Africa - INTER PRESS SERVICE

Best intentions to create a green wall to capture millions of tons of carbon while tackling desertification are up against a lack of funding and banditry in Jigawa State, northwestern Nigeria.

A damaged classroom and school equipment at Dahilig Elementary School in the Municipality of Gainza, Camarines Sur, Philippines, weeks after Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (Trami) wreaked havoc in October 2024. Credit: UNICEF/Larry Monserate Piojo

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 30 2025 (IPS)

In 2024, the climate crisis has disrupted schooling for millions of students worldwide, weakening workforces and hindering social development on a massive scale. With extreme weather patterns preventing students from accessing a safe, and effective learning environment, the United Nations (UN) and the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies (EiE Hub) continue to urge the international community to assist the most climate-sensitive areas in building resilient education systems that empower both students and educators.

On October 28, members of the EiE Hub released a statement that calls on stakeholders and world leaders to center children’s education at the forefront of global discussions at COP30 to be held in Belém, Brazil in November. It is projected that without urgent intervention, tens of millions of children are at risk of falling behind on their education, which threatens long-term economic development and stability.

“Children are more vulnerable to the impacts of weather-related crises, including stronger and more frequent heatwaves, storms, droughts and flooding,” said Catherine Russell, Executive-Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in January. “Children cannot concentrate in classrooms that offer no respite from sweltering heat, and they cannot get to school if the path is flooded, or if schools are washed away. Last year, severe weather kept one in seven students out of class, threatening their health and safety, and impacting their long-term education.”

According to figures from UNICEF, approximately half of the world’s school-aged children receive access to quality education, with an estimated 1 billion children residing in countries that are described as “extremely high-risk” to climate shocks and natural disasters. Members of the EiE Hub estimate that at least 242 million students experienced disruptions to their education in 2024 due to climate-related events, with more than 118 million affected by heatwaves in May alone. Beyond hindering learning quality and teachers’ ability to effectively instruct, climate-induced disasters and shocks also increase the risk of school dropouts and expose children to heightened protection risks.

These risks are especially severe in communities across the Global South, where the impacts of climate-induced disasters are most pronounced. Frequent climate shocks devastate local economies, undermine adaptation efforts, and exacerbate pre-existing inequalities. Women, girls, displaced persons, and individuals with disabilities are disproportionately affected—facing higher risks of violence, adverse health impacts, loss of livelihood opportunities, and increased rates of child, early, and forced marriage.

In August, a report published by UNICEF and the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) found that roughly 5.9 million children and adolescents in Latin America and the Caribbean could be pushed into poverty by 2030 due to loss of education as a result of climate change if governments do not intervene soon. This represents the most optimistic scenario as the projected number of young people pushed into poverty could be as high as 17.9 million.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Asia-Pacific region is considered to be the most climate-sensitive environment in the world, in which communities in coastal and low-lying areas are disproportionately impacted by rising sea levels and extreme weather patterns. Additionally, these communities rely on fisheries and agriculture, which are climate-sensitive economies, putting them at further risk.

A World Bank report titled Gender Dimensions of Disaster Risk and Resilience highlights the heightened vulnerability of boys and girls during climate-related shocks and how this impacts them differently. In Fiji, numerous households that lost one or both parents to natural disasters intensified by climate change, underscoring the link between families who experienced the loss of a parent and increased rates of school dropouts and child labor.

The report also found that girls who lost both parents were 26 percent less likely than boys to join the workforce within five years of a disaster and were 62 percent more likely to be married during the same period. In Uganda, the World Bank recorded that the likelihood of engaging in child labor often increases for both boys and girls following a natural disaster.

“If children and young people don’t have the resources to meet their basic needs and develop their potential, and if adequate social protection systems are not in place, the region’s inequalities will only be perpetuated,” said Roberto Benes, UNICEF Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Despite this, education systems receive only a small percentage of available climate and government funding. From 2006 to March 2023, it is estimated that only 2.4 percent of funding from multilateral climate action budgets go toward climate-resilience programs for schools. According to EiE Hub, during the last cycle of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs 2.0), less than half of the NDCs met the standards for being child-sensitive, and have therefore been largely overlooked by governments.

EiE Hub calls on governments, donors, and civil society groups to make education a key part of climate action dialogue going forward, particularly in discussions at COP30. The organization highlights the importance of increased investment in climate-resilient education systems—especially in vulnerable and conflict-affected areas—as every USD $1 a government invests in education, national GDP can increase by approximately USD 20.

Additionally, the organization also stresses the need to involve children and youth in climate policymaking and to invest in resilient school infrastructure and climate education. By integrating green skills and climate learning into curriculum, education can become a powerful tool for resilience and climate action.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Jamaica in the eye of Hurricane Melissa, the strongest tropical cyclone on record. Credit: X

By Cecilia Russell
NAIROBI & JOHANNESBURG, Oct 29 2025 (IPS)

Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica yesterday—the strongest hurricane to impact the island on record since 1851—with expectations of tens of thousands of people being displaced and devastating damage to infrastructure. The tropical storm, slightly downgraded but nevertheless devastating, made landfall in Cuba today as UNEP’s newly released Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty shows that the finance needed for developing countries to adapt to the climate crisis is falling far behind their needs.

The report estimates the adaptation finance needs of developing countries will range from between USD 310 billion to USD 365 billion per year by 2035.

But international public adaptation finance from developed to developing countries fell from USD 28 billion in 2022 to USD 26 billion in 2023. The data for 2024 and 2025 is not yet available.

“This leaves an adaptation finance gap of USD 284-339 billion per year—12 to 14 times as much as current flows,” the report released ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, says.

However, adaptation finance plays a crucial role in countries and communities coping with the impacts of the climate crisis.

“Climate impacts are accelerating. Yet adaptation finance is not keeping pace, leaving the world’s most vulnerable exposed to rising seas, deadly storms, and searing heat,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his message on the report. “Adaptation is not a cost—it is a lifeline. Closing the adaptation gap is how we protect lives, deliver climate justice, and build a safer, more sustainable world. Let us not waste another moment.”

Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP, at the launch of Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty. Credit: IPS

Yet investments in climate action far outweigh the costs of inaction, the report points out. For instance, every USD 1 spent on coastal protection avoids the equivalent of USD 14 in damages; urban nature-based solutions reduce ambient temperatures by over 1°C on average, a significant improvement during the summer heat; and health-related capacity-building can further reduce symptoms of heat stress.

“Every person on this planet is living with the impacts of climate change: wildfires, heatwaves, desertification, floods, rising costs and more,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “As action to cut greenhouse gas emissions continues to lag, these impacts will only get worse, harming more people and causing significant economic damage.

The report finds:

• The adaptation finance needs of developing countries by 2035 are at least 12 times as much as current international public adaptation finance flows.
• The Glasgow Climate Pact goal of doubling 2019 USD 40 billion will be missed if current trends continue.
• The new collective quantified goal for climate finance (NCQG) is insufficient to meet developing countries’ adaptation finance needs in 2035.
• There is evidence of improving adaptation planning and implementation, but it is limited.

The Brazilian COP 30 Presidency has called for a global “effort”—mutirão global—to implement ambitious climate action in response to accelerating climate impacts. This includes bridging the finance gap and requiring both public and private finance to increase their contributions.

When asked at a press conference how Jamaica will fare in terms of adaptation, Anderson said, “The reality is that in the sort of low-income bracket of developing countries, no one is prepared, unless they are on very high ground and have no tendency for fires, landslides, floods, etc.

“The reality is also that those who are the small island developing states exposed to high winds, those who are with
front towards the ocean, or those that have lots of human population in exposed areas are obviously the most at risk, and so when we are looking at countries like Jamaica or other small island developing states, clearly they stand to be very, very hard hit, as we are seeing; some are losing territory due to sea level rise, others are being hit again and again and again by these storms.”

She called for a broad discussion on adaptation at COP30.

While the report reflects on the opportunities presented by the Baku to Belém Roadmap to achieve 1.3 trillion, clear evidence of accelerating climate impacts, along with geopolitical priorities and increasing fiscal constraints, is making it more challenging to mobilize the necessary resources for climate mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage.

The adaptation report also notes that the New Collective Quantified Goal for climate finance, agreed at COP29, which called for developed nations to provide at least USD 300 billion for climate action in developing countries per year by 2035, would be insufficient to close the finance gap.

• Projected inflation rates extended to 2035 the estimated adaptation finance needed by developing countries goes from USD 310-365 billion per year in 2023 prices to USD 440-520 billion per year.
• The USD 300 billion target is for both mitigation and adaptation, meaning that adaptation would receive a lower share.

The report also warns that while the Baku to Belém Roadmap to raise USD 1.3 trillion by 2035 could make a huge difference, care must be taken not to increase the vulnerabilities of developing nations. Grants and concessional and non-debt-creating instruments are essential to avoid increasing indebtedness, which would make it harder for vulnerable countries to invest in adaptation.

The private sector is urged to contribute more to closing the gap. Private flows estimated at USD 5 billion per year could reach USD 50 billion—but this would require “targeted policy action and blended finance solutions, with concessionary public finance used to de-risk and scale-up private investment.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Excerpt:

UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2025: Running on Empty puts the adaptation finance gap at about USD 284-339 billion per year—12 to 14 times as much as current flows.

Credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe

By I. R. King and Janeel Drayton
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 29 2025 (IPS)

In June 2025, the international community celebrated the 80th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter. On October 24, we celebrated UN Day, commemorating its ratification. This is an opportune moment to reflect on how far we have come, and the ground we have yet to traverse.

Countries of the Global South particularly find themselves at a critical juncture, as we experience firsthand the shifts of the multilateral system and bear the brunt of its effects.

The UN Charter, as the foundational document of the United Nations (UN), affirmed belief in a multilateral system and formally established an international organization aimed at curtailing future suffering in a post-World War context. The UN’s Security Council, one of the principal organs created by the Charter, which is primarily tasked with the maintenance of peace, became the cornerstone of the international peace and security framework.

Comprised of five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) with veto power, and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms, the Council has locked into place a power imbalance, which perpetuates the historical injustices of a bygone era.

Today, the world is not as it was in 1945. We are witnessing escalating conflicts in real time – from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan, unprecedented global security threats, and rapidly shifting geopolitics – all challenging the lofty ideals and aspirations that underpinned the UN’s founding.

In light of the critical mandate of the UN Security Council, and the far-reaching consequences of its decisions, (and its paralysis), it is necessary to ask: is the United Nations Security Council currently equipped to meet these evolving challenges and retain its legitimacy?

There may be varied views on the way forward, but for a majority the short answer to this question is “No.” It is not equipped in its current form.

The L.69, a diverse pro-reform coalition of developing countries from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, views reform as both urgent and essential. Our group is united by the call for comprehensive reform of the Security Council, specifically by expanding the membership in both the permanent and non-permanent categories of membership.

We believe that we must confront the reality that developing countries, which are home to the majority of the world’s population and are often on the frontlines of global crises, remain unrepresented and underrepresented on the Council.

The power to influence war and peace, to enforce international law, to decide where injustice is condemned or overlooked, and where humanitarian aid is delivered, should not continue to rest in the hands of a few powers, which includes those with a colonial past, who once held dominion over the very nations now seeking representation.

The exclusion of the perspective of those populations most affected by the conflicts is not only unjust, but also dangerous.

There is now a kind of ennui around the discussions on Security Council reform, which may be inevitable in a conversation that has been ongoing in various forms for decades. However, though the road to reform may be difficult we cannot afford to give up. The cost of inaction for the peoples of the world is a weighty matter that states will have to answer for.

There are pathways that have been identified for how the United Nations can go forward. The process can build on the only successful reform achieved in 1965, when the Council, in response to the growth of the UN membership, expanded from 11 to 15 members with the addition of four non-permanent seats.

The case is simple. Just as the world has changed, so too must the Security Council evolve. This is not only necessary to reflect today’s geopolitical realities, but to create a world where every voice counts. Security Council reform is about the global community fulfilling their commitment to the foundational promise of the United Nations: to uphold peace, dignity, and equality. Time is running out.

