Disaster risk reduction

A landmark study and a sweeping legal move have thrust India’s air-quality crisis into the spotlight, urging policymakers and courts alike to treat polluted air not just as an environmental issue but a full-blown public health emergency.

UNEP has found that fewer than one-third of the countries party to the Paris Agreement submitted updated climate commitments by the end of September 2025.

Nepal ranks among the world's most disaster-prone nations, with agriculture employing 64 per cent of the workforce and contributing 21 per cent to GDP.

Beyond the immediate structural collapse and trauma, aid agencies are raising alarm over how the disaster will disproportionately affect women and girls.

For policymakers, the message is urgent: hold the affluent accountable, shift the direction of climate finance and action, and embed fairness and justice at the heart of every emissions-cutting strategy.

If the Maldivian government delivers as pledged, Olhuvelifushi could become a model island for infrastructure upgrade, climate adaptation and community uplift in the Indian Ocean region.

The strategy sets out a roadmap for channeling climate funds into key sectors such as agriculture, tourism, energy, water and nature-based solutions.

At least 16 people were killed and several others injured after a massive fire engulfed a garment factory and an adjoining chemical warehouse in Dhaka’s Mirpur area on Tuesday, October 14, exposing once again the fragile state of industrial safety in Bangladesh’s most vital economic sector.