International
Afghanistan: Low Quality Foreign Saffron Passed off as Afghan Product
Sep 25, 2018
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Zabihullah Jahanmal, TOLOnews
The ACCI raised concerns this week about the smuggling of saffron into the country which is then sold on as an Afghan product. Nasir Ahmad…
Myanmar: Mismanagement of Land Deals Has Cost Yangon Billions, Audit Finds
Sep 24, 2018
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Nan Lwin, Irrawaddy
The Yangon Region Auditor General’s Office has found that the government’s mismanagement of land leases cost it billions of kyats during the 2016-17 fiscal year,…
Afghanistan: The Afghanistan Goldrush
Sep 23, 2018
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Marco Giannangeli, Express
At least two firms have been given “preferred bidder” status for a range of gold and copper concessions in the war-torn country, said to contain…
Cambodia: After CPP Election Win, Promises to Solve Cambodia’s Land Grabs Fade Again
Sep 21, 2018
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Sun Narin, Voice of America Cambodia
More than a month after the elections - which the CPP won amid widespread international condemnation over the lack of a free and fair vote…
Liberia: Liberia Passes Landmark Law to Secure Ancestral Land Rights
Sep 21, 2018
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CGTN Africa
Liberia has passed a landmark law that will help communities fight foreign land grabs by giving them ownership of ancestral territory, officials and activists said…
US Spends $81 Billion a Year to Protect Global Oil Supplies, Report Estimates
Sep 21, 2018
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Tom DiChristopher, CNBC
The United States military spends about $81 billion a year to protect oil supplies around the world and keep fossil fuels flowing into American gas…
Food Security: Recognising the Debilitating Nature Conflict Has on Food Security
Sep 21, 2018
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Busani Bafana, Inter Press Service
Hunger has been on the rise for three years in a row, the U.N. found in a new report published this September. The global body says…
Liberia: Land Reforms in Liberia Allow Foreigners to Own Property
Sep 21, 2018
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Africa News
Liberia’s President George Weah, who took office in January, has signed a land reform law that gives local communities greater rights over “customary land” and…
Liberia: AfDB to Provide Technical Assistance to Liberia's Wood Industry
Sep 21, 2018
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Devdiscourse
The African Development Bank's Fund for African Private Sector Assistance (FAPA), has approved a grant of US $1 million to Liberia, to provide technical assistance…
South Sudan: Why the Oil Pollution in South Sudan Isn’t Getting Enough Media Coverage, According to the Victims
Sep 21, 2018
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Francis Michael, ViaNews
Oil pollution now affects millions of people in South Sudan. Many villages have been completely destroyed by it. This has been going on for at…
Colombia: Using Space Tech to Improve Palm Oil Transparency in Colombia
Sep 21, 2018
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Andrew J. Wright, Mongabay
Keeping an eye on what is going on out in the vast countryside of Colombia’s palm oil plantations is a challenge. But that may be…
South Sudan: Increased Oil Output Could Ease Implementation of South Sudan’s Peace Deal: Experts
Sep 20, 2018
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Hellenic Shipping News
South Sudan’s increased oil output, if used effectively, could spur economic recovery and ease implementation of the recently signed peace deal, experts said on Thursday.…
Myanmar: President Tells State, Regional Officials to Wrap up Land-Grab Probes
Sep 20, 2018
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Salai Thant Zin, Irrawaddy
President U Win Myint has instructed state and regional chief ministers to complete their investigations into land confiscation cases by the end of the year.
