GENEVA, SWITZERLAND -  The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that fighters in conflict-ravaged Sudan had occupied the national public laboratory holding samples of diseases including polio and measles, creating an "extremely, extremely dangerous" situation. Fighters "kicked out all the technicians from the lab... which is completely under the control of...

Heart disease, cancer medicines helped enhance revenue.

To meet the estimated energy demand from hydrogen and electric aircraft in 2050 would require the amount of energy produced from 10-25 of the world’s largest wind farms, or a solar farm half the size of Belgium, WEF says.

Credit Suisse pushed forward its result release to come out the day before those of UBS, as Switzerland's largest bank prepares to swallow its long-time main domestic rival. The results, which will be presented in a statement without the usual accompanying press conference and analyst discussion, will be closely studied...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Bank Group (WBG) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Thursday launched an initiative to help developing economies meet their climate change mitigation and adaptation goals through trade. The initiative Action on Climate and Trade (ACT) . which starts with...

The global economic slowdown and swelling interest rates are pummeling debt-ridden developing countries, the UN warned, urging bold global action to ward off catastrophe. In a fresh report, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development cautioned that poorer countries were expected to suffer as higher interest rates eat away...

During this week's session, lawmakers will have to endorse the guarantees, but the vote is only symbolic, said Samuel Bendahan, a National Council member and an economics professor at the University of Lausanne's business school. Parliament cannot cancel the government's decision taken under emergency law, and "the money has already...

The economy committee of the National Council, the lower house of parliament, asked the government for an analysis of the determining factors behind the decline of Credit Suisse.

Shareholders of both banks had no say in the mega-merger, which was engineered by the Swiss government, the central bank and the financial regulators FINMA. The UBS annual general meeting comes the day after Credit Suisse held its stormy final AGM.

The World Trade Organization said 2023 global trade growth would be slightly better than feared, but would remain "subpar", weighed down by the Ukraine war and stubbornly high inflation. Presenting their annual trade forecast, WTO economists said they expected to see the volume of global merchandise trade slow to 1.7...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The Red Cross announced Tuesday that it would cut 1,500 jobs over the next 12 months in a drive to slash costs due to a funding crunch. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said an expected drop in humanitarian assistance budgets over the next two years...

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - Credit Suisse chairman Axel Lehmann said Tuesday he was "truly sorry" that the beleaguered bank could not be saved as he faced angry and tearful shareholders whose money has gone up in smoke. Credit Suisse's chiefs fronted up at the bank's annual general meeting, 16 days after its...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The global transition to renewable energy will require greater investment in integrated weather and climate services, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said. This investment is critical to ensure that energy infrastructure is resilient to climate-related shocks and to harness the power of energy generated from sources such...

The UN rights chief called for Libyan authorities and the international community to step up accountability efforts in the conflict-ravaged country, as a probe into war crimes wrapped up. "Libyan authorities, armed groups, smugglers and human traffickers should not assume that the eyes of the international community have now left...

Geneva, Switzerland--Swiss federal prosecutors said Sunday that they had opened an inquiry into the UBS takeover of its embattled banking rival Credit Suisse, following pressure from federal authorities and media leaks. In an email to AFP, prosecutors said they issued orders to investigate after "taking stock of the situation with all...

Geneva, Switzerland -- The merger between banks Credit Suisse and UBS could see up to 36,000 jobs being cut across the world, the SonntagsZeitung weekly reported on Sunday. The takeover by UBS of Credit Suisse was hastily arranged by the Swiss government on March 19 to prevent a global financial...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The WTO’s annual Public Forum 2023 will focus this year on how trade can contribute to a greener, more sustainable future. The Forum will examine in particular how the services sector, digitalization and inclusive trade policies can support global environmental goals and help combat the climate crisis....

The Senate report "describes legacy issues, some from a decade ago," which the bank has sought to address by implementing extensive enhancements "to root out individuals who seek to conceal assets from tax authorities," it said.

Sheikh Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani of Qatar, who serves as a UNHCR advocate, has been the biggest contributor to the fund, providing more than $110 million to date, or more than half of total contributions.

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) and financial markets watchdog FINMA told their US and British counterparts their "plan A" to stop the crisis of confidence facing Credit Suisse was to merge it with UBS, the FT reported Friday, citing unnamed sources. The Swiss central bank "wants the lenders to agree...

"I have decided to send a group of people from my ESA team to the UAE to see which domains of cooperation we can intensify," ESA head Josef Aschbacher tells TRENDS in an interview.

Private sector partners can leverage the scientific work done in public laboratories to develop the technology needed for fusion power plant applications, top US physicist tells TRENDS.

Consultations to prolong Ukrainian grain exports deal are continuing, the UN said, after a Russian proposal for just a 60-day extension cast doubt over its fate. "The United Nations will do everything possible to preserve the integrity of the agreement and ensure its continuity," Jens Laerke, spokesman for the United...

The country managed to restrict inflation to 6 percent and sustain jobs despite challenges, the North African nation's Industry and Trade Minister, Ryad Mezzour, tells TRENDS.

