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Firdevs Robinson explores some of the political, economic and ethnic challenges facing the new Central Asian states

source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive/5187418.stm

Posted by toppodshare at 5:25 PM | Permalink | Comments

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Emma Joseph visits Manila where, despite government promises that tackling slums is a big priority, the numbers living in them is on the rise...

According to the UN one billion people live in slums and the figure is set to double by 2030. So what can governments do to control unprecedented urban growth and make slums a decent place to live?

Presenter Emma Joseph travels to the Philippines and Brazil

Part One: Philippines

For the first time in human history, the number of people living in urban areas has surpassed those living in rural ones.

With that change has come an exponential growth in the number of cities globally.

Billions of us live in more than three hundred cities around the world, and one million babies are delivered every week in them.

The mass migration of people from the countryside to the town has brought with it a host of problems, one of the most pressing being the dramatic rise in slums.

In the first of two programmes, as part of our Urban Planet season, Emma Joseph reports from Asia where hundreds of millions of people are literally slumming it.

source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive/5099696.stm

Posted by toppodshare at 2:45 AM | Permalink | Comments

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In this short, sharp presentation from Where 2.0 2005, Google’s Bret Taylor describes just how easy it is becoming to add maps to your website. He introduces the initial Google Maps API and asserts that it provides the map as a canvas for custom content. As the API is free to all web sites that are free to consumers, everyone can now have a Google map on their home page.

Posted by toppodshare at 6:54 PM | Permalink | Comments

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Magdi Abdelhadi visits Oman, a country determined to profit from the global economy, and on its own terms.

In recent years, a number of Gulf countries have been making progress towards economic, social and even limited political reforms.

These advances are so rapid that many believe the Gulf - once seen as a relatively backward region - could one day eclipse the Arab world's more established centres of influence, such as Egypt and Lebanon.

The BBC's Arab Affairs Analyst Magdi Abdelhadi investigates how far these changes might go.

Part Two: Oman

Oman has taken a more moderate approach to change than some its neighbours.

Once among the most backward countries in the Middle East, it is now determined to profit from the global economy - but on its own terms.

As well as long-standing political and military relationship with the UK, it has a substantial trade surplus and low inflation. The government is privatising its utilities and diversifying its economy to attract foreign investment.

It is also now engaged in what has been termed "Omanisation" - encouraging the replacement of expatriate workers with local people to reduce unemployment and dependance on other countries.

Is this slower and more subtle approach a better way of integrating Western ideas without causing a radical overhaul of life and society?

source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/documentary_archive/5172306.stm

Posted by toppodshare at 12:57 AM | Permalink | Comments