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The ACT Alliance humanitarian mechanism operates through two key components designed to respond to emergencies, conflicts, and natural disasters. One component is the appeals system, which supports large-scale humanitarian crises such as major earthquakes, wars, or typhoons. The second is the Rapid Response Fund (RRF), which allows national ACT members to quickly access funding to… [Read More]

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced an additional £9 million investment to support victims and survivors of violence against women and girls across the capital. The funding aims to strengthen specialist support services and help survivors rebuild their lives with greater safety, dignity, and independence. The funding package includes £6 million for a… [Read More]

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced a $150 million loan to PT Link Net Tbk (Linknet) to strengthen digital infrastructure in Indonesia and improve broadband quality across the country. The financing will support the expansion of Linknet’s fiber broadband services and enhance the company’s operational stability, enabling further investments in the fiber broadband market… [Read More]

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), with support from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), has launched a five-year “Sow and Grow” project in partnership with the Government of Sri Lanka. Backed by funding of USD 10 million, the initiative aims to strengthen Sri Lanka’s Thriposha programme by increasing the production of high-quality local… [Read More]

A second Royal Commission of Inquiry into New Zealand’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has released an extensive report spanning several volumes and hundreds of pages. Commissioned by the coalition government, the inquiry examined key decisions made between 2021 and 2022, particularly those related to vaccine mandates, lockdown measures, and testing systems. During this period,… [Read More]

Earlier this year, the team at Harmonic Financial Planning conducted an unusual site visit in Iceland, standing on volcanic rock beside the massive industrial fans of the Mammoth plant. Located in the Hellisheiði Energy Park and operated by Swiss cleantech company Climeworks, Mammoth is currently the world’s largest Direct Air Capture and Storage facility. Its… [Read More]

European programmes under the Investment for Jobs and Growth goal are increasingly exploring how cooperation actions can help address shared regional challenges more effectively. Through exchanges facilitated by the Interact programme, managing authorities, policymakers, and practitioners are coming together to share experiences and discuss how cooperation can complement mainstream regional funding. A recent exchange held… [Read More]

The venture capital ecosystem is actively discussing “Project Europe,” a €10 million founder-led initiative designed to support the next generation of young entrepreneurs across Europe. The program has attracted attention from investors, startup founders, and industry experts because of its focus on funding and mentoring founders under the age of 25. While many view the… [Read More]

In Madagascar’s coastal villages, women trained through the Barefoot College National Programme, with support from WWF, are bringing solar-powered light to remote stilted homes, transforming both living conditions and opportunities for communities. In villages like Andavoanemboka, families live above rising tides in wooden huts, relying on mangroves for protection against flooding and storms. Solar technicians… [Read More]

Faith-based health providers in Africa are adapting to major shifts in global aid, with leaders in Kenya and Zambia highlighting both challenges and opportunities arising from changes in U.S. foreign assistance. Recent policy shifts under the Trump administration, including deep cuts to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), accelerated a transition toward locally… [Read More]

On International Women’s Day 2026, UNESCO highlighted how literacy initiatives are empowering women and girls, demonstrating that education can be a powerful pathway to gender equality. The theme of this year’s celebration, “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL women and girls,” emphasizes ensuring that women and girls have the right to learn, express themselves freely, access… [Read More]

The UNESCO Prize for Girls’ and Women’s Education 2026 is now accepting nominations for initiatives that drive transformative change in education for girls and women. Despite decades of progress, 133 million girls remain out of school and women still account for nearly two-thirds of all adults who cannot read. Barriers such as gender norms, cultural… [Read More]

The side event “Building a Culture of Preparedness for a Sustainable Future for All” held during the 13th Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development focused on the critical role of schools in disaster preparedness. Organized by UNDP and the Government of Japan in collaboration with ESCAP, UNESCO, UNESCO-IOC, and JICA, the event highlighted how schools serve… [Read More]

The WHO Foundation has announced a collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company to strengthen global health systems for obesity prevention and care. The initiative aims to assess gaps in healthcare systems and develop sustainable, equitable approaches to obesity management, particularly in resource-limited settings. Obesity is a growing global health crisis, with over 2.5 billion adults… [Read More]

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan, together with various non-governmental organizations, launched a series of gender equality events in New York to coincide with the 70th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Taiwan Gender Equality Week (TGEW) officially kicked off in Times Square on International Women’s Day, one day before… [Read More]

Peter Obi, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, has highlighted Nigeria’s worsening socio-economic situation, describing the country as one of the poorest in the world despite its abundant natural and human resources. Obi emphasized that millions of Nigerians are trapped in poverty, warning that the nation has become one of the worst-performing countries globally and… [Read More]

Each year on International Women’s Day, global attention turns to the progress and ongoing challenges in achieving gender equality. In the Arab States, this reflection comes amid escalating conflicts and crises that threaten to undo hard-won development gains. These challenges deepen social and economic fragility, heighten insecurity, and exacerbate existing inequalities, with women and girls… [Read More]

The Ontario government is providing the Township of Nairn and Hyman with up to $90,000 in disaster recovery funding to support emergency response efforts and repairs to critical infrastructure following the July 2025 flooding. The funding is part of the Municipal Disaster Recovery Assistance (MDRA) program, which helps municipalities cover extraordinary costs from natural disasters… [Read More]

Women and girls with disabilities in Kyrgyzstan face alarming levels of harassment, physical and sexual abuse, and economic discrimination, despite recent legal reforms aimed at protecting their rights. Human Rights Watch highlighted that progress on paper has not translated into meaningful protection, as many survivors remain unheard and unable to access the justice system. Research… [Read More]

Since the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that the US Constitution does not guarantee a right to abortion, state restrictions have put pregnant people at serious risk, leading to preventable deaths when abortion care is denied or delayed. Thirteen states now enforce complete abortion bans, while others impose strict limits on when a pregnancy can be… [Read More]

Last week, a St. Petersburg court, in a closed-door hearing, designated the prominent Russian LGBT rights group Coming Out as an “extremist organization,” delivering a severe blow to a community already targeted by the Kremlin’s “traditional values” agenda. This marks the first time an LGBT rights organization has been formally labeled extremist since Russia’s Supreme… [Read More]

Authoritarian regimes consistently impose harsher restrictions on women’s and girls’ rights compared to democracies, but modern authoritarian governments differ from those of the 20th century. Whereas past restrictions on women were often tied to broader ideological struggles, today gender and sexuality are directly targeted as political enemies. Leaders such as Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin… [Read More]

Iranian authorities have imposed a widespread internet shutdown and severe communications restrictions, which Human Rights Watch warns put civilians at serious risk. On February 28, 2026, internet traffic in Iran dropped by 98 percent following strikes by the United States and Israel, signaling a near-total blackout. State-affiliated media reported that only pre-approved websites remained accessible… [Read More]