By Justus Wanzala

NAIROBI (IDN) – Incessant humming noise emanating from air conditioners welcomes one into an in expansive warehouse at Twiga Foods pack house in Syokimau area of Kenya’s capital. It is mid-morning and workers are busy sorting, cleaning and packing fresh produce ready for the market.

Established in 2014, Twiga sources produce from Kenyan farmers for sale to vendors in urban areas. It handles 14 products among them onions, bananas, capsicums, carrots, tomatoes, pineapples, pawpaws, passion fruits and mangoes. It buys produce from 8,370 farmers and sells to an estimated 5,226 vendors.…

By J. Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – A top priority of the new UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet, who replaced Jordan’s Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on September 1, 2018, is “to do what my mandate tells me to do, to be the voice of the voiceless.” In addition, it is “also to engage with governments so they respect human rights, protect people from rights violations, and promote human rights.”

In an extensive interview with UN News, twice-elected President of Chile and the first head of UN Women describes advancing human rights, a “never ending process”. Watch video.…

By Jeffrey Moyo

LUSAKA (IDN) – Letina Phiri waits at a bus terminus in Lusaka, the Zambian capital, as loaders carry her baggage of huge solar panels to pack on the bus.

“I will sell some of the panels as soon as I get home. Where I live, not far from Kabwe town, many people in rural communities there have started electrifying their homes with solar and I want to do the same,” 51-year-old Phiri told IDN.

Even in Zimbabwe, solar energy has started to gain ground in remote areas like Seke in the country’s Mashonaland East Province.…

By Ronald Joshua

GENEVA (IDN) – Foreign direct investment is critical for developing and emerging market countries. Their companies need the multinationals’ funding and expertise to expand their international sales. The countries need private investment in infrastructure, energy, and water to increase jobs and wages. In fact the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 2017 report warned that climate change would hit them the hardest.…