Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) launched an Indigenous-focused pilot stream under the Zero-Emission Vehicle Awareness Initiative (ZEVAI) in 2023, supported by a $4.5 million budget. Two years later, NRCan is sharing key lessons from the pilot that will guide future Indigenous-focused programming. The initiative was designed around recognition of rights, respect, cooperation, and partnership, emphasizing relationship-building… [Read More]
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Bridging Gaps Through Fundraising: Reflections from the International Fundraising Congress
At this year’s International Fundraising Congress (IFC), the theme of “bridge” emerged repeatedly—not as a metaphor for money, but for connection. The conference highlighted that the gap between NGOs and donors remains wide, with interactions often limited to compliance reports and performance metrics. Experts emphasized that fundraising should move beyond transactions to foster trust, curiosity,… [Read More]
Death Penalty Returns in Burkina Faso as Junta Tightens Grip on Power
The military junta in Burkina Faso has moved to reinstate the death penalty, nearly a decade after the country abolished it. The last judicial execution in Burkina Faso occurred in 1988. On December 4, the junta’s council of ministers approved a bill amending the penal code to reintroduce capital punishment for crimes including high treason,… [Read More]
Protecting Rights in Tanzania: How Global Engagement Can Address Post-Election Abuses
Following the violent response by Tanzanian authorities to widespread protests after the 29 October 2025 presidential and legislative elections, civil society organizations have called on UN Human Rights Council Member and Observer States to increase engagement with Tanzania to prevent further human rights abuses. The organizations urged the Council to hold a debate following a… [Read More]
Government Prepares Heavy-Handed Measures as Tanzania Protests Loom
Tanzanian authorities have engaged in a series of wrongful arrests targeting alleged protest organizers and opposition supporters ahead of planned nationwide demonstrations on December 9, 2025. Human Rights Watch condemned the crackdown, urging the government to release all those arbitrarily detained and respect citizens’ rights to peaceful expression. The protests, encouraged by activists, are intended… [Read More]
Learning from Korea: The Impact of a 6-Hour Transformative Lesson
In South Korea, the lessons of the 1980 Gwangju Democratic Uprising remain deeply ingrained in the national consciousness. During the uprising, soldiers killed at least 166 civilians, mostly students, with no immediate accountability. Over the decades, South Korea undertook a painful but important process of reckoning, including trials of former presidents, truth commissions, and public… [Read More]
When Rights Are Denied: The Human Toll of Unsafe Abortion in Malawi
Tadala Zindawa, a 21-year-old from Tata village in Lilongwe, faced a dire situation when she became pregnant while still in secondary school. Fearing her parents’ disapproval and constrained by Malawi’s strict abortion laws, she resorted to unsafe methods using Aloe Vera and Surf Soap to terminate the pregnancy. The procedure failed and resulted in severe… [Read More]
EU Plans Unprecedented Detention, Sanctions, and Rights Restrictions for Migrants
EU home affairs ministers have agreed on a negotiating position for the EU Return Regulation, intensifying deportations, raids, surveillance, and detention for migrants. Amnesty International warns that these measures represent an unprecedented stripping of rights based on migration status, leaving many people in precarious legal and humanitarian situations. The ministers’ proposal includes plans for “return… [Read More]
Enhancing Health Security: Gavi and World Bank Collaborate on Vaccine Manufacturing and System Resilience
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the World Bank Group have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen their collaboration on strengthening immunization, primary healthcare, and regional vaccine manufacturing in Africa. The partnership aims to mobilize at least US$2 billion between 2026 and 2030 to support countries in fully funding their immunization and primary… [Read More]
From Policy to Practice: Evaluating the UK’s New Anti-Corruption Strategy
The UK’s new anti-corruption strategy is the most ambitious and wide-ranging effort in recent years to address corruption at home, acknowledging that corruption poses a significant threat to the country’s economy, security, and democratic institutions. The strategy includes compelling case studies of domestic corruption and sets out plans to strengthen investigative and analytical capacity, including… [Read More]
ADB Supports Bhutan with $15 Million to Enhance Financial Sector Development
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $15 million financing package to strengthen Bhutan’s banking and capital markets while promoting financial inclusion. The support includes a $10 million policy-based loan and a $5 million grant through the Asian Development Fund, aiming to enhance the stability and resilience of Bhutan’s financial system. The Strengthening the… [Read More]
AfDB Strengthens Country Strategy to Drive Development and Stability in South Sudan
The African Development Bank Group has approved an extension of its Interim Country Strategy Paper for South Sudan through 2027, reaffirming its commitment to supporting peace, stability, and economic recovery in one of Africa’s most fragile contexts. The extension comes as South Sudan continues to face significant challenges, including ongoing conflict, climate shocks, and limited… [Read More]
$160 Million AfDB Grant to Improve Connectivity for Ngandajika Agro-Industrial Park in DR Congo
The African Development Bank Group has approved a $159.5 million loan to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to enhance connectivity to the Ngandajika Agro-Industrial Park, a strategic initiative aimed at opening up the country’s central region. The total cost of the project is $177.16 million, with additional co-financing from the Congolese government. This investment… [Read More]
Unlocking Economic Potential Through Waste Beneficiation in Bushbuckridge – ISOW Initiative
Bushbuckridge, a municipality in the northeastern part of Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, within the Ehlanzeni District Municipality, is embarking on a community-driven waste beneficiation initiative aimed at turning waste into opportunity. The project seeks to empower women and youth, create local business opportunities, strengthen the green economy, and foster collaboration among communities, municipalities, private partners,… [Read More]
Justice in Asia: Learning from Sri Lanka’s History (1960–2024) and Shaping the Future
Since its establishment in the 1950s, The Asia Foundation’s (TAF) Sri Lanka office has prioritized law and justice, focusing on strengthening democracy, upholding the rule of law, and reducing inequities to ensure broad access to justice. Over the decades, Sri Lanka’s recurring cycles of conflict, marginalization, and political instability have shaped both the population’s experiences… [Read More]
Changing the Narrative on Homes: Lessons from Framing Strategies
The Talking about Homes project is a collaboration between the Nationwide Foundation and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), launched in 2020 to address challenges in public conversations about decent and affordable homes. Often, discussions quickly veered toward house prices and profit, rather than the lived experiences of people in need of secure housing. To shift… [Read More]
Northern Ireland Poverty Report 2025: Key Statistics and Analysis
This report provides a comprehensive overview of poverty in Northern Ireland in 2025, highlighting where further investigation and policy action are needed. Despite some improvements in reducing overall poverty over the past 15 years, progress has largely stalled, particularly in addressing child poverty. The report adopts the relative poverty measure after housing costs to analyze… [Read More]
Gates Foundation Strengthens Partnership with GFF to Accelerate Global Health Progress
On December 6, 2025, in Tokyo, the Global Financing Facility (GFF) welcomed a US$100 million pledge from the Gates Foundation to support the GFF’s new five-year strategy for 2026–2030. This funding reinforces the shared goal of ending preventable deaths among women, children, and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries and will help expand access to… [Read More]
Two Global Consortiums Chosen to Lead Civil Society Initiatives Through GFF x CIVIC Platform
The World Bank’s GFF × CIVIC Platform, a joint initiative of the Global Financing Facility (GFF) and the CIVIC: The Civil Society and Social Innovation Alliance, has selected two consortiums to lead civil society and youth engagement in health systems. Supported by a US$10 million investment over two years, the consortiums will manage subgranting and… [Read More]
GFF Launches TRANSFORM 2030 Strategy to Drive Global Health 2026–2030
Global health and finance leaders gathered in Tokyo for the 2025 Universal Health Coverage High-Level Forum as the GFF launched its new five-year strategy, TRANSFORM 2030: Transforming Health Systems, Saving Lives, which was unanimously endorsed by its two governing bodies—the Investors Group and Trust Fund Committee—during their annual meetings in Dakar, Senegal, from November 11–13…. [Read More]
100-Day Drive Kicks Off to End Child Marriage in 18 Districts
The Just Rights for Children (JRC), a network of NGOs, has launched a 100-day intensive campaign to eliminate child marriage in one lakh villages, focusing on 18 high-prevalence districts in Haryana. These districts were identified based on data from the National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-21), highlighting areas with the greatest incidence of child marriage. The… [Read More]
Denmark Commits DKK 10 Million to Boost AU Peace Fund Secretariat Operations
The African Union Peace Fund Secretariat (AUPF) and the Government of Denmark have formalized a three-year strategic partnership, marked by a DKK 10 million grant agreement signed on 5 December 2025 in Addis Ababa. This funding is intended to strengthen Africa’s peace financing architecture and support sustainable, African-led peace and security interventions. The agreement, endorsed… [Read More]
Zambia Accelerates Adoption of Electric Cooking Solutions Nationwide
MCFA is supporting Sun King, an African off-grid energy company, to expand its operations in Zambia and scale access to clean electric cooking solutions for households. With approximately EUR 1.2 million in funding, Sun King plans to offer electric induction stoves to grid-connected urban and peri-urban customers. The stoves feature smart metering technology that records… [Read More]
