Africa

Credit: Taryn Schulz / UN News
 
Last week’s UN conference on ocean (June 9-13) was aimed at supporting and taking urgent action to conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. Co-hosted by France and Costa Rica, UNOC3 brought 15,000 participants, including more than 60 Heads of State and Government, to France’s Mediterranean coast, in Nice.

By Iván Duque Márquez
BOGOTA, Colombia, Jun 17 2025 (IPS)

The services the ocean provides are the backbone of our collective health, wealth and food security, yet today just 2.7% of the ocean has been assessed and deemed to be effectively protected. In failing to establish adequate safeguards, not only are we condemning communities and ecosystems across the world to decline and collapse, we are also overlooking a significant economic opportunity.

By investing in protecting just 30% of the ocean globally, we stand to unlock around $85 billion per year in annual returns and avoided costs by 2050. That’s the return from three key benefits alone – preserving natural coastal defences to prevent escalating property damages; avoiding the costs of carbon emissions from seagrass loss; and reducing profit losses from declining, overexploited fisheries. These are conservative estimates – additional benefits from spillover effects on tourism, fishery yields, and job creation could raise returns even further.

Iván Duque Márquez

Currently $15.8 billion is needed annually to meet the global target to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030. Just $1.2 billion currently flows to marine protection annually. That’s a finance gap of $14.6 billion – a miniscule fraction of what the global community funnels into defence spending every year. Why are we repeatedly missing the mark on this critical goal when it represents such an opportunity?

This is a question of global equity and responsibility. Fewer than one-third of coastal countries have established quantified, timebound targets aligned with 30×30. Without stronger leadership from these countries, global efforts risk stalling further.

Wealthy nations can and must deliver on the pledges made in their revised National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) and continue to embed targets in national plans, regional action plans, and national biodiversity financing plans. Given the financial returns and ecological imperative, this should be an easy decision.

Luckily, there is no shortage of examples to learn from. There are already nations demonstrating the level of ambition needed to reach the 30×30 target, using innovative policy and finance models to secure the protection of their marine ecosystems – and empower the communities that rely on them.

In my home country of Colombia, a commitment to protect 34% of the country’s ocean areas by 2030 has already been exceeded, with 37.6% of marine areas currently under protection. This achievement reflects a whole-of-government approach, incorporating mechanisms to secure legal land ownership and ensure inclusive decision-making.

Meanwhile our neighbor Ecuador’s debt for nature swaps are generating proceeds for the protection of critically important Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) – including a newly-created trans-national MPA corridor – for a number of years to come.

To succeed in reaching the 30×30 goal, and unlocking the financial returns associated with this milestone, we will need to look beyond national borders and focus attention on the high seas – just 1.5% of which is currently protected.

The impending ratification of the High Seas Treaty – focused on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction – is expected to catalyse action in this area, with countries already developing proposals for the first wave of high seas MPAs. This represents a generational opportunity for cooperation on global commons.

Chile is demonstrating strong leadership in this area, proposing the creation of a high seas MPA covering the international waters portion of the Salas y Gómez and Nazca ridges – a 3,000km long biodiversity hotspot and vital migratory corridor for whales, sharks, and turtles.

Chile’s plans connect existing national MPAs with proposed protections in international waters, aiming to create a continuous network of conservation areas to maintain ecological connectivity for migratory species. This is exactly the kind of multilateral coordination we need to scale.

We are at a critical juncture for ocean protection. If we act now, we can deliver long-term health, food security and economic stability for coastal communities across the globe, reaping the associated economic and environmental returns.

As a former head of government, I understand what it means to make difficult budgetary decisions. But it is clear that some investments pay back many times over – for people, for the planet, and for future generations. The time to close the ocean finance gap is now. The question is no longer whether we can afford to protect the ocean – but whether we can afford not to.

Iván Duque Márquez, the youngest elected President in Colombia’s history at the age of 41, is currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center, a Transformational Distinguished Fellow at Oxford University, a Distinguished Fellow at WRI, a Leadership Fellow at FIU, a Distinguished Fellow at the Bezos Earth Fund, and a member of the Campaign for Nature Global Steering Committee. He is a global expert in sustainability, conservation, green finance, and energy transition.

IPS UN Bureau

 

Excerpt:

Iván Duque Márquez is a Former President of Colombia (2018-2022)

By Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Nadia Malyanah Azman
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Jun 17 2025 (IPS)

Wars, economic shocks, planetary heating and aid cuts have worsened food crises in recent years, with almost 300 million people now threatened by starvation.

Jomo Kwame Sundaram

Why hunger?
World food production has increased almost fourfold since 1960. FAO statistics indicate enough output to feed the world’s eight billion plus another three billion!

Clearly, inadequate food due to population growth cannot explain persistent hunger. Yet, the number of hungry people has been rising for more than a decade. So, why are so many hungry if there is more than enough food for all?

The multi-stakeholder 2025 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) notes 2024 was the sixth consecutive year of high and growing acute food insecurity, with 295.3 million people starving!

In 2023, 733 million people experienced chronic hunger. Over a fifth (22.6%) of the 53 countries/territories assessed in this year’s GRFC were especially vulnerable.

Food output in 2024 continued to rise. In 2022, the world produced 11 billion metric tonnes of food, including 9.6 billion tonnes of cereal crops, such as maize, rice and wheat.

Most hungry people are poor. The poverty line is supposed to reflect the poor’s ability to afford basic needs, mainly food. But the discrepancy between poverty and hunger trends implies inconsistent data and definitions.

Nadia Malyanah Azman

Over 700 million worldwide survive on less than $2.15 daily without enough food. Presumably, the 3.4 billion with less than $5.50 daily can barely afford enough nutrition.

New World Bank data estimates 838 million, 10.5% of the world’s population, were in extreme poverty in 2022, 125 million more than previously estimated. It expects one in ten (9.9%) to be in extreme poverty in 2025, with about 750 million hungry.

The extreme poverty line is now $3/day instead of $2.15/day. The poor comprised almost half (48%) the world’s population in 2022. With bleak medium-term growth prospects and inequality still growing, their prospects look especially dismal.

While dietary or caloric energy is essential for human activity, adequate dietary diversity is crucial for human nutrition. Hence, the poor typically cannot afford to eat enough, let alone healthily.

Women and girls are generally more likely to go hungry than men, with hunger rates in women-headed households usually higher. UN-recognized ‘indigenous peoples’ are under 5% of the world’s population but account for 15% of the extreme poor, suffering more hunger than others.

Why food crises?
The multi-stakeholder 2025 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) notes 2024 was the sixth consecutive year of high and growing acute food insecurity, with 295.3 million people starving!

Worsening conflicts, economic crises, deep funding cuts and less humanitarian assistance all threaten food security. As planetary heating worsens, those experiencing acute food insecurity will likely increase again this year.

Food insecurity has worsened in 19 countries/territories, mainly due to internal conflicts, as in Myanmar, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Even before the aid cuts, half the countries/territories featured in GRFC 2025 faced food crises. Despite La Niña rains, droughts in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Afghanistan and Pakistan are expected to worsen.

USAID and other recent aid cuts have defunded food programmes for over 14 million children in Sudan, Yemen and Haiti alone. G7 countries are expected to cut aid by 28% in 2026 from 2024. Meanwhile, the GRFC 2025 reported humanitarian food assistance “declined by 30 percent in 2023, and again in 2024”!

