The upsurge in violence and insecurity in Burkina Faso’s Sahel, Centre-Nord, Nord, Boucle du Mouhoun, and Est regions have triggered an unprecedented humanitarian emergency. As of last June, nearly 220,000 persons were displaced, a number that has tripled since December 2018. By the end of the year, this number could reach 335,000 displaced persons. These internally displaced persons (IDPs) have fled armed attacks and conflicts to seek refuge among host communities, often the poorest, who are now struggling to meet their basic protection and assistance needs. As living conditions have seriously been undermined for both IDPs and their host communities, the International…
Author: Akanimo Sampson
As tensions between the United States and Iran continue to rise, the oil market keeps struggling to sustain a rally despite supply restrictions that generally would be considered bullish. This is largely because US sanctions on Venezuela and Iran have removed more than 1.5 million barrels of daily supply from the market, and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has extended a supply-cut deal into 2020. Consequently, in recent days, sentiment in the oil market has shifted dramatically with hedge funds, producers and traders all taking a more bearish tack in response to what they see as weakness in…
A Canadian multinational financial services company and the largest bank in the country by market capitalization, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) has predicted that the current oversupply on global gas markets will continue into mid-2020. As a result, the royal bank has cut its European gas price forecast for next year. In a report entitled European Gas Strategy — Tug of War, the bank which serves over 16 million clients and has 80,000 employees worldwide, said it saw few bullish signals over the remainder of the summer. ‘’We see the market as clearly oversupplied in 2019 and more moderately oversupplied in 2020, with really only…
Burdened by the worsening migrants and refugees’ crises, two top agencies of the United Nations- the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)- have tasked nations of the world to urgently address why people migrate. IOM had last week reported the death of 683 migrants on the three main Mediterranean Sea routes through 199 days of this year which represented 47 per cent of the total (1,449 deaths) confirmed during the same period in 2018. It also reported that 34,226 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea through July 17, roughly a 34 per cent decrease from the 51,782…
A growing number of institutional investors are holding off from making investments in coal-burning power plants since coal emits more global-warming carbon dioxide than natural gas. Amid a strengthening movement to replace it as a power source, there is a research that aims to enhance coal’s appeal by reducing its impact on the environment. The Japan Coal Energy Center (JCOAL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with parties including the American state of Wyoming and Columbia University. The project was reportedly mentioned during the summit between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Group of…
African countries are battling to navigate non-tariff barriers as the continent opens her free trade area. But, an innovative online tool by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the African Union (AU) is set to help them overcome the challenge. Though the ink on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement has dried and the players ready to trade, a large and complicated hurdle still remains, the Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs). NTBs are a wide range of restrictive regulations and procedures, other than tariffs, that make trade difficult and/or costly. They are one of the main roadblocks to…
Tobacco is the deadliest plant in the world, responsible for the demise of more than seven million people a year, according to the CDC. But in a new study, researchers from Cornell University and the University of Illinois are giving the plant species a new direction with genetic engineering. Instead of bringing carcinogens, tobacco plants could produce ingredients for laundry detergent, and far more cheaply than manufacturers can now. Science is often a frustrating process, full of tedium and setbacks. But sometimes an experiment goes better than anticipated. Case in point: In their new study (out last week in the journal…
There is a fierce, but silent Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) war between Vladimir Putin’s Russia and Donald Trump’s America. The war seems to be largely ignored by the mainstream American media, most likely because of their rejection of the hurricane Trump kind of politics. The unrestrained American ‘aggression’ triggered the war. Those who know better say a growing US shale gas production sparked Russian efforts to lift her LNG exports. According to the International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers (GIIGNL), American producers shipped 10.73 million tons of LNG to Japan, China and other Asian countries in 2018, closing in on…
The opposition African Action Congress (AAC) in Cross River State has challenged Governor Ben Ayade to come out clean in an alleged N500 million Micro-Finance bank swindle by instituting a probe into the allegation. State Chairman of the smoking party, Agba Jalingo, says he wants the governor to come out publicly and tell the electorate where the funds that was released for the state Micro-Finance bank is. While AAC is claiming that the money is not in the bank, the party pointed out that in February 2016, when the governor traveled, he summoned an emergency EXCO meeting presided over by his deputy…
President Donald Trump has a seeming tough environmental battle on his hands. The lives of tens of millions Americans is currently at risk. A deadly heat wave has gripped much of the country, resulting in at least six deaths already. The environmental development has also left tens of thousands of people in New York and Michigan without power, and causing the cancellation of many public events. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned that the heat can be a silent killer. This is coming as more than two-thirds of the citizenry are feeling temperatures push into the…
