China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the largest army in the world, recently released a report on the physical well-being of its troops. The study, published in the PLA’s official newspaper, reported that China’s soldiers have gotten physically bigger in recent years, growing .8 inches taller and two inches larger around the waist in the last 20 years.
While this increase in size has caused some problems with army equipment, experts are celebrating the news and attributing better nutrition in China for the growth.
Malnutrition has long been a problem in China, especially in rural areas. Poor Chinese soldiers were traditionally more likely to be malnourished and underweight. As China modernized, so did its military, which was forced to design its own military technology due to trade sanctions.
The equipment created during this period, however, is based on a now-outdated body type. Rifle butts are proving too short for soldier’s arms; tanks are becoming more crowded by the bigger average bodies of soldiers.
The United States military is experiencing similar problems, but it is largely due to higher obesity rates.
The size increase in both the U.S. and China is related to development. As China has modernized and become a wealthier nation, the Chinese population, including China’s soldiers, have become more nourished. In the case of the U.S., as nations move from middle-income to high-income status, obesity rates tend to increase.
Experts warn that as the nation continues to develop, China may be headed on the path towards an obesity problem.
According to the World Health Organization, only 5 percent of Chinese people are obese, but that figure can jump to 20 percent in certain parts of the country. Furthermore, 45 percent of Chinese men and 32 percent of women are overweight.
Youth in urban areas are those particularly represented in the increased obesity rates, with wealthier people having higher obesity rates than those with less money. This economic link to obesity is the opposite of many nations such as the U.S.
Along with greater wealth, access to fast food and better nutrition, placing less emphasis on physical activities starting in childhood is contributing to the average size increase of Chinese people.
Athena Foong of University of Southern California’s Institute for Global Health explains, “The only way people look at the way you advance in life [in China] is getting a better education so you can get a better job, and sports is not considered a job.”
Despite rising obesity rates, many Chinese people are also still going hungry. In China, there are roughly 12.7 million children with stunted physical growth caused by chronic nutritional deficiency in the first 1,000 days of life. In low-income, rural parts of the country, 10 percent of children under the age of 5 have stunted growth.
While these figures are concerning, they have also been steadily declining in recent decades. In 1987, 22 percent of Chinese people were underweight. This number decreased to 12 percent by 1992.
Improvements in the health of Chinese people have many causes including economic advances, better access to clean water, increased distribution of food and better health facilities and resources.
China’s rapid development has brought better health and nutrition to its populace, but as long as childhood malnutrition and obesity rates persist and rise, the nation will be combating development-related public health issues.
– Kaylie Cordingley
Sources: The Washington Post, Telegraph, UNICEF, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, World Health Organization, US-China Today, National Geographic, Financial Times
Photo: Growing Taller
Global Population Report Predicts Labor Force Shift
The Pew Research Center recently published an article called “Attitudes About Aging: A Global Perspective.” The article includes research and data from a survey about changing global perspectives on aging. The study projects by 2050, the global population of senior citizens 65 and older will reach 1.5 billion. According to the report, countries in East Asia such as China, South Korea and Japan will lead the world with a large graying population. What the Pew Research Center defines as the “dependent” population (citizens 15 years old and younger as well as 64-years and older) will soon be reversed for key countries. Though China currently has leads in the world’s largest population, by 2050, this current generation in the workforce will soon be a part of the “dependent” category. On the other hand, countries such as Nigeria (expected to triple in population) and Kenya (expected to double in population) will soon have a large population of youth enter the workforce. The Pew concludes countries from East Asia alongside their European counterparts (expected to continue to have a sizable older population by 2050) will have a diminished labor force and could pose challenges for economic growth. Global attitudes about the older population, however, do not prove so positive for certain countries. In South Korea, despite the high standard of living and wealth in the country, 50% of the country’s elderly population are living in poverty. The generation that helped South Korea’s meteoric rise in development has led to an inversion of their status in old age: homelessness and neglect with little governmental support. Currently, only one-third of elderly citizens receive pension. The young population in South Korea are moving towards the cities. Moreover, government polls display changing attitudes from the Confucian-based ideal of taking care of the elderly. The younger generation has shifted from 90% to 37% believing that they should take care of their parents. According to The Pew, more than one-third of citizens from Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, along with South Korea, believe seniors should be self-reliant in their old age as opposed to receiving aid from the government. Meanwhile, countries that presently have large, young populations, such as Pakistan, Egypt, India, Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa will have a massive labor force that will hopefully have a positive impact on the labor market and promote economic development. Development in public health and education is crucial for Africa’s future working generation to live up to its potential. – Miles Abadilla Sources: Columbia Daily Herald, The Guardian, Pew Research Center Photo: Discover Magazine
Unauthorized Clinics in Cameroon Shut Down
In the midst of a looming health crisis, a troublesome ethical dilemma is presented: small and privately run centers are appealing to people that need certain types of emergency care in Cameroon, where public health care tends to be expensive and not widely available. The country faces numerous public health threats, with a population of 22 million and high HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and infant mortality rates. Because of these ubiquitous health issues, easily accessible clinics may be the difference between life and death for many rural populations.
