Spending an entire day flooding over northern regions of the island, the harshest storm since 1932 destroyed over 4,000 homes, obliterated acres of cane sugar, engulfed Havana and ravaged Cuba as well as several other Caribbean islands.
And the entire world took notice — Russian, Japanese, Bolivian and Colombian governments all sent vessels of humanitarian aid to Cuba; in fact, the United States seemed to be the only direct assistance absent. Over the years, humanitarian aid to Cuba has been mixed with a rather substantial amount of political hesitations.
For instance, the United States Agency for International Development offers humanitarian aid — such as food, vitamins, medicines and toiletries — to Cuba in regard to their families, but also to political prisoners and politically ostracized individuals.
President of Engage Cuba, James Williams, stated that “politics playing the dominant role in humanitarian relief unfortunately has been with us far too long.”
A possibility considered by members of Congress was to provide Cuba with tools and supplies to repair public infrastructure like schools, hospitals, roads, and bridges, aside from direct humanitarian aid.
“If the U.S. were to do something magnanimous like this, it would go a long way to further U.S. interests in Cuba and generally support a group of people who are in dire need of help,” said Williams.
However, this plan would also require efforts from Congress to briefly, and temporarily, remove parts of the economic ban on Cuba to allow delivery of construction material to state entities that own the roads and other infrastructure. But as of now, the ban permits such deliveries only to private parties.
While America found loopholes to support the island’s direst needs, the Russian Emergencies Ministry sent humanitarian aid to Cuba that consisted of over 1,000 tons of cargo, including construction materials and medicines.
Three aircrafts from Japan, Bolivia and Colombia delivered humanitarian aid to Cuba in the form of an eight-ton load of cargo composed of rice, water, milk, sheets and hygienic items. Along with these nations, the governments of Argentina, Canada, Costa Rica, China, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Mexico, Nicaragua, Uruguay, Venezuela and Vietnam also articulated their unity with Cuba and readiness to support their salvage.
– Jalil Perry
Photo: Flickr
The Importance of Pediatric Surgery in the Developing World
Healthcare programs often dismiss the importance of pediatric surgery in the developing world. Access to surgeons is treated as a superfluous medical resource rather than a necessity and therefore becomes extremely limited. The only pediatric surgeons in Kenya are located in Nairobi, making them difficult for most Kenyans to visit. In actuality, the demand for surgery among children in developing nations is strikingly high and the shortage of surgical care has extremely detrimental consequences.
In sub-Saharan health clinics, up to 11 percent of all child patients are in need of surgery. Of these children requiring surgery, nearly 90 percent are admitted with issues easily corrected by surgery such as congenital anomalies and injuries. Unfortunately, many children cannot obtain the surgical care they need. Even in urban communities with more convenient access to healthcare, approximately 217 out of 100,000 people die due to injuries, which could be corrected via surgery. By the age of 15, there is an 85 percent chance that children in Sub-Saharan Africa will experience a condition requiring surgery; without surgical attention, children can develop lifelong disabilities.
In impoverished countries that experience war and conflict, the chance of childhood injury is even higher. Children are often injured by stray bullets and explosives, and are even sometimes coerced into fighting. The Central African Republic experienced many child casualties during its most recent conflict (2012-2014), which put significant strain on its subpar healthcare system.
Even prior to the conflict, the Central African Republic had the sixth highest mortality rate of children under the age of five. Bangui Pediatric Hospital was overwhelmed by the influx of child patients during the war, but the U.N. supplied surgical kits and other medical supplies to temporarily rectify the void of surgical care.
Many other aid organizations are working to make pediatric surgical care more accessible in the developing world. The Global Pediatric Surgery Network has volunteer surgeons at work in various parts of the world, including Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, India, Pakistan, Cambodia and Vietnam. The Pacific Association of Pediatric Surgeons teaches surgical skills to general practitioners in impoverished countries in order to create more permanent solutions to the inadequacy of pediatric surgery in the developing world.
The most common issues faced by volunteer pediatric surgeons in developing countries are financial constraints, inadequate healthcare facilities, insufficient infrastructure and geographically isolated populations. Fixing these problems is tantamount to improving surgical care for children in the developing world. Correcting surgical conditions in childhood increases a person’s quality of life, which strongly illustrates how surgery is such a necessary component of a complete healthcare system.
