The Real Story

The Gulf state of Qatar is currently hosting the most expensive Fifa World Cup ever having spent an estimated $220 billion on the event. Seven of the eight stadiums have been built from scratch with new railways, motorways and dozens of new hotels also adding to the cost. It’s the first time the tournament has been hosted in the Middle East, a source of pride to many. But human rights groups say thousands of migrant workers have died during construction of venues and associated infrastructure - a claim the Qataris reject. Campaigners say not enough is being done to support gay people in a country where homosexuality remains illegal. But many across the Middle East believe the criticisms are unfair and that rich, Western nations are insulting a history-making event. So once the football is done, what will be the legacy of Qatar 2022 for the country, the region, its Western allies and the world?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests.James Lynch - A former diplomat based in Qatar and a founding director of FairSquare Research and Projects, which works to prevent human rights abuses.Alistair Burt – UK Minister of State for the Middle East 2017-2019.Also featuring …Dr Nayef bin Nahar - Director of the Ibn Khaldon Center for Humanities and Social Sciences at Qatar University, based in Doha.Dr Nasser Mohamed - A gay Qatari, now living in the United States.Producers: Ellen Otzen and Paul Schuster.

This month the world population reached 8 billion people - and India is leading the charge. It's set to overtake China as most populous country in the world next year. India is currently home to more than 1.39 billion people. By April, the UN says it will hit 1.42 billion. What’s caused this rapid population growth, what does it mean for India, its economy and its neighbours?The growth has already put an enormous amount of pressure on India’s resources and economic stability. The country is on the frontline of climate change and is struggling with extreme weather events 80% of the year. Should the Indian government be doing more to slow population growth or is in fact an opportunity for economic development?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of experts.Poonam Muttreja - executive director of Population Foundation of India (PFI). Colette Rose - sociologist and researcher at the Berlin Institute for Population and Development.Dr Shatakshee Dongde - associate professor at the School of Economics, Georgia Institute of Technology.Also featuring : Shaina NC (Shaina Nana Chudasama) - Indian BJP government spokesperson.Producers: Ellen Otzen and Rumella Dasgupta(Photo :People walk through a congested road of a wholesale market in the old quarters of Delhi, India; Credit: EPA/RAJAT GUPTA)

After two years of civil war, Ethiopia and Tigray have agreed to terms for a peace deal which stipulates that both parties will begin to lay down their arms The plan is to create a humanitarian corridor to Tigray which will offer food relief to more than 6million civilians in Tigray who have been under blockade by government forces for most of the conflict. The war in Africa's second-most populous country has seen abuses documented on both sides, with millions of people displaced and many near famine. Several sticking points remain. Will the Eritrean forces - who have fought alongside Ethiopian troops and have their own territorial claims - also lay down their arms? Without sustained attention from US, African and other donor nations, could the cease-fire quickly fall apart again? Can famine in Tigray be avoided?Chris Morris is joined by a panel of expert guests.Alex Rondos - Former European Union’s Special Representative to the Horn of Africa. Tsedale Lemma - Ethiopian journalist and founder of the Addis Standard publications.Alex De Waal - Author and Executive Director of the World Peace Foundation.Also featuring:Getachew Reda - Spokesperson for the Tigray People's Liberation FrontProducers: Ellen Otzen and Rumella Dasgupta(Photo: Internally displaced women and children in Ethiopia; Credit: Photo by EDUARDO SOTERAS/AFP via Getty Images)

President Macron this week announced that France's anti-jihadist military mission in the Sahel region of Africa has ended. The departure of troops from the former colonial power and the end of Operation Barkhane comes at a challenging time for the region which is in the grips of a security crisis fuelled by Islamist extremists. Both Mali and Burkina Faso face jihadist insurgencies and the countries have seen a combined four coups d’état since 2020. Mali's ruling junta, which has been in power since 2020, has brought in Russian operatives it says are military trainers, but western nations describe as mercenaries from the pro-Kremlin Wagner Group. Could Russia become the new big player in West Africa?Paul Henley is joined by a panel of expert guests.Jean-Hervé Jezequel - Project Director for the Sahel at the International Crisis Group.Niagalé Bagayoko - Chair of the African Security Sector Network, a think tank based in Ghana.Paul Melly - Journalist and Consulting Fellow in the Africa Programme at the Chatham House think tank.Also featuring:Yéah Samaké - A Malian politician and the country’s former ambassador to India.Sergei Markov - A former member of the Russian parliament for Vladimir Putin's United Russia party and former adviser to the Kremlin.Producers: Ellen Otzen and Paul Schuster.

