Cambodia has the highest microcredit debt per capita in the world, with debts concentrated among people living in poverty who rely on loans for small businesses or emergency expenses. In 2024, around 3.8 million households held more than 3 million microloans, totaling $18 billion. A recent Human Rights Watch report highlights how Cambodian microfinance institutions,… [Read More]
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Faster Flood Protection for Vulnerable Communities Across the UK
The UK government has announced sweeping reforms to flood defence funding, aimed at protecting deprived communities and safeguarding homes and businesses across England. The previous rules, last updated in 2011, relied on outdated evidence and a complex application process that often disadvantaged councils with limited resources, leaving poorer areas without adequate flood protection. Under the… [Read More]
World Bank Predicts Rising Poverty in Ethiopia, Reversing Years of Progress
The World Bank’s latest assessment on poverty and equity in Ethiopia projects that poverty will rise to 43 percent by 2025, up from 33 percent in 2016, measured at $3 per day (2021 PPP). After decades of steady progress in reducing poverty, the country has faced multiple internal and external challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic,… [Read More]
Poverty Among Australian Kids on the Rise, New Data Shows
A new report by the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), released to mark the start of Anti-Poverty Week, reveals that one in six Australian children now live in poverty. Approximately 757,000 children aged 0–14 years, or 15.6% of this age group, are living below the poverty line. This marks an increase from 13% in… [Read More]
Combating Poverty and Climate Crisis: Kuwait Urges International Cooperation
Kuwait has called for intensified global efforts to eradicate poverty, promote equitable development, secure sustainable financing, protect the environment, and expand social safety nets. The appeal was made by Rashed S Al-Abhoul, Third Secretary of Kuwait’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, during the general debate of the UN Second Committee on Economic and Financial… [Read More]
Rising Hunger in Ethiopia: Refugees Face Reduced WFP Assistance
In October 2025, the World Food Programme (WFP) was forced to reduce food rations for 780,000 refugees across 27 camps in Ethiopia, cutting assistance from 60% to just 40% of the standard ration. This translates to fewer than 1,000 calories per person per day. Only 70,000 newly arrived refugees from Sudan and South Sudan continue… [Read More]
Tropical Forest Restoration: A $100 Billion Opportunity for Countries
One month ahead of COP30, the “Forest COP,” Climate Policy Initiative/PUC-RIO (CPI/PUC-RIO) released a report emphasizing the central role tropical forests must play in global climate strategies. The study introduces the Reversing Deforestation Mechanism (RDM), a proposed financing framework designed to drive large-scale forest restoration. According to the report, if fully implemented, RDM could generate… [Read More]
Expanding Digital Opportunities: CARE and HP Foundation Reach 300,000 Beneficiaries
CARE, in partnership with the HP Foundation, is expanding the Strive Women program from the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth to support women-led micro and small enterprises (W-MSEs) in Pakistan, Peru, and Vietnam. This 12-month collaboration aims to strengthen women entrepreneurs’ digital skills, broaden access to markets, and provide financial tools to help their businesses… [Read More]
Zambia’s Growth in Focus: How African Development Fund Investments Are Shaping Tomorrow
At 17, Krang Martir faced a frightening barrier when he sought an HIV test after being assaulted by a friend. The law at the time required parental consent for minors to access HIV services, leaving him in a vulnerable position. Fortunately, a compassionate clinic worker helped him get tested, opening the door to treatment and… [Read More]
Zambia’s Growth in Focus: How African Development Fund Investments Are Shaping Tomorrow
Under the scorching African sun in Kafue, Lusaka Province, farmer Grace Nyirongo Phiri tends to rows of thriving crops nourished by a modern irrigation system. Unlike a few years ago, when watering with hose pipes consumed entire days and left crops unevenly hydrated, she now benefits from a network that delivers water directly to each… [Read More]
£1 Million Boost for Birmingham Museums through Museum Renewal Fund
Birmingham Museums Trust is set to receive £995,000 from the UK government’s Museum Renewal Fund to address acute financial pressures caused by rising operating costs and reductions in local authority funding. The Museum Renewal Fund, a £20 million initiative announced in February 2025 by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, aims to… [Read More]
Human Rights Spotlight: Roma and Sinti Communities at Warsaw Conference
At a side event of the Warsaw Human Dimension Conference organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), participants highlighted that support for Roma and pro-Roma civil society organizations has dramatically declined in recent years. This reduction in funding has weakened their capacity to defend human rights and hold institutions accountable…. [Read More]
Building Africa’s Vaccine Future: EIB and EU Commission Collaborate with BioNTech
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Commission (EC) are partnering with BioNTech to advance a state-of-the-art mRNA vaccine manufacturing facility in Kigali, Rwanda, with up to €95 million in blended financing. The funding includes a €35 million EC grant and a potential €60 million EIB loan, while a CEPI grant of up to… [Read More]
International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction: Uzbekistan Enhances Tech-Driven Emergency Response
With financial support from the European Union, UNDP is assisting Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations in strengthening its capacity to prepare for and respond to disasters. Key initiatives include the establishment of the Institute of Civil Protection, the opening of the Museum of the Tashkent Earthquake, and the creation of the largest earthquake simulation center… [Read More]
Marc and Lynne Benioff Drive Over $1B in Lifetime Philanthropy with New Bay Area Healthcare and Education Initiatives
Marc and Lynne Benioff today announced a $100 million gift to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals to expand state-of-the-art pediatric care, alongside Salesforce’s $39 million in new support for public schools, education nonprofits, and local children’s hospitals. These contributions bring the combined lifetime support of the Benioffs and Salesforce to the Bay Area to over $1… [Read More]
Over 100 Honduran Municipalities Recognized for Excellence in Education
The Ministry of Education and the Association of Municipalities of Honduras (AMHON) have recognized more than 100 municipalities with the Champions for Education awards for their outstanding efforts in improving educational indicators. The initiative, led by the Ministry of Education, AMHON, and the Ministry of Governance, Justice and Decentralization, received technical and financial support from… [Read More]
Driving Farmer Productivity: UK Supports Agro-Industrialisation in Uganda
The first UK-Uganda Agro-Industrialisation Forum took place on 27 August 2025, bringing together representatives from the UK and Ugandan governments, farmers, businesses, and development partners to discuss strategies for boosting farm productivity, increasing exports to the UK, enhancing regional food trade, and improving climate resilience. The forum provided a platform to explore collaborative approaches to… [Read More]
Sustainability Breakthroughs from Uganda’s Leading Socio-Champions
British High Commissioner to Uganda, Her Excellency Lisa Chesney, hosted a networking reception at her residence in Nakasero to celebrate Ugandan innovators and socio-champions recognised by the United Kingdom for their contributions to social impact, sustainability, and innovative solutions to global challenges. During the event, 19-year-old Ugandan climate activist Pascal Ahaisibwe was awarded the King’s… [Read More]
Apply Now: Irish Aid 2026 Global Citizenship Education Grants
Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora, Neale Richmond TD, has officially launched the Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education (GCE) grant application process for 2026. The GCE grants are designed to support organisations in Ireland that aim to increase awareness and understanding of global interdependence, inequality, and development challenges, while encouraging individual and collective… [Read More]
23 Romanian Nationals Returned from Ireland Under EU Freedom of Movement Rules
The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Jim O’Callaghan, announced the completion of a removal operation involving 23 Romanian nationals on grounds of criminality. All individuals, aged between 22 and 49, had received custodial sentences for various offences and were removed from Ireland by charter flight in accordance with the Free Movement Directive (Directive… [Read More]
Ireland Commits Substantial Aid for Gaza as Humanitarian Crisis Intensifies
Tánaiste Simon Harris has announced that Ireland will provide an additional €6 million in humanitarian aid for people in Gaza as UN and humanitarian agencies prepare to scale up relief efforts following the ceasefire. The funding will be distributed among Ireland’s UN partners, with €2 million each going to UNICEF and OCHA, €1 million to… [Read More]
South Sudan’s Political Crisis and Corruption Escalate Human Rights Violations, UN Says
The Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan issued a warning after concluding a mission to the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, highlighting the country’s escalating political crisis and violence. Since gaining independence in July 2011, South Sudan has faced recurring conflict, most notably the outbreak of deadly fighting in late 2013 between forces… [Read More]
Guterres Highlights Global $2 Trillion Price of Indirect Disaster Impacts
On this year’s International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, observed under the theme Fund Resilience, Not Disasters, global leaders highlighted that most of the enormous costs caused by disasters are preventable through proper funding and planning. Amy Pope, chief of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), emphasized that every dollar invested in resilience saves far… [Read More]
