International


Myanmar: Government Moves to Revive and Promote Bamboo Forests

Jun 27, 2018 | Myat Moe Aung, Myanmar Times

The Forest Department is inviting people interested in growing bamboo, saying it will offer help to planters in producing quality bamboo products. People in a…


Iraq: UK Court Begins Criminal Proceedings against Oil Firm for Corruption in Iraq

Jun 27, 2018 | John J. Catherine, Kurdistan 24

Criminal proceedings began in London on Tuesday against two companies run by Unaoil, a Monaco-based energy consultancy firm accused of corrupt business practices in Iraq.…


Sudan/South Sudan: Sudan, South Sudan Agree Deal to Increase Oil Output - Minister

Jun 27, 2018 | Reuters

Sudan and South Sudan on Tuesday agreed on a deal to nearly double oil output from South Sudanese fields by the end of the year,…


Colombia: Colombia Tree Loss Spikes as Peace Deal Leads to Land Grabs

Jun 27, 2018 | Caitlin Tilley, Climate Change News

Tree loss in Colombia for 2017 jumped by 46% from 2016 to 2017, a World Resources Institute report revealed on Wednesday. It follows a doubling of tree loss between 2001 and…


China: China's Water Wars

Jun 27, 2018 | Scott Moore, University of Pennsylvania and China Policy Institute

China is often thought of as a country that suppresses internal conflicts, usually to great effect. But there are a number of notable exceptions and,…


Myanmar: Securing Land Rights for the Displaced in Myanmar

Jun 27, 2018 | Norwegian Refugee Council

Most internally displaced people (IDPs) are not aware of their land rights, and the fear of losing their land is making it hard for them…


Colombia: Colombia's Latest Weapon in the War on Drugs? Crop-Killing Drones

Jun 27, 2018 | Jim Wyss, Miami Herald

Amid a dramatic spike in coca production, Colombia is rolling out a new weapon in the war on drugs: crop-killing drones. Jarred by reports of…


Afghanistan/Iran: Iran, Afghanistan Agree on Transboundary Waters, Says Ambassador

Jun 27, 2018 | Tehran Times

Transboundary waters – the aquifers, and lake and river basins shared by two or more countries – support the lives and livelihoods of great numbers…


DRC: The Rise and Rise of the Chinese Miners in Katanga

Jun 26, 2018 | Africa Intelligence

Taking the long-term approach has paid off for the Chinese mining operators, services and trading firms patiently lobbying to take control of Congo-K's mining sector.


Africa: African Negotiators Tipped on Water Resources Conflicts

Jun 26, 2018 | Michael Wambi, Uganda Radio Network

The growing population, climate change, water for irrigation combined with desire for electricity generation are new challenges to negotiators around transboundary water resources in Africa…


Colombia: Talking about Challenges and Opportunities for Adaptation to Climate Change in Four Regions of Colombia

Jun 26, 2018 | UNDP and Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN

Using the Three Horizons Methodology for innovation, joint FAO-UNDP Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans Programme (NAP-Ag) facilitates dialogues to improve climate governance in Colombia…


Myanmar: NGOs Urge National ‘Land Bank’ for Climate-Change Victims

Jun 25, 2018 | Myat Moe Aung, Myanmar Times

Local environmental advocates have urged the government to set up a ‘land bank’ that would be used to relocate the growing number of people displaced…


Nigeria: Nigeria’s Farmers and Herders Fight a Deadly Battle for Scarce Resources

Jun 25, 2018 | Emmanuel Akinwotu, New York Times

Clashes between armed herdsmen and farmers in Nigeria are escalating to increasingly violent episodes as a battle for scarce resources stirs long-held tensions over religion…


Colombia: US Report: Colombia Coca Production Surges to Record High

Jun 25, 2018 | Christine Armario, Associated Press

The amount of land where peasants and drug traffickers harvest the plant used to make cocaine has surged to a record high in Colombia, a…


Afghanistan: Concerns Mount Over Drop in Water Levels for Kabul

Jun 23, 2018 | Zabiullah Jhanmal, TOLOnews

The General Directorate of Kabul River Basin said Friday that a drop of 47 percent in rainfall this year in the Kabul river basin area…


