Stories about Development from August, 2013
Secrets To Enjoy Your Traffic Jam
Traffic jam at the overcrowded mega-city Dhaka is one of the most irritating problems in Bangladesh. Karim at Amader kotha shares some secret tips to utilize those boring moments of immobility when you are stuck in a jam.
Strike in Colombia Gains Momentum
Colombia's national strike, which began with an agrarian strike on August 19, is “gaining momentum with shows of support from the citizenry”, as Steven Cohen writes in Colombia Reports: More than 10,000 people participated in “cacerolazos” — protests in which participants bang on kitchen pots and pans — held throughout...
A Brick in the Wall of Tertiary Education in Barbados?
The government plans to cut subsidies for students at the University of the West Indies in Barbados. Some call it "political treason" while others say the move has public support.
Chinese Social Web Shines Spotlight on Illegal Rooftop Structures
Authorities have been slow to do anything about the elaborate and illegal constructions, including one rooftop villa in Beijing that resembles a lush green mountaintop.
Demolition for Progress? Tanzania's Historical Buildings and Monuments Could Face Ax
A newspaper has revealed the special status that protected the Tanzania's historical structures was revoked in 2007 to make way for development.
VIDEO: Caracas’ Tower of David, the World's Tallest Slum
VocativVideo has produced a video about Venezuela's ‘Tower of David’, an unfinished 45-story building taken over by squatters in the 1990s: The tower was originally intended to be a symbol of Caracas’ bright financial future, complete with a rooftop helipad, but construction stopped because of a banking crisis and the...
Hong Kong's Land Expansion ‘Killing’ Local Fishing Industry
Hong Kong's fishermen have bore witness to the negative effects of Hong Kong's push to expand by filling in land from the surrounding ocean.
VIDEO: Shop at the ‘Barrio’ in Asunción, Paraguay
The campaign ‘Volvé al barrio’ (Return to the neighborhood) promotes small businesses in the Loma San Jerónimo neighborhood in Asunción, Paraguay's capital, with video ads where the neighborhood's residents tell viewers about their shops and small businesses. In the blog Hallucina [es], Global Voices contributor Gabriela Galilea shares three of...
Brazil's Urban Mobility Crisis
Searching for solutions which will improve urban mobility in Brazil, Luciane Salles writes about the lack of an effective national plan and the increase in individual transport.
Bhutan's Best Known Blogger Is The New Prime Minister
Lyonchhen Tshering Tobgay, Member of Parliament representing People's Democratic Party and leader of the opposition of Bhutan has recently sworn in as the new Prime Minister of the country – reports South Asia Revealed. He is also widely regarded as the best known blogger of Bhutan, who started his blog...
Protsahan, Encouraging Girls Through the Arts in India
The young innovators of Protasahan aren't expecting governments alone to make gender equality a reality in India. This post belongs to a series exploring post-2015 ideas for development.
Bangladesh Housing Project Flattens Flora and Fauna in Gazipur
The development near capital Dhaka destroyed the greenery and the ecology of 1,600 acres of agricultural lands, forests and water bodies.
Madagascar Agency Suspended from Network Tracking Money Laundering
Lambo T. reports [fr] on the website of La Gazette de La Grande Ile that Samifin [mg], the agency in charge of cleaning up the financial sector and combat transnational illegal operations in Madagascar has been suspended from the Egmont Group of financial intelligence units. Egmont is an international network that helps tracks...
Changes In Indian Economy And The Customers
Blogger and entrepreneur JP Rangaswami looks back at the changes in Indian economy, from a mixed economy combining features of capitalism and socialism (1947-1991) towards liberal and free-market principles (1991 onwards) and how the changes and the pace of change evolved around the customer.
16 Passengers Travel in One Rickshaw In Rural India
Blogger and entrepreneur Kiruba Shankar writes how in rural India an auto rickshaw built to take four passengers, now transports 16 people: Here’s how the math works. Three in the front (including the driver). Four in the back seat. Three in the small wooden seat opposite the rear seat. Two...
Brazil Accused of Railroading Indigenous Rights in Proposed Land Bill
Complementary Bill 227, brought to an emergency vote in the senate, will give Brazil the power to economically exploit indigenous lands in the Amazon.
DREAM Helps Reduce AIDS Cases in Africa
An interview with Paola Germano, leader of Comunità di Sant'Egidio's DREAM programme in Africa. She explains why research has confirmed a reduction in AIDS cases in sub-saharan Africa.
Italian Appeals Court Upholds Guilty Verdict in Historic Eternit Asbestos Case
An appeals court in Turin, Italy has affirmed Swiss billionaire Stephan Schmidheiny, former owner of cement manufacturer Swiss Eternit Group, is responsible for nearly 3,000 asbestos-related deaths.