In 2024, 65.9 million in Asia were food insecure, the worst in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Food crises threatened 33.5 million, or 44% of those in the eight MENA territories assessed in GRFC 2025.

Starvation as weapon
The number of starving people more than doubled in 2024! Over 95% of this increase was in the Gaza Strip or Sudan. Wars destroy and disrupt food production and distribution. A famine was declared in Sudan in December 2024, with more than 24 million starving due to the civil war.

Sudan has the largest land area for farming in Africa. Two-thirds of Sudan’s population relies on agriculture, but the ongoing conflict has caused the destruction and abandonment of much farmland and infrastructure.

Despite the Sudanese military’s devastating factional war, the country remains the world’s largest exporter of oily seeds (groundnuts, safflower, sesame, soybean, and sunflower), reflecting its agronomic potential.

Many more are starving in Haiti, Mali, and South Sudan. The UN’s Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) deems such starvation, death, destitution and severe acute malnutrition “catastrophic”.

Food deprivation has become the primary Israeli weapon against the people of Gaza. Gaza’s 2.1 million Palestinians have been at “critical risk” of famine due to the Israeli blockade on food and humanitarian aid since October 2023!

Despite official Israeli denial of mass starvation, growing international outrage, including from some of its staunchest allies, has forced the Netanyahu government to gloss over its actions. In May, it set up the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to “calibrate” calorie rations to continue starvation but not to death.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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By Yasmine Sherif
NEW YORK, Jun 16 2025 (IPS-Partners)

As we commemorate International Day of the African Child, we honor the courage, resilience and dreams of millions of children and youth across Africa. Their potential is limitless, their right to a quality education is non-negotiable.

There is clear evidence highlighting the value of education in building strong economies and ensuring peace and stability across the continent. Foundational learning has the potential to double the GDP per capita in sub-Saharan Africa by 2050, according to the World Bank. Additional analysis indicates that every US$1 invested in tripling pre-primary education enrolment in sub-Saharan Africa can generate up to US$33 in returns.

With just a small investment in education for all of Africa’s children, we could transform a continent, open vast untapped markets, and deliver on the promises outlined in the Pact for the Future and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Yet, too many children are being left behind. About half of the world’s 234 million crisis-impacted school-aged children reside in sub-Saharan Africa, according to Education Cannot Wait (ECW). Learning poverty is further exacerbating cycles of poverty, displacement and crises. Did you know that four out of five African children cannot read or understand a simple text by age 10?

To address these challenges, we must invest in quality education for the youngest and fastest-growing continent in the world. Across Africa, ECW investments have already reached over 7.4 million girls and boys, with a focus on foundational learning, gender equality, teacher training and psychosocial support – a whole-of-child learning approach.

Today – expanding on the African Union’s ‘Year of Education 2024’ efforts to build resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, lifelong, quality and relevant learning in Africa – we call on world leaders, donors and the private sector to fund education in emergencies through proven multilateral funds like Education Cannot Wait.

We can and we must keep hope alive for the children of Africa.

 

Excerpt:

International Day of the African Child Statement by ECW Executive Director Yasmine Sherif

A displaced mother from Khartoum brings her child for treatment at the UNICEF-supported Alkarama clinic in Kassala state. Credit: UNICEF/Ahmed Mohamdeen Elfatih

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Jun 16 2025 (IPS)

Over the course of 2025, the food security situation in Sudan has taken a considerable turn for the worst. Compounded by the Sudanese Civil War, millions of civilians face alarming levels of food insecurity and are at risk of experiencing famine. Humanitarian experts have described the situation in Sudan as being the worst hunger crisis in the world today.

Over two years of warfare has decimated critical infrastructures and countless livelihoods in Sudan, leaving many unable to access basic services. The World Food Programme (WFP) estimates that roughly 24.6 million people, or half of the population, is acutely food insecure. Additionally, about 638,000 people are estimated to be facing the most severe levels of hunger, the highest of anywhere in the world.

On June 12, the WFP, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) issued a joint press release detailing the food security situation in the Upper Nile State. With armed conflict intensifying in this area, humanitarian aid deliveries have been hampered and food sources have been decimated. According to the latest findings from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), roughly 11 in 13 people in Upper Nile State counties are now facing emergency levels of hunger.

The two most vulnerable counties in the Upper Nile State are Nasir and Ulang, which have been ravaged by armed clashes and airstrikes since March. Rates of displacement have soared in these areas and experts have projected that famine is imminent. Approximately 32,000 people in these counties are experiencing catastrophic levels of hunger (IPC Phase 5), marking a threefold increase from previous projections.

“Once again, we are seeing the devastating impact conflict has on food security in South Sudan,” said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, Country Director and Representative for WFP in South Sudan. “Conflict doesn’t just destroy homes and livelihoods, it tears communities apart, cuts off access to markets, and sends food prices spiraling upward. Long-term peace is essential, but right now, it is critical that our teams are able to access and safely distribute food to families caught in conflict in Upper Nile, to bring them back from the brink and prevent famine.”

In addition to worsening levels of hunger in Upper Nile counties, the food security situation has deteriorated significantly in the areas surrounding Khartoum State, where the fighting has been concentrated over the course of the war. According to WFP’s Country Director in Sudan, Laurent Bukera, Khartoum and its surrounding areas have experienced “widespread destruction”, with several areas at high risks of famine.

“The needs are immense,” said Bukera. He underscored the prevalence of a particularly virulent outbreak of cholera, as well as a lack of access to water, healthcare, and electricity. Jabal Awliya, which is roughly 25 miles south of Khartoum, has been described by Bukera as having an intense “level(s) of hunger, destitution, and desperation”.

Bukera has also expressed concern over the possibility of displaced civilians returning to highly damaged and dangerous areas such as Khartoum, which would further complicate relief efforts. “We have rapidly scaled up our operation to meet increasing needs,” Mr. Bukera said. “We are aiming to reach seven million people on a monthly basis, prioritizing those facing famine or other areas at extreme risk.”

Shortfalls in funding have greatly exacerbated the food security situation, with lifesaving nutritional supplies being pushed out of reach for millions, including many young children as well as pregnant or nursing women. The number of children in South Sudan facing the risk of acute malnutrition has risen to 2.3 million in the past few months, marking an increase of over 200,000 people.

“The ongoing challenges with access in some of the most affected areas, as well as health and nutrition site closures reduce the chances of early intervention and treatment. In addition, the cholera outbreak has added to an already difficult situation, putting young lives in a precarious fight for survival,” said Noala Skinner, UNICEF’s country representative in South Sudan. “Now more than ever we need continuity and scale-up of services for prevention and treatment of malnutrition,” added McGroarty.

Despite hostilities presenting numerous accessibility challenges throughout Sudan, the United Nations (UN) is currently assisting over 4 million people a month, marking a four-fold increase from the start of 2024. Additionally, previously unreachable areas, such as Khartoum, have experienced an easing of restrictions, facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid. WFP is aiming to reach 7 million people as restrictions continue to loosen.