Cameroon’s government has already identified 600 illegal hospitals and health centers since beginning a campaign to shut down unauthorized clinics.
Family Health Medical Center, in Cameroon’s largest city, Douala, is run by Sylvestre Mebam, who treats about 10 to 15 patients per day. Clinics like Mebam’s exist all around the country, with hundreds of similar family-run medical facilities throughout. Mebam’s clinic often receives patients from nearby government hospitals when people run out of money for treatment there.
The busiest public health facility in Douala, Laquintinie Hospital, is known for slow service and lack of medical staff. When the country already has one of the world’s highest infant mortality rates, the clinics are sometimes the only options when women go into premature labor. When interviewed by NPR, Mebam said he always sends patients to a public facility when the situation is beyond his ability. This unauthorized clinic may be the closest stop for many pregnant women seeking emergency care, but is it slowing down their access to proper treatment?
Although the government is seeking to shutdown some clinics, those that meet staffing, equipment and hygiene standards will be asked to register with the Ministry of Public Health. Dr. Henry Luma, the medical director of the General Hospital in Douala, says, “most of these clinics do not have qualified personnel … There is no way that they have a system to control the quality of care [that] they are providing.” Luma believes the ill-equipped, unregulated clinics should, in every right, be closed.
According to the health ministry, thousands of hospitals that operate without proper authorization are responsible for numerous untold deaths. Although the clinics may offer services and treatments for people with limited access or inadequate funding for public hospitals, they often have infrastructure problems and are not equipped to properly handle emergencies.
Many of these problems stem from counterfeit drugs in unregulated settings. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 200,000 people worldwide die from preventable deaths related directly to counterfeit drugs provided in illegally-run hospitals. Many of these drugs are malaria and tuberculosis treatments, which are two widespread pandemics in sub-Saharan Africa.
Cameroon’s National Medical Council will continue to pursue order by declaring doctors that are not members of the National Medical Council illegal. The WHO continues to “promote evidence-based health policymaking through comprehensive and rigorous analysis of the dynamics of health situations and health systems in the country.” Without government-regulated clinics, the WHO data collected is inefficient and inaccurate.
With approximately two physicians for every 10,000 people, can care in these regulated, government facilities adequately meet the needs of patients? Does investment in such regulated healthcare trump the fact that 32.8% of Cameroon’s population is living in absolute poverty? Can medical costs actually be feasible for those living on less than a dollar per day?
– Maris Brummel
Sources: NPR, Voice of America
Photo: Jezebel
Chile-California Council Promotes Chilean Education
The Chile-California Council (CCC) is a non-profit organization that promotes education in Chile and the collaboration of developmental technology and protection of the environment. It was founded in 2011 and built upon the many years of teamwork and synergy between Chile and California; this includes programs such as the Chile-California Program from 1963 and the Chile-California Plan, signed in 2008.
