International
Myanmar: Kachin State Government, China Chasing Chinese Timber Smugglers
May 25, 2018
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Chan Thar, Myanmar Times
The Kachin State government is cooperating with Chinese authorities to arrest Chinese timber smugglers who stole some 2000 tonnes of seized timber in Hsawlaw township,…
Myanmar: US House Backs Measures to Sanction Myanmar's Military, Nudge Gem Sector Reform
May 25, 2018
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Zsombor Peter, Irrawaddy
The US House of Representatives has approved measures that call for targeted sanctions against more of Myanmar’s military leaders over human rights abuses in Rakhine…
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone President to Push Review of Mining Law, Contracts
May 25, 2018
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Cooper Inveen, Reuters
Sierra Leone’s new president will follow through with campaign promises to review mining contracts and consider changes to the law that would ensure the West…
Myanmar: The Journey of the Blood Jade
May 25, 2018
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Lae Phyu Pya Myo Myint, Myanmar Times
“Journey of The Blood Jade”, a photo exhibition held on 16 to 18 May at The Yangon Gallery aimed to show just how bloody the…
Myanmar: License Renewals for Gem Blocks Suspended until New Law Stipulated, but Small-Scale Work Permitted
May 24, 2018
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Chan Mya Htwe and Khin Su Wai , Myanmar Times
More than 8,000 acres of jade and gem blocks backed by the State are expected to remain active until 2021, said U Aung Nyunt Thein,…
Afghanistan: Illegal Coal Mining on the Rise, Says Watchdog
May 24, 2018
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Mir Haidarshah Omid, TOLOnews
Integrity Watch Afghanistan has said the practice of illegal coal mining is steadily increasing, despite government’s decision to close mines because of the problem. Meanwhile,…
Colombia: Colombian Rural Peace 3: Indigenous Communities Influence Territorial Development Plans
May 24, 2018
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ICCO Cooperation
In January, ICCO was assigned a new project in Colombia called ‘Rural Peace’ by the European Union. Last month, Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs Stef…
Liberia: ‘Mandingos’ Sue Liberian Government for US$500 Million at ECOWAS Court
May 24, 2018
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Lennart Dodoo, FrontPage Africa
Before the Community Court of Justice of the Community of West African States (ECOWAS Court) is a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Mandingos in…
Ertharin Cousin Talks Food Insecurity, Conflict and Climate Change
May 23, 2018
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Holden Foreman, Stanford Daily
After a year as the Payne Distinguished Lecturer at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI), food security trailblazer Ertharin Cousin gave one last…
Myanmar: IFC’s Draft Hydropower SEA Report Released
May 23, 2018
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Myanmar Times
The draft strategic environmental assessment report which aims to improve the sustainability of the hydropower sector was released by the International Finance Corporation and the…
Myanmar: Military Officers Transferred over Jade Mine Bribes, Killings in Rakhine
May 23, 2018
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Htet Naing Zaw, Irrawaddy
Two high-ranking military officers have been transferred to the military’s auxiliary force for taking bribes from jade mines operating without a license in Kachin State’s…
Sierra Leone: How the Wealth from Sierra Leone’s Diamonds Fails to Enrich Local Communities
May 23, 2018
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Conversation
Ever since diamonds were discovered in Sierra Leone in the 1930s, they have had a significant impact on the country – socially, politically and economically.…
Sudan/South Sudan: AU Sets Date for Meeting between Sudan, S. Sudan on Disputed Abyei Area
May 23, 2018
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Xinhua
The African Union (AU) will hold a meeting for Sudan and South Sudan on the disputed Abyei area on May 30, the Sudanese Media Center…
Liberia: Liberia’s Second Largest Referral Hospital Turns to Agriculture for Sustenance
May 23, 2018
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FrontPage Africa
In order to generate revenue to sustain itself, Liberia’s second largest referral hospital, Jackson Fiah Doe Memorial Regional Referral Hospital in Nimba County, is now…
Kenya: Shalom (SCCRR) Adopts a Community Based Approach to the Management of Natural Resource Based Conflicts in Kenya
May 23, 2018
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Shalom Center
Conflict associated with natural environmental resources have in the recent past been a characteristic of life in most arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya. In…
