International


Colombia: Using Space Tech to Improve Palm Oil Transparency in Colombia

Sep 21, 2018 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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 | 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,…


Climate Change: Integrating Gender in the Mitigation of Climate Change

Sep 17, 2018 | UNDP

The Focal Point of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change for Liberia at the EPA says the issue of climate change continues to…


Afghanistan: Amid Chronic Violence, Millions of Afghans Face Risks of Drought Related Displacement

Sep 11, 2018 | Enayatullah Azad, Inter Press Service

Amid a precarious security situation in Afghanistan, the worst drought in recent history, that hit two out of three provinces in Afghanistan in July, has…


Exclusive: Why Putting the Environment First Makes All Our Lives More Secure

Sep 11, 2018 | Erik Solheim, Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management

The environment is not an obvious solution to global and regional security. Concepts and ideas need time to develop and prove their worth. Half a…


Libya: Libya Oil Company Offices Attacked, Causing Fire, Casualties

Sep 10, 2018 | Rami Musa, Associated Press

Security forces loyal to Libya’s UN-backed government on Monday stormed the headquarters of the country’s national oil company in the capital Tripoli shortly after gunmen…


Myanmar: Myanmar to Resume Timber Extraction

Sep 9, 2018 | Eleven

Myanmar will produce 15,000 tons of teak in the timber extraction season this year, said Kyaw Kyaw Lwin, Deputy Director-General of Forest Department at the…


Uganda: Kiruhura Land Dispute: Rwandan National Accused of Land Grabbing [Video]

Sep 8, 2018 | NTV

The Chairperson of the commission of inquiry into land matters, Lady Justice Catherine Bamugemereire, has issued a warning to a Rwandan national who allegedly grabbed…


Water and Security Classification System Identifies Pathways to Conflict

Sep 8, 2018 | OOSKAnews

An August 2018 Report by the World Resources Institute (WRI) reviews key drivers behind links between water risk and security threats, conflict, migration and food…


China/South China Sea: Chinese Fishermen Wage Hybrid ‘People’s War’ on Asian Seas

Sep 8, 2018 | Todd Crowell and Andrew Salmon, Asia Times

It is a force that is massive in scale – but does not appear on an official order of battle. It is easy to locate –…


Iraq: There's More at Stake in the Basra protests Than Dirty Water and Oil

Sep 7, 2018 | Ben Wedeman, CNN

Basra, Iraq's third-largest city, has been wracked by protests over the decrepit state of public services. The municipal water supply is contaminated by salt water,…


If You Want Peace, Prepare for Solar

Sep 5, 2018 | Emiliano Bellini, pv magazine

US-based start-up, Energy Peace Partners is currently implementing a program to help humanitarian missions across the world transition from diesel dependence to a safer and…