Invest in aid to build peace in troubled world: UN
Spending on aid is essential to promote peace in times of global turmoil and deep cuts to foreign assistance, the head of the UN Development Programme said Sunday.
In an interview on the eve of a four-day UN conference in Spain that aims to rally fresh impetus for the embattled development sector, Haoliang Xu emphasized that investment in aid, trade and defense was 'not a zero-sum game.'
'International development cooperation is critical to build the foundations of peace,' said Xu, noting that a majority of the world's poor live in conflict-hit countries.
Rich donors, notably the United States and European countries, have cut aid budgets and boosted defense spending as conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East upend global security.
Military expenditure hit a record high of $2.7 trillion in 2024, up 20-percent from the previous year, said Xu.
But the Chinese diplomat insisted that it was in wealthy countries' interest to support developing nations despite competing priorities and crises.
'Creating foundations for peace, investing in stability in fragile countries help reduce the burden in countries where you have challenges of migration, for example,' he said.
'Crises in one part of the world will have an impact on other parts of the world that are currently prosperous and stable,' added Xu.
Last year, the world was afflicted by the highest number of armed conflicts since 1946, according to the Peace Research Institute Oslo.
The World Bank says the number of extreme poor living on less than $3 a day in nations suffering conflict and instability is poised to hit 435 million by 2030.
At least 50 world leaders are expected in Seville from Monday for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, the biggest such talks in a decade.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Qatari emir, Spanish king meet on sidelines of UN investment conference in Seville
LONDON: Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, met King Felipe VI of Spain in Seville on the sidelines of a UN-organized international investment conference. The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development began on Monday and will continue until July 3, bringing together global leaders to discuss urgent reforms necessary for financing sustainable development. King Felipe expressed his desire to strengthen relations and support joint investments through small and medium-sized enterprises following the recent economic agreements between Qatar and Spain. He also reiterated Spain's solidarity with Qatar and condemned the Iranian attack on Al-Udeid Air Base last week, praising Doha's role in facilitating a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel. Sheikh Tamim emphasized Qatar's commitment to enhancing cooperation with Spain across cultural, educational and security fields to serve the common interests of both countries, the Qatar News Agency reported.
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Protesters Urge Wimbledon to Cut Ties with Barclays over Israel Business Deals
Pro-Palestinian protesters urged Wimbledon to drop Barclays as a sponsor Monday because of the British bank's business dealings with Israel. About two dozen protesters from Palestine Solidarity Campaign demonstrated by the main entrance of the All England Club as thousands of fans arrived for Day 1 of the tournament. 'They're the bank for the arms companies that are obviously supplying weapons to Israel,' protester Khalid Zalmay told The Associated Press. 'We should not be arming Israel, we should not be allowing anybody to facilitate arming them, and I think ties should be cut with Israel, the same way that ties were cut with Russia.' One protester held a sign that said Barclays is a 'sponsor of Wimbledon and genocide.' Barclays said it is 'proud of our partnership with Wimbledon' and defended its business practices. 'We provide a range of financial services and products to companies supplying defense products to the UK, NATO and its allies,' the company statement said. 'As NATO, the EU and UK seek to increase their defense capabilities in response to increasing geopolitical threats, the provision of financial products and services to the defense sector is becoming increasingly important.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Europe's AI Gigafactory Push Attracts 76 Bids, EU Tech Chief Says
Seventy-six companies have bid to develop Europe's artificial intelligence gigafactories, the EU's tech chief said on Monday, hailing a bigger than expected response to the bloc's push to catch up with the US and China in this key technology. The European Commission made the announcement four months after it allocated 20 billion euros ($23 billion) in EU funding for the construction of four AI gigafactories across the bloc. Such facilities, in essence large-scale AI computing and data storage hubs, will be equipped with about 100,000 state-of-the-art AI chips, Reuters reported. "We got 76 submissions proposing to set up AI gigafactories in 16 member states and across 60 different sites," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told a press conference. "And this exceeds far beyond our expectations and this showcases Europe's growing momentum and enthusiasm for innovating in AI in Europe," she said, declining to name the companies because of business confidentiality information. The EU executive said applicants included EU and non-EU companies, among them tech giants, data centre operators, telecoms providers, power suppliers and financial investors. "Together they have now indicated plans to acquire at least 3 million latest generation of AI processors (GPUs) in total," Virkkunen said. The Commission will launch an official call for setting up the AI gigafactories at the end of the year.
