Netaji Subhas/ICAR International Fellowships for Agriculture Scholars 2018/2019 – India

Application Deadline: 15th June, 2018

Eligible Countries: International

To be taken at (country): Select Agriculture Universities in India and abroad listed here and here

About the Award: The NS-ICARIFs are available for pursuing doctoral degree in agriculture and allied sciences, in the identified priority areas, to the (i) Indian candidates for study abroad in the identified overseas Universities/Institutions having strong research and teaching capabilities and (ii) to overseas candidates for study in the Indian Agricultural Universities (AUs) in the ICAR-AUs system.

Eligible Fields of Study: Crop Sciences, Horticulture, Biotechnology and nanotechnology, Animal Sciences, Natural Resource Management, Agricultural Engineering and Fisheries.

Type: Fellowship, PhD (Doctoral Degree in Agriculture and Allied Sciences)

Eligibility: 

• Master’s degree in agriculture/allied sciences with an Overall Grade Point Average (OGPA) 6.60 out of 10.0 or 65% marks or equivalent will be the eligibility requirement for the NS-ICAR IFs.
• The fresh candidates should not be more than 35 years of age on the last date prescribed for receipt of applications. The upper age limit for In-service candidates will be 40 years on the last date for receipt of applications.
• Age on the closing date for receipt of applications will be considered for eligibility. 
• Also, date of completion of qualifying degree will be the date of completion of both course and thesis work as declared by the university. Netaji Subhas- ICAR IF would be available for both, fresh and in-service candidates. However, the fresh candidates should have completed their qualifying degree not more than two years before the specified date in the year of admission. The in-service candidates from India should be employed in the ICAR-AU system.
• The Council will identify and announce the priority areas of research and the list of institutions for admission, one year in advance, for availing the Netaji Subhas- ICAR IFs.

Number of Awardees: Thirty(30) fellowships

Value of Scholarship: The fellow will be entitled to the following:

• To-and-fro, economy class air ticket for international travel, by the shortest route, from the airport, nearest to the residence/ work place of the candidate to the airport, nearest to the destination University in respect of both Indian and Overseas candidates (Air tickets to be provided by the Council).
• The fellows will be entitled for economy-class-travel cost reimbursement from port of arrival in India to the destination University in India and back.
• Indian Rupee 40,000 per month
• The fellowship amount for the first six months, as first installment, will be released by the Council to the fellow through government notified/ approved bank to be deposited in the bank account of the fellow on receiving his/ her acceptance for the fellowship and admission letter received from the host University.
• Thereafter, the amount of fellowship will be released to the fellow, every six months, after receiving the academic progress report from the fellow duly certified by the concerned advisor/ supervisor/ head of institution.
• The fellow will meet all other costs including medical insurance etc. from the above fellowship or from his/ her own resources.
• During the tenure of fellowship, an in-service fellow may continue to receive his/her salary, types of leave and benefits etc. from the parent organization as per rules.

Duration of Scholarship: Three (3) years

How to Apply: Candidates should fill the Application form. Filled in application along with supporting documents should be submitted (one hard copy by post and one soft copy by e-mail) to:
The Assistant Director General (EQR), Education Division, ICAR,
Krishi Anusandhan Bhavan II, Pusa,
New Delhi-110012
Email:  adgeqricar@gmail.com

Visit Scholarship Webpage for details

Award Provider: The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

Important Notes: The other frontier areas in agriculture and allied sciences may also be appropriately considered.

International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) PhD Scholarship for Developing Countries (Fully-funded to Italy) 2018/2019

Application Deadline: 14th June 2018 at 13:00 CET.

Eligible Countries: Developing Countries

To be taken at (country): Italy

About the Award: An interdisciplinary doctoral programme offered in collaboration between ICTP, the University of Trieste and Italy’s National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics is now accepting applications for its November 2018 start.
The PhD programme in Earth Sciences, Fluid Dynamics and Mathematics. Interactions and Methods (ESFM) promotes the preparation of students through the investigation of the scientific themes developed by the research groups belonging to the departments and the research institutions directly involved in the programme, as well as through international collaborations with qualified foreign institutes that provide students with the opportunity to attend training programs abroad.
The programme is taught in English. This year, there are 10 fully funded three-year scholarships to support attendance. In addition, applicants from certain developing countries may have the payment of the admission exam fee waived.

Type: Research, PhD

Eligibility: Eligible candidates must hold an academic qualification, which can be considered to be equivalent – in terms of duration, level and disciplinary field –  to the Italian degree which allows to undertake Ph.D. studies in Italy. The candidate must hold the degree by September 30, 2018 (or by October 31, 2018 in case of an Italian degree).

• The program is taught in English.
• Research is carried out in cutting-edge facilities, on the main university campus, at the local Area Science Park and at national and international laboratories, in collaboration with Italian and international research institutions.
• Scholarships are open to students graduated in foreign universities.
• The scholarship -funded by ICTP- is reserved to candidates from countries not belonging to the list of “High-income economies” (according to the World Bank criteria).

Number of Awards: 10

Value of Award: All transportation, meals and accommodation expenses for the participating scholars will be covered.

Duration of Program: 3 years

How to Apply: Application information

Visit Programme Webpage for details

Award Provider: International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP)

Seedstars World Competition for Startup Entrepreneurs 2018 – Up to US$1.5million

Application deadline: Go to Seedstars website below to see specific deadline for each African city.
(Also see specific Programme Dates for African cities below).

Offered annually? Yes

Eligible Countries: Africa, Asia, Latin America, CEE and MENA

To be taken at (country): Switzerland (Final awards show)

Area of Interest: Entrepreneurship in any field

About the Award: On this 2018 edition of the tour, they will visit over 25 cities across Sub-Saharan Africa to host bootcamps and pitch competitions, adding countries such as Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia to its tour. The winner from each country is invited to the final at the Seedstars Global Summit in Switzerland to compete for up to $500,000 in equity investment and additional multiple prizes and perks.

