Latest news with #globaldevelopment
Zawya
3 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
UAE participates in the 46th Ministerial Council meeting of the OPEC Fund for International Development in Vienna
Assessing progress in the implementation of the Fund's plans and projects Highlighting the challenges of the evolving global development landscape Exploring ways to enhance South-South cooperation Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini: The flexibility of the OPEC Fund's development solutions is key to effectively adapting to global challenges Vienna: The United Arab Emirates, represented by the Ministry of Finance, participated today in the 46th session of the Ministerial Council of the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), held in Vienna, Austria. The UAE delegation was headed by H.E. Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, and included Thuraiya Hamid Alhashmi, Director of the International Financial Relations and Organisations Department at the Ministry of Finance and Governor to the OPEC Fund for International Development, and Hamad Issa Al Zaabi, Director of the Office of the Minister of State for Financial Affairs and Alternate Governor to the Fund. The meeting discussed the OPEC Fund's Annual Report for 2024 and focused on evaluating the progress made in implementing the Fund's plans and projects. It also addressed the challenges posed by the rapidly evolving global development landscape, particularly in areas such as energy and food security, climate change, and the need to create sustainable job opportunities. Participants also discussed ways to strengthen South-South cooperation and build sustainable partnerships between the OPEC Fund and regional and international development finance institutions to enhance the efficiency of responses to beneficiary countries' needs. Flexible Development Solutions In his speech during the meeting, H.E. Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini praised the tangible achievements made over the past year, which marked a milestone in the Fund's journey toward expanding its operations and enhancing its resilience and adaptability. He stated: 'This year marks the 49th anniversary of the OPEC Fund's founding, reflecting the strength of its founding vision and its pioneering role in promoting sustainable development across the Global South. Over the past year, the Fund has demonstrated outstanding institutional performance, driven by a clear approach under the 2030 Strategic Framework, enabling it to effectively respond to rapidly evolving conditions and deliver flexible and actionable development solutions across various sectors.' He added: 'We recognise that the global development landscape is undergoing significant changes, with governments across our regions facing multiple challenges—from food security and energy provision to climate change adaptation and job creation. Amidst these challenges, the pressure on the development finance system is growing at an unprecedented pace. In this context, the OPEC Fund can play a central role in supporting countries by advancing South-South cooperation and offering financial solutions that span a wide range of sectors and instruments, in addition to its strong global credibility.' Advancing Development Efforts The OPEC Fund for International Development is a multilateral development finance institution established in 1976. It works to strengthen cooperation between OPEC member countries and development partners from the Global South and the international development community. Its mission is to support sustainable social and economic progress in low- and middle-income countries worldwide, contributing to stability and prosperity in beneficiary countries by offering technical and financial assistance through concessional financing, grants, and development-focused aid across sectors such as agriculture, education, energy, health, and transport. Since its inception, the Fund has committed over USD 27 billion to support more than 4,000 development projects with a total estimated cost exceeding USD 200 billion across more than 125 countries.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Starmer urged to attend UN summit and back plans to tackle global debt crisis
More than 80 charity leaders and campaigners have written to Keir Starmer urging him to attend a UN global development conference and back plans to reduce the debt payments made by poor countries. World leaders including the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, and the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, are expected at the Financing for Development conference – known as FfD4 - in Seville later this month. The campaigners claim that in negotiations between participating countries, the UK, together with others including the US, has blocked proposals for a new UN intergovernmental process to tackle the debt crisis in the global south. Signatories to the letter include the heads of Christian Aid, Oxfam GB, Save the Children UK, ActionAid and Unicef UK. 'We are deeply concerned about the UK's position to systematically block any significant reform of the debt architecture within the FfD4 negotiations thus far. This approach risks putting this government on the wrong side of history and risks further damaging the UK's reputation as a development partner,' it says. The development minister Jenny Chapman has insisted the UK will continue to take a lead on international development, despite slashing the aid budget to fund higher defence spending. Under its party manifesto, Labour pledged to 'repair relationships with developing countries and to restore the UK's role on the international development stage'. Romilly Greenhill, the chief executive of the aid umbrella group Bond, which coordinated the letter, said: 'Following the shortsighted decision to cut the UK aid budget, this government has a responsibility to step up and take decisive action on debt.' She added: 'The UK must stand in solidarity with countries hardest hit by the unjust debt crisis. Supporting their calls is vital – not just for the global majority, but for a fairer, more stable future for everyone.' Patrick Watt, the chief executive of Christian Aid, said: 'The UK cannot build real partnerships with the global south while blocking the very reforms those countries are calling for. At FfD4, the government has a choice: stand in solidarity with countries facing debt and climate crises, or cling to outdated power structures that continue to extract more than they give.' The letter calls on Starmer to 'ensure that the UK government demonstrates that it is ready to lead on debt on the global stage' by supporting the idea of a UN process. 