http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg What's on the minds of young leaders from around the globe? en-us http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/455803
Many other young Ghanaians have either left agriculture or dream of doing so. But Mr. Kwaku, now 25 years old, thinks he can stay on the land. "I will continue to farm," he told Africa Renewal. "I got income and food. I got enough from the farm."


With world food prices rising, it is a good time to push for higher production, argues Isaac Kankam-Boadu, the agriculture and environment facilitator of the Millennium Villages Project in Bonsaaso, a cluster of poor and remote settlements in Ghana's Ashanti Region. "The high food prices are an opportunity," he says. "The farmers can earn more money."

Last year, Mr. Kankam-Boadu reports, Bonsaaso's maize farmers managed to quadruple their yields from an average of about one tonne per hectare (two and a half acres) to four tonnes. Besides boosting their own incomes, the farmers contributed about a tenth of their crop to the area's new school feeding programme, which helps many of the area's children.

Millennium Villages

Such linkages are at the heart of the Millennium Villages Project. The first Millennium Village was launched in 2004 in Sauri, Kenya, as an integrated development initiative. Besides Ghana, the project soon expanded to also include villages in Ethiopia, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda. The sites were selected on the basis of their poverty indicators and to represent Africa's different ecological and climate zones. Altogether, more than 400,000 people now live in villages chosen for the project.

The idea grew from research and policy deliberations of the Millennium Task Force, directed by the UN Secretary-General's special adviser on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Jeffrey Sachs. The MDGs, adopted by world leaders in 2000, strive to drastically reduce poverty and deprivation around the world.

Expanding access to clean water is one of the goals of the Millennium Villages Project.

The Millennium Villages approach is based on two central ideas: The first is that simple and inexpensive changes in nutrition, health, water, sanitation, education, women's status, agriculture, communications, roads and electricity can lift rural Africans out of severe poverty. The second is that a combination of community mobilization, government support and external aid can fund these efforts for only about $110 per person per year. Most of the Millennium Village projects are being implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Initial funders included the government of Japan, which gave more than $9 mn, and the US-based financier and philanthropist George Soros, who gave $5 mn. On 13 March, the Japanese government decided to extend its assistance by an additional $11.4 mn.

Japan's assistance to the project is part of that country's wider programme of support for Asia-Africa cooperation, known as the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD). The fourth conference was held in Yokohama, Japan, on 28-30 May, and was attended by Ghanaian President John Kufuor and nearly 40 other African heads of state (see article). Near the top of TICAD's agenda was achievement of the MDGs, which is also central to the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Africa's own blueprint for economic, social and political progress.

From school meals to cell phones

The Millennium initiative came to Bonsaaso in March 2006, initially in 10 localities. By the end of that year the project had expanded to 30 communities, covering some 400 square kilometres and affecting more than 30,000 people. The area was selected because many residents were very poor, malnutrition was common, there were few health services, many children did not go to school and numerous other indicators of human development lagged.

Rather than focusing on just one or two sectors, the project's designers want to show that poverty can be attacked across a wide front. If successful here and in other countries, says Sam Asare Afram, the Millennium Village manager in Bonsaaso, the project could provide a "model" for the continent.

Although the project is only two years old, communities in Bonsaaso are already enjoying real results. Rita Adjei, head nurse at the health clinic in Watreso, says that the new anti-mosquito bed nets mean that fewer children get malaria, although diarrhoea is still a serious problem caused by a lack of clean water and sanitation. She points to a bank of solar-powered chargers for cell phones, donated by Sony Ericsson. Once the Bonsaaso area comes under better cell phone coverage, Ms. Adjei and her assistant nurses will be able to quickly obtain better information and advice for their patients.

Nana Dapaah Siakwan, the traditional chief of Aboaboso, estimates that enrolment in the local primary school has increased from 200 to 500, largely thanks to the school feeding programme that began in March 2007. There also is a new health clinic. Until it opened, seriously ill patients had to be carried many kilometres along forest paths to a distant clinic-on a tabletop, since there was no stretcher, explains the chief. Now, he adds, "We have seen the benefits."

Mohammed Salifu, a cocoa farmer, produced nine 64-kilogramme bags in 2007, up from just four the year before, simply by following the advice of an agricultural extension officer sent to Bonsaaso by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. With new seedlings of a higher-yielding and faster-growing variety of cocoa, he hopes to do even better this year.

Bigger cocoa and food harvests will bring new challenges, however. The abysmal state of the roads within Bonsaaso and with other parts of Ghana makes it hard for farmers to get their crops to market. But Chinese road contractors hired by the government are busy at work, and the project has acquired two five-tonne trucks to help transport produce. Developing physical infrastructure is not one of the MDGs, notes Ernest Mensah, a project facilitator. "But if you want to eradicate poverty," he adds, "you need infrastructure."

Avoiding dependency

Critics of donor-aided development projects in Africa point out that they often tend to make the beneficiaries dependent on outside assistance, and frequently collapse if that money eventually dries up. The Millennium Villages Project does rely on significant inflows. On average, about 60 per cent of project financing comes from donors, 30 per cent from national and local governments and the rest from the communities themselves.

In part, the project is designed to convince donors to provide more financing over the long term, by demonstrating concretely that aid can be used effectively to reduce poverty. A careful tally is kept of every dollar spent in Bonsaaso and other Millennium Villages, not only to avoid waste and inefficiency, but also to demonstrate to donor governments that simple interventions can make a real impact. "They don't know how practical the solutions are," says Mr. Sachs, referring to donor agencies. "They don't realize that at very low cost - just a few dollars - you can save children's lives."

By showing that external aid can indeed be effective in Africa, Mr. Sachs and his colleagues hope to convince the major industrialized countries to live up to their commitments. The 2005 summit meeting of the Group of Eight industrialized countries, for example, pledged to provide Africa with about $50 bn in aid annually by 2010 - still about twice what donors are giving so far.

To help guard against local expectations that such outside assistance will continue to keep the Millennium Villages functioning, project planners stress that certain forms of aid will be steadily reduced and that governments and villagers will need to take up a greater share of the cost. The new higher-yielding cocoa seedlings provided to farmers are currently subsidized, notes Mr. Kankam-Boadu. But as farmers earn more from their cocoa sales, by next year the subsidies will begin declining, "to let them know the realities of the market."

Similarly, health care in Bonsaaso's new clinics is free for the time being, to encourage poor villagers to use their services. But, explains Mr. Afram, free care is not sustainable over the long term. Project workers therefore are helping villagers sign up for Ghana's national health insurance scheme.

In various ways, project organizers are encouraging national and local government bodies to expand their presence in Bonsaaso: by building roads, extending electricity connections and sending in more teachers, health care workers and agricultural extension advisers.

Building up community institutions and a spirit of self-help are also vital for long-term sustainability. Local residents regularly participate in the construction of new schools, teachers' quarters, clinics and community centres by providing labour and contributing sand, stones, timber and other construction materials.

The project employs several "facilitators" to help strengthen school management committees, parents' associations, water committees and other bodies, and to engage traditional chiefs, who play a major role in mobilizing people. Stephen Antwi, the project's community development coordinator, told Africa Renewal that community structures will help Bonsaaso keep developing even when outside aid eventually falls. "We'll likely have the capacity for many years."
]]> Fri, 15 Aug 2008 14:06:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/455803 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/350183
According to the World Bank’s latest World Development Report, growth in the agricultural sector in Africa is vital to poverty reduction and to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). “Strategic public and related private investment in water management will be essential for the intensification of agricultural production and for meeting targets for poverty alleviation, food production and economic recovery by 2015,”said Richard Mkandawire, NEPAD’s Agriculture Advisor. “Reliance on irregular and unreliable rainfall for agricultural production is a major constraint on crop productivity in the region,” Mkandawire added.

The Tunis meeting discussed the agricultural water strategy: Investment in agricultural water for poverty reduction and economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa which was jointly prepared by the World Bank, AfDB, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and International Water Management Institute (IWMI), in response to NEPAD’s desire to implement land and water management (Pillar I) of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP). The CAADP encompasses among other objectives an increase in the area under sustainable water management in Africa to 20 million hectares, up from less than 7 million hectares at present.

“Developing water resources and rural infrastructure are among the key priority areas of the African Development Bank in Africa. The ongoing agriculture portfolio of the Bank comprises 240 projects covering 28 countries with a total investment of US$3 billion. More than a third of the investment portfolio, ie US$1.37 billion, has been assigned to agriculture water development covering 53 projects and programs, and benefiting 23 African countries,” said Aly Abou-Sabaa, Director of the Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department of the AfDB. “The initiative is timely in view of the rising food prices across the globe and the World Bank is committed to investing up to US$1 billion in sustainable agricultural water projects over the next 5 years”, said John Stein, Acting Director of the Sustainable Development Department, Africa Region, World Bank.]]> Fri, 28 Mar 2008 14:36:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/350183 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/349797


Harry Edwards, a press officer for USAID said, "Commodity and ocean freights costs are increasing globally; as these two factors comprise the majority of food aid budgets, the price increases are reducing the tonnage of food aid available". Food prices have risen in part because of increased demand. But the cost of food aid has also been directly hit by freight charges, which have shot up because of rising oil prices. The price spike at the beginning of 2008 follows a 34 percent increase last year. The USAID annual budget for food aid, with supplemental appropriations, is about $1.5 billion. The food aid cuts will affect the agency's emergency operations in more than 40 countries across the world.



The US is the world's biggest food aid donor, contributing an average of six million tonnes of cereal annually since 1970. It funds half of the UN's World Food Programme (WFP), which is responsible for 40 percent to 50 percent of global food aid. Besides emergency food, the US also provides monetised food aid, when food is bought at subsidised prices in the donor country and sold in the recipient country to generate funds for development projects. The US is one of very few countries that does this; most donors give food in kind or supply cash to UN agencies or NGOs for buying food on national or world markets. "The prospect of the food aid budget in the US going up is very dim - so it will have to make the donated dollar work more efficiently and prioritise," explained Christopher Barrett, who teaches development economics at Cornell University and edits the American Journal of Agricultural Economics.



Remove restrictions



"In cases where the US is the primary donor, it will have to relax its binding restriction, which does not allow food aid to be procured locally [in the recipient country] and regionally; improve timeliness of response and focus on emergency food aid." Almost all food aid donated by the USA is tied to domestic requirements for procurement, processing and shipping. "Freight costs form a major portion of the costs of food aid," said Barrett. According to him, it costs more than two dollars of US taxpayers' money to deliver one dollar's worth of food procured as in-kind food aid.



American legislation requires that 50 percent of commodities be processed and packed before shipment; and that 75 percent of food aid managed by USAID, and 50 percent of the food aid managed by the US Department of Agriculture, be transported in "flag-carrying" US-registered vessels. "The agency is looking for opportunities to reduce costs where possible," said Edwards. "It is seeking to reduce commodity costs by working with aid agencies implementing food aid programmes to use lower cost commodities and reduce transport costs by consolidating small orders."



Jeff Borns, director of USAID's Food for Peace programme was quoted in the Washington Post as saying, "We're in the process now of going country by country and analysing the commodity price increase on each country. Then we're going to have to prioritise." But these are "short-term responses" to the situation, added Barrett. "Fuel and food prices are going to continue to rise; in the long term the solution lies in stimulating smallholder farmers into producing more food in poor countries."
]]> Thu, 27 Mar 2008 14:17:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/349797 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/345711
A response that is based on 'human rights' and education and leadership!]]> Wed, 19 Mar 2008 09:35:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/345711 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/323571
A Bahia possui uma das festas populares mais belas do mundo. Povo rico em manifestações culturais, o baiano apresenta ao mundo toda sua hospitalidade, alegria e espontaneidade durante o Carnaval. É também durante esta festa que demonstramos organização e trabalho para que milhões de pessoas que invadem as ruas da cidade de Salvador possam aproveitar bem o reinado de Momo. O Carnaval de Salvador também é famoso por comportar, num só evento, uma pluralidade de ritmos, cores, credos pouco vista em outras localidades. Por isso, não encontramos dificuldades de identificar um espaço para a divulgação de informações sobre a prevenção da DST/Aids e a promoção da saúde.
Quando saiu pela primeira vez pelas ruas de Salvador, no Carnaval de 1996, o Bloco da Camisinha chamou a atenção dos foliões e da mídia pela novidade que representava. A distribuição de 200 mil preservativos mais materiais informativos como folders, pulseiras, adesivos e cartazes colocou a prevenção a AIDS definitivamente na agenda da folia da capital baiana, uma festa que pela sua própria natureza estimula a libido e, caso não haja cuidados, torna propícia a transmissão de Doenças Sexualmente Transmissíveis (DST).
Como a Aids não escolhe etnia, sexo, idade, muito menos festa, o Bloco da Camisinha volta às ruas em 2008 para chamar a atenção e conscientizar a população sobre a importância do isso do preservativo na prevenção de doenças sexualmente transmissíveis, principalmente a Aids.
Em 2007, ao desfilar pelas ruas de Salvador, o bloco conseguiu reunir servidores da Fiocruz e das redes municipais e estadual de saúde, estudantes, autoridades, artistas e parceiros de organizações não-governamentais em prol do seu objetivo. A ação ocorre em parceria com a Secretaria Municipal de Saúde, que vai instalar pontos fixos de distribuição em localidades espalhadas pelos circuitos oficiais da folia. Em 2007, o Ministério da Saúde distribuiu cerca de 10 milhões de preservativos, já em 2008 espera-se que esse número seja maior.
Principal ação do Programa de Prevenção Contra a Aids no Carnaval de Salvador, o bloco participa da festa há mais de 12 anos como fruto inicial de uma parceria entre a Fiocruz -BA e a Escola Nacional de Saúde da Universidade de Harvard. Neste período, o bloco tornou-se a representação lúdica do trabalho cotidiano de diversos setores da saúde.
Hoje, a ação constitui-se como resultado de um esforço conjunto envolvendo as três esferas de governo: 1) Federal, pelo Ministério da Saúde através da FIOCRUZ, Secretaria de Vigilância e Saúde (SVS) e Programa Nacional de DST-Aids (PN-DST/Aids); 2) Estadual, pela Secretaria de Saúde do Estado da Bahia através da Superintendência de Vigilância e Proteção à Saúde (Suvisa-Divep), Coordenação Estadual de DST/Aids (CE-DST/Aids) e Centro de Referência Estadual de Aids (Creaids); e 3) Municipal, pela Secretaria Municipal de Saúde (SMS) através da Coordenação Municipal de DST/Aids (CM-DST/Aids), além das Organizações Não-Governamentais de assistência a portadores de HIV/Aids e demais parceiros das esferas governamentais e não-governamental.
É com este espírito que em 2008 o Bloco da Camisinha volta às ruas de Salvador, com a seguinte programação.