Offered Since: Not specified

Selection Criteria:

• Maximum 2 years since founding date
• Maximum USD 0.5m funding
• Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
• Need to use technology to solve a local or regional issue

The Seedstars World team is searching for one additional criterion – the startup’s regional and global scalability.

Selection Process: At each Local Event, the top 10-15 pre-selected startups are invited to pitch in front of an expert jury and quality audience to determine the winner. The event brings together key entrepreneurs, investors, corporates and institutions from the local ecosystem combined with a unique global Seedstars World flavour. The winner of each Local Event gets a free trip to the Final Event and loads of cool tech prizes.
The winner of each Local Event will be invited to Switzerland to represent his startup and country at the global finals. The Final Event is a weeklong adventure consisting of a bootcamp, international conference and investor forum. It’s an amazing chance to meet with investors, build a global network and grow your business.

Number of Awardees: several with on grand winner

Value of Award

• Equity investment:There is a prize package consisting of USD500,000 in equity investment and more in cash and in-kind prizes. You’ll be exposed to VCs, corporates and angels searching for investment opportunities. Maximum USD 0.5m funding
• Coverage & Prestige:All Seedstars World events are heavily covered by local and international press with around 500 articles on Seedstars last year. Represent your country at the worldwide Seedstars Summit in front of an international audience.
• Partnerships & Family:Join the close knit Seedstars Family of talented entrepreneurs in 65+ countries. Find potential partners and business opportunities through the community and at the various events.
• Learn & Grow:We hand pick top-quality mentors from all over the world with experience in relevant industries. Benefit from the knowledge of corporate leaders, serial entrepreneurs, accelerator directors and investors.

Duration of Scholarship: 2 days for the Local Event + 7 days if you are selected for the Seedstars Summit (includes: online application, preparing for pitching event, coaching, traveling and attending the events).
Specific Programme Dates for Local Competitions:
The pitching events in Africa confirmed by Seedstars so far are:
Casablanca — 22 June (*now postponed to 6 July)
Algiers — 28 June
Harare — 29 June
Kigali — 20 July
Tripoli — 7 August
Nairobi — 10 August
Lagos — 17 August
Kampala — 24 August
Dakar — 7 September
Gaborone — 14 September
Abidjan — 14 Sept
Dar es Salaam — 21 September
Kinshasa — 21 September
Maputo — 28 September
Doula — 28 September
Luanda — 12 October
Bamako — 20 October
Accra — 26 October (*now postponed to 13th July)
South African finals — 2 November
Addis Ababa – 30 November

How to Apply: Startups from Africa an apply here.

Visit Seedstars Webpage for details

Award Provider: Seedstars World

Important Notes: You must be prepared to talk about your startup in public. Pitch and application documents must be in English or you must provide a translator. Your startup can be from any sector but must be for profit.

Google Impact Challenge Nigeria for Nonprofits and Social Enterprises ($250,000 grant) 2018

Application Deadline: 4th July 2018

Eligible Countries: Nigeria

About the Award: Your community. Your ideas to make it better. For the first time, the Google Impact Challenge is coming to Nigeria! The Google Impact Challenge Nigeria asks local innovators how they would make their community–and beyond–an even better place. The public and a panel of local Judges vote for the ideas with the most potential, and Google.org pairs each winner with a package of strategic support, funding and Google volunteers.
How it Works:

• Organizations Apply: Eligible nonprofits and social enterprises submit their proposals to create economic opportunity in Nigeria.
• Finalists Selected: Google and our partners will review applications and select 12 finalists.
• Public Votes: From the 12 finalists, the public will have three weeks to vote for their favorite idea.
• Final Event and Winners Announced: All 12 finalists are invited to pitch their ideas to our panel of Judges at a final event. The Judges will select three Challenge winners from these finalists, and also announce the people’s choice winner.
• Training and Support: Each of the four winners will receive a $250,000 grant and training from Google. The remaining 8 finalists will receive a $125,000 grant.

Type: Entrepreneurship

Eligibility: To be eligible to enter the Google Impact Challenge Nigeria, your Organization must meet the criteria listed
below:

• be a legally registered Nigerian business or nonprofit;
• suggest a project with a clear charitable purpose, as determined by Google and/or Google’s donor advised fund, the Tides Foundation, in their sole discretion;
• not discriminate against any person or group of people in either hiring/employment practices or in the administration of programs and services, including on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or ethnicity;
• agree that if you receive an Award, it will not be used for religious instruction.

Selection Criteria: 

• Community Impact: Does the proposed project create economic opportunity in Nigeria? Does it improve the lives of people in our country?
• Innovation: Does the project present unexpected solutions to unmet needs?
• Reach: Does it have the potential to scale directly or to serve as a model for other communities? Will its scope grow over time?
• Feasibility: Is the project plan (or business plan) well thought-out, and the team well-equipped to execute on it?

Number of Awards: 4

Value of Award: 

• Training and Support: Each of the four winners will receive a $250,000 grant and training from Google. The remaining 8 finalists will receive a $125,000 grant.
• Finalists get access to Google.org funding, mentorship and resources.

How to Apply: APPLY TO THE CHALLENGE

• Before applying, review the criteria and the rules.

Visit the Programme Webpage for Details

Award Providers: Google

Young African Scientists in Europe (YASE) Conference Fellowship (Funded to Toulouse, France) 2018

Application Deadline: 15th June 2018

Program Date: 6^th July 2018

To Be Taken At (Country): France

About the Award: Toulouse will host the conference YASE 2018 – Young African Scientists in Europe to give African doctoral students and post-doctoral scientists who are expatriate in Europe information and elements to choose if they want to carry on their scientific career in Africa.

