The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
Snakebite is a major problem affecting the rural poor in many of the poorest countries in the tropics. However, the scale of the socio-economic burden has rarely been studied. We undertook a comprehensive assessment of the burden in Sri Lanka. Original Source
With its two 660-megawatt units, the Sahiwal coal-fired power plant is expected to generate 9 billion kwh of electricity annually to address about one fourth of Pakistan’s current power deficit, supplying the electricity demand of 10 million locals, according to an official from the China Huaneng Group, a major shareholder …
Police in Bangladesh have filed charges ranging from negligence to murder against more than a dozen people after a boiler explosion at a garment plant killed 13 people and injured dozens, officials said on Wednesday. Monday's blast happened during maintenance work at a factory owned by Multifabs Ltd, whose top …
The global use of untreated waste water from cities to irrigate crops is much more widespread than previously estimated, says a new report. According to this updated assessment, nearly 30 million hectares are now using untreated water within 40km of an urban centre Some 800 million people, including farmers, vendors …
Simple mud concrete bricks provide the most affordable and sustainable houses in the tropics, a Sri-Lankan study suggests. Comparisons of four different types of walling materials revealed that mud concrete bricks have the lowest environmental impact and keep houses cool. They are also the cheapest, and easiest to dispose of …
A boiler explosion at a Bangladeshi garment factory killed 10 people and injured dozens, fire officials said on Tuesday, the latest mishap to hit one of the world's biggest garment producers. The mishap happened late on Monday at a plant owned by Multifabs Limited, a Bangladeshi company on the outskirts …
Local knowledge and practices can help people in drought prediction and extreme weather management. The study was carried out to elicit and document local knowledge use in drought prediction and weather extremes management. Focus group discussions were used for this study. The appearance of certain insects, birds, animals and indication …
This framework document has been prepared by the team at ICIMOD working on various aspects of ecosystem management in collaboration with the United Nations Environment – World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP–WCMC), with technical inputs from eminent ecologists, gender and governance specialists, sociologists and economists from the region. The document provides …
A severe drought followed by heavy rainfalls in Sri Lanka has hit large swaths of cropping areas, threatening the food security of some 900,000 people, according to a report published last week by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme …
The death toll could rise as rescuers search for bodies with many people still missing DHAKA, June 14 (Reuters) - At least 134 people were killed in Bangladesh when a series of landslides triggered by heavy rain buried hillside homes, officials said on Wednesday. Densely populated Bangladesh is battered by …
LONDON - Bhutan and the Maldives have eliminated measles, becoming the first countries in their region to eliminate the highly infectious disease that is a major child killer globally, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. The milestone was reached after no measles cases originating in the Maldives had been recorded …
ISLAMABAD, June 12 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Each winter, a familiar sight crops up in Islamabad and the nearby bustling city of Rawalpindi: people queuing outside firewood shops, waiting their turn to fill bags or plastic baskets with wood to burn when their household gas supply is disrupted. Gas shortages …
The UN Paris Agreement puts in place a legally binding mechanism to increase mitigation action over time. Countries put forward pledges called nationally determined contributions (NDC) whose impact is assessed in global stocktaking exercises. Subsequently, actions can then be strengthened in light of the Paris climate objective: limiting global mean …
This research report presents the first comprehensive overview of the multiple climate hazard risks, and the proposed key issues and challenges facing the South Asian region. This report suggests methods for mapping such risks and estimating their impacts on people and agriculture in South Asia. Regional, country-wise and sub-national assessment …
A likely consequence of global warming will be the redistribution of Earth’s rain belts, affecting water availability for many of Earth’s inhabitants. We consider three ways in which planetary warming might influence the global distribution of precipitation. The first possibility is that rainfall in the tropics will increase and that …
COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh Bangladesh has evacuated at least 350,000 people as a cyclone lashed coastal areas on Tuesday, officials said, causing havoc in refugee camps set up for Rohingya Muslims who have fled violence in neighboring Myanmar. Cyclone Mora struck the islands of Saint Martin and Teknaf in the coastal …
Thousands of survivors of devastating floods and landslides in Sri Lanka are at risk of potentially fatal diseases such as dengue fever, charities warned on Monday as the death toll from the disaster continued to rise. Torrential rains over the last four days have sparked widespread flooding and triggered landslides …
Cash-based interventions (CBIs), offer an interesting opportunity to prevent increases in wasting in humanitarian aid settings. However, questions remain as to the impact of CBIs on nutritional status and, therefore, how to incorporate them into emergency programmes to maximise their success in terms of improved nutritional outcomes. This study evaluated …
An intensifying cyclone churned north towards Bangladesh on Monday after heavy rain in Sri Lanka and thunderstorms in eastern India killed almost 200 people, with more torrential downpours forecast. Impoverished Bangladesh, hit by cyclones every year, warned that some low-lying coastal areas were "likely to be inundated by a storm …
Almost 100 percent water used by the slum people in Dhaka faces faecal contamination, which causes various diarrhoeal diseases and consequently, malnutrition, mostly to children, says a new study. The contamination is caused basically after collection of water from the last point of water supply by the Water and Sewerage …
