Asia - Page 3

High in the mountains of Houaphanh province in the north of Laos in an area historically known for opium cultivation, farmers are creating a more secure and sustainable future with the cultivation of coffee.

When Ahmadi, a local storyteller on the Indonesian island of Simeulue, sings a lullaby to his one-year-old grandson, the song is not one about fairies and angels but rather about the precautions to take in a potential tsunami.

Amid escalating hostilities in Myanmar sparked by a 2021 military coup that have plunged millions into a deepening humanitarian crisis, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday urged the country’s neighbours “to leverage their influence” to bring about peace. 

The UN Human Rights Council held a dialogue on Friday to examine the nuclear testing legacy in the Marshall Islands, which representatives from the Pacific nation said has left their people with some of the highest rates of cancer globally. 

More than 215 people, including 35 children, have been killed and dozens are missing after heavy rains triggered flash floods and landslides across Nepal, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.

A former combatant fighting for the rights of her people on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines has been talking about how she has swapped her combat fatigues for jilbabs [outer garment] and her life in the jungle for a more

Wang Yi, the Foreign Minister of China reiterated on Saturday his country’s commitment to playing a constructive role and engaging in mediation for peace, not exploiting volatile situations for “selfish gains”.

India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the world stands fractious, polarized and frustrated amid war, unfair trade practices, climate change and food and health insecurity. Trust has eroded, processes have broken down and countries have extracted more from the international system

Muhammad Yunus of Bangladesh paid tribute to the role of youth in his country, as he urged global leaders at the UN General Assembly to invest in the potential of their own countries’ younger generations to shape a fairer, more equitable world. 

At the UN General Assembly on Friday, leaders from Asia and the Pacific underscored a dire reality: climate change is a clear and present danger for everyone on the Planet, but their countries and peoples will likely suffer the most.