About 25,000 young African scientists are currently preparing a PhD in Europe (160,000 in Africa itself). While the need for scientists and engineers in Africa is growing, how many of them will contribute in the coming years to the scientific and technological development of their countries?

Often isolated in their laboratories, not always aware of the specificities of scientific employment in Africa, they wonder and worry. When they return to Africa after some years spent in Europe, how can they enter the higher education and research system? How can they maintain international collaborations? How can they remedy to the lack of experimental means in their home countries? What actions can be taken in Europe to support the scientific development of African countries?

Conferences, panels and discussions in YASE 2018 will be devoted to these questions and many more. The 250 attendees, doctoral students and post-doctoral scientists, will meet and exchange informations and perspectives, and will begin to create networks. They will also listen to leading African researchers and representatives of public institutions and companies and ask them questions : that will improve their knowledge of the development of research and of scientific employment in Africa.

Type: Conference, Fellowship

Eligibility: African PhD students working in a European country other than France.

Selection Process: Grant recipients will be wellcomed in Toulouse by three IAST Research Fellows:

• • Kofi Asante, sociologist;
  • Nick Crawford, historian;
  • Slimane Dridi, evolutionary biologist.

They will propose to selected candidates in their own fields of science a special programme during the ESOF week, with group meetings, discussions about your research work and theirs. They will be ready to answer all your questions about PhD, postdoc, research career…

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: Winners of this proposal will be reimbursed of their expenses up to 415 € (travel, accomodation, registration for both YASE and ESOF; receipts needed).

How to Apply: 

• Write a one page summary explaining: what you are doing as a PhD, why you are interested to attend YASE, and which IAST research fellow you are interested to meet and why.
• Send it with this form, together with a copy of your African passport and a copy of a university registration proof.

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse (IAST)

National Cancer Institute (NCI) Research Training Travel Scholarships for Developing Countries 2018 – Hong Kong

Application Deadline: 22nd June 2018

Eligible Countries: Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC)

To Be Taken At (Country): Hong Kong.

About the Award: Scholarships will be provided to key LMIC health care professionals to attend the 2018 IPOS Research Training Academy in Hong Kong.
The number of scholarships and capacity to cover expenses related to the IPOS Congress from October 31-November 2 following the RTA will depend on funding, and scholars need to be available for this period as well.

Type: Research, Training

Eligibility: 

• Professionals in LMIC must be within completion of their academic training and establishment of their independent careers (i.e., within 6 years after completion of their academic training). Exceptions may be made for participants who have had delays from extenuating circumstances (i.e., leave of absence from work for maternity/paternity, sickness, etc.).
• They must also be based in and conduct their research in LMIC in a variety of clinical or academic fields appropriate to the field of psycho-oncology (e.g., physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, epidemiologist).

Other criteria for eligibility are described below
Full eligibility criteria for the NCI Travel Scholarship application (please note that all criteria must be met):

• • Be a professional within completion of their academic training and establishment of their independent careers (i.e., within 6 years of completion of their academic training);
• • Be based in and conduct their research in LMIC in a variety of clinical or academic fields appropriate to the field of psycho-oncology (e.g., physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, epidemiologist);
• • Country of residence in Low-income and lower-middle income countries as defined by the World Bank: https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519-world-bank-country-and-lending-groups;
• • Fluent in oral and written English;
• • Provide a photocopy of a national passport from the country of residence valid for the required period after departure from Hong Kong (November 3, 2018) – Please check with your appropriate embassy or consular authority to ensure your passport is valid for the required period;
• • Have no known criminal record;
• • If this is required (depends on the country of residence see link below), commit to obtain a Visit/Transit Visa from Hong Kong and show proof of this valid Visa to IPOS at least 2 months before the RTA (before August 28, 2018) https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/visas/visit-transit/visit-visa-entry-permit.html; You can find the Visa form here: https://www.immd.gov.hk/pdforms/ID1003A.pdf
• • Be eligible to obtain a Visa from Hong Kong if a Visa is required: https://immd.gov.hk/eng/services/visas/visit_transit.html;
• • Commit to attend the three-day Research Training Academy on October 28-30 if selected to obtain a NCI Travel Scholarship;
• • Provided IPOS fundraising is successful, commit to attend the three day IPOS Congress in Hong Kong (on October 31-November 2) as well as specific events within this congress as mandated by the RTA Organizing Committee: http://www.ipos2018.com/;
• • Commit to developing a research project during the Research Training Academy and present it briefly in a 15-min presentation on the last day of the Academy;
• • Commit to being mentored during 6 meetings over one year by an IPOS researcher for continued scientific support in implementing a research project;
• • The Scholarships will comply with the Fly America Act, which will require that all domestic and international travel funded be purchased from a US-flag air carrier. The Fly America Act applies to any segment of a trip where a US-flag carrier is an available option;
• • Be open to sharing a hotel room in double occupancy during the Research Training Academy and Congress (with same sex pairing).

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: NCI Travel Scholarships will cover costs of training, flight, hotel and meals

Duration of Programme: October 28-30, 2018.

How to Apply: Please email your Scholarship Application Form including the Check List, a current copy of your Curriculum Vitae (CV) in English and a copy of your passport no later than June 22, 2018 to the following email: applications2018RTA@ipos-society.org. PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS WITHOUT A 5-PAGE CV AND COPY OF PASSPORT WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

Visit the Programme Webpage for Details

Award Providers:  International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS)

Important Note: Please note that travel arrangements and accommodations will be organized by IPOS for recipients of the NCI Travel Scholarship. There will be no possibility of extending or altering these plans.

