Until now, there has been no method to assess the effectiveness of Gender Equality Programs (GEPs) in developing countries. In July 2015, UN Women published a research report entitled “The Effect of Gender Equality Programming on Humanitarian Outcomes.” The researchers developed a unique assessment tool, Gender Intensity Measure, to analyze data and determine the degree to which gender equality and women’s empowerment are perceived to be effective by the beneficiaries of GEPs.
The research, commissioned by UN Women, was conducted by the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex in 2013 and co-funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development of Canada. IDS collected and analyzed information from four case-study locations: Nepal, the Philippines and two sites in Kenya: the county of Turkana and the Dadaab refugee camps.
The research study surveyed over 2,000 households in crisis and focus groups in the four locations. The Gender Intensity Measure interviewed women as well as men, humanitarian workers and community leaders to determine how gender-sensitive programs promote gender equality and empower women—and why.
The report confirms that the quality of life for all community members is improved with GEPs. The study measured improved humanitarian outcomes as well as gender equality for all community members. Specific examples of the effectiveness of GEPs from each of the four sites include:
In Nepal, women were able to afford school fees and supplies for their children because of programs that promote income-earning opportunities for women.
In the Philippines, hunger was decreased by 37 percent in households where women reported being more satisfied with the availability of gender equality programming.
In Dadaab refugee camps, 70-90 percent of pregnancy deliveries were attended by skilled personnel due to programs encouraging women to utilize safer delivery options.
In Turkana, the proportion of literate children per household rose by 4.8 percent, due to increasing the Gender Intensity Measure from low to high.
In the Philippines, Nepal and Turkana, women noted greater decision-making power when humanitarian services were considered to be gender-equal.
In Dadaab, women noted greater empowerment and young girls’ aspirations increased when women held leadership roles in the implementation of humanitarian services.
“The Effect of Gender Equality Programming on Humanitarian Outcomes” also provides guidance as to how to increase the effectiveness in the future. For example, two issues that need improvement are increasing awareness of GEPs and the involvement of men and boys in order to empower women.
Prior to this unique research, GEPs were measured only on paper by how well they prioritize gender equality programming according to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Gender Marker. The Gender Marker rated aid proposals only to see if they were designed well, meaning if they would satisfactorily benefit women, men, girls and boys equally. The Marker also predicts (but does not measure) the effectiveness of a program.
Humanitarian programs that promote gender-sensitive programming are crucial to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. “Empowering women and girls is not only the right thing to do: It’s also smart economics and vital to ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity,” according to the World Bank.
– Janet Quinn
Sources: U.N. Women 1, U.N. Women 2, WHO Western Pacific Region, IRIN, World Bank
Photo: Why Poverty
“Plant Doctors” Fighting Hunger in Kenya
Every year across the developing world an enormous percentage of crops are thrown away due to disease, which contributes to hunger. But what if those sick plants could be cured? In Kenya, when there are sick plants, they call in the “Plant Doctors.”
The Food and Agriculture Administration defines the major developing world’s food crops in order of volume as rice, wheat, maize, cassava, fresh vegetables and sweet potatoes. Other essential crops are sugarcane, oil palm fruits and soybeans. With approximately 4.47 billion people out of the global population of 5.77 billion living in the developing world, the health of these plants are immensely important to food security.
Crops grown in the developing world are more commonly used to feed the public rather than for export. Because of this, volume is lower, there are much lower input costs so pesticides/herbicides are used less extensively or are less effective, and far less inorganic fertilizer is used. Additionally in developing countries, the plant varieties are usually not improved, resistant or higher yielding. The effect of viruses on agriculture in poor nations is more significant and less food grown as a result.
Plant Doctors are highly trained plant health advisers educated in the science of botany and global plant health who take research from the laboratory to the fields to help farmers eradicate diseases plaguing their crops. They also run Plant Clinics, where farmers can take a sample plant to find diagnosis of the problem and give best-practice advice. The plant clinic also provides a meeting place for Plant Doctors and the farmers they aim to serve.