Although the CCC is actively involved in many important fields, it specializes in the promotion of technology and educational internships to bridge international relationships.
Juan Ibañez, administrative director, describes the Chile-California Council by saying, “We center our efforts on bringing actors from both the public and private world together and supporting collaboration among scientists, researchers, and entrepreneurs from Chile and California.”
The Chile-California Council was recently the driving force behind a joint program with Chile’s educational Prácticas para Chile (PPC) initiative. The joint program gives a small group of students from several American colleges a chance to intern with the government in Chile and a chance to intern at the CCC regional office, which is located in San Francisco.
The PPC internship, which is financially supported by the Chilean Government, grants graduate students a chance to work closely and hands on with forming new public policies in Chile.
There are many exchange programs that Chile-California Council encourages, including the Studying in California program, which allows Chilean students to study at top California universities such as Stanford, the University of California-Berkeley, the University of California-Davis, the University of California- Los Angeles and the University of California-San Diego.
One particularly exciting example of CCC’s success is a brief documentary that focuses on three Chilean students, José Causa, Luis Alberto, and Christóbal Mackenzie, who interned at Google’s Mountain View location. The goal of the documentary, which was sponsored by the Chile-California Council, Chile’s Ministry of Economy, Barefoot production and Google, was to reach out to more Chilean students and urge them to consider internships and careers at Google.
To appeal to younger students, the CCC promotes the Edible Schoolyard initiative. First Lady Cecilia Morel of Chile created her own version, called “Vive tu Huerto,” in 2013, which seeks to supply 100 Chilean schools with gardens. The intention is to teach Chilean students more healthful eating and living habits and encourage them to be more in touch with the earth and nature.
Morel said “the idea of these gardens is that children learn to understand the land, how it is prepared for planting, how to care and make better use increasingly scarce resources such as water and how to recycle and produce fertilizer from organic waste products.”
A full list of the Chile-California Council’s endeavors and activities can be found on its website.
– Rebecca Felcon
Sources: Nearshore Americas
Photo: Hope 87
Climate-Smart Agriculture?
The planet’s climate is changing. Rather than debating the details of who or what is causing the change, the bottom line is in the decades to come, people will experience the planet radically different than ever before. There are many consequences of climate change; one very important consequence is the impact on agriculture. As the climate changes, weather patterns, water availability, and pest and disease ranges are also changing. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that 842 million people went hungry between 2011 and 2013, or one in eight people worldwide. By 2050, another 2.4 billion mouths are predicted to need feeding. In order to feed such a large population, food production needs to increase by 70 percent. Until recently, agriculture has largely been left out of the climate change discussion. However, global agriculture ought to be at the center of that discussion, both for its role in causing climate change and for its ability to mitigate the impacts of climate change. About one-fourth of anthropogenic greenhouse gases worldwide are a result of agriculture. Methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, seeps out of rice paddies and cow farts. Overuse of nitrogen fertilizers creates dead zones, like the Gulf of Mexico, where vast areas become devoid of life. Cutting down and burning forests to create more farmland releases carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas. But if agriculture is a large part of the problem, it can also be a large part of the solution. This is where climate-smart agriculture comes into play. The FAO defines climate-smart agriculture as having three main features. First, it must increase the sustainability of agricultural productivity and income of the farmer(s). Second, it must adapt and build resilience to climate change. Third, where possible, it must reduce and/or remove greenhouse gas emissions. What does that looks like in practice? A handbook, highlighting the 16 most effective climate-smart techniques, was published in the fall of 2013 by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS.) The 16 most effective techniques include the practices of intercropping and agro-forestry. Intercropping is when two or more crops are grown together at the same time. One example of this is when corn, squash and beans are grown together. Historically, this has been a common intercrop throughout Mesoamerica. According to research, “Grown together, these three crops optimize available resources. The corn towers high over the other two crops while the beans climb up the corn stalks. The squash plants sprawl along the ground, capturing light that filters down through the canopy and shading the ground. The shading discourages weeds from growing.” By growing all three crops at the same time, the land is used most efficiently, and nutrients are depleted evenly. A second effective technique is agro-forestry. Agro-forestry refers to the incorporation of trees into a farm. When crops are grown with tress, the partial shade from the trees increases photosynthesis of the crop, and so plants produce more. The presence of tress also reduces soil erosion and improves the quality of soil and water. These techniques, among others, were field-tested by CCAFS to help farmers adapt to the effects of climate change and to be more resilient to unexpected challenges like new pests. The next step is encouraging farmers to adopt climate-smart agriculture and to encourage governments to promote it.
