The Prime Minister has stated his determination to combat child marriage globally, but he must use Britain's leverage more effectively in Bangladesh.

A lesson of the last decade's work on the Millennium Development Goals is the need to rethink current approaches to development, says David Mepham, the UK director of Human Rights Watch. The key requirement is to see development not just as material improvement, vital though that is, but as a process with human rights at the very heart.

Some say we should put Britain's complicity in torture and human rights abuse in Libya behind us. We cannot do so. Lessons have not been learned, victims still await justice, while the 'secret courts bill' would help ensure future abuses remain hidden.

The violent repression of citizens in Syria is escalating, and can now be linked to named officials of the regime. This reinforces the case for concerted international pressure to end the suffering, says David Mepham.

A study of the healthcare environment of expectant mothers in the Eastern Cape region of South Africa reveal severe problems that both the national government and overseas donors should address, says David Mepham.