Latin America : Migrants targeted by trafficking networks (PRIV)
(IPS, Rio de Janeiro)
The rescue earlier this month of 12 Venezuelan and three Colombian women from a prostitution network that recruits migrants in Peru is an example of the complex web where migration and human trafficking often involve victims of forced labour and sexual exploit ation.

Climate : Is Thailand making progress towards reaching its mitigation goals? (PRIV)
(IPS, Bangkok)
As preparations are underway for an important formal discussion between countries committed to the Paris Agreem ent, Thailand, Southeast Asia's second-largest economy, has been determining its progress towards reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 20 to 25 percen t by 2030.

Slovakia : Elevates SDGs to status of national priorities (PRIV)
(IPS, New York)
At the High-Level Political Forum, which concluded mid-July, world leaders from 46 countries showcased their progress in achieving the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including eradicating extreme poverty and hunger by 2030.

Q&A : Leprosy increases as world gives attention to newer endemic diseases (PRIV)
(IPS, Maputo)
In the first six months of this year, the southern African nation of Mozambique has already registered 300 more cases of leprosy, some 951 cases, than it registered for the whole of 2017.

Asia : Pakistan's vote - a clear message that people want democracy at any c ost (PRIV)
(IPS, Peshawar)
Voters in Pakistan's general elec tion outrightly rejected political parties with extremism records and candidates linked to banned terrorist groups, opting instead to back liberal forces in a supp ort for peace.