– Mary Efird
Photo: Flickr
Infrastructure in Armenia
During ancient times, Armenia was located at the historic crossroads of Asia and Europe along The Great Silk Road, making it an important center of commerce and trade. Today, Armenia has closed borders with two of its neighboring states, Turkey and Azerbaijan, and no port access, meaning that the transportation of imports and exports is limited to ground transportation. With restricted access to the region and reliance on roads built in the Soviet Era, poor transportation infrastructure in Armenia has hurt the country’s overall economic growth and resulted in the economic isolation of rural areas.
Both of these factors have contributed to increased poverty levels in Armenia. The overall quality and reliability of a country’s infrastructure is a critical factor for businesses in all sectors. Thus, improving infrastructure in Armenia is one of the best ways to fuel its economic growth and thereby reduce poverty.
Statistics have illustrated Armenia’s need to improve infrastructure for some time. In 2014, Armenia ranked 107 in the world for infrastructure and 92 overall in the World Bank LPI Index. The Logistics Performance Index is a measure of each country’s performance across indicators including the quality of trade and transport-related infrastructure, the timeliness of shipments in reaching destination within the scheduled or expected delivery time, as well as competence and quality of logistics services.
Recognizing the significant need for improved infrastructure in Armenia, The World Bank committed to loaning the Armenian government the equivalent of $45 million US dollars in 2013 to fund the Lifeline Road Network Improvement Project for Armenia. This initiative seeks to improve infrastructure in Armenia in relation to its most critical sector, roads and ground transportation, by upgrading select lifeline roads that will allow rural areas to better access to markets and services.
Despite the Lifeline Road Network Improvement Project having been implemented for two years, Armenia’s overall LPI rank fell to 141 in 2016, with its infrastructure indicator falling to the position of 121. This has prompted an expansion of the initiative, complete with additional financing and the added goal of allocating funds to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Transport and Communication to manage the lifeline road network in the future. The redoubled efforts surrounding road improvement will continue through 2019, at which time the government is hoping to statistical evidence of significant improvement of transportation-related infrastructure.
The Armenian government hopes that improved infrastructure will mean fewer bumps in the road as the country seeks economic security, and The World Bank’s assistance has hopefully put them on the road to success.
– Savannah Bequeaith
Photo: Flickr
Machismo Culture and Women’s Empowerment in Nicaragua
Nicaragua is a Central American country situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It has gained popularity with tourists for its coastline and variety of landscapes but, its superficial beauty masks a larger problem with women’s equality — the machismo culture. Breaking a long-standing philosophy, such as a machismo culture, has been one of the largest barriers to women’s empowerment in Nicaragua.
Machismo Culture
In Nicaragua, machismo or “macho” is often coupled with a sexist connotation that describes “machistas” as men who objectify women. To overcome the strict gender roles established by a macho society, organizations like The Masculinity Network for Gender Equality (REDMAS), have established gender equality programs in Nicaragua to begin transforming men’s “machista” behaviors. The impact of Machismo culture takes on many forms, and changing machismo behaviors is just the beginning of supporting women’s empowerment in Nicaragua.
During a forum supported by the U.N. in Nicaragua, a member of the FEM (Fundación Entre Mujeres) noted, “money has been managed by men, the gender-based division of labor is absolutely an economic relationship because work for (women) doesn’t have the (monetary) value as it has for men.”
In some Nicaraguan households, women are expected to deposit their earnings to the family patriarch and the women make much less than men in similar positions. In these households, the machismo attitude spreads to affect economic equality for women and obstruct their financial freedom.
The Road to Female Empowerment
In 2012, to counter the machismo culture and enhance women’s empowerment, the Nicaraguan government passed a legislation that requires “50 percent of political party candidates to be women.” This legislation is a large reason Nicaragua is ranked 4th in the World Economic Forum’s political empowerment gender gap.
An article naming Nicaragua “The World’s Unlikely Champion of Gender Equality” states, women are also gaining greater access to higher paying jobs, “making up more than 40 percent of lawmakers, senior officials and managers.”
In consideration of women’s political empowerment, economic opportunity, educational attainment and health and survival, the World Economic Forum has appointed Nicaragua the 10th highest nation in the global gender gap index. The nation has made immense strides to close the gender gap and combat a machismo culture. The World Economic Forum reports that “since 2006, Nicaragua has closed approximately 19 percent of its overall gender gap—making it one of the fastest-improving countries in the world.”
