Category Archives: Global development

Home Office must help woman unfairly deported to Uganda to return to UK

Posted on by

High court judge rules that gay asylum seeker who feared persecution in Uganda should have been allowed to remain

The Home Office has been ordered to help a woman deported to Uganda six years ago to return to Britain after a high court judge ruled that the handling of her case was “procedurally unfair”.

If the judgment stands, the woman may become the first deportee whose case was processed through fast-track rules operational between 2005 and 2015 to return to the UK and appeal against the decision to deport her.

Continue reading...

Burundi rejects claims of human rights abuses as ‘lies from far away’

Posted on by

Government dismisses UN allegations of summary executions, arbitrary arrests, torture and sexual violence

Opponents of Burundi’s government are being subjected to numerous human rights violations, according to a UN commission.

Returning refugees and even Catholic bishops are being targeted, the commission found, as well as those who refuse to join the ruling party or its youth wing, the Imbonerakure, which is accused of gang-rape and torture.

Continue reading...

Lord of the Rain: one man’s fight against climate catastrophe – video

Posted on by

Doyte lives in South Omo, Ethiopia, one of the most remote areas in the world and hard hit by the climate crisis. As Lord of the Rain, it’s Doyte’s job to summon the rains, but for five years they haven’t come. Ethiopia’s economy is booming, fuelled by green power and climate-resilient policies. But neither the government, nor Doyte, can reverse the catastrophic change that’s devastating their environment

Continue reading...

UK government among those exaggerating impact of aid

Posted on by

Academics warn of ‘success cartel’ of powerful organisations seeking to influence aid evaluations

A “success cartel” of major donor agencies, including the UK government, is exaggerating its impact in the world’s poorest countries, hundreds of researchers have warned.

Writing in the journal BMJ global health, academics raised serious concerns about the independence of evaluations into global health and development projects, and called for greater safeguards to stop powerful bodies from influencing results.

Continue reading...

Only 1% of gender equality funding is going to women’s organisations – why? | Kasia Staszewka, Tenzin Dolker and Kellea Miller

Posted on by

There’s been a $1bn boost in support in the last two years, but only tiny pots of money are trickling down to feminist groups

In the past two years alone, governments and international institutions have announced more than $1bn (£0.8bn) in new commitments to support gender equality globally.

These include: €500m (£440m) for the European Union and UN’s joint Spotlight Initiative, €120m by France for its feminist foreign policy and $114m by Norway to end sexual and gender-based violence in conflicts. Canada has announced CAD$490m (£290m) towards three programmes: women’s leadership ($150m), the LGBTQ2 Fund ($40m), and the Equality Fund ($300m). This fund was among the nearly $600m committed to women and girls in June at the Women Deliver conference.

Continue reading...

Bob Collymore, Kenya’s telecoms mogul, dies aged 61

Posted on by

Tributes pour in for head of Safaricom, who helped east Africa pioneer cashless payments long before Apple Pay

Bob Collymore, the chief executive of east Africa’s largest and most profitable mobile network operator Safaricom, died on Monday aged 61, after a two-year battle with cancer.

Tributes poured in from across east Africa for the Guyana-born British businessman, who steered Safaricom through nearly a decade of innovative expansion during which its user base doubled and profits increased 380%, turning it into a $10.8bn company. According to the company’s most recent annual report, Safaricom’s business contributed 6.5% to Kenya’s total GDP in 2018.

Continue reading...

Home Office withdraws ‘nonsensical’ limit on support for slavery victims

Posted on by

‘Cliff-edge drop’ in support after 45 days to be replaced by system tailored to individual needs

The Home Office has withdrawn a “nonsensical” policy that cuts off all support to modern slavery survivors after six weeks and will instead introduce a system individually tailored to victims’ needs.

The existing policy – which under the Modern Slavery Act provides safe housing, counselling and financial support for up to 45 days to people in the UK who have been formally identified as victims of slavery or trafficking – was suspended in April by a high court judge, who ruled that it risked causing “irreparable harm to very vulnerable individuals”.

Continue reading...

The Indian state where farmers sow the seeds of death

Posted on by

Cancer rates are the highest in the country, drug addiction is rife, and 900 farmers have killed themselves in two years. How did Punjab turn toxic?

The road to Langroya village weaves its way through fields rich with crops that offer a vivid snapshot of India’s kitchens. There is wheat, rice, sugarcane, maize, mustard seed and a rich variety of vegetables that have made this corner of the country India’s most important agricultural region.

Like the majority of their compatriots in Punjab, Langroya’s residents rely on farming for their existence. About three-quarters of the state’s 30 million-strong population is involved in agriculture, with wheat the number one commodity. But while Punjab is known as “India’s bread basket”, there are challenges amid the abundance.

Continue reading...

Women picking fruit for UK firms in Spain ‘victims of trafficking’

Posted on by
Lawyers say abuse claims by Moroccans must be investigated by Spanish authorities

Human-rights lawyers are warning that abuse claims by Moroccans picking fruit in Spain for UK supermarkets could amount to “state-sponsored human trafficking”.

The international lawyers say Spanish authorities have a legal duty to ensure the allegations by the women – that they have faced exploitation and abuse while harvesting strawberries – are properly investigated by the courts.

Continue reading...

‘I worry they are trafficked’: is the UK’s first ‘legal’ red light zone working? | Julie Bindel

Posted on by

Leeds’ managed zone for prostitution was meant to make life safer for women, but, amid a firestorm of opposition, who is benefiting from the radical approach?