'This is urgently needed for agreeing just, timely, and lasting debt relief and preventing future debt crises,' the letter adds. With the UK a common jurisdiction for the contracts that govern sovereign debt, the government is also being urged to pass legislation to force private sector creditors to bear their fair share of any debt relief programmes. The letter to Starmer says: 'Reforming UK debt legislation and supporting global financial reform costs the UK taxpayer nothing, all that is required is your willingness to lead.' The World Bank estimates more than half of low-income countries are either already in debt distress or at high risk of it, and its chief economist has warned that outside Asia, the developing world risks becoming 'a development-free zone'. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Countries struggling to meet their debt obligations can already apply for relief through a process known as the common framework, which is administered by the International Monetary Fund, but critics complain that it can take years. A UK government spokesperson said: 'We remain deeply committed to supporting developing countries to tackle unsustainable debt and continue to work with them to address both the immediate challenges, and the underlying drivers. 'We look forward to working through a full spectrum of development finance issues, alongside our partners at the conference in Seville later this month.' They spokesperson added that the UK would be represented by a minister at the meeting. Global efforts to tackle poverty have taken a significant blow from the deep cuts in overseas aid budgets made by Donald Trump's administration, which has all but dismantled its aid agency, USAID.
Al Bawaba
29-05-2025
- Business
- Al Bawaba
ADU Hosts Second International Conference on Global Sustainable Development Uniting
Abu Dhabi University (ADU) successfully hosted the second edition of the International Conference on Global Sustainable Development (ICGSD 2025) on May 23–24 at its Dubai campus. Marking the conference's first edition in the region, the event convened leading academic scientists, researchers, policymakers, and industry experts from ten countries to exchange ideas and explore innovative solutions to today's most pressing sustainability in collaboration with Digambarrao Bindu College and Acadivate, the premier interdisciplinary conference brought together more than 130 global experts for high-impact discussions and cross-sector collaboration spanning health, business, environment, technology, and social sciences. Through a dynamic agenda of plenary sessions, panel debates, and over 100 research presentations, ICGSD 2025 explored critical themes including climate change, renewable energy, social justice, AI in education, and sustainable development practices. The two-day event reinforced the importance of international cooperation and actionable strategies aligned with the UAE's national agenda and the United Nations Sustainable Development Ghassan Aouad, Chancellor of Abu Dhabi University, said: 'We recognize that meaningful progress toward sustainability requires collaboration across disciplines, sectors, and borders. At ADU, we are committed to fostering this kind of innovation-led dialogue through initiatives like ICGSD 2025. The conference served as a powerful platform for engaging thought leaders and changemakers committed to co-creating solutions that serve both people and the planet. As the UAE accelerates its sustainability agenda, ADU remains at the forefront of driving dialogue research, and innovation that advance long-term impact locally and globally.'Maryam Rashd Bunfour, Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineer at the General Headquarters of Dubai Police, said: 'Police entities play a critical role in advancing sustainability by integrating comprehensive environmental frameworks into their core operations. This allows us to align efforts in maintaining society's safety and security with long-term environmental goals, ultimately contributing to shaping the UAE's future policies and building a resilient and sustainable society.'Karim Houni, Head of Digital Innovation at Emirates Global Aluminum, said: 'ICGSD 2025 provided an exceptional platform to explore forward-thinking solutions and engage with leading researchers and students from around the world. My session on 'Digital EcoDesign in a Sust-AI-nable World' sparked meaningful dialogue and opened doors for potential collaborations. I look forward to contributing to future editions of this impactful conference.'Professor Fauzia Jabeen, Director of Research Institute for Sustainable Futures at Abu Dhabi University added: 'We're proud to host such conferences that offer a powerful platform to highlight cutting-edge innovations like 'Metaverse Adoption as a Pillar of Sustainable Healthcare in Industry 5.0.' This keynote showcased the transformative potential of metaverse technologies to advance sustainability in the UAE's healthcare sector.' Following its successful inaugural edition in Thailand, the second ICGSD marked a major step forward in expanding global participation and impact. ADU continues to host high-caliber platforms that empower students, faculty, and global partners to contribute to sustainable solutions aligned with both national priorities and global development goals. The university also integrates climate action across education, research, operations, and community engagement. Through its Climate Action Plan and Sustainable Research Centre, ADU fosters innovation in areas such as renewable energy, pollution monitoring, and environmental management, reinforcing its leadership in advancing the UAE's sustainability agenda.
