Recovering from a gruesome civil war that left the nation paralyzed between 1991 and 2001, Algeria has slowly been restoring the backbone of its infrastructure. Algeria’s infrastructure system is highly important, as it serves as a gateway between North Africa and Europe.
The Algerian government has launched an extensive public investment program in an effort to make transport a top priority. According to CountryWatch, in 2010, Algeria began “a five-year $286 billion development program to update its infrastructure and provide jobs.”
Another area of improvement that will directly impact infrastructure in Algeria is tourism. In 2012, the government began investing in the tourism sector and set a target of attracting 3.5 million tourists by 2015. The tourism sector has been the main focus of delivering employment in Algeria to better improve living conditions. The Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts, Hacène Mermouri, announced in December 2017 that 1,812 new hotel infrastructure projects have been approved by the Ministry.
These changes also impact nearby airports within the region. New terminals are being built to better accommodate international tourists in Oran and Algiers. Additional renovations include the establishment of Algeria’s first underground metro system, as well as extending roads and rail services.
The Ministry of Transport has reaped the successes from infrastructure in Algeria, earning €35.7 billion between 2010 and 2014. Such investments are expected to improve Algeria’s logistics performance, as well as reduce congestion and transport costs in a hub that serves as the primary source of transportation.
A surge in the number of vehicles that are to circulate Algeria’s roads is also concerning, leading the government to focus on expanding the country’s road network. According to the Ministry of Public Works, from the start of 2000 to 2014, the government invested in €46.9 billion in road infrastructure.
Some caveats that may impede Algeria’s growth in the near future are the fall of oil demand from nations such as the U.S., allocating between 20 to 25 percent of all Algerian exports. In addition, there has been a decrease in gas and oil production, of which Algeria ranks fourth and tenth as the largest exporter worldwide, respectively.
Per a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) report, this decrease is putting increasing pressure on Algeria’s government to liberalize its economic and investment policies. Despite such internal worries, Algeria has significantly improved its logistics infrastructure, which had them ranked 140th in 2007, to which they have climbed to 96th out of 160 countries.
The central component of Algeria’s projected growth resonates with the success of the $262 billion five-year investment plan. This project is aimed at “boosting domestic production and moving the country’s economy away from oil and gas reliance,” per CountryWatch.
In a nation where poverty remains widespread, a high unemployment rate, particularly among the youth, is obstructing the country from any consistent growth. Moreover, PWC reports that the labor market is inefficient, ranking “last globally in the 2013 Global Competitiveness Index.”
Reforming institutions and monetary policies are vital to an environment crippled by political unrest and faced with strenuous complications. Infrastructure in Algeria, especially under the five-year plan, is set to ensure “significant continued development of transportation networks in the coming years,” as Oxford Business Group reports. Apart from the advertised objectives, the future of Algerian development is also contingent upon its domestic production. Algeria has a plan, but its path forward in a rapidly adjusting global system remains to be seen.
– Alexandre Dumouza
Photo: Flickr
Extending the Global Health Security Agenda to 2024
In October 2017, GHSA was extended until 2024. This extension will allow the global health community to enhance data sharing, preparedness planning, epidemiological and laboratory surveillance, risk assessment and response to infectious diseases and other health issues and threats.
The Global Health Security Agenda has created a set of eleven targets and an assessment tool, which is currently being carried out in five countries: Georgia, Peru, Portugal, Uganda and the United Kingdom. In the organization’s assessment of Georgia, it noted that zoonotic diseases are a problem, as 60 percent of human pathogens are zoonotic. Much of the diseases seen in humans within the country are of animal origin, spreading, for example, through contact with veterinarians. These assessment reports contain information about immunization, biosafety and biosecurity and real-time surveillance among other things.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) believes that global health security strengthens United States security. The CDC works in association with GHSA to combat disease worldwide. The organization currently has partnerships with 31 countries, including the Caribbean, that are working to meet the goals of GHSA. The CDC has established Global Disease Detection Centers around the world, providing assistance to over 2,000 requests for disease outbreaks and creating more than 380 diagnostic tests in laboratories of 59 countries.
