International
DRC: Taking Traceable Conflict-Free Gold from DR Congo to International Markets
Aug 18, 2018
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UN Environment
While DR Congo’s annual artisanal gold production is estimated to stand at between eight to ten tons, official statistics show that only 200 kg of…
Liberia: Ganta Mayor Embarks on Surveying Public Lands
Aug 17, 2018
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Joaquin M. Sendolo, Daily Observer
As the commercial city of Ganta, in Nimba County, expands and more people begin to seek settlement there, the Mayor, Amos N.G. Suah, has begun…
Iraq: BP and PetroChina Set to Rake in Billions Developing Iraq's Super-Massive Rumaila Oil Field
Aug 17, 2018
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Callum Turcan, Seeking Alpha
Located in 1953 by BP plc (NYSE:BP), back when BP was British Petroleum, the Rumaila oil field in Iraq is truly massive. It is expected…
Colombia: Govt Rushes to Save National Park from Rampant Deforestation
Aug 16, 2018
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Maria Fernanda Lizcano, Mongabay
“Territories are like books: they can be in front of you, but if you do not read them you will never understand them,” said Juan…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraqi Oil Ministry Bans Kurdish Language in Documents
Aug 16, 2018
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Irina Slav, Oil Price
The Iraqi Oil Ministry has banned the use of Kurdish words in official documents, threatening Kurdish employees with lawsuits if they violate the ban, Kurdish…
Iraq/Kurdistan/Turkey: Kurdish Officials: Iraq, Turkey Can’t Export Kirkuk Oil without Kurdistan Deal
Aug 15, 2018
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Tsvetana Paraskova, Oil Price
Iraq and Turkey must reach a deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) first in order to export oil from the Kirkuk fields in northern…
Myanmar: New Jade and Gemstone Policy Expected to Boost the Industry
Aug 13, 2018
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Chan Mya Htwe, Myanmar Times
The government is drafting its first ever jade and gemstone policy with the help of the private sector and foreign institutions. When complete, the policy…
Afghanistan: Farmers in War-Torn Afghanistan Hit by Worst Drought in Decades
Aug 12, 2018
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Hamid Fahim and Emal Haidary, Phys.org
After his wheat crop failed and wells dried up, Ghulam Abbas sold his animals and joined thousands of other farmers migrating to cities as Afghanistan's…
Afghanistan: Drought Raises Food Security Fears in Afghanistan
Aug 12, 2018
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Al Jazeera
A shortage of precipitation during the winter months, both rain and snow, left much of Afghanistan with a severe scarcity of water and a decimated…
Climate Change: As the Arctic Melts, Maritime Security Gets Real
Aug 11, 2018
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Tamara Dietrich, Daily Press
Hampton Roads residents know full well that the Atlantic is gnawing ever more ferociously at the shore, surging into the streets whenever it gets riled…
Cambodia: Organisations Back Kuoy Land Claims
Aug 10, 2018
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Khy Sovuthy, Khmer Times
Two organisations aiming to restore indigenous land around the world on Wednesday expressed concern over land in Preah Vihear province after a major Chinese conglomerate…
South Sudan: Security Council Says Alarmed by Food Insecurity in South Sudan
Aug 10, 2018
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Sudan Tribune
The United Nations Security Council Friday said alarmed by the level of food insecurity in South Sudan and called to allow unfettered humanitarian access to…
China/South China Sea: 'Leave Immediately': US Navy Plane Warned over South China Sea
Aug 10, 2018
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Brad Lendon, Ivan Watson and Ben Westcott, CNN
High above one of the most hotly contested regions in the world, CNN was given a rare look Friday at the Chinese government's rapidly expanding…
Ecuador: In Ecuador, a Pipeline Cuts a Trail of Misery through Indigenous Land
Aug 9, 2018
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José María León Cabrera, Mongabay
Amerisur has operated in Colombia since 2003, and one of the oil fields that it works, Platanillo, is located in the department of Putumayo, across…
China/South China Sea: China's State Firms Cementing Lucrative Role in South China Sea, New Research Shows
Aug 9, 2018
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Greg Torode and Brenda Goh, Reuters
Beijing’s giant state-owned enterprises are playing an increasing role in China’s build-up in the South China Sea and could seek to cement their dominant position…
Myanmar: Thai’s Kim Sone Bamboo a Hit in Myanmar
Aug 9, 2018
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Myat Moe Aung, Myanmar Times
Commercial bamboo growers in the country have set their eyes on the Kim Sone species from Thailand which is resilient and can grow in any…
Liberia: Liberia’s Largest Palm Oil Producer Pulls out of Sustainability Roundtable – What Does This Mean for Rural Communities?