The question is not whether the Security Council will be reformed, but whether it will be reformed in time to remain relevant.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Ambassador I.R. King is Permanent Representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the UN Security Council Reform Group L69

A man farms in rural Ghana. Credit: Courtesy of Land Rights Defenders Inc.

By Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu
COLUMBUS Ohio, USA , Oct 28 2025 (IPS)

I had hoped to attend this year’s Conference of the Parties (COP) in person, to stand alongside fellow Indigenous leaders and advocate for the rights of our communities.

However, due to my ongoing political asylum proceedings before the U.S. immigration court, it is not advisable for me to leave the United States until a final determination is made. While I may not be there physically, my voice—and the voices of those I represent—remains firmly present in this dialogue.

The founding of Land Rights Defenders Inc. was born from a deep conviction: that Indigenous peoples, despite being the most effective stewards of biodiversity, are too often excluded from the decisions that shape our lands and futures.

Our territories hold over 80 percent of the world’s remaining biodiversity—not because of external interventions, but because of centuries of careful stewardship rooted in respect, reciprocity, and resilience.

We do not protect the land because it is a resource. We protect it because it is sacred.

Land Rights Defenders Inc. Founder Nana Kwese Osei Bonsu. Courtesy: Land Rights Defenders Inc.

Land Rights Are Climate Rights

The evidence is clear: where Indigenous communities have secure land tenure, deforestation rates drop, biodiversity thrives, and carbon is stored more effectively. In the Amazon and across Africa, Indigenous-managed lands outperform even state-protected areas in preserving forest cover and absorbing carbon.

Yet, these lands are under constant threat—from extractive industries, infrastructure projects, and even misguided conservation efforts. Too often, climate solutions are imposed without consent, displacing people in the name of progress.

As I’ve said before, “For Indigenous communities, land rights are not just a legal issue but the very foundation of our cultures, livelihoods, and futures.”

A Story of Hope and Impact

One of the most significant victories we’ve achieved at Land Rights Defenders Inc. was our successful intervention in the Benimasi-Boadi Indigenous Community Conserved Area in Ghana. This ancestral land, stewarded by the Huahi Achama Tutuwaa Royal Family—descendants of King Osei Tutu I—was under threat from unauthorized exploitation and institutional land grabs.

This case is especially personal to me. The Benimasi-Boadi community is part of my ancestral lineage, and witnessing the threats to its sacred lands was one of the driving forces behind my decision to found Land Rights Defenders Inc.

We submitted spatial data and a formal case study to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) through the UNEP-WCMC, advocating for the enforcement of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC). This action helped establish international recognition of the community’s rights and halted further encroachment.

We also supported the community in appealing a biased ruling influenced by the Kumasi Traditional Council and filed a Special Procedure complaint to the UN Human Rights Council, seeking redress for victims of human rights violations by local authorities and police forces.

This wasn’t just a legal win—it was a cultural and spiritual victory. It affirmed the community’s right to protect its sacred heritage and inspired broader advocacy for the enforcement of Ghana’s Land Act 2020 (Act 1036), which we continue to champion today.

Climate Finance Must Reach the Ground

Each year, billions are pledged for climate action, but less than 1 percent reaches Indigenous-led initiatives. This is not just unjust—it’s inefficient. Indigenous peoples have proven time and again that we know how to protect our environments. What we need is direct support, not intermediaries.

Climate finance must be restructured to empower Indigenous communities as decision-makers. We need flexible funding that respects our governance systems and supports our solutions.

From Consultation to Consent

I’ve seen how governments and corporations “consult” Indigenous communities after decisions have already been made. This practice violates the principle of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), which is enshrined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

We must move beyond symbolic inclusion. Indigenous communities must have the power to say no—to projects that threaten our lands, cultures, and futures.

Indigenous Knowledge Is Climate Wisdom

Our knowledge systems are not relics of the past—they are blueprints for the future. From controlled burns in Australia to water harvesting in the Andes, Indigenous practices offer time-tested strategies for climate adaptation and resilience.

As Great-Grandmother Mary Lyons of the Ojibwe people said at COP28, “We must be good caretakers and not bad landlords. It’s not just Indigenous Peoples; it’s all human beings. It’s all plant life, it’s all water bodies, our sky relatives. We are all related.”

We must protect Indigenous knowledge from misappropriation and ensure that partnerships are built on mutual respect. Our science is equal to Western science, and our voices must be heard.

A Call to Action

To ensure climate justice is more than a slogan, I urge COP30 negotiators, governments, and civil society to take the following steps:

• • ● Guarantee Indigenous land rights through legal recognition and protection.
  • ● Ensure direct access to climate finance for Indigenous-led initiatives.
  • ● Embed FPIC into all climate-related agreements and mechanisms.
  • ● Elevate Indigenous leadership in decision-making spaces, not just side events.

● Protect Indigenous knowledge systems through ethical and equitable partnerships.

As I reflect on my journey—from fleeing persecution in Ghana to building a global movement for Indigenous land rights—I am reminded that resilience is not born from comfort, but from conviction. While our current work is focused on the Benimasi-Boadi community due to limited resources, it is our hope to expand this mission to other communities as we work to secure sustainable funding.

Though I may not be present at COP in person, I am there in spirit—with the elders who taught me to listen to the land, the youth who carry our legacy forward, and the global allies who believe that justice must begin with those who have protected the Earth the longest.

Let this be the COP where Indigenous voices are not just heard—but heeded.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Excerpt:

Each year, billions are pledged for climate action, but less than 1 percent reaches Indigenous-led initiatives. This is not just unjust—it’s inefficient, argues Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu Founder of Land Rights Defenders Inc.

A Community Health Worker in a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate people in communities in Nanyamba village, Mtwara Region, in southeastern Tanzania. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPS

By Kizito Makoye
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, Oct 28 2025 (IPS)

When COVID-19 hit Tanzania in 2020, Alfred Kisena’s life was torn apart. The 51-year-old teacher still remembers the night he learned that his wife, Maria, had succumbed to the virus at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He wasn’t allowed to see her in her final moments.

“The doctors said it was too dangerous, and the virus was contagious,” Kisena said, gazing at a faded photo of her hanging on the wall.

Maria’s burial took place in eerie isolation. Municipal workers dressed in white protective gear lowered her body into a tomb at Ununio Cemetery on the city’s outskirts.

“Saying goodbye to a loved one is sacred, but I didn’t get a chance,” he said.

Across Tanzania, many families endured the same pain—losing loved ones and being denied the rituals that give meaning to loss. The government imposed strict measures: banning gatherings, restricting hospital visits, and prohibiting traditional burial rites. Schools shut down, and for three months, Kisena’s five children stayed home, their education abruptly halted.

“I was not working, so it was hard to meet the needs of my family,” he said. “We survived on the little savings I had.”

Five years later, as the scars of that crisis linger, Tanzania is charting a new path toward resilience. Earlier this month, the government launched its first-ever Pandemic Fund Project, aimed at strengthening the country’s capacity to prevent and respond to health crises.

Supported by a USD25 million grant from the global Pandemic Fund and USD13.7 million in co-financing, the initiative marks a shift from reactive crisis management to proactive preparedness. It unites local and international partners—including WHO, UNICEF, and FAO—under a “One Health” framework that recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health.

Learning from the Past

The memories of COVID-19 and the more recent Marburg outbreak remain vivid. When the pandemic first struck, Tanzania’s laboratories were under-equipped, surveillance systems were weak, and community health workers were overwhelmed.

Tanzania’s Deputy Prime Minister, Doto Biteko, said during the launch that the lessons from those crises shaped the country’s new determination.

“For the past 20 years, the world has battled multiple health emergencies, and Tanzania is no exception,” he said. “We have seen how pandemics disrupt lives and economies. Strengthening our capacity to prepare and respond is not optional—it is a necessity.”

That necessity has only grown as Tanzania faces rising risks of zoonotic diseases linked to deforestation, wildlife trade, and climate change. The new project aims to address these vulnerabilities by upgrading laboratories, expanding disease surveillance, and training health workers across the country.

The Human Frontlines

In southern Kisarawe District, 38-year-old community health worker Ana Msechu walks along dusty roads with a backpack containing medicine, gloves, and health records.

“Sometimes I walk for three hours just to reach one family,” Msechu said. “During the pandemic, people stopped trusting us. They thought we were bringing the disease.”

With no protective gear or transport allowance, Msechu faced villagers’ suspicion head-on. At the height of the pandemic, she lost a colleague to the virus. Yet she continued, delivering messages about hygiene and vaccination.

“Sometimes we didn’t even have masks—we used pieces of cloth instead,” she recalled.

The new initiative, she believes, could change that. Implementing partners plan to supply personal protective equipment (PPE), digital tools for data collection, and regular training sessions.

“If we get proper support and respect, we can save many lives before diseases spread,” she said.

“Community health workers are the backbone of resilience,” said Patricia Safi Lombo, UNICEF’s Deputy Representative to Tanzania. “They are the first point of contact for families and play a critical role in delivering life-saving information and services.”

UNICEF’s role will focus on risk communication and community engagement—ensuring that people in rural and urban areas understand preventive measures, recognize early symptoms, and trust the health system.

Between Fear and Duty

Hamisi Mjema, a health volunteer in Kilosa District, remembers how fear became his biggest enemy.

When the Marburg virus hit last year, his job was to trace suspected cases and educate families about isolation.

“I was insulted many times, and some families wouldn’t even let me into their homes,” he said.

Without transport or communication tools, Hamisi walked from one remote village to another with his bicycle, often relying on farmers to share their phone airtime so he could report cases to district health officials.

Under the new initiative, local health officers say community health workers will receive field kits, digital disease-reporting tools, and risk communication materials in local languages.

“It will make our work safer and faster,” he said. “When we detect something early, the whole country benefits.”

Fighting Misinformation

In a lakeside village in Kigoma, volunteer health educator Fatuma Mfaume recalls how rumors once spread faster than the virus itself.

“People were afraid,” she said. “They said vaccines would make women barren. Others believed doctors were poisoning us.”

Armed with a megaphone, Mfaume moved through villages trying to dispel falsehoods—often facing insults. But her persistence paid off. Slowly, women began bringing their children for immunization again.

With the new project, she hopes community workers like her will gain formal recognition and training in communication skills.

“Many of us work without pay,” Mfaume said. “If this project can train us properly and give us materials, we can fight not just disease but fear and lies too.”

Animal-Borne Threats

At the same time, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is strengthening animal health systems, recognizing that most pandemics originate from animals.

“By improving coordination between veterinary and public health services, Tanzania is taking vital steps to prevent zoonotic diseases before they spill over to humans,” said Stella Kiambi, FAO’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases Team Lead.

These measures include upgrading veterinary laboratories, improving disease surveillance in livestock markets, and training field officers to detect early signs of outbreaks.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is also supporting efforts to strengthen human health systems—from expanding testing capacity to developing rapid response teams.

“This project marks a bold step forward in health security,” said Dr. Galbert Fedjo, WHO Health Systems Coordinator. “It advances a One Health approach that links human, animal, and environmental health.”

Rebuilding Trust and Hope

For Priya Basu, Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund, Tanzania’s project represents “an important step in strengthening the country’s preparedness to prevent and respond to future health threats.”

Across Africa, the Fund—established in 2022—has supported 47 projects in 75 countries with USD 885 million in grants, catalyzing more than USD 6 billion in additional financing.

According to the World Bank, every USD 1 invested in pandemic preparedness can save up to USD 20 in economic losses during an outbreak.

For Tanzania—a nation that lost thousands of lives and suffered deep economic shocks during COVID-19—the stakes couldn’t be higher.

“Preparedness is about saving lives and livelihoods,” said Dr. Ali Mzige, a public health expert. “It’s about making sure families don’t suffer when a pandemic strikes.”

For Kisena, the government’s new initiative is a quiet promise that the lessons of loss have not been forgotten.

