News headlines for “Human Population”, page 289
Groundwater Crisis Worsens Food Insecurity
- Inter Press Service
BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe, Feb 23 (IPS) - Sijabuliso Nleya has been kept busy in the past few weeks digging up sand. He is not a sand poacher like scores of people who local district councils across the country say are digging along dry river beds for sand used in the construction of houses. "The situation is terrible," said Nleya, who owns a plot in Douglasdale, a small farming community on the outskirts of Bulawayo.
El Salvador Pension Reform Could Take Women into Account
- Inter Press Service
SAN SALVADOR, Feb 17 (IPS) - El Salvador is debating reforms of the country's privatised pension system, which could introduce changes so that it will no longer discriminate against women.
Rice: Africa's Ticket Out of Poverty
- Inter Press Service
COTONOU, Benin, Feb 17 (IPS) - Africa is eating more rice than other food staples, though it produces less than it needs. This is good news for the cereal's potential to help Sub Saharan Africa out of poverty according to researchers. Rice is the second most important source of calories in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice), a research organisation working to contribute to poverty alleviation and food security.
Gang-Raped and Nowhere to Turn
- Inter Press Service
NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 16 (IPS) - Owuor P.'s 16-year-old sister Nekesa tried and tried to get an abortion after she was gang-raped and found herself pregnant during Kenya's post-election violence in 2007-8. "We are not sure how many raped her," Owuor told me. "She told us that she saw three men rape her and then she lost consciousness. She was quiet most of the time after the rape." In desperation after the birth of the child, she killed herself. The baby survived, and today Owuor is raising the child, who has a serious mental health condition, and is still grieving for his sister.
The tragedy of Darfuri asylum-seekers in Uganda
- Inter Press Service
KAMPALA, Uganda, Feb 16 (IPS) - After escaping the genocide in Sudan's Darfur region during which his father and two brothers were killed and his mother and sister displaced, Adam (named changed), began a new chapter. But it was a life "in limbo". Over a decade later, he remains trapped in a strange country where he struggles to prove his identity; cannot find work or receive financial support.
Latin America’s Indigenous Peoples Find an Ally in the Pope
- Inter Press Service
, Feb 15 (IPS) - "We want Pope Francis' message to come true…We want the rights of indigenous people to be supported, respected and strengthened," Yuam Pravia, a representative of the Misquito native people, said in this city in southern Mexico.
Gulf migration at an inflexion point
- Inter Press Service
NEW DELHI, Feb 15 (IPS) - The steep fall in global oil prices has hit Gulf economies severely. Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Bahrain are expected to run huge budget deficits as shrinking revenues from selling cheaper oil cannot fund their mounting expenditures. As they tighten their belts, the brunt of adjustment will be felt by migrants, who constitute the bulk of the labour force. Reforms include cutting fuel, power, water, education subsidies and a value-added tax (VAT). This will affect migrants and reports indicate family members are returning home.
Radio rage in India
- Inter Press Service
INDIA, Feb 13 (IPS) - It is 8 am in Anugondanahalli village about 70 kms from India's IT hub of Bengaluru, capital of the southern Indian state of Karnataka. A group of farmers are huddled around a radio set sipping hot tea and tuned in to Sarathi Jhalak, a local community radio station (CRS) broadcasting on FM 90.4. On air is a programme about climate change that has everybody hooked. Experts are sharing simple tips on how farmers can pro-actively minimise the impact of erratic weather on their crops.
The new normal in Fata
- Inter Press Service
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Feb 11 (IPS) - A military operation by Pakistan's army has been proving fatal for Taliban militants who held sway over vast swathes of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) for over a decade. They crossed over the border from Afghanistan and took refuge in Fata after their government was toppled by US-led forces towards the end of 2001. After a few years, when they got a toe-hold in the region, they extended their wings to all seven districts of Fata. Not any more.
UN Seeks Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation
- Inter Press Service
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 09 (IPS) - The United Nations says it is determined to end female genital mutilation (FGM) – a ritual practiced mostly in Africa, the Middle East, parts of Asia and even among some migrant communities in Europe.
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