International
South Sudan: Oil Workers Seen as Target in New Phase of South Sudan's War
Mar 29, 2017
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Okech Francis and Nizar Manek, Bloomberg
Crude oil brings in the cash to keep South Sudan’s army fighting. That may have made oil workers a target for rebels waging the African…
Conflict Minerals: State Department Reviewing Conflict Minerals Sourcing
Mar 28, 2017
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Andrea Vittorio, Bureau of National Affairs
The State Department and other federal agencies are looking at efforts to break the link between armed groups and the minerals trade in and around…
Global Warming Is a Matter of Survival for Pacific Islander Women
Mar 28, 2017
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Kristi Eaton
For Viva Tatawaqa and women like her, climate change is not a question of when. According to the activist from Fiji, it's a question of…
Myanmar: Timber Sector Wants MTE to Get the Chop
Mar 27, 2017
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Su Myat Mon, Frontier
The timber industry has called for an independent monitoring body to replace state-owned Myanma Timber Enterprise, which has been accused of hurting exports by failing…
Climate Security: Republicans Cite National Security to Justify Climate Action
Mar 27, 2017
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Sam Mintz and Hannah Hess, E&E News
Even though climate change can be politically toxic for many Republicans, linking the issue to national security and citing military leaders' acceptance of global warming…
South Sudan: Detention of Oil Workers in South Sudan Indicates Abduction Risks from Both Armed Factions and 'For-Profit' Bandits
Mar 27, 2017
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Verner Ayukegba, IHS Jane's Terrorism & Insurgency Centre
The faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) loyal to former South Sudanese first vice-president Riek Machar declared on 21 March that…
Food Security: Food Security in the Middle East Sharply Deteriorated
Mar 27, 2017
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Inter Press Service
Food security and nutrition levels in the Near East and North Africa have sharply deteriorated over the last five years, undermining the steady improvement achieved…
Conflict Minerals: Businesses Benefit from US Conflict Minerals Reporting Rule, Say NGOs
Mar 27, 2017
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Chemical Watch
NGOs have urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) not to weaken or repeal the US conflict minerals reporting rule, as doing so would have…
Colombia: Colombia’s Bananas ‘Not Stained with Blood’: Association
Mar 27, 2017
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Adriaan Alsema, Colombia Reports
Colombia’s banana companies financed legal “private security companies” and not paramilitary groups, claimed the association chairman as several members face charges of supporting terrorism. According…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Frontier Too Far? Oil Producers Adjust to Reduced Hopes for Kurdistan
Mar 26, 2017
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Nathalie Thomas, Financial Times
Excited tales about how Kurdistan was one of the cheapest places on earth to pump crude grabbed the attention of big energy groups such as…
India: PMO Told that Water Wars Are Nearing in 'Water-Stressed' India
Mar 26, 2017
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Yatish Yadav, New Indian Express
With demand outstripping supply of water, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is waking up to the possibility of water scarcity triggering social unrest in the…
Sierra Leone: Miners Found a 706-Carat Diamond in Sierra Leone. Who Should Get the Profit?
Mar 25, 2017
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Jaime Yaya Barry, New York Times
Fist-size and lumpy, the rock that a team of miners came upon recently in the diamond fields of Sierra Leone was orange with red speckles…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan’s Relentless Opium Woes Have a 'New Seed in Town,' and It Comes from China
Mar 25, 2017
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Mariam Amini, CNBC
A problem that Afghanistan and international governments have tried to eradicate for decades is only getting worse, and China is a big reason why. Last…
Afghanistan: Ministry to Deliver 10,000 Tons of Seed to Farmers
Mar 24, 2017
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Zarmina Mohammadi, TOLOnews
Officials from the ministry of agriculture and irrigation on Thursday said that it will distribute 10,000 tons of improved seed to Afghan farmers this year…
Myanmar: As Many as 10 Myanmar Villagers Injured in Shooting at Letpadaung Copper Mine
Mar 24, 2017
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Radio Free Asia
As many as 10 villagers have been injured by police who fired rubber bullets at them on Friday for blocking a roadway to a controversial…
China: Will Central Asia Water Wars Derail China's Silk Road?