GHSA has had success stories in many countries, including Tanzania. The nation’s government is determined to play a role in ensuring GHSA’s success, both nationally and internationally. Tanzania joined the program back in August 2015, and in February 2016, it became the first country to use the Joint External Evaluation to assess its 19 capacities to prevent, detect and respond to public health issues.
In a formal event, Tanzania also launched the National Action Plan for Health Security. Held on September 8, 2017, the event was well attended, including guests such as USAID, the World Bank and the World Health Organization.
The fight to keep the world safe from disease may still be a long road, but with programs like the Global Health Security Agenda, the future seems promising.
– Blake Chambers
Photo: Flickr
Women’s Empowerment in Comoros
Women’s issues in Comoros are closely associated with tradition, customs and religion. Challenges for gender equality include women being under-represented at the political level, a need for women in leadership, violence against women and women’s healthcare. By focusing on women’s empowerment in Comoros, these challenges could be properly addressed.
Women in Comoros, as well as Nigeria, Swaziland, the Republic of the Congo and Benin still have less than 8 percent female representation in their legislatures.
U.N. Women Working Towards Women’s Empowerment in Comoros
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (U.N. Women) works towards building capacities for women to participate in leadership. This transformative leadership training allows women to engage from a perspective of basic human rights and understand broader governance issues and democracy in general.
In Comoros, U.N Women has peacebuilding projects underway in partnership with the U.N. country team. Its contribution is to build the skills of women to understand the issues of gender relations in peace and in peacebuilding. It also strives to help women understand conflicts and how conflicts occur in order to help women build allies within the traditional leadership.
Addressing Domestic Violence and Women’s Healthcare
Violence against women, including domestic violence, is widespread in many places of Comoros. The physical, sexual and psychological violence against women threaten women’s empowerment in Comoros.
There has, however, been an advancement in women’s empowerment in Comoros through the improvement of healthcare services and decreasing maternal mortality.
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) programs are key to the improvement of healthcare services. These programs provide emergency obstetric care and family planning, aim to maintain the low prevalence of HIV/AIDS and manage sexually transmitted infections. They also increase the availability and use of timely and reliable demographic data and integrate population variables into gender policies and development programs.
Reproductive health is a priority in the national health strategy of Comoros. According to U.N. Women, maternal mortality rates fell from 381 to 170 deaths per 100,000 live births between 2007 and 2012. Programs have extended services to women during pregnancy, delivery and after birth.
Comoros pledges to strengthens its multi-sectoral strategy on HIV, enhance women’s access to microcredit, and continue to implement actions to bring more women into key decision-making posts across national institutions.
With efforts to provide women with more opportunities to succeed, women’s empowerment in Comoros will effectively address the challenges women face in society.
– Julia Lee
Photo: Flickr
Sustainable Agriculture in India is Reducing Poverty
One way to combat the malnourishment epidemic in India is to create a sustainable agricultural system. These systems aim to produce food that is not only natural and healthy, but also plentiful and not harmful to the earth. In a sustainable agricultural system, the growers stay away from any form of chemicals or pesticides. This helps keep the food healthy and edible, and decreases disease within the community.
In India, much of the nation’s agriculture is dependent on rainfall. This leads to the slow growth of crops, causing the supply to fall behind the demand. Fortunately, through technological advancements and education, many of the barriers between India and sustainable agriculture can be conquered.
India must optimize its agriculture through three main areas: production, storage and distribution.
By establishing efficient water management, India could increase its supply dramatically. Many of the crops it raises, such as sugar cane, require large amounts of water. By creating an irrigation system, Indian farmers would no longer need to only rely on rainwater for their crops. This would help increase production.