However, the stability of relief efforts remain fragile. According to Bukera, WFP urgently requires $500 million for “emergency food and cash assistance” for the next six months of operations. Additionally, the upcoming rainy season is projected to stretch resources, with flooding compounding risks of disease transmission and damage to critical infrastructures.

Furthermore, the security situation has become increasingly volatile for aid personnel, which threatens to disrupt humanitarian efforts. “Indiscriminate and unacceptable attacks on humanitarian personnel and operations are escalating – including last week’s strike on a WFP-UNICEF convoy when it was just hours from reaching besieged El Fasher in North Darfur,” said Bukera. “In April, aid workers were killed during a major escalation of fighting in Zamzam camp also near El Fasher.”

For a sustainable end to this crisis, it is imperative that there is a lasting cessation of hostilities. The joint report from WFP, FAO, and UNICEF states that areas that have lower volumes of violence have seen improvements in food security. These areas have been linked to better rates of crop production and smoother humanitarian operations, underscoring the positive outcomes that are possible if peace is established.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

Plow moving rubble in Hatay Turkey after earthquake. Credit: Çağlar Oskay, Unsplash

By Maximilian Malawista
NEW YORK, Jun 16 2025 (IPS)

Floods, earthquakes, and droughts are striking the wallets of the world harder than any other time in history. According to the Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction, the cost of disasters is only growing, with annual expenditures exceeding 2.3$ trillion; accounting for over 2% of global GDP, and if represented as a nation, it would have the seventh largest GDP.

The $2.3 trillion expenditure accounts for indirect and ecosystem impacts. While direct costs are $180 – 200 billion on average annually during 2001 to 2020, which represents a 153% increase from the $70 – 80 billion between 1970 and 2000.

The report mentioned that “a national debt of just $300 billion was enough to trigger the European sovereign debt crisis.” displaying a financial threat on global stability, if left unchecked.

In the report, regions with higher economic stability directly transferred to a nation’s ability to be resilient to disasters, as when North America incurred $69.57 billion in losses during 2023, it only had an impact of .23% on its GDP. On the other hand, Micronesia, a subregion of oceania made up of 2,000 small islands, incurred a loss of $4.3 billion, which represented a 46.1% impact on its nominal $1.43 billion GDP.

Developed nations have the ability to bounce back, but developing nations with less capital have to choose between continuing economic expansion, or rebuilding from the rubble. Now there seems to be a solution.

In Pakistan, floods and storms have posed a continuing threat to the development of further economic growth, among sustainable infrastructure. To smartly invest, Pakistan looked at mangroves, an industry which brings economic stability but also storm protection. This protection ensures safety for their new industries, as the industries surround the mangroves, the mangroves become Pakistan’s insurance against disasters.

According to the IUCN, Pakistan made a “20 fold return”, revealing that mangroves were not only a defence mechanism, but also a foster for large economic returns bringing sustainable development among stability through offering habitats for fish and animals, protecting coasts against storms, and even storing “3 to 4 times more carbon then tropical forests”.

Makkio Yashiro, regional ecosystems coordinator for UNEP, says “Mangroves are an important tool in the fight against climate change. They reduce carbon in the atmosphere and they also make financial sense. Restoring mangroves is five times more cost effective than building ‘grey infrastructure’ such as flood walls, which also don’t help with climate change,”

UNEP also found that “for every dollar invested in mangrove restoration there is a benefit of four dollars” evaluating it as an investment with no cons.

The Three Harmful Cycles

Structural engineers in disaster relief training in earthquake ruins. Credit:This is engineering, Unsplash

Aromar Revi, Director of the Indian Institute for Human settlements (IIHS), identified three spirals commonly associated with the risk of disasters.

First, he said the rise in debt along with falling income. Adding that “Many companies carry hidden disaster risks because they are underinsured,” this underinsurance makes companies “vulnerable to disasters facing not only supply chain disruptions, but also wider financial instability”

Second, according to Theodora Antonakaki, Director of Bank of Greece’s Climate Change and Sustainability Centre (CCSC), is “a decrease in insurability.” adding that “traditional risk transfer methods are failing to keep up.”

For the third cycle, Ronald Jackson, Head of Disaster Risk Reduction, Recovery and Resilience Building Team, UNDP, noted an over reliance on costly humanitarian aid. He argued this reliance “weakens resilience” and underscores the crucial need for “disaster financing strategies,” specifically “budget tracking systems” to address regionally specific risks.

While many countries remain stuck in these harmful cycles, Japan, like Pakistan, has taken steps towards a proactive future through disaster risk reduction (DRR). Through investing in mitigation strategies, identifying key risks, and implementing sustainable devices, they have protected their economies and infrastructure, reducing all three cycles.

Japan, which frequently faces tsunamis and earthquakes, has adapted to disasters by using “seismic safety” measures. One of these technologies has been seismic isolation bearings, which allow buildings to have horizontal movement during earthquakes, minimizing any possible damage. For Tsunamis, Japan has employed seawalls and coastal forests, which either block or displace water, both strategies which have been effective in reducing damage.

The report argues that disasters themselves are not necessarily becoming more frequent or stronger, but rather things are getting more expensive to replace, raising economic tolls. A major reason for this is the lack of safe and resilient housing catered to regional risks. With estimates of “Approximately 1.2 billion people are expected to be living in cities by 2050 compared to 2020.”, urban densities must be built with DRR methods at the forefront of construction. Without such measures, infrastructure investments would risk being entirely lost. Research has consistently displayed that “disaster losses are already considerably larger than mitigation costs,” making preventionary DRR measures not only proactive and wise, but economically necessary.

United Nations Secretary General, António Guterres stated “This report clearly shows that investing in disaster risk reduction saves money, saves lives, and lays the foundation for a safe and prosperous future for us all. I urge all leaders to heed that call.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

Protestors march down Valletta's Republic Street on the first anniversary of Daphne's assassination. Credit: Miguela Xuereb/Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation

By Ed Holt
BRATISLAVA, Jun 16 2025 (IPS)

“We didn’t want revenge. We want justice—justice for Daphne and for the [crimes exposed in] her stories.”

Corinne Vella, sister of murdered Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, is speaking to IPS soon after the sentencing of two men to life imprisonment for their involvement in the killing.

She explains that while the long sentences are an important step forward in her family’s pursuit of justice for her sister, they have wider ramifications for press freedom too.

“These sentences are a step towards that justice, but also a step towards making a safer world for journalists,” she says.

Caruana Galizia, Malta’s most prominent investigative journalist, was killed by a car bomb in October 2017 outside her home in the village of Bidnija.

Her murder made headlines around the world, focusing attention on the rule of law in Malta, as well as highlighting the murky links between Maltese politicians and big business—her investigations had exposed high-level government corruption linked to companies.

It also highlighted issues around the safety of journalists. A public inquiry held in the wake of the killing delivered a damning verdict of the state’s role in her murder and pointed to institutional failures to protect Caruana Galizia.

The inquiry’s findings, released in a 457-page report in 2021, were that her death had been preventable and that responsibility lay with the state for creating “an atmosphere of impunity… which led to the collapse of the rule of law.”

The report said, “…acts, certainly illicit if not illegal, were committed by persons within State entities that created an environment that facilitated the assassination. This even by failing to do their duty to act promptly and effectively to give proper protection to the journalist.”