Aug 9, 2018
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The Conversation
The palm oil industry is no stranger to controversy. While the world has come to learn of the environmental issues linked to the oil’s production,…
Ethiopia/Egypt: Water Wars on the Nile
Aug 9, 2018
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Daniel Benaim and Michael Wahid Hanna, Foreign Affairs
In Ethiopia, Africa’s largest-ever dam and hydroelectric power plant is inching closer to completion. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Nile River has…
DRC: DR Congo, a Vast and Unruly African Giant
Aug 8, 2018
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Agence France-Presse
The second largest country in Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo is blessed with abundant raw materials and minerals but cursed by violence, graft and…
Myanmar: Myanmar Explores Paddy-Fish Culture for More Value
Aug 8, 2018
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Htoo Thant, Myanmar Times
Research is being carried out at the Ayeyarwaddy Delta Region to pair paddy and fish businesses for mutual benefits, said U Myint Zin Htoo, deputy…
Afghanistan: Govt Asked to Take Climate Change Seriously
Aug 8, 2018
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Sayed Sharif Amiri, TOLOnews
The European Union on Wednesday hosted a debate on issues around climate change in the country titled “Climate Change in Afghanistan, Common Challenge, Collective Response”.…
WFP Official: New Resolution Could Help End Use of Hunger as Tool of War
Aug 8, 2018
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Andrew Green, Malnutrition Deeply
A new United Nations resolution banning the use of starvation as a weapon of war could be critical in reversing rising global malnutrition rates, according…
Food Security: Impact of Conflicts, Civil War on Agriculture and Food Security of Countries
Aug 8, 2018
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Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN
Agriculture and food systems are remarkably resilient, but as FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva told the United Nations Security Council, "when these systems are lost,…
Is the Sustainable Palm Oil Label on a Slippery Slope?
Aug 8, 2018
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Anand Chandrasekhar, Swissinfo
There is no such thing as bad publicity. Unless you are a multinational firm whose most recognisable product has been transformed into an object of…
Sudan/South Sudan: Juba Residents Jubilant over New Peace Deal
Aug 8, 2018
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Fidelis Mbah, Al-Jazeera
Thousands of residents of South Sudan's capital Juba have been celebrating a peace deal struck between President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar, which rekindles…
Colombia: Agriculture Development in Colombia Promises a Way out of Illicit Trade
Aug 8, 2018
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Michelle Begue, China Global Television Network
Nelson Martinez lives in a region of Colombia called La Macarena, Meta. These lands were a former stronghold of the FARC guerilla group and a…
Afghanistan: Talc Terror Trail
Aug 7, 2018
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Chris Fitch, Geographical
Could baby power be funding terrorism? Potentially yes, according to investigative campaigning organisation Global Witness, which recently probed the talc mining industry in Afghanistan and…
Helping Farmers Helps Peace
Aug 7, 2018
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Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN
Civil wars and conflicts have increased markedly in the past decade, leading to the recent reverse of a steady trend towards reducing hunger. In response…
Iran: US Sanctions on Iran Drive Oil Prices Higher
Aug 7, 2018
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Daniel J. Graeber, United Press International
Sanctions on Iran and additional support from signs of declining oil inventories in the United States pushed the price of oil higher early Tuesday. Iranian…
Sudan/South Sudan: Giving Peace Another Chance
Aug 7, 2018
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Agence France-Presse
Their rivalry has fueled appalling bloodshed in South Sudan, yet now for a third time Salva Kiir and Riek Machar will try to share power…