Looking for a non-Western lens to the Black Death? Try this translation of a work written in Mamluk Egypt

‘Merits of the Plague’ was written 600 years ago by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, a medieval polymath

In the future there will be more rain, but less water, in the Nile Basin

About 250 million people are reliant on the Nile’s waters in Ethiopia, Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan and Egypt

Southern trade losses offset gains in capital

Financial transfer estimates that generously portray Northern largesse are deceptive for they camouflage huge payments triggered by the Gulf war.

COP27: African bloc unhappy; says agreement on framework for adaptation goal being delayed

Parties have decided to initiate the development of a framework for GGA that will be considered and adopted in 2023

Why a chain of tiny Pacific islands wants an international court opinion on responsibility for the climate crisis

Vanuatu and its partners are pursuing a ground-breaking diplomatic strategy and others will likely follow

Infant mortality, youth unemployment among top exclusion factors in North Africa

Political instability and conflict have contributed significantly to exacerbate inequalities among some regions

'Dissatisfaction with quality of life triggered Arab Spring'

Standard development indicators failed to predict the outburst of anger in the spring of 2011, says a World Bank report

3 things a climate scientist wants world leaders to know ahead of COP27

Earth desperately needs COP27 to succeed; lack of progress at past talks means there is less optimism towards COP27 to achieve what is needed

Dictating terms

The US forces its agenda upon other member states at the fifth review conference of the bioweapons convention

CoP27 will be ‘implementation CoP’: Egypt CoP27 Presidency

The issues prioritised by developing countries must be placed front and center with loud voices and clear asks

Egypt and Ethiopia are finally working on a water deal — what that means for other Nile River states

Egypt and Ethiopia have waged a diplomatic war of words over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which started filling up in July 2020

COP27 diary (November 14): Global shield against climate risks for loss and damage launched

A round-up of what went on at the Sharm El-Sheikh summit 

COP27: We don’t need new pacts, implement current ones, says climate scientist Saleemul Huq

Part 2: The climate scientist talks about need for region and ecosystem-wise targets for adaptation

COP27: Carbon emissions, energy consumption due to constructions back to pre-COVID levels

Report reveals 10 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide emitted in the atmosphere in 2021; Most significant energy demand in last 10 years

Egypt’s support to developing countries gives hope for COP27: Climate scientist Saleemul Huq

Part 1: The climate scientist talks about critical climate issues that can play a major role at the Sharm El-Sheikh summit

How effective is the global polio eradication drive?

An optimistic note, about wiping out polio from the six afflicted countries, was to be sounded at a conference organised by the World Health …

Less than 24 hours left: ‘Need extra efforts from all for agreement on loss & damage’

Countries shying away from difficult decisions, need to show political will, says COP27 President

Double standards on fossil fuel, backtracking on pledges: BASIC fires shots at wealthy countries at COP27

India, China and Pakistan to work together in climate forum over common interests of developing countries

920 million people could face conflict over the world’s rivers by 2050: What our study found in Africa

There’s a real risk that conflicts over sharing water resources will become more common as global temperatures rise

Battle for the Internet

As the Internet becomes the public square and the marketplace of our world, it is increasingly becoming a contested terrain. Its potential for …