This report provides an account of the evolution of poverty and living conditions in the decade 2012- 2022. It finds that at the national level monetary poverty essentially stagnated while urban poverty, admittedly a much smaller in absolute and relative terms, dramatically increased. In 2022, monetary poverty affected about 75 …
The spread of pests and pathogens that damage plant life could cost global agriculture $540 billion a year, according to this report released by the Royal Botanic Gardens in London. An increase in international trade and travel had left flora facing rising threats from invasive pests and pathogens, and called …
Three international development agencies have come together to mobilise more than $1 billion for power generation across Africa, including the 147MW Ruzizi III project that will supply electricity to Burundi, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. The Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), its industrial and infrastructure development …
The first ever global database of trees on Wednesday revealed that 9,600 tree species are threatened with extinction and identified a total of 60,065 in existence. Brazil is the country with the most diverse tree population, with 8,715 species, according to the Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) group. It also …
A study released this month by TRAFFIC, an NGO that monitors the wildlife trade, finds that governance has been so lacking in the forests of Madagascar in recent years that hundreds of thousands of trees have been cut down illegally in protected areas. More than 350,000 trees were felled between …
It is the lament of a parched land, where women cry for thirsty children, and farmers’ hope is spent. In Madagascar, the island nation off the southeastern coast of Africa, a grim cycle has set in. Rains arrive late and leave early in the African country most exposed to climate …
The new gecko was discovered in a reserve in northern Madagascar, a region threatened by deforestation. It is a new member of the "fish-scaled" gecko genus. All other species have large, shed-able scales, but G. megalepis has the largest of all. The geckos so easily shed their scales (along with …
The lemur has a grey body and a white underbelly, and its tiny hands and feet are lightly colored. It is separated from other species of dwarf lemurs both genetically, and geographically, the authors say. In the forests of northern Madagascar, scientists have discovered a new species of dwarf lemur. …
Nonhuman primates, our closest biological relatives, play important roles in the livelihoods, cultures, and religions of many societies and offer unique insights into human evolution, biology, behavior, and the threat of emerging diseases. They are an essential component of tropical biodiversity, contributing to forest regeneration and ecosystem health. Current information …
Malawi is amongtst four southern African nations that will benefit from a a grant of £16.9 million ($20.8 million) by the UK Department for International Development to UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) for life-saving interventions to prevent the escalation of malnutrition and child illness or death as counties are approaching the …
A new road built by China was inaugurated in Madagascar's capital Antananarivo on Friday as part of the preparation work for the Summit of French speaking countries (La Francophonie) scheduled to be held in the country from Nov. 21 to 27. The road, about 4,759 kilometers in total length, links …
American design student Virginia Gardiner did not expect to end up finding her muse in a toilet, or find power and profit out of poo. She also did not expect to find herself and the waterless toilet she designed for wasteful westerners (originally it was embraced by posh festivalgoers), on …
Anyone with internet access and a passion for seafood will soon be able to track commercial fishing trawlers all over the world, with a new tool that its developers hope will help end the overfishing that has decimated the world's fish stocks. Millions of people depend on fish to survive, …
Scientists creating backup of Madagascar’s flora at Kew’s seed bank as deforestation threatens African island’s biodiversity Scientists are racing against time to create a backup of Madagascar’s famously rich and varied flora in a British seed bank before it is lost forever. The Indian ocean country is known as a …
Madagascar's conservationists are working in secrecy to protect one of the world's most beautiful tortoises from poachers, writes journalist Martin Vogl. The villa on the outskirts of Madagascar's capital, Antananarivo, has no sign to indicate what goes on there. There is barbed wire on the walls and dogs patrol at …
ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Some 23 million farmers in drought-hit Southern Africa need urgent help to prepare for the next planting season with only a few weeks left before it begins, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Thursday. FAO said failure to help farmers in time …
Some 18 million people from seven southern Africa countries require emergency food aid, according to the latest report by World Food Programme. The food security crisis in the region has been attributed to El Nino weather patterns which triggered unexpected droughts and prolonged dry spells last year. Lesotho, Mozambique, Malawi, …
The United Nations' food agency said on Thursday it needed $730 million over the next 12 months for relief in seven southern African countries hit hard by a blistering drought and faced a $610 million shortfall. The World Food Programme (WFP) said in a statement the seven countries were Malawi, …
The benefits of community-based forestry are well known. A 2014 study by the World Resources Institute, for instance, showed that deforestation rates were as much as 11 times lower in forests licensed to local communities. Madagascar became one of the first countries in the southern hemisphere to adopt the legal …
TSIHOMBE, Madagascar (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Like many people in Madagascar's parched south, Ranotongae had been hoping for the heavens to open up and ease the country's poorest rainy season in 35 years. So when a few showers fell last month in Androy, one of the hardest-hit areas, the 44-year-old …
Scientists have recently discovered three species of mouse lemurs in Madagascar. They can be found in the southern and eastern islands of the country and are said to have increased the number of known species to 24. Mouse lemurs are small, nocturnal primates which can only be found in Madagascar. …