Another reason why India’s agriculture is floundering is insufficient storage. Perishables are going bad in store houses before they can be consumed. New innovations such as certain tarpaulins, which keep perishables cool during transit, can help improve storage and distribution.
Though the country still has a long way to go before it can officially state that it has sustainable agriculture in India, it has already started making headway. One company, BASF, has already started creating and distributing products to India to help drive sustainability. The company’s products include biodegradable mulch film and other seed treatments.
BASF has also created an outreach program, Samruddhi, that has reached over 23,000 Indian farmers in 2016 alone. The company provides kits to Indian farmers that include protective tools and equipment.
While India still has a long way to go, products and education through companies like BASF can help fuel sustainable agriculture in India in the future.
– Courtney Wallace
Photo: Flickr
Infrastructure in Algeria Under Significant Improvement
The Algerian government has launched an extensive public investment program in an effort to make transport a top priority. According to CountryWatch, in 2010, Algeria began “a five-year $286 billion development program to update its infrastructure and provide jobs.”
Another area of improvement that will directly impact infrastructure in Algeria is tourism. In 2012, the government began investing in the tourism sector and set a target of attracting 3.5 million tourists by 2015. The tourism sector has been the main focus of delivering employment in Algeria to better improve living conditions. The Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts, Hacène Mermouri, announced in December 2017 that 1,812 new hotel infrastructure projects have been approved by the Ministry.
These changes also impact nearby airports within the region. New terminals are being built to better accommodate international tourists in Oran and Algiers. Additional renovations include the establishment of Algeria’s first underground metro system, as well as extending roads and rail services.
The Ministry of Transport has reaped the successes from infrastructure in Algeria, earning €35.7 billion between 2010 and 2014. Such investments are expected to improve Algeria’s logistics performance, as well as reduce congestion and transport costs in a hub that serves as the primary source of transportation.
A surge in the number of vehicles that are to circulate Algeria’s roads is also concerning, leading the government to focus on expanding the country’s road network. According to the Ministry of Public Works, from the start of 2000 to 2014, the government invested in €46.9 billion in road infrastructure.
Some caveats that may impede Algeria’s growth in the near future are the fall of oil demand from nations such as the U.S., allocating between 20 to 25 percent of all Algerian exports. In addition, there has been a decrease in gas and oil production, of which Algeria ranks fourth and tenth as the largest exporter worldwide, respectively.
Per a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) report, this decrease is putting increasing pressure on Algeria’s government to liberalize its economic and investment policies. Despite such internal worries, Algeria has significantly improved its logistics infrastructure, which had them ranked 140th in 2007, to which they have climbed to 96th out of 160 countries.
The central component of Algeria’s projected growth resonates with the success of the $262 billion five-year investment plan. This project is aimed at “boosting domestic production and moving the country’s economy away from oil and gas reliance,” per CountryWatch.
In a nation where poverty remains widespread, a high unemployment rate, particularly among the youth, is obstructing the country from any consistent growth. Moreover, PWC reports that the labor market is inefficient, ranking “last globally in the 2013 Global Competitiveness Index.”
Reforming institutions and monetary policies are vital to an environment crippled by political unrest and faced with strenuous complications. Infrastructure in Algeria, especially under the five-year plan, is set to ensure “significant continued development of transportation networks in the coming years,” as Oxford Business Group reports. Apart from the advertised objectives, the future of Algerian development is also contingent upon its domestic production. Algeria has a plan, but its path forward in a rapidly adjusting global system remains to be seen.
– Alexandre Dumouza
Photo: Flickr
A Cyclical Dilemma: How Lack of Education Creates Poverty
The connection between lack of education and poverty is of a cyclical nature, with each one leading to the other. Documentation of how lack of education creates poverty dates as early as the 1966 publication of the Coleman Report, as this report demonstrated that, when compared to their middle and upper-income counterparts, lower income students were less likely to perform well in school.