The Red Chamber of Nigeria’s bicameral Legislature under the leadership of Senator Ahmed Lawan has come under the fire by ThisDay newspaper. In its editorial opinion published on Sunday, the influential newspaper expressed disappointment in the Senate’s handling of the confirmation hearing of Justice Tanko Muhammad as the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN). According to the newspaper, ‘’there are clear issues of fitness and requisite qualification for the serious job of the Chief Justice of any country. Sadly, in the confirmation hearing of Mr. Muhammad as the CJN, the new Senate leadership, headed by Ahmed Lawan, may have missed the import of…
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will this coming August 10, release a new port liner shipping connectivity index for more than 900 ports, as well as new statistics regarding port calls and time spent in ports. The UNCTAD liner shipping connectivity index (LSCI) for 2019 is showing countries that have improved or worsened their positions in maritime transport networks. China has retained her lead as the country best connected to others by sea, the index shows. The country’s LSCI has increased by 51% since 2006. UNCTAD’s Chief of Trade Logistics, Jan Hoffmann, said ‘’a country’s position in the…
From next year, effective January 1, 2020, all vessels worldwide will only be able to refuel using fuel with a maximum sulphur content of 0.5 percent. This is the requirement of the global fuel guideline known as IMO2020. As of March 1, no vessel will be permitted to have on board any fuel with a high sulphur content. Only ships with exhaust gas cleaning systems will be excluded. In order to be compliant at the turn of the year and to consume their remaining heavy fuel oil in time, shipping companies are already making a number of preparations. Insiders say…
The Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Isabelle Durant, told participants at the largest gathering on sustainable development progress in New York on July 17 that the world needs fairer, not less, trade to promote shared prosperity. The High-level Political Forum (HLPF) convened at the United Nations headquarters in New York from July 9-18 to take stock of the progress made on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and chart next steps towards a more prosperous world by 2030. Geneva-based trade trio, UNCTAD, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the International Trade Centre (ITC), told…
The Ondo State Governorship election will be due in about a year’s time. But, the ground work in some of the interested political parties is gradually gaining momentum. Though Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), is interested in retaining his position on the platform of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), there are other emerging aspirants with the party who are at the moment, engaging key stakeholders in serious consultations. Like in the APC, the battle for the governorship ticket does not promise to be easy either in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The party’s…
The disruptive effects of big technology companies on digital and offline markets was the subject of intense discussion at a recent UNCTAD meeting on competition law and policy. Governments gathered from July 10-13 at the United Nations’ headquarters in Geneva for a three-day meeting with three main issues in their crosshairs: · Competition law and the digital economy, · Competition in health care services and pharmaceuticals markets, and · International cooperation in tackling cross-border anticompetitive practices and mergers. The driving force behind the meeting was an urgency to address the remarkable increase in market concentration in many sectors of the…
An environmental genocide, better known in environmental rights advocacy circles as ecocide, is currently threatening to send the planet into oblivion. But, how prepared are you for this looming oblivion? Any sound exit plan yet? At the moment, a new study has found that carbon dioxide emissions may trigger a reflex in the carbon cycle, with devastating consequences. The NASA and the National Science Foundation supported study – Characteristic disruptions of an excitable carbon cycle – by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) scientist said, ‘’the great environmental disruptions of the geologic past remain enigmatic. Each one results in a…
The Nigerian Army has confirmed the killing of a Colonel, a Captain and three soldiers by Boko Haram insurgents s about 30 persons in Borno and Sokoto states were wiped off the face of the Earth in the unabated killing spree in Nigeria. While suspected armed bandits in Sokoto State allegedly killed over 20 persons in Dan Tatsako Village of Goronyo Local Government Area, in Borno State, the hotbed of Boko Haram bloodletting, an Army Colonel, a Captain with his four escorts and a driver were also allegedly killed on Thursday by some fleeing terrorists between Mainok and Jakana, along…
Within the second week of this July, a group of 280 Ethiopians returned home with the support of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) after being stranded in Yemen. The returnees are among a large group of Ethiopian migrants from Yemen who have been taken home as part of an IOM Voluntary Humanitarian Return operation that began last May. IOM has safely returned 2,742 Ethiopians in the past 50 days with funding from the US State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) through the Regional Migration Response Plan (RMRP). One of the returnees who have made it back said, ‘’when…
Despite the uncertainty of trade war that continues to loom over the outlook for the second half of this year, major Taiwanese tech companies wrapped up an eventful but better-than-expected month in June, logging modest revenue growth. Each month the Nikkei Asian Review tracks the revenue of 19 Taiwanese tech suppliers, whose clients range from hardware giants Apple, Huawei, HP, Dell and Cisco, to internet companies such as Amazon and Google, and even electric vehicle maker Tesla and telecom equipment builders Nokia and Ericsson. Key findings for the month are presented below in an easy-to-digest, graphics-led format. In June, total…
A new report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says the world is off track to meet most of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets linked to hunger, food security and nutrition. according to a FAO report released today. The FAO report paints a grim picture, according to the organisation’s Chief Statistician, Pietro Gennari. ‘’Four years into the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, regression is the norm when it comes to ending hunger and rendering agriculture and the management of natural resources – be that on land or in our oceans – sustainable’’, he added. For FAO’s Deputy Director-General for Climate and Natural Resources,…
Two people have been allegedly shot dead in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, following the killing of a final year student of electrical electronic engineering in the state University of Technology (CRUTECH), Calabar, on Monday. The latest killing which took place on Tuesday was said to have taken place between Palm Street and the university pavilion field in Calabar South Local Government Area. They died as a result of gun shots. Local sources could not immediately establish whether they were students of the university. Before the Tuesday bloodletting, the fallen final year engineering student was identified as James Chia.…
Leaders of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) have started a seeming major initiative aimed at cementing the broken walls of Nigeria as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has started backstage mobilisation of Igbo youths to stand up to the killer herdsmen. MACBAN is pressing for the cooperation of all key stakeholders in its bid to resolve the herdsmen crisis in the country. Apparently not persuaded, IPOB said Igbo youths were ready to face the youth wing of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) after the expiration of its 30- day ultimatum. According to the group that is crusading…
One of the latest Rael-Science posts, has a heart-warming news for the peoples of the Niger Delta, Nigeria’s vastly polluted oil and gas region. Rael-Science says scientists in China and the United States have found some chemical properties in mussels that will help in remediating polluted ecosystems like those of the Niger Delta. In a review published on July 10 in the journal Matter, the two scientists say mussels, the notorious maritime stowaways known for damaging the hulls of boats, have widespread engineering applications. They suggest that the chemistry of mussel threads is inspiring engineering innovations that address a wide range…
Experts at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD) annual global forum on consumer issues, have ruled that consumers hold the key to a sustainable future for the endangered planet, where prosperity for all will no longer cost the earth. A consumer with accurate information, effective protection and solid rights – both online and offline – is a powerful force for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, various experts shared with governments at the United Nations’ European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland in the second week of this July. UNCTAD Deputy Secretary-General, Isabelle Durant, said ‘’in the face of the climate crisis threatening…
A new research has found that making minor changes to how food is produced, supplied and consumed around the world could free up 20 percent, a fifth of agricultural land. The study – Transforming Agricultural Land Use Through Marginal Gains In The Food System (Global Environmental Change, 2019; 57: 101932 DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2019.101932) – by Peter Alexander, Anjali Reddy, Calum Brown, Roslyn C. Henry and Mark D.A. Rounsevell said: There is an increasing need for transformational changes in the global food system to deliver healthy nutritional outcomes for a growing population while simultaneously ensuring environmental sustainability. However, such changes are subject to political and…
Nigeria, the West African country widely regarded as a giant in the African continent has come under the hammer of a global confederation of 19 organisations working together with partners and local communities in more than 90 countries, Oxfam International. Oxfam whose work in Nigeria focuses on: Economic justice and improving livelihoods, gender justice and female leadership, good governance and the Niger Delta, as well as disaster risk reduction and responding to humanitarian crises says the country manifests an array of contradictions. According to the group, Nigeria is a rich country of poor people and decaying infrastructure;, ‘’though the sixth largest producer of oil…
Twenty organisations are joining forces in a new Anti-Trafficking Task Force (ATTF) in humanitarian action in a bid to better respond to trafficking in persons in Borno State, the North-East axis of Nigeria, where 7.1 million people need humanitarian assistance. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM), jointly with Heartland Alliance International and the UN refugee agency, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) launched the Task Force on July 9, in Maiduguri, the state capital. The Task Force will advocate for the inclusion of anti-trafficking measures in the regional humanitarian response and will operate under the Protection Sector Working Group (PSWG). Humanitarian actors face…
The United Nations has rolled out a multi-billion naira humanitarian respond plan for 7.1 million victims of the undying Boko Haram terrorism said to be at risk in Nigeria, and neighboring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. Among the worst cases, going by reports from humanitarian agencies, are women and children. In support of Nigeria and countries hosting Nigerian refugees, the UN and partners simultaneously launched the 2019-2021 Humanitarian Response Strategy and the Regional Refugee Response Plan, respectively seeking $848 million and $135 million, a total of some N354 billion to continue providing food, water, shelter and protection to the most vulnerable people…
The commitment of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, and those of his counterparts in the West African sub-region, to making poverty history, has come under a sledge-hammer. The Oxfam’s Commitment to Reducing Inequality (CRI) Index which ranks countries according to their commitment to tackle inequality, reveals that the West African governments are exacerbating inequality by underfunding public services, such as healthcare and education, while under-taxing corporations and the wealthy. West African countries, according to the report, lose an estimated $9.6 billion each year through corporate tax incentives offered to multinational companies, a huge amount that could be…