Thankfully, violence against women in Nicaragua has decreased, and more women are finding higher-paying jobs. Nicaragua is also ranked higher than any other Central American country on the global gender index. Efforts to counter machismo behavior have brought more than 25,000 Nicaraguans to various gender equality programs.
Although the Machismo culture is still present, the future for women’s empowerment in Nicaragua is bright.
– Eliza Gresh
Photo: Flickr
A Glimpse Into the Improvement of Women’s Empowerment in Malawi
Out of 15 million people living in Malawi, 52 percent are women, and many of these women have suffered from illiteracy and certain cultural practices for many years. However, the Malawi government in partnership with UNFPA created the Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE) project in 2012, aimed at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in Malawi, to combat such difficulties.
The project has helped the most vulnerable groups in Malawi from survivors of gender-based violence, to people living with HIV and AIDS, and young girls lacking education because of gender or poverty-related reasons.
Gender-Based Violence (GBV) has in fact been a serious issue faced by women in Malawi, as USAID declared the country to be one of 35 GBV-priority countries in 2014. To address this serious development challenge, the GEWE project established one-stop centers in all 13 districts of Malawi, which offer comprehensive services to GDB survivors. Law enforcers received a special training in gender-related laws and rights, in order to effectively provide services to victims of GDB.
The Government of Malawi, with the help of GEWE, put in place sector working groups, including one sector working group on gender, children, youth and sports. Those groups were led by community individuals and aimed to monitor violations of women’s rights and promote gender equality.
Women’s empowerment in Malawi also improved with the implementation of village savings and loan (VSL) clubs through the GEWE Programme. These innovative clubs economically empowered women by giving them the opportunity to access loans and start their small businesses.
USAID also participated in strengthening women’s empowerment in Malawi by giving women more political power. In fact, USAID’s electoral and decentralization activity increased participation rates of women during electoral and political processes. This was achieved by creating civic and voter education campaigns, ensuring that media firms provide a fair and accurate coverage of elections, and train for both female and male moderators to conduct focus group opinion studies.
– Sarah Soutoul
Photo: Flickr
Exploring Five Important Development Projects in Cameroon
Cameroon, or “miniature Africa” is filled with immense diversity in anthropology, history, and climate geography. Captivating in its beauty, Cameroon is striking for its undiscovered natural resources and government’s stability. Nevertheless, there are few development projects that have been “left dormant while awaiting investments in the different sectors of agro-industry, road, port and airport infrastructure, energy, real estate and urban planning, in the mining industries and new technologies.”
The April 2013 Act granted various tax and customs exemptions over a five to ten-year period. Although this act is an incentive for the private sector, the installation phases of new investors were facilitated and their production safeguarded.
With a goal to boost the economic growth rate and tap into a potential 300 million consumer market here are five development projects in Cameroon that aim to be completed by 2035.
These five development projects in Cameroon not only promote the welfare of the locals, but also create incentives for international interest. The year 2035 is a big one for Cameroon, and hopefully, funding will receive a big push so these projects can both thrive but maintain longevity.
– Tara Jackson
Photo: Flickr
Three Predominant Areas of Growth For Infrastructure in Malaysia
Malaysia has made vast improvements over recent decades in its economic development. The emphasis the Malaysian government places on developing and upgrading its infrastructure has led to Malaysia becoming one of the most well-developed nations in Asia among newly industrialized countries. The government’s 11th Malaysia Plan, published in 2015, highlighted a development goal of transforming Malaysia into a fully developed nation by 2020.
The economical influx has clearly and drastically improved and strengthened infrastructure in Malaysia as there’s been steady improvement in poverty rates, a 55.3 percent reduction in those living below the poverty line as of 2014, and an increase in the number of the population working and employed.
Some of the major projects boosting infrastructure in Malaysia include:
1. Highways
As a link to major centers like seaports and airports, improving Malaysian highway systems means more efficient transportation of goods, which is vital to the country’s economy. The Asean Rail Express (ARX) has been initiated to become the Trans-Asia Rail Link that will connect Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar, and end in Kunming, China.
The Pan Borneo highway is set to be completed by 2023, which will make driving 2,000 kilometers from Kuching to Kota Kinabalu, a populated and congested area, much easier for both the population and the transportation of goods.
2. Seaports
More than 90 percent of Malaysia’s trade is by sea. With the expansion of their economy and trade, seaports have been a key focus of improving infrastructure in Malaysia. Now, two of the seven international ports have been ranked among the top 20 container ports in the world. Port Klang is now the national load and transshipment center, having grown 5.5 percent in the number of goods passing through the port from 2016 to 2017.
