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July 04, 2025
 

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DEVELOPMENT

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during the opening segment of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, in Seville, Spain, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 4, 2025
Blistering heat and empty chairs mar U.N.'s flagship development event
Two key ingredients were in less abundance at the once-a-decade International Conference on Financing for Development: money and power.
A malnourished child reacts while a health care worker takes his vitals at Tudun Gambo Primary Health Care Center, Tudun Gambo, Nigeria, in May. Programs funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development are estimated to have helped prevent more than 91 million deaths over the past two decades, including 30 million among children.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 1, 2025
Trump’s plan for USAID cuts risks 14 million additional deaths, study warns
Researchers project 1.8 million excess deaths in 2025 alone if the cuts continue.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi steps off the plane upon his arrival at OFranjo Tudjmano airport in Zagreb, Croatia, on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health / FOCUS
Jun 21, 2025
Modi's ambitious water plan fails to quench India's thirst
On paper, the water initiative is a success. But unconnected water tanks and broken taps point to a very different reality on the ground.
The United Nations' World Food Programme is expected to cut up to 30% of its staff.
WORLD
Jun 17, 2025
U.N. slashes global aid plan over 'deepest funding cuts ever'
The United States — the world's top donor — has heavily slashed foreign aid since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to office in January.
The launch of Vayve Mobility Eva, India's first solar electric vehicle, at the New Delhi auto show in January. An uptick in SEV development and adoption could help least developed and small island states leapfrog to a cleaner transport sector.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2025
Solar EVs are a ray of hope for cutting emissions
Decarbonizing transport is key to cutting emissions in least developed and small island developing states, where travel demand is growing. Solar EVs offer a bright way forward.
Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina (left) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi before their meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on May 14
BUSINESS / Economy
May 27, 2025
Developing nations face 'tidal wave' of China debt, report finds
The poorest 75 countries are set to make "record high debt repayments" to China in 2025 of a combined $22 billion.
A demonstration is held in Malawi as part of government efforts to pilot test the use of drones for humanitarian purposes, with assistance from UNICEF. As this and other technologies become more accessible, we must ensure their use advances sustainable development.
COMMENTARY / World
May 22, 2025
How efficiency can transform sustainable development
In our haste to improve efficiency, we can't ignore the interests of humanity. Democratizing access to AI and other technologies is a fundamental step in this direction.
Farmers load a truck with vegetables in San Ignacio, El Salvador, in May 2020.
WORLD
May 15, 2025
World hunger monitor faces 'large gap' after U.S. aid cuts
USAID cuts have significantly affected humanitarian organizations around the world that were working on life-saving programs.
Bill Gates, who pledged on Thursday to give away almost his entire personal wealth in the next two decades and said the world's poorest would receive some $200 billion via his foundation, during an interview in New York City, on Thursday
BUSINESS
May 9, 2025
Bill Gates says Musk is 'killing' world's poorest children by cutting aid
Bill Gates has pledged to give away $200 billion via his charitable foundation by 2045.
The United Nations General Assembly Building in New York in 2015. An internal U.N. document shows the U.S. is opposing draft reforms of the world's financial system intended to help developing countries.
WORLD / Politics
May 6, 2025
U.N. document shows U.S. seeks to weaken global development finance efforts
It opposes draft reforms of the world's financial system intended to help developing countries, including around taxation, credit ratings and fossil fuel subsidies.
A United Nations Security Council meeting on Tuesday. The U.N. is considering an overhaul that would represent the most sweeping reforms in decades, according to an internal memo.
WORLD / Politics
May 2, 2025
U.N. considers major overhaul amid funding crisis, internal memo shows
Deep budget shortfalls — 20% staffing cuts at UNICEF, 30% at the migration agency—have spurred urgent calls for “bold and immediate” efficiency measures.
A woman takes part in an OpenNyAI field trial in Bengaluru, India, in April 2023. The AI trial was aimed at helping some of the nation’s poorest people access money from government anti-poverty programs.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2025
Will AI close or widen the development gap?
The social, economic and political effects of AI will not naturally bend toward inclusion or equity across the global economy.
World Bank Group President Ajay Banga speaks during an interview at the IMF-World Bank Group spring meetings at IMF headquarters in Washington on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 26, 2025
Developing countries should fast-track U.S. trade deals, World Bank chief says
"You need to negotiate trade systems with the U.S. at the earliest possible (opportunity)," Ajay Banga said. "If you delay, it hurts everyone."
The House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday to promote the development of artificial intelligence technology and take steps to mitigate its risks.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 25, 2025
Japan's Lower House passes AI promotion bill
AI "will be the foundation of economic and social development and is an important technology from the viewpoint of security," the bill said.
Rohingya children eat from jars with the USAID logo on them at a refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, in February.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 23, 2025
China unlikely to fill void left by U.S. aid pullback, data shows
Observers say Beijing often ties access to assistance to backing China’s preferred policy positions.
Men painted like skeletons pose in Lagos to warn on the deadly disease prior to the World Malaria Day on April 25, 2015. The sudden dismantling of USAID, the country's main foreign development arm, is unraveling health care systems across Africa.
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 16, 2025
USAID cuts rip through African health care systems
The sudden dismantling of USAID is unraveling health care systems across Africa that were built from a complicated web of national health ministries, companies and nonprofits.
Members of the pharmacology department take inventory of the last boxes of drugs delivered by the now-dismantled United States Agency for International Development (USAID) amid medical supply shortages in a pharmacy storeroom at Lodwar County Referral Hospital in Lodwar on April 1.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 9, 2025
'Everything was stopped': USAID cuts hit hard in northern Kenya
Protests broke out last month after news that rations, already lowered last year, would be further reduced because of the cuts to U.S. foreign aid spending.
Demonstrators gather outside offices of the U.S. Agency for International Development for a nationwide "Hands Off!" protest against U.S. President Donald Trump and his adviser, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, in Washington on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 9, 2025
U.S. moves to restore some terminated foreign aid programs, sources say
The World Food Programme awards in Lebanon, Syria, Somalia, Jordan, Iraq and Ecuador have been ordered to be restored.
Rohingya refugees wait at the World Food Program (WFP) distribution center to purchase grocery items at the refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, on March 15.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 8, 2025
Trump administration food aid cuts put millions at risk, aid sources say
The U.N. World Food Programme warned that the termination of U.S. funding for emergency food assistance "could amount to a death sentence" for millions.
To sustain growth, emerging and developing economies must boost productivity, increase labor-force participation (especially among women) and build stronger social support systems.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 7, 2025
Emerging economies must get rich before they get old
To sustain growth, emerging economies must boost productivity, increase labor-force participation — especially among women — and build stronger social support systems.
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Onosato's yokozuna promotion causes rare quirk in new sumo rankings
Newly promoted yokozuna Onosato holds a copy of the latest banzuke ranking in Anjo, Aichi Prefecture, on Monday.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Over 900 earthquakes strike Tokara islands in space of two weeks
A screenshot shows many quakes occurring in the Tokara islands over the past 30 days, in this image taken from the U.S. Geological Survey website.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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