News headlines for “Causes of Poverty”, page 488
COVID-19: Without Help, Low-Income Developing Countries Risk a Lost Decade
- Inter Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sep 03 (IPS) - While the COVID-19 crisis is sending shockwaves around the globe, low-income developing countries (LIDCs) are in a particularly difficult position to respond. LIDCs have both been hit hard by external shocks and are suffering severe domestic contractions from the spread of the virus and the lockdown measures to contain it. At the same time, limited resources and weak institutions constrain the capacity of many LIDC governments to support their economies.
“Hidden” Costs of Our Food Systems
- Inter Press Service

ROME, Sep 03 (IPS) - Five years after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda we are far from achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to the recently launched SOFI Report (The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020), we are not on track to eradicate poverty, hunger and malnutrition. On the contrary, with the current trends, the global number of undernourished people in 2030 would exceed 840 million. Moreover, WHO has reported alarming rates of overweight and obesity, globally affecting 39% and 13% of the adult population, respectively.
It Is Time to End the Controversial World Bank’s Doing Business Report
- Inter Press Service

NEW YORK and WASHINGTON D.C., Sep 02 (IPS) - On 27 August the World Bank announced that it will suspend the Doing Business Report over data irregularities, until it conducts a review and audit. The halting of the report was welcomed by trade unions, academics and human rights groups.
Technology Meets Creativity on Women’s Empowerment Platform
- Inter Press Service

NEW YORK, Sep 01 (IPS) - Eight years ago, and at the age of 11, Fuzia co-founder Riya Sinha decided to start the online platform for girls and women. Her story and Fuzia's DNA are intrinsically wrapped around each other – and highlight how even in the age of feminism where women's voices tend to be drowned out, a platform for them can become a global success.
South Sudan - COVID-19 and Ongoing Violence has Catastrophic Effects on Civilians
- Inter Press Service

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 01 (IPS) - Large-scale intercommunal violence on civilians in the Jonglei and greater Pibor regions in South Sudan has led to the mass displacement of thousands of people who are living in the open without health care, adequate food, shelter, water or sanitation in the middle of the rainy season.
Trump Undermines WHO, UN System
- Inter Press Service

KUALA LUMPUR and SYDNEY, Sep 01 (IPS) - After accusing the World Health Organization (WHO) of pro-China bias, President Donald Trump announced US withdrawal from the UN agency. Although the US created the UN system for the post-Second World War new international order, Washington has often had to struggle in recent decades to ensure that it continues to serve changing US interests.
Energy Cooperatives Swim Against the Tide in Mexico
- Inter Press Service

MEXICO CITY, Aug 31 (IPS) - A Mexican solar energy cooperative, Onergia, seeks to promote decent employment, apply technological knowledge and promote alternatives that are less polluting than fossil fuels, in one of the alternative initiatives with which Mexico is seeking to move towards an energy transition.
Powerplay in Paradise: Sino-Indian Tussle in the Maldives
- Inter Press Service

Aug 31 (IPS) - The Maldives is a picturesque country of merely 515,000 people located just beyond the southern tip of the South Asian land mass, in an idyllic Indian ocean setting. The nation is spread across 26 pretty atolls, comprising about 1192 islets, not all still inhabited. These are lapped by crystal blue waters containing flora and fauna of remarkable magnificence.
Its scenic bounties attract droves of tourists who frolic in the sands, sun and the sea in salubrious languor. It has a thriving fishing, garment and tourism industry which have recently helped it graduate out of the United Nations list of Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
It is so tiny that used to be said that the catch of a single large fish any day could cause a remarkable jump in its Gross National Product (GDP) numbers. It is not without reason that the archipelago has often been compared to a paradise.
Neo Colonialism vs. Sovereignty in Sri Lanka
- Inter Press Service

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Aug 31 (IPS) - On August 5, 2020, a new government was elected in Sri Lanka, bringing down the previous regime associated with the Central Bank bond scam, the Easter Sunday bomb attacks and controversial international agreements.
Madagascar - Jails Hold more Pre-trial Prisoners than Convicted Criminals
- Inter Press Service

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 28 (IPS) - The recent killing of 22 prisoners in Madagascar during a prison escape on Sunday, Aug. 23 has brought the extraordinary situation of the country's prisons under a spotlight. Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has condemned the killings, criticising the current judicial system that has led to Madagascar's prisons holding more people awaiting trial than convicted criminals.