Programação

Quinta-Feira - 31/01/08
Concentração às 19:00hs no Campo Grande (Estátua do Caboclo)
Atração: Carla Cristina com a Banda Tribahia.

Sábado - 02/02/08
Concentração às 13:00hs na Barra (Farol da Barra)
Atração: Simone Sampaio

Segunda – 04/02/08
Concentração às 10:00hs no Largo do Garcia (Módulo Policial)
Atração: Fred Dantas]]> Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:48:00 EST http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/323571 -14.6833333 -41.0333333 -14.6833333 -41.0333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/318843 Aquí en la ciudad del Salvador, Bahia, Brasil, montamos un proyecto para acercar la comunidad de Canabrava, barrio desprovisto de la ciudad al objetivo número 2. Nuestro foco es poder realizar la reforma del centro de guardería comunitaria, así pudendo proporcionar un ambiente mejor para los 70 niños que se toman cuidado gratuito cerca de la institución. En esta iniciativa contamos con la ayuda de la oficina del PNUD en Salvador. Más allá de la participación de Marta Sachy y de Iala Queiroz. Nos preponemos concluir la reforma en mazo de 2007.

English
Here in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, assemble a project to bring the community Cañabrava, neighborhood devoid of the city to target number 2. Our focus is to make the reform of community daycare center, as well pudendo provide a better environment for the 70 children who are taken care free near the institution. In this initiative we have the assistance of the UNDP office in Salvador. Beyond the involvement of Martha Sachy and Iala Queiroz. We conclude preponemos deck of reform in 2007.]]> Sun, 06 Jan 2008 20:10:00 EST http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/318843 -14.6833333 -41.0333333 -14.6833333 -41.0333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/222845 HERE!

Don’t forget to mark Global Youth Service Day 2008 on your calendar for April 25-27.]]> Sun, 24 Jun 2007 15:27:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/222845 38.8950000 -77.0366667 38.8950000 -77.0366667 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/221289
Mrs. Bush, who has been an active supporter of the George W. Bush administration in specific domestic and foreign policy areas, will be visiting Senegal, Mali, Zambia and Mozambique, according to her press office at the White House.]]> Thu, 21 Jun 2007 04:14:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/221289 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/211197
The president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Olusegun Obasanjo, emphasised at the prorgramme that the Child’s Right Act 2003 guarantees the rights of Nigeria’s children to life, health, education, non-discrimination and protection from all forms of abuse. In recognition of the importance of the full potentials of children as well as growth and development of nations, five of the eight Millennium Development Goals have captured the most fundamental of these rights and articulated specific targets for their achievement.

He said, "To do that, we must fully mainstream the United Nations convention on the rights of the child through the enactment of Child’s Right Laws in all states of the federation."]]> Mon, 28 May 2007 02:58:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/211197 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/210237
The project, which will improve the quality of basic education particularly for the girls and the poor in the benefiting states, will spread over four years between 2007 and 2011. It is hoped that the project would help each state improve the quality of basic education in the targetted local government areas and strengthen their capacity for management, planning and monitoring of the delivery of education services.
The benefiting states were selected based on their demonstrated commitment to and ownership of well developed education sector, the quality of their education sector as well as plans for growth and their education indicators, especially girls’ participation.

Other factors that worked in favour of the chosen states were their expressed interest in education reforms, including the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Universal Basic Education (UBE).]]> Sat, 26 May 2007 11:57:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/210237 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/195079


International agencies must provide coordinated support to help countries produce both, say the authors. Otherwise, there will always be holes in the data. But, in a separate correspondence, Paul Cheung from the UN statistics division argues that real progress has already been made. UN statisticians have reviewed monitoring data and made recommendations for improvement. Efforts to help countries produce and use data have been scaled up — a global statistical system has helped to conduct surveys and censuses in difficult areas and improve registration systems. Now, all but 17 of the countries involved in monitoring the MDGs have trend data for at least half the indicators, says Cheung. And many countries are researching and assessing their own programmes and implementing goal-based strategies based on the data.
]]> Wed, 02 May 2007 06:37:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/195079 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/191683
Salako, a guest lecturer at the sixth yearly conference of the School of Clinical Science, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Idi-Araba and "2007 African Malaria Day" held on Wednesday, said it had been computed that if malaria had been eradicated in 1960, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Africa would have been $400.

He noted that countries that are highly endemic have an estimated GDP growth deficit of at least 1.3 per cent each year.

Speaking on "Malaria: The Unabating Scourge," Salako, who was the first Director- General of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Yaba in Lagos, stated that "malaria has proven not only to be a disease of the poor, but has made Africa poor and keeps her poor."

He said: "It is one of the commonest causes of ill health in Africa, south of the Sahara with almost the entire population being at risk as about 500 million cases of malaria illness occur yearly in Africa, 70-80 per cent of them in the rural areas."

Salako said the disease has remained highly endemic in Nigeria, with most citizens remaining at risk because of the intensity of transmission. He remarked however, that infection with the parasite does not necessarily result in malaria illness.

Salako canvassed early diagnosis and prompt effective treatment, reduction of transmission through vector control and, strategic and operational research as options to pursue towards learning more about the disease and its transmission and improving methods for achieving the control objective.

Salako told the audience that "malaria is preventable, treatable and curable," with the tools presently available and need not continue to be a scourge if initiatives like Roll Back Malaria are adequately implemented.

Chairman of the conference organising committee, Dr. Dayo Adeyemi, said the forum would focus on malaria for as along as the tragedies occasioned "by this preventable disease remain in Nigeria and the world without any foreseeable indication of its permanent extirpation."]]> Fri, 27 Apr 2007 04:44:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/191683 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/189417
The theme of this year's Conference was: “Accelerating Africa's growth and development to meet the millennium development goals-emerging challenges and the way forward”.

The ECA organizes the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development every year. The meetings have become a key forum for agreement on strategies for tackling critical challenges facing the continent
]]> Wed, 25 Apr 2007 06:06:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/189417 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/185721
The initiative aimed at safeguarding 21 of the world’s most critical food crops through securing their seeds was a joint programme of Global Crop Diversity Trust and the United Nations Foundation.

Also in boosting the implementation of the new Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) international treaty on plant genetic resources.

In a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja, the Director of the trust, Mr. Cary Fowler, said the grants would finance research into the world’s most important food crops that were critical to the poor, but largely neglected by plant breeding.

Some of the orphan crops are potato, yam, cassava and coconut among others.

"Although some orphan crops like yam cannot be grown from seeds, but needed to be cultivated from cuttings, roots or cell cultures thereby making their conservation more complex and expensive, but it would be included because it is important to the poor,’’ he said.

The initiative will fund 400,000 samples of more than 2,000 species of 150 crops amounting to 85 per cent of the diversity of all agricultural crops.

It would also develop state of art genetic bank management software system and enter at least 50 priority collections for 100 different traits of hidden genetic resources.

He said the efforts would secure more than 95 per cent of the under funded, disrepair and endangered crop diversity held in developing country genetic banks.

Fowler said the new technologies were expected to reduce conservation cost by 75 per cent and improve the security of collections of such crops.

He said the initiative would also transform communications for plant breeders and farmers around the world to search genetic banks for traits needed to combat new diseases and cope with climate change.

The President of the Gates Foundation, Mr. Sylvia Burwell, said the efforts was to help hundreds of millions of rural farmers and their families to overcome poverty and hunger rested in part on food security.