The Plant Clinic works like a doctor’s office visit. When a farmer has a problem with sick plants, the sample plant can be brought in to a Plant Clinic, which operates in local farmers markets. A trained Plant Doctor will then diagnose the problem and recommend an affordable, locally available solution that the farmer can use to manage it. If the farmer follows the plant doctor’s advice; losses are reduced and productivity increases, increasing food to sell and feed his or her family.
Miriam Otipa is a Plant Doctor. She is the Principal Research Scientist & Head of the Plant Pathology Department, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization. She posted a blog at Feed the Future about her experiences and the importance of Plant Doctors. She says in her blog that in Kenya, greenhouse farmers routinely lose between 80-100 percent of their tomato crops to pests and diseases.
As Miriam Otipa explains in her blog, it was while growing up in a small Kenyan Village she became interested in career in science. She turned her curiosity and childhood questions into solutions for struggling farmers with ailing crops.
According to Miriam Otipa, success in curing diseased plants is spreading across Kenya. Through the PlantWise program, supported by an international nonprofit called CABI, she has trained over 140 agricultural extension staff to operate 89 Plant Clinics in 13 counties across Kenya and has jointly trained 45 farmers as Plant Nurses, who regularly visit farms, assist with plant examinations, and encourage farmers to use nearby Plant Clinics.
In developing nations, food insecurity is a sad consequence of global poverty. Plant Doctors can help treat sick plants improving agricultural yield and increase the food on hungry people’s tables.
– Jason Zimmerman
Sources: USAID, Plantwise
Photo: Flickr
Do Gender Equality Programs Work in Developing Countries?
Until now, there has been no method to assess the effectiveness of Gender Equality Programs (GEPs) in developing countries. In July 2015, UN Women published a research report entitled “The Effect of Gender Equality Programming on Humanitarian Outcomes.” The researchers developed a unique assessment tool, Gender Intensity Measure, to analyze data and determine the degree to which gender equality and women’s empowerment are perceived to be effective by the beneficiaries of GEPs.
The research, commissioned by UN Women, was conducted by the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex in 2013 and co-funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development of Canada. IDS collected and analyzed information from four case-study locations: Nepal, the Philippines and two sites in Kenya: the county of Turkana and the Dadaab refugee camps.
The research study surveyed over 2,000 households in crisis and focus groups in the four locations. The Gender Intensity Measure interviewed women as well as men, humanitarian workers and community leaders to determine how gender-sensitive programs promote gender equality and empower women—and why.
The report confirms that the quality of life for all community members is improved with GEPs. The study measured improved humanitarian outcomes as well as gender equality for all community members. Specific examples of the effectiveness of GEPs from each of the four sites include:
In Nepal, women were able to afford school fees and supplies for their children because of programs that promote income-earning opportunities for women.
In the Philippines, hunger was decreased by 37 percent in households where women reported being more satisfied with the availability of gender equality programming.
In Dadaab refugee camps, 70-90 percent of pregnancy deliveries were attended by skilled personnel due to programs encouraging women to utilize safer delivery options.
In Turkana, the proportion of literate children per household rose by 4.8 percent, due to increasing the Gender Intensity Measure from low to high.
In the Philippines, Nepal and Turkana, women noted greater decision-making power when humanitarian services were considered to be gender-equal.
In Dadaab, women noted greater empowerment and young girls’ aspirations increased when women held leadership roles in the implementation of humanitarian services.
“The Effect of Gender Equality Programming on Humanitarian Outcomes” also provides guidance as to how to increase the effectiveness in the future. For example, two issues that need improvement are increasing awareness of GEPs and the involvement of men and boys in order to empower women.
Prior to this unique research, GEPs were measured only on paper by how well they prioritize gender equality programming according to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Gender Marker. The Gender Marker rated aid proposals only to see if they were designed well, meaning if they would satisfactorily benefit women, men, girls and boys equally. The Marker also predicts (but does not measure) the effectiveness of a program.
