Trade : WTO highlights impact of LDC graduation amid COVID-19 (PRIV)
(D. Ravi Kanth, Geneva)
The World Trade Organization, in a report released on 8 May, has highlighted the "trade impacts of LDC (least-developed country) graduation" based on the existing commitments in the WTO rule-book.

COVID-19 : "Passing the buck" becomes reckless "conspiracy blame game" (PRIV)
(IPS, Sydney/Kuala Lumpur)
Sydney/Kuala Lumpur, 12 May (IPS/Anis Chowdhury and Jomo Kwame Sundaram*) -- Although Wuhan local authorities undoubtedly ostracized local medical whistle-blowers, notably Dr Li Wenliang, who suspected a new virus was responsible for flu-like infections in Wuhan in late 2019, official responses were apparently not delayed, and possibly even expedited, as the novel character of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, responsible for Covid-19 infections, was not immediately self-evident.

COVID-19 : Africa's health dilemma (PRIV)
(IPS, Bulawayo)
Experts across Africa are warning that as hospitals and health facilities focus on COVID-19, less attention is being given to the management of other deadly diseases like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, which affect millions more people.

COVID-19 : Time for WB & IMF to be the solution, not the problem (PRIV)
(IPS, Port-au-Prince/Boston)
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have a historic opportunity to help stabilize a world reeling from COVID-19.