"There can be no food security without first securing the basis of food production,’’ he said.

He said crop diversity was vital part of the solution to many of the world’s great challenges from environmental conservation to climate and food security.

Burwell said that plant breeders across Africa would be able to adapt their crops to varieties that would grow in different climate conditions.

"Out of the total grant, 15 million dollars would go to the trust’s endowment while the proceeds would be used to maintain the collections of the 21 most important crops,’’ he said.

The UN foundation was created in 1998 with entrepreneur Ted Turner’s historic one billion dollars gift to support UN causes and activities.

While the Global Crop Diversity Trust was to ensure the conservation and availability of crop diversity for food security worldwide.
]]> Fri, 20 Apr 2007 02:19:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/185721 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/184691
Vigilante men don’t bother these ones because they know what they are searching for in the early hours of the day when they should be sleeping or doing some other household chores. Moreover, their wives could probably be among those in the early morning search for water. An hour later, some of these people would be seen returning to their homes with big basins of water, sometimes muddy, on their heads while pulling buckets or kegs of water along. More pathetic are the cases of women who, in addition to the heavy water containers, have babies strapped on their backs, and little kids following them with small containers on their heads. Ironically, they always come back smiling and chatting, and calling on neighbours, who are yet to go on water search, to rejoice with them.

In Oja Oba area of Ibadan, Oyo State recently, a public tap (as is custom) that had not run for weeks suddenly had water flowing from it. The residents alerted one another and within minutes, the place was jam-packed with people, buckets and the likes. However, the water flow was rather slow; it could take an hour for a bucket to fill up. After waiting endlessly for the current to increase to no avail, the people discovered the cause of the slow flow – a pipe had burst and water that was supposed to be flowing to the tap was gushing out of the broken pipe. Though the pipe had been covered with refuse and mud, the people simply saw it as a miracle; they shifted the long queue to the broken pipe, scooping water from the dirt while some that couldn’t stand the putrid smell coming from refuse covered their noses.

The situation in other states is not any better. In fact, water crisis is a national problem in Nigeria, as the national water coverage is about 40 per cent for major cities like Lagos, Ibadan and Abuja, with a miserable five per cent in few local government areas. The most populous city in Africa, Lagos, has sufficient water resources that could meet the needs of its people, but actual water supply is very poor in most parts of the state.

But unlike Ibadan, most Lagos residents had stopped waiting for Water Corporation to bring succour to them. They have now found a solution in boreholes. Many drill boreholes for private use and, sometimes, commercial purposes. While the borehole alternative is easier in places like Lagos with high water level; the rocky terrain of Ibadan make it difficult for people to dig wells that will sustain them all year round.

Water has always been a big problem in Ibadan. During the dry season, the situation is unbearable. Many wells get dry and water stops flowing even in the few areas that normally enjoy treated water during rainy season and many people have to rely on the few wells and boreholes around them. Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, Alhaji Akorede, a resident of Isale Ijebu area of Ibadan, said everyone in the vicinity depends on the public tap, but unfortunately, the tap has not been functioning well since the dry season began. “Sometimes, the tap doesn’t run for two months and when it does, the flow is usually slow,” he said. “People have to walk long distance in search of water. Wells around here are already dried up; likewise the borehole that was constructed by UNICEF a couple of years ago has stopped functioning for over a year. We will be lucky if water tankers come around.

“Buying water is not easy for us as well. For instance, a basin of water sells for N40. The people around are poor; the average family can only afford two basins of water and you know the implication of that.” On the potability of water that flows from the tap, Mr Demola, another resident who spoke with Nigerian Tribune said: “The water is usually dirty; I guess is it because some pipes are broken and dirt filters into them. By the time the water comes out of the pipes, it would be brownish and smelly. Pointing at burst pipe, he said: “It has been broken for a long time. Despite the fact that the place is muddy and dirty, people would scoop from water from it. We can’t blame them because they don’t know when next they would come across water.

Asked how come the pipes were broken, he said: “We really don’t know, and if the pipes were broken by residents, it couldn’t have been an intentional act. Come to think of it, these pipes are really old, nobody cares about them, I don’t think officials of Water Corporation check on them. The best we can do is to secure the broken points with nylon or rubber so that the water will not get contaminated. Our fear is that if something is not done, there could be an outbreak of cholera.”

Without any doubt, the scarcity of water has disrupted the day-to-day activities of the residents. A clergy, Pastor Moses Daramola, narrated his ordeal as a pastor in a CAC church at Inalende, an area where water is next to gold. “During dry season like this, the turnout of my congregation is always poor,” he said. “ “Many of them complain that they couldn’t make church services because they had no water to bath. Sometimes after the service, I would see them still queuing up for water; some of them would be full of apologies saying, ‘Pastor, we are sorry. We’ve been here since 3 am…’ I know they are not lying because it is really difficult getting water in this part of the city.”

Business has not been as usual with businessmen that cannot do without water. Mr. Taiwo Akinola, a printer at Mokola hills said the non-availability of water has affected their businesses. “Printing needs water, and unfortunately, most printers are located in Mokola where water is very scarce,” he says. “We get water from wells, most of which are being locked up because of the drought. “Alternatively, we buy water from tankers and when they don’t come, we just have to go to areas like Eleyele, where we will be sure that water would flow.”

Areas where residents have access to water include Eleyele, Agodi, Bodija, Idi Isin, Montana and so on. These areas, however, rely on private boreholes. Areas like Agbowo, Inalende, Orita Aperin, Oke Agala and Aremo are untouched where treated water is concerned, while only some parts of Oja Agbo, Oje, Alajare, Idi Arere, Oke Ado have assess to treated water. Outskirts of the state are out of the question where water is concerned. Reacting to this situation, Mrs. Busola Adetunji, the Public Relation Officer of the Oyo State Water Corporation, said the government is aware of the water situation. “The government is not neglecting anyone,” she says. “Presently, we are working on extension areas and we would ensure that everyone gets water.”

In the meantime, the scarcity is really biting hard. It is hoped that a prompt and lasting solution will be sought before there is outbreak of cholera and other water related diseases.]]> Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:48:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/184691 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/183319
DFID: Duty press officer + 44-20 70230600

UNDP: Benjamin Craft +1-212-906-5344, benjamin.craft@undp.org

World Bank: Sergio Jellinek +1-202-294-6232, Sjellinek@worldbank.org

WASHINGTON, APRIL 14, 2007 – New commitments were today expressed by donors, international development institutions and developing countries to tackle the water and sanitation crisis that affects the world’s poor. Over a billion people in developing countries lack access to a reliable water supply and half the population of developing countries are without proper sanitation.

This global response took shape during a special event held during the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings co-hosted by the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). The meeting brought together developed and developing country government representatives along with civil society leaders and development agencies to galvanize common action on access to clean water and sanitation.

A number of donors present committed to increase and improve support to countries to expand water and sanitation services, including:

· Supporting those governments which already have plans in place and have committed to invest their own resources;

· Helping countries without water and sanitation plans to prepare them;

· Renewing commitment to the African Development Bank’s Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative. This provides a unique opportunity to harmonize, increase and improve donor support behind national plans;

· Giving special treatment to those countries that, despite their needs, do not receive sufficient attention from donors. As a first step this will include, reporting shortfalls in their funding and agreeing who will do what.

· Focusing on sanitation services and hygiene education. Both are cost-efficient and effective live savers.