The bank has lost 81% of its value since Greensill bankruptcy.

Russia has agreed to extend the Ukraine grain export deal following talks with the United Nations - but only for a further 60 days. Moscow said it wanted to see "tangible progress" on a parallel agreement on Russian exports before the deal comes up for renewal again.

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The world failed to act quickly enough to rush life-saving aid to Syrians in desperate need following the devastating earthquake, United Nations investigators said Monday. The quake response was characterized by failures by the government, other factions in the civil war, the international community and the UN itself,...

Around one-third of countries are likely to go through a recession, Sir Masood Ahmed, President of the Center for Global Development, tells TRENDS in an interview.

Negotiations overseen in Switzerland by the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross will see Yemen's warring parties holding talks in Geneva starting Saturday to discuss a prisoner exchange, according to rebels and government officials. Hostilities have largely stopped since a UN-brokered ceasefire took effect in April last...

Delay has had no effect on its annual financial statement.

The UN announced that it had taken a significant step towards trying to fill a key gap in the fight against climate change: standardized, real-time tracking of greenhouse gases. The UN's World Meteorological Organization has come up with a new Global Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Infrastructure that aims to provide better...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND -  The United Arab Emirates is participating in the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland  which started Monday and will continue until April 4. The head of the UAE delegation Ahmed Abdul Rahman Al-Jarman, Permanent Representative of the UAE to the United Nations and...

Lebanese central bank chief Riad Salameh is accused of embezzling millions of dollars. He faces faces investigations related to suspicions of money laundering and illicit enrichment in Lebanon and abroad after he amassed a fortune in the country mired in financial crisis.

Net profits at the banking giant rose 23% in Q4 of 2022.

The World Health Organization called for greater investment in combating neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which left over 1.6 billion people, often in least-developed countries, requiring treatment in 2021. NTDs are a diverse group of conditions found mainly in tropical regions that include dengue, leprosy and rabies. The WHO said NTDs...

The World Health Organization appealed for US$2.54 billion for its work in 2023 to help millions of people facing health emergencies around the world. WHO said that it was currently responding to an unprecedented number of intersecting health emergencies. It pointed to the health impacts of conflicts in Ukraine, Yemen,...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - Efforts to eliminate industrially-produced fat have a long way to go with five billion people exposed to toxic fat added to many food products, the UN health agency said Monday. The World Health Organization called in 2018 for harmful trans fatty acids to be wiped out by 2023....

Princess Reema bint Bandar, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the United States of America, underlined the importance of the Saudi-US relationship.

The agreements were unveiled during a high-level meeting between Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, and Prof. Klaus Schwab, WEF Founder.

Investigators from France, Germany and Luxembourg began hearing witnesses Monday as part of the case of suspected financial misconduct including possible money laundering and embezzlement.

The World Economic Forum launched the Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA), to help unlock the US$3 trillion of financing needed each year to reach net zero, reverse nature loss and restore biodiversity by 2050. The GAEA is a global initiative to fund and grow new and existing public, private...

DAVOS, SWITZERLAND – A  report launched Monday at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023 shows how countries can accelerate the food systems transformation. The report Food Nature and Health Transitions - Repeatable Country Models reveals how actions and investments can accelerate a country’s transition towards food systems that deliver...

DAVOS-KLOSTERS, SWITZERLAND  – As part of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023, this year’s Open Forum Davos from January 16-20 will focus on the environment and climate change. The theme at the Open Forum is Our Environment: Lessons, Challenges and Opportunities. This would be the Open Forum’s 20th year...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND– The current energy crisis is driving inflation, slowing economic growth, creating social turmoil and the world should not add to this crisis by actions which derail the energy transition, a World Economic Forum (WEF) report says. The report said that steps such as increasing production of electricity from...

Globally, traffic is now at 75.3% of November 2019 levels, according to the report.

It aims to enhance global cooperation and design joint solutions to today’s geopolitical, social, economic, and human development challenges. Saudi’s delegation will discuss how it addressed challenges posed by the pandemic and share insights into the solutions that helped maintain a robust performance in the face of rising global pressures.

Global business leaders, CEOs, and innovators from around the world will gather in Davos next week to discuss what World Economic Forum (WEF) President Børge Brende described as an event to find solutions for a more cohesive world "so that economic growth could be achieved even in challenging times."

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - Climate change is fueling a global cholera upsurge, the WHO said Friday, warning the situation was compounded by vaccine shortages and will only worsen unless it is stamped out soon. The World Health Organization is responding to cholera outbreaks in 29 countries, including Haiti, which has over 1,200...

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, Friday announced a joint initiative to create inclusive economic opportunities that will benefit refugees and their host communities. The initiative aims to mobilize private sector projects over the next five years to demonstrate the viability of...

The World Health Organization called for more funds to help overcome towering challenges in the battle against malaria, which continues to kill hundreds of thousands of mainly African children each year. It warned that the world was currently "off track" to reach its goal of reducing malaria cases and deaths...