News headlines for “Free Trade and Globalization”
‘People Reacted to a System of Governance Shaped by Informal Powers and Personal Interests’
- Inter Press Service

CIVICUS discusses Generation Z-led protests in Bulgaria with Zahari Iankov, senior legal expert at the Bulgarian Centre for Not-for-Profit Law, a civil society organisation that advocates for participation and human rights.
The Bitter Sweet Future of Cocoa Showcased During COP30, Belém
- Inter Press Service

BELÉM, Brazil, December 24 (IPS) - Izete dos Santos Costa, also known as Dona Nena among locals in Combu Island, welcomed hundreds of people from around the world during the recent climate conference in Belém.
A Grim Year for Democracy and Civic Freedoms – but in Gen Z There Is Hope
- Inter Press Service

NEW YORK, December 24 (IPS) - 2025 has been a terrible year for democracy. Just over 7 per cent of the world’s population now live in places where the rights to organise, protest and speak out are generally respected, according to the CIVICUS Monitor, a civil society research partnership that measures civic freedoms around the world. This is a sharp drop from over 14 per cent this time last year.
In Kenya, Smallholder Farmers Push Back Against Corporate Control of Agriculture
- Inter Press Service

GITHUNGURI, Kenya, December 24 (IPS) - For the past two years, Samuel Ndungu, a smallholder farmer, has been growing organic food and supplying it to the local market in Githunguri, just outside Nairobi.
Industrialisation without destruction: A UN blueprint for the future
- UN News

Since the 19th century, industrialisation has had a transformative effect on the world, both positive and negative. It has created jobs and lifted millions out of poverty. But it has also had devastating consequences; destroying ecosystems, polluting the air, and driving the climate crisis that threatens to make large parts of the planet uninhabitable.
‘From the Moment They Enter Libya, Migrants Risk Being Arbitrarily Arrested, Tortured and Killed’
- Inter Press Service

CIVICUS discusses migrants’ rights in Libya with Sarra Zidi, political scientist and researcher for HuMENA, an international civil society organisation (CSO) that advances democracy, human rights and social justice across the Middle East and North Africa.
Better Economic Measurement Is About Wiser Use, Not Just More Data
- Inter Press Service

We live in a galaxy of data. From satellites and smartwatches to social media and swipes at a register, we have ways to measure the economy to an extent that would have seemed like science fiction just a generation ago. New data sources and techniques are challenging not only how we see the economy, but how we make sense of it. The data deluge raises important questions: How can we distinguish meaningful signals of economic activity from noise in the age of artificial intelligence, and how should we use them to inform policy decisions? To what extent can new sources […]
A Global Movement for Nutrition Is Needed Now More than Ever
- Inter Press Service

GENEVA, December 23 (IPS) - In my more than 30 years with the United Nations, I’ve seen enormous change, collaboration and progress towards improving human development. But I’ve also seen how history has a way of repeating itself to entrench some of the most intractable global challenges.
Climate Justice Denied by Delays
- Inter Press Service

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, December 23 (IPS) - Opinions have been divided over the annual UN climate conferences. While some see COP30 in Belém, Brazil, as confirming their irrelevance, others see it as a turning point in the struggle for climate justice.
Downward Spiral of Bangladesh Politics and Economy - Who Should be Blamed?
- Inter Press Service

ROME, December 22 (IPS) - Bangladesh in recent years started drawing global attention for its success in emerging out of poverty through economic growth and agricultural development. From early 2000 until 2023, while population growth continued to decline from 1.2 in 2013 to 1.03 in 2023, this growth has been the powerful driver of poverty reduction since 2000. Indeed, agriculture accounted for 90 percent of the reduction in poverty between 2005 and 2010 (World Bank).
Global Issues