By Milena Melnikova*

NAYRN, Kyrgyzstan (IDN) – The culture of smoking hookah is becoming popular among young adults in the Central Asian countries of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, because of its affordability as well as due to its being legal as a way to relax and get rid of the accumulated stress, in the absence of other forms of entertainment. Cafes and restaurants seem like an expensive choice, discotheques are almost non-existent here.

By Krishan Dutta

PARIS (IDN) – “Donor countries are not living up to their 2015 pledge to ramp up development finance and this bodes badly for us being able to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals,” OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría has cautioned.

The warning of the head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) comes at a time when, according to preliminary data collected by the OECD, official development assistance (ODA) from 30 member countries of the club of rich nations fell 2.7 percent in 2018 from 2017. The worst affected by the declining share were the neediest countries.

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – “Since the days of the Roman Empire”, Daniel Kalder wrote in his book ‘The Infernal Library’, “dictators have written books, but in the twentieth century there was a Krakatoa-like eruption of despotic verbiage, which continues flowing to this day.”

It’s a strange thing but true that many dictators began their working lives as writers “which probably goes a long way towards explain[ing] their megalomaniac conviction in the awesome significance of their own thoughts.”

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – Backing the 120-member Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the International Institute for Non-Aligned Studies (IINS) has called for “comprehensive, transparent, inclusive and balanced” reform of the United Nations.

Recalling the final document of the 2018 NAM Ministerial Meeting held in Baku, Azerbaijan, the think tank emphasizes that the reform should be “pursued in an effective and accountable manner, fully respecting the political nature of the Organization as well as its intergovernmental, universal and democratic character, consistent with the UN Charter”.

By Sharon Birch-Jeffrey*

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) – To experience a taste of African culture deep inside the Big Apple, visitors – including many Senegalese – turn to Le Petit Senegal (Little Senegal), a West African neighborhood in West Harlem, New York.

African grocery shops, fabric stores, hair braiding parlors and regional restaurants sit shoulder to shoulder along the streets. The Sandaga Market of Little Senegal showcases a strong blend of African cultures, customs and languages, symbolizing efforts by African immigrants to project and protect their cultural identities.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW (IDN) – Many African countries are looking for profitable business, investment and trade rather than development aid. Now Angola, a south-central Africa, has announced corporate plans to diversify its state business away from purchasing to full-fledged manufacturing of Russian military equipment for the southern African market, and possibly other regions in Africa – impeding realization of the Sustainable Development Goal 16 calling for peace and justice.

By Robert Johnson

BRUSSELS (IDN) – Parliamentarians of the compact of more than 105 countries of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group and the European Union (EU) are demanding "a greater presence" at the United Nations (UN). As a minimum, an ACP-EU coordination unit should have a seat at the UN, says a landmark resolution of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly held in Bucharest, the capital of Romania. It also pleads for "permanent ACP-EU working mechanisms across UN special agencies and other global institutions to enhance the global visibility of the ACP-EU partnership."

By Dr Palitha Kohona

The writer, former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and former Foreign Secretary, returned recently from a visit to New Zealand.

COLOMBO (IDN) – White extremism and terrorism may appear to be uncoordinated and spontaneous. It certainly lacks the 'viciousness incarnate' tag conferred by the media and certain commentators when referring to Islamic terrorism associated with the brands of Al Qaeda, Hezbollah or ISIS or to Tamil terrorism in the form of the LTTE.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW (IDN) – Strengthening cooperation in trade, economy and culture, as well as current international and regional matters were top issues in talks between President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President João Lourenço of Angola at the Kremlin on April 4.

Striking a personal note, the Angolan leader, who completed his education in 1982 in Moscow, said: “Moscow then and now are two different cities. My congratulations – you have ensured progress and development for Russia and the Russian people.”

By Radwan Jakeem

WASHINGTON, DC (IDN) – After months of speculation about who might run for president in 2020, the Democratic field appears to be set. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some stragglers who have yet to commit one way or another, but for all intents and purposes it appears we know who’s in the race.

What brought us to this point most recently, really, was the announcement by Beto O’Rourke, the three-term congressman from El Paso who narrowly lost a high-profile senate race to Republican Ted Cruz.