“Maria’s death taught me how precious life is,” he said. “If this project can protect even one family from that kind of pain, then it will mean her death was not in vain.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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This UNICEF-supported nutrition site focuses on delivering lifesaving interventions for the prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition among children under five and pregnant and lactating women. Credit: UNICEF/Ahmed Mohamdeen Elfatih

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 28 2025 (IPS)

In recent weeks, Sudan’s humanitarian crisis has deteriorated considerably, as escalating hostilities, mass displacement, disease outbreaks, and a widespread lack of access to basic, essential services continue to endanger civilians across the country. The situation has been further compounded by a sharp increase in attacks on healthcare facilities throughout October, which has severely weakened the country’s already fragile health system and deprived thousands of people of lifesaving care.

On October 23, several United Nations (UN) agencies—including the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Food Programme (WFP)—issued a joint statement highlighting the rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in Sudan and calling for urgent, coordinated international action. According to the organizations, over 900 days of protracted conflict and the collapse of lifesaving services have “pushed millions to the brink of survival”, with women and children being disproportionately affected.

“This is one of the worst protection crises we’ve seen in decades,” said Kelly T. Clements, Deputy High Commissioner at UNHCR. “Millions are displaced inside and outside of the country and returning families have little support with the absence of other options. I spoke with families who recently fled El Fasher with horrific stories of being forced to leave everything behind, taking treacherous routes at great risk. It’s a dynamic environment and support is needed everywhere.”

An estimated 30 million people in Sudan are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, including nearly 15 million children. The conflict has forced more than 9.6 million people to flee their homes, making Sudan the largest internal displacement crisis in the world. At the same time, approximately 2.6 million people have returned to areas of active conflict—such as Khartoum, where around one million have returned—only to find their homes and livelihood destroyed and essential services virtually wiped out.

According to IOM, Khartoum currently hosts nearly 900,000 refugees, while Tawila shelters more than 600,000—many of whom lack adequate housing or access to protection services. Aid organizations have expressed growing concern over rising anti-foreigner sentiment, stressing that protection assistance remains “lifesaving for hundreds of thousands” of displaced individuals facing heightened risks of violence and discrimination.

“This scale of return to Khartoum is both a sign of resilience and a warning,” said Ugochi Daniels, IOM’s Deputy Director General for Operations. “I met people coming back to a city still scarred by conflict, where homes are damaged and basic services are barely functioning. Their determination to rebuild is remarkable, but life remains incredibly fragile.”

After three years of conflict, Sudan’s education system has been among the hardest hit, with an estimated 14 out of 17 million school-aged children without access to schooling. Additionally, hunger levels remain catastrophic, with famine having been confirmed in parts of Sudan last year. Children continue to face heightened risks of malnutrition and thousands are projected to be at an “imminent risk of death” if nutritional support is not secured soon.

“It was a really grave moment when famine was first confirmed in parts of Sudan, and given the scale and growing intensity of the crisis, we have all been investing significant effort in enhancing our operational capacity to meet the huge and growing needs,” said WFP Assistant Executive Director Valerie Guarnieri. About 25 million people in Sudan, or half its population, face acute food insecurity. WFP has been able to support 4 million people in recent months, including 85 percent of the population living in famine or famine-risk areas. Yet Guarnieri warned on Friday that they have “reached the limits, not of our capacity, but of our resources.”

For over 16 months, El Fasher has experienced heightened levels of insecurity, with over 260,000 civilians, including roughly 130,000 children, trapped under siege and cut off from food, water, and healthcare. On October 20, UN sources reported that a siege in one of the most densely populated areas of El Fasher led to intense shelling and the displacement of more than 109,000 people across 127 sites. The UN has also received numerous reports of extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, and forced recruitment.

October has been particularly volatile for Sudan’s already fragile healthcare system, with a surge in attacks targeting medical facilities in the Kordofan and Darfur states. On October 5, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out two drone strikes on hospitals in El Obeid City, North Kordofan.

Two days later, the RSF conducted an artillery shelling in the maternity ward of the Saudi Hospital for Women and Maternity in El Fasher’s Al Daraja neighborhood—the last functioning medical facility in the city. Thirteen civilians, including several children, were killed, and sixteen others were injured, among them a female doctor and a nurse. The hospital sustained significant damage to much of its medical equipment.

Additionally, Sudanese families continue to struggle with aggressive outbreaks of cholera, dengue, malaria, and measles, which have been exacerbated by non-functional healthcare systems and destroyed water systems. According to updated figures from UNHCR, the Darfur and Kordofan regions have been among the hardest hit by cholera. In North Darfur’s Tawila locality alone, more than 6,000 infections and 11 deaths have been recorded since May—most within displacement shelters. In South Darfur, UNHCR has documented 3,229 confirmed cases and 177 deaths since late August.

“What I witnessed in Darfur and elsewhere this week is a stark reminder of what is at stake: children facing hunger, disease, and the collapse of essential services,” said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director. “Entire communities are surviving in conditions that defy dignity. Children are malnourished, exposed to violence, and at risk of dying from preventable diseases. Families are doing everything they can to survive, showing extraordinary resolve in the face of unimaginable hardship.”

The 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan for Sudan calls for USD 4.2 billion, but remains severely underfunded, with only 25 percent of the required amount secured so far. Despite these gaps, aid groups have been able to reach over 13.5 million people this year, including those in the most crisis-afflicted regions, such as Darfur, Khartoum, and Al Jazira. The UN stresses the need for continued humanitarian cooperation and increased donor support, as funding shortfalls are projected to force several key humanitarian agencies to scale back or suspend critical operations, putting millions of lives at risk.

UN officials also made the call for development investment to rebuild critical infrastructure and services in health, sanitation and energy. “Sudan urgently needs to rebuild and rehabilitate its key infrastructure, restore access to public services, and provide direct support to vulnerable returnees, IDPs, and the communities that host them,” Daniels said on October 24.

“We can’t wait for longstanding peace to take hold. Development actors are needed now to come in for bigger rehabilitation and construction and investment, so that people can rebuild their lives with dignity,” Clements said. She remarked that development actors would be critical in devastated areas like Khartoum where at present, more than a million people have returned and require basic services. “It’s that kind of reconstruction, rehabilitation, bringing back basic services, where development actors have a much larger role to play than humanitarian actors like ourselves.”

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By Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Kuhaneetha Bai Kalaicelvan
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Oct 28 2025 (IPS)

Opposition to data centres (DCs) has been rapidly spreading internationally due to their fast-growing resource demands. DCs have been proliferating quickly, driven by the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI).

Jomo Kwame Sundaram

Who are data centres for?
Already, the AI boom has overwhelmed other ‘cloud’ uses and drives the rapid growth of DCs, imposing fast-expanding resource demands. This has triggered a bipartisan public backlash in the US due to higher energy, water, and land use, as well as rising prices.

In October 2024, McKinsey projected that global energy demand by DCs would rise between 19% and 22% annually through 2030, reaching an annual demand between 171 and 219 gigawatts.

This greatly exceeds the “current demand of 60 GW”. “To avoid a [supply] deficit, at least twice the [DC] capacity built since 2000 would have to be built in less than a quarter of the time”!

As tech companies are not paying for the additional energy generation capacity, consumers and host governments are, whether they benefit from AI or not.

As DCs increasingly faced growing pushback in the North, developers have turned to developing countries, outsourcing problems to poorer nations with limited resources.

Understanding these energy- and water-guzzling facilities is necessary to better protect economies, societies, communities, and their environments.

Energy needs
With growing corporate and consumer demand for AI, DC growth will continue, and even occasionally accelerate.

K Kuhaneetha Bai

Increased AI usage will significantly increase energy and water consumption, accelerating planetary heating both directly and indirectly.

As demand for AI and DCs increases, supporting computers will require significantly more electricity. This will generate heat, needing the use of water and energy for cooling. Much energy used by DCs, from 38% to 50%, is for cooling.

Electricity generation, whether from fossil fuels or nuclear fission, requires more cooling than renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic solar panels or wind turbines.

A small-scale DC with 500 to 2,000 servers consumes one to five megawatts (MW). For tech giants, a ‘hyperscale’ DC, hosting tens of thousands of servers, consumes 20 to over 100MW, like a small city!

Data centres not cool
As the popular focus is on DCs’ enormous energy requirements, their massive water needs to cool equipment tend to be ignored, understated and overlooked.

Locating new DCs in developing countries will further heat local microclimates and the planetary atmosphere. Worse still, heat is more environmentally threatening in the tropics, where ambient temperatures are higher.

Establishing more DCs will inevitably crowd out existing and other possible uses of freshwater supplies, besides reducing local groundwater aquifers.

Unsurprisingly, DC investors rarely warn host governments about the amount of locally supplied energy and water required.

DCs require much freshwater to cool servers and routers. In 2023, Google alone used almost 23 billion litres to cool DCs. In cooling systems using evaporation, cold water is used to absorb severe heat, releasing steam into the atmosphere.

Closed-loop cooling systems absorb heat using piped-in water, while air-cooled chillers cool down hot water. Cooled water recirculated for cooling requires less water but more energy to chill hot water.

Investors expect subsidies
Like other prospective investors, DCs have relocated to areas where host governments have been more generous and less demanding.

Led by US President Trump’s powerful ‘tech bros’, many foreign investors have profited from subsidised energy, cheap land and water, and other special incentives.

Prospective host governments compete to offer tax and other incentives, such as subsidised energy and water, to attract foreign direct investment in DCs.

The US pressured Malaysia and Thailand to stop Chinese firms from using them as an “export-control backdoor” for its AI chips. Washington alleges that DCs outside China buy chips to train its AI for military purposes. So far, only Malaysia has complied.

This limits Chinese firms’ access to such chips. Washington claims that Chinese substitutes for US-made chips are inferior and seeks to protect US technology from China.

High-tech DC jobs?
Data centres are emerging everywhere, but not many jobs will be created. Advocates claim DCs will provide high-tech jobs.

DCs are largely self-operating, requiring minimal human intervention, except for maintenance, which they determine independently. Thus, job creation is minimised.

Construction and installation work will be temporary, with most managerial functions being performed remotely from headquarters. A Georgetown University report estimates only 27% of DC jobs are ‘technical’.

While the DC discourse mainly focuses on foreign investments, there is little discussion on growing national desires for data sovereignty.

Acceding to so many foreign requests will inevitably block national capacity ambitions to develop end-to-end DC capabilities and not just host them.

Thus far, there is limited interest in the ‘afterlife’ of DCs, such as what happens after they have outlived their purpose, or the disposal of waste materials.

Higher energy and water costs, subsidies, tax incentives and other problems caused by DCs are hardly offset by their modest employment and other benefits.

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Alexander Soros accepts the European Civil Rights Prize of the Sinti and Roma on behalf of his father, George. Credit: Gorden Welters

By Ed Holt
BRATISLAVA, Oct 27 2025 (IPS)

Billionaire philanthropist George Soros has been awarded the European Civil Rights Prize of the Sinti and Roma for his decades of work supporting Roma rights.

Through sustained philanthropic efforts, Soros, who founded the Open Society Foundations (OSF), has supported projects across the continent advancing the rights, dignity, and empowerment of Roma—Europe’s largest ethnic minority.

His son Alexander, who is chair of the board of directors of the OSF, accepted the prize, which was established in memory of Holocaust survivors and pioneers of the Roma civil rights movement, Oskar and Vinzenz Rose, in Berlin on October 23, on his father’s behalf.

He said, “My father’s partnership with Roma communities has always been grounded in a deep belief in justice, dignity, and self-determination. This prize is a powerful recognition of that shared journey—and a call to continue the fight against prejudice and exclusion.”

Soros’s philanthropy has supported Roma-led organizations to confront discrimination, expand access to education and justice, improve early childhood development and healthcare, and amplify Roma voices in public life.