Zawya
28-05-2025
- General
- Zawya
ADU hosts second international conference on Global Sustainable Development Uniting
Abu Dhabi, UAE: Abu Dhabi University (ADU) successfully hosted the second edition of the International Conference on Global Sustainable Development (ICGSD 2025) on May 23–24 at its Dubai campus. Marking the conference's first edition in the region, the event convened leading academic scientists, researchers, policymakers, and industry experts from ten countries to exchange ideas and explore innovative solutions to today's most pressing sustainability challenges. Hosted in collaboration with Digambarrao Bindu College and Acadivate, the premier interdisciplinary conference brought together more than 130 global experts for high-impact discussions and cross-sector collaboration spanning health, business, environment, technology, and social sciences. Through a dynamic agenda of plenary sessions, panel debates, and over 100 research presentations, ICGSD 2025 explored critical themes including climate change, renewable energy, social justice, AI in education, and sustainable development practices. The two-day event reinforced the importance of international cooperation and actionable strategies aligned with the UAE's national agenda and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Professor Ghassan Aouad, Chancellor of Abu Dhabi University, said: 'We recognize that meaningful progress toward sustainability requires collaboration across disciplines, sectors, and borders. At ADU, we are committed to fostering this kind of innovation-led dialogue through initiatives like ICGSD 2025. The conference served as a powerful platform for engaging thought leaders and changemakers committed to co-creating solutions that serve both people and the planet. As the UAE accelerates its sustainability agenda, ADU remains at the forefront of driving dialogue research, and innovation that advance long-term impact locally and globally.' Maryam Rashd Bunfour, Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineer at the General Headquarters of Dubai Police, said: 'Police entities play a critical role in advancing sustainability by integrating comprehensive environmental frameworks into their core operations. This allows us to align efforts in maintaining society's safety and security with long-term environmental goals, ultimately contributing to shaping the UAE's future policies and building a resilient and sustainable society.' Karim Houni, Head of Digital Innovation at Emirates Global Aluminum, said: 'ICGSD 2025 provided an exceptional platform to explore forward-thinking solutions and engage with leading researchers and students from around the world. My session on 'Digital EcoDesign in a Sust-AI-nable World' sparked meaningful dialogue and opened doors for potential collaborations. I look forward to contributing to future editions of this impactful conference.' Professor Fauzia Jabeen, Director of Research Institute for Sustainable Futures at Abu Dhabi University added: 'We're proud to host such conferences that offer a powerful platform to highlight cutting-edge innovations like 'Metaverse Adoption as a Pillar of Sustainable Healthcare in Industry 5.0.' This keynote showcased the transformative potential of metaverse technologies to advance sustainability in the UAE's healthcare sector.' Following its successful inaugural edition in Thailand, the second ICGSD marked a major step forward in expanding global participation and impact. ADU continues to host high-caliber platforms that empower students, faculty, and global partners to contribute to sustainable solutions aligned with both national priorities and global development goals. The university also integrates climate action across education, research, operations, and community engagement. Through its Climate Action Plan and Sustainable Research Centre, ADU fosters innovation in areas such as renewable energy, pollution monitoring, and environmental management, reinforcing its leadership in advancing the UAE's sustainability agenda. About Abu Dhabi University: Abu Dhabi University (ADU) is one of the region's leading academic institutions, translating the UAE Government's National Agenda to deliver internationally accredited academic programs and world-class research. Established in 2003, with campuses across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Dubai, the University serves around 8,700 students from over 100 nationalities. The University is home to five colleges across different disciplines including arts and sciences, business, engineering, health sciences, and law, while offering a diverse range of over 50 undergraduate and graduate programs. According to the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2025, ADU ranks 191 globally. Additionally, it ranks fourth in the UAE and 172nd globally for its research quality, and it is among the top three universities in the UAE, while holding the number one position in the teaching pillar. Additionally, THE Rankings has recognized the University's Business and Economics subject area as number one in the UAE and the Arab region. The University has made an impressive performance in THE Young University Rankings 2024, ranking in the 60th position globally among the world's best universities that are 50 years or younger. Furthermore, the University jumped to the 70th place in the prestigious THE Asia University Rankings 2025 and was ranked first in the UAE for graduate employability as per the Global University Employability Ranking 2023-24. Parallelly, ADU ranks in 501 globally, according to the 2025 edition of the QS World University Rankings, advancing 79 places. ADU continues to empower faculty and students with state-of-the-art resources, facilities, and learning opportunities that foster innovation and support research-based problem-solving. The University maintains strong international collaborations with leading academic institutions and public and private sector organizations, with institutional accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges' Senior College and University Commission (WASC).