Four years on from the publication of that report, Caruana Galizia’s family believes that the life sentences handed down on June 10 to local crime gang members Robert Agius and Jamie Vella, who were found guilty of complicity in the murder by supplying the bomb that killed her, have sent a powerful message.

“We believe the sentences will have a deterrent effect, telling potential killers that there are serious consequences when a journalist is murdered. The sentences have sent out shockwaves already. People literally thought they could get away with murder, and this has shown that they can’t,” Corinne Vella says.

She points out that the significance of the sentences for press freedom reaches well beyond just Malta.

Since the death of Caruana Galizia, other journalists investigating alleged corruption linked to high-level political figures have been killed in Europe, and press freedom groups have said it is imperative state institutions, including the judiciary, are seen as being able to not just protect journalists but bring to justice those behind killings to show they cannot act with impunity.

“The fight against impunity for the murder of journalists in Europe and around the world is fundamental to the wider climate for the safety of journalists,” Jamie Wiseman, Europe Advocacy Officer at the United International Press Institute (IPI), told IPS.

“Convictions like these send an important signal that those who carry out such assassinations will not escape accountability. So these sentences are another big step forward in the push towards full justice and emblematic of media freedom in Europe more widely,” he added.

However, despite the sentences, both Corinne Vella and press freedom groups remain concerned that the failings they say led to Caruana Galizia’s death have not been dealt with.

“Daphne’s murder did not take place in a vacuum. The murder of a journalist for their work happens because of failures in the system that happen before that person has been murdered. And the circumstances that led to Daphne’s murder have not been addressed. The whole post-inquiry history has been one of a lack of urgency and reluctance to respond to the problems identified in that inquiry,” said Corinne Vella.

Media freedom organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said the convictions of Agius and Vella mark progress in the quest for justice for Caruana Galizia.

But they pointed out the alleged mastermind behind the killing has yet to be brought to trial, and the majority of recommendations on journalist safety and press freedom that emerged from the public inquiry—including, among others, detailed legal and procedural proposals to bolster protection of journalists and journalism’s role in protecting democracy and helping ensure the rule of law—have yet to be implemented.

RSF says it is now essential that Maltese authorities ramp up efforts to do both.

Pavol Szalai, Head of the European Union-Balkans Desk at RSF, told IPS the sentences of Agius and Vella would act as a deterrent to other potential journalist killers but that “the biggest deterrent would be a timely conviction and long sentence for the mastermind of the killings.”

“Globally there is a clear pattern of the masterminds of such killings escaping justice while the middleman and hitmen are convicted. So it’s vital that we keep pushing and ensure the mastermind behind Daphne’s assassination is put behind bars. The Maltese government must also fully implement the recommendations of the Public Inquiry into Daphne’s murder, which would help tackle the culture of impunity in Malta that created an environment in which a leading journalist could be murdered in an EU member state,” added Wiseman.

Meanwhile, Caruana Galizia’s family continues to pursue justice for her.

Prior to the convictions of Agius and Vella, three other men were already serving sentences for installing and detonating the bomb in Caruana Galizia’s vehicle: brothers Alfred and George Degiorgio, sentenced to 40 years in prison, and Vincent Muscat, who negotiated a reduced sentence of 15 years in exchange for testimony, which was seen as key in the trial of Agius and Vella.

Another man, Melvin Theuma, the middleman in the murder, was granted a pardon in exchange for information on the suspected mastermind, businessman Yorgen Fenech.

Fenech, who was charged with complicity in Caruana Galizia’s murder in 2019 but released on bail in February this year, is awaiting trial.

“The convictions and sentencing [of Agius and Vella] are a step closer to justice for Daphne. But it’s not over yet,” said Vella.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Credit: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters via Gallo Images

By Inés M. Pousadela
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, Jun 16 2025 (IPS)

At a White House meeting, presidents Nayib Bukele and Donald Trump exchanged praises and joked about mass incarceration while discussing an unprecedented agreement: the USA would pay El Salvador US$6 million a year to house deportees – of any nationality, potentially including US citizens – in its Centre for Terrorism Confinement (CECOT), a notorious mega-prison. This agreement marked the evolution of Bukele’s authoritarian model from a domestic experiment to an exportable commodity for strongmen worldwide.

Shortly after Trump’s inauguration, Bukele had tweeted an offer to help the US outsource its incarceration system. Less than six weeks later, hundreds of Venezuelan deportees were sent to CECOT under the 1798Alien Enemies Act. Among them was Kilmar Abrego García, a Salvadoran man who’d lived in Maryland for 15 years and was deported despite being granted protections by a US immigration judge. When the US Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to facilitate his return, Bukele refused on the grounds that he wouldn’t ‘smuggle a terrorist into the United States’. For Trump, this was one of the perks of having an ally who disregards the rule of law as much as he does.

Bukele’s path to authoritarianism

Bukele’s systematic assault on democracy began after his 2019 election victory, when he broke from El Salvador’s traditional two-party system and secured 53.4 per cent of the vote. The first significant sign of his willingness to ignore democratic norms came when the opposition-controlled Legislative Assembly refused to approve a multi-million-dollar loan for his security and anti-gang programme. Bukele called on supporters, police and the army to pressure legislators.

In the 2021 legislative election his party won a supermajority, enabling him to pass any laws and dismiss the judges who’d declared policies unconstitutional, appointing compliant replacements who gave him the green light to run for an unconstitutional second term.

The cornerstone of Bukele’s authoritarian project was his March 2022 declaration of a state of emergency following a spike in gang killings. Initially presented as temporary, the state of emergency has been repeatedly renewed and expanded into a new normal where constitutional rights, including due process, legal defence and freedom of assembly, no longer exist.

Bukele’s security policy involves massive deployment of security forces to ‘extract’ suspected gang members and jail them for life in extremely overcrowded conditions with no visits or rehabilitation programmes. This approach has led to the warrantless detention of over 80,000 people, giving El Salvador the world’s highest incarceration rate. Visible gang activity has dramatically fallen and the homicide rate plummeted from 105 per 100,000 people in 2015 to 1.9 in 2024, earning Bukele high approval ratings and re-election with 85 per cent of the vote. But the human rights cost has been devastating.

Since his unconstitutional re-election, Bukele has accelerated his institutional dismantling. On 29 January, the Legislative Assembly ratified a constitutional amendment eliminating the previous requirement that constitutional amendments be ratified by two successive legislatures. Bukele can now change the constitution without proper consultation and debate. Safeguards protecting key constitutional norms, including those prohibiting presidential re-election, have been removed.

Constitutional manipulation has been accompanied by judicial capture. In September 2024, the Legislative Assembly elected seven new Supreme Court judges, despite civil society criticism of the lack of procedural transparency and concerns about the candidates’ lack of independence.

Civic space under assault

The deterioration of civic space has been equally systematic, with the state intensifying its criminalisation of activists. In March 2024, Verónica Delgado was arbitrarily detained and charged with ‘unlawful association’ for her work as a member of the Search Block group, which searches for relatives who’ve disappeared under the state of emergency. In February 2025, at least 21 activists and civil society leaders were arbitrarily detained in coordinated operations. Among them was Fidel Zavala, spokesperson for the human rights organisation Unit for the Defence of Human and Community Rights, who’d recently filed a complaint against prison authorities citing cases of torture.

