The Human Consciousness Now...Our World in the Midst of Becoming...to What? Observe, contemplate Now.
BANGKOK, Thailand, May 16 2025 (IPS) - As the United Nations celebrates its 80th anniversary, one message from the UN Charter remains particularly relevant: promoting cooperative solutions to international economic, social, health, and related problems.
Over the past eight decades, international cooperation has led to an unparalleled reduction in hunger, extreme poverty, and disease. Investments in public services have unlocked opportunities and enhanced choices in Asia and the Pacific.
There are numerous lessons for policymakers to learn and apply to the current context. Rising prices, growing wealth inequality, multidimensional poverty, and the prevalence of low-paid informal sector jobs still shape the lives and livelihoods of over 4.86 billion people in the Asia-Pacific region.
Differential outcomes in economic prosperity, social progress, and environmental stewardship have been critical in addressing policy turns. Policy insights and formulations are often shaped by the need to navigate regional and global uncertainties; with these triggers influencing policy turns.
Today, there are enormous opportunities to turn past policy lessons into future policy insights.
The age of a new international economic order
The adoption of new technologies, particularly advanced farming techniques and high-yield crop varieties, significantly boosted agricultural productivity and led to substantial rural income growth in the 1970s. Conversely, volatility in energy prices adversely affected macroeconomic conditions and increased debt levels in many developing countries in the 1980s.
The 1997 Asian financial crisis raised alarms about the deepening links of financial markets, impacting trade diversion, cross-border investment measures, and labour market absorption capacity.
These region-wide challenges were addressed through multi-layered policies focusing on public services, macroeconomic stabilization measures, active labour market policies and promoting national policies for industrial and technological development.
The policies also emphasized the significant role of supporting private sector enterprises to restore growth potential and the need to accelerate regional, inter-regional and sub-regional cooperation in trade as well as promote financial sector development.
An era of globalization
With the world turning towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000, optimism soared with the prospect of ending extreme poverty and fostering a commitment to development cooperation.
Global trade performance saw a sharp rise in export growth in developing countries, alongside a steady flow of supplies across regional value chains. These positive trade experiences were complemented by a favourable macroeconomic environment, which further improved foreign direct investment flows and ICT-led growth.
However, the 2008 global financial and economic crisis had an adverse impact on the Asia-Pacific region. Economic growth experienced one of the most severe downturns since the Great Depression of the 1930s, constraining domestic economic activities and destabilizing the trade sector, causing hardship for millions and dampening job prospects.
During this period, policymakers pursued multilayered goals to balance strategies on multiple fronts based on their national and regional contexts. Governments prioritized anti-poverty agendas, scaled up public-private investments, and fostered cooperation around fiscal, financial, and monetary responses to mitigate the severity and duration of the crises.
Governments announced fiscal stimulus packages and reinvigorated global policy coordination post-2008 crisis to overcome the Great Recession. Post-2008 policy turns emphasised governance, decentralization, and trans-boundary cooperation, which stabilized the macroeconomic and foreign exchange markets.
As people began to enjoy the benefits of stability and the spirit of cooperation, there was a renewed call to increase socio-economic opportunities for the marginalized groups.
Towards sustainable development
As the world leaders adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015, international cooperation was championed to transform our world. Forward-looking policymaking has been mainstreamed to unlock opportunities across regions. Inspired by policy choices for inclusive development, structural transformation, accelerated energy transition, technology-driven industrialization and sustainable financing, a new path has been paved to overcome the existential threat of climate change.
Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted communities and countries across the region, exposing weak healthcare systems, inadequate social protection mechanisms, informal labour markets, supply chain vulnerabilities, and limited trade and economic diversification strategies.
The multi-speed economic recovery highlighted the need for cooperation during turbulent times, while prioritizing sustainability to ensure a smooth recovery from the cost-of-living crisis as well as global supply chain disruptions and debt distress.
Governments emphasized the importance of reimagining public policymaking, ranging from cooperation in vaccine production to environmental protection policies, technological advancements, and early warning systems.
Strategic foresight and going beyond 2030
In 2025, all stakeholders face a critical choice between regional and subregional cooperation and focusing on limited interests, which could further stall progress in socio-economic prosperity and climate action. As policy turns occur, international cooperation and fostering partnerships are once again poised to play a catalytic role in expanding and scaling up solution-focused pathways, enhancing futures thinking for all stakeholders in Asia and the Pacific.
Now is the time to focus on developing economic and social infrastructure, trade and investment strategies, and private sector engagement to align with the aspirations of the people in the region.
Sudip Ranjan Basu is Chief of ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Section
Source: Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
IPS UN Bureau
ABUJA, May 15 2025 (IPS) - After graduating in 2019, Jeremiah Achimugu left Sokoto State in northwestern Nigeria for Abuja, the nation’s capital, in search of better opportunities. But life in the city brought unexpected challenges, especially the high cost of housing.
At first, Achimugu stayed with his uncle and worked as a marketer, earning 120,000 naira (USD 73) a month. However, his salary barely covered his basic needs.
“The cost of living in Nigeria’s rapidly developing capital soon ate deep into my salary,” he said. “By the end of the month, I was always broke. Transportation, food, and other expenses were just too much.”