The National
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
The sudden disappearance of aid leaves the most vulnerable in a mess
She received the order and left immediately. There was no handover. No briefing for the local team. No final meeting with the communities she had worked with for years. Just an email, a locked door and an abrupt exit. And if she stayed beyond her official departure time of 30 minutes – to offer any sense of closure – she was penalised, billed per hour. This is how thousands of development programmes are being dismantled in 2025. Not through reform. Not in conversation with those on the ground. But through abrupt withdrawal – shaped by shifting priorities, and felt most by those with the least power. Over the past two decades, donor countries have played a vital role in supporting global development. In 2021, global official development assistance reached a record high of $179 billion, driven by pandemic-related support. But according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, global aid fell by 7.1 per cent in 2024 – the first decrease in five years. In 2025, as global needs continue to rise, deeper cuts, programme cancellations, and funding freezes have pushed many vulnerable communities past the tipping point. Governments have every right to reevaluate spending priorities. The aid system itself has long been in need of reform, to become more sustainable, more equitable and less reliant on models that entrench dependency. Governments in the global south must lead on their own terms – not as subcontractors to donor priorities, but as architects of systems built to withstand volatility. This shift is long overdue. And the question is no longer whether aid can be cut. It is how to ensure that its withdrawal does not dismantle progress because how donor nations exit matters. It wasn't the decision to leave. It was the speed, the disruption, and the absence of co-ordination or continuity that turned strategic adjustments into widespread instability for those already living at the margins. The consequences were swift, measurable, and in many cases, entirely predictable. Local NGOs were left mid-programme, mid-contract, mid-promise and suddenly unable to deliver on years of trust In Sudan, the closure of 30 health centres in Central Darfur left thousands without access to medical care. In Bangladesh, over a million Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar are surviving on half-rations. In Jordan, funding shortfalls threaten the basic livelihoods of 60,000 Syrian refugee families. In Colombia, suspended support forced the closure of youth programmes that once helped stabilise communities recovering from conflict. Local NGOs were left mid-programme, mid-contract, mid-promise and suddenly unable to deliver on years of trust. For communities already living through long-term crises, there was no transition plan, no explanation, only the disappearance of something they had never intended to rely on but had come to depend upon out of necessity. These are not abstract losses. They are the human cost of decisions made from a distance, without the direct involvement of those most affected. We've seen this pattern before. In Haiti, after the cameras moved on. In Uganda, when abrupt health funding cuts triggered a spike in child mortality. In South Sudan, when displacement surged as support dried up. As one 18-year-old student told me: 'It's hard to say you didn't see it coming. The same mistakes keep happening – and we're left managing the consequences of systems we had little role in shaping.' This is not simply a funding issue. Because this wasn't just a reduction in aid. It was the removal of commitment. And while the right to exit exists, how that exit is handled reveals more than a shift in budget. It reflects the values and responsibilities underpinning global co-operation. Exiting without sufficient warning, planning or safeguards risks undermining hard-won progress and shifting the burden onto those least equipped to bear it. Even transition requires intention. Transformation demands coherence, responsibility and foresight. If the future of international co-operation is to remain credible, it cannot be measured only in dollars spent or programmes launched, but in how leaders respond when past commitments no longer align with present realities. The real question is this: when support is withdrawn, who takes responsibility for what is left behind? Until that question is answered, credibility will remain out of reach, replaced by shifting budgets and responsibilities quietly transferred to communities already facing overwhelming challenges. Because in the end, the rights to health, education, safety and dignity are not defined by declarations or ink on paper. They are revealed in the decisions we make, and the consequences we are willing to let others live with.
