Policy analysis

A key piece of Nepal’s long-anticipated trade infrastructure has stalled dramatically after Beijing informed Kathmandu that it is halting construction of the Rasuwa dry port, a China-funded inland container depot near the Nepal-China border.

The Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index 2025 underscores that tobacco industry influence remains a formidable barrier to public health policy in Bangladesh and worldwide. While some countries demonstrate notable progress, Bangladesh’s mid-to-high interference score suggests that institutional reforms and stricter safeguards are urgently needed.

The Global Health Index specifically highlights poor diet and lack of exercise as significant contributors to Sri Lanka’s low relative standing, noting that even...

The decision to halt salary payments has drawn concern from civil society groups and international observers, who warn that continued economic contraction could fuel social unrest or increased migration out of the country.

International development partners, including the World Bank, have also entered the picture with initiatives designed to boost jobs and trade, although such efforts are longer-term in nature and their impact on immediate job creation is still unfolding.

Long-term climate risk, particularly heat exposure, also carries socio-economic consequences, threatening jobs, livelihoods and economic growth if unchecked.

Despite short-term improvements when winds disperse pollutants, Pakistan’s larger “smog season,” which typically lasts from October through February, has become a recurring annual crisis with economic and social costs that reverberate beyond public health into education, productivity and infrastructure planning.

According to the Secretary-General’s report submitted on 3 December 2025, the Taliban leadership – including the supreme leader’s inner circle – has intensified efforts to consolidate control through religious-guided governance, increased oversight, and sweeping policy changes.