Humanitarian programs that promote gender-sensitive programming are crucial to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. “Empowering women and girls is not only the right thing to do: It’s also smart economics and vital to ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity,” according to the World Bank.
– Janet Quinn
Sources: U.N. Women 1, U.N. Women 2, WHO Western Pacific Region, IRIN, World Bank
Photo: Why Poverty
The School Fund Connects Investors with Students
There are 63 million secondary school-aged children around the world who are unable to attend school. In West and Central Africa, this number amounts to 40 percent of their youth population. In India, 16 million children of lower and secondary school age do not receive an education. The School Fund works with investors to provide resources and funds to developing regions to help children in need.
On average, an individual’s wage increases 15 to 25 percent for each additional year of schooling he or she receives. Girls and young women who receive an education are far less likely to become a child bride and typically grow up to be healthier and more educated about sex. Women who receive an education are more prone to have healthier children and smaller families. Education can also help girls grow up to become leaders in their communities.
The School Fund operates its services by first helping investors find students to support. This process is determined by selecting a student based on their country, gender, academic interests or fundraising deadlines. The second step helps the investors decide how much to donate, and step three allows the donators to stay in touch with the students they have helped in order to see how they are contributing the funds to their education.
The School Fund has been able to provide scholarships to over 1,100 students in Africa, Asia and Latin America, totaling over US$400,000 in funds used for tuition, uniforms, materials, exam fees and food. Students have been funded by over 3,500 donors, representing more than 1,500 years of education.
The organization was founded by Matt Severson and Andrew Perrault in 2009. Having been friends for many years and sharing interests in both traveling and development, the pair traveled to Tanzania in 2007 while still in high school. While there, they were both touched by how friendly and thoughtful the residents were. Even though many of them lived in poverty, they were still willing to share with the two of them.
During his travels, Matt Severson met a young boy named John Medo. Medo came from a family of seven who lived on US$45 a month. John Medo was intelligent — he had aced all of the exams necessary for secondary school, but his family could not afford the US$150 fee for tuition. When Severson met Medo, he was working to become a farmer. Matt Severson was inspired by John Medo’s kindness and decided to provide funds for his schooling. This marked the beginning of The School Fund.
Over the next two summers, Severson and Perrault worked to expand and build The School Fund from the ground up. Now The School Fund supports students in Tanzania, Haiti, the Philippines and many other places in the world. As Matt Severson puts it, there are many other “John Medos” in the world who need support to attend school. The School Fund plans to continue to connect investors with students in need.
– Julia Hettiger
Sources: The School Fund 1, The School Fund 2, UNICEF
Photo: Ghana Culture Politics
Health Experts Call for Public Breastfeeding Areas in India
Health experts and activists are calling for the government in the Indian state of Assam to create public breastfeeding areas in India.
Assam, a state in northeast India, has a bad record when it comes to maternal and infant mortality rates.
With Aug. 1-7 being World Breastfeeding Week, the spotlight has shifted to Assam, where there are no public facilities available for women to breastfeed. As a result, mothers who are lactating often have a difficult time comfortably attending to their infants.
The difficulty is greater for mothers in rural areas, where malnutrition rates in infants are higher. Additionally, mothers who are working do not have the ability to meet their babies’ needs in a timely matter.
To avoid malnutrition, the need for public breastfeeding areas in India, specifically Assam, is high. Creating designated areas, such as in buses and railway stations, would help avoid malnutrition.
Those engaged in World Breastfeeding Week are also asking for uniformity when it comes to maternity leave. Organizations such as the Association of Promotion of Child Nutrition (APCN) and Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI) are calling on the state government to implement consistent leave in both the public and private sectors for working mothers.
Currently, women working in the public sector are granted a leave of six months, but most are unaware they can take a leave to care for their babies, as the parameter is not implemented uniformly in the sector.
