Rafiqul Islam Azad Dhaka, March 16 – Bangladesh plans to generate 2,000-megawatt electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020 to ensure the future energy security of the county.
Category: Op-Ed
The right question about inequality and growth
By Jason Furman The relationship between inequality and growth has become a hot topic for economists, with new research challenging the conventional view that greater inequality is the price that must be paid for higher output. But for policymakers, this…
With Solar Alliance time is up for shift to green energy
Mostafa Kamal Majumder Environmentalist Sajid Kamal, son of eminent poet Begum Sufia Kamal, said about two decades ago – Bangladesh is a goldmine of solar energy. Before the present players started installing solar home systems in the country on a…
We must talk to each other to solve gender inequality
By Monique Barbut Bonn, Mar 12 (IPS) – The international community agreed on the global Goal of achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment by 2030. But we can’t reach it – not even by 2050 – until we talk to…
Getting Syrian refugee students to school safely
By International Organization for Migration Mar 12 2018 (IOM) – Seven years of war in Syria has not deterred Ameena from being fully involved in her children’s education. The mother of four and her husband Abu Hamzeh fled their hometown…
Why is Japan populist-free?
By Ian Buruma Contemporary Japan may have its flaws, but it is now much more egalitarian than the United States, India, or many countries in Europe. By remaining a country of, by, and for the middle class, where the most…
French president pokes at Trump for leaving Paris accord
New Delhi, Mar 11 (AP/UNB) – French President Emmanuel Macron took a jibe at President Donald Trump on Sunday for his decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement.
Natural shot in Bangladesh’s battle against climate change
Zulker Naeen Reducing dependence on fossil fuels requires a long time to decrease emissions. A rapid transformation of the existing energy systems and infrastructure is also a slow process. But, natural climate solutions are already available if we want to…
Syria’s ‘Human Catastrophe’
By Tharanga Yakupitiyage UN, Mar 7 (IPS) – Despite calls for a ceasefire, violent clashes have continued and humanitarian access remains limited in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta, leaving the international community extremely concerned.
The new CPTPP trade pact is much like the old TPP
By Martin Khor Penang, Malaysia, Mar 7 (IPS) – The new agreement that eleven countries are signing on 8 March in Chile in place of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is like old wine in a new bottle —…
America should lead in saving the Rohingya
By John McCain and Angelina Jolie Around the world, there is profound concern that America is giving up the mantle of global leadership. Our steady retreat over the past decade has contributed to a wide array of complex global challenges…
The inter-Korean agreement and Pyongyang’s offer to Trump
Duyeon Kim North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has stepped up his peace offensive, playing a familiar game with his own particular flair. This week, South Korean presidential envoys returned to Seoul with news of having reached a six-point agreement with…
Michelle Obama on International Women’s Day
Hi Mostafa Kamal, and happy International Women’s Day. Growing up, my parents always had a clear message for me and my brother: There is nothing more important for your future than getting a good education. Nothing.
The Bitcoin threat
By Harold James Unless a currency has been authenticated by a government, it is unlikely to be fully trusted. But that does not mean that it cannot become a plaything for the naïve and gullible, or a weapon of financial…
Rural women’s empowerment for sustainable development
When we celebrate the International Women’s Day (IWD) this year we shine the brightest light on the vast majority of women – especially in developing countries that live and work in rural areas and whose empowerment is about bringing the…
Fundamental rights Fear loathing and poverty: Italy after elections
The post-election map of Italy has two main traits: fear and poverty. Northern and Central regions have gone to a Centre-Right-wing coalition where the leader is not anymore Forza Italia’s Silvio Berlusconi but the League’s Matteo Salvini, who dropped its…
When environmental crises hit homes, women suffer the most
By Victor Tsang and Shari Nijman Nairobi, Kenya, Mar 5 (IPS) – When Mandelena became a mother, she was only 16. During the prolonged dry season in Gwor County, South Sudan, her community saw crops failing and cattle dying. Children…
Green Climate Fund approves $1 billion for funding 23 units
Songdo, 5 March (Indrajit Bose) — The Board of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) agreed on a process for the replenishment of its resources after much wrangling. It also adopted a host of decisions and approved over USD 1 billion…
Making the business case for gender equality
Achim Steiner and Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka New York – Around the world, gender bias is attracting renewed attention. Through protest marches and viral social-media campaigns, women everywhere are demanding an end to sexual harassment, abuse, femicide, and inequality.
The future of fish farming
Linus Blomqvist New Haven – Demand for seafood is skyrocketing, and will continue to rise throughout this century. The only way to meet it will be through aquaculture. Yet, while next-generation aquaculture will be far more ecologically responsible than its…
Berlusconi’s flat tax fallacy
“A flat tax is for a flat earth”: This was my answer to Grzegorz Kolodko, Poland’s Minister of Finance and First Deputy Premier for the Economy (1994-97 and 2002-03), when in the mid-1990s he asked me – his adviser sponsored…
When students stand up
Jo Becker Two weeks ago, 18-year-old Emma Gonzalez didn’t even have a Twitter account. Today, @Emma4Change is approaching 1 million followers, far exceeding those of the National Rifle Association. Her “We Call BS” speech, delivered just three days after the…
Green details on how Power Africa changes Africa
Mohammad Zainal Abedin, NY New York – USAID Administrator Mark Green details how Power Africa brings about revolutionary changes in Africa. Addressing the three-day 4th Powering Africa Summit (PAS) held at Marriott Marquis Hotel in Washington, D.C from February 28 to…
Europe’s poor need more than jobs
More EU citizens work than ever recorded. Twelve million moved into work in just the past four years. That is more than the total population of Belgium or Greece. That’s the exciting news. But what will it mean for Europe’s…
A long way still to achieving gender equality: Int’l Women’s Day
By Akinwumi A. Adesina Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, Mar 1 (IPS) – International Women’s Day is a call to celebrate the extraordinary achievements of women and a reminder that globally, we are a long way from achieving gender equality.
Occupation and genocide disguised as “discovery”
By Jerome Duval “We have been told, and still are, that it was the pilgrims of the Mayflower that populated America. Had it been empty before?” Eduardo Galeano. “What was really discovered [in 1492] is what Spain really was, the…
Demystifying technologies for digital identification
by Luda Bujoreanu With more than 1.1 billion individuals without official proof of identity, a myriad of technologies is advancing at a faster speed than ever before and becoming more affordable, making it possible for nations to leapfrog paper based…
Taking on the new authoritarians
It was a premiere: We took our podcast live, to Stockholm’s Kulturhuset, and the guest was perfect, somebody we had wanted to talk to for a long time, the techno-sociologist, activist, author, professor Zeynep Tufekci.
Wake up and stop Rohingya abuses
Feb 27 (The Daily Star, Bangladesh) – No one would realise better than a woman how it feels when a child is snatched away from the arms of a mother and slaughtered, a man is murdered before the eyes of…
Culture of deep-seated denial of sexual violence in Sudan
By Pramila Patten UN, Feb 28 (IPS) – At the invitation of the Government of Sudan, I visited Sudan from 18 to 25 February 2018. The objective of the visit was to gain first-hand knowledge of the situation, assess the…