When he began searching for a place of his own, he was shocked by the prices. Even a small one-room apartment in a remote area costs about 500,000 naira (USD 307) a year.
“There was no way I could afford that kind of rent even though the apartment was nothing to write home about,” he said.
Few months later, Achimugu resigned from his job and returned to Sokoto. His dream of building a life in the city was cut short by the soaring cost of living.
“The cost of living and rent in Nigerian cities is too high for young people,” he said. “But these are the places where the opportunities are. Some landlords are taking advantage of young people coming into the cities by raising the rent.”
A Continental Rental Crisis
Achimugu’s experience reflects a larger problem faced by young people across Nigeria. About 63 percent of the country’s population is under the age of 24, and cities are growing rapidly. The United Nations has warned that Nigeria’s urban population is increasing almost twice as fast as the national average. However, housing hasn’t kept up with this growth. As a result, the few available homes are now overpriced. The World Bank estimates the country has a housing shortage of over 17 million homes.
In major cities like Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt, rent prices can range from around 400,000 naira (USD 246) to as much as 25 million naira (USD 16,000) per annum, depending on the location and kind of apartment.
With a monthly minimum wage of 70,000 naira (USD 43), which is often unpaid or delayed, and high unemployment, many young people cannot afford decent housing. This makes it harder for them to settle down, build strong social connections, or feel financially secure.
Nigeria is not alone. Across Africa, young people are being priced out of the rental market. Rapid urbanization, population growth, and economic hardship have made affordable housing a growing concern. In interviews with young people in Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria, IPS confirmed that the same challenges exist across the continent.
Formal housing remains beyond the reach of most Africans, with only the top 5 to 10 percent of the population able to afford it. The majority are left to live in informal settlements, many of which lack essential services such as clean water, electricity, and proper sanitation. Experts have warned that without increased investment in affordable housing, a growing number of young people will struggle to find a place to live.
Kwantami Kwame in Kumasi, Ghana, blames capitalism and the greed of real estate owners for the high cost of rent. He told IPS that the rush for quick profits in the cities is affecting the welfare of young people, most of whom are low-income earners.
“A few weeks ago, I was looking for a one-bedroom apartment in Accra, the capital of Ghana, and I was asked to pay an upfront two-year rent fee of 38,275 Ghanaian Cedis (USD 2,500). The apartment wasn’t even up to standard. The fee didn’t cover water, electricity, or waste bills. It’s really unfair,” said Kwame, who noted that in a country where the monthly minimum wage is just 539.19 Ghanaian cedis (USD 45), there should be provisions for young people to access affordable housing in cities where opportunities exist.
Kwame believes governments should regulate rents and check the excesses of landlords. But Olaitan Olaoye, a Lagos-based real estate expert, sees it differently. He points to limited land availability as a major factor driving up rent and argues that price controls won’t solve the problem.
“Governments in Africa shouldn’t be setting rent prices when they’re not doing enough to tackle inflation, which keeps pushing up the cost of building materials,” he said.
“For instance, in a country like Nigeria, the removal of the fuel subsidy caused prices to skyrocket. This had a ripple effect on everything else, including construction. It led to an increase in the cost of building materials. The government then has no moral right to instruct landlords to reduce their rent,” Olaoye argued.
While he does not excuse the greed of some landlords and estate developers, Olaoye worries that if young people already struggle to rent homes, the dream of owning one may become increasingly unrealistic.
“In the past, it was easier for people to build homes. Prices of building materials were affordable and life was more stable. Back then, when people finished school and got a job, they could start saving right away. They could afford to buy a car, build a house, and live comfortably. But things have changed,” he said.
Inadequate Social Housing Programs
Olaoye’s concerns are echoed by Phoebe Atieno Ochieng in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. After securing a teaching job in the capital, she left her family home in the countryside of Busia. However, with a monthly salary of only 18,000 Kenya Shillings (USD 140), renting a place in the city was out of her reach.
“I had no choice but to live in a small space provided by the school management within the school premises,” she told IPS. “The houses here are not affordable. A basic one-bedroom apartment costs 120,000 Kenyan shillings per month. I can’t balance my income because I still have to pay taxes, buy food, and take care of other daily needs. Unless I get a better-paying job, I can’t manage.”
Ochieng criticizes the Kenyan government for its failure to provide adequate social housing and ensure access to affordable mortgages.
While the Kenyan government has launched a social housing scheme like the Affordable Housing Programme to help low- and middle-income earners secure decent homes, the initiative has faced growing criticism. Many argue that the houses being built are still unaffordable, and there are widespread concerns about the potential mismanagement of the scheme. Also, the introduction of a mandatory housing tax has sparked outrage, with many questioning why they are being compelled to fund homes they may never qualify for or benefit from.
Similarly, the Nigerian government has made several attempts to address the housing crisis through various national housing programs designed to provide affordable homes in cities. However, these programs have often failed due to poor implementation, inadequate funding, and corruption. Many housing projects have been abandoned, leaving the promise of affordable housing unfulfilled for the majority of Nigerians.
South Africa’s housing crisis is worsening due to rapid urbanization, economic challenges, and the legacy of apartheid. Cities like Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban are seeing an increasing number of people move from rural areas in search of better job opportunities, putting pressure on housing infrastructure.