While women are granted a leave of between three and four and a half months in the private sector, most workplaces in the public and private sectors lack the proper facilities to allow women to breastfeed, leading to problems for mothers.
– Matt Wotus
Sources: Encyclopedia Britannica, The Times of India, World Breastfeeding Week
Photo: Healthy Newborn Network
Refugees in Calais See Hope In Britain
Many refugees in Calais, France are using any means possible — most of them using rather dangerous means — to make their way to Britain in hopes of a new life.
Hundreds of thousands of immigrants sit in refugee camps in Calais waiting to make their next attempt into the United Kingdom. Many of these individuals have traveled all the way from Africa, the Middle East and some from even further away. For most, sanctuary in Britain is the last stop on a very long journey that may have lasted for months, with hopes that a better life and more opportunities await them on the other side of the English Channel.
In France, where many migrants await the next move, which may potentially land them in Britain, lie refugee camps filled with hundreds of thousands of migrants from all around the world. Many have fled injustice and corruption within their native countries, such as that of Sudan, Eritrea and other crime-ridden and infamously violent nations.
Within the camps are volunteers and medical staff to help those who have been injured or have fallen ill throughout their long journeys. Nurses in the camps have recounted a number of cases where individuals have even been hit by trains and fallen off moving trains while trying to make their way across the Channel. This is a horrific image to imagine, but it is the reality of the extent people in these circumstances are willing to go to make it to their final destination. The legitimacy of their travels is backed by the success of others. An estimated 40 people actually make it across each day, though the numbers have varied greatly. Those who have been successful give those still struggling the hope they need to keep going.
With all these people from around the world flooding the entrance to the United Kingdom, both Britain and France have asked for more intervention, particularly from other members of the European Union. The French government has upped its security measures by increasing the number of police officers at the French side of the Channel as well as implementing other new security means. However, with the number of migrants in the hundreds of thousands at least, and a handful of migrants making their way to the UK each day, there obviously is a need for more assistance in order for the two countries to maintain border security.
This issue has been going on since the beginning of June, and a recorded 10 migrants have died in the journey specifically from Calais to the other end of the Channel. This is an issue of international security for which no clear solution has been found thus far, neither the migrants seeking refuge nor the European nations themselves.
– Alexandrea Jacinto
Sources: The New York Times, BBC
Photo: The New York Times
Opening Opportunities for Mayan Girls
The Population Council, along with partner organizations, created a program entitled Abriendo Oportunidades (Opening Opportunities) in order to support the development of young Mayan girls. To date, it has reached 8,000 young girls.
These young girls often live in more rural, isolated regions where access to school and health services is limited. This particular subset of the population in Guatemala tends to marry early without finishing their education.
Abriendo Oportunidades was designed to connect Mayan girls with mentors and provide them with leadership training and life skills. Locally trained professionals often facilitate the program in community girls’ clubs. Gender-based violence is also discussed in a safe setting to provide young girls with the knowledge and tools to stay safe.
An evaluation of the program in 2007 has demonstrated great success in opening opportunities for Mayan girls. All girls in the program have completed sixth grade, 97 percent of the girls did not become pregnant and 88 percent of the girls were able to open bank accounts. These achievements are important because these girls will have greater opportunities open to them in the future. For example, with financial security and education, they can better plan for the timing of children if they wish to have them later in life.
The program results also reveal a change in the attitudes of these young girls. Over half of the girls now wish to complete university and over 90 percent want to wait until later in life to have children. With greater confidence and leadership, these Mayan girls feel an increase in freedom and respect from their fellow community levels. The confidence these girls now have is one of the most important indicators of success. If young girls believe they can achieve education and important careers, they are more likely to be able to do so.
Abriendo Oportunidades has been adapted for communities in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua. Researchers have also further developed the program to be used with adolescent boys who need to learn just as much about gender-based violence and female empowerment.
