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The current health crisis compels us to tackle the risk of the next long-term EU budget not coming into force on 1 January 2021 with even more urgency, MEPs say.
Committee on Budgets

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

The current health crisis compels us to tackle the risk of the next long-term EU budget not coming into force on 1 January 2021 with even more urgency, MEPs say.
Committee on Budgets

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Az egészségügyi válsághelyzet miatt még sürgősebben kezelnünk kell azt a kockázatot, amely az MFF késedelmes hatályba lépéséből 2021. január elseje után adódna, mondják a képviselők.
Költségvetési Bizottság

Forrás : © Európai Unió, 2020 - EP

Tennis-Ass Novak Djokovic hat sich als Impfgegner geoutet und steht in der Kritik. Ex-National-Goalie Jens Lehmann irritiert mit Corona-Aussagen und Ferrari trennt sich von Sebastian Vettel. Das und mehr in der neuen Folge «Pro und Konter».

Am 13. Mai wird weltweit der Tag des Cocktails gefeiert. Es gibt mittlerweile eine grosse Auswahl – von Klassikern über neue Variationen ist alles dabei. Wir wollen wissen, welche Cocktails die Lieblinge unserer Community sind.

Une réduction de peine a été refusée au charpentier qui avait souhaité que la mère de ses enfants soit jetée d’un barrage.

«Bachelorette»-Kandidat Mattia lässt auf einem privaten Video aus der Villa die Hüllen fallen. Nun sind die pikanten Szenen auf Instagram zu sehen.

Eine Passantin rettet einen sechs Tage alten Babykater in letzter Sekunde vor dem grausamen Tod in einer Containerpresse. Der österreichische Tierschutzverein sorgt sich nun um das Babykätzchen. Ein neues Zuhause wurde bereits gefunden.

Bundesanwalt Michael Lauber muss sich wohl einem Amtsenthebungsprozess stellen. BLICK klärt die wichtigsten Fragen.

Sahara Médias - La Mauritanie a annoncé mardi la découverte d’un nouveau cas confirmé du covid-19, un mauritanien de 63 ans, décédé...

Voici les horaires de rupture du jeûne (El Iftar) ainsi que celles du début du jeûne (El Imsak) de la journée du mercredi 13 mai (20 Ramadan) et jeudi 14 mai (21 Ramadan) dans les 48 wilayas du pays. Horaires de l’Imsak et de l’Iftar en Algérie du 13 mai 2020, 20e jour du ramadan […]

L’article Ramadan 2020 : Les horaires de l’Iftar et de l’Imsak par wilaya – 13 mai 2020 est apparu en premier sur .

Frauen essen in Europa häufiger Obst und Gemüse als Männer. Gleiches gilt in der Regel auch für Menschen mit hohem Bildungsstand im Vergleich zu solchen aus niedrigeren Bildungsschichten. Das haben norwegische Wissenschaftler jetzt nachgewiesen.

Rote Farben sind warm, runde Linien weiblich, gedeckte Töne traurig. Oder? In der Kunstbetrachtung haben sich intuitive Annahmen über die Wirkung ästhetischer Elemente als Allgemeinplätze durchgesetzt. Eine Studie zeigt aber, dass das fast jeder etwas anders sieht.

SDGs SDGs:  16 - Peace, justice and strong institutions

Summary

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region.
• The Mission followed up on reports of two men injured by shelling in non-government-controlled Sakhanka, Donetsk region.
• The SMM observed shrapnel and gunfire damage to civilian properties in Yasne and Avdiivka, Donetsk region.
• Members of the armed formations continued to deny the Mission passage at checkpoints along official crossing routes in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.*
• The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske. It recorded ceasefire violations inside the disengagement area near Petrivske and spotted persons during night hours inside the disengagement areas near Zolote and Petrivske.
• The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line.
• The SMM saw for the first time anti-tank mines near government-controlled Lebedynske.
• The Mission continued following up on the situation of civilians amid the COVID-19 outbreak, including at entry-exit checkpoints and their corresponding checkpoints in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
• The SMM’s freedom of movement continued to be restricted.*

Man traut seinen Augen kaum: Eine Aufnahme aus dem MPS Ingenbohl-Brunnen SZ zeigt eine Massenansammlung von Schülern. Während eine Mutter über das Schutzkonzept der Schule empört ist, setzt sich die Rektorin zur Wehr. Das Bildungsdepartement Schwyz rügt die Schule.

SG Patricia Scotland and President Kagame of Rwanda last year during the annual commemoration of the genocide against the Tutsis. Credit: The Commonwealth Secretariat

By William Ellis
TORONTO, May 13 2020 (IPS)

The Coronovirus pandemic has been an unforgiving test of advanced economies. Health systems in the United States, France, Italy, Spain, and the UK have been put under immense pressure, with shortages of doctors, ventilators, personal protective equipment and the capacity to test for the virus. Their economies have been battered and the consequences are spoken of in terms of the Great Depression.

Hope may have emerged as infection rates decline and governments consider easing lockdown measures, but for many developing countries the crisis has barely begun, and the human toll will be much greater than in any advanced economy. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), “For vast swathes of the globe, the pandemic will leave deep, deep scars.”