Delegates are gathering in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, for the COP27 UN climate change conference beginning on Sunday 6 November. But a lot has changed in the 12 months since attendees of the COP26 meeting in Glasgow promised bold action to tackle global warming. Russia invaded Ukraine sparking global inflation and rising energy prices. Relations between the United States and China have continued to sour. And extreme weather events have caused thousands of deaths across the planet. Last week a UN report concluded there’s no longer any "credible pathway" to keeping the rise in global temperatures below the key threshold of 1.5C and that the world will warm by around 2.8C this century if current policies remain in place. So, what’s on the agenda at COP27? Can the conference come up with solutions to the growing number of challenges posed by climate change? And how can we judge whether the meeting will be a success or a failure?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests.Mohamed Nasheed - Former President of the Maldives, now an ambassador for the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF).Dr Jessica Omukuti - Research Fellow on net zero emissions, climate finance and climate justice at the University of Oxford.Nick Robins - Professor in Practice for Sustainable Finance at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics (LSE).Also featuring ...Dr Michael E. Mann - Professor of Earth & Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania and author of 'The New Climate War: the fight to take back our planet'.Dr Michal Meidan - Director of the Gas Research Programme at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies think tank.Producers: Paul Schuster and Ellen Otzen.

The United States will hold midterm elections on 8 November, votes that could have a major impact on the remaining two years of the Biden presidency. Join The Real Story and our US Public Radio partners in Michigan, Arizona and California as we delve into some of the key issues driving this year's race - the cost of living, abortion rights and perceived threats to democracy. Ritula Shah is joined by Rick Pluta, Senior Capitol Correspondent at Michigan Public Radio Network MPRN, Ben Giles, Senior Editor KJZZ Phoenix 91.5FM and Marisa Lagos, Political Correspondent for KQED in California.Producers: Ellen Otzen and Paul Schuster

After the resignation of Liz Truss the UK will soon have its third prime minister this year. Britain has long been considered a politically stable nation. So has something changed? The governing Conservative Party is divided on many issues, including the country’s future direction post-Brexit. The opposition Labour Party has also struggled to accommodate different views on economic and social policy. Meanwhile the two-party system is being challenged by shifting demographics, a rural-urban divide and strengthening support for Scottish nationalists. So what lies at the heart of the turmoil in the British political system and where does it go from here?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests.Professor Tim Bale - Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University of London and author of the upcoming book The Conservative Party After Brexit: Turmoil and Transformation.Polly Toynbee - Guardian columnist and co-author of The Lost Decade: 2010–2020, and What Lies Ahead for Britain.Sir John Curtice - Professor of Politics at the University of Strathclyde and a leading expert on public opinion.Also featuring:David Blunkett (Lord Blunkett) - Former UK Home Secretary in Tony Blair's Labour government.Producers: Paul Schuster and Ellen Otzen.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has this week downgraded its forecast for global growth warning “the worst is yet to come and, for many people 2023 will feel like a recession”. The fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has increased inflation, forced central banks to raise interest rates and exacerbated the cost of living crisis. Britain’s new Prime Minister Liz Truss says her economic priority is “growth, growth and growth”. But the IMF says that while the tax cuts her government has announced may boost growth in the short term they’ll likely "complicate the fight" against soaring prices. So, what is the best way of boosting economic growth? Can it be done without increasing inequality and harming the planet? And is growth always good for you and your quality of life, whether you live in a rich country or a poor one?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests.Vicky Pryce - Economist and former director general for economics at the UK government’s Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.Desmond Lachman - South African born economist, former deputy director in the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Policy Development and Review Department, now a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI).David Pilling - Africa editor for the FT and author of The Growth Delusion: Wealth, Poverty, and the Well-Being of Nations.Producers: Ellen Otzen and Paul Schuster.

This month China’s President Xi Jinping is expected to secure a further five years as the country’s leader after the Communist Party abolished two-term limits. It opens the door to Xi continuing to rule for the rest of his life. His time in power has seen the country take a more confrontational approach to many of its neighbours as well as to the West. China’s GDP continues to grow and living standards for most citizens have risen, but some fear the ‘economic miracle’ of recent decades may be coming to an end and that rising tensions over Taiwan and Hong Kong could lead to conflict. So, who is Xi Jinping? What makes him tick? And what are his plans for the future of China?Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests.Daniel R. Russel - Former US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (2013 - 2017), currently Vice President for International Security and Diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), New YorkLucy Hornby - visiting scholar at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University, formerly of Reuters and the FTSteve Tsang - Director of the China Institute at SOAS, The University of LondonAlso featuring:Victor Gao - Vice President of the Center for China and Globalization, a think tank based in BeijingProducers: Paul Schuster and Ellen Otzen

The US has warned Russia of “catastrophic consequences” if it uses nuclear weapons in its war against Ukraine. The statement comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted he’d use “all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our people”, adding this is “not a bluff”. The threat of escalation feels more acute after Moscow reported four self-styled referendums held in Russian-held regions of Ukraine showed near universal public support for joining Russia. So, if Ukraine continues to try to wrest back full control of the regions, is it possible the Kremlin could respond with the use of small ‘tactical’ nuclear weapons? Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of expert guests. Producers: Paul Schuster and Ellen Otzen.