Bukele’s assault on press freedom has reached unprecedented levels. The Association of Journalists of El Salvador recorded 466 cases of attacks against journalists in 2024. Bukele has directly targeted independent media, using his Twitter/X account to discredit El Faro, a digital news outlet that investigated COVID-19 procurement contracts. Physical intimidation has escalated, with police raiding journalist Mónica Rodríguez’s home in December 2024, seizing hard drives and USB devices without a search warrant or any legal explanation.

State surveillance has become systematic and brazen. In November 2024, the Legislative Assembly adopted two laws on cybersecurity and data protection that grant authorities broad powers to remove online content and demand deletion of material deemed ‘inaccurate’, paving the way for systematic censorship.

The latest civic space attack is a Russian-inspired Foreign Agents Law passed in May, requiring anyone receiving foreign funding to register with a Registry of Foreign Agents. It imposes a punitive 30 per cent tax on all foreign payments and grants the authorities sweeping powers to approve, deny or revoke registrations. This is a devastating blow because most Salvadoran organisations depend on foreign donations and many have been critical of Bukele’s human rights violations, making them vulnerable to being labelled political threats.

Authoritarianism for export

Bukele’s model has attracted admirers worldwide. His re-election was hailed by many who seek to emulate him, and he receives sky-high approval ratings in other countries in the region, particularly those enduring rising crime.

The Trump-Bukele deportation agreement is the most visible manifestation of authoritarian collaboration, but the partnership extends beyond immigration policy. Trump has expressed admiration for Bukele’s methods, recently announcing plans to rebuild and reopen Alcatraz Island, arguing the notorious prison would help circumvent judges that fail to do his bidding. Bukele has encouraged Trump’s defiance of judges, calling legal challenges to Trump’s policies ‘a judicial coup’ and urging Republicans to remove what he calls ‘corrupt judges’. Trump must find Bukele’s systematic dismantling of civil society inspiring, viewing his criminalisation of activists and silencing of independent media as effective tools for consolidating power.

The international community’s response has been muted, reflecting the dilemma posed by Bukele’s genuine popularity and security achievements. The enthusiasm with which international observers have embraced what they see as Bukele’s success story demonstrates the dangerous appeal of authoritarian responses to complex social problems. His ability to achieve genuine, if not necessarily long-lasting, security improvements while systematically dismantling democratic institutions offers a seductive blueprint for other leaders frustrated by the constraints of democratic governance.

Bukele’s transformation of El Salvador from a fragile democracy into an authoritarian state is one of the most dramatic examples of democratic backsliding in contemporary Latin America, serving as a warning about the fragility of democratic institutions and an indication of how authoritarianism can adapt and spread. When Salvadorans eventually seek alternatives to Bukele’s increasingly repressive rule, they’ll face the struggle of having to repair the democratic machinery necessary for peaceful political change.

Inés M. Pousadela is CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

For interviews or more information, please contact research@civicus.org

 

The following piece explores the urgent need to mobilize private capital in support of sustainable development – particularly in advance of the upcoming Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), taking place in Sevilla, Spain from June 30 to July 3.
 
Meanwhile the International Business Forum will be held alongside FFD4. Organized by the FFD4 Business Steering Committee, it will bring together Heads of State, Ministers, CEOs, and prominent global business leaders to drive solutions that unlock private finance and investments for sustainable development.

By John W.H. Denton AO, José Viñals and Shinta Kamdani
NEW YORK, Jun 16 2025 (IPS)

Geopolitical tensions – from deepening rivalries between major powers to regional conflicts – have placed acute pressure on the international development agenda. Development assistance from major funders has been on the decline. The world is becoming more unpredictable.

Today, capital is not flowing to where sustainable and development finance is most needed. In developing markets, the sustainable development financial shortfall is estimated to be around USD 4 trillion annually, with investment lacking in areas including critical basic infrastructure and access to water.

To address this funding gap, every stakeholder must come to the table in recognition of the fact that global challenges, including poverty, pandemics and social inequality don’t respect borders. Collaboration is needed now more than ever, and of all the convenings taking place this year, the UN’s Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development(FFD4) in Sevilla, Spain from June 30-July 3 will facilitate the collaboration needed at the highest levels across the public and private sectors.

The private sector has an indispensable role to play in helping to deliver capital to solutions at scale. Public-private partnerships can multiply the impact of development spending, whether co-investing in clean infrastructure or delivering essential services in hard-to reach areas. Yet, private capital all too often remains on the sidelines of global development funding.

The reason for this is well known. As World Bank President Ajay Banga recently noted, “Private investment flows only where the right conditions exist and where there’s a clear probability of return.” So, we need to urgently create these conditions, putting in place the reforms necessary and creating investable opportunities that will allow capital to flow.

On the demand side, more must be done to translate high level national ambitions and transnational agendas into investable opportunities that align and channel private capital into developing markets.

Solutions, such as funds that invest in the development of project pipelines and platforms that pool investment capital across a range of projects, will help scale the mobilization of private capital by making more projects bankable and providing institutional investors with predictable returns.

We should also embrace innovative approaches to finance, such as Indonesia’s green sukuk bonds and the Barbados debt-for-climate swaps.

On the policy side, regulatory fixes are necessary to address prudential regulations that misprice the benefits of guarantees and the risk of infrastructure investment in emerging markets, creating artificial and unnecessary barriers to investment.

More can also be done to mitigate local currency exchange risk – the mismatch between investments made in hard currencies for projects that operate in more volatile local currencies.

These reforms, supported by the greater use and enablement of technology to overcome the financing gap for small and medium enterprises in emerging markets, will create a pathway to de-risk and unlock the investment opportunities, facilitating the flow of capital at scale.

The International Business Forum at FFD4, of which we three serve as the co-chairs, will provide this year’s – if not this decade’s – best opportunity for stakeholders to come together to set out and deliver a new path for public-private partnerships, one that supports these and other common-sense solutions to unlock investment for developing markets.

We ask you to join us alongside heads of government in Seville at FFD4, to inform negotiations and advance practical solutions. The private sector has both the means and motive to act – and if it does, can shape a path for sustainable and enduring global growth.

Now is the time to join us, to build an equitable and resilient future for all.

The authors serve as the Co-Chairs of the FFD4 Business Steering Committee. Mr. Denton is the Secretary-General of the International Chamber of Commerce and a board member of IFM Investors. Mr. Viñals and Ms. Kamdani serve as Co-chairs of the Global Investors for Sustainable Development Alliance, and Mr. Viñals also served as the Group Chairman of Standard Chartered and Ms. Kamdani is the CEO of Sintesa Group.

More information about the FFD4 International Business Forum can be found here.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Inside the studio of Women’s Voice Radio in Badakhshan, Afghanistan. Credit: Learning Together.

By External Source
KABUL, Jun 13 2025 (IPS)

Mehrangiz is a sixteen-year-old girl from Badakhshan, a province in the northeastern Afghanistan famed for its rubies, jewels, and a land of love and beauty.

Since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, strict restrictions have been imposed on women’s freedoms, driving women into a dead-end life of no prospects, resulting in a rise in mental health crisis and suicides amongst them.

