In The News

Cyclone Amphan and Deadly Havoc: BBC

May 21, 2020
A violent cyclone with wind gusts up to 185 kilometers per hour struck Bangladesh and India, with governments evacuating millions from the coasts. Meteorological departments forecast heavy rainfall, flooding and mudslides. “The cyclone comes as tens of thousands of migrant workers continue to flee cities for their villages during India's lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus,” notes the...

COVID-19 Threatens Refugee Camps: Economist

April 11, 2020
Refugee camps around the world are under urgent threats of COVID-19 due to high density and lack of necessary medical supplies. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, there are more than 70 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, most of whom dwell in low- and middle-income countries. Poor conditions will allow the virus to spread. Social distancing is almost...

“Now He’s Dead”: Spiegel

Benjamin Moscovici March 24, 2020
Families from Africa’s poorest nations send children and spouses to Europe with the hope of earning wages. An article from Spiegel reports on a family who received a phone call about a son's death a year after he had left home. “Lansana, like so many migrants who have embarked on similar journeys, carried the hopes of his entire family with him when he left,” reports Benjamin Moscovici for...

COVID-19 Advice Is Difficult for Some Nations: BBC

Swaminathan Natarajan March 20, 2020
One out of seven people around the world, about 30 percent of the world’s urban population, lives in close quarters with minimal access to ventilation, sewage facilities or clean water, all of which help prevent spread of disease. Writing for BBC News, Swaminathan Natarajan describes a family of eight living in a one-room home with no running water, electricity or waste collection. Soap is a...

Denmark the New “American Dream”? PIIE

Jacob Funk Kirkegaard March 2, 2020
Denmark may represent a new version of the American dream, as voters and Democratic candidates in the US presidential race seek secure benefits, especially affordable health care. An OECD study suggests that low-income families in Denmark, due to reduced inequality, can enter the middle class in two generations whereas low-income US families require five generations. Such reduced inequality comes...

African Farmers Take on Big Chocolate: FT

David Pilling January 19, 2020
Ghana and Ivory Coast produce about two thirds of the world’s cocoa. David Pilling, writing for the Financial Times, questions why such nations cannot break free of poverty, and then explains how many farms are small, producing just a few bags of pods each year. “Ghana supplies about one-fifth of all cocoa beans, for which it earns about $2bn a year, less than one-fiftieth of the value of the...

Pakistan’s Biggest City Crumbles: Economist

December 17, 2019
Karachi has a population of 16 million people, about double that of New York City. Pakistan’s largest city and former national capital functions as the country’s financial center. Monsoons and environmental disasters have shed light on years of poor urban planning and maintenance. “Wild, unplanned growth has overwhelmed almost every element of urban planning,” the Economist reports. “Sewers,...