Advanced economies are trying to mitigate COVID-19’s impact through policy adjustments, and some have made remarkable progress. In the Commonwealth (a voluntary association of 54 independent countries), New Zealand and Canada have shown exceptional resilience through this pandemic.

Developing countries, however, are faced with much more difficult circumstances. In these countries, economies are fragile and medical resources are scarce. Most are commodity dependent and have seen prices fall by 21 percent so far this year. The cost of foreign debt repayments and imports have soared as the value of currencies in developing countries have declined by around 25 percent.

Some African countries have no ventilators at all – essential to those suffering from acute symptoms of the virus. Many countries are simply ill equipped to face a pandemic of global proportions. Malawi, for example, has only 25 intensive care unit beds for its 17 million citizens. And, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), African countries average $12 per citizen per year in health budgets. That is a stark contrast to the UK’s $4000 per citizen per year.

The Brookings Institute recently warned that the impact of COVID-19 on developing nations will be devastating: “2020 will be the first time this century that the number of poor people will rise.” This is in the wake of progress made between 2008 and 2013, during which time almost 100 million people per year were lifted out of poverty.

To stave off disaster in the world’s most vulnerable regions, the international community must do a lot more. Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, said that “Without support from the international community, we risk a massive reversal of gains made over the last two decades, and an entire generation lost, if not in lives then in rights, opportunities and dignity.”

The 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) was to be held, aptly, in Rwanda – one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa, with a reputation for innovation in many sectors, including health care. The event was recently postponed, however, due to the global pandemic.

Kigali skyline. Credit: The Commonwealth Secretariat

In a statement announcing the postponement, President Paul Kagame of Rwanda stated: “In the coming months, every Commonwealth nation will be fully focused on combatting Covid-19 and its socio-economic impact on our people… We look forward to welcoming the Commonwealth family to Kigali for CHOGM once the pandemic has been defeated.”

According to some, this kind of decision shows how international support has been lacking precisely when it is most needed. Ian Golding, a professor of globalization and development at Oxford University, recently wrote in the Guardian that “The US has turned its back on the world. The UK, like Europe, appears preoccupied with its own medical and economic emergencies; the ability of Commonwealth countries to cope with the pandemic appears to have fallen off its domestic agenda.”

But the Commonwealth is taking steps to ensure its members are supported during this global pandemic. It is hosting a virtual seminar series beginning on May 13, 2020, to help address the challenges they are facing and to exchange ideas for solutions with each other. It has also launched a web-based ‘Coronavirus Response Centre’ and tracker, designed to provide data-driven insights to help policymakers plan and respond to the pandemic.

Noteworthy is a specific online meeting to be held on May 14, 2020, for Commonwealth Health Ministers – its theme is “delivering a coordinated Commonwealth COVID-19 response.”

Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland told IPS: “With 54 member countries across five regions and 2.4 billion people in total, the Commonwealth is a powerful platform to propel coordinated multilateral action to tackle this pandemic.

“Commonwealth Health Ministers will convene virtually on 14 May, a few days ahead of the World Health Assembly. The aim is to review the coronavirus response at pan-Commonwealth, regional and national levels; share good practice strategies, solutions and models; and identify priorities for coordinated action.

“Ministers will also discuss continuing and co-ordinated action on other health challenges, including non-communicable diseases, malnutrition, immunisations, and malaria which are priority areas of concern among Commonwealth member governments.”

Rwanda school. Credit: The Commonwealth Secretariat

The virtual seminar series will be led by high-level participants from Commonwealth governments, the Commonwealth Secretariat and other policy experts. Here, participants will gain from the knowledge of other members, including those of Rwanda, the landlocked East African country that has managed to stem the spread of COVID-19 with expertise and skills it developed in tackling the 2018 Ebola crisis.

“In Rwanda, the response was swift, effective, and well organized with a clear objective and clear purpose,” Vedaste Ndahindwa, an epidemiologist working in the World Health Organization (WHO) in Rwanda said.

The Rwandan government was quick to recognize the threat posed by the virus and took to techniques employed in preventing Ebola from spilling into the country from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

But, despite having the region’s best response to the outbreak, the number of confirmed cases in the country continues to rise. The country also faces the challenges of globalised interdependence. As trade and supply chains come to a halt across the globe, obtaining supplies during a global shortage is massively problematic. As Ian Goldin says, “globalization means that systemic risks anywhere are a risk to us all.”

Now, more than ever, we must look beyond our national borders and come together as a global community. If we are to avoid a massive humanitarian tragedy and protect the world from the backdraft of ongoing viral epicenters, it is imperative that governments everywhere come together with a cohesive and cooperative response to COVID-19.

 

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The post The Commonwealth’s Response to COVID-19 appeared first on Inter Press Service.

In a debate on the new EU long-term budget and recovery fund, MEPs paid tribute to citizens’ courage and insisted the EU budget must not leave anyone behind.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

In a debate on the new EU long-term budget and recovery fund, MEPs paid tribute to citizens’ courage and insisted the EU budget must not leave anyone behind.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

In a debate on the new EU long-term budget and recovery fund, MEPs paid tribute to citizens’ courage and insisted the EU budget must not leave anyone behind.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

In a debate on the new EU long-term budget and recovery fund, MEPs paid tribute to citizens’ courage and insisted the EU budget must not leave anyone behind.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP