Archive
International News Services archives articles supplied to clients one year or more after initial publication. These articles are protected by a password and not made available to readers without permission from clients. They are used as a background resource by agency journalists. Upon client requests, International News Services will remove such articles from the archive or not upload them in the first place. They are included to demonstrate the breadth of topics undertaken by the agency and also to help promote clients’ coverage.
DUTCH HIGHER EDUCATION FUNDING FEARS INTENSIFY AS CALLS TO REVERSE CUTS ARE REJECTED
The Dutch higher education community has condemned massive cuts to the sector’s budget and caps on international student numbers, after the country’s ruling politicians rejected calls to rethink its controversial structural reforms.
On 27 November (2024), in a vote in the Dutch House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer), the Netherlands’ right wing four-party coalition led by Independent Prime Minister Dick Schoof supported a proposal spearheaded by Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science, Eppo Bruins of the New Social Contract party, to cut education funding by approximately EUR2 billion – half of which is earmarked for higher education – despite growing pressure from opposition parties who are threatening to block the plans in the Dutch Senate (Eerste Kamer) (https://www.dutchnews.nl/2024/11/coalition-stands-firm-over-e2bn-education-cuts-despite-warnings/…
IMPACT OF MYANMAR'S CONFLICT ON THE CLOTHING AND TEXTILE INDUSTRY
The ongoing conflict in Myanmar, as its military government loses control over territory to rebel groups, is severely affecting the country’s clothing and textile industry. This is especially in the central Burman region, where a majority of the sector’s factories are located.…
COTTON PRODUCERS PUSHED TOWARDS MORE SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURING
The global cotton supply chain is expected to be impacted by extreme weather events, trade disputes, geopolitical tensions, increasing regulation and more complex shipments in 2025, but traceability and innovation might help to reinvent the sector, experts have said.
According to the US department of agriculture, “2024/25 global cotton consumption is forecast at 115.2 million bales (…) more than 9 million bales below the record level witnessed four years ago”, thanks to more production and consumption of man-made fibres (1).…
EU EDUCATION MINISTERS GIVE CAUTIOUS WELCOME TO EUROPEAN DEGREE
European Union (EU) education ministers and university experts have argued this week the creation of a European degree could boost cooperation between higher education institutions (HEIs), but that more work is needed to make it successful.
Pia Ahrenkilde Hansen, the European Commission’s director general for education, told EU education ministers (https://video.consilium.europa.eu/event/en/27718…
BASEL INSTITUTE INDEX RAISES CONCERN ABOUT AML EFFECTIVENESS, EVEN AS FATF TECHNICAL COMPLIANCE IMPROVES
The Basel Institute on Governance has welcomed a gradual improvement in AML/CFT technical compliance with FATF recommendations but has warned governments’ progress in improving effectiveness remains sluggish.
Its 13th edition of the Basel AML Index assessed164 countries, with Myanmar, Haiti and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) receiving the highest AML/CFT risk scores, with San Marino, Iceland and Finland the lowest (1).…
CRISIS AFTER CRISIS FOR LEBANESE UNIVERSITIES
The nearly two-month long Israeli military attacks on Lebanon, an escalation of a year-long conflict between Israel and Lebanese Shia militant group Hizbullah, has hit the country’s higher education sector hard. The impact is all the worse given Lebanon’s universities and colleges have been struggling with financial and economic problems for the past five years.…
ESWATINI GOVERNMENT PULLS THE PLUG ON SPONSORING HUMANITIES STUDENTS
The government of Eswatini has stopped scholarships for bachelor of arts (BA) in humanities degrees in the country’s key public HE institution, the University of Eswatini (UNESWA), with effect from the 2025/2026 academic year.
Prospective and current students who were hoping to secure public financial assistance for BA courses such as English, geography, history, religious studies and African languages.…
FASHION’S FIVE-YEAR COUNTDOWN
Fashion retailers worldwide have publicly committed themselves to achieving ambitious sustainability goals, ranging from reduced emissions to greater circularity of materials through more effective recycling. Some of these goals have been adopted from external sources, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) (https://sdgs.un.org/goals…
BRITISH THINK TANK WANTS AMERICAN WHISTLEBLOWING PROTECTIONS CREATED IN THE UK
Whistleblower incentives developed in the USA should be introduced in the UK to help deter and detect corporate fraud, a new report from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has argued (1).
While the number of successful whistleblower claims is low compared to the number of tipoffs made, the value of successful sanctions resulting from whistleblower incentivisation is so high that it” dramatically exceeds the cost of processing the tip-offs”, said the think tank’s Fixing Fraud report, authored by lawyer Dr Alison Cronin, of Bournemouth University.…
CHINA INVESTS HEAVILY IN ECOPLASTIC PRODUCTION TO BOOST GREEN PACKAGING
The Chinese government appears determined to keep pushing its nation’s economy towards a more sustainable path, issuing five key green economy-related policy documents this year (2024), with eco-plastics supply and eco-plastics packaging part of the focus.
For example, an ‘Opinion on speeding up China’s green economy’ issued in July by the State Council – China’s cabinet – listed directing more companies to use green packaging as one of its main goals by 2030 http://epaper.cenews.com.cn/html/2024-08/12/content_99269.htm…