Mehrangiz credits her recovery to Women’s Voice Radio. She narrates her life story as follows:

When I was in the 10th grade, I had dreams and aspirations. Every day, I worked harder than the day before to reach goals that I wished to achieve in the future. There was no electricity in my village, so I would study at night next to a kerosene lamp, clinging to the hope that one day my dreams would be fulfilled.

One day, as I sat in the garden writing, I heard the cries of one of my classmates that we could no longer go to school or study. It stunned me into silence.

Days passed. I thought the situation would be temporary, and I continued to study, hoping not to fall behind and achieve success in life like girls in other parts of the world.

But eventually I could no longer endure the suffocating silence. When would girls be allowed to go back to school? That question appeared to have no answer – indefinitely. I began to lose the fighting spirit to continue. Sleeplessness and loss of appetite overwhelmed me, and the world of my dreams had turned to only one color—black!

Life became increasingly difficult with each passing day, and I felt I could not stand it any longer. The despair was so overwhelming that one day, at the height of my anger and frustration, I burnt all my textbooks.

The darkness of life numbed me and I decided never to try to study any more. I kept myself busy with household chores and physical activities at home, trying to avoid thinking about the future.

However, a ray of light illuminated my path one day when I went out shopping with my mother. The change began as a small event but carried a very big outcome.

When we became tired after shopping around, we decided to take a rest at Kedbanu – a women’s-only restaurant – for lunch. A doctor was on air at Sadee Banowan radio, one of the most popular radio stations in Badakhshan. She was talking about depression.

I became captivated by the doctor’s inspiring and soothing words, I even had to slow down my eating to listen properly.

When my mother glanced at me, I gestured to her about what was coming over the radio and she, too, began to listen. Our ears remained pricked up to the radio to the very end.

The doctor’s words were captivating, equally so was the talent of the radio host, who asked questions as if he was deeply familiar with the deep problems facing countless Afghan girls.

The situation of women and girls in Afghanistan went into rapid decline after the Taliban regained power four years ago. Under strict Islamist laws, they were barred from further education, forced out of paid unemployment and largely confined to the home. They were not allowed to sit in parks or even raise their voices when talking. Forced marriages became their lot.

The severe restrictions took a heavy mental toll on women, many of who committed suicide because of depression and other mental illnesses.

At the end of the doctor’s broadcast, I made a telephone call to the radio for further information and to my delight, was informed that I could also discuss my personal problems with the doctor.

 

Counseling and a New Outlook on Life

The following day I was at the gates of the radio station with a mix feeling of enthusiasm and trepidation.

I was not certain I would actually be able to share my problems with them, since in light of the situation of Afghanistan in the past four years, everyone appeared focused on finding solutions to their individual problems with no time for others.

But eventually, when I sat before the very same doctor whose words had held me captive on the radio the previous day, I could not even describe anything comparably more uplifting.

The doctor provided me with useful guidelines about how to cope in life. “Let us try to find an alternative way to life rather than ruining our souls and tormenting our families. Let us trust in God”, she advised.

It motivated me to live better and fight against difficulties that pressed me, giving me the strength to grow and become stronger.

She advised me to go out occasionally and enjoy myself, meet friends, wear bright colors such as orange, red, and yellow, and focus on being happy.

I have had four free psychotherapy sessions and about 30 percent of my problems have been resolved. My mental state has improved. Life is smiling upon me once again. I now see life as beautiful, full of only vibrant colors without any hint of black, unlike previously.

 

Women’s Voice Radio: A Beacon Amidst Restriction

Women’s Voice Radio has been on air since 2010. It is one of the most popular and cherished radio stations among women in Badakhshan. In the course of its existence, its popularity has soared so much that it broadcasts 24 hours a day, attracting both men and women to its informative programs.

However, Women’s Voice Radio station, which is dedicated specifically to women, has faced increasing restrictions following the rise of the new regime in Afghanistan in 2021. In the early days of the Taliban regime, the radio station was shut down for 23 days for merely broadcasting a few seconds of music included in a commercial advertisement. It has since resumed broadcasting.

Since then, Women’s Voice Radio has developed several new programs, such as the “Maktab” (School) program, dedicated to girls in grades seven to twelve. The programme provides curriculum materials by teachers and other professionals via radio to girls who are not allowed to go to school.

“Psychotherapy” is another program that supports women confined to their homes, a high percentage of whom experience depression and stress. The program is hosted by a psychotherapist who provides effective advice and guidance to women and girls, introducing them to various healthy activities and ways to cope with life’s challenges. Indeed, officials of the radio plan to establish a large psychotherapy center in Badakhshan to meet the increasing demand for psychotherapy by vulnerable women and girls.

“Art in the Embrace of Women” is another inspirational program for women that highlights innovative and creative women who have demonstrated initiatives across various fields, particularly in business, entrepreneurship, and investment, serving as models to other women to look up to.

 

A New Chapter

To cap it all, I have had good luck and have been offered a job at the radio station, where I have been working for the past three months. I have had the pleasure of working alongside wonderful and friendly women, those who greeted me with smiles and warm hugs on my first visit to the radio station.

I am learning valuable life lessons—the lessons of overcoming challenges and helping others to the same. To everyone else, Women’s Voice Radio may be a broadcasting station but to me, I consider it a university of life where I learn lessons in how to lead a good life.

I am now a member of a small but powerful family.

Excerpt:

The author is an Afghanistan-based female journalist, trained with Finnish support before the Taliban take-over. Her identity is withheld for security reasons

A recycling, biodigestion and composting complex is being installed next to the landfill of the Intermunicipal Consortium of the Middle Valley of the Itajaí River (Cimvi), to take advantage of all the solid waste from 19 municipalities in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

By Mario Osava
TIMBO / FLORIANOPOLIS, Brazil , Jun 13 2025 (IPS)

In 2014, Santa Catarina became the first and only state free of open-air garbage dumps in Brazil. Now, 14 of its municipalities are seeking to also free themselves from landfills and make use of nearly all urban solid waste.

The Intermunicipal Consortium of the Middle Itajaí Valley (Cimvi) expects to process in recycling, biodigestion and composting more than 90% of the garbage, surpassing the 65% benchmark reached by the Nordic countries of Europe, emphasized its executive director, Fernando Tomaselli.“We have 36 landfills in the state, only three public, the rest are private and there is little interest in changing the system, because whoever dominates the landfill also dominates the garbage collection service”: Fernando Tomaselli.

“It is a utopia,” said the executive president of the Brazilian Association of Energy from Waste (Abren), Yuri Schmitke.

“The unrealistic goal compromises the project,” he warned. Several European countries, Japan and South Korea have already eliminated sanitary landfills – the areas for the final disposal of solid waste – but resort to incineration to generate energy with non-recyclable garbage, he added.

Cimvi rules out that alternative. Its goal is to expand recycling and the circular economy of waste to an unprecedented proportion. “Our obsession is to take advantage of everything, to prove that garbage does not exist,” said Tomaselli.

But recycling has limits. Europe, after many attempts and advances, covers 25 % of waste on average and 32 % in the exceptional case of Germany. In addition, 19% of the waste still goes to landfills, according to data from Abren, which had its sixth annual congress in Florianopolis, capital of Santa Catarina, on June 5 and 6.

