fight against COVID-19, the head of the UN health agency said on Friday.

GENEVA, Feb 17 (IPS) - When we think about global crises, road safety isn’t one that comes to mind. The reality is that unsafe roads is a health crisis gone rogue. 

MADRID, Feb 17 (IPS) - Once completed in 2030, it could well be considered the world’s eighth wonder, this time natural. It is the African-led Great Green Wall or the largest living structure on the planet – an 8.000 kilometres natural hit stretching across the entire width of the continent.

MEDELLÍN, Colombia, Feb 17 (IPS) - Latin American countries scored poorly on Transparency International’s latest corruption index, with the worst joining the ranks of war-torn nations and dictatorships.

Tokyo, Feb 17 (IPS) - The Asian Population and Development Association (APDA) has been ahead of the international community in addressing population and development issues, says the former Japanese Prime Minister and Chair of APDA Yasuo Fukuda.

Amid competing narratives of events unfolding swiftly in and around Ukraine - one detailing the withdrawal of Russian troops from the borders and another proclaiming that an attack is imminent – the UN political affairs chief called on Thursday for the parties to make meaningful progress on implementation of the 2015 Minsk agreements, as she briefed the Security Council.

SUVA, Fiji, Feb 17 (IPS) - All over the world, students who attend tertiary education do so with the belief that the investment of their time, money and effort will provide them with returns on that investment that will change their lives and the lives of their families for years to come. As qualified graduates, those students emerge from their tertiary programmes with recognised skills and knowledge making them employable in their chosen fields, moving them forward along a career pathway and in many cases, bringing recognition to the institutions that trained them as they experience success and achievements related to their expertise.

Global commitments on implementing multilateral agreements were front and centre on Thursday, as the General Assembly President co-hosted hundreds of Parliamentarians from around the world – the largest in-person gathering at the UN in New York since last September’s High Level Week.

Global trade reached a record high in 2021, but it is expected to slow this year for many reasons including continuing delays in global supply chains, UN economists said on Thursday.