The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
The World Summit on Sustainable Development (wssd) failed Thobeka Fani, 24, resident of Alexandra, a poor suburb just nine kilometres from Sandton, the upmarket venue of wssd. Some 21,000 delegates, including 104 heads of state and governments, gathered between August 26 to September 4 to bridge the gap between the …
scientists from the Dhaka-based International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research (icddr,b) have recently initiated clinical trials to study the efficacy of an oral diarrhoea vaccine in Bangladesh. The vaccine is being manufactured by the international pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. It has been developed by Baltimore-based John Hopkins University. The vaccine would …
The Indian government has sent the right signals before the World Summit on Sustainable Development (wssd) by approving the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. After the cabinet meeting which gave the go-ahead for the approval of the protocol, Union minister for information and broadcasting, Sushma Swaraj said the move will …
USA: Domestic and international travellers made nearly 287 million visits to the 378 parks under the US National Park Service in 1998 compared to the 275 million visits in 1997. This travel generated US $14.2 billion and supported almost 300,000 tourist-related jobs during 1996. Nepal: The Annapurna area is the …
If there is an ideal ecotourism destination in India, it is Sikkim. This eastern Himalayan state of India with its pristine mountains, crystal clear lakes and rich cultural and natural diversity, is fast gaining popularity. Attracting some two lakh tourists a year, of which 12,000 are foreigners, it has witnessed …
Not everyone is thrilled with ecotourism. Many believe that the big business of tourism people is only using the people in destinations, who offer their natural, social and cultural resources to make the
If tourism revenues are generated by the quality of natural goods like a healthy tiger habitat or an excellent coral reef, then should tourists not be asked to pay an ecotax to conserve them? This year the socialist-green regional government of the Balearic Islands in Spain has attempted to do …
Seeking nirvana Rich, restless and willing to pay Babu Vargese was thrown out of college because he insisted on wearing his hair long. Vargese likes to do things differently. Like running TourIndia, a Kerala based travel agency he founded 20 years ago. His keen interest in nature and people, coupled …
In a move that is inviting the wrath of animal rights activists, South Africa is seeking permission to trade in white rhino horns. Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (cites), such trade is prohibited. "If permission is granted, it would enable South Africa to have limited sales …
"too small, too slow, or too poorly rooted.' This is how the recently released 19th annual edition of Worldwatch Institute's State of the World 2002 report describes the steps taken in the 1990s for an ecologically resilient world. Considering the dismal scenario, the document recommends "a global war on poverty …
A Pretoria High Court judge has said in a ruling that hiv -infected pregnant women under the care of the state are entitled to a low-cost drug, Nevirapine, which reduces a newborn's risk of contracting the virus. About 70,000 children are infected annually due to mother-to-child transmission. The decision has …
South Africa has banned the use of thin plastic bags. And retailers of these bags are a worried lot as they fear that it would wipe out their retail profits. The South African cabinet recently approved a ban to prohibit anyone from distributing grocery bags thinner than 80 micrometres. The …
During the past years, there have been calls to move the tasks of sustainable development at the international level to a new independent body, often labelled a World Environment Organisation (weo) or International Environmental Organisation. Advocates of weo include academics and expert commissions as well as international civil servants, politicians, …
AIDS activists are suing the South African government for its failure to distribute an anti-HIV drugs that could save the lives of about 35,000 newborn babies each year. The lawsuit will be filed by the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), which played a leading role earlier this year in forcing multinational …
A marooned humpback whale was exploded in the Port Elizabeth city of South Africa after attempts to put it back into the sea failed. "For easing the misery of the whale, an explosive device was placed very close to its head,' said Sandy Thackeray, spokesperson for Bayworld oceanarium. "We were …
One of the main causes of pollution in South Africa is plastic packaging, says a recent study. The Water Research Commission and the Cape Metropolitan Council conducted a four-year study into the reduction of urban litter in drainage systems. During the study it was found that the plastic packaging contributes …
The global pharmaceutical industry is feeling the heat. Following the industry's embarrassing withdrawal in April from a case against the South African government over the issue of access to cheap aids drugs, the us government dropped its complaint against Brazil's law dealing with the same issue at the World Trade …
Several eyebrows have been raised over the Cipla offer to supply anti- aids drugs at one-third the current price to developing countries like South Africa. On March 7, 2001 Cipla Ltd of Mumbai, formally requested the South African department of trade and industry to issue compulsory licenses to patents on …
Globalisation is increasingly reducing the power of individual governments vis a vis multinational corporations whose annual turnover far exceed the gross national product of many wto members. This makes wto a major force influencing countries to open up to the world faster. Unfortunately this leaves a country vulnerable to market …