Among some of the most significant projects have been the creation of the European Roma Rights Centre, the Roma Education Fund (REF), and the Decade of Roma Inclusion, which collectively helped more than 150,000 Roma students attend school, challenged segregation before the European Court of Human Rights, and elevated Roma voices in public discourse.

Meanwhile, the 2024 launch of the Roma Foundation for Europe (RFE)—an independent, Roma-led institution established with a 100 million EUR pledge from the Open Society Foundations—was a key moment in support for Roma across the continent.

Speaking after the prize was awarded, those involved in some of these institutions highlighted not just how these projects have changed the lives of Roma individuals and advanced Roma rights more widely, but also the impact Soros and his work have had on Roma communities in Europe.

“Over the past two decades, REF has supported thousands of young Roma across 16 countries to complete higher education and build successful professional careers,” Ciprian Necula, Executive President of the REF, told IPS.

“Today, there are Roma doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers, IT specialists, economists, social workers, journalists, and artists whose professional journeys began with REF’s support. Our most meaningful contribution has been creating genuine pathways to education and employment, proving that talent exists in every community when access and opportunity are fair.

“The work of George Soros has been extremely important to Roma communities. No other individual or institution has supported Roma communities with such consistency and vision. His contribution went far beyond financial support; he helped us build institutions, nurture leadership, and develop long-term strategic perspectives.

“His legacy is one of trust, solidarity, and shared responsibility, a reminder that real progress happens when marginalized communities are not only supported but empowered to lead their own change.”

Zeljko Jovanovic, RFE President, told IPS, “Without the Open Society Foundations, the Roma movement as we know it simply wouldn’t exist.”

“George Soros put Roma issues on Europe’s agenda and helped build the first networks of activists, researchers and policymakers working together for change. Over time, his support helped cultivate a generation of Roma professionals and advocates able to design and run their own initiatives. That legacy made today’s Roma-led institutions possible, including the Roma Foundation for Europe,” he said.

“The Roma Foundation for Europe is the most important step in building a Roma-led institution on a European scale in decades. It builds on the long tradition of support for Roma civil society that started with the Open Society Foundations but takes it further—focusing on leadership, education, economic participation, culture and political voice. There’s been a strong sense of ownership and hope [among Roma towards the Foundation]. Many Roma see the Foundation as something long overdue—a space where Roma lead, set the agenda and work with others as equals. It’s not just another organization that speaks about Roma but one that gives structure, power and voice to Roma-led ideas, from business and education to culture and politics,” he added.

Soros has said that he would be donating the 15,000 EUR endowment that comes with the award to the Roma Education Fund.

Necula said the money would be used to expand the Fund’s digital education program.

“This initiative will give Roma children and youth access to technology, digital skills training, and new learning opportunities. In essence, we will turn vision into action, transforming education into opportunity for our children. By investing in digital education now, we ensure that no child is left behind in the transformation shaping our economies and communities,” he said.

In comments after being awarded the prize, Soros spoke of his long-standing relationship with the Roma and highlighted the continued discrimination they face.

“The Roma have endured centuries of discrimination and marginalization, rooted in a long history of violence—from the Holocaust to forced sterilization, child removals, and evictions. These injustices continue to resurface, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, when Roma fleeing the war in Ukraine faced barriers to shelter and aid,” he said.

“I’ve always believed that open societies must protect the rights of all people—especially those who are excluded. Working alongside Roma leaders and communities has been one of the most meaningful parts of my life’s work,” he added.

Meanwhile, Alexander has pledged to continue his father’s fight for Roma rights, equality, and support for communities’ empowerment.

“As a child, I accompanied my parents on visits across Europe to meet Roma leaders and their families. Those experiences left a lasting impression on me and shaped my own commitment to human rights. Today, as chair of the Open Society Foundations, I am proud to carry forward this vital work and stand alongside Roma communities in their pursuit of equal rights and freedom. The discrimination that Roma experience is a threat to all of Europe. None of us is free until we are all free,” he said.

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The Rock Islands, Palau. Credit: Island Conservation

By Penny Becker, Ralph Regenvanu and Safiya Sawney
GRENADA / VANUATU / USA , Oct 27 2025 (IPS)

As biodiversity loss including ocean degradation, pollution and climate change threaten our planet, islands, and particularly global small island nations, often don’t get the spotlight they deserve. Often labeled as vulnerable, the world’s small island nations are in fact powerful beacons of resilience.

Their urgent challenges are sparking bold innovation, deep collaboration, and some of the most remarkable ecological recoveries on Earth. That’s why we are calling for the United Nations to establish a Decade of Island Resilience for 2030-2040.

Stories of success on islands are as abundant as the islands themselves. Although small islands are ubiquitous, global small island nations who are independent sovereign states span the global oceans. In the Pacific and Caribbean region, independent small island nations continue to advocate to the international community for equity in recognizing their special circumstances as a case to increase financing and resources to combat the triple planetary crisis of biodiversity loss, climate change and pollution.

These islands, often highly indebted, with small economies and remote geographies, are primarily dependent on their coastal assets to drive their main revenue generation – tourism and the blue economy.

Several of these island nations have leveraged the power of collective effort and have initiated innovative approaches at the domestic and regional scale to conserve and preserve their biodiversity and cultural identities.

Brown Booby in the Marshall Islands. Credit: Bren Ram/Island Conservation

Efforts like the Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity inspired by the work of the Micronesia Challenge Initiative and the 30×30 OECS Transformation Program to advance progress towards the Global Biodiversity Framework are providing a new pathway to building island resilience.

Thanks to holistic conservation action, thousands of new native seedlings are now carpeting the forest floor and seabirds populations are surging on Bikar Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

The people of Ulithi Atoll in Yap State are enjoying increased food security and access to essential resources after successful restoration brought Loosiep Island back from the brink of ecological collapse.

Restored island biodiversity, in particular coastal and marine ecosystems, have been proven to trap tens of millions of metric tons of carbon, grow corals four times faster, regenerate native vegetation thousands of times faster, and support orders of magnitude more fish biomass. Healthy and well managed biodiversity also increases the resilience of islands to combat climate change.

Although islands continue to endure the harsh and often devastating everyday challenges of being on the front lines of the triple planetary crisis of biodiversity loss, declining ocean health, and climate change, these stories show how islands are investing in their ability to fight back—driven by incredible optimism and their right to exist.

Because of their unique geography, islands are natural proving grounds for scalable conservation strategies, where science-based biodiversity restoration, ocean action, and climate resilience can be developed, perfected, and expanded globally driven by the needs to island communities. Their immense potential for impact means they deserve the world’s attention.

As representatives of global small island nations, conservation science, and community-led initiatives, we are united in support of the island led United Nations-sanctioned Decade of Island Resilience to help bring islands to the front of global priorities about climate resilience and the future of holistic restoration.

Island Conservation, an international NGO with more than 30 years of success working with island communities to restore their precious ecosystems, formally proposed this initiative in May of 2025 to help direct attention to the outsized role islands can play. And last month, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature adopted this call as an official Resolution.

The Global Islands Partnership (GLISPA)—a long-time convenor and internationally recognized island led platform will work in partnership with Island Conservation to transition this resolution into a platform for catalyzing island progress thorough its Island Biodiversity Coalition.

If established, the proposed Decade of Island Resilience would serve multiple vital functions: coordinating scientific research, mobilizing financial resources, amplifying indigenous and local voices, integrating traditional and local knowledge into implementation and scaling successful approaches, such as enhancing the delivery of adequate and consistent financing and ensuring the retention of domestic capacity in the implementation of solutions across the world’s islands.

And in doing so, it would amplify existing efforts that direct the world’s attention to islands—the globe’s nature-based solution for the delivery of high-impact resilience, restoration, and revitalization.

The timing is critical. We are in the last five years of the 2030 Agenda. As we implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), advance the UN’s Global Biodiversity Framework including the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS, and recognize the special circumstances of small island developing states to drive ambition and action for a regenerative ocean future, and pursue the race to net zero emissions, global small islands are where we should look for integrated solutions.

A Decade of Island Resilience wouldn’t just benefit global small islands: it would help us develop environmental solutions for our entire planet. If we can succeed in a global small island context—where problems are contained and solutions tangible—we’ll have a blueprint for addressing our global environmental crisis.

A Decade of Island Resilience would create a global platform for ambitious partnerships to scale efforts globally between governments, scientific institutions, civil society, private sector innovators, and, most importantly, island communities.

The choice is clear: invest in island resilience now, or lose irreplaceable biodiversity, cultural heritage, and proven solutions to our most pressing global challenges. The world’s islands are ready to lead. Are we ready to support them?

Penny Becker, PhD., is CEO, Island Conservation; Honorable Ralph Regenvanu is Minister for Climate Change, Energy, Meteorology, Geohazards, Environment and Disaster Management for the Republic of Vanuatu; and Ambassador Safiya Sawney is Special Envoy and Ambassador for Climate Change, Government of Grenada and Board Chair for the Global Island Partnership

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Credit: UN Photo/Martine Perret

By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 27 2025 (IPS)

The African continent has long been monopolized by European colonial rulers, with France having the largest number of colonies, ruling over 35 territories, followed by Britain with 32. A bygone era of colonial rule on the continent, “once carved up and ruled by European powers hungry for imperial glory,” has virtually ended—almost.

Currently, they are all members of the 55-nation African Union (AU).

Described as a non-self-governing territory in northwestern Africa fighting for decolonization, Western Sahara is the last African colonial state yet to achieve independence and dubbed “Africa’s last colony.”

With an estimated population of around 600,000 inhabitants, it is the most sparsely populated territory in Africa and the second most sparsely populated territory in the world, consisting mainly of desert flatlands.

A former Spanish colony, it was annexed by Morocco in 1975. Since then, it has been the subject of a long-running territorial dispute between Morocco and its indigenous Sahrawi people, led by the POLISARIO Front.

On October 30, the UN Security Council is scheduled to vote on a draft resolution on the future of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).

According to a published report, the United States has circulated a draft resolution supporting Morocco’s 2007 autonomy plan for Western Sahara as the basis for a mutually acceptable solution.

The draft, which supports extending the UN mission’s mandate, calls for negotiations to begin without preconditions based on Morocco’s proposal, framing it as the “most feasible solution” for a “genuine autonomy within the Moroccan state” and a lasting resolution.

Dr. Stephen Zunes, a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, and co-author of Western Sahara: War, Nationalism, and Conflict Irresolution, told IPS the autonomy proposal is based on the assumption that Western Sahara is part of Morocco, a contention that has long been rejected by the United Nations, the World Court, the African Union and a broad consensus of international legal opinion.

Western Sahara, he pointed out, is a full member state of the African Union, and the United Nations recognizes it as a non-self-governing territory.

“To accept Morocco’s autonomy plan would mean that, for the first time since the founding of the United Nations and the ratification of the UN Charter eighty years ago, the international community would be endorsing the expansion of a country’s territory by military force, thereby establishing a very dangerous and destabilizing precedent, with serious implications for Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine as well as Israeli-occupied territories.”

If the people of Western Sahara accepted an autonomy agreement over independence, as a result of a free and fair referendum, he argued, it would constitute a legitimate act of self-determination.

However, Morocco has explicitly stated that its autonomy proposal “rules out, by definition, the possibility for the independence option to be submitted” to the people of Western Sahara, the vast majority of whom – according to knowledgeable international observers—favor outright independence.

On October 24, the Representative of the Frente POLISARIO at the United Nations and Coordinator with MINURSO, Dr Sidi Mohamed Omar, sent a letter to Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia of Russia, current President of the UN Security Council, in which he stressed the position of the Frente POLISARIO on the US draft resolution.

“The Frente POLISARIO underscores that the draft resolution, which reflects the national position of the penholder, is a very dangerous, unprecedented departure not only from the principles of international law underpinning Western Sahara as a question of decolonization but also from the basis upon which the Security Council has addressed Western Sahara.”

“It also contains elements that strike at the heart of the foundations of the UN peace process in Western Sahara and constitute a grave violation of the international status of the Territory.”