– Claire Karban
Sources: Climate Change Agriculture and Food Security, Huffington Post, ATTRA Photo: How Stuff Works
Olympic Snowboarder Hannah Teter Rides for Charity
As the 2014 Winter Olympics rolled on, it was easy to focus on the medal counts, media stories and endless hours of event coverage. The competition is fierce and perfection and patriotism motivate many of the athletes. For some, like United States snowboarder Hannah Teter, the drive to succeed also has a humanitarian edge. Teter first won the gold in Turin at the 2006 Winter Olympics. She used this victory as the launching pad to start her charity, Hannah’s Gold maple syrup. The organization uses the profits from her maple syrup sales to benefit the Kenyan village of Kirindon, about 20 miles west of Nairobi. Teter partners with World Vision to support an effort reduce water-borne illness and provide the residents of Kirindon with clean drinking water. Teter’s motivation stems from personal experience, as she has traveled to Kirindon with friends and family. “I got to see the difference between having clean water to drink and having dirty, disease infested water that the kids were drinking…” she recounts on the Hannah’s Gold website. “I cannot express how thankful these community members and children were to have clean water.” Hannah’s Gold has raised more than $20,000 and the World Vision project has benefitted more than 40,000 people in the Kirindon community and beyond. The Olympian’s charitable efforts do not stop there. After a silver-medal victory in 2010 and short break from competition due to injury, Teter needed a fresh source of motivation to get back on track for the 2016 Games. Teter found this inspiration after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti crumbled the Caribbean nation. In response to the devastation, she founded Sweet Cheeks, an underwear line “that transforms style and consumption into help and hope for others in need,” according to the product website. The “Panties with a Purpose” fashion line partners with Children International and promises 40 percent of net profits to help children living in extreme poverty around the world. The partner organization focuses on developing sustainable communities and providing families with a holistic approach to health and nutrition. Children International currently works in more than 11 countries across the globe, bettering the lives of more than 350,000 impoverished children. Teter’s charitable heart goes hand in hand with her motivation to succeed as an athlete. “Since receiving the Gold Medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics,” she explains on Hannah’s Gold, “I now have the opportunity to pursue this dream and encourage others to find out how good it feels to give back.” Hopefully her humanitarian practice inspires athletic perfection at this year’s Winter Games as well. Hannah Teter’s “sweet” products can be purchased at Sweet Cheeks or Hannah’s Gold. – Mallory Thayer Sources: Sweet Cheeks, Hannah’s Gold, US Snowboarding, TIME Photo: Her Campus
6 Facts about Child Poverty in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom is the 6th largest economy in the world. Even though the country is developed, there are a large number of children living in poverty. The disparity between the country’s impoverished and wealthy is so sharp that doctors from the Medical Research Council said that the number of children who do not have proper access to food is a ‘public health emergency.’
Many people do not think that in a country with such a large and developed economy that child poverty would be such an issue, but the problem has actually grown worse in the last few years. Experts blame the rise in poverty on the spending cuts in social services such as welfare. Here are six facts that characterize what poverty in the United Kingdom looks like:
1. 1 in 5 children in the UK are living in relative poverty. Relative poverty is defined as a family’s net income that falls below 60% of median net disposable income, which is currently £250 or less per week.
2. 2.3 million UK children were living in poverty in 2011-12. The number of children living in poverty in 2012-13 rose by 300,000.