TY Danjuma MBA Scholarship for African Students to Study at Leading Business Schools 2018/2019

Application Deadline: 31st July 2018

Eligible Countries: African countries

To Be Taken At (University):  The Financial Times MBA Global Ranking for 2018 lists the top ten schools as; Stanford Graduate School of Business, INSEAD, University of Pennsylvania: Wharton, London Business School, Harvard Business School, University of Chicago: Booth, Columbia Business School, Ceibs, MIT: Sloan, and University of California at Berkeley: Haas. Click the link below for details.

About the Award: Launched in 2011, The TY Danjuma MBA Scholarship aims to help up to seven students a year. Since launching, scholarships have been awarded to 30 students in total attending Harvard Business School, INSEAD, London Business School, MIT: Sloan, Stanford Graduate School of Business, University of California at Berkeley: Haas, University of Chicago Booth, University of Pennsylvania: Wharton, IE Business School and University of Cambridge: Judge. Our scholars have come from Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Ghana.

Type: MBA

Eligibility: 

• All successful African MBA applicants to the top ten Business Schools (as ranked by the Financial Times) are eligible to receive The TY Danjuma MBA Scholarship regardless of domicile.
• The grant is awarded to successful candidates prior to the annual intake for that Business School.

Number of Awards: 7

Value of Award: The TY Danjuma MBA Scholarship is intended to provide additional financial support to help African students bridge some of the financial burden attached to taking on MBA programmes, it will not be enough to act as the primary source of funding for these programmes.

Duration of Award: Duration of MBA programme

How to Apply: Eligible students should email mba-at-tyd-fo.co.uk sending the following information between 1 May and 31 July 2018:

• Full Name
• Nationality
• Full contact details
• Name of Business School where you have been accepted onto their MBA Programme
• Year of enrolment at the Business School
• Copy of offer letter from the Business School
• Copy of your CV
• Copy of your budget and funding shortfall (include all scholarship and loans information).

Visit the Programme Webpage for Details

Award Providers:  TY Danjuma Foundation

Important Notes: Note, the TY Danjuma MBA Scholarship is to help support by providing additional financial aid, it will not be enough to act as the primary source of funding for the MBA.

Dark Web: The darkest corner of internet

Aftab Shaikh

New Delhi: Buying illegal items has never been easier. With a click of a mouse, one can purchase almost any illegal commodity and get it delivered to any location worldwide. Be it an automatic pistol, or drugs from western countries, the mysterious world of Dark Web has it all.

One can browse through the dark web marketplaces like People’s Drugs Store, Cannabis UK, Wacky Weeds, AlphaBay, etc and avail any illegal commodity from these e-shopping portals available on the dark web.

“We deliver Heroin, Cocaine, Cannabies and Ecstasy. We ship to all the countries worldwide with best quality products at competitive prices,” assures ‘People’s Drug Store’. Another dealer called ‘SmokeAbles’, which has listed India among its convenient shipping locations, claims that, “We are one of the few online dealers having access to original and organic Kush Cannabis.”

Not just drugs, but other highly illegal things like child pornography, firearms, and even assassins are available for hire on the dark web.

Dark web or dark net is a term that refers specifically to a collection of websites that exist on an encrypted network. It cannot be accessed by a normal internet user, as sites available on the dark net are not indexed by normal web browsers like Chrome or search engines like Yahoo or Bing. The dark web is hidden on the darkest corner of the internet which can be accessed with special browsers like ‘The Onion Router’ or TOR browser.

“Dark web uses a technique called onion routing where IP address of a person is difficult to track. It uses certain software to conceal true location and identity of a person. Due to its anonymity, it is often used by criminals to do illegal trade of drugs or selling of porn,” said Karnika Seth, a cyber crime expert and Supreme Court advocate.

Once an order is placed on the dark web portal, the payment is allowed only in bitcoins. Bitcoin payment does not adhere to ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) norms, which hides the identity of the customer and the service provider. International transaction through bitcoins in India is illegal as it violates the banking norm. Regular e-commerce websites follow KYC norms for executing cross-border payments.

After the arrest of the Sahu brothers in Telangana in 2015, law enforcement agencies across India realised how the dark web was thriving as an unregulated channel. The duo purchased LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) paper from the dark web and sold it locally across India. After the case was busted, it was observed that metropolitan cities like Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad are the hotspots for online drugs trade in India.

“We are completely aware about the dark web, but we cannot shut it down or stop users from accessing it. Instead, we monitor the activities on the dark web through TOR browser and find out if there are Delhi related activities going on,” said a senior officer from Delhi Police’s cyber crime cell. “Besides the cyber crime cell, other law enforcement agencies are also working on dark web,” he further added.

While TOR browser – which gives access to dark web – assures anonymity, senior officer revealed that Delhi police have technology which intercepts and back traces the users on the dark web. “Users on dark web are not completely anonymous. Activities on dark web can be back traced with specialised software which is available with Delhi police. The software traces the data transferred by intercepting the wavelength and has the ability to back trace it,” he explained.

In India, accessing dark web is not illegal. “If done with a criminal intent, it becomes an offence to conceal one’s identity. But if done with bona fide intention, it will not be illegal,” Karnika Seth said. The Information Technology Act has specific provisions to deal with cyber crimes in India. “If one engages in child pornography, Section 67B of IT Act prescribes punishment of upto 5 years for the accused,” Seth added.

While dark web has turned out to be a tool for criminal activities due to complete anonymity, it is also a platform for scientists, government officials, professors and others who are just looking for privacy.

“Privacy has become greatest concern in today’s world Internet. Many people are looking to browse the web without anyone keeping an eye on them,” said Castor Godinho, a Tor user. He lamented that Tor browser was developed for good purpose but now it used as a tool to enter into dark web.

UK: Nearly half a million young people not in receipt of minimal state support

Joe Mount 

Youth are bearing the brunt of the Conservative government’s austerity measures, with thousands affected by unemployment, homelessness and poverty. Their plight is made worse by brutal cuts to welfare benefits and social programmes.

There are currently around 794,000 16-to-24-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs). This is approximately 11 percent of all youth in the country. The real figure is likely higher due to the cautious assumptions behind government statistics. New research reveals that large numbers of these lack even the minimal state support they are entitled to.

The London Youth charity published a report, “Hidden in Plain Sight: Young Londoners Unemployed Yet Unsupported.”

It defines as “hidden” the 480,000 youth across Britain in the 18-to-25 age bracket that are NEET and not accessing statutory support such as welfare benefits and Job Centre Plus services. It details some of the causes and effects of this form of social exclusion, highlighting the broader social conditions facing youth today with case studies. The research was based on data collected via their social programmes, surveys, and official statistics.

London Youth originated in a coalition of youth charities in the 1880s from the “ragged school” movement that provided education and support to destitute children across the country. This was established in 1844, the year Frederick Engels wrote his seminal The Condition of the Working Class in England, by which time the organisation ran over 20 free schools.

There are a range of social and economic factors that are pushing youth “off the radar,” the report finds. Many struggle to access Job Centre services due to lack of proper documentation or other bureaucratic hurdles. Others lack a bank account, internet access or sufficient literacy. Others are carers for older relatives.

The political and media establishment has waged a systematic campaign of demonization of welfare recipients and young people, particularly the most oppressed layers. London Youth notes that many deliberately avoid the welfare system due to stigmatisation that has fostered a misconception that accessing statutory state support is a sign that one has “given up” on life.

Many are repelled by onerous job-seeking requirements that would “take control of their lives,” forcing them to engage in fruitless, unpaid work programmes. The research found:

“They were discouraged from signing on after hearing stories from others who had been sanctioned [received cuts to their welfare payments], or experienced delays to receiving their payments, and the financial hardship this caused. Young people described the process as ‘jumping through hoops for nothing.’ Taking all of this into consideration, many young people decided that they would ‘rather not bother.’”

Young people mistrust Job Centres, which are “not seen as a genuine source of support that would help young people find a job” because they are “unhelpful” or they “fear being treated badly” due to the threat of arbitrary sanctions and other punitive measures.

“Hidden” youth are more likely to possess GCSE qualifications and have completed further education than their counterparts who do participate in the welfare system. This exposes the lie that all unemployed youth are voluntary “drop-outs.” Young workers face a lack of decent opportunities.

The welfare state has been eviscerated over the last decades. The role of Job Centres is often toxic, with staff under pressure to reject legitimate benefit claims and force claimants into dead-end, low-paid jobs.

The transition from education to the labour market is a minefield. The report describes the long-term effect of poor careers advice and disruptive changes in the job market for which youth are unprepared. Many experience multiple set-backs before finding a permanent job, often poorly paid or demeaning.

The study discusses how social environment determines much of the response to these socio-economic pressures. A struggling young person may decide not to persevere through official channels and instead turn to friends or family members, while others enter the growing “off the books” economy of cash-in-hand work.

These problems can cause a vicious cycle of knock-backs, with the study noting long-term effects including increased risk of unemployment and poverty.

For those youth that do receive state support, its already paltry value is being systematically reduced. Most “hidden” youth live with their parents and are less likely to be living independently than those claiming state support. However, housing benefit for young people only covers the cost of a single room in a shared house and the Income Support rate is also lower.

The Conservatives eliminated Housing Benefit for 18-to-21-year-olds in 2014 but were forced into a U-turn due to popular hostility to this vindictive policy. However, the benefit has been merged into the new Universal Credit system, aimed at cutting welfare spending and making benefits harder to claim. This and other austerity measures are exacerbating youth homelessness.

Precarious working conditions are becoming the norm, with zero-hours contracts in the “gig economy” and other measures impacting on millions. Over one-third of employees in this sector are young people.

Many don’t sign on as unemployed, whether when in-work (when many are eligible for in-work benefits) or even during periods of unemployment. Youth who are working a few hours a week are effectively hidden from the unemployment statistics and don’t receive the support they need.

The lack of a reliable income is pushing large numbers of young workers into debt. A 2017 study by Populus Data Solutions found that 48 percent of 18-to-30-year-olds have to regularly borrow money, skip meals or work overtime to make ends meet. Around one-quarter are in permanent debt. These financial pressures and the lack of a stable future are fostering hopelessness and impacting mental health.

The charities involved in this research do not provide any solutions for the root cause of this social crisis. Their proposals ignore the structural unemployment that is inherent to capitalism. Their calls for increased funding to youth charities to help youth into the labour market are simply an attempt to “grease the wheels of supply and demand,” as one charity activist admitted on social media.

The government shrugged off the issue of hundreds of thousands of young people going without even minimal welfare support. In response to the London Youth report, an official spokesperson refused to discuss the findings, instead claiming that youth unemployment is falling.

Youth face a punitive system as the ruling class creates a “hostile environment” in the same spirit as that targeting immigrants at the centre of the Windrush scandal. The wholesale waste of talent and energy is an indictment of an obsolete social order.

UK plans deployment of hundreds more troops as part of US-led Afghan build-up

Barry Mason 

Driven by intractable crises and the further erosion of its global standing as it prepares to exit the European Union, Britain is seeking to reinforce its military presence in the Middle East as part of a new carve-up by the imperialist powers.

Theresa May’s Conservative government plans to send 400 additional combat troops to Afghanistan to support the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission (RSM).

The RSM was set up in January 2015 and comprises around 15,000 NATO troops with a remit to provide training, advice and assistance to Afghan security forces and institutions. NATO troops supposedly only have an advisory role and do not undertake combat missions.