Acting under the relevant Chapters of the UN Charter, the Security Council has firmly and consensually established the basis of the solution and the process leading to it, namely negotiations under the auspices of the Secretary-General without preconditions and in good faith with a view to achieving a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara in the context of arrangements consistent with the principles and purposes of the UN Charter, the letter said.

As confirmed by the International Court of Justice, sovereignty over Western Sahara belongs exclusively to the Sahrawi people who have an inalienable, non-negotiable, and imprescriptible right to self-determination to be exercised freely and democratically under the UN auspices.

Therefore, any approach that sets a prefixed framework for the negotiations or predetermines their outcome, circumscribes the free exercise by the Sahrawi people of their right to self-determination, or imposes a solution against their will is utterly unacceptable to the Frente POLISARIO, the letter said.

According to a Security Council report, October 2025, an immediate issue for the Council is to renew the mandate of MINURSO and consider what changes to the mission’s mandate, if any, are necessary.

The underlying issue remains how to facilitate a viable and lasting resolution to the long-standing deadlock over the status of Western Sahara.

Two fundamentally diverging positions have made a resolution to the conflict difficult.

On the one hand, the Polisario Front’s demand for the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination, which has been recognized by the International Court of Justice in its 16 October 1975 advisory opinion and supported by several member states.

And numerous UN General Assembly resolutions, such as resolution A/RES/34/37, have affirmed the “inalienable right of the people of Western Sahara” to self-determination and independence. The Council has also called for a “just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.”

On the other hand, Morocco claims sovereignty over the territory, and its Autonomy Plan has received support from an increasing number of member states in recent years. In 2007, the Council adopted resolution 1754, which, in its preambular paragraphs, took note of Morocco’s proposal and welcomed Morocco’s efforts as serious and credible to move the process forward towards resolution.

Significant obstacles remain in the peace process. Hostilities have persisted at a low to medium intensity, falling short of large-scale confrontation. Moreover, Morocco controls over three-quarters of the Western Sahara territory and has made substantial investments in the region, including a $1.2 billion port project in Dakhla.

In addition, settlers of Moroccan origin account for nearly two-thirds of the approximately half-million residents of Western Sahara

Elaborating further, Dr Zunes said: “even if one takes a dismissive attitude toward international law, there are a number of practical concerns regarding the Moroccan proposal as well: One is that the history of respect for regional autonomy on the part of centralized authoritarian states is quite poor, as with Eritrea and Kosovo, which only gained independence after a long a bloody struggle, and more recently with Hong Kong.”

Based upon Morocco’s habit of breaking its promises to the international community regarding the UN-mandated referendum for Western Sahara and related obligations based on the ceasefire agreement in 1991, he said, there is little to inspire confidence that Morocco would live up to its promises to provide genuine autonomy for Western Sahara.

“A close reading of the proposal raises questions as to how much autonomy is even being offered. Important matters such as control of Western Sahara’s natural resources and law enforcement (beyond local jurisdictions) remain ambiguous.”

In addition, he pointed out, the proposal appears to indicate that all powers not specifically vested in the autonomous region would remain with the Kingdom.

Indeed, since the king of Morocco is ultimately invested with absolute authority under Article 19 of the Moroccan Constitution, the autonomy proposal’s insistence that the Moroccan state “will keep its powers in the royal domains, especially with respect to defense, external relations and the constitutional and religious prerogatives of His Majesty the King” appears to afford the autocratic monarch considerable latitude of interpretation.

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By CIVICUS
Oct 24 2025 (IPS)

CIVICUS speaks about the disappearance of Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov with human rights defender Diana Dadasheva from the civil movement DAYANÇ/Turkmenistan and with Gülala Hasanova, wife of Alisher Sahatov.

On 24 July, Turkmen activists Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov were abducted in Edirne, Turkey, after being labelled a ‘threat to public order.’ Despite applying for international protection, they were unlawfully deported to Turkmenistan. Orusov and Sahatov, prominent voices in the diaspora through their YouTube channel Erkin Garaýyş, are now being detained, starved and denied a fair trial, while authorities are deliberately delaying proceedings to exclude them from an upcoming amnesty. Their cases highlight the growing risks faced abroad by Turkmen activists, who are being targeted beyond their country’s borders. The international community must push to secure their immediate release and end such abuses.

What happened to Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov?

Abdulla Orusov and Alisher Sahatov are Turkmen civil activists and bloggers who reported on human rights violations, corruption, migrant issues and social hardships faced by people in Turkmenistan. They were among the few who dared to speak when most were forced into silence.

Last April, Turkish police came to their home under the pretext of checking their documents. Acting on Turkmenistan’s request, they detained both men on false terrorism charges, claiming they posed a threat to Turkey’s national security. They were taken to a deportation centre in Sinop and later transferred to Edirne.

The Turkish Supreme Court ruled that returning them to Turkmenistan would put their lives in danger and ordered an end to the deportation process. But on 24 July, immediately after their release, they disappeared. Reliable sources told us they had been secretly flown to Turkmenistan on a cargo plane, under the supervision of Officer Amangeldiyev Amangeldy, who was later awarded a medal for the operation.

To this day, we don’t know where they are or in what condition. Their abduction is a serious crime and a blatant violation of international law.

Are there other examples of such human rights violations?

Over recent years, many Turkmen activists who were brave enough to speak up have disappeared in Turkey and Russia, including Malikberdy Allamyradov, Azat Isakov, Rovshen Klychev, Farhad Meymankuliev and Merdan Mukhammedov. Activist Umida Bekjanova is currently detained in a Turkish deportation centre and we fear she may face the same fate.

Turkmen authorities are carrying out a systematic campaign to eliminate independent civic voices. In today’s Turkmenistan, anyone who refuses to stay silent risks being branded a terrorist or enemy of the state. These labels have become tools of repression, used to justify abductions, fabricate criminal charges and force people to return to Turkmenistan.

What risks do Abdulla, Alisher and other activists face after being forcibly returned?

Their lives are in danger. We receive reports of torture, starvation, humiliation and psychological abuse. They are held in isolation, denied legal defence and a fair trial.

In Turkmenistan, there are no independent courts, lawyers or free media. People disappear into secret prisons for years, cut off from their families and the world. We don’t know where they are or if they are still alive. For their relatives and loved ones, this means endless waiting and despair, a slow, silent form of torture.

How has this affected your families?

Having my husband abducted has destroyed our lives. I am raising four children who ask every day when their father will return. We live in pain and fear, under constant surveillance and threats.

Being a Turkmen activist means facing harsh living conditions. Some, like Diana, live without documents or means of subsistence or social protection, caring for small children under the constant fear of being abducted.

Still, we refuse to stay silent; if we did, others would disappear too. Together with the DAYANÇ/Turkmenistan Human Rights Platform, we have declared a hunger strike until Abdullah and Alisher return home safely. We have also launched a campaign ‘If I Disappear – Don’t Stay Silent’ where we publicly name those who will be responsible if we too disappear. This is how we protect ourselves and our loved ones, because today it’s Abdulla and Alisher but tomorrow it could be any of us.

What do you expect from the international community?

The international community must act urgently to secure the release of Abdulla, Alisher and other disappeared activists. They must also demand Turkmenistan put an end to the criminal practice of labelling people as terrorists for simply speaking the truth.

But statements aren’t enough. We need real action. We call for an independent investigation into illegal deportations and abductions, and for those responsible for abductions, torture and repression, in Turkmenistan and Turkey, to be held accountable for their actions. We also demand the creation of a ‘Green Corridor’ for at-risk activists and families and the issuance of emergency documentation and financial support for migrants left without legal status and vulnerable to exploitation, trafficking and recruitment by criminal networks or extremist groups.

The world has no right to remain silent or look away. The international community must stand with Turkmen activists deprived of their basic rights to identity, movement and freedom of expression. Their silence only empowers the perpetrators and fuels impunity. Every moment of inaction breaks another life. The international community must act now.

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Twitter/Diana Dadasheva
Twitter/Gülala Hasanova

SEE ALSO
Forced loyalty, fear, and censorship: Turkmenistan’s relentless assault on civic freedoms CIVICUS Monitor 26.Jun.2025
Turkmenistan: tyranny mutates into dynasty CIVICUS Lens 18.Mar.2022
Turkmenistan: ‘There is nothing resembling real civil society – and no conditions for it to emerge’ CIVICUS Lens | Interview with Farid Tukhbatullin 10.Mar.2022

 

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Time2Graze will use Sentinel-2 satellite data to track pasture biomass and support farmers and land managers to make informed decisions about grazing management, resource allocation, and sustainable land use.

By Lindsey Sloat
LANCASTER, PA, Oct 24 2025 (IPS)

Thousands of years ago, we looked to the stars for guidance — constellations like Taurus and the Pleiades signalled the changing of the seasons and the best times to plant, harvest and move animals.

Today, we may soon turn skyward once again, but this time to satellites that reveal in near-real-time when and where grasses are most nutritious and digestible. Feeding livestock at these peak moments not only boosts growth but also cuts methane, since animals release the most methane during digestion, a process known as enteric fermentation.

Globally, enteric fermentation from livestock accounts for nearly one third of methane emissions generated from human activities. This matters because methane has 86 times the heat-trapping power of CO2 over a 20-year period; yet it breaks down much faster. This means that methane reduction is one of the fastest ways to slow down the rate of global temperature rise.

Smarter grazing is a major opportunity. Farmers already rotate herds so pastures can recover but often rely on guesswork. When cattle graze younger, more digestible grasses, they produce less methane per unit of milk or meat. Yet in many regions, farms capture only 40 to 60 percent of their pasture’s potential. Unlocking this potential would improve productivity and cut emissions.

Two thirds of all agricultural land worldwide is devoted to livestock grazing, so even small efficiency gains can have a big impact. A 10 percent improvement in feed digestibility, for example, can reduce methane emissions per unit of feed or product by 12 to 20 percent.

Closing this pasture productivity gap by optimizing grazing would not just significantly reduce methane emissions, but also improve livestock keepers’ livelihoods, because increases in livestock productivity translate into more milk and more meat per animal.

The newly launched Time2Graze project, funded by the Global Methane Hub and in partnership with Land & Carbon Lab’s Global Pasture Watch research consortium, will apply Sentinel-2 satellite data and modelling to track pasture biomass.

This near-real-time data, combined with rancher observations and digital decision support tools, will provide important information for farmers and land managers, helping them to make informed decisions about grazing management, resource allocation, and sustainable land use.

This new data will offer free, open, up-to-date information that will be available on Google Earth Engine and other platforms to guide when and where animals should graze to consume the most abundant and digestible forage. To ensure usefulness to livestock farming and pastoralism, Time2Graze partners will conduct on-farm trials at more than 100 sites across eight countries in Latin America and Africa.

Alongside other livestock sector advances — improved feed additives, manure management, and animal health and genetics included — digital and data-enabled livestock management is essential to delivering climate solutions at the necessary speed and scale. Within the food system, these advances sit alongside improvements to rice production, reducing food loss and waste, and shifting high-meat diets toward plants.

Livestock management data innovations arrive at a pivotal moment in the development of international policies around methane emissions. More than 150 countries have signed the Global Methane Pledge, committing to cut methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Livestock enteric fermentation is the single largest source they must tackle. Likewise, the UN COP28 climate talks’ Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems and many countries’ climate strategies, or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), now emphasize methane mitigation and climate-smart agriculture as cornerstones of their strategies.

Yet, climate finance dedicated to global livestock systems languishes at just 0.01 percent of total spend, equivalent to a US$181 billion funding gap, lagging far behind the ambition demonstrated by these international initiatives.

Innovations in satellite-based grassland and forage monitoring are emerging as powerful tools to cut methane while improving productivity. Governments, climate finance institutions, and development banks should prioritize and expand support for these kinds of solutions to accelerate their impact across the livestock sector.

