Breaking down barriers and restoring fairness in global development should be the goal of the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries, Secretary-General António Guterres said at its opening in Awaza, Turkmenistan, on Tuesday.

LONDON, August 4 (IPS) - Rice queues – something once unthinkable – began appearing around May. As the country’s staple food hit record prices, frustrated shoppers found themselves breaking a cultural taboo by switching to rice from South Korea. It was a symbol of how far Japan’s economic certainties had crumbled, creating fertile ground for a political shift.

SAN FRANCISCO, California / APEX, North Carolina, US, August 4 (IPS) - There is no question that most climate activists and governments were delighted when Brazil offered to host the 2025 UN Climate Conference taking place this November.

The daily struggle to survive an ongoing war in Gaza and to protect one’s family – while reporting on the fear and chaos that conflict brings – has become an unrelenting obligation for a UN News correspondent in the embattled enclave.

As conflict intensifies between rival militaries in Sudan, the UN humanitarian wing (OCHA) expressed alarm on Monday over mounting civilian casualties and worsening humanitarian conditions across the country.

In Gaza, UN aid teams continue to report that Gaza is on the brink of famine with the UN human rights chief on Monday denouncing images of starvation inside the enclave as “an affront to our collective humanity.”

Since the beginning of 2025, 600 refugees have arrived in Uganda each day, bringing the total number of new arrivals to almost two million. But with funding rapidly running out, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) is warning the East African nation will not be able to continue providing life-saving services and aid.

At a major UN forum opening in Awaza, Turkmenistan, this week, parliamentarians from around the world are being urged to take decisive action to improve the lives of more than 600 million people living in landlocked developing countries (LLDCs).

Efforts are getting underway in Geneva to finalize a global agreement to tackle the staggering and growing amount of plastic waste and its impact on human health, marine life and the economy.

UNITED NATIONS, August 4 (IPS) - The 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II triggers the question: Is nuclear testing dead or is it still alive–and threatening?The August 6-9 anniversary marks the devastating bombings, which claimed the lives of between 150,000 and 246,000 civilians– and still remains the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.