News, comment and features on the private sector and the role of business in development and the developing world
December 2023
World Bank accused of ‘turning blind eye’ to sexual abuse in Kenyan schools it funded
Calls grow for independent inquiry after the bank’s internal watchdog found 21 cases of child sexual abuse by teaching staff
May 2023
‘We give our blood so they live comfortably’: Sri Lanka’s tea pickers say they go hungry and live in squalor
Top tea firms investigate as plantation workers say they have to pick 18kg a day but still skip meals and make their children work
July 2022
Neglect Africa now and we will face labour shortages globally, IMF warns
West’s response to effects of Covid and Ukraine war condemned as shortsighted ‘collective failure’ to invest in future human capital
December 2021
UK accused of abandoning world’s poor as aid turned into ‘colonial’ investment
Rebrand of Foreign Office’s development arm, seen as effort to rival China’s loans, will shift aid to private sector, warn NGOs and unions
July 2021
UK business confidence jumps ahead of 19 July lockdown lifting
Survey shows firms most optimistic since 2005, as hiring intentions reach a record high despite a surge in Covid cases
June 2021
‘It opened my eyes’: Lesotho ski resort goes off-piste to keep workers
The pandemic has hit tourism but retraining and a range of initiatives have enabled staff to stay and even hit the slopes
May 2021
Campaigners lose court case to stop Ugandan forest clearance
Court ruling gives go-ahead for sugar plantation in Bugoma forest, home to endangered chimpanzees
April 2021
Lesotho firm first in Africa to be granted EU licence for medical cannabis
Breakthrough could create thousands of jobs for villagers and help exports to other markets
March 2021
The UN food systems summit will consider all stakeholders’ interests
Farmers and rights groups boycott food summit over big business links
October 2020
How teenagers ended up operating crucial parts of England’s test and trace system
George Monbiot
As one whistleblower tells me, a vital public health service is being bungled by private contractors, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
The myth of the 'efficient' private sector has been busted by Covid
Rosie Collington
Countries who kept their response to the pandemic in-house have fared much better – will England learn its lesson, asks PhD student Rosie Collington
How private firms have cashed in on the Covid crisis
The government's secretive Covid contracts are heaping misery on Britain
George Monbiot
Consultants' fees 'up to £6,250 a day' for work on Covid test system
September 2020
Coronavirus bill has cost UK government £210bn, spending watchdog says
NAO forecast for costs of 190 pandemic measures over half year finds furlough outlay of £35.4bn so far most expensive
August 2020
The Guardian view on fair dealing: name firms bailed out by the state
Editorial: To prevent fraud and aid good governance, the Treasury must disclose the recipients of more than £50bn of state-funded coronavirus business loans
July 2020
Poor nutrition in developing countries is costing firms $850bn annually – report
Business is paying a high price for inadequate diets of employees, research shows, with experts calling on companies to provide living wage and subsidised food
June 2020
'A shame for the world': Uganda's fragile forest ecosystem destroyed for sugar
Conservationists say clearance of Bugomo reserve for plantation is blow to biodiversity and country’s reputation on wildlife
May 2020
UK government 'using pandemic to transfer NHS duties to private sector'
Critics claim Matt Hancock has accelerated dismantling of state healthcare
