World

Zambia took on debt to revamp a railway to Victoria Falls. AFP Zambia was once a model in Wall Street's rush to issue debt for the world's poorest nations, attracting bigger orders and lower interest rates than some more-developed countries. Less than a decade later, the Southern African nation is straining to pay back more than $11 billion in loans. The world is gearing up for a battle over developing-country debt like few it has seen before. Rich and poor countries are at loggerheads with private investors that, over the past decade, replaced governments as the biggest creditors to emerging markets. Zambia looks set to become a case study in the clash over how to ease the debt load of developing countries that were ill-prepared for the financial pain inflicted by the coronavirus pand...

China reports spike as global cases pass 16m China is conducting mass testing in the northeast port city of Dalian after a fresh cluster of cases. (AFP photo) BEIJING: China on Monday reported its highest number of coronavirus cases in three months, part of a worrying swell of second and third-wave infections that are hitting Asia and Europe. Australia has been rocked by its deadliest surge since the start of the pandemic, Hong Kong is experiencing record daily numbers and Spain's caseload has tripled in the last fortnight. Meanwhile, other regions are still battling their first waves after never getting the virus under control: the US alone has recorded almost 4.23 million cases of COVID-19, while infections in Latin America and the Caribbean surged on Sunday to briefly overtake North...

It was just 20 years ago that the U.S. census began to allow Americans to identify as more than one race. And now, the country is on the threshold of seeing the name of Kamala Harris -- proud daughter of a Jamaican father and Indian mother -- on the national ballot. Harris’ historic nomination for vice-president on the Democratic ticket is challenging America’s emphasis on identity and labels. While her dual heritage represents several slices of the multicultural and multiracial experience, many have puzzled over how to define her — an issue people of diverse backgrounds have long had to navigate. Harris has long incorporated both sides of her parentage in her public persona, but also has been steadfast in claiming her Black identity, saying her mother -- the biggest influence on her li

BEIJING - Vulnerable coastal areas were being evacuated and fishing boats recalled to port before a typhoon was expected to bring heavy rains to eastern China late Monday as much of the country is still recovering from unusually summer heavy flooding. Typhoon Hagupit had gusts of up to 90 kilometres (56 miles) per hour at its centre and was moving northwest at 25 kilometres (16 miles) per hour. China’s National Meteorological Center said Hagupit is expected to come ashore between Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. Shanghai is expected to feel the effects. Ferry services and some trains have been suspended and 4,481 passengers were taken off boats in waters off the Zhejiang coastal cities of Wenzhou and Tanzhou. In Fujian, coastal fisheries were evacuated, tourist spots were closed and cons

2,000 HIV/Aids test kits to be handed out for free Thailand plans to offer 2,000 free HIV/Aids test kits to vulnerable groups in a bid to meet its ambitious goal to reduce the infection rate in the country by 90% by 2030. The kits are dubbed the "HIV Self-Test" (HIVST), which is part of a project conducted by the Department of Disease Control (DDC) under the Ministry of Public Health. The DDC is studying access to HIV/Aids treatment for patients in Thailand. The scheme is part of the national strategy to eradicate HIV/Aids from 2017 to 2030. "Quick access to medical treatment is the best way to control the disease and limit the number of deaths and disease transmissions," Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai, director-general of the DDC, said. "Yet one of the hurdles is that the testing ...