The UK has around 600 troops taking part in the RSM as well as special forces troops. Following a request from US President Trump last summer the UK sent an additional 85 troops. The proposal to commit an additional 400 follows a further request from Trump.

UK Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has written to May, who is expected to formally announce the deployment of the additional troops at a July NATO summit in Brussels.

The UK participated in the US-led invasion and occupation of Afghanistan in November 2001 following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The destruction of the World Trade Center and attack on the Pentagon provided a pretext for the US and its NATO allies to bring Afghanistan under direct Western control. An initiative which is central to securing dominance over the Eurasian land mass.

The UK committed thousands of troops, mainly based at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province in the south of the country. At its height the camp held 40,000 troops. In the spring of 2014 the camp was handed over to Afghan security forces as the numbers of UK combat troops was wound down. The last UK combat forces left in October 2014, with the remaining 600 commissioned to the RSM.

The Afghan conflict has cost at least £40 billion, with 450 UK armed forces personnel killed and tens of thousands left wounded, ill or psychologically damaged. According to the last poll taken by YouGov more than half of those surveyed thought that UK involvement in Afghanistan had “not been worthwhile,” with only a quarter thinking it had.

The US-led war, now in its seventeenth year, has resulted in catastrophe. Afghanistan has seen a recent surge in the number and impact of attacks by the Taliban and other insurgent forces. In recent months there have been major attacks in the capital Kabul by the Taliban and a group affiliated to Islamic State (IS).

On January 27, the Taliban detonated a massive bomb hidden in an ambulance on a crowded street in Kabul. Over 100 died and more than 200 were injured.

On April 22, a suicide bomber struck at a queue of people waiting to register to vote. The attack, in a Shia area of the city, claimed over 60 lives and injured more than 100. IS claimed responsibility for the attack.

More than 20 people were killed on April 30 in a double suicide bombing.

Most recently the Taliban conducted a major attack on the provincial capital, Farah, on May 15 and 16 in which they penetrated the security cordon around the city.

A UK parliament-briefing document issued April 24 this year noted:

“NATO has increased troop numbers since the Resolute Support mission began in January 2015. Troop levels will rise to around 16,000 in 2018 to combat what is described as a ‘challenging situation.’ The percentage of districts under insurgent control or influence has doubled since 2015. The UN reported over 10,000 civilian casualties in 2017, over half of which were attributed to the Taliban. The US has significantly increased the number of airstrikes since President Trump unveiled a new South Asia Strategy last August, releasing more weapons in 2017 than in any year since 2012.”

General Sir Richard Barrons, who retired in 2016, gave his support to the proposal to send additional troops. He was Commander of the Joint Forces Command from April 2013 till April 2016. He held command in Afghanistan on several occasions, beginning in 2002. Barrons is a long-time proponent of confronting Russia and has demanded a huge rearmament programme.

Speaking on the BBC Radio Four’s Today programme, Barrons said the government, “has to recognise that the decision to leave in 2014... hasn’t worked.”

He added, “When we left it was not the case that the Afghan national army and air force were strong enough to tip the balance against the Taliban and that now has to be reset. It will send an important message to our allies that they should step up as well…”

“The only way this war is going to end is when the Taliban and their supporters realise they can’t fight their way back to government and that just fighting year on year, with casualties on both sides is in no one’s interest.”

Another retired general, David Richards, the Baron of Herstmonceux and former Chief of the Defence Staff, speaking to Sky News harkened back to the 2001 invasion:

“That initial campaign was stunning in its simplicity and its success. In under two months the Taliban were gone. If you’re looking for models for future generations of soldiers to look at, I think that’s got to be one of them.”

The response of Barrons and Richards echoed Trump who, speaking in January rejecting the notion of peace talks with the Taliban, said the US would “finish what we have to finish.”

What is being proposed by Richards would require the massive increases in military spending—at the expense of public spending. In an op-ed piece published in the Times in March, and co-written with Michael Clarke, a former director of the influential Royal United Services Institute military think tank, he complained that “spending on defence, security, diplomacy, intelligence, international aid and R&D comes to £62 billion a year, less than 10 percent of government spending.”

This should be increased, even though “some of the trade-offs against social policy, health or education might be severe if spending were increased on defence and intelligence.” “Would this be justified? ... Yes, at least for the coming decade.”

In a meeting earlier this month at the White House, NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg backed the sending of extra troops and praised Trump.

“Let me thank you for the leadership you show on the issue of defence spending because it is very important that we all contribute more to our shared security, and it is really having an impact because, as you said, allies are now spending more on defence,” Stoltenberg said.

Trump said at the same press conference that NATO military spending by the alliance’s members should be increased from a standard two percent of GDP to four percent.

The UK recently stepped up its intervention against the Assad regime in Syria, carrying out missile strikes against government assets. Thousands of UK personnel are intimately involved in maintaining the military war machine of Saudi Arabia, enabling it to carry out its one-sided slaughter in Yemen.

The return to Afghanistan with larger numbers of troops only enhances the growing danger of a wider war in the region, involving the world’s nuclear powers.

Fifty-one million US households cannot afford “survival budget”

Kate Randall

Newly released data cast a revealing light on the state of income inequality in America a decade after the Great Recession. While CEO pay soars to unheard of heights, nearly 51 million US households cannot afford basic necessities like housing, food and health care. The figures show that a tiny oligarchy of the super-rich continues to tighten its grip over society, as more and more families struggle to get by.

The New York Times on Friday published the Equilar 200 Highest-Paid CEO Rankings for 2017. The survey, conducted annually by the executive compensation consulting firm Equilar, lists the pay packages awarded to CEOs at US public companies with more than $1 billion in revenue.

Entries regarding the 10 highest-paid CEOs in 2017 show not only massive compensation packages, but huge percentage increases over 2016.