During apartheid, many Black South Africans were confined to overcrowded townships on the outskirts of cities, areas that still lack proper infrastructure and services. As young people flock to cities for better prospects, they face the challenge of unaffordable rent, which, according to Ntando Mji, a receptionist in Cape Town, is limiting their potential.
Although the government has attempted to provide subsidized housing for those with a limited income, the scale of the problem is overwhelming, and millions are still waiting for homes. “In Cape Town, getting a house is so difficult. The agents require a three-month rent deposit, and they scrutinize your income, but even getting approved for a space is really hard,” Mji lamented.
“Because it is mainly commercial entities that build houses, they are so expensive. This is why the South African government should intervene by providing accommodation at lower prices and engaging the private sector in building lower-cost housing in safer areas,” said Bhufura Majola, who told IPS that he waited a year before he could even get a small apartment in a student area far from where he works.
He added, “The high cost of rental prices in South Africa is a big deterrent to young professionals in particular because it takes away their choices of where to stay, especially near places where employment is guaranteed. This has forced many to abandon their dreams.”
Peace Abiola, who lives in Ibadan, Southwest Nigeria, spent all her savings—600,000 naira (USD 369)—on an apartment last year. She works as a freelance content creator for brands, earning an irregular income. Now, with her rent due, she is considering returning to her village because she can no longer afford to keep up.
“I think one solution to this problem is the proper implementation of laws to control the irregular hike in rental prices,” she said, echoing the frustration of many Nigerians who have started protesting and calling on the government to act.
The Nigerian government has repeatedly promised to enforce policies that protect tenants, but none of those pledges have materialized.
“Here, we are just focused on survival or how to pay the next rent or how to get the next meal. This is not how life should be,” Abiola said.
Note: This article is brought to you by IPS Noram in collaboration with INPS Japan and Soka Gakkai International in consultative status with ECOSOC.
IPS UN Bureau Report
OAKLAND, California, USA, May 15 2025 (IPS) - Last week, at its annual Land Conference in Washington D.C., (May 5-8), the World Bank showed allegiance to the new US administration by dropping the pretense of promoting land reform for climate action and confirming that its land agenda is about boosting corporate profits.
Climate Focus Abandoned to Appease Trump
While it had previously announced that the 2025 conference would focus on the “foundational role of securing land tenure and access for climate action,” the Bank scrambled in response to the seismic political shift brought on by the second Trump presidency.
The administration’s “America First” agenda has slashed global development aid, including 85 percent of USAID programs that were unceremoniously and abruptly ended. After exiting the Paris Agreement on climate, Trump also proposed a budget that would further reduce federal climate change programs.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently reassured the Bretton Woods Institutions that their largest shareholder would not be pulling out at their Spring Meetings in April 2025. He did, however, specify that the Bank and IMF “must step back from their sprawling and unfocused agendas,” condemning their work on climate, gender, and other social issues.
In response, Bank staff were allegedly instructed not to mention climate or gender at the Spring Meetings, as the institutions cower under US pressure.
Just weeks before the Land Conference started, its website was altered to remove the headline banner on “Securing Land Tenure and Access for Climate Action.” The last-minute shift in messaging – just a year after launching a multi-billion-dollar land initiative – confirms the findings of a recent exposé by the Oakland Institute:
The Bank’s land push was never actually about climate action. Released the week before the conference, the Climatewash report revealed how the Bank intends to open lands to agribusiness, mining of “transition minerals,” and false solutions like carbon credits – fueling dispossession and environmental destruction.
Land Conference homepage in February 2025 (left) and then in May 2025 (right), after focus on climate was scrubbed. Source: The World Bank
At last year’s Land Conference – focused on “Securing Land Tenure and Access for Climate Action” – the Bank unveiled plans to massively expand its influence on land policy around the world through the Global Program on Land Tenure Security and Land Access for Climate Goals.
It announced plans to “ensure 100 million people see greater tenure security… and improve land administration and land access for climate action in 20 countries” over the next five years. Towards these goals, the Bank said it will double its investment in the land sector – from US$5 billion to US$10 billion – and double the number of countries where it will intervene with land projects.
Land Reform to Serve Corporate Interests
Despite the dramatic branding shift, the agenda at last week’s conference did not change and several positive sessions focused on climate action and Indigenous rights were held, including a welcome discussion on the importance of “securing collective lands.” The focus on changing land tenure for “economic growth” and “unlocking private capital,” however, took center stage.
At the opening plenary, Rohitesh Dhawan, President and CEO of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) – the principal trade association of the mining industry – delivered the keynote.
Given the egregious human rights and environmental record of the mining industry, the ICMM’s prominent platform was both startling and revealing, laying bare the true interests the conference would serve. Dhawan began by explaining why he was “more hopeful than ever” about the bright future so-called “sustainable” mining could provide:
“We can literally move mountains and shift the course of ancient rivers, But should we? In many cases, the answer will be yes, because all things considered, as a society, we may reach consensus that the need for commodities and the opportunity for host countries to prosper, grow, and develop means that mining should go ahead with the least possible disruption to land, impacted people, and nature.”
While Dhawan went on to say that Free, Prior, and Informed, Consent was “front and center in their approach,” and areas like World Heritage Sites were off limits, he assumes communities will eventually come to accept mining on their lands despite the grave social, environmental, and economic toll it has historically inflicted upon them.
