World | WPN World People News

With €53 billion of development aid in 2011, the European Union and its 27 Member States remains the world biggest donor, providing more than half of global official aid, preliminary figures on official development aid published by the OECD reveal today. At a time of heavy budgetary constraints, 16 Member States managed to increase their aid, three of them are ranked among the five largest donors worldwide and four of them have already reached the target of spending 0.7% of their Gross National Income (GNI) on aid. EU official development aid reached 0.42% of EU GNI, which exceeds the efforts of other major donors. However, efforts are still needed to reach the agreed target of 0.7% EU GNI by 2015.

Southeast Asian leaders say they will rush to reach a unified position on resolving competing territorial claims in the South China Sea. During the final day of a key Association of Southeast Asian Nations leaders summit in Phnom Penh, negotiators struggled to reach a consensus on how to approach the disputes with China.

South Sudan has accused the Khartoum government of rejecting peace overtures while its forces bomb targets in the south. As a result, African Union-mediated talks in Addis Ababa are in danger of collapse.

Chinese Vice-Premier Li Keqiang has re-assured that his country is committed to properly resolve the South China Sea issue with Vietnam.

Committees of at least seven citizens living in at least seven EU Member States who can gather at least one million signatures in support of an idea will be able to ask the European Commission to propose legislation to enact it, provided that the idea falls within the Commission's sphere of competence and is consistent with the EU's fundamental values.

A Congolese woman, displaced by LRA attacks, carries a bag of non-food items distributed by UNHCR in Dungu, DR of Congo.

Mali's coup leader says he has reinstated the country's constitution, a day before harsh economic sanctions were to be imposed if constitutional order was not restored.

China is conducting scientific testing and training exercises for its aircraft carrier.

Thousands Sunday voted in Myanmar's parliamentary by-elections in which Nobel laureate and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi is contesting for the first time.