Mar 24, 2017
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Nishtha Chugh, Diplomat
A brewing crisis is threatening to derail Beijing’s mega project, now a major foreign policy priority, in the very region that’s most critical to its…
China/Philippines/South China Sea: Duterte Says Philippines Can’t Afford Oil Rigs, Open to Sharing Resources with China in Disputed Sea
Mar 24, 2017
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Agence France-Presse
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he was open to sharing resources with Beijing in flashpoint South China Sea waters over which Manila has been given…
Gaza/Palestine: In War-Scarred Gaza, Water Pollution behind Health Woes
Mar 23, 2017
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Sakher Abou El Oun, Agence France-Presse
More and more Gazans are falling ill from their drinking water, highlighting the humanitarian issues facing the Palestinian enclave that the UN says could become…
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone Precious Minerals – Public Trust and Government Openness
Mar 23, 2017
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Abdul Rashid Thomas, Sierra Leone Telegraph
The recent finding of Sierra Leone’s second largest diamond in the Kono district by pastor Emmanuel Momoh and the involvement of the Koroma government,…
Conflict Minerals: EU Parliament Gives Green Light to Conflict Mineral Regulation
Mar 23, 2017
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International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development
The European Parliament signed off last week on a proposal aimed at tackling conflict minerals trade, bringing the proposed measure closer to becoming law. The…
China/South China Sea: How a Chinese Fishing Fleet Creates Facts on the Water
Mar 23, 2017
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Economist
On a past visit to the little fishing port of Tanmen, on the island-province of Hainan in southern China, pigs were being driven onto the…
Colombia: UN Environment Will Support Environmental Recovery and Peacebuilding for Post-Conflict Development in Colombia
Mar 23, 2017
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UNEP
UN Environment will assist Colombia with overcoming the environmental degradation legacy of the internal conflict which lasted for more than 50 years, especially in remote…
Afghanistan: Dam Project Promises Water – but Also Conflict – for Dusty Afghan Border Lands
Mar 22, 2017
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Sune Engel Rasmussen, Guardian
The Afghan government plans to construct a dam to boost agriculture and livelihoods in a region where one of the main paths to profit is…
Could Conservation Provide Ground for Peace in Conflict Zones?
Mar 22, 2017
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Eva Botkin-Kowacki, Christian Science Monitor
"Ecological problems know no boundaries," says Alexandre Roulin, a biologist at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and first author on a paper published Wednesday…
South Sudan: South Sudan Threatens to Terminate Oil Exploration Contracts
Mar 22, 2017
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Sudan Tribune
South Sudan has threatened to terminate contacts awarded to oil exploration companies should they fail to start surveys by the end of April. Ezekiel Lol…
Iraq/Syria: ISIS is Going Scorched Earth as it Loses Ground in Iraq and Syria
Mar 22, 2017
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Ali Abdelaty, Reuters
As Islamic State loses ground in Iraq and Syria, the Sunni militant group which once held territory amounting to a third of those countries is…
Colombia: Colombia to Implement Almeria's Agricultural Model in ex-FARC Territory
Mar 22, 2017
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Fresh Plaza
The peace agreement signed by the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) has liberated 18 million hectares previously under guerrilla control. …
Water Wars: Water Wars? Experts Urge Rethinking Our Relationship with Water
Mar 21, 2017
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teleSUR
As the world marks the World Water Day, one cannot help but recall that the United Nations has already warned that water shortages will hit…
South Sudan: South Sudan and Equatorial Guinea Partner on Oil and Gas
Mar 21, 2017
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Sudan Tribune
South Sudan and Equatorial Guinea announced an historic partnership today in Juba, setting out the terms for a strong bilateral relationship between the African oil…
Myanmar: China-backed Dam Project May Threaten Myanmar Wildlife Sanctuary
Mar 21, 2017
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Voice of America
Environmental activists say plans for a large dam threaten wildlife sanctuaries in Myanmar’s northern Karen state. China would finance the proposed Hatgyi dam on Southeast…