3. 66% of children living in poverty lived in a household with at least one employed person.
4. In 2009-10, single parent households in the United Kingdom are twice as likely to be living in poverty as two parent households.
5. Inadequate benefits leave people who do not make enough money at their job without a safety net. Ideally, benefits provided by employers and social services such as welfare will help people who are in low paying jobs or jobs with little potential for growth. Many new government policies have cut funding to social services leaving people worse off than before.
6. Under current government policies, child poverty is expected to dramatically increase by over 600,000 children by 2015.
-Colleen Eckvahl
Sources: Child Poverty Action Group, BBC News, The Independent
Photo: The Guardian
The 21st Century: Modern Slavery
Most Americans are under the impression that slavery in the United States ended in 1865, but the reality is it just stopped being legal. Between 14,500 and 17,500 people are trafficked into the U.S. annually, and victims of human trafficking and modern slavery have been identified in cities, suburbs and rural areas of all 50 states.
A modern-day slave is not paid, is not allowed to leave or abandon their job and is forced into dangerous or degrading positions against their will. Most modern slaves are coerced into leaving their native countries, thinking they are leaving for a better life. A conservative estimation of slaves in the world today is 12 million to 30 million, but many sources claim those numbers are far too low. In 2005, the U.S. State Department estimated that more than 70 percent of trafficked people were female and that half of them were children.
Professor Kevin Bales, co-founder of “Free the Slaves,” has studied the subject of modern slavery extensively and works tirelessly to collect data on a group that is, by definition, hidden. He and his team conducted their research by knocking on doors all over the world and interviewing families who had been affected, or knew someone who had been affected, by human trafficking.
Bales writes that the price of a slave has dropped dramatically since 1809, when the average price of a slave (after adjusting to today’s money) was $40,000; in 2009, the average price was $90. Human trafficking generates an estimated $32 billion per year, ranking it as the third-largest international crime behind illegal drugs and arms trafficking.
Research conducted by the Polaris Project found the public’s lack of attention to the issue of human trafficking is often what keeps them imprisoned. “Some victims are hidden behind locked doors in brothels and factories. In other cases, victims are in plain view and may interact with community members, but the widespread lack of awareness and understanding of trafficking leads to low levels of victim identification by the people who most often encounter them.”
People who are desperate to improve their situation in life are the ones most vulnerable to falling into slavery. Uneducated women are in high demand as sex slaves and easy to trick when they are uneducated and desperate to find work. When there is nothing to go home to, some slaves lack even the motivation to resist.
Conflict zones are particularly ripe for traffickers. In 2006 during the armed conflict in Lebanon, 300,000 domestic workers from Sri Lanka, Ethiopia and the Philippines were left jobless, and trafficking gangs were quick to seduce them with alternative options.
The surest way of eliminating the business of modern slavery is to offer schooling in rural and impoverished areas so people can learn to provide for themselves where they are rather than seeking outside assistance. Teaching poor areas about the potential danger of traffickers is the first step toward ensuring they never have to live through the horror of slavery.
-Lydia Caswell
Sources: UNODC, CNN, Polaris Project
Photo: World Revolution
Kathputli Colony: From Slum to Skyscraper
The Kathputli Colony is home to artists, musicians, performers, magicians and poets. It is, however, not home to adequate sanitation facilities, a sufficient water supply or a healthy environment for children.
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA), in partnership with Raheja Developers, a private firm, wants to develop the colony in West Delhi. The DDA sees the colony as a future home for apartment blocks, some of which will be sold to the residents at a reduced rate and others which will be offered at the market price to those who can afford it.
During the construction period, the DDA plans to move Kathputli residents to a transit camp and later rehabilitate them back into the multi-story apartment buildings that will replace their modest homes.
From Kathputli’s population of about 20,000, the government will move 2,800. The DDA chose candidates based on a survey done by a private firm in 2011 which indicated that 2,754 families deserved a place in the redeveloped Kathputli Colony. Those families will be moved to the transit camps and relocated back to the redeveloped colony.
