The all-women market appoints a ‘mother of wealth’ to pray for their good fortune – and in this recession-hit country the role is more important than ever Folasade Ojikutu wears a traditional white lace dress for her work at the lagoon dock behind Oluw…
UN quizzed over role in prison-like island camp for Rohingya refugees
Rights groups raise concerns over deal to provide services on Bhasan Char, as Bangladesh plans to increase camp’s population by 80,000The UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) is facing questions over whether it is helping to detain Rohingya refugees in prison-l…
‘Evil customs’: why a Kashmiri village abandoned dowries
Dowries, illegal since 1961, still cause 20 deaths a day in India. But Babawayil has had no divorces or violence against women since it banned themBabawayil, in the foothills of the Zabarwan mountains by the Sind River, is a typical village in Indian-a…
Digital gender gap ‘keeping women offline’ and costing billions, finds report
Men 50% more likely to be online than women in least developed countries, hampering economies and fuelling gender inequalityA failure to ensure women have equal access to the internet has cost low-income countries $1tn (£730bn) over the past decade and…
Rishi Sunak to save billions by counting IMF cash as aid for poor
Exclusive: chancellor criticised by former Tory international development secretaries for planned use of $27.4bn windfallRishi Sunak is to save billions of pounds by counting as aid financial assistance to poor countries being provided as a result of a…
Agony of Ecuador’s brutal prison massacre endures for bereaved relatives
At least 119 inmates died in a Guayaquil jail after local gangs’ links with Mexican cartels brought a new level of horrorIt was in mid-morning when María Elena Villacís got a WhatsApp message from her brother Darwín, who was jailed in the Litoral penit…
Give us action on climate not just words, say developing nations ahead of Cop26
Demand for G20 to ‘step up’ with tougher emissions reduction targets and financial aid for poorestDeveloping countries are calling on the G20 group of advanced economies to come forward urgently with stiffer targets on greenhouse gas emissions, and fin…
Covid restrictions could hinder Cop26 delegates and observers
‘My fear is that we will see fewer delegates from some of the most afflicted countries,’ a Cop26 insider from a developing nation saysCop26 will be a “conference of the parties” like no other, as this is a year like no other. The Covid-19 pandemic has …
Zimbabwean who cleared Falklands mines urges rethink on 75% cut to clearance programmes
Cuthbert Mutukwa fears disastrous consequences for home country if UK cuts go ahead as it nears ‘mine-free’ statusA Zimbabwean man who helped clear hundreds of landmines from the Falkland Islands has urged Britain not to go ahead with cuts that would s…
Reports of physical and sexual violence as Libya arrests 5,000 migrants in a week
Raids by the security forces leave at least one man dead, as official observers decry ‘inhumane’ detention conditionsMore than 5,000 refugees and migrants have been arrested by the Libyan authorities in the past week with some allegedly subjected to se…