Archive for July 12th, 2020

12/07/2020

A Taxing Problem: How to Ensure the Poor and Vulnerable Don’t Shoulder the Cost of the COVID-19 Crisis

12 July 2020 (UN News)*In the wake of the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, tax systems should be reformed, and tax avoidance and evasion reduced, to ensure an economic recovery in which everyone pays their share, says the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Taxes pay for many of the things that are fundamental to functioning societies across the world, such as schools, health care, and social services. Money raised through taxation is crucial to ensuring that these services are maintained during the COVID-19 crisis. But, when businesses shut down, and millions lose their jobs, as has happened during the current crisis, tax revenue plummets.

read more »

12/07/2020

In Nepal, a Woman-Managed Quarantine Centre Tends to Women’s Unique Needs and Recovery

Human Wrongs Watch

11 July 2020 (UN Women)* — Across the globe, many migrants have been waiting to reunite with their families in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions to prevent its spread.

Mithu Tamang waits in a queue to get her temperature checked by staff at WHR's women-managed quarantine facility. Photo: UN Women/Ashma ShresthaMithu Tamang waits in a queue to get her temperature checked by staff at WHR’s women-managed quarantine facility. Photo: UN Women/Ashma Shrestha

Mithu Tamang, 30, was among more than 300 fellow Nepali migrants stuck in Kuwait for over two months before a chartered flight was arranged to bring them home on 11 June. It was the first flight to land since the national lockdown on 24 March 2020.

read more »

12/07/2020

World Youth Skills Day

Respondents to a survey of TVET institutions, jointly collected by UNESCO, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, reported that distance training has become the most common way of imparting skills, with considerable difficulties regarding, among others, curricula adaptation, trainee and trainer preparedness, connectivity, or assessment and certification processes.

read more »

12/07/2020

How One Woman Pulled Off the First Consumer Boycott – and Helped Inspire the British to Abolish Slavery

An illustration of a sugar plantation in Antigua. The British Library, CC BY-ND

For example, some people are advocating a consumer boycott of Starbucks over an internal memo that prohibits employees from wearing gear that refers to the movement. And advocates are urging supporters to target other companies under the Twitter tag #boycott4blacklives.

read more »

12/07/2020

Record Temperature Trajectory Threatens to Breach 1.5°C Global Heating Threshold

Human Wrongs Watch

11 July 2020 (UN Environment)* — New climate data from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) predicts that the annual mean global temperature is likely to be at least 1.0°C above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900) in each of the coming five years (2020-2024) and there is a 20 per cent chance that it will exceed 1.5°C in at least one year.

nasa_imageImage by Scientific Visualization Studio/Goddard Space Flight Center

 1.5oC is the point where global warming linked consequences become increasingly severe and more difficult and expensive to adapt to, protect ourselves from, and control further temperature increases.

Scientifically documented consequences of breaching 1.5oC include 70% loss of corals and loss of half the habitat of insects, including food pollinators, by the end of the century, bringing global food security issues, on top of accelerating frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

read more »

12/07/2020

Unusually Heavy Monsoon Rainfall and Flooding Is Affecting India, Neighbouring South Asian Countries, China, and Japan

10 July 2020 (WMO)* — Unusually heavy monsoon rainfall and flooding is affecting India and neighbouring South Asian countries, as well as China and Japan. This has caused major disruption, displacement and loss of life, and once again highlighted the importance of national meteorological and hydrological services in protecting public safety.

India_Flash_Flood_Uttarakhand_0

.

The situation is expected to be aggravated by further rain. More than 200mm of rainfall could fall in 24 hours in some mountainous regions of Bhutan/Bangladesh, Northeast India, Myanmar and Nepal according to the South East Asia Flash Flood Forecast System.

Additional similar amounts could be possible for the next 4-5 days. Authorities in China are also warning of more rains.

read more »

%d bloggers like this: