UniFocus IAS ( UNIFOCUS UNIVERSAL )

  The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has issued a green bond to raise awareness of glacier melt, engaging with investors on ADB’s projects and programs that will help communities in Asia become more resilient against the impacts of melting glaciers. The $100 million 5-year issue was arranged by BNP Paribas and Morgan Stanley, proceeds of which will be used in accordance with  ADB’s Green and Blue Bond Framework . The notes will be listed on the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX). Glacier- and snow-fed river basins support water security for around 2 billion people in Asia. Rising temperatures are accelerating glacier retreat and altering snowfall patterns, intensifying both near-term flood risks and long-term water stress, particularly in South Asia and Central and West Asia. As these hydrological shifts become more pronounced, investments in climate adaptation and resilient water systems are increasingly urgent. Projects eligible for financing under ADB's Green and Blue Bond progr...

  The World Health Organization (WHO), together with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), congratulates Chile for becoming the first country in the Americas – and the second globally – to be officially verified as having eliminated leprosy disease. Leprosy (Hansen disease) was historically recorded in Chile at the end of the 19th century on Rapa Nui (Easter Island). The disease was limited in mainland Chile, with sporadic introductions, contained through isolation and treatment measures in the Island, where the last secondary cases were managed by the late 1990s. Since then, Chile has not reported any locally acquired case of leprosy for more than 30 years, with the last locally acquired case detected in 1993. However, the disease was never removed from the country’s public health agenda; it has remained a notifiable condition, monitored through mandatory reporting, integrated surveillance, and continuous clinical readiness across the health system. The World Health Organiz...

The 147 countries and jurisdictions working together within the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) have agreed on key elements of a package that charts a course forward for the co-ordinated operation of global minimum tax arrangements in the context of a digitalised and globalised economy. Following months of intense negotiations, the comprehensive package for a  “ side by side” arrangement  announced today represents a significant political and technical agreement which will set the foundation for stability and certainty in the international tax system. It will preserve the gains achieved so far in the global minimum tax framework and protect the ability for all jurisdictions, particularly developing countries, to have first taxing rights over income generated in their jurisdictions. The package includes five key components: First, a series of simplification measures will reduce compliance burdens for multinational enterprises (MNEs) and t...

The convention, also known as  Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships, which enters into force on 17 February 2026. Convention  creates a harmonized and simplified system for recognizing judicial sales of ships across borders, helping ensure smoother international trade.   Convention was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2022. Under the Convention, a judicial sale conducted in one State Party is recognized by all other Parties. To ensure transparency, each State where a sale occurs must issue a notice of judicial sale and, as appropriate, a certificate of judicial sale. International Maritime Organization (IMO) serves as the repository for these instruments and they will be made publicly available through a dedicated module on the IMO’s Global Integrated Shipping Information System ( GISIS ) platform. Ratified Nations: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belgium, Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, Comoros, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, t...