– Haley Sklut
China’s Soldiers Have Grown, PLA Reports
China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the largest army in the world, recently released a report on the physical well-being of its troops. The study, published in the PLA’s official newspaper, reported that China’s soldiers have gotten physically bigger in recent years, growing .8 inches taller and two inches larger around the waist in the last 20 years.
While this increase in size has caused some problems with army equipment, experts are celebrating the news and attributing better nutrition in China for the growth.
Malnutrition has long been a problem in China, especially in rural areas. Poor Chinese soldiers were traditionally more likely to be malnourished and underweight. As China modernized, so did its military, which was forced to design its own military technology due to trade sanctions.
The equipment created during this period, however, is based on a now-outdated body type. Rifle butts are proving too short for soldier’s arms; tanks are becoming more crowded by the bigger average bodies of soldiers.
The United States military is experiencing similar problems, but it is largely due to higher obesity rates.
The size increase in both the U.S. and China is related to development. As China has modernized and become a wealthier nation, the Chinese population, including China’s soldiers, have become more nourished. In the case of the U.S., as nations move from middle-income to high-income status, obesity rates tend to increase.
Experts warn that as the nation continues to develop, China may be headed on the path towards an obesity problem.
According to the World Health Organization, only 5 percent of Chinese people are obese, but that figure can jump to 20 percent in certain parts of the country. Furthermore, 45 percent of Chinese men and 32 percent of women are overweight.
Youth in urban areas are those particularly represented in the increased obesity rates, with wealthier people having higher obesity rates than those with less money. This economic link to obesity is the opposite of many nations such as the U.S.
Along with greater wealth, access to fast food and better nutrition, placing less emphasis on physical activities starting in childhood is contributing to the average size increase of Chinese people.
Athena Foong of University of Southern California’s Institute for Global Health explains, “The only way people look at the way you advance in life [in China] is getting a better education so you can get a better job, and sports is not considered a job.”
Despite rising obesity rates, many Chinese people are also still going hungry. In China, there are roughly 12.7 million children with stunted physical growth caused by chronic nutritional deficiency in the first 1,000 days of life. In low-income, rural parts of the country, 10 percent of children under the age of 5 have stunted growth.
While these figures are concerning, they have also been steadily declining in recent decades. In 1987, 22 percent of Chinese people were underweight. This number decreased to 12 percent by 1992.
Improvements in the health of Chinese people have many causes including economic advances, better access to clean water, increased distribution of food and better health facilities and resources.
China’s rapid development has brought better health and nutrition to its populace, but as long as childhood malnutrition and obesity rates persist and rise, the nation will be combating development-related public health issues.
– Kaylie Cordingley
Sources: The Washington Post, Telegraph, UNICEF, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, World Health Organization, US-China Today, National Geographic, Financial Times
Photo: Growing Taller
Hunger and Poverty in Armenia
Landlocked between Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia and Pakistan, the country of Armenia has faced economic hardships since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Between 1989 and 1999, warfare with Azerbaijan and tensions with Turkey have led both countries to impose economic blockades against Armenia; an international settlement has yet to happen. The country’s main source of trade occurs across the border shared with Georgia and into Russia.
Despite some growth and improvements from bilateral humanitarian efforts, Armenia faces several economic and food security challenges. Though Armenia’s gross domestic product growth rates have reached double digits in recent years, this is largely attributed to the widening of the poor-rich gap and the uneven distribution of wealth. Areas of poverty in Armenia are concentrated in rural areas and the country’s borders. Harsh winters, infertile and highly elevated lands and a lack of agricultural diversity have hampered Armenia’s goal of achieving economic sustainability.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) reports that levels of poverty in Armenia have halved from 56.1 percent in 1999 to 23.5 percent in 2008. Though promising, the hard fact is that about 48 percent of the country’s population was below the poverty line of $2 per day in 2008. In 2006, a severe lack of funding forced the World Food Programme to cease its food aid operations in Armenia. Already dire conditions for the country’s most vulnerