The author is the Executive Director of the BRAC Institute of Educational Development, BRAC University in Bangladesh.

Children display dexterity during a free play session prior to the pandemic. Credit: BRAC

DHAKA, Bangladesh, Apr 26 2021 (IPS) – Conventional wisdom is that the health of young children is not at great risk from COVID-19, but, in the Global South, the space constraints imposed on young children by the pandemic pose a significant risk to the stimulation on which brain development thrives. Early childhood development is further jeopardized by the pandemic’s impact on caregivers.

A new early childhood development infrastructure has …

An SOP to vaccinate vulnerable groups without access to any kind of ID card is a much needed step, and one in the right direction. | Picture courtesy: Flickr

MUMBAI, India, Jun 7 2021 (IPS) – In May, the (MoHFW) uploaded a (SOP) related to ‘COVID-19 Vaccination of Persons without prescribed Identity Cards through CoWIN’ on its website.

The SOP reiterates that the recipient of the vaccine must register on the and that the vaccinator must verify the recipient with one of seven prescribed photo identity cards:

Aadhaar card
Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC)–Voter ID
Passport
Driving License
PAN Card
National Population Register (NPR) Smart Card
P…

 
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres believes “our solidarity based on the human rights and human dignity of all highlights the crucial role of religious leaders in our communities and beyond”. He cited previous public health crises, including HIV/AIDS and Ebola, noting how spiritual leadership had been a positive benefit in terms of community values, attitudes and actions.

Religious leaders. Credit: UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

NEW YORK, Jul 22 2021 (IPS) – The UN High Level Political Forum (HLPF) came to a conclusion on July 15th. Another HLPF, another series of declaration, and commitments and concerns articulated by governments.

All of which are…

A market vendor sells produce at Victoria Market in Port Victoria, Seychelles. Credit: UN Women/Ryan Brown

BRIGHTON, UK, Sep 20 2021 (IPS) – COVID-19 has exposed numerous fractures in global food systems that leave millions at risk of food insecurity. Like the numerous political failures in dealing with COVID, the repercussions of food system failings are experienced by rich and poor countries alike, with the poorest and most marginalised paying the greatest price.

To be clear, while the numbers of those who are undernourished remain shamefully high, this is a food crisis that is not just about hunger or famine. There is also a silent and growing crisis of an estimate…

SYDNEY and KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 19 2021 (IPS) – The bogey of inflation has been revived. Dubious pre-pandemic economic progress, fiscal constraints and vaccine apartheid were bad enough. Now, ostensibly anti-inflationary measures also threaten recovery and sustainable development.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised downwards its latest global growth forecast. Its latest (WEO) warns of a “dangerous divergence” between richer and poorer countries. This has been exacerbated by, but has also worsened national fiscal disparities and the ‘great vaccine divide’.

Anis Chowdhury

Inflation bogey revived
Meanwhile, there is growing talk of ‘s…

Credit: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

LONDON, Dec 8 2021 (IPS) – Officially reported deaths from started to rise again in autumn 2021 in a number of economies in the . While in advanced economies in Europe the mortality rate has remained low despite the pick-up in Covid-19 cases, in the EBRD regions the mortality and infection rates continued to move in tandem.

Reflecting this, daily Covid-19 deaths per million population were four times higher in the EBRD regions than in advanced Europe as of November 2021.

…

The African Storybook Project has developed writing and publishing apps that are promoting literacy. Credit: Saide

BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe, Feb 10 2022 (IPS) – Suwaiba Hassan published an engrossing story. She used digital apps that are giving literacy a boost.

The student from Katsina State in Nigeria, Hassan, won a National Reading Competition for a story she created using the African Storybook reader app and the African Storybook maker app. , an education NGO, developed the apps through its African Storybook (ASb) project.
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The app…

Credit: WHO

MADRID, Apr 13 2022 (IPS) – People around the world are unknowingly being exposed to water laced with antibiotics, which could spark the rise of drug-resistant pathogens and potentially fuel another global pandemic, warns a new report.

The , elaborated by the United Nations Environment Programme (), found that, globally, not enough attention is being focused on the threat posed by antimicrobial resistance with most antibiotics being excreted into the environment via toilets or through open defecation.

Already in 2015, 34.8 billion daily doses of antibiotics were consumed, with as active substances. Since then the amount of daily consumed …

ROME, Jun 1 2022 (IPS) – Developing countries – in Africa, in Asia, in Latin America and in the Middle East are facing a combination of crises that are unprecedented in recent times. Over the last three years they have had to face the COVID-19 crisis, the food crisis, the energy crisis, the climate change crisis, the debt crisis and, on top of all this, a global recession. The crises have overlapped, and each has added to the problems created by the previous ones.

Daud Khan

First among the crises relates to food – the most basic of human needs. Even before the events in Ukraine there were shortages and uncertainties. International food prices rose by 40% over their level…

With the rise in COVID-19 cases fueled by new variants, the number of long COVID cases will keep increasing. Credit: Unsplash/Ivan Diaz

ABUJA, Sep 1 2022 (IPS) – More than two-years in, the COVID-19 pandemic rages on with rising cases and deaths every day.  A silent and more long-term pandemic occurring simultaneously is long COVID. The impact of long COVID has serious consequences for the future of humanity and should worry us all.

The recent  by the U.S. Centres for Disease Control shows that an average of 14% of US adults report long COVID symptoms. This is staggering because 93 million cases have been reported in the U.S. This implies that 13 million peop…