– Iliana Lang
Sources: The Population Council, CNN
Photo: The Population Council
Top 10 Employers that Practice Corporate Matching
What is corporate matching? When a company recognizes the charitable actions of their employees and decides to match that same altruistic nature through financial means. The following companies practice corporate matching (and are in no particular order).
1. General Electric
Today, the GE Foundation matches over 35 million dollars annually to nonprofit and educational institutions.
2. Google
Matching up to over $12,000 in donations per employee each year, Google has been highlighted as a company that not only matches charitable giving, but also matches funds employees personally raise for charities.
3. CarMax
Matching to nearly every nonprofit organization, CarMax’s 1:1 match policy on all donations applies to not only all employees, but all of the employees’ dependents until the age of 26.
4. Soros Fund Management
This company has the highest matching gift ratio (3:1 match for employees and 2:1 match for partners) of any corporation, creating a high incentive for Soros families to give.
5. Boeing
Boeing matches both employee and retiree donations. In addition, they provide a $100 grant to a nonprofit every time an employee participates in a charitable event (run/walk/bike type events).
6. BP
This company offers every type of employee giving with their generous giving programs. BP allows for the public to track all of its charitable spending in addition to the standard 1:1 matching.
7. Gap Corporation
Including many of the Gap subsidiaries, Gap employees can request matches made to majority of nonprofit based organizations. They also offer the most comprehensive and user-friendly online match system. Gifts made within the company can range from $1,000 to $10,000.
8. Microsoft
Through employee giving within the company, more that $1 billion was donated to charitable organizations within the match program.
9. Johnson & Johnson
All company employees, including retirees, are eligible to request up to $10,000 in donation matching. They also have a 2:1 matching ratio for current employees, and a 1:1 rate for all retirees.
10. Bank of America
With a 1:1 matching for all family members, including those of part-time employees, Bank of America has a $5,000 matching cap and has a longer period of acceptance for those matches than other companies.
– Alysha Biemolt
Sources: Double the Donation 1, Double the Donation 2, Double the Donation 3,
Changing Migration Patterns in Latin America
Although immigration is a major concern for policymakers in the United States, immigration and emigration have a significant impact on the economy and communities throughout Latin America.
Over the last 25 years, in particular, migration patterns in Latin America show that immigrants have moved from unstable economies and governments into bordering states that have greater economic stability and prosperity. This continues to be the case in Chile, with migrants flowing in from neighboring countries.
The Southern Cone of Latin America is famous for its continued movement of people across country borders. This region includes Chile, Peru, Argentina and Uruguay. Chile has seen an influx of immigrants, particularly from Peru, since the 1990s. This was the turning point in the Chilean economy and government, transitioning over from a military regime to a more stable, democratic system.
This change in government led to more overall economic stability in Chile, creating more job opportunities and more money per household. Neighboring countries, such as Peru, have not seen such success.
This influx of immigrants has been accompanied by its own issues, particularly with regard to security concerns. Large groups of immigrants easily travel across state borders, because of geographic proximity, as well as insufficient border policies. For example, Peruvian immigrants that have migrated to Chile have created cultural enclaves within cities and populated areas of the country. These transnational communities as they are described have created a concern for not only governments of receiving nations, but also the citizens of said countries.
Social marginalization is one of the biggest obstacles many immigrants of said transnational communities report facing, forcing such cultural enclaves to emerge. This, in a way, defeats the purpose of many immigrants, in search of new opportunities, as they are almost forced to stay within the confines of communities that are primarily made up of other immigrants.
Though this is the case, many immigrants in Latin America continue to migrate to neighboring countries, because despite social and cultural obstacles, many do find more economic potential and opportunities for jobs that they have the qualifications and skillsets for.
Immigration is a concern that faces not only the United States and its borders but also persists as an issue throughout intraregional Latin America. Not only that, but the circumstances in which Latin Americans find themselves make immigration that much more appealing and feasible.
– Alexandrea Jacinto
Sources: Migration Policy Institute, Money Market, Bloomberg,
Photo: Flickr
How Technological Innovation Has Impacted Emergency Response Efforts
We live in a technological age, aptly called the information age. One of the staples of the information age is the inclusion of technology into our daily lives. The majority of our lives are structured around the technological advancements we have accomplished, from where to how we communicate. While these advancements are significant in our everyday tasks, their great significance extends during times of crisis and emergency response efforts.
One of the most significant ways in which technology has revolutionized disaster relief is the ability to get information to those in need of aid. The greatest technological advancement that achieves this goal is mobile phones.
In a Q&A regarding the utilization of technology in fighting the Ebola outbreak, Eric King, an innovation specialist who worked on the USAID’s Disaster Assistance Response Team in Liberia during the Ebola outbreak had this to say: “A decade ago, a small percentage of West Africans had access to cellphones. Now, mobile phones allow us to connect those in need with those who can help. Families of the sick can call emergency Ebola hotlines, social mobilizers can share tips for community engagement, individuals can resolve Ebola rumors by texting local radio stations, health workers can be paid electronically, and clinics can flag when they’re low on supplies.”
Technological advancements are not limited to those in need of aid. Another prime instance of technological advancements revolutionizing emergency response efforts comes from the manner in which response efforts can mobilize.
There are numerous examples of advancements in communications technologies that have made the mobilization of relief efforts drastically faster and more efficient; during disaster events, speed and efficiency can literally save lives.
One such example comes from the relief efforts performed when Super-typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines in 2013. Due to weather tracking technology, the storm was seen well enough in advance to allow early warning to those areas that would be affected. Furthermore, due to this advanced warning, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) was able to reach out to the Digital Humanitarian Network (DHN) for assistance. The DHN volunteers utilized social media, as well as other online platforms, to help create a digital map of the aftereffects of Super-typhoon Haiyan. This map was then used to help coordinate relief efforts in the area.
More than just coordinating relief efforts, social media plays another vital role in aiding emergency response efforts, as does technological advancement in general. Technological advancements, particularly those centered on the Internet, allow information regarding disaster relief efforts to be spread much more rapidly to the public. This has numerous benefits, but the most significant is the capacity for organizations to gain public support and assistance during disasters. Many organizations that aid in disaster relief rely heavily on public support, particularly for volunteers.
With the advent of the Internet, these organizations can get more attention and recognition, which in turn garnishes a significant amount of support. These are but a few of the ways in which technological advancement has advanced emergency response efforts.
– James Miller
Sources: USAID, Time
Photo: EECU
Global Financing Conference Looks to End Poverty
A topic of discussion at this summit will be on how to expand on the Millennium Development Goals, a set of eight target goals set in 2000 to combat poverty. These goals were set to expire after fifteen years, when a new summit would meet to establish new goals moving forward. The upcoming summit in Addis Ababa will spend time creating what will be known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The SDGs will be designed to reflect the changes in the global economy that have occurred since the initial MDGs were created. An excerpt from the World Bank’s website says, “The global development landscape has changed since the MDGs were adopted in 2000. Middle-income countries now account for a much larger share of global GDP. At the same time, inequality within many countries is on the rise and the gap between the rich and the poor is growing.” World leaders will assess a variety of new data to develop effective plans to reduce future poverty.
In order to make the eradication of poverty a reality, nations participating in this summit are preparing to raise the amount of money contributed to fighting poverty from billions to trillions of dollars. The funds necessary to achieving this goal will come “from private investment and domestic tax revenues. Foreign aid is already dwarfed by private financial flows, but it is still a precious resource, important because it reaches people and challenges that private finance alone cannot,” as reported by The Guardian.
This summit may be key in setting the stage for an entirely new era in our planet. The results of this summit and the ones that follow might be the pivotal step for stepping out of the overbearing shadow of poverty and into a bright future for generations to come.
– Diego Catala
Sources: The Guardian, World Bank
Photo: UN