Redirecting a fraction of agricultural subsidies and climate finance toward such efficiency gains could not only unlock rapid, measurable methane reductions, but also additional co-benefits, such as reducing deforestation and ecosystem conversion, safeguarding future food security, and strengthening rural livelihoods. Realizing this potential will depend not only on data, but also on farmer adoption, political will, and the ability to scale solutions across diverse grazing systems.

For generations, the stars helped farmers decide when to move their animals. Today, satellites can do the same, but with far greater precision. With more investment and adoption, these new guides can help agriculture deliver on its climate promises.

Lindsey Sloat, Research Associate, Land & Carbon Lab and World Resources Institute

IPS UN Bureau

 

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In Hela Province, in the distant interior of the PNG mainland, rural women would need to travel considerable distances by road or air to reach a hospital that provides breast screening mammograms. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPS

By Catherine Wilson
SYDNEY, Australia , Oct 24 2025 (IPS)

The burden of breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, is global, and the projected increase in cases in the coming decades will affect women in high- and low-income countries in every region.

That includes the Pacific Islands, where it is the top cause of female cancer mortality. Now, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, islanders talk about tackling the disparities they face and reversing the trend.

“Breast cancer is a significant health concern in Madang Province,” Tabitha Waka of the Country Women’s Association in Madang Province on the northeast coast of Papua New Guinea told IPS. “Most of our women residing in urban centers have access to enough information and facts about cancer, but at least half who live in rural areas don’t.”

Current global trends indicate that new breast cancer cases could reach 3.2 million every year by 2050, reports the World Health Organization (WHO). In the Pacific Islands, which comprise 22 island nations and territories and 14 million people, more than 15,500 cases of cancer in general and 9,000 related deaths were recorded in 2022. But experts warn that the true numbers are unknown.

“It is currently not possible to accurately estimate the true burden of breast cancer in the Pacific Islands due to significant challenges in cancer data collection and the incomplete coverage of population-based cancer registries,” Dr. Berlin Kafoa, Director of the Pacific Community’s Public Health Division in Noumea, New Caledonia, told IPS, adding that it was an issue that countries were working to rectify.

Lack of cancer data is one sign of the funding and resource constraints experienced by national health services. And women are being affected, especially in rural communities where they have less access to knowledge about breast cancer and live far from urban-based health clinics and hospitals. These are major factors in global disparities, and while 83 percent of women in high-income countries are likely to survive following a breast cancer diagnosis, the likelihood of survival declines to 50 percent in low-income countries.

Breast cancer occurs when cells in the breast change, multiply and form tumors. Symptoms can include unusual lumps or physical changes in the breasts. If the cancer is detected early, the chances of successful surgery and treatment are high. At a more advanced stage, it can spread to other parts of the body. Risk of breast cancer increases after 40 years and with a family history of the disease, as well as lifestyle factors, such as tobacco and alcohol use and lack of physical exercise. However, this is not prescriptive and about half of all breast cancers are diagnosed in women with no significant risk criteria, apart from their age.

Importantly, being diagnosed with breast cancer today is not fatal and many women can enjoy long and productive lives. The key to this outcome is early detection, but one of the hurdles for women in the Pacific is that specialist services are centralized in main cities. In Papua New Guinea (PNG), women can seek mammograms, the main method of breast screening, in hospitals in the capital, Port Moresby, and the cities of Lae and Kimbe on the northeast coast of the mainland. But most of the 5.6 million women, who make up 47 percent of the population, live in rural areas, whether densely forested mountains or far-flung islands. And it could entail a long and costly journey by road, air or boat for many to reach a hospital with a mammogram machine.

But it is also not uncommon for women to hold back from seeking medical advice or proceeding with treatment because of cultural and community taboos.

“There is evidence to suggest that cultural and community taboos, personal inhibitions and fears surrounding medical examinations are significant factors contributing to the low levels of early breast cancer diagnosis and treatment among women in Pacific Island societies,” Kafoa said.

Modesty and privacy are important to many women in traditional Melanesian societies. In Palau, for example, a study published by Australia’s Griffith University in 2021 revealed that ‘low screening rates were, at least in part, explained as being due to women feeling uncomfortable during examinations due to its personal nature.’

There can also be pressure from families that may encourage or dissuade women from taking treatment. “If the family disagrees with the treatment, women might comply due to cultural norms,” and concerns about mastectomy and how it changes women’s bodies “can cause resistance to surgical procedures,” reports a breast cancer study in Fiji published last year.

Taking action now is imperative to save women’s lives across the region and, globally, achieve Sustainable Development Goal No. 3 of good health and well-being. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) predicts that breast cancer cases could increase globally by 38 percent and mortality by 68 percent by 2050. Experts project that cancer incidence in the Pacific Islands could rise by 84 percent between 2018 and 2040. Kafoa says that the “Pacific Island governments are not yet sufficiently prepared to confront the projected surge in breast cancer by mid-century.”

The PNG government’s national health plan includes strengthening health services to reduce cancer morbidity and mortality, but a population-wide breast screening program is yet to be rolled out. Waka says there is a need for more investment in breast cancer services. “One or two facilities is not enough to cater for the large numbers of women living with breast cancer,” she stressed.

But efforts to transform the quality and outreach of healthcare in the country, through the ‘glocal’ approach of combining global technology and local pathways to action, have begun. “This process is already underway,” Dr. Grant R. Muddle, ML, a global healthcare expert who has worked to assist health system transformation in Australia, the Pacific and other regions, told IPS. He is now working with health services in PNG.

Two years ago, a collaborative project was set up with an Australian health agency that “is providing PNG with proven cancer registry software and technical support, while local officials adapt it to PNG’s context. The result is a win-win: PNG quickly gains a modern data system and trained personnel, rather than building from scratch,” Muddle explained.

Mobile technology could also be used to help expand the recording of cancer cases. “Village health workers or clinic nurses, even in isolated areas, could be trained to input basic patient and tumor details into tablets or smartphones,” he continued.

A major step in improving rural health services occurred this year when a new public hospital opened in the remote Highlands province of Enga. It is expected to have an operational mammography unit by the end of this year. But there is also a need to “take the screening technology to women, rather than expecting women to travel to the technology,” Muddle emphasized. “Globally mobile mammography clinics in vans or portable units have been used to bring breast cancer screening to underserved communities…these could be truck-mounted clinics or portable equipment that can be flown by small plane or ferried by boat to regions with no road access.”

And telemedicine, another proven strategy, can link isolated clinics to specialist doctors at provincial hospitals via video consultations.

As PNG celebrates its 50th anniversary of Independence this year, these initiatives support better outcomes for women’s breast cancer survival and the long journey ahead of meeting the nation’s healthcare goals.

“What needs to be done, we must do. Let us not compromise basic healthcare but at the same time provide specialist care. Together, let us secure a functioning health system for the 10 million people of PNG,” Prime Minister James Marape advocated to the Medical Society of PNG in September.
IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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On 10 October 2025, thousands of Palestinian families are moving along the coastal road back to northern Gaza, amid the extreme devastation of infrastructure. Credit: UNICEF/Mohammed Nateel

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 23 2025 (IPS)

Since the declaration of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 10, families in the Gaza Strip have begun returning to previously inaccessible areas, as humanitarian organizations work to scale up aid operations to meet growing needs on the ground even amid security risks, including unexploded ordnance.

Displacement shelters across the enclave continue to bear the brunt of the crisis, with most severely overcrowded and resources stretched to their limits after two years of conflict. Displacement has surged since the implementation of the ceasefire, with the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recording roughly 13,800 displacements toward Gaza City and north Gaza, and approximately 4,100 movements toward the eastern region of the enclave.

As the winter season threatens to exacerbate already harsh living conditions, the United Nations (UN) and its partners are working to expand winterization support through the distribution of makeshift tents, warm clothing, hygiene kits, blankets, and other essential bedding materials. A spokesperson for OCHA stated that winterization support is currently limited by the number of humanitarian deliveries that have been authorized by Israeli authorities, with only a select few UN agencies and partner organizations receiving clearance.

“We need thousands of trucks getting in every day, we need all the crossings open, and we need the bureaucratic obstacles lifted,” said Tom Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. “Aid must never be a bargaining chip, we shouldn’t have to ask for access, we shouldn’t have to make deals to make aid go through.”

As of October 19, the UN and its partners have collected over 10,638 metric tons of essential humanitarian supplies from the Kerem Shalom and Kissufim crossings through the UN2720 mechanism. Between October 17 and 19, humanitarian groups have offloaded over 6,455 pallets of aid—two-thirds of which being food and a fifth being water, sanitation, and hygiene supplies.

Concurrently, UN partners working on a food security assessment in the enclave reported that food parcels have been distributed across more than two dozen locations in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis, reaching over 15,000 families. The parcels include essential items that Gazans have been deprived of for months—such as rice, lentils, beans, tomato paste, and sunflower oil.

Humanitarian groups have also prepared and distributed more than 944,000 meals through 178 community kitchens, marking an increase of over 286,000 daily meals compared to three weeks ago. The UN and its partners are now working to expand distribution points to improve accessibility and ensure that families can access food closer to their homes.

On October 20, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that it had transported four pallets of essential medical supplies from its southern warehouse to health facilities across the enclave, including medications for diabetes, chronic illnesses, infections, malnutrition, and pain management. Another UN partner agency also delivered reproductive health kits to patients in southern Gaza, assisting more than 8,300 people. Additionally, 1,500 postpartum kits were distributed to Al Awda Nuseirat Hospital to support maternal health services for the next three months.

That same day, Australian philanthropic organization Minderoo Foundation announced its pledge of AUD 10 million to humanitarian efforts in Gaza. Minderoo’s founder, Dr. Andrew Forrest, said that this pledge would have an “urgent focus on care environments for Palestinian children and the huge psycho-social needs caused by the war.”

“This is more than a donation: it’s a vote of confidence in the lifesaving work of the United Nations and our partners, and in humanity’s ability to act when it matters most,” said Fletcher. “Dr. Forrest and the Minderoo Foundation are helping us scale up in response to the ceasefire. We will match their commitment with every ounce of effort to get food, water, medicine, shelter and dignity to families in Gaza.”

Maternal and newborn health has suffered dramatically without essential food and health supplies, with 11,500 pregnant women facing catastrophic starvation conditions. Addressing this in the immediate sense, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has brought in aid through the Kerem Shalom crossing and distributed medical supplies, including incubators and fetal monitoring machines. UNFPA Deputy Executive Director Andrew Saberton told reporters on October 22 that much more assistance was waiting at the borders, such as supplies for safe births and hygiene items, and this would require all border crossings to be opened and for all impediments to be removed to bring aid into the north and south of Gaza.

“Looking ahead to recovery, we need to restore Gaza’s healthcare and protection services for women and girls. This means rebuilding maternity wards for the 130 births that happen every day,” said Saberton.

Despite ongoing humanitarian efforts, the security situation in Gaza remains highly volatile, with experts underscoring continued hostilities and vast amounts of explosives on the ground that pose daily threats to thousands of Palestinians. On October 21, Luke David Irving, Chief of the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told reporters that the agency has identified more than 560 explosive remnants of war in areas now accessible to civilians, emphasizing that “the full extent of contamination in Gaza will not be known until a comprehensive survey can take place.”

As of October 21, UNMAS has recorded approximately 328 fatalities as a direct result of contact with explosive ordnance, noting that the true number is projected to be much higher. According to Irving, these risks are projected to exacerbate as recovery and reconstruction efforts begin, with increased movement setting off ordnance hidden in rubble.

It is estimated that 50 to 60 million tons of debris may have been contaminated with explosive ordnance over the past two years. Irving stated that UNMAS has reached over 460,000 people with risk-education services, including communities in displacement shelters and health facilities, and has produced over 400,000 informational materials, including flyers and stickers. Irving also stressed the need for increased funding for clearance efforts, estimating that over 14 million to 15 million USD will be needed to continue operations for the next six months.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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A vendor speaks to a customer at a second-hand clothes market in Mutare, Zimbabwe. Credit: Farai Shawn Matiashe/IPS

By Farai Shawn Matiashe
MUTARE, Zimbabwe, Oct 23 2025 (IPS)

Shamiso Marambanyika assists a male customer in selecting a pair of jeans on a Saturday morning in Mutare, a city in the eastern part of Zimbabwe.