Cimvi was created in 1998, with only five participating municipalities, to jointly manage several issues, but not yet garbage. It reached its current composition of 14 municipalities in 2017 after taking over the management of the sanitary landfill in 2016, previously in charge of the water and sewage authorities.

Its headquarters was installed in Timbo, a town of 46 099 people, according to the 2022 national census. The 14 municipalities had 283 594 residents that year, the most populous being Indaial, with 71 549.

Fernando Tomaselli, director of Cimvi, an intermunicipal initiative that promotes circular waste management in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

Landfill and recycling

The landfill receives garbage from five other “partner” cities, in addition to the 14 in the consortium, with a total of between 5,000 and 7,000 tons per month. Environmental education campaigns in schools, businesses and the streets have gradually expanded selective waste collection.

Yellow sacks were popularized and disseminated where the population put recyclable waste which, collected by the municipalities, are taken to the Waste Assessment Center (CVR I) at the Cimvi headquarters, on the outskirts of Timbo.

“Today we recover 20 to 22% of recyclable waste, against a Brazilian average of 2%. We want to reach 27%,” Tomaselli told IPS.

“We receive an average of 60 tons a day, 24 hours a day, in three shifts, Monday to Monday,” said Rosane Valério, president of the Medio Vale Cooperative, hired to separate and send the waste to purchasing companies, at CVR I, where 87 recyclers are employed.

The cooperative has another unit to process waste from two other nearby cities, Ituporanga and Aurora, with a total of 33 300 people.

“Of the material received, we still discard 30% that comes mixed or dirty with food remains, sometimes blood that attracts mosquitoes, glass and other dangerous objects such as syringes and medicines, which generate major difficulties for recycling,” explained Valério.

A bench at the entrance of Cimvi’s headquarters, made of thermoplastic produced from waste that was previously considered non-recyclable and destined for landfills. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

Thermoplastic

She regretted that “we do not know the origin, there is a lack of awareness of the population in the correct disposal”. In any case, half of that 30% of discarded waste can be used for the production of thermoplastic, a hard material like concrete, which is used to make benches for squares, sidewalks, pavements and walls.

The cooperative already operates a pilot plant, with experimental production that has not yet been sold externally. “The municipalities are the initial market for the thermoplastic plates, as well as for the compost from the composting,” says Tomaselli.

Abren’s president, Schmitke, is skeptical. The consortium municipalities have a limited, insufficient demand, and the population does not trust products made from garbage, he argued.

Jaqueline Wagenknetht and Maria Eduarda Pegoretti, Cimvi’s environmental education and communication advisors, promote environmental education in the so-called European Valley to improve selective garbage collection and promote tourism and sustainable living. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

But thermoplastic has been around for four decades and now there is equipment that facilitates its production at a high temperature, 160 degrees Celsius, and as an input, half of the plastic that is added to other waste, such as textiles, is enough, countered the director of Cimvi.

The use of local waste will take a leap forward with the inauguration of CVR II, which is expected in early 2026 and will use a large part of the organic waste for the production of biogas and biofertilizers. Another part will go to composting.

“The goal is to take advantage of 100% or 98%,” for which alternatives must be sought for waste, the “common garbage” for which there are still no ways to recycle, he said.

Cimvi headquarters, in the Sunflower Park, which combines ecotourism, sanitary landfill and urban waste utilization plants for biogas generation, recycling and composting. Credit: Mario Osava / IPS

Bottlenecks

One stumbling block is selective collection, which needs to be perfected. “In Milan, Italy, five types of garbage are separated at the source, be it food, plastics, paper, metals or glass. Here, it’s harder because everything is mixed together,” said Tomaselli.

That is why Cimvi gives priority to environmental education, through several campaigns such as “Vale reciclar”, and sustainable tourism, which highlights the beauties of the so-called European Valley, which includes other municipalities in addition to the 14 consortium members.

The Girasol Park was also created for this purpose, a tourist complex that includes the landfill, the Cimvi facilities and the surrounding forest, with trails for walks, said Jaqueline Wagenknetht, environmental education advisor.

Design and poetry contests among local students seek to promote the valley, which is called European because its population includes many immigrants, especially Germans, Italians and Poles.

The name Sunflower was chosen for the park because, in addition to its beauty, the flower symbolizes sustainability, as a source of oil and biofuel, the advisor explained.

Design of the future Sunflower Park, in which the green buildings, in the center, are intended for recycling and energy biodigestion. In the background on the left is the landfill already covered, able to receive solar energy panels. Credit: Courtesy of Cimvi

Cimvi benefits from the experiences of São Bento do Sul, a municipality of 83 277 people, 120 kilometers north of Timbo, which has a similar program that seeks to use up to 100% of the waste.

A process of dehydration of the organic part allows a better use of the waste, explained Jacó Phoren, consultant of the company 100lixo, which is involved in the project, during his speech at the Abren congress on June 6.

Fostering new companies that generate solutions for the waste industry is another focus of Cimvi, said Tomaselli.

In Curitibanos, a city 185 kilometers southwest of Timbo, with 40 045 people, the company Inventus Ambiental claims to have invented equipment that will facilitate the separation of garbage for better energy recovery or recycling, reducing the waste that makes landfills bigger.

Its pilot project will be inaugurated in a few months and is based on the use of 90-degree heat to treat organic material, informed Dirnei Ferri, director of the company.

Santa Catarina has already eliminated open dumps, although it is ignored if all of them have been cleaned up. Now it is a matter of “breaking the landfill trench”, said Tomaselli.

“We have 36 landfills in the state, only three public, the rest are private and there is little interest in changing the system, because whoever dominates the landfill also dominates the garbage collection service,” he concluded.

An investigation in under way into what really happened to Albert Ojwang in a police cell.

Li Junhua, Conference Secretary-General, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Arnoldo Andre Tinoco, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Costa Rica and Olivier Poivre D'Arvor, Special Envoy of the French Republic for UN Ocean Conference address the final press briefing of UNOC3. Credit: Kizito Makoye/IPS

By Kizito Makoye
NICE, France, Jun 13 2025 (IPS)

With the future of the world’s oceans hanging in the balance, global leaders, scientists, and activists gathered in the French Riviera city of Nice this week for the historic UN Ocean Conference, where France declared a new era of high seas governance and marine protection.

At a press briefing on Thursday, Olivier Poivre d’Arvor, France’s Special Envoy for the UN Ocean Conference, said the global gathering marks a turning point for ocean conservation, with 174 delegations and 64 heads of state rallying behind a common goal—to transform the world’s oceans from a lawless expanse into a protected global commons governed by science, cooperation, and binding treaties.

“The high seas are no longer a playground. They are now a protected space,” d’Arvor told reporters, announcing that the UN’s landmark treaty on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) will officially enter into force by early January 2026.

Dubbed the “Treaty of Nice,” the pact seeks to place nearly two-thirds of the world’s ocean under international governance, a move hailed by conservationists as the biggest step forward for marine protection in decades. With 56 countries having ratified the treaty and 14 more expected to follow before the ceremonial launch in New York on September 23, the agreement meets the 60-country threshold required for it to become law.

“This is a foundational moment,” said d’Arvor. “Nice could become for ocean governance what Rio was for climate and biodiversity.”