Afghanistan: Baby Powder Helping Fund Islamic State in Afghanistan: Report
May 22, 2018
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Reuters
Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan are making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year from illegal mining of talc, much of which ends up in…
Colombia: 25,000 Evacuated as Hidroituango Dam Crisis Continues
May 22, 2018
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teleSUR
At least 25,000 people in Colombia have been evacuated after fresh floods caused by the Ituango hydroelectric dam on Monday followed the flooding of the Cauca river…
Myanmar: Illicit Drug Production Rages on in Conflict-Torn Areas of Myanmar
May 22, 2018
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Htet Naing Zaw, Irrawaddy
Illicit drug production rages on in conflict-torn regions in Myanmar, with supplies being smuggled into nearby countries but also reaching as far as Australia, said…
Afghanistan: Taliban, Islamic State Make Millions from Mining Afghan Minerals
May 22, 2018
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Eltaf Najafizada, Bloomberg
Rising global demand for cosmetics, marble and stainless steel is helping Taliban and Islamic State militants in Afghanistan fund their increasingly violent insurgencies, according to…
Afghanistan: Taliban, Islamic State Make Millions from Mining Afghan Minerals
May 22, 2018
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Eltaf Najafizada, Bloomberg
Rising global demand for cosmetics, marble and stainless steel is helping Taliban and Islamic State militants in Afghanistan fund their increasingly violent insurgencies, according to…
Myanmar: Resources Ministry Plans to Reforest 600,000 Acres over Next Decade
May 21, 2018
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Htoo Thant, Myanmar Times
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation targets to reforest 600,000 acres of denuded forest land in the next 10 years to mitigate the…
Egypt/Ethiopia: Solutions from Science Can Quell War over Nile Waters
May 21, 2018
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Otula Owuor, Nation
Hardly a week passes without a story about the impending Nile water wars between Egypt and Ethiopia. At the centre of the conflict is Africa’s…
Liberia: Presidential Committee Recommends Restitution, Charges in NOCAL Probe
May 19, 2018
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Lennart Dodoo, FrontPage Africa
The Special Presidential Committee set up by President George Manneh Weah to probe the NOCAL-ExxonMobile alleged bribery saga has recommended that officials who were mentioned…
Afghanistan: Farah’s War is over Water: Defense Minister
May 19, 2018
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Hayatullah Amanat, TOLOnews
Four days after the Taliban’s attack on Farah City, a senior government delegation on Saturday met with representatives of Farah - a meeting covered live…
South Sudan: UNMISS Gifts New Clean Water Facilities to Ladu Community in Juba
May 18, 2018
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James Sokiri, UN Mission in South Sudan
The gifting of two new boreholes to the Ladu community in the capital Juba will help reduce inter-communal tension over scarce water resources in the…
Afghanistan: Shuangdeng Group Wins Afghanistan’s Tender for 40 MW Hybrid Solar Project
May 18, 2018
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Emiliano Bellini, PV Magazine
The Ministry of energy and water of Afghanistan (MEW) has awarded the contract to build a 40 MW hybrid solar plant at the Hisar-e-Shahi Industrial…
Sudan/South Sudan/Abyei: Sudan Reiterates Sovereignty over Disputed Abyei Region
May 18, 2018
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Sudan Tribune
Sudan’s permanent envoy to the United Nations Omer Dahab called on South Sudan government to engage with Khartoum and the African Union seriously to speed…
Myanmar: Myanmar Returns Large Amount of Confiscated Land to Farmers in Northwestern Region
May 17, 2018
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Xinhua
The Myanmar government has returned 4,932 acres (1,997 hectares) more of farmland, confiscated by the Ministry of Defense, to 528 farmers in Kanbalu district, Sagaing…
Australia: Climate Change an 'Existential Security Risk' to Australia, Senate Inquiry Says
May 17, 2018
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Ben Doherty, Guardian
Climate change is a “current and existential national security risk” to Australia, a Senate inquiry has told parliament, one that could inflame regional conflicts over…
Colombia: Tens of Thousands Ordered to Evacuate after Floods at Dam
May 16, 2018
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Joe Parkin Daniels, Guardian
Tens of thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in western Colombia after heavy floods at Colombia’s largest hydroelectric dam project, which…