Algeria: UN calls for impartial, rapid investigations in claims of sexual abuse, torture against Hirak activists

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has officially called on the Algerian authorities to conduct “prompt and impartial investigations” into the allegations of torture and sexual abuse suffered by several inmates arrested during the Hirak who openly denounced the ill-treatment inflicted on them by the security services while in police custody. Rupert Colville, […]

Poverty, Inequality and Safety Nets in the MENA Region

By international standards, extreme poverty or destitution is relatively low in the countries of North Africa. According to the World Bank, the number of those living below 2 USD a day was 13.9 percent in 2008, which would make the region of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) the fourth poorest region in the world […]

IFC to invest $100m in private green bond in Egypt to boost financing of climate-smart projects

The International Finance Corporation, IFC, a member of the World Bank, will invest $100 million in the first private sector green bond in Egypt, to help fund climate-smart projects, alleviate greenhouse gas emissions, and support Egypt’s shift to a greener economy, the institution said in a statement. The bond, the first by the private sector, […]