The 38-year-old mother of three showed the customer a brand of Marks and Spencer, commonly known as M&S, a British retailer based in London.

“I can give you this for 5 dollars,” Marambanyika screamed to the customer, who later picked out a different pair of jeans. She is a vendor at a popular market for secondhand clothes in Sakubva, a densely populated suburb in Mutare, near the border with Mozambique.

Some of the popular brands of jeans Marambanyika had in her stock include Hennes & Mauritz, known as H&M from Sweden, and Levi’s and Old from the United States. These secondhand clothes are dumped in Western countries like the United Kingdom, shipped to Africa, and smuggled into Zimbabwe through Mutare, the gateway to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique.

The clothes are so cheap that one can get three T-shirts for USD 1. This has had repercussions not only on the local textile industry but also on the environment in Africa.

Pushing Local Clothing Manufacturers and Retailers Out of Business

Some clothing companies left by the British are struggling because of secondhand clothes and Zimbabwe’s ailing economy. Truworths Zimbabwe, a fashion retail chain established in 1957, closed about 34 of the 101 stores it operated in the late 1990s. To cut its operating costs, Truworths also reduced its workforce at its manufacturing division in the capital, Harare.

Bekithemba Ndebele, chief executive officer at Truworths Zimbabwe, confirmed to IPS that the company was sold because it was struggling. After going insolvent, Truworths was sold for USD 1 and officially delisted from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange in July 2025.

Last year, Truworths released a statement that the company could not compete with cheap imports. Ndebele declined to give further details. These formal clothing businesses cannot compete with thousands of individuals who sell smuggled secondhand clothes at markets in cities across the country, in the streets and from car boots.

At Marambanyika’s market in Sakubva, there are more than 1000 vending stalls, each vocally advertising their goods to attract potential customers. In Mutare city center, tens of vendors pay USD 6 per day to sell secondhand clothes on weekends. Unlike these vendors who do not pay taxes, retailers like Truworths pay taxes and are forced to use volatile local currency.

Rashweat Mukundu, a social commentator based in Harare, says economic hardship forces many to resort to secondhand clothes. “This is an overall economic challenge. Many people have no choice but to go and buy secondhand clothes because they cannot afford the new clothes sold in the organized retail sector,” he says.

In retail outlets, a pair of jeans costs at least USD 20.

Marambanyika, who hails from Buhera in Manicaland Province, was pushed into the secondhand clothing trade in 2023 after failing to secure a job. She pays USD 115 to a middleman known as a transporter who will buy a bale weighing 45 kilograms from Beira, a city and one of the business ports in Mozambique. “Prices vary with the quality of the jeans. There are about 100 pairs of jeans in a bale. I make a profit of USD 55 from each bale, and it takes two weeks to sell them all,” Marambanyika says, adding that she pays USD 22 monthly to the local authority.

Anesu Mugabe, a clothing designer and manufacturer based in Harare, says these secondhand clothes are often sold at extremely low prices, making it impossible for local manufacturers to compete.

“For instance, you can find a pair of jeans for as little as USD 2. This is unheard of in local retail stores. This has led to a significant decline in sales for us, forcing us to scale down our operations or even shut down altogether,” says Mugabe, who is now targeting corporates as a survival strategy.

Threat to the Environment 

Across Africa, from Kenya to Nigeria, cheap secondhand clothes are polluting the environment, according to a new report, Trashion: The Stealth Export of Waste Plastic Clothes to Kenya, published in February 2023.

Other recycling companies argue that the trade reduces waste in the Global South, but some environmental experts believe the trade is doing the opposite. Research shows that in Kenya, secondhand clothes are dumped in rivers and landfills. “What we are seeing is not recycling but dumping second-hand clothing from the West,” says Nyasha Mpahlo, executive director at Green Governance. “Unfortunately, there is no mechanism to dispose of the waste from secondhand clothes. Secondhand clothing is found in landfills. The industry is also causing carbon emissions.”

Amkela Sidange, an environmental education and publicity manager at the state’s Environmental Management Agency, says the textile waste is very minimal in Zimbabwe, contributing an estimated 7% to the total waste generated on an annual basis.

“An analysis of the source of the textile waste indicates it is coming from various sources, mostly coming from the textile industry and nothing on record is linked to secondhand clothes,” she tells IPS, citing a Solid Waste survey conducted in 2023.

Attempts to Ban Secondhand Clothes

Other countries, like Rwanda, successfully banned secondhand clothes in 2016 to protect the local textile industry. Zimbabwe did the same in 2015 but introduced import taxes in 2017 after pressure from the locals. But these measures and arrests by police did not tame the smuggling of secondhand clothes.

Local textile industry players are calling for the government to ban the importation of secondhand clothes and to reduce taxes on local suppliers to protect the local textile industry. In August, Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe instructed local authorities to enforce the ban on the sale of secondhand clothes. But traders have defied the minister’s efforts.

Marambanyika says if she is forced to pay import duty and other taxes, she will go out of business. “I feed my one son and two daughters and pay school fees for them using proceeds from this business. I cannot afford to pay those punitive taxes,” she says. “I will close and relocate to the village.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Drone photo of nickel mine in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Courtesy Gecko Project

By Stephanie Dowlen
MALMO, Sweden, Oct 23 2025 (IPS)

Even amidst the regressive resistance of the current U.S. administration, the world is shifting toward a green energy future. As governments pledge to phase out fossil fuels, companies tout electric vehicles, and financiers pour billions into solar, wind and batteries, it seems the necessary transition from fossil fuels to clean energy is finally picking up pace.

But beneath the celebratory headlines lies a darker, inconvenient truth: the race to extract “transition minerals” widely used in current clean energy technology — is unleashing a new wave of destruction.

And unless we change course, this mining boom will push us closer to collapse as it entrenches poverty, inequality, exploitation, violence and destruction. Expecting the same “extraction at all costs” model that created the planetary crisis we face today to solve it is a fallacy.

In a new report from the Forests & Finance Coalition, analysts found that banks and investors are rewarding bad behaviour by financing some of the worst polluters and human rights offenders in operation.

Over half of the $493 billion in loans and underwriting provided between 2016 and 2024, and over 80% of the $289 billion held in bonds and shares went to just ten transition mineral mining companies. Among the winners are Glencore, Vale and Rio Tinto.

Proponents argue transition minerals are indispensable for renewable energy. But focusing on raw extraction rather than reducing demand, recycling or reuse, has fueled a rapid expansion of new mines. Too often, the narrative of “green” or “clean” energy obscures the real costs and justifies an extractive model mirroring the worst parts of the fossil fuel era.

The harms linked to mining are extreme. In Brazil, Vale has caused two catastrophic dam collapses killing hundreds and destroying the environment as toxic waste spilled. Undeterred, banks increased their financing since Vale’s second dam collapsed in 2019.

In Indonesia, Harita Group’s nickel complex is powered by coal, increasing emissions and damaging public health. Local communities on Obi Island have been poisoned as carcinogenic waste has leached into the island’s drinking water.

Recent investigations show that Harita’s executives knew about this contamination and covered it up for over a decade while financiers backed its expansion and successful Initial Public Offering in 2023.

These are not isolated scandals but symptoms of a system where corporations are unaccountable, and where financiers choose profit over life again and again. Consider this: nearly 70 percent of transition mineral mines overlap with Indigenous or community lands and over 70 percent are located in high-biodiversity regions already facing climate stress.

Meanwhile, wealthy countries are demanding more minerals to produce EVs for affluent markets, while 600 million people in Africa and 150 million in Asia still lack basic access to electricity.

This is not the blueprint for a just energy transition. It’s a new extractive frontier – powering Teslas for the rich while leaving behind exploited workers, poisoned rivers, and displaced communities. Urgent reforms are needed to ensure the energy transition addresses the climate crisis instead of greenlighting destructive practices.

There needs to be a transformation of how minerals are sourced, financed, and governed. Banks and investors must respect human rights by requiring Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for Indigenous Peoples, protecting defenders, and ensuring remedy for harmed communities.

They must protect nature through enforceable zero-deforestation safeguards, strict toxic waste controls, and bans on high-risk practices like deep-sea mining. They must strengthen accountability by disclosing financing, enforcing ESG policies across corporate groups, and ensuring grievance mechanisms are fit for purpose.

And they must align finance with climate goals by ending reliance on coal-powered smelters, phasing out harmful practices, and demanding credible transition plans from mining companies.

Governments must also step up with strong regulations to equitably reduce mineral demand, prevent overconsumption in wealthy countries, and prioritize renewable access for the billions still excluded. International frameworks — like the UN’s emerging principles on critical minerals — must be strengthened and enforced.

We can still choose a just energy transition – one built on equitable access to clean power and respect for people and ecosystems. A just transition requires just finance: capital that flows toward equity, accountability, and sustainability, not deeper extraction and harm.

Such a transition would not just cut emissions but also break from the exploitative model that created today’s crisis.

If banks and investors refuse to change course, they will be remembered as champions of the next great wave of environmental destruction and human rights abuses. The choice is stark: a clean energy revolution that delivers justice, or one that repeats the mistakes that brought us to the brink? The time to decide is now.

Stephanie Dowlen is Forest Campaigner with Rainforest Action Network which is part of the Forests & Finance Coalition

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Brazil has become a major producer of ethanol, a biofuel that competes with gasoline. Monocultures of sugar cane form a monotonous landscape in the southern state of São Paulo and in the country's central-west region, but they help decarbonize transport in the country. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

By Mario Osava
RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 22 2025 (IPS)

Quadrupling the production and use of sustainable fuels by 2035 is the goal of a new international initiative to drive energy transition and mitigate the climate crisis, which will be launched during Brazil’s climate summit in November.

The Belem Commitment on Sustainable Fuels, led by Brazil with the support of India, Italy, and Japan, awaits the support of other countries after its official launch during the so-called Climate Summit on November 6 and 7 in Belem, northern Brazil.

The meeting of heads of state and government will this time precede the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) on climate change, which will be hosted by Belem from November 10 to 21. The unusual separation between the COP and the summit aims to mitigate the accommodation problems of the Amazonian city.

The commitment, nicknamed “Belem 4x,” is based on a report by the International Energy Agency that points to the possibility of quadrupling the volume, adding new alternatives such as green hydrogen, sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), and shipping and synthetic fuels to ethanol and biodiesel.

At COP28, held in 2023 in Dubai, it was agreed to initiate “a transition away from fossil fuels” as an indispensable measure to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. In Belem, the goal is to implement that consensual decision.

“Brazil was careful not to limit the initiative to biofuels in order to include various sustainable fuels, an important distinction because there are countries, especially in Europe, that oppose biofuels,” warned Claudio Angelo, international policy coordinator for Climate Observatory, a Brazilian coalition of 133 social organizations.

Objections to biofuels include potential environmental damage, land conflicts, and competition with food production, he said by phone to IPS from Brasilia.

Extensive cattle ranching has degraded 100 million hectares in Brazil. One third of this area can be recovered for the cultivation of sugar cane, corn, and oilseeds to double biofuel production, according to a study by the Institute for Energy and Environment. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

Biofuels market

It is an old Brazilian dream to create a large international biofuels market, due to its large ethanol production and its potential to expand it.

Brazil tried, unsuccessfully, to promote this market in the 1990s and early 21st century, based on the existence of many sugar cane producing countries, the crop with the highest productivity for this biofuel.

Cuba, once the world’s largest sugar exporter, rejected the proposal with the argument of prioritizing food, despite the decline of its sugar industry and its lack of energy, due to its dependence on imported oil, which became scarce after the fall of the Soviet Union, its major supplier, in 1991.

Brazil became the largest sugar exporter in the mid-1990s, two decades after launching its National Alcohol Program to replace part of its gasoline with ethanol.