In addition, participants agreed to better coordinate their actions at a global level to deliver a greater impact on the ground, and identified some practical initiatives, such as:

· A proposed annual global monitoring report prepared by UN Water and its members, to be launched with a special focus on sanitation in 2008, the year of sanitation. This will set out progress towards achieving the water and sanitation Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets;

· Agreement that there should be one annual meeting to discuss this report and agree actions on it. The Stockholm World Water Week in August 2007 was identified as the venue at which these future annual meetings will be identified.

· ‘Follow up’ to existing water action plans; and

· A common approach on sanitation.

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, said:

“Public spending on water and sanitation has declined to less than 1 percent of the GDP in most countries, and in poorest countries, private sector financing is nearly non-existent. Overseas development assistance for water has remained stable at best. What we need is for investments to be doubled, from $15 billion to $30 billion a year. Water, sanitation, and hygiene services save lives. The international community has an obligation to respond to this crisis with commitment and passion.”

Kemal Derviş, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, said:

“As we have seen in last year’s Human Development Report and other analyses, ensuring that the poor have access to sanitation and water is central to achieving all the MDGs. Reaching the Goals, including those for water and sanitation, is possible. We have the knowledge and the financial capacity needed to address the water crisis. What is missing now is sufficient political will, and concerted and agreed action. This is where our collective commitment and support is needed.”

Ugandan Minister of State for Water, Maria Mutagamba who also chairs the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) said:

“Our message to you is clear. Africa is ready to scale up and provide sanitation and water supply to all. We need donor support. Particular attention must focus on sanitation and hygiene. Over sixty percent of Africans is forced to defecate in the open. Toilets save lives and provide dignity. But more toilets will not improve health on their own. Better hygiene is what matters. And that means making hand-washing a part of normal everyday behavior in every family.”

The UK Secretary of State for International Development Hilary Benn said:

“I’m delighted that today we’ve agreed some really practical steps for tackling the global water and sanitation crisis – that takes the lives of 5,000 children a day. These include agreeing what will now be an annual report on water and sanitation, identifying an annual event when we get together to make decisions on the basis of this report, and agreement that the UN will identify one lead body on water and sanitation in each country.”

Notes to editors:

The side event took place today in Washington ahead of the World Bank/IMF Development Committee (comprised by Ministers of finance and development) meetings on Sunday.

For more information, please see the websites:

www.dfid.gov.uk and www.dfid.gov.uk/pubs/files/global-action-plan-water.pdf

www.undp.org/hdr2006

www.worldbank.org/watsan]]> Mon, 16 Apr 2007 03:33:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/183319 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/183317
Over a billion people in developing countries lack access to a reliable water supply and half the population are without proper sanitation.

This global response came at a special event held during the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meeting co-hosted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Kingdom (UK) Department for International Development (DFID.

The meeting brought together developed and developing countries' government representatives, civil society leaders and development agencies to galvanise common action on access to clean water and sanitation.

A number of donors present committed to increasing and improving support to countries to expand water and sanitation services by:

* supporting governments which already have plans in place and are ready to invest their own resources;

* helping countries without water and sanitation plans to prepare them;

* renewing commitment to the African Development Bank's Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative. This provides a unique opportunity to harmonise, increase and improve donor support behind national plans;

* giving special treatment to those countries that, despite their needs, do not receive sufficient attention from donors. As a first step, this will include, reporting shortfalls in their funding and agreeing who will do what; and

* focusing on sanitation services and hygiene education. Both are cost-efficient and effective lifesavers.

In addition, participants agreed to better co-ordinate their actions at global level to deliver greater impact and identified some practical initiatives, such as:

* a proposed annual global monitoring report prepared by UN Water and its members to be launched with a special focus on sanitation in 2008, the Year of Sanitation. This will set out progress towards achieving the water and sanitation Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets;

* agreement that there should be one annual meeting to discuss this report and agree actions on it. The Stockholm World Water Week in August 2007 was identified as the venue at which these future annual meetings will be identified;

* follow up to existing water action plans; and

* a common approach on sanitation.

Uganda's Minister of State for Water, Maria Mutagamba, who also chairs the African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW), said: "Our message to you is clear. Africa is ready to scale up and provide sanitation and water supply to all. We need donor support. Particular attention must focus on sanitation and hygiene.

"Over 60 per cent of Africans are forced to defecate in the open. Toilets save lives and provide dignity. But more toilets will not improve health on their own. Better hygiene is what matters. And that means making hand-washing a part of normal, everyday behaviour in every family."]]> Mon, 16 Apr 2007 03:25:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/183317 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/181031
The disease, which kills an African child every 30 seconds, is entirely preventable and curable, and its symptoms such as headaches and fever often send patients to pharmacies.

The proposal is currently being put together to be presented to potential donor countries such as the Netherlands and Britain. A first draft has already been submitted and it is hoped the subsidy will get under way by the end of this year or early 2008.

Millions contracting malaria on the continent develop a resistance to cheap anti-malaria drugs like chloroquine, used for over 50 years, and governments have been forced to come up with alternative ways to provide the sick with effective medication.

Currently the only effective treatment is a combination drug based on artemisinin, a plant mostly grown in China.

"Even though the price of new medicines has come down, it is still too expensive for Africa. We need to find sustainable solutions to raise new money to make medicines available and affordable to the poor," said Tanzanian Health Minister David Hameli Mwakuysa.

"These drugs are 20 to 30 times more expensive than chloroquine. The poorest of the poor have no access to these drugs," said Awa Marie Coll-Seck, executive director of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership which is spearheading the proposal.

Coll-Seck said donors are eager to participate in the subsidy that will see up to $300 million making up the price difference between the cost to buy the medicines and the production.

The high cost of artemisin-based combination therapies is exacerbated when accessed through the private sector.

Currently sold to buyers at $1, and up to $10 in the private sector, the course of treatment is beyond the reach of impoverished Africans.

"Malaria is preventable, treatable and curable and there is no excuse for an African to die of malaria," said Mwakuysa.]]> Fri, 13 Apr 2007 03:38:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/181031 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179859
“When my husband died, I stopped having any income and for some time I didn’t have enough money to buy materials to weave,” she explains. Mrs. Bakeo was one of the women who made a lasting impression in February of 2005, when then-World Bank President James Wolfensohn visited Mahaxay to take part in local consultations as part of the Nam Theun 2 (NT2) project. Mr. Wofensonh promised to find ways to help these women.

“These women were so candid, and they were eager to be able to continue to weave and contribute to their family’s income,” explains Country Director for Lao PDR Ian C. Porter. “Mr. Wolfensohn thought ‘there must be a way we can help them’ and through the Community Connections Fund, the Bank has been able to make a very positive difference in their lives.”

As a result of Mr. Wolfensonh’s visit, a year later, in February 2006, the World Bank’s Community Connections Fund—a nonprofit corporation organized for charitable purposes—granted the Mahaxay Women’s Handicraft Group a US$4,000 grant. Fifty-seven families in four villages benefit, including Mrs. Bakeo. The money is administered through a revolving fund that the women can draw money from to buy materials they need to weave such as silk, cotton and bamboo combs; interest paid goes back into the fund.
With the money, I have been able to buy materials and I sell everything I make to my neighbors and people around my village,” explains Mrs. Ni Boan, who also lives in Mahaxay. “I can make around 3 sinhs (traditional Lao skirts) per day and sell them at $2 each […] almost all the income in my family comes from my weaving.” Mrs. Ni Boan has four kids and they all attend school. A more experienced weaver, she is able to make large textiles with more complicated patterns that she sells in the nearby city of Thakek for up to $50 each.