In a telling moment, when the opening panel was asked to give an example of a successful co-ownership model between firms and locals, no examples from Africa or Latin America came to mind. These communities continue to push for genuine authority over their lands, but have seen little progress despite these conference hall platitudes and promises.
Later in the week, several sessions focused on securing land for carbon markets, unsurprising given the lead role the Bank plays in promoting this dangerous false climate solution that has failed to reduce emissions. While it has been extensively documented how carbon offsetting primarily benefits predatory actors at the expense of local communities, the Bank continues to champion these schemes.
Other sessions discussed the role land policies can play in “developing” agriculture, another expected focus in light of the Bank’s new plan to double its agri-finance and agribusiness commitments to US$9 billion annually by 2030.
In one event, Malawi was hailed as a land reform success story, despite the role of the Bank in blocking recent efforts to address historical inequities in land ownership, as detailed in the Climatewash report. Instead, the Bank has coerced Malawi to implement policies favorable to agribusiness.
These conferences are largely symbolic and even if the focus was on climate action, the true impact of the Bank’s efforts remains the same. In practice, the Bank’s land programs and policy prescriptions dismantle collective land tenure systems and promote individual titling and land markets as the norm, paving the way for private investment and corporate takeover.
These reforms, often financed through loans taken by governments, force countries into debt while pushing a “structural transformation” that displaces smallholder farmers, undermines food sovereignty, and prioritizes industrial agriculture and extractive industries.
At this critical juncture to address the climate crisis, this impact directly opposes the IPCC’s recommendations around stopping land conversion.
The Bank is now scrambling to appease Trump, who is content to watch the world burn as long as he and his wealthy oligarchs continue to profit. Through its global land reform agenda, the Bank facilitates the dispossession of local communities across the Global South under its past northstar of economic growth.
The mask is now off – and any illusions that these efforts will help secure rights or address the climate crisis have been shattered.
Andy Currier is Policy Analyst at the Oakland Institute.
IPS UN Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, May 14 2025 (IPS) - Since the dissolution of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in March, roughly 2 million Palestinians residing within the Gaza Strip have struggled to survive amid constant barrages of airstrikes from the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and a persisting blockade on humanitarian aid. With essential border crossings in Gaza remaining closed, humanitarian organizations have expressed fear that the Palestinians within the enclave could experience exacerbated rates of famine and malnutrition.
“The risk of famine does not arrive suddenly. It unfolds in places where access to food is blocked, where health systems are decimated, and where children are left without the bare minimum to survive. Hunger and acute malnutrition are a daily reality for children across the Gaza Strip,” said Catherine Russell, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). “We have repeatedly warned of this trajectory and call again on all parties to prevent a catastrophe.”
Humanitarian aid and food assistance has been blocked by the IDF since March 2, marking the longest blockade since the war in Gaza broke out in 2023. In late March, all 25 of the bakeries in Gaza, which have been supported by the World Food Programme (WFP), shut down. These bakeries were considered to be a lifeline for Gazans. Around this time, WFP’s entire supply of food parcels and two weeks of food rations were depleted.
According to figures from UNICEF, more than 116,000 metric tons of food assistance, which is enough to feed the entire population for roughly 4 months, is in position to be delivered, waiting on borders to open. Additionally, food prices have soared by 3,000 percent since February, pushing basic items, such as flour, out of reach for the majority of Palestinians within the enclave.
“Families in Gaza are starving while the food they need is sitting at the border. We can’t get it to them because of the renewed conflict and the total ban on humanitarian aid imposed in early March,” said the WFP’s Executive Director Cindy McCain. “It’s imperative that the international community acts urgently to get aid flowing into Gaza again. If we wait until after a famine is confirmed, it will already be too late for many people.”
On May 12, UNICEF and the WFP released a report detailing the current hunger crisis in Gaza. According to the report, food supplies have run critically low and the entire population is facing acute food insecurity. Furthermore, roughly 71,000 children and 17,000 mothers are threatened by acute malnutrition.
Additional figures from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) indicate that approximately 470,000 Gazans are currently facing catastrophic levels of hunger (IPC Phase 5). Furthermore, it is estimated that roughly 60,000 children are in dire need of treatment for malnutrition.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there have been at least 57 child deaths as a result of starvation in Gaza. This estimate is believed to be lower than the actual amount of deaths, with thousands of children being at risk of dying due to starvation in the next 11 months.
Breastfeeding mothers in Gaza have been hit especially hard by the blockade, with thousands struggling to produce enough milk to feed their children. With supplemental nutritional services having been rendered essentially nonfunctional, thousands of children are at a heightened risk of disease. An entire generation of children are projected to face a multitude of long-term health risks including stunted growth, impaired cognitive development, and compromised immune systems.
The current distribution plan presented by Israeli authorities to the United Nations (UN) entails roughly 60 trucks of humanitarian aid entering Gaza per day, which is about one-tenth of the supply delivered during the implementation of the ceasefire. IPC warns that catastrophic levels of hunger are to become widespread between now and September if this plan is implemented.