When looking at the connection between education and poverty, it is essential to consider a variety of factors, including health and women’s empowerment. Since each of these factors is improved when people are better educated, improving these factors then helps to decrease global poverty.
Education and Health
Educated people are less likely to suffer from poor health since they better understand how to prevent the contraction of various diseases. A study in Uganda demonstrated that in rural Uganda, those who were educated were 75 percent less likely to suffer from HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS rates are cut in half among younger people who are educated through primary school.
Education is also linked to maternal health and the health of children. When mothers are more educated, they are more likely to seek care during pregnancy, and they are better equipped to care for their children. Mothers that are educated are 50 percent more likely to seek immunization for their children than mothers who have no schooling.
Additionally, children of educated mothers are over twice as likely to live to the age of five than children of uneducated mothers. Statistics documenting the link between education and health — specifically the health of women and mothers — also demonstrate how education improves women’s empowerment.
Education and Women’s Empowerment
Young girls who are educated are less likely to marry at a young age. This fact means that they have a higher chance of entering into the workforce and not relying on their husbands and families for financial support. Women’s empowerment through education is another factor that demonstrates how lack of education creates poverty.
Women who are educated are able to develop better decision-making skills which allow them to succeed in the workforce. For women who are educated beyond grades three and four, each additional year of education leads to 20 percent higher wages, a fact that clearly demonstrates the link between education and poverty.
How to Improve
Research clearly indicates that if people lack the basic skills to read and do simple math, they will be less likely to get a job. An inability to get a job creates a clear pathway to poverty; however, lowering school fares and increasing investment in the education sector are key ingredients in improving the amount of educated people.
Between the years 2002 and 2007, an estimated 40 million more children were able to attend school, according to the Global Campaign for Education. This increase in educational attendance was due to a variety of factors including lowering school fares in countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Burundi, and the increase in investment in education in Latin America.
Though many people claim that poverty is what causes poor education, they fail to recognize the complicated cyclical nature of the dilemma as a whole. In fact, many studies demonstrate how lack of education creates poverty. With the proper investment in education, more people can have access to education, enter the workforce and not fall into poverty.
– Haley Rogers
Photo: Flickr
Poverty in the World’s Most Overpopulated Cities
There are not enough resources or available land for many struggling individuals to survive. Thus, they must flock to urban areas where there is rapid growth in the world economy. In cities, people can specialize in different fields within the industrial and service sectors. However, there are too many people trying to fill these small confines of city life.
As cited on the National Geographic website, “in cities, two of the most pressing problems facing the world today also come together: poverty and environmental degradation.” This is due to the vast degradation of resources in urban settings and the exacerbation of poverty. This is especially prominent in an analysis of the most overpopulated cities in the world.
The Five Most Overpopulated Cities and Their Populations
The most overpopulated cities tend to be in developing countries where poverty is rampant due to this overcrowding. Even in developed countries, the cities listed deal with intense smog and pollution problems that exacerbate health and poverty issues.
In less developed regions, there is a higher death rate for children and adolescents. Unsanitary living conditions threaten survival rates. This is especially evident in urban areas where crowding is so common that slums have grown rapidly.
In order to combat poverty in the most overpopulated cities, education and economic growth are critical. By engaging the government to work with its community, the government will better understand which challenges should be addressed first. Therefore, education, paired with improved living conditions in cities, will help ensure children are surviving into adulthood.
These are the key ingredients to overcoming poverty and environmental pollution in overpopulated urban areas.
– Caysi Simpson
Photo: Flickr
5 of the Most Impactful Development Projects in Liberia
According to the CIA World Factbook, Liberia is a country with an unemployment rate of six percent and a 47 percent literacy rate. This status highlights the need for Liberia to develop its country so that it can make strides to reduce poverty. Here are five development projects in Liberia that will allow the country to make the changes necessary to reduce poverty.