Complementing the work taking place

The Mahaxay women are also benefiting from training on improved weaving techniques such as natural dying, as part of the Nam Theun 2 (NT2) hydroelectric power project. Due to increased water levels in rivers in areas around Mahaxay—part of what is known as the “downstream areas”—a livelihood restoration program is in place to mitigate potential project impacts and develop new alternatives of living.

“The money was not given in isolation,” explains World Bank Country Manager in Lao PDR, Patchamuthu Illangovan, “it actually builds on activities taking place on the ground, so basically we are not duplicating efforts or working in silos but looking at the wider picture.”

The training on weaving techniques led by the NT2 project developer, the Nam Theun 2 Power Company, is taking place in various villages, but the women in the four villages in Mahaxay that benefit from the World Bank grant are seeing increased returns. “The women in these villages can see the difference,” explains Ms. Keota, President of the Lao Women’s Union in Mahaxay district, responsible for administering the revolving fund. “They have more materials because they have more money than the other villagers due to the World Bank grant.”

Lack of markets, however, remains a major obstacle. “Dealing with traders and linking with new markets is still hard,” explains Ms. Keota. “A shop or something more stable would be useful. That would save me transportation costs and the time I spend trying to sell the sinhs,” adds Mrs. Ni Boan.

Market availability also came up when East Asia Vice President Jim Adams visited the Mahaxay weavers in February 2007. He assured the women the World Bank staff would work alongside the Women’s Group to asses the opportunity of using the remaining grant money to set up a shop.

“Thank you very much,” said Mrs. Bakeo. “Weaving is helping me buy rice to eat and with the extra money I can even support my grandchildren.”

www.worldbank.org]]> Wed, 11 Apr 2007 04:24:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179859 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179187
The Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India is happy to share the report of the National Study on Child Abuse titled "Study on Child Abuse: INDIA 2007", which was launched by the Hon'ble Minister of State Smt. Renuka Chowdhury this afternoon.

The aim of the study was to develop a dependable and comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of child abuse, with a view to facilitate the formulation of appropriate policies and programs meant to effectively curb and control the problem of child abuse in India. The National Study on Child Abuse is one of the largest empirical in-country studies of its kind in the world. This study also complements the UN Secretary General's Global Study on Violence against Children 2006.

The initiative of the Ministry to conduct this study was supported by UNICEF and Save the Children. A Delhi based NGO, Prayas was contracted to design and conduct the research and submit a preliminary report. After the submission of the preliminary report, the MWCD appointed a Core Committee to review the complete data, analyze the findings and produce the final report along with recommendations.

The study has provided revealing statistics on the extent and magnitude of various forms of child abuse- an area by and large unexplored. The study has also thrown up data on variations among different age groups, gender variations, state variations and variations within evidence groups. The findings will help to strengthen the understanding of all stakeholders including families, communities, civil society organizations and the state.

Major Findings:
1. Across different forms of abuse, and across different evidence groups, the younger children (5-12 years of age) have reported higher levels of abuse than the other two age groups
2. Boys, as compared to girls, are equally at risk of abuse
3. Persons in trust and authority are major abusers
4. 70% of abused child respondents never reported the matter to anyone

Physical Abuse
1. Two out of every three children are physically abused
2. Out of 69% children physically abused in 13 sample states, 54.68% were boys
3. Over 50% children in all the 13 sample states were being subjected to one or the other form of physical abuse
4. Out of those children physically abused in family situations, 88.6% were physically abused by parents
5. 65% of school going children reported facing corporal punishment i.e.two out of three children were victims of corporal punishment
6. The State of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Delhi have almost consistently reported higher rates of abuse in all forms as compared to other states
7. Most children did not report the matter to anyone
8. 50.2% children worked seven days a week

Sexual Abuse
1. 53.22% children reported having faced one or more forms of sexual abuse.
2. Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Delhi reported the highest percentage of sexual abuse among both boys and girls.
3. 21.90% child respondents reported facing severe forms of sexual abuse and 50.76% other forms of sexual abuse.
4. Out of the child respondents, 5.69% reported being sexually assaulted.
5. Children in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Delhi reported the highest incidence of sexual assault.
6. Children on street, children at work and children in institutional care reported the highest incidence of sexual assault.
7. 50% abuses are persons known to the child or in a position of trust and responsibility.
8. Most children did not report the matter to anyone

Emotional Abuse and Girl Child Neglect
1. Every second child reported facing emotional abuse
2. Equal percentage of both girls and boys reported facing emotional abuse
3. In 83% of the cases parents were the abusers
4. 48.4% of girls wished they were boys

The gravity of the situation demands that the issue of child abuse be placed on the national agenda. The Ministry on its part has taken measures such as the enabling legislation to establish the National and State Commissions for Protection of Rights of the Child, the Integrated Child Protection Scheme, the draft Offences against Children Bill etc. These are a few important steps to ensure protection of children of the country. But clearly, this will not be enough, the government, civil society and communities need to complement each other and work towards creating a protective environment for children. The momentum gained needs to enhance further discussion on the issue amongst all stakeholders and be translated into a movement to ensure protection of children of this country.

The report can be accessed from the Ministry's website http://www.wcd. nic.in/childabus e.pdf

For any further queries on the study, please feel free to contact me through email loveleenkacker@ gmail.com or phone 91-11-23387683.

Thanks

Dr. Loveleen Kacker
Joint Secretary (Child Welfare)
Ministry of Women and Child Development
Government of India
Shastri Bhawan
New Delhi-110001 INDIA


]]> Tue, 10 Apr 2007 04:41:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179187 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179167
The call came as Sudanese, AU and UN officials met in Addis Ababa yesterday to discuss the exact nature of UN support for the 7,000-strong African contingent currently deployed in Darfur.

Annan last year floated a plan for the UN to prop up the embattled African Union (AU) peacekeeping force in Darfur, but Khartoum has stalled, arguing that it would amount to the deployment of Western troops on its soil.

Beijing's rare prod to its top African ally came as the plan was being discussed in Addis Ababa and two days ahead of a visit to Sudan and neighbouring countries by United States (U.S.) Deputy Secretary of State, John Negroponte.

"China appreciates Sudan's efforts in restoring peace in Darfur, but is expecting more flexibility on the Annan plan," Chinese envoy Zhai Jun told reporters in Khartoum.

The international community has urged China to start using its economic leverage to put pressure on Khartoum over Darfur, where four years of U.S.-backed diplomacy have failed to stem the bloodshed.

The UN said about 200,000 people have been killed and more than two million displaced in Darfur since the fighting erupted in February 2003. Some sources say the death toll is much higher.

China is the leading foreign investor in Sudan, absorbs almost two thirds of its oil output and has repeatedly shielded Khartoum from UN sanctions.

Implementation of the Annan plan has already started but differences have emerged over the third and final phase, which is supposed to lead to a joint - or "hybrid" - peacekeeping force grouping AU and UN troops.

"We hope our Sudanese friends will accept this plan. The name of the force, joint or hybrid, is not important," said Zhai.

Negroponte is expected to kick off a week-long mission to Sudan and its neighbours tomorrow in a bid to clinch Khartoum's support for a more robust peacekeeping force in Darfur.

"Certainly he's going to encourage the Sudanese government to give the green light to the AU-UN hybrid package, which is fundamental to providing security and greater stability in Darfur," State Department spokesman, Sean McCormack, said.

As part of his tour, Negroponte will also visit Chad, Libya and Mauritania.