This proposal seeks to establish several aid hubs exclusively in the south of the enclave. According to UNICEF spokesperson James Elder, this plan would create “an impossible choice between displacement and death”, as the vast majority of civilians would have to abandon their homes to access the supplies they need for survival.
The most vulnerable populations, such as children, the disabled, and the elderly, would face extreme challenges if this plan was to be implemented. “It’s dangerous to ask civilians to go into militarized zones to collect rations…humanitarian aid should never be used as a bargaining chip,” Elder said.
The Trump administration has announced a separate distribution plan for Gaza which has been approved by Israeli authorities but rejected by UN officials. This plan entails the establishment of several distribution centers facilitated by private firms. Israel would not be involved in the distribution of aid but would assist in security services around the perimeters of these centers.
“President Trump has made very clear that one of the most urgent things that needs to happen is humanitarian aid into Gaza, and he has tasked all of his team to do everything possible to accelerate that and to as expeditiously as possible get humanitarian aid in, to the people,” said US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar expressed approval for this plan, citing Hamas as a persistent threat that takes advantage of aid deliveries. Many UN officials have denounced this plan, with Olga Cherevko of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stating that there are monitoring systems in place to ensure that all aid goes to civilians.
IPS UN Bureau Report
PORTLAND, USA, May 14 2025 (IPS) - Until the middle of the 20th century, marriage between men and women was the societal norm among countries, and the cohabitation of couples was uncommon and stigmatized. In the subsequent decades, however, that situation changed significantly worldwide.
Marriage rates, especially among young adults, have declined substantially over the past seventy-five years. Additionally, women and men who decide to marry are doing so at older ages and having fewer children than in the recent past.
The median ages at first marriage for men and women have been steadily increasing in countries worldwide. The increasing marriage ages are partly due to increased education, employment, and career decisions; the evolving role and improving status of women; lifestyle preferences; and changing societal norms concerning personal relationships between men and women.
Besides marriage at older ages, couples are choosing to have fewer children than they had a half century ago. For example, the world’s average number of births per woman has declined from 5.3 births in 1963 to 2.3 births in 2023. Also, in over half of all countries, representing over two-thirds of the world’s population, fertility rates are below the replacement fertility of 2.1 births per woman.
At the same time that marriage rates have been declining and women are having fewer births, cohabitation, or people living together without being married, has become increasingly acceptable and common in many countries worldwide.
In the United States, for example, the proportions of young adults and older adults living with a partner increased significantly over the past half century. Whereas in 1970 the proportion cohabitating was a fraction of one percent, by 2018 the percentage had increased to nearly 10% among those aged 18 to 24 years and to nearly 15% among those aged 25 to 34 years and those aged 65 years and older (Figure 1).
Source: US Census Bureau.
In 1970, cohabitation preceded about 11% of the marriages in the United States. That percentage increased significantly over the subsequent decades, and currently approximately 75% of marriages are preceded by cohabitation. Also, the large majority of Americans, close to 70%, say cohabitation is acceptable even if a couple doesn’t plan to get married.
With the increasing levels of cohabitation among young adults in the US, the proportion of births to unmarried mothers also increased. Whereas 5% of all births in the United States in 1960 were to unmarried women, the proportion increased to 33% by 2000 and reached approximately 40% by 2021.
Cohabitation is becoming more prevalent in most populations, particularly in Latin America and Western countries. In contrast, cohabitation is less common in some countries, especially in Asia and the Middle East, because of traditional roles and cultural norms. In those countries, such as Indonesia, Jordan, the Philippines, and Egypt, the large majority of adults in ages 18 to 49 years old are married (Figure 2).
Source: World Family Map Report, 2015.
However, even among some traditional countries, cohabitation has increased. For example, despite the religious laws in Iran, increasing numbers of young Iranian couples, especially those living in urban areas, are choosing cohabitation before marriage.
Cohabitation is becoming more prevalent in most populations, particularly in Latin America and Western countries. In contrast, cohabitation is less common in some countries, especially in Asia and the Middle East, because of traditional roles and cultural norms
Non-marital cohabitation is also becoming increasingly common in China, gaining acceptance among young men and women living in urban areas. Similar to many Western countries, cohabitation in China among young adults has been increasing rapidly with older marriage ages, declining fertility levels, and increasing divorce rates.
Also, changes in Chinese laws may contribute to changes in public attitudes toward cohabitation. For example, whereas the Chinese Marriage Law of 1980 referred to “illegal cohabitation”, a 2001 amendment to the law changed the wording to “non-marital cohabitation”.
Similarly, in India, cohabitation is considered a taboo in traditional Indian society. However, over the recent past, cohabitation has become increasingly popular among young men and women in urban centers.
With more Indian women becoming educated, joining the labor force, and gaining financial independence, traditional attitudes toward marriage are shifting towards more acceptance of cohabitation. Again, live-in relationships are being used by many young couples in urban areas to test their compatibility and differences before making a commitment to marriage.
In contrast to many of the traditional countries in Asia and the Middle East, cohabitation across Latin America and the Caribbean has become increasingly prevalent since the 1970s. Also, adults aged 18 to 49 years have relatively low proportions married, often less than 30%.