• No. 1: Hock E. Tan of Broadcom, total compensation of $103,211,163—a 318 percent increase over 2016
• No. 2: Frank J. Bisignano of First Data, total compensation of $102,210,396—a 646 percent increase over 2016
• No. 10: Stephen Kaufer of TripAdvisor, total compensation of $43,160,584—a 3,400 percent increase over 2016

This year for the first time, as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank banking law, publicly traded US corporations must begin publishing comparisons between the pay of their chief executive and the median compensation of other employees. (Figures are not yet available for all of the highest-earning CEOs.)

The following are just a few of the pay ratios for 2017:

• Mindy Grossman, Weight Watchers International, with $33,371,856 in total compensation, received 5,908 times the median employee pay ($6,013).
• Margaret H. Georgiadis, Mattel, with $31,275,289 in total compensation, received 4,987 times the median employee pay ($6,271).
• Michael Rapino, Live Nation Entertainment, whose total compensation rose by 577 percent to $70,615,760, received 2,893 times the median employee pay ($24,416).

Put another way, a Walmart worker earning the company’s median salary of $19,177 would have to work for more than 1,000 years to earn the $22.2 million that company CEO Doug McMillon was awarded in 2017.

Among the companies that disclosed CEO pay ratios, the median was 275 to 1, i.e., the typical employee would have to work 275 years to earn the annual compensation of his or her company’s CEO.

While CEO compensation continues to climb—with the top 200 CEOs receiving an average raise of 14 percent in 2017, compared to 9 percent in 2016 and 5 percent in 2015—there are 50.8 million US households that cannot afford a basic monthly budget, including housing, food, child care, health care, transportation and a smart phone. The new data was made available Tuesday by the United Way ALICE Project.

Those struggling to meet a basic monthly budget include 16.1 million households living below the official federal poverty level, an abysmally low $24,300 for a family of four in 2016. Also included, however, were another 34.7 million families called ALICE, which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. In other words, these households include working members and are not “officially” poor, but cannot afford basic necessities.

As the ALICE Project press release on the data notes, “ALICE is the nation’s child care workers, home health aides and store clerks—those men and women who work at low-paying jobs, having little or no savings and are one emergency from poverty.” Workers at companies whose CEOs rank in the top 200 in pay fall into this category, including McDonald’s, Walgreens, Office Depot and food service companies Aramark and Sysco.

Data highlighted by the research includes the following:

• Two-thirds of all US jobs in the country are low-paying—less than $20 an hour, or $40,000 a year if full-time.
• More than 30 percent of households in each state cannot afford a basic “survival budget.” The percentage of these families ranges from 32 percent in North Dakota to 49 percent in California, New Mexico and Hawaii.
• Those families earning over the poverty level but struggling to afford basic necessities outnumber similarly struggling households living in poverty in all 50 states.
• California, Texas and Florida—the first, second and fourth most populous states, respectively--have the largest number of ALICE households in the country.

Also published Tuesday was a study by the Federal Reserve Board that exposes the precarious financial situation facing millions of American workers and their families. The “Report on the Economic Well-Being of US Households in 2017” found that 4 in 10 adults, if faced with an unexpected expense of $400, would either be unable to cover it or would pay for it by selling a possession or borrowing money.

For working class families, such unexpected expenses could include a medical bill, a car repair, home repairs, appliance replacement, unexpected taxes or fines—the list goes on. While the CEOs in the top 200 have assets stashed away in rainy day funds in the millions, an unexpected emergency can mean going without food, being forced deeper into credit card debt, debt collection or eviction. The study found that 3 percent of renters were evicted or moved because of the threat of eviction in the last two years.

The report noted that one-fifth of non-retired adults are pessimistic about their future employment opportunities. A substantial number of workers are in precarious employment, with one-sixth having irregular work schedules imposed by their employer, and one-tenth receiving their work schedules less than a week in advance.

The study reported that over half of college attendees under age 30 have taken on debt to pay for their education. Those who failed to complete a degree, and those who attended for-profit institutions, were more likely to have fallen behind on their payments. Among those making payments on their student loans, the typical monthly payment was between $200 and $300, or 6 to 9 percent of total income for someone working full-time at $20 an hour.

Another Fed study, “The Demographics of Wealth,” found that people born in the 1980s, part of the millennial generation, were at the greatest risk of becoming a “lost generation” in terms of wealth accumulation. This age group is one of the most likely to be saddled with student debt. While all families headed by someone born in 1960 or later have failed to recover economically since the Great Recession, those born in the 1980s are the least likely to have recovered to their pre-1980 financial level.

Not surprisingly, the “Economic Well-Being” report found that less than two-thirds of non-retired adults thought their retirement savings are on track. One-fourth had no retirement savings or pension whatsoever.

While workers are told by politicians of both big business parties that there is “no money” to pay for decent wages, education, health care or retirement, companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index are sitting on the largest cash stockpile in history, with estimates varying between $1.8 and $2.2 trillion as of the end of 2017.

The obscene levels of compensation doled out to the CEOs and the corresponding struggle of working class families to pay basic monthly bills provoke no serious response from the Democratic Party, which is fixated on the claims of Russian “meddling” in the 2016 elections.

The Democrats have provided the votes to fund the Pentagon’s record $700 billion budget and secure the confirmation of black-site torture administrator Gina Haspel to head the CIA. They put up no serious opposition to Trump’s multi-trillion-dollar tax cut for corporations and the rich. Meanwhile, work requirements are being imposed on Medicaid and food stamps, with virtually no opposition from the Democratic Party.

The working class must break from both parties of the capitalist class and build a mass socialist movement to seize the wealth of the financial elite and put an end to the profit system. This is the only basis for meeting essential social needs.