Meanwhile, Sudan has said it may not ease its opposition to the deployment of UN troops in Darfur this week when Negroponte visits, but there are signs it may be flexible on boosting African troops in the troubled region.

South African President Thabo Mbeki, who is known for his diplomatic skills and is promoting his country as a mediator in African affairs, will also arrive in Sudan today and is expected to discuss the Darfur issue.

At the heart of the debate is the outcome of a November meeting in Addis Ababa. The

UN says Khartoum agreed then to a three-phase plan that would end with a hybrid AU-U.N. operation in Darfur.

Sudan said it only agreed to the first two phases of UN logistical and financial support.

After a meeting with Sudanese leader al-Bashir at the weekend, AU Chairman Alpha Oumar Konare backed Khartoum, saying that there had been a clear agreement in Addis Ababa that there would be a hybrid force consisting of an African force under AU command with logistical, financial and administrative assistance from the UN.

But he said the size of the African force had yet to be determined. The AU and United Nations were holding discussions on the issue on Monday in a technical meeting in Addis Ababa.

Bashir, who said UN troops would amount to foreign occupation, has made a vague reference to "reviewing" issues related to Darfur.

U.S. officials have said they were close to imposing new measures against Sudan but an announcement appears to have been put on hold after UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he wanted more time to convince Bashir to accept a hybrid force.

The measures contemplated include adding more firms to a U.S. sanctions list as well as further limits on Sudanese firms doing business in dollars and slapping travel and banking restrictions on at least three more Sudanese individuals.

Washington also aims to pressure Bashir militarily by helping rebuild the forces of the Sudan People's Liberation Army which was at war with the north until a 2005 peace deal.

But Sudan, which has faced little pressure from the AU and enjoys growing ties with China, has remained defiant.

Sudan accused European countries on Saturday of withholding support for AU troops in Darfur to try to force the need for UN military intervention.

Efforts are currently under way to revive a peace deal signed between a rebel group and the government almost a year ago.

The Abuja agreement was endorsed by only one of three negotiating rebel factions. Violence has since continued unabated, deepening what is considered the world's worst unfolding humanitarian crisis.

The AU earlier this month suffered its deadliest attack since it was deployed in 2004 when five soldiers were shot dead by gunmen.

During his trip to Sudan, Zhai met al-Bashir and visited several parts of Darfur.

"The situation seems quite stable in the areas I visited but there are too many displaced people, which is a human tragedy," the Chinese official said.]]> Tue, 10 Apr 2007 04:02:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/179167 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/177949
People living with HIV should be involved in developing funding priorities and in the choice, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of HIV programmes from their inception, it said. The idea that personal experiences should shape the HIV/Aids response was first expressed by people living with HIV in Denver, US, in 1983. Gipa wants to demystify false assumptions that those living without HIV are "service providers" and as those living with HIV are "service receivers". "Positive people bring the unique perspective of their experience to the range of organisations and agencies working in Aids," says Dr Keven Moody, International Coordinator for the Global Network of People Living with HIV/Aids.

Over 40 million people are living with HIV/Aids in the world, about 60 per cent of them in sub-Saharan Africa. Kenya has about 1.5 million people infected with HIV/Aids, with almost a similar number of children orphaned by the epidemic. The Kenya Network of Women with Aids (Kenwa) supports over 6,000 people - women with HIV/Aids and their children.

]]> Sat, 07 Apr 2007 07:59:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/177949 5.5333333 7.4833333 5.5333333 7.4833333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/177153


The day March 8 was set aside I 1977 by the United Nations’ General Assembly through a resolution, proclaiming it as the UN Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace. The purpose of this day is to recognize the fact that securing peace and social progress and the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms require the active participation, equality and development of women to the strengthening of international peace and security. For the women of the world, the symbolism of International Women’s Day has a wider meaning as it is seen as an occasion to review how far women have come in their struggle for equality, peace and development. It is also an opportunity to unite, network and mobilize for meaningful change.



Through the years, the idea behind the observance of this day has ran on the inevitable wheels of time and now presently finds its true expression in the September 2000 Millennium Declaration by world leaders. This declaration distils the key goals and targets agreed at major international conferences and world summits in the 80s/90s and drew up a set of eight Millennium Development Goals with associated targets and indicators that by the year 2015, all 191 UN Member States must meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs which, set a powerful agenda for a global partnership to fight poverty and offered a shared vision of a better world by the year 2015 aim at cutting extreme poverty by half, ensure every child has the chance to go to school and live a long and healthy life, and bring discrimination against women to an end. The risks of dying as a result of childbirth are to be dramatically reduced, deadly diseases brought under control, the environment is better managed and the benefits of progress more equally shared by all nations of the world. Together, the aspirations set out in the MDGs and their associated targets and indicators represent a powerful framework for action.



With the 2015 target year almost half gone, a penetrative gaze into the plight of the Nigerian woman and her counterparts in other parts of the world today will unearth an embarrassing degree of unfulfilled hopes and programmed failures garnished with a tinge of patriarchal laxity and ideological hypocrisy on the part of the women themselves. According to UN statistics, of the 1,3 billion people living in poverty around the world, 70% are women, women do about 66% of the world’s work in return for less than 5% of its income, in the least developed countries, nearly twice as many women over age 11 are illiterate compared to men, two –thirds of children denied primary education are girls and 75% of the world’s 876 million illiterate adults are women, women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours, produce half of the world’s food and yet earn only 10% of the world’s income and own less than 1% of the world’s property.



In Nigeria, with an exceeding number of civil society organisations on gender issues and an intimidating number of top female political appointees ranging from Supreme Court Judge, Ministers, Deputy Governors, Directors-General, and Permanent Secretaries to Ambassadors, poverty still has a woman’s face. Nigerian women are still disproportionately suffer the burden of poverty, reeling heavily under the pangs of hunger with majority of them living on less than one dollar per day! As primary agents of child welfare, they are victims of widespread and persistent discrimination in all areas of life, and put their lives at risk every time they become pregnant. They are still increasingly susceptible to HIV/AIDS and other killer diseases. As unschooled adults, they have less to say socially and politically and to be able to support themselves.



The impact of the activities of our ubiquitous feminine activists and women lib organisations is seemingly feeble as Nigerian women’s rights and access to land, credit and education are still limited not only due to legal discrimination, but because more subtle barriers such as their workload, mobility and low bargaining position in the household and community prevent them from taking advantage of their legal rights. These problems affect their children and households without a male head are at special risk of impoverishment with no capacity to immunize their children or know how to help them survive.



The preponderance of feminist CSOs and Activists across the country has neither translated into improved living conditions for the rural women nor has it addressed firmly, the utter neglect and deplorable plight of the Nigerian woman in he village. Instead of concentrating energies on addressing the imbalances of the typical Nigerian woman, these elite organisations dwell more on self-serving actions aimed at launching them to national prominence, thereby cornering juicy positions for themselves and their cronies, in the name of activating the 30% Beijing affirmative action, all at the expense of the rural Nigerian woman. For them, the MDG 3 of promoting gender equality and empower women can only be achieved through the reservation of political positions for elite women, who will in turn use same to oppress the rural woman at will.



Buoyed by the ascendance of the likes of Ellen Johnson Sir-leaf, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Angela Merkel, Dr. Akunyili, Hillary Clinton, and Oby Ezekwesili in their chosen fields of endeavour, they hasten to forget that extreme poverty, hunger, high child mortality rate and poor maternal health can only be combated through a combination of advocacy, technical assistance, funding and working directly with community-based organisations and families themselves to ensure that households have access to education, clean, secure supply of water and safe and convenient sanitary and health facilities. These actions directly support MDG 7 – improving access for all those who desperately need these basic facilities.