Because of the comparatively high prevalence of cohabitation in many Latin American countries, the large majority of births in that region are out of wedlock. Between 2016 and 2020, approximately three-quarters of the children born in Latin America are estimated to have been born outside marriage. In countries such as Chile, Costa Rica, and Mexico, the percentages of births born out of wedlock in 2020 were no less than 70 percent (Figure 3).
Source: OECD.
Various factors are behind the increasing trend away from marriage and towards cohabitation. Among those factors are testing personal relationships, assessing compatibility, financial benefits, flexibility, widespread availability of modern contraceptives, disillusionment with the institution of marriage, and avoidance of legal and monetary obligations related to marriage, including the risks of divorce.
Cohabitation offers an opportunity for couples to get to know each other in a shared living environment. It permits couples to assess their compatibility and areas of discordance before deciding whether they wish to enter a marriage or remain cohabitating.
Cohabitation also typically avoids the legal process and formalities of marriage. It provides couples with the flexibility to move on with their lives if their personal relationship doesn’t work out. In addition, some men and women may not want to make a long-term commitment and take on the responsibilities and obligations that marriage typically entails.
While some cohabiting couples may choose to avoid making a long-term commitment, others may view cohabitation as providing a promising path to marriage. In many countries, including Brazil, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, the large majority of marriages are preceded by cohabitation.
Also, increasingly, in some countries, couples decide to wed after they’ve had children together. Having children for many couples often represents a serious commitment to one’s partner, and marriage provides those couples with a visible way to celebrate their commitment to each other and their family. There are also financial and legal benefits to getting married, including pensions and inheritance matters.
However, some concerns have been raised about the consequences of cohabitation on families. In general, cohabitation is less stable for families with children than marriage and contributes to the rise of single-parent households with fathers missing.
In a global study of over sixty countries, cohabitating couples with children were found to be more likely to break up than married couples. More specifically, in nearly all the countries examined, children born to cohabiting parents were significantly more likely to see their parents break up before age 12 compared to children whose parents were married at their birth.
In sum, over much of the past, marriage between men and women existed as the world’s societal norm, permitting men and women to live together, take part in sex, and have children. After the middle of the 20th century, that societal norm changed significantly, with marriage becoming increasingly replaced or preceded by the cohabitation of men and women and greater numbers of children born out of wedlock.
Joseph Chamie is a consulting demographer, a former director of the United Nations Population Division, and author of many publications on population issues, including his recent book, “Population Levels, Trends, and Differentials”.
WASHINGTON DC, May 14 2025 (IPS) - In Nigeria, salt is deeply woven into the fabric of food and culture. It brings out flavor, preserves ingredients, and enhances tradition. But recently, salt has become the centerpiece of dangerous misinformation promoted by one of Nigeria’s most powerful spiritual leaders.
During a now-viral sermon, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, founder of the global megachurch Christ Embassy, declared that warnings about excess salt are part of a broader conspiracy to harm Africans. He said, “They told you salt is not good so you won’t take salt anymore and then you get sodium deficiency and need their sodium tablets and sodium medication. Wake up, Africa!”
Within days, Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health issued a formal advisory contradicting his claims and reinforcing the risks of high salt intake. The ministry emphasized the well-known risks: high blood pressure, heart failure, stroke, and kidney disease. WHO recommends adults consume less than 5 grams of salt daily (about one teaspoon).
But what happens when millions believe the pulpit over public health policy?
A Pattern of Misinformation by Pastor Oyakhilome
Pastor Oyakhilome’s salt remarks are not an isolated incident. He has a troubling record of promoting health-related conspiracy theories that put his followers and the larger Christian community at risk.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he falsely claimed that 5G technology was responsible for the spread of the virus. Though he later walked it back, the damage was done, fueling confusion and mistrust.
He has also repeatedly mischaracterized COVID-19 vaccines, describing them as tools of genetic manipulation. In one broadcast, he suggested that they alter human DNA, a claim unequivocally refuted by scientists and fact-checkers.
In April 2025, Oyakhilome falsely claimed that Pope Francis had died due to the COVID-19 vaccine. The Vatican quickly debunked this falsehood and confirmed that the 88-year-old pontiff passed away due to complications from a stroke, which led to a coma and heart failure.
Such statements have drawn regulatory action. In 2021, the UK’s broadcasting regulator, Ofcom, fined Oyakhilome’s television channel £25,000 for airing COVID-19 conspiracy theories and unsubstantiated medical claims.
Why Salt Misinformation Matters
The impact of misinformation is compounded in countries like Nigeria, where religious leaders wield enormous influence. According to a 2022 Afrobarometer survey, 60% of Nigerians said they trust religious leaders ‘somewhat’ or ‘a lot’. This is far higher than the trust shown for political leaders or public institutions: the president (27%); members of the National Assembly (19%); and political parties (15%).
Misinformation from the pulpit has real consequences
More than one-third of Nigerian adults suffer from hypertension, a leading risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure. Excess salt intake contributes significantly to these conditions, as documented across multiple global health studies.
When salt enters the body in excess, its effects ripple silently across vital organs, often without early warning signs.
It starts with the heart, which must work harder to pump the increased volume of blood retained by the sodium. Over time, this sustained pressure can lead to hypertension and eventually heart failure, with the slow thickening of the heart’s walls and the quiet exhaustion of a vital muscle.