During the day the Holbeck industrial zone looks pretty innocuous. Perched on the southern edge of Leeds city centre, it backs on to residential streets peppered with betting shops, newsagents and takeaways.

Yet at night this industrial zone becomes something very different. It transforms into the UK’s first designated red light zone where, between the hours of 8pm-6am, street prostitution operates openly with neither the women nor the sex buyers facing prosecution.

Continue reading...

Congo abuses drive global rise in sexual violence against women

Posted on by

Study identifies DRC, India and South Sudan among countries where women are at greatest risk of attack

Sexual violence is on the increase both inside and outside of wartime contexts and women remain the primary victims, warns new research.

In their report, researchers from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project (Acled) analysed data gathered from 400 recorded sexual violence events that occurred between January 2018 and June 2019.

Continue reading...

‘If you pay, you’ll go’: Dadaab residents claim bribery is price of getting home

Posted on by

Somali people at Kenya’s sprawling refugee camp allege that UN staff want money for everything from food to repatriation

Four years ago, Asha made what seemed like an impossible decision. She knew the journey from Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp back to her native Somalia was risky. But after an attack by the Somali Islamist group al-Shabaab, the Kenyan government had threatened to close the vast, sprawling camp for security reasons. Asha feared for her family’s safety if Kenyan soldiers moved in to evict them.

“I wanted to be gone before the rough-up,” recalls Asha. “I didn’t want my girls raped by [the] military forcing them on buses. I wanted to protect myself too.–

Continue reading...

Global gag rule linked to abortion rise in African countries that accept US aid

Posted on by

Study finds Trump-backed policy led to increase in pregnancies and reduction in use of modern contraceptives

A US government policy that restricts funding to organisations that conduct or support abortions has been linked to a 40% increase in terminations in African countries that depend on American foreign aid, according to new research.

Related: Medical experts criticise BBC for use of phrase 'heartbeat bill'

Continue reading...

Sierra Leone faces legal challenge over ban on pregnant schoolgirls

Posted on by

Regional hearing seen as ‘last resort’ in battle to overturn measure that, exacerbated by Ebola, has affected thousands

Sierra Leone is being taken to court over its ban on pregnant girls attending school, which has denied thousands the right to finish their education.

Many girls were orphaned in the west African country’s deadly Ebola outbreak and, as they were left vulnerable and forced to fend for themselves, there was a spike in pregnancies. When schools reopened after the outbreak was contained, the government banned them from attending, to protect “innocent girls” from a bad influence.

Continue reading...

Home Office payout for trafficked man detained in mistaken identity mix-up

Posted on by

Vietnamese national was illegally detained for five months after Home Office refused to accept he was not someone else

The Home Office will pay £45,000 in compensation to a trafficking victim for illegally detaining him in an immigration removal centre for more than five months after it mistook him for another man who had been deported from the UK in 2011.

The victim – known as NN – was unlawfully detained in Morton Hall immigration removal centre last year after the Home Office refused to accept he was not another Vietnamese national, referred to in court as T. The Home Office only agreed to carry out fingerprint tests after NN’s lawyers threatened legal action.

Continue reading...

‘People are very scared’: fighting dengue fever in Brazil – in pictures

Posted on by

Dengue fever is one of the most deadly mosquito-borne diseases – half the world’s population is at risk from it. Adrienne Surprenant’s photos from the World Mosquito Program in Brazil capture the fight against it

Continue reading...

Is it wrong to look at the harrowing photo of a drowned father and daughter? | Peter Beaumont

Posted on by

In an age when social media has undermined our ability to engage with pictures, Julia le Duc’s tragic image raises tough questions

Warning: graphic images

Julia le Duc’s image of Óscar Alberto Martínez Ramírez and his 23-month-old daughter, Valeria, lying drowned on a muddy shoreline after an attempted crossing of Rio Grande into the US appears like a summation of all the arguments about the Trump administration’s harsh immigration policies.

The pair look as though they could be locked in a sleeping embrace, the child’s head tucked inside her father’s T-shirt, where she’d been placed by him for safety as he swam, protecting their last dignity.

Continue reading...

Rory Stewart: Boris Johnson win would bring DfID tenure to ‘heartbreaking’ end

Posted on by

Development minister fears impact of no-deal Brexit on UK role in reducing global poverty

Rory Stewart has said it would be “heartbreaking” to leave his job as international development secretary were Boris Johnson to become the next prime minister.

Stewart, an anti no-deal candidate who was knocked out of the Tory leadership contest after last week after a television debate, has vowed not to serve in a Johnson cabinet.

Continue reading...

Gambian pageant winner accuses ex-president Yahya Jammeh of rape

Posted on by

Two other unnamed women also accuse Jammeh of rape and sexual assault as investigation claims systematic abuse

A Gambian pageant winner has accused the country’s former president of rape as an investigation claims Yahya Jammeh systematically sexually abused young women.

Jammeh, who reluctantly stepped down in 2017 after 22 years of rule, presented himself as a deeply religious figure and an advocate of girls’ rights and declared his small west African nation an Islamic republic.

Continue reading...

Illegal drug classifications are based on politics not science – report

Posted on by

Global Commission on Drug Policy calls for a reclassification of drugs including cocaine, heroin and cannabis

Illegal drugs including cocaine, heroin and cannabis should be reclassified to reflect a scientific assessment of harm, according to a report by the Global Commission on Drug Policy.

The commission, which includes 14 former heads of states from countries such as Colombia, Mexico, Portugal and New Zealand, said the international classification system underpinning drug control is “biased and inconsistent”.

Continue reading...