On their own part, Nigerian men should also note that while most of the MDGS face a deadline of 2015, the gender parity target was set to be achieved a full ten years earlier, an acknowledgement that equal access to education is the foundation for all other development goals. Until equal numbers of girls and boys are in school, it will be impossible to build the knowledge necessary to eradicate poverty and hunger, combat disease and ensure environmental sustainability. There is therefore no basis for competition or subjugation or one gender by the other as we march towards 2015. It is time to put an end to gender inequality and all its concomitant effects on our country’s future.



The survival of liberty and prosperity in our country increasingly depends on the liberty of our women and the best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of the frontiers of liberty for our women. This can be validated in the story of the American automobile guru, Henry Ford who died and went to heaven. Upon his arrival, he immediately went to God and asked him “when you invented woman, what were you thinking? God asked, “what do you mean?” “well” he says, “you have some major designs flaws in your invention, there is too much front-end protrusion, it chatters away too much at high speeds, maintenance is extremely high, it constantly needs repainting and refurbishing, it is out of commission at least 5 or 6 of every 28 days, the rear-end wobbles too much, intake is placed too close to the exhaust, the headlights are usually small, fuel consumption is outrageous, just to mention a few.” “Hmm” replies God, “hold on a minute”, God goes over to his celestial supercomputer, types in a few keystrokes and waits for the results. In no time, the computer prints out a report and God read it. He then turned to Ford and said, “It may be that my invention is flawed, but according to these statistics, more men are riding my invention than yours.” God is of course quite right. After all, they are more women than cars in the world.

Happy women’s day!

]]> Thu, 05 Apr 2007 12:00:00 EDT http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/177153 9.0833333 7.5333333 9.0833333 7.5333333 http://www.tigblog.org/group/mdg/post/177135 The roles of African governments
Abstract:
That the majority of Africans are materially poor is hardly disputable, nor very surprising. After all the entire continent has been dealt several unfavourable blows: A dehumanising and devastating global slave trade, colonialism, and multiple European backed commercial ventures with the view of exploiting the riches and wealth of the continent provided little institutional, infrastructural and human capital when African countries began to achieve independence during the past century1.
In the more recent past, the Cold war and post cold war politics, protracted conflicts, structural adjustment programmes and HIV/Aids pandemic have left the continent poorer than before. Unlike East Asia, which has enjoyed a dramatic reduction in the absolute number of people living in poverty over the last 15 years, sub Saharan Africa has seen dramatic increases in both the total number of poor people and the fraction of its population that is poor.2
This sad reality has not gone unnoticed. Various initiatives have been adopted even though most of them are tantamount to rhetoric. From Tony Blair’s Africa commission, the G7 finance ministers’ debt relief, the live 8 concerts, the make poverty history campaign and the G8 Gleneagles promises to the United Nations 2005 summit, Africa’s gains seem to be reduced to some kind of public relations exercise indicating that the world has taken stock of the plight of the continent. But the problems of the continent persist- debt and inequitable trade are at the heart of Africa’s problems and sometimes powerful elites within Africa collaborate with exploiters in the North at the detriment of their own nations.
1 NDEDI, A, A BUNWAREE, S. (Forthcoming) NEPAD and MDGs: Reclaiming the 21st Century.
2 World Bank Report 2006
During the last half century, the economic performance of the developing world has been far from uniform. Developing countries were polarised into those that made great progress in catching up and those that were mired in economic stagnation. Many African countries belong to the second group. The question, which arises, is, what could be done in order to help these countries to move from the stagnation to sustainable growth and development?
During the last five decades, many attempts were explored and undertaken without any remarkable results. In 2000, 189 states endorsed the Millennium Development Goals, covering an array of targets with aspirations of reaching these goals by 2015. One year after, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, a vision and strategic framework for Africa’s renewal was launched as a driver for African countries to move from long severe poverty, and consequently in reaching the MDGs.
In this paper, we would like to share how policies contained within the NEPAD programme are key elements in achieving the MDGs. The first part of the paper analyses the whole vision behind the NEPAD programme, with the emphasis on the role that must play various African governments. The second part discusses the Millennium Development Goals and their targets. The third part develops a model for an effective and efficient implementation of these two initiatives, and how they could lead to a sustainable development within the African continent. The last section focuses on various roles African governments must play in order to achieve the various targets developed within the Millennium Declaration.
Key elements: NEPAD, capital market, economic integration, MDGs.
INTRODUCTION
Since 1999, the World Bank has promoted cutting poverty as the ultimate goal of development and required all developing countries, to draft a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) as its principal tool to reach the above. In September 2000, during the United Nations Millennium Summit, the Millennium Development Goals, a set of numerical social goals to be achieved by 2015, were launched on this regard. In the
African context, a programme for social economic development was initiated the following year. The next section analyses this concept by paving the way for options necessary for a sustainable development for the African continent.
THE NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT (NEPAD): VISION AND OBJECTIVES.
Why NEPAD?
In the late 1980s, no one could deny that development efforts in almost all the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa had been a failure. Development plans had been prepared in most of these countries during the 1960s and 1970s. Some of them had really been little more than wishful thinking. Others had been implemented at least partially, resulting in some major achievements, but had proven powerless to relieve the crisis caused in particular by the continuing decline in the African export commodities. (Sall, 2000)
The structural adjustment programme designed to restore the financial equilibrium disturbed by the crisis, and to create the conditions for sustainable growth, had achieved only a very small part of their objectives. Though these programmes helped to reduce these imbalances, they clearly did not produce the expected sustained growth. (African Futures, 2002)
The many attempts to provide development in various sub-regions of Africa or in Africa as a whole, in particular the 1980 Lagos Action Plan for the Economic Development of Africa, in which many African had placed great hopes, had also clearly failed to produce the expected results. In response to this critical situation, the Government of the Netherlands organised a conference on Africa, held in Maastricht in 1990 and attended by African governments and aid agencies. The participants in this conference agreed that, contrary to what seemed to have been not achieved through economic measures alone. Though sound economic policies were definitively necessary, they have to be accompanied by changes in behaviour and in social, cultural and political structures. The conference participants also agreed that these changes would not occur without a vision of the future that was broadly shared by the peoples concerned. Here came the essence of
various programmes leading to the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). What is really the NEPAD programme?
NEPAD: Definition
The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) is a vision and strategic framework for Africa’s renewal. The NEPAD strategic framework document arises from a mandate given to the five initiating Heads of State (Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa) and by the Organisation of the African Union (OAU) to develop an integrated socio-economic development framework for Africa. The plans prepared focused on challenges that are common to most African countries; looking at projects that were critical to sub-regional and continental economic integration, policy reforms and increased investment in priority sectors and indicative flagship projects. Above all they highlighted the need for country and regional ownership and leadership (NEPAD, 2004). What is the need for the NEPAD programme?
NEPAD is designed to address the current development challenges facing the African continent. Issues such as escalating poverty levels, underdevelopment and the continued marginalisation of Africa needed a new radical intervention, spearheaded by African leaders, to develop a New Vision that would guarantee Africa’s renewal.
NEPAD primary objectives
According to NEPAD (2004), the primary objectives of NEPAD are amongst other:
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The article can be viewed online at: http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2007/1000520/index.html

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