The kidneys, too, struggle under the weight of too much salt. These delicate filters are tasked with removing excess sodium, but when overwhelmed, they begin to break down. This can lead to chronic kidney disease, protein leaking into the urine, and the painful formation of kidney stones. Furthermore, reduced kidney function results in less excess water being removed, which increases blood pressure levels.
The brain is especially vulnerable. Prolonged high blood pressure caused by excess salt can rupture or block these vessels, leading to strokes. Even when no stroke occurs, the reduced blood flow can gradually impair memory and cognitive function.
Meanwhile, the arteries harden. Once elastic and responsive, they lose their ability to expand and contract. The result is a narrowed highway for blood, increasing the risk of heart attacks and peripheral artery disease.
High salt levels irritate the lining of the stomach and may contribute to the growth of Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium strongly linked to gastric cancer. What begins as seasoning at the table may, over years, become fuel for malignancy.
These are not speculative concerns. They are well-established scientific facts. When a high-profile pastor tells millions to increase their salt consumption, it risks undoing years of public health education and investment.
The Role of Faith Leaders in Health Communication
As a public health physician, I understand the importance of cultural context and trusted messengers. Faith leaders can, and often do play powerful roles in promoting healthy behaviors. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pastor Enoch Adeboye (General Overseer of Redeemed Christian Church of God) encouraged christians to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. He said, “It is foolish to keep having faith that God will protect you from an infection when He has made provision for vaccines that can provide a high percentage of protection. I have taken the jab. I prayed about it and got a clear direction from God to go and receive it.”
But when spiritual authority is used to promote pseudoscience, it becomes a dangerous betrayal of trust. We must challenge misinformation, especially when it comes from influential voices. Public health officials must collaborate with faith communities to train leaders on evidence-based health communication. And regulatory agencies must be empowered to hold repeat offenders accountable.
Conclusion: Let Salt Season Food, Not Falsehood
Salt should enhance flavor. Not endanger lives. It is not a cure, and it certainly is not a conspiracy. Leaders with influence, especially in matters of faith, have a duty to uphold truth, not distort it.
As Nigeria and other countries navigate the growing burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), we cannot afford sermons that sacrifice science for spectacle. NCDs cause about 29% of all deaths in Nigeria — over 684,000 annually.
Let’s preach health. Let’s defend the truth. Let’s keep misinformation out of our kitchens, and out of our pulpits.
Dr. Ifeanyi M. Nsofor, a public-health physician, global health equity advocate and behavioral-science researcher, serves on the Global Fellows Advisory Board at the Atlantic Institute, Oxford, United Kingdom. You can follow him @Ifeanyi Nsofor, MD on LinkedIn
GIANYAR, Bali, May 14 2025 (IPS) - It was Christmas Eve last year when visitors across several tourism hotspots in Bali woke up to a ghastly scene they hadn’t expected: layers of cans, bags, bottles, and driftwood covering their favorite sandy beaches, washed up by hours of rain and high tide. So bad was the situation that from Kuta to Legian and Seminyak to Jimbaran—none of the island’s picturesque beaches was clean enough to attract the visitors for a swim.
The incident intensified the debate that had been raging across Bali for quite some time: was the world’s most picture-perfect holiday destination drowning in plastic waste and ocean debris?
“Garbage tides are not new to Bali nowadays. Every year, we see it increasing but around Christmas, when it’s the peak of our tourism season, we did not expect to see this. Nobody expected to see trash on the beach. All day we picked up the trash and cleaned the beach. It was not an easy job, says Siboto Sayeda, 25, who was one of the many locals who volunteered to remove the waste from the beaches. The cleaning drive—organized by a local NGO—went on for two days before tourists could swim again.
Nearly four months later, several beaches, including the beachfront of the ever-popular Kuta beach are still often barraged by a tide of waste.
Sweta Kala—a visitor from northern India’s Punjab who is in Bali for her honeymoon—says that the garbage on the beach has been a huge disappointment. “We chose to come to Bali instead of Goa (a beach destination in western India), but we haven’t been able to swim even once. The entire beach looks dirty. Our friends are advising us to move to Nusa Dua, but we already paid in advance for our entire vacation, she says.
Burn or Landfills? No Easy Solutions
Data from the Bali Central Bureau of Statistics (BPSJ) & Bali Tourism Authority (DISPARDA) shows that nearly 8 million tourists visited the island destination in 2024; of them, six million are foreigners. The total waste generated collectively by the visitors and the locals in the year was nearly 2 million tons. This is a 30 percent increase from the waste generated in 2020, says Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), a Jakarta-based energy and environment think tank.
“The causes of increased waste generation include a lack of awareness of waste management in most communities, including tourists visiting Bali. In addition, although district and city governments have regulations related to waste (such as waste sorting), enforcement of regulations and limited waste management infrastructure are still contributing to the increasing volume of waste, Tumiwa says.
Currently, the waste is usually deposited in a landfill, TPA Suwung, a 32-hectare landfill located in the heart of Bali or occasionally burned—especially in beach locations with no wide, motorable roads. However, the landfill is nearing its capacity, and the government is said to be scouting for new landfill sites in other parts of Bali.
A community-led solution movement
Thirty-three kilometers away from Kuta beach, villagers from 10 villages in Gianyar have joined hands to find a solution to the mounting waste – both organic and inorganic.