The treaty, negotiated over 15 years, aims to regulate the high seas—areas beyond national jurisdiction that have long been vulnerable to overfishing, pollution, and unregulated extraction. It also lays the groundwork for the first-ever Ocean COP, expected by the end of 2026, where signatory countries will finalize implementation protocols, establish a permanent secretariat, and begin real enforcement through satellites, naval fleets, and drones.

Despite tensions in multilateral diplomacy, France—with co-host Costa Rica and the UN—has managed to galvanize widespread support. In a strong show of unity, even geopolitical rivals such as China, India, and the European Union endorsed the treaty, while Argentina’s President Javier Milei and Indonesia ratified it during the summit.

D’Arvor also used the occasion to caution against a renewed push for deep-sea mining, particularly in light of a recent U.S. executive order authorizing a preliminary exploration mission. “The deep sea is not for sale—no more than Antarctica or Greenland,” he warned, pledging that a coalition of 40 countries would continue to block any attempt to adopt a mining code without consensus under the International Seabed Authority (ISA).

“Those who hoped the code would be adopted at Kingston this July have lost the battle. I hope they’ve lost the war,” he added.

In parallel with the treaty’s legal strides, the conference saw the launch of the European Ocean Pact, a collaborative ocean exploration initiative unveiled by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The pact, backed by countries including India and China, aims to correct the stark imbalance in research funding—currently, ocean exploration receives 250 times less funding than space programs.

By bringing together oceanographic institutes, space agencies, and private sector players, the initiative promises to generate a shared global database to help map and understand the ocean in unprecedented detail. “In 15 years, we aim to fully understand the ocean—or at least enough to truly protect it,” said d’Arvor.

He stressed that science—not political posturing—will be the new compass for ocean policy. “This is the victory of science. The ocean has long been a victim of exploitation and ignorance. But now, it can become a platform for cooperation and peace.”

Yet challenges remain. While Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) are relatively well managed, questions linger about compliance and enforcement. The true test, observers say, will be translating high-level pledges into measurable progress.

Still, the momentum in Nice has brought renewed hope for ocean defenders around the globe. “We are not there yet,” said d’Arvor. “But for the first time, we are truly moving forward—and there is no turning back.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

Greenpeace banner sign against deep sea mining at UNOC3 in Nice on June 11, 2025. Credit: Greenpeace

By Kizito Makoye
NICE, France, Jun 13 2025 (IPS)

The third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) concluded today in Nice with an urgent call for governments to translate bold words into concrete action to protect the world’s oceans. Co-hosted by France and Costa Rica, the summit brought together more than 15,000 participants, including 50 heads of state and government, civil society leaders, scientists, youth, and Indigenous communities in an 11-day event hailed as both a milestone for ocean diplomacy and a test of global resolve.

“This conference has been a resounding success,” said Olivier Poivre d’Arvor, France’s Special Envoy for the Ocean. “We close not just with hope, but with concrete commitments, clear direction, and undeniable momentum.”

Costa Rica’s Foreign Minister Arnoldo André Tinoco emphasized the breadth of participation and the centrality of science in shaping decisions. “Together with France, we worked toward an action-oriented conference where all actors are represented and where finance and science go hand in hand,” he said.

Under-Secretary-General Li Chunhua, the Secretary-General of the conference, stressed the need for implementation: “The real test is not what we said here but what we do next. The wave of change has formed. Now, it is our collective responsibility to propel it forward.”

Key Outcomes and Announcements

One of the most anticipated achievements of the conference was progress on the High Seas Treaty—officially known as the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement. With 51 ratifications confirmed and 60 needed for entry into force, the treaty promises to enable the creation of marine protected areas in international waters, a crucial tool to achieving the goal of protecting 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030.

Additionally, 800 new voluntary commitments were registered across the 10 multi-stakeholder Ocean Action Panels, addressing issues from marine pollution and deep-sea ecosystems to ocean finance and the role of Indigenous peoples.

New and strengthened initiatives launched at UNOC3 include:

The One Ocean Finance Facility is aimed at closing the multi-billion-dollar funding gap for ocean conservation.

The European Ocean Pact, which reinforces regional cooperation for sustainable ocean management.

The Ocean Rise and Coastal Resilience Coalition, supporting vulnerable communities on the frontlines of sea-level rise.

The conference also saw mounting support for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, with four more nations joining the call, bringing the total to 37. “More and more countries are listening to science and the demands of youth for their common heritage over commercial interests,” Tinoco noted.

Civil Society: ‘Fine Words Must Now Translate into Action’

Despite these commitments, environmental groups expressed frustration that the conference stopped short of stronger legally binding decisions, especially on deep-sea mining.

“We’ve heard lots of fine words here in Nice, but these need to turn into tangible action,” said Megan Randles, head of Greenpeace’s delegation. “Countries must be brave and make history by committing to a moratorium on deep-sea mining at next month’s International Seabed Authority (ISA) meeting.”

Randles welcomed the ratification progress of the High Seas Treaty but said governments “missed the moment” to take firmer steps against industries threatening marine ecosystems. “The deep sea should not become the wild west,” she added, referencing UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ recent remarks.

Activists also stressed the importance of upcoming negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty, resuming in Geneva this August. Ninety-five governments signed the “Nice Call for an Ambitious Plastics Treaty,” but concerns remain that lobbying from oil and petrochemical interests could water down the deal.

“The world cannot afford a weak treaty dictated by oil-soaked obstructionists,” said John Hocevar, Oceans Campaign Director at Greenpeace USA. “Governments need to show that multilateralism still works for people and the planet, not the profits of a greedy few.”

Indigenous Voices and Ocean Justice

Coastal and Indigenous communities were visibly present throughout the conference, particularly in the “Green Zone” in La Valette, which welcomed more than 100,000 visitors and hosted grassroots events, youth forums, and artistic exhibitions.

Nichanan Thantanwit, Project Leader at the Ocean Justice Project, highlighted the continued marginalization of traditional ocean custodians: “There is no ocean protection without the people who have protected it all along. Governments must recognize small-scale fishers and Indigenous peoples as rights-holders and secure their role in ocean governance.”

She also called for an end to destructive industrial practices like bottom trawling and harmful aquaculture, which she said “drive ecological collapse and human rights violations.”

Mixed Reviews for France’s Leadership

While French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated his call for a deep-sea mining moratorium—calling it “an international necessity”—some ”conservationists argued that France failed to fully lead by example.

“This was France’s moment, but instead of making a splash, its impact was more of a ripple,” said Enric Sala, National Geographic Explorer in Residence and founder of Pristine Seas. “We heard many policymakers speak about what needs to be done—yet few took the bold steps necessary to protect the ocean.”

Sala did praise governments that announced new fully protected marine areas but said the conference was “heavy on rhetoric, light on resolve.”

What to expect

The anticipated “Nice Ocean Action Plan,” a political declaration accompanied by voluntary commitments, will be released later today. Although non-binding, it is expected to influence key decisions at the ISA meeting in July and the Global Plastics Treaty talks in August.

Chunhua announced that South Korea and Chile have expressed readiness to host the next UN Ocean Conference. “We want the positive momentum generated in Nice to amplify even further in UNOC4,” he said.

As UNOC3 closes, the spirit of the event remains optimistic—but its legacy will depend on what happens next.

As Greenpeace’s Randles put it, “This must not be where it ends. It must be where it truly begins.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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