3. Telecommunication
With its widespread application of modern technologies such as fiber optics, wireless transmission, digitalization and satellite services, Malaysia has built one of the more advanced telecom networks in the developing world. The mobile segment continues to dominate the market, while the fixed line market is in decline.
There has been progress on expanding mobile infrastructure in Malaysia to rural areas as well. Telephone subscribers in Malaysia can choose from five network service providers for a full range of local, domestic and international services under the Equal Access Regime. There are also six internet service providers and five telcos’s supporting a full range of domestic and international services.
With a national objective to see Malaysia ranked as a developed country by the year 2020, these developments in telecommunication, seaports, and highways show great progress for the nation and its people.
– Kailey Brennan
Photo: Flickr
Infrastructure in Egypt: A Three-Line Metro System to Promote Tourism
One of the main ongoing projects in regard to infrastructure in Egypt is the building of a three-line metro system. The system’s goal is to encourage more tourists to visit the region, according to Hesham Arafat, the country’s Minister of Transport.
“These three lines are proposed for promoting tourist activity that is expected to reach more than 30 million tourists per year by 2025,” Minister Arafat said.
Speaking at Middle East Rail conference earlier at the top of this year, Minister Arafat declared that the country intends to invest in 14.4 billion euros for the brand new metro system. The ministry is also searching for an ally to control an 8,725-square-meter shopping mall that links a railway station at Alexandria port.
Costing a total of 13 billion euros, the three express rail lines will travel from Luxor to Hurghada, Alexandria to Cairo, and Luxor to Cairo.
The Three Lines
Taking approximately five years to develop a 700-kilometers line, the Cairo to Luxor line was mentioned to be one of the most significant of the three lines and is priced at 6 billion euros.
During the conference, Minister Arafat disclosed research that proved how investors would take home an internal rate of return of about 9 percent on the development as the metro system is anticipated to transport over 3 million passengers each year.
The Alexandria to Cairo line is predicted to cost 3 billion euros and will be 210 kilometers long. Over it’s lifetime, the line is projected to extend returns of 11 percent with the development is predicted to take three years from start to be finish.
Taking four years to develop, the Luxor to Hurghada line totals at 4 billion euros and will be 300 kilometers long. According to Minister Arafat, the line will transport an approximated 1.5 million passengers and render returns of 10 percent.
Other Infrastructure Developments
Other infrastructure developments in Egypt seeking funding include an 82 million euro passenger and freight line from Mansoura to Damietta, an 85 million euro freight line connecting Egypt’s largest phosphate mine site at Abu Tartur to Safaga harbor, a 275 million euro streetcar connecting smaller cities in New Cairo to the underground network, and a 934 million euro, 34 kilometer underground line in Cairo from Imbaba to the airport.
The minister made a point to note that Egypt is a “pro-business” nation that hosts a strongly funded government, and a refreshed investment law that permits total foreign possession of companies and security from seizing of earnings or mandatory pricing. With advantageous characteristics such as these, the hope for the continued improvement of infrastructure in Egypt is extremely promising.
– Jalil Perry
Photo: Flickr
Triumphant Moments Regarding Humanitarian Aid to Cuba
Spending an entire day flooding over northern regions of the island, the harshest storm since 1932 destroyed over 4,000 homes, obliterated acres of cane sugar, engulfed Havana and ravaged Cuba as well as several other Caribbean islands.
And the entire world took notice — Russian, Japanese, Bolivian and Colombian governments all sent vessels of humanitarian aid to Cuba; in fact, the United States seemed to be the only direct assistance absent. Over the years, humanitarian aid to Cuba has been mixed with a rather substantial amount of political hesitations.
For instance, the United States Agency for International Development offers humanitarian aid — such as food, vitamins, medicines and toiletries — to Cuba in regard to their families, but also to political prisoners and politically ostracized individuals.
President of Engage Cuba, James Williams, stated that “politics playing the dominant role in humanitarian relief unfortunately has been with us far too long.”
A possibility considered by members of Congress was to provide Cuba with tools and supplies to repair public infrastructure like schools, hospitals, roads, and bridges, aside from direct humanitarian aid.
“If the U.S. were to do something magnanimous like this, it would go a long way to further U.S. interests in Cuba and generally support a group of people who are in dire need of help,” said Williams.