Conflicts intensify between Europe and US

Peter Schwarz 

Following the unilateral termination of the nuclear treaty with Iran by US President Donald Trump, relations between the US and Europe are at a low point. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who was in Washington for an inaugural visit on Wednesday, was rebuffed on every controversial issue.

Maas held talks with his American counterpart Mike Pompeo, security adviser John Bolton and several congressmen, but failed to reach any agreement on the Iranian issue. Before the meeting Maas had coordinated his approach by phone with senior diplomats from France and Britain who, together with Germany, want to maintain the Iran treaty.

“We are going in two completely different directions,” Maas said, after his meeting with Pompeo. The only concession he could get from the US secretary of state was to hold a kind of crisis summit with Berlin, Paris and London in early June.

Maas’s conversation with Bolton, a hardliner on the Iran issue, was even more tense. At the subsequent press conference he referred to Trump’s new security adviser only as “Mr. Bolton” and stressed that the conflict would now be “fought out publicly.” In his conversation with Bolton he had made “the German and European position very clear,” he said.

Maas added, “We wish there be no lasting damage to the transatlantic relationship.” But in view of the irreconcilable viewpoints, this amounts to nothing more than a diplomatic nicety.

In a speech to the right-wing Heritage Foundation on Monday, Pompeo threatened Iran with the “hardest sanctions in history” and with war. He is also intent on forcing European companies to comply with US sanctions, well aware that, unlike America, European businesses conduct extensive trade with Iran. For their part, Germany, France and the United Kingdom want to keep to the Iran agreement so as not to lose a lucrative market. While they have agreed to put more pressure on Iran, they fear that a premature war would destabilise the entire region, triggering new waves of refugees and increased energy costs.

The fronts also hardened in the second major divisive issue with the US, the imposition of punitive tariffs. President Trump has to decide by June 1 whether US punitive taxes on steel and aluminium will also apply to imports from the European Union. Most political observers expect a decision against the EU. Maas himself commented on the trade dispute, “I made it clear that we in Germany and Europe can by no means accept the path the US seeks to take.”

As soon as he was on his flight back to Germany, the German foreign minister was informed about the next bad news from the White House. Donald Trump officially instructed the Department of Commerce to check the imposition of import duties on autos, trucks and car parts. Import tariffs of up to 25 percent are being considered. Such tariffs would above all hit the big German auto companies for whom the US is their second largest export market after China. Last year, they exported around half a million vehicles to the US.

The growing transatlantic conflicts have been in the making for some time. Trump’s “America first” policy is not the cause of these conflicts, but rather the result of a long, objective process. The global integration of production, the dominance of international corporations and banks have exacerbated the struggle for raw materials, markets and spheres of influence between the imperialist powers, which have unleashed two world wars in the last century.

The US has long sought to defend its world hegemony through the use of military force and has been at war for the past quarter century. The older great powers of Europe have reacted by rearming and pursuing their own great power politics. They have supported numerous US wars in the past, but are now in conflict with their former ally. In Germany, which was forced to scale down its military because of the crimes of the Nazi regime, the government had already announced four years ago the “end of military restraint” and has since systematically rearmed.

Now the escalation of the conflict with the United States has triggered an imperialist frenzy, drawing all the major political parties and formerly liberal-minded middle-class layers in its wake. The Left Party accuses the current federal government of “cowardice” towards Washington. The formerly pacifist Greens mutated into the chief advocates of German militarism 20 years ago, when they sent German troops to fight in Kosovo.

Even politicians and journalists who were hitherto pro-American are now calling for independent German-European great power politics. Typical in this regard is an article which appeared in Die Zeit written by Mark Leonard, director of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Leonard describes himself as a “convinced trans-atlanticist,” but writes that a reluctant Berlin must now decide “whether Europe can hold its own in the new competition of the great powers” and “whether the whole of Europe is capable of undertaking its own policy in the new political contest between the great powers.”

It is necessary to prevent “our continent from becoming the plaything of the powers,” he writes. To this end, “Germany must be willing to actually use real power factors—not just soft power and dialogue.” Europe had to “turn against America” because that was the only way “to be heard in the US.”

Maas’s predecessor in the office of foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel (Social Democratic Party), was even more blunt. In an article for the Tagesspiegel, he accuses Trump of “destroying all that the United States once created.” “It’s still unclear how the new world order will look,” Gabriel writes. “Europe and Germany, however, should not look on as others develop, but rather assert their own ideas.”

In order to “exert international influence, … Germany must increase its foreign policy expenditures” to 20 percent of the federal budget, Gabriel demands. This includes military spending. On its own, Germany was too small for this task: “Germany’s most important contribution to a new world order is therefore the strengthening of Europe as an international power.” In order to avoid “becoming a plaything” of American and other interests, “Europe must join forces: economically, in terms of development policy and also in terms of security and military policy,” he said.

The most grotesque form of German great power ambitions in the name of anti-Americanism is on show in the latest Spiegel online column by Jakob Augstein. Augstein is the wealthy heir of the Spiegel empire and a man who faithfully reflects the mood of the affluent “liberal” petty bourgeois. He is outraged that Donald Trump is “pursuing a policy of pure, sheer US imperialism.” It was therefore the “duty of Germans to oppose American imperialism.” He calls upon Chancellor Merkel, who has her roots in former Stalinist East Germany, to “remember her school days—and take up the anti-imperialist struggle.”

In fact, German imperialism is no better than the American variant. This is shown by history. Already in the period of the Weimar Republic, propaganda about the enslavement of Germany by the US and the other victorious powers of the First World War was exploited to mobilise the middle classes in favour of German militarism. The result was Hitler fascism and the bestial crimes of the Wehrmacht.

There is only one way to fight against the growing threat of war: the international unification of the working class based on a socialist program directed against war and its root cause, capitalism. The allies of German workers in the fight against Trump are not Merkel, Macron and the German army, but rather the American and the international working class.