Myanmar: Most of Seized Lands Aren’t Paid Compensation under Development Projects, KHRG says
Sep 20, 2018
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Saw Thein Myint, Burma News International
No compensation has been given to most of the villagers whose lands have been seized for development projects in southeastern Myanmar, the Karen Human Rights…
Iraq: Iraq's Southern Oil Exports Approach Record High in Sept-Sources
Sep 20, 2018
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Alex Lawler, Reuters
Oil exports from southern Iraq are heading for a record high this month, two industry sources said, adding to signs that OPEC’s second-largest producer is…
Conflict Minerals: Blockchain and Diamonds: The Future of the Diamond Industry
Sep 20, 2018
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Andrej Kovacevic, Baltimore Post-Examiner
With conflict gemstones and minerals in the limelight as of recent, De Beers is one among a handful of companies trying to increase consumer confidence…
Colombia: Colombia’s Coca Acreage for Cocaine Production at All-Time High
Sep 20, 2018
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Nicholas Casey, New York Times
Colombia has more land producing the plant used to make cocaine than ever in its history, according to new figures from the United Nations’ crime…
Colombia: Drug Crops Booming in Colombia as FARC Depart
Sep 20, 2018
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Laura Dixon and Veronica Zaragovia, The Times
Coca production is soaring in Colombia as the government struggles to control the spread of crops in areas abandoned by the Farc, the UN has…
Myanmar: Kayah’s Timber Deal Undermines Govt’s Forestry Reform: EIA
Sep 20, 2018
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Myanmar Times
A UK-based non-profit has warned that a timber trade deal in Kayah State represents “a significant step backwards” for the government’s commitment to forestry reform…
Liberia: New Liberian Law Gives Land to Generations-Old Occupants
Sep 20, 2018
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Business Day
Liberia has passed a landmark law that will help communities fight foreign land grabs by giving them ownership of ancestral territory, officials and activists said…
South Sudan: Looting Could Make South Sudan Peace Efforts Impossible
Sep 19, 2018
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Duncan E. Omondi Gumba and Akol Miyen Kuol, Institute for Security Studies
South Sudan’s government, opposition and rebel groups have signed an agreement that lays the foundation for a transition government. But many doubt that the current…
Sierra Leone: American Woodie: Turning a Diamond Mine into a Humanitarian Gem
Sep 19, 2018
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Arkansas Money and Politics
Woodie Butler runs and operates American Woodie Diamond Co., the world’s first and only e-commerce and jewelry store that provides customers with video, pictures and…
Liberia: Economic Freedom Fighters Liberia Slams Government Natural Resource Swap Deal
Sep 18, 2018
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FrontPageAfrica
The Economic Freedom Fighters of Liberia frowns on the Government of Liberia agreement with a Chinese firm to swap the country’s natural resources for US$2.5…
Iraq: Protests Continue in Port City In Iraq over Lack of Drinking Water and Corruption
Sep 18, 2018
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NPR
Iraq's port city of Basra is a hub of oil wealth but is poor and angry. Protests have continued for weeks over a lack of…
DRC: DRC Cobalt Will Become 'Strategic'
Sep 18, 2018
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Mining Journal
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will soon declare cobalt and other minerals as “strategic” resulting in miners having to pay even higher royalties.
Afghanistan: Female Entrepreneurs Enter the Seed Market in Rural Afghanistan
Sep 18, 2018
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Yashpal Singh Saharawat, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas
The lack of availability of quality seeds remains a constraint in Afghanistan, hampering agricultural productivity. Against this background, ICARDA recently reintroduced the concept of village-based…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan Records 60% Drop in Water Levels
Sep 17, 2018
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Massoud Ansar, TOLOnews
The Ministry of Energy and Water says Afghanistan is currently facing more than sixty percent of the water losses. Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture,…
Afghanistan: Indian Firms Asked to Invest in Afghan Agro Sector
Sep 17, 2018
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Daily Outlook Afghanistan
Indian firms have been urged to make use of huge opportunities for investment in Afghanistan's burgeoning agriculture sector. Deputy Minister of Agriculture Naseer Ahmad Durrani…
Myanmar: Seven Missing after Mudslide Hits Myanmar Refugee Camp Mae Hong Son
Sep 17, 2018
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Chiang Rai Times
Seven people have been reported missing after a mudslide hit a Myanmar refugee camp in Mae Hong Son on Sunday night, with another 16 confirmed…
Iraq: Iraq’s Oil Production Problem
Sep 17, 2018
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Irina Slav, OilPrice
Iraq’s oil production will only grow marginally over the next 10 years despite its potential capacity, which stands at as much as 7 million bpd,…