Named Merah Putih Hijau (Red White Green), the villagers’ group has clear goals: manage waste at the source so that there is no further need for either burning or dumping in the landfills; build a community-led circular economy model based on waste; and promote sustainable farming using organic manure while creating waste-based jobs and income for community members.
Their current efforts of the group, however, are primarily focused on running a waste composting facility Located in Sidan village, the facility is used to sort, compost, and package the organic waste. A visit to the center gives one a full view of those efforts, where a group of six to seven villagers can be seen engaged in various waste management activities. While a two-member team is seen sorting organic waste from inorganic waste, others are seen crushing, filtering, and packaging.
“This is a program run by, for, and of the villagers,” says Dewi Kusumawati, Project Manager at Mera Putih Hijau – it involves every villager’s active participation. “We begin by asking everyone in the village to sort their waste at home. Then, we collect the organic waste and bring it to this 3R-Transfer Depo (TPS3R) waste management facility, where it is used to produce quality compost.”
The history of the waste management program is connected to the official waste management program that, villagers say, hasn’t served its purpose to keep the island truly clean and at times has caused more harm than good.
Seven years ago, in 2017, the government of Indonesia set an ambitious target for waste management in its National Development Plan (Kebijakan dan Strategi Nasional). The target included reducing household waste by 30 percent and the handling of household waste by 70 percent by this year (2025).
As a part of this plan, in 2021 the government provided funding to all regencies to build village-level waste management facilities and accordingly, 129 facilities were built, including 36 in Gianyar Regency. But less than 50 percent of the facilities are well-managed and operated, says Hermitianta Prasetya, a Community Relation Manager at Bumi Sasmaya Foundation, which manages and funds Merah Putih Hijau.
According to Prasetya, the National Development Plan on waste management also included promoting organic farming and in 2019 the government passed a policy called Organic Farming System Provincial Regulation. But, in Bali, the farming sector is heavily dependent on chemical fertilizer and the new regulation didn’t have provisions to help farmers make a clear shift to using organic fertilizer with training or step-by-step technical guidance. As a result, it became very hard to convince farmers to change to more sustainable agricultural practices such as using organic fertilizer.
The other reason behind this program has been curbing the current trend of sending waste to landfills: besides the government-owned landfill at Suwung, which handles 1,500 tons of waste every day, it is reported that there are also some 1,000 illegal open dump sites across the province, which pollute both the island’s water sources and environment.
“Currently, about 70 percent of the waste in Bali is taken to dump into landfills. The remainder is mainly organic waste that can be turned into compost. The Merah Putih Hijau program is trying to change the approach towards waste. So, we ask everyone in the village to sort their waste at home. Then, we collect the organic waste and bring it to this 3R-Transfer Depo (TPS3R) waste management facility, where it is used to produce quality compost. This compost then goes right back to the villagers to use in their farms. So, we are aiming to meet the village’s needs at where they are,” says Dewi Kusumawati, Manager of Merah Putih Hijau.
To help the villagers better understand the difference between organic and inorganic waste, the Merah Putih Hijau team also spends substantial time training villagers in separating organic and inorganic waste, composting, and different aspects of sustainable waste management as well as sustainable agriculture. The team has so far done dozens of trainings, says Kusumawati.
Persisting Plastic Problem
Despite their successful composting initiative, the Merah Putih Hijau team has a long way to go before achieving their dream goal of treating all waste locally. The biggest reason behind that is the ever-increasing volume of plastic and other non-compostable waste.
The team collects both organic and plastic waste. But right now, they do not have the capacity to recycle the inorganic waste. In their composting station, an entire room is filled with bundles of plastic bottles, bags, and other waste. But in the absence of a recycling facility or a program, the waste keeps piling up.
This is a much bigger problem than a village community can handle, admits Prasetya, especially because managing plastic and other inorganic waste needs more effort, including technical expertise and specialized facilities. This cannot be done alone by a village community, and it will require partnership with other actors, including the government and the private business community.
The plan is now to start conversations for building those partnerships that can lead to bigger, stronger waste management initiatives, especially to tackle the plastic waste.
“We are going to create several local networks with hotels, restaurants, and other tourism-based businesses. We are already talking to government officials. Eighty percent of the Balinese population currently earn their livelihood from tourism. And piling garbage is a threat to our tourism and our livelihood. So, there is a common good for us to achieve by partnering and solving the plastic waste together,” Prasteya says.
Considering there are nearly 1300 hotels and restaurants in Giyaniar alone, this is going to be an uphill task for the community group to bring them all into one place and convince them to participate in a collective waste management movement. But Agastya Yatra, the head of the Bumi Sasmaya Foundation, believes that it is possible to do so. The garbage issue, he says, has already been noticed. Now, it’s time to find a solution that works in favor of the locals.
“Eighty percent of our people earn their living from tourism. So, we need solutions that will not affect tourism. We need to keep our tourists happy and for that, we need to keep our villages and beaches clean. This will work only if we join hands and work together,” he says. “Together, if we can segregate waste properly, recycle, and reuse, then slowly but surely, our problem with waste will vanish,” says Yatra.
IPS UN Bureau Report
IPS UN Bureau, IPS UN Bureau Report, Bali