AFRICA: Lack of City Planning to Hurt More Citizens

Isaiah Esipisu

NAIROBI, Aug 6 2010 (IPS) – Thousands of Kenyan urban dwellers, rich and poor, live in fear that their homes or building investments could soon be demolished as the country struggles to keep up with the rapid urbanisation of cities.
Lack of space has forced people in Korogocho slum, situated near Nairobi s Dandora dump site, to trade above open sewers. Credit: Isaiah Esipisu/IPS

Lack of space has forced people in Korogocho slum, situated near Nairobi s Dandora dump site, to trade above open sewers. Credit: Isai…

Tibetan Exiles Report High Rates of Hepatitis B

A particularly high incidence of hepatitis has been reported among Tibetan exiles. Credit: Katie Lin/IPS.

DHARAMSALA, India, Oct 19 2012 (IPS) – As the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) works to address some of its more immediate political problems, long-term public health issues have emerged, including high rates of hepatitis B among the exiled community.

But this year, the health department of the CTA, which is based in Dharamsala in northern India, took steps to recognise World Hepatitis Day for the first time on Jul. 28, showing their commitment to reduce these rates.

“We instructed all our health centres to observe this day and to spread awareness ab…

Tensions between CAR Refugees and Cameroonians Escalate over Depleting Resources 

A family from Central African Republic who fled to Cameroon’s East Region after the 2013 coup d’état that ousted President François Bozizé. Credit: Monde Kingsley Nfor/IPS

GUIWA, Cameroon, Jun 24 2014 (IPS) – Central African Republic refugees living in Cameroon’s East Region are increasingly becoming frustrated about their deteriorating living conditions and their inability to support themselves as conflict between them and and local villagers has escalated over depleting resources.

They say they have been denied access to farm tools as aid agencies fear they may use them as arms against the local population.

Clay-Man Youkoute, head of refu…

COMMENTARY: The Sinatra Doctrine Confronts a Global Consensus

The next U.S. administration could restore faith in its ability to learn from its mistakes if, in cooperation with the global community, it can create robust new systems of public health protection and economic regeneration inclusive of all its communities and all nations

A photo-collage. Credit: Peter Costantini.

SEATTLE, Oct 23 2020 (IPS) – By late September, the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States had claimed . That’s equivalent to a slightly higher toll than the 418,500 United States deaths in World War II, adjusted for relative population and duration. [See note below.]

With four percent of the world’s population, the U.S. has suffered 20 percent of global COVID-…

On the Verge of Change

Combines harvesting durum wheat in Enchant, Alberta, Canada. GPS-programmed, they are already driverless except for going around corners, August 2021. Credit: Trevor Page

OTTAWA, Canada, Sep 23 2021 (IPS) – Current food systems are no longer fit for the 21st century. Inequitable distribution, poor nutritional habits, and climate change are three issues breaking down our global food systems today, forcing us to look for solutions to transform them. Food aid – very much part of our global food systems – needs to be responsive to the challenges that lie ahead.

The World Bank estimates that the global food system is worth roughly $8 trillion – about one tenth of the …

Inflation Phobia Hastens Recessions, Debt Crises

SYDNEY and KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 27 2022 (IPS) – Inflation phobia among central banks (CBs) is dragging economies into recession and debt crises. Their dogmatic beliefs prevent them from doing right. Instead, they take their cues from Washington: the US Fed, Treasury and Bretton Woods institutions (BWIs).

Costly recessions
Both BWIs – the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank – have recently raised the alarm about the likely dire consequences of the ensuing contractionary ‘race to the bottom’. But their dogmas stop them from being pragmatic. Hence, their policy analyses and advice come across as incoherent, even contradictory.

Anis Chowdhur…