Africa: How Cheap Oil Hurts Sub-Saharan Africa

Jun 21, 2018 | Emily Meierding, Washington Post

Over the past four years, oil-producing countries have experienced a wild ride. After oil prices exceeded $110 per barrel for Brent crude in 2014, they…


Myanmar: Gems Emporium to Sell over 7,000 Lots of Jewels, Pearls and Jade

Jun 21, 2018 | Nay Yaing and Zeya Tun, Eleven

The 55th Myanmar Gems Emporium will put up for sale 7,491 lots of precious stones including 15 million Euros worth of jade. Pearl lots are…


Nigeria: Herder-Farmer Clashes Threaten Nigerian Food Security

Jun 20, 2018 | Andrew Thomson, Future Directions International

Violent conflicts between nomadic herders from northern Nigeria and sedentary farming communities in central and southern regions have increased dramatically, with armed groups of Fulani…


Iraq: US-Led Coalition Kills ISIS Chief of Oil Smuggling

Jun 20, 2018 | Tsvetana Paraskova, OilPrice

The U.S-led coalition fighting Islamic State has killed the leader of the militants responsible for its oil and gas smuggling operations, Combined Joint Task Force…


Myanmar: Caterpillar, Volvo, Komatsu Linked to Mining Abuses in Myanmar: Report

Jun 20, 2018 | Jared Ferrie, Reuters

Caterpillar, Volvo and Komatsu contribute to abuses in Myanmar by selling machinery used by domestic mining companies implicated in land expropriation, environmental destruction and armed conflict,…


Myanmar: Myanmar Army Will Not Return Seized Lands in Shan, Rakhine States: Deputy Defense Minister

Jun 20, 2018 | Radio Free Asia

The Myanmar military will not return lands seized from civilians for security or training purposes in Shan or Rakhine states or pay them compensation, the…


Climate Change: Climate Change Remains a Consistent Theme at Shangri-La Security Dialogue

Jun 19, 2018 | Steve Tebbe, Center for Climate and Security

When Florence Parly, the French Minister of the Armed Forces, called to “disarm the climate” at this year’s IISS Shangri-La Dialogue (17th Asia Security Summit),…


South Sudan: German NGO Struggle for Clean Water in South Sudan

Jun 19, 2018 | Terry Swartzberg, ViaNews

VENRO, a group of 120 Germany-based NGOs providing humanitarian and development assistance around the world, produced a report entitled “Uncomfortable partners – from confrontation to…


Myanmar: A New Deal for Oil and Gas

Jun 18, 2018 | Thomas Kean, Frontier

The government is reviewing the structure of its contracts with energy companies amid warnings that the present fiscal terms are deterring investment, particularly in riskier…


India/Pakistan: Pakistani Senator Calls for Climate Cooperation with India amid Water Crisis

Jun 18, 2018 | Husna Rizvi, Climate Home News

Leading Indian thinktank Niti Aayog warned in a report this month that 600 million citizens faced high to extreme water stress. It did not have data…


Liberia: FDA Managing Director Warns VPA Partners

Jun 18, 2018 | Daily Observer

In no uncertain terms and without biting his tongue, the managing director of the Forestry Development Authority (FDA), C. Mike Doryen, has categorically sounded another…


Myanmar: Over 400,000 Acres of Idle Sagaing Land to Be Confiscated

Jun 18, 2018 | Kaung Khant Lin, Eleven

The government will confiscate more than 400,000 acres of vacant land in Sagaing Region that has not been used for agricultural purposes, said Than Win,…


DRC: DRC's Mining Industry Hobbled by Poor Infrastructure, Tax Hike

Jun 17, 2018 | eNews Channel Africa

Feasting on a global demand for cobalt and copper, the mining industry in the Democratic Republic of Congo is flourishing - but two clouds are…


DRC: Glencore Evades US Sanctions to Keep Its Powerful Ex-Partner Happy

Jun 15, 2018 | Thomas Wilson, Bloomberg

Not many billion-dollar companies would be willing to circumvent U.S. sanctions for their business partner, but then few people are as powerful as Dan Gertler…


Myanmar: Rohingya Refugees Fish in Troubled Waters – Photo Essay [Photos]

Jun 15, 2018 | Clodagh Kilcoyne, Reuters and Guardian

Aid agencies have said the monsoon season could trigger “an emergency within an emergency” for Rohingya refugees living in temporary shelters in south-east Bangladesh. The…