However, this plan would also require efforts from Congress to briefly, and temporarily, remove parts of the economic ban on Cuba to allow delivery of construction material to state entities that own the roads and other infrastructure. But as of now, the ban permits such deliveries only to private parties.
While America found loopholes to support the island’s direst needs, the Russian Emergencies Ministry sent humanitarian aid to Cuba that consisted of over 1,000 tons of cargo, including construction materials and medicines.
Three aircrafts from Japan, Bolivia and Colombia delivered humanitarian aid to Cuba in the form of an eight-ton load of cargo composed of rice, water, milk, sheets and hygienic items. Along with these nations, the governments of Argentina, Canada, Costa Rica, China, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Mexico, Nicaragua, Uruguay, Venezuela and Vietnam also articulated their unity with Cuba and readiness to support their salvage.
– Jalil Perry
Photo: Flickr
Rebuilding Infrastructure in Liberia
Liberia’s civil war killed more than 270,000 people and displaced another 500,000. The war was also extremely damaging to infrastructure in Liberia. Many roads were completely destroyed during the war. Miles and miles of roads were ruined, and for 15 years, much of the country had no piped water or electricity. The devastation the conflict inflicted on Liberia’s agricultural sector also caused the supporting infrastructure to crumble. Schools and other municipal services were wiped out in many areas.
The destruction of infrastructure in Liberia had devastating effects on the economy and the country’s standard of living. The GDP fell by 85 percent from 1980 to 2003. 75 percent of Liberians live on less than $1 a day.
As thorough as the devastation of its civil war was, Liberia has made major strides since the mid-2000s. The Accra Peace Accords that ended the war and the election of a new government in 2005 brought about major change.
During this time, investors have helped Liberia rebuild a portion of its roads. The capital, Monrovia, has access to electricity and water again. Most impressively, the government did away with school fees, raising enrollment in the school system by 50 percent.
The current government and the African Development Bank recognize that rehabilitating infrastructure in Liberia is important to growing the economy and raising people out of poverty. To this end, it has developed the Agenda for Transformation, focusing on infrastructure.
The plan encourages Liberia to participate in major regional infrastructure projects promoted by the Economic Community of West African States. The government hopes to have its main roads refurbished by 2030. Ultimately, the government sees a need for increased development of rail infrastructure and other modes of transportation to facilitate growth and link the country to its neighbors. Additionally, there are still many parts of the country without power or water.
Infrastructure in Liberia will need continued rebuilding and expansion, but given the damage that almost 15 years of war wrought, it is amazing how far the country has come.
– Andrew Revord
Photo: Flickr
Women’s Empowerment in Albania Moving Forward
Domestic violence has been the most pressing issue limiting women’s empowerment in Albania, affecting women of all generations across the country. The southeastern European nation is making progress in its efforts to bring an end to domestic violence, establishing a National Center for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of the Victims of Domestic Abuse in the capital, Tirana. The center was opened by the Albanian government in cooperation with the U.N. Development Project (UNDP) and other aid organizations.
“This shelter is part of the state social service structures,” said the center’s director, Fatbardha Hoxhalli, to the UNDP. “It constitutes an important service in the overall mechanism for the coordination of work and referral of domestic violence cases set up at several municipalities throughout the country.”
Despite the progress in combating domestic abuse, the lack of developed childcare services is another obstacle to women’s empowerment in Albania. In a study published in 2013, UNICEF’s country office in Albania recommended further involvement of Albanian men in childcare and family networks to combat the persistence of Albania’s heavily patriarchal society. Further investment in childcare and early child development services would significantly contribute to women’s empowerment in Albania.
In Tirana, Albania’s bustling capital home to almost half a million people, businesses owned and run by women are thriving. Women run travel agencies, influential online newspapers and countless other enterprises, receiving support from a fund created by the city government.
Albania’s political leaders are also taking note of the gender equality gap in the country, announcing new measures to support women’s empowerment in Albania and enable more women to enter the labor market. A four-year National Strategy for Gender Equality and Action Plan, launched last year, aims to consolidate efforts across government ministries to advance gender equality in Albania by 2020.
All of these projects have been crucial steps in the process to advance women’s empowerment in Albania. By continuing to include women in all facets of the country, Albanian women’s daily lives can be greatly improved.
– Giacomo Tognini
Photo: Flickr