It sought to mitigate the economic crisis caused by the rising oil prices, which tripled in 1973 and doubled again in 1979. At that time, the country imported about 80% of the crude oil it consumed; today it exports oil and ethanol.

Many countries use ethanol, blended into gasoline, as a way to reduce pollution. In Brazil, the blend already reaches 30%, and pure ethanol is also used as automotive fuel.

But most passenger cars in the country today are “flex,” consuming gasoline or ethanol and blends in any proportion.

In 2023, the Global Biofuels Alliance was born in New Delhi during the annual summit of the Group of 20 (G20) most relevant industrial and emerging economies, in a new attempt to promote its production.

The City Park, under construction in January, in the Amazonian city of Belem, which will host the debates and negotiations among government delegations and the United Nations at COP30, from November 10 to 21. Credit: Rafa Neddermeyer / COP30

Ambitious goal

Now, at COP30, the aim is to expand the attempt to replace fossil fuels with an ambitious goal: to quadruple the current production of alternative fuels within 10 years.

This follows the path charted at COP28, held in Dubai in 2023, where it was agreed to initiate “a transition away from fossil fuels” as an indispensable measure to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. In Belem, the goal is to implement that consensual decision.

Currently, this production, basically of biofuels, reaches 175 billion liters, about two-thirds ethanol and one-third biodiesel. The United States surpasses Brazil as the largest producer.

Brazil produced 36.8 billion liters of ethanol and 9.07 billion liters of biodiesel in 2024. In recent years, production of corn-based ethanol has grown, utilizing the surplus of this grain in the country’s central-west region. Its share is already close to 20% of the total.

A study by the Institute for Energy and Environment (Iema), released on October 9, states that Brazil will be able to double this production by 2050 without deforesting new areas. The utilization of degraded pastureland would be sufficient to achieve the goal.

The country has about 100 million hectares of such pastureland, almost entirely abandoned. This is equivalent to twice the territory of Spain and is set to increase, as Brazil has 238 million cattle, far exceeding its 213 million human inhabitants.

From this total, the cultivation aimed at doubling biofuels could occupy 25 to 30 million hectares. Plenty of land would remain for the expansion of food agriculture, emphasized Felipe Barcellos e Silva, a researcher at Iema and author of the study.

According to his calculations, a portion of the pastureland would be allocated to reforestation for biome restoration and environmental protection areas, another part to the recovery of the pasturelands themselves for more productive cattle ranching.

Between 55 and 60 million hectares would remain for energy and food agriculture, with about half for each.

The area for biofuels would vary depending on the choice for more biodiesel, which requires the cultivation of oilseeds, or more ethanol, in which case expanding the area of sugar cane or corn.

The alternatives comprise six scenarios that combine priorities for different raw materials and the option to produce other fuels, such as SAF and green diesel, which is different from biodiesel.

Soy is another monoculture that occupies vast expanses of land in central-western and southern Brazil. Its oil fuels the biodiesel industry by offering surpluses at a low price, since soybean bran is the most in-demand byproduct for livestock feed. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

Persistent alternatives

“Biodiesel has a problem because it is a degradable organic compound,” unstable, while green diesel is a product of the same vegetable oil but subjected to hydrotreatment and has “physicochemical properties similar to mineral diesel,” explained Roberto Kishinami, a physicist and strategic specialist at the non-governmental Institute for Climate and Society.

Green diesel, he assured, fully replaces fossil diesel without damaging vehicles and has the advantage of emitting fewer urban pollutants than biodiesel, such as fine particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxide.

“The dozens of biodiesel plants (installed in Brazil) will disappear at some point. They were a temporary solution, favored by the soybean oil surplus, when soybean bran had growing demand,” as livestock feed, Kishinami told IPS by phone from São Paulo.

In his assessment, the energy transition and the decarbonization of transport and industry need sustainable fuels, since electrification is not economically viable for all activities. A combination of the two solutions will have to prevail.

The creation of an international market for these fuels, especially biofuels, depends on standardizing norms and patterns worldwide, a difficult task especially given the rigid European demands.

Furthermore, it faces geopolitical issues, such as “the US-China trade war that will dominate the coming decades,” concluded Kishinami.

Biofuel production in Brazil is growing not only through the expansion of crops but also through technological advances and the utilization of waste.

Second-generation ethanol is already being produced from cane straw, and biomethane, which is equivalent to natural gas, is produced through the biodigestion of vinasse generated in ethanol production, noted Silva.

There is also the beginning of cultivation of the macauba palm (Acrocomia aculeata), which has different names in Latin America and has high oil productivity.

Electrification will take time. It is relatively fast for light vehicles but slow for heavy vehicles, whose useful life reaches about 20 years. This is where decarbonization is achieved through biofuels, argued Silva.

“The transition in transport will continue until at least 2050,” after which biofuels will be able to meet other demands, including power generation, he concluded in a telephone interview with IPS from São Paulo.

The commitment to quadruple sustainable fuels is positive, but it cannot in “any way” dominate the energy debate at COP30, warned Angelo.

“The success of COP30 depends on promoting the implementation of a just, orderly, and equitable transition to eliminate fossil fuels, which are the main cause of global warming,” he concluded.

By External Source
Oct 22 2025 (IPS-Partners)

 
We are in a climate emergency.

The Earth is already over 1.3 °C warmer than pre-industrial times.

2024 was the hottest year ever recorded.

More than 150 climate disasters struck the world last year.

Extreme weather displaced over 800,000 people.

Wildfires and floods now define the new normal.

We are failing the 1.5 °C goal unless we act now.

COP30 is coming to Belém, Brazil, in November 2025.

But talk is not enough.

We must shift systems, not just carbon.

From blind targets to equitable transitions.
From fossil lock-in to regenerative energy.
From climate policy at arm’s length to climate justice at the core.

Every fraction of a degree matters; now more than ever.

Women, Indigenous Peoples, and low-income communities pay the highest price.

We need mass decarbonization, climate finance, and rights-based adaptation.

We need unity across sectors, borders, and generations.

The choices we make today will decide the severity of tomorrow.

October 24 | International Day for Climate Action.

Act now. For Justice. For Survival.

 

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Members of the elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar. Credit: Rafiqul Islam/IPS

By Rafiqul Islam
COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh, Oct 22 2025 (IPS)

When wild elephant herds come down from the hills in search of food, Sona Miahm, with community volunteers, steps forward to help prevent human-elephant conflicts.

Miah is leading a 14-member elephant response team (ERT) in the Inani forest range under the Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar, one of the last natural elephant habitats in Bangladesh.

“For lack of food in reserve forests, wild elephants often rush to localities and damage crop fields. And, once we get informed, we go to the spot and try to return the elephant herd to the forest,” he said.

According to the Forest Department, there are now about 64 wild elephants in the reserve forests in Ukhiya and Teknaf in Bangladesh’s southeastern coastal district, Cox’s Bazar.

Community volunteers often risk their lives in returning the wild elephants to the forests, but they do so to protect the country’s last wild mammoths.

He explained how they mitigate human-elephant conflicts in their locality in the Inani area.

“The elephant response teams use hand-mikes and torches to encourage the elephants to return to the forest,” he said.

Members of the elephant response team (ERT) examine an elephant believed to be electrocuted.

With a small grant from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Arannayk Foundation, a Dhaka-based conservation organization, formed four elephant response teams (ERTs) in Inani and Ukhiya forest ranges in Cox’s Bazar, comprising 40 men.

Working alongside the Bangladesh Forest Department, these ERTs aim to minimize human-elephant conflicts and support wildlife rescues. The ERTs have helped prevent 127 potential human-elephant conflicts in the past two years.

Dr. Mohammed Muzammel Hoque, national coordinator of UNDP’s GEF Small Grants Program, said the UNDP provided a small grant of USD 39,182 in September 2023 to the Arannayk Foundation to implement its two-year Ecosystem Awareness and Restoration Through Harmony (EARTH) project.

Programme coordinator Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal said the project was implemented to restore forest ecosystems and involve local communities in wildlife conservation.

Human-Elephant Conflicts Rise

Due to the destruction of their natural habitats caused by deforestation, hill-cutting, and unplanned industrial expansion, the wild elephants come into localities in search of food, resulting in the rise of human-elephant conflicts.

Conflicts have resulted in the deaths of both community members and elephants.

Elephants are often being killed by electrocution in the Bangladesh southeast region since farmers install electric fences around their crop fields to protect crops from damage.

The most recent incident of an elephant being killed occurred in the Dochhari beat within the Ukhiya forest range in Cox’s Bazar on September 17, 2025. Mozammel Hossain, a resident of Ukhiya, said farmers had used electrified traps around their croplands and this electrocuted the elephant

He said food shortages push elephant herds to enter crop fields, while some farmers resort to illegal and lethal methods against the mammoths.

The Ukhiya and Teknaf regions have reported at least four elephant deaths in the past year.

Abdul Karim, an ERT member in the Boro Inani area of Cox’s Bazar, said elephants often attack human settlements and damage crops and orchards, increasing their conflicts with humans.

“We try to mitigate human-elephant conflicts and save both humans and mammoths. But, since 2021, four people have been killed in elephant attacks near the Inani forest range,” he said.

According to the Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division of the Bangladesh Forest Department, from 2016 to January 2025, 102 elephant deaths were recorded alone in Chattogram.

Retaliatory killings, electrocution, poaching, and train collisions have caused many of these deaths.

Saiful Islam, a resident of the Inani area, said wild elephants have been trapped within their habitat too after the influx of Rohingyas there in 2017.

Introduce Elephant Non-Preferred Crops

Crops typically eschewed by elephants, including citrus, pepper, bitter gourd, chili, cane, and okra, should be introduced around the elephant habitats.

“We are encouraging farmers to start such crops to avoid conflicts with elephants. We are also making them aware of elephant conservation,” Saiful Islam, also a community volunteer at Choto Inani, told IPS.

Firoz Al Amin, range officer of the Inani forest range in Ukhiya, said the Forest Department arranged 12 awareness programmes on elephant conservation in the Inani range.

Arannayk Foundation identified elephant non-preferred plots adjacent to high human-elephant conflict zones within the buffer area. With community involvement, five demonstration plots were created on portions of land belonging to five beneficiaries to mitigate elephant crop raiding.

It established four chili-coated rope bio-fences: two at Mohammad Shofir Bill and one each at Boro Inani and Imamerdeil to reduce crop damage caused by elephants. These bio-fencing interventions have benefited 85 vulnerable households in these locations. The fences consist of coconut ropes coated with a deterrent blend of chili powder, tobacco, and grease, suspended at human height between trees to prevent elephant access to agricultural and residential areas.

Urgent Measures Needed to Save Elephants

A 2016 survey by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said that there were only 457 elephants left in Bangladesh, of which 268 were wild, 93 were migratory, and 96 were captive.

However, about 124 wild elephants died across Bangladesh’s main elephant habitats—Cox’s Bazar, Chattogram, Chittagong Hill Tracts and Mymensingh—over the last decade.

Experts suggest a comprehensive strategy for restoring elephant habitats to prevent their extinction, which requires long-term planning, reducing encroachment on forest areas, and removing unlawful occupants.

Dr. Monirul H. Khan, a zoology professor at Jahangirnagar University, said forests and elephant habitats must be protected at any cost to save the mammoths, as their number is dwindling day by day in Bangladesh.

Many new settlements and crop cultivations have taken place inside the country’s elephant habitats, he said, accelerating human-elephant conflicts.

Growing crops that elephants typically do not prefer, improving bio-fencing with trip alarms, and creating salt lick areas can all help reduce human-elephant conflicts.

The experts say implementing beehive fencing not only safeguards crops but also generates job and income opportunities for the local community. Therefore, it is possible to achieve elephant conservation while simultaneously minimizing human-elephant conflicts.

Monirul said the Bangladesh government has taken on an elephant conservation project with its own funding for the first time. “I hope the project will help conserve the mammoths in Bangladesh,” he added.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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