Global Issues
News headlines
Reimagining Farming Post-Covid Pandemic
- Inter Press Service
ROME, Apr 06 (IPS) - Together with medical services and transportation, farming and food production have been correctly identified as 'essential services' by all countries under lockdown.
The Covid-19 pandemic has not yet made a dent in the food supply and so far, there are no reports of shortage of essential food and agricultural goods.
All cities and towns are actively coordinating with government agencies, farms, businesses and transport companies to maintain the supply chain and ensure full availability of food for the population,
Human Rights and Compassion Must Guide Enforcement of COVID-19 Mitigation
- Inter Press Service
NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 06 (IPS) - Covid-19 infections continue to rise, bringing normal life to a virtualstandstill and causing countries to shut themselves off from the rest of the world.
Growing Youth Activism for Environmental Protection in Africa
- Inter Press Service
NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 06 (IPS) - The mining sector in Africa is facing radical change as youth activists take action against the environmental degradation caused by mining industries. Tensions between activists and the mining industry have raised, however, concerns over human rights abuses.
Pandemic Crisis May Trigger Societal Restructuring
- Inter Press Service
PENANG and SINGAPORE, Apr 06 (IPS) - The Chinese word for crisis consists of two characters - "weiji". Wei means danger and ji means opportunity. Every crisis is pregnant with danger and risks but also with opportunities – for some to make money, for others to learn valuable lessons, and for society to reorient or restructure its priorities, institutions and even the system.
Latin America Has Weak Defences Against the Pandemic
- Inter Press Service
CARACAS, Apr 04 (IPS) - Health systems in Latin America, already falling short in their capacity to serve the population, especially the poor, are in a weak position and face serious risks when it comes to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coronavirus: Country Comparisons are Pointless Unless We Account for These Biases in Testing
- Inter Press Service
LONDON, Apr 03 (IPS) - Suppose we wanted to estimate how many car owners there are in the UK and how many of those own a Ford Fiesta, but we only have data on those people who visited Ford car showrooms in the last year. If 10% of the showroom visitors owned a Fiesta, then, because of the bias in the sample, this would certainly overestimate the proportion of Ford Fiesta owners in the country.
Martin Khor, Third Worldist
- Inter Press Service
PENANG, Apr 03 (IPS) - Martin Khor Kok Peng passed away just after the end of the first quarter of 2020. He leaves behind an unusually rich legacy. Atypically for people mainly working in the worldideas, he was also a very practical and pragmatic activist who successfully built and sustained several important initiatives which will live on after him.
U.N. Releases Report on Socio-economic Effects of Coronavirus
- Inter Press Service
UNITED NATIONS, Apr 03 (IPS) - As the number of coronavirus cases continues to grow, concerns are simultaneously growing about the current and long-term effects this will have on certain demographics -- specifically, women, the youth, migrant workers, and many employees around the world.
In memoriam ‒ Martin Khor
- Inter Press Service
GENEVA, Apr 03 (IPS) - We are greatly saddened by the passing of Martin Khor, a long-time friend and colleague, an undaunted fighter for the poor and underprivileged, a passionate believer in a more balanced and inclusive multilateralism, a rare intellectual and eloquent orator, an icon of the Global South worthy of veneration, greatly respected for his struggle for justice and fairness against the dominance and double-standards of big economic powers.
These Migrant Workers Did Not Suddenly Fall From the Sky
- Inter Press Service
Apr 03 (IPS) - Madness engulfs the planet. Hundreds of millions of people are in lockdown in their homes, millions of people who work in essential jobs – or who cannot afford to stay home without state assistance – continue to go to work, thousands of people lie in intensive-care beds taken care of by tens of thousands of medical professionals and caregivers who face shortages of equipment and time.
Narrow sections of the human population – the billionaires – believe that they can isolate themselves in their enclaves, but the virus knows no borders. The global pandemic driven by the variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus holds us in its grip; even as China seems to have bent the curve of infections, the charts for the rest of the world are forbidding: the light at the end of the tunnel is as dim as it has ever been.
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