WTO : Dispute settlement reform talks leave enforcement function ineffectual (PRIV)
(D. Ravi Kanth, Geneva)
The ongoing discussions on the reform of the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement system (DSS) could severely undermine the core provisions of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) , thereby ensuring that the two-stage dispute settlement mechanism is ineffec tual, said people familiar with the discussions.

CBD : Will proposed MLM legitimize another great gene plunder? (PRIV)
(Nithin Ramakrishnan, Cali)
The 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), taking place in Ca li, Colombia from 21 October to 1 November 2024, is on the verge of operationalizing a Multilateral Mechanism (MLM) for sharing benefits arisin g from the use of Digital Sequence Information (DSI) of genetic materials.

Ukraine : A "silent emergency" brewing as birthrates fall, population declin es (PRIV)
(Kanaga Raja, Penang)
Ukraine's population has declined by over 1 0 million since the beginning of the war in 2014, and the situation has gotte n "significantly worse" since the Russian Federation's full-scale invasion of the country in 2022, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).