With U.S.-South Africa ties in the deep freeze, it was notable to see the sheer size of the U.S. delegation sent to this week’s Mining Indaba in Cape Town – one of the most prominent industry gatherings and one of the few where the Global South gets a prominent voice.
The Trump administration’s famous Afrophobia seems (momentarily at least) tempered by its greed for minerals. It is reportedly walking ...
Category: Health
Anger Mounts in Senegal Over Chinese Firm’s Sanitary Pad Scandal
Anger is mounting in Senegal over the alleged use of expired materials in sanitary pads and diapers by a leading Chinese firm, which denies any wrongdoing or bribery. The West African country's pharmaceutical regulator late last year accused Softcare of possessing ...
China’s Technology Push Finds New Ground in Indonesia’s Health and Connectivity Gaps
One of the important developments in China-Indonesia relations last month is the strengthening of cooperation in the digital health and technology sectors. These are crucial sectors where Indonesia has struggled to translate policy goals into nationwide coverage. Telkomsat, one of Indonesia's ...
Sri Lanka Seeks Chinese Aid to Rebuild After Deadly Cyclone
Sri Lanka asked China to help rebuild key infrastructure damaged by Cyclone Ditwah, which killed at least 641 people and caused extensive damage, the island's foreign minister said on Monday. Vijitha Herath said he made the request during talks with his ...
China and Kenya Seal Pharma Deal
China and Kenya have reportedly signed a deal worth about $500 million to set up local vaccine and pharmaceutical production facilities using Chinese technology. Aden Duale, the Cabinet Secretary for Kenya’s Ministry of Health, said that the planned facilities would strengthen ...
China’s Quake Relief a Messaging Win
The first batch of Chinese emergency aid arrived in Myanmar on Monday. By then, Chinese rescue teams were on the ground in Myanmar and Thailand, and they had rescued six people. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun framed the response as a sign of China’s regional commitment: ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
China’s Rapid Response to Myanmar Quake Contrasts With U.S. Absence
China moved quickly this weekend to respond to the devastating earthquake in neighboring Myanmar that killed at least 1,700 people. More than 200 emergency personnel from across China along with dozens of others from Hong Kong and the Chinese Red Cross Society were ...
China’s Xi Sends Quake Condolences to Myanmar Junta Chief
China's President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to Myanmar's junta chief on Saturday, a day after a devastating earthquake killed at least 1,000 people. Xi "expressed deep sorrow" over the destruction and said China was "willing to provide Myanmar ...
Bridges, Yes, Bandages, No: China Won’t Fill America’s Aid Shoes
By Felix Brender 王哲謙 If former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson thought a week was a long time in politics, a single day in Trump’s America now feels like a political eon. This column was originally meant to dissect the implications of ...
Why China Won’t Replace Western Aid
Tom Fletcher, the UN’s under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, told reporters on Wednesday that the Trump administration’s sudden withdrawal of U.S. foreign assistance will endanger about 300 million people. The collapse of U.S. foreign assistance (and cuts announced in Europe) raised questions about whether China will fill the ...
Former Brazil President Dilma Roussef Hospitalized in China
Former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has been hospitalized in Shanghai for ear inflammation, her team said Tuesday. The 77-year-old economist, who now heads a bank established by the BRICS bloc of developing economies, "is responding well to treatment" and should be ...
China’s Population Decline Hits Third Year, Economic and Global Aspirations at Risk
China’s population has fallen for the third consecutive year, with official government data confirming a drop of 1.39 million people in 2024, bringing the total to 1.408 billion. This ongoing decline underscores mounting demographic challenges for the world’s second-largest economy ...
Photo Essay: Mounting Health Crisis in Indonesia’s Nickel Mining and Smelting Hub
It begins with a sharp sneeze, followed by a piercing wheeze, a relentless cough, or the struggle to catch a full breath—paired with the sting of irritated eyes. In Lelilef Sawai, a small village nestled beside Weda Bay Industrial Park, a massive hub of nickel downstream processing ...