1. The Third Poverty Reduction Support Development Policy Operation (PRSDPO-III)
Liberia is one of many nations that was severely affected by the Ebola crisis. This event, coupled with the United Nations Mission withdrawal from the country, has left Liberia’s economy in an upturned state. This development project will help the government’s reform efforts for stabilizing the economy by establishing a macroeconomic framework.
2. Liberia Infrastructure Rehabilitation Project
The country of Liberia, like many underdeveloped countries, needs to develop their infrastructure in order to fully develop as a nation. This development project in Liberia aims to provide emergency support to restore the Port of Monrovia and the Roberts International Airport. It also seeks to rehabilitate other port and aviation areas, according to the World Bank.
3. Liberia Land Administration Project
This project will strengthen the capacity of Liberia Land Authority and establish a land administration policy. It will establish processes and infrastructure required to implement laws on identification, ownership, use and valuation of land. These implementations will lead to an increase of regulations and awareness on land rights.
4. Cheesemanburg Landfill and Urban Sanitation Project
The purpose of this project is to increase access to solid waste management. Seventy-two percent of the country does not have access to sanitation facilities. Poor sanitation can lead to poor water quality. In fact, 24 percent of Liberia does not have access to a drinking water source. This project is vital in maintaining sanitation in the country.
5. Liberia Health Systems Strengthening Project
The state of the country’s health is lacking due to the recent Ebola crisis. The purpose of this project is to improve the quality of available healthcare services, such as maternal, neonatal and child health.
These development projects in Liberia will change the nature of the country and allow the government to make improvements in other areas of life, such as education. By focusing on other aspects of the country, Liberia will be able to step towards reducing poverty.
– Dezanii Lewis
Photo: Flickr
5 Development Projects in Myanmar
These five major development projects in Myanmar focus on areas where sustainable change can be brought about.
Community-Oriented Reproductive Health Project
In Myanmar, there is particularly low access to health services. This is especially evident in rural communities where there is a lack of knowledge, experience and healthcare providers. Similarly, there’s a scarcity of resources, facilities and basic services.
To combat this, the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) implemented the Community-Oriented Reproductive Health Project in 2004. Its main focus is on training healthcare providers in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and upgrading health centers. The project trained one MCH promoter for every 30 households in targeted communities which ensures future, self-reliant health.
Dawei Development Project
Proposed in November 2010, the Dawei Development Project is a planned economic zone. The Dawei Development project in Myanmar would create hundreds of thousands of jobs, contributing to five percent of Myanmar’s GDP by 2045. Initially focusing on textiles, a few years down the line it hopes to attract industries such as automotive and plastics.
National Community Driven Development Project
Approved in November 2012, this development project in Myanmar aims to improve rural communities’ access to infrastructure and basic services, such as an improved government response to crisis or emergencies. It notes that most of Myanmar’s issues with poverty indicate a strong concentration in rural areas.
With plans to benefit almost 3,000 villages home to over two million poor people, this project uses a people-centered approach through which villages receive block grants to fund projects they decide and implement themselves.
Southeast Disaster Risk Management Project
The Southeast Disaster Risk Management Project will help Myanmar in one of its most crippling areas: natural disasters. Each year, disasters cost the country approximately $184 million and hurt the poor much more than other classes.
This development project in Myanmar will contribute $116 million to efforts geared towards the reduction of flooding and improve the government’s response to disasters and emergencies across the country.
Development Programs in Myanmar: Microfinance
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) executes a funding project that has, since 2010, contributed $622 million in new loans. Currently, it operates in India, Bangladesh and Indonesia. However, in 2017 it raised another $100 million to finance loans which will allow projects to expand into Myanmar.
With the implementation of these development projects in Myanmar, there is hope to bring more equality into the country. With a strong emphasis on increasing economic prosperity, these projects will similarly decrease the percentage of impoverished citizens in Myanmar. Myanmar will begin to grow into a prosperous and equal country.
– Nick McGuire
Photo: Flickr
The Reasons to Improve Sustainable Agriculture in Sudan
Located in Northeast Africa, the country of Sudan has a brutal history. Political corruption dominated much of the country’s past and resulted in the displacement, and even deaths, of millions of Sudanese. Conflict between the north and the south of the nation ultimately led to the South Sudan secession and the formation of two separate nations.
While South Sudan experienced much stability since becoming its own nation, the north of Sudan experiences continual internal conflict as well as separation from the rest of the world. Approximately 3.5 million people face chronic hunger and food insecurity, yet the Sudanese government and the armed opposition prevent humanitarian organizations from providing support to individuals in need. Due to the fact that food insecurity is an epidemic, improving sustainable agriculture in Sudan is of the utmost importance.
Past Improvements
Launched in 2007, the Sudan Productive Capacity Recovery Programme-Capacity Building (SPCRP-CB/Sudan) was a six-year partnership project between the government of Sudan, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the European Union (EU). The purpose of the program was to build a strong and sustainable agricultural sector so as to provide a systemic improvement to food insecurity in Sudan. This mission was achieved through strengthening rural communities by training farmers on sustainable agricultural practices.
Millions of dollars were poured into the program to establish more than 100 Farmer Field Schools. These schools work to empower rural communities by helping farmers increase their production and bring products to market. The school is a setting in which stronger communities can be built, as well as a place where farmers can strengthen their skills and share knowledge.
The program has reached more than 2,500 farmers, in turn improving the livelihood of thousands of other Sudanese; however, the program ended in 2013, and food insecurity is still present throughout the country. This occurrence highlights the need for the continuation of current efforts towards achieving sustainable agriculture in Sudan.
Future Improvements
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) still works extensively in Sudan to improve sustainable agriculture. Between 2015 and 2019, the FAO put into place a plan of action for sustainable agriculture, food security and nutrition.
This plan of action includes several strategic projects that would help to improve Sudan’s agricultural sector through sustainable agriculture practices, and improved policy and institutional programming for food security; however, many of these plans are solely contingent upon funding. The FAO is dependent upon the United Nations, highlighting the importance of international support for sustainable agriculture in Sudan.
While Sudan has experienced substantial improvements to sustainable agriculture, the country is still in deep need. According to the 2015 Human Development Index, Sudan ranks 167 out of 188 — a ranking that clearly demonstrates the prevalence of food insecurity and poverty within the nation. Through the continued support by the U.N. and other countries (including the United States), sustainable agriculture in Sudan can be achieved. In turn, millions may no longer face food insecurity and be lifted out of poverty.
– Sarah Jane Fraser
Photo: Flickr
Humanitarian Aid to Turkey is Slow but Successful
According to the European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations report, there are over 3.7 million refugees living in Turkey, as of 2017. With this great number of people and a shortage of space, the European Commission has been one of the leading assistants in relieving Turkey’s overflow issue. According to the Commission, three billion euros are being pumped into Turkey’s civil protection program, and a new flagship program called the Emergency Social Safety Net will allow nearly 1.3 million refugees to meet needs such as food shortages and housing issues.
Besides the European Commission, nearly 45 independent humanitarian programs are working with the Turkish government. However, the Turkish government has recently been cracking down on different private aid organizations. According to The Century Foundation, the government’s harsh views on the apolitical NGOs in the region have forced many humanitarian groups out of the area. Because of this, the success of humanitarian aid to Turkey is much lower than in recent years.
Along with its own financial success, according to Developmental Initiatives, Turkey is also receiving over $59 billion in aid from the United States and other developed countries, as of 2015. With a high level of international trading and a fairly advanced internal economic system, Turkey is far above the margin of success for underdeveloped countries. With its own economic success, and with the help of humanitarian aid from other countries and nonprofit organizations, Turkey has a strong chance of righting itself after its current population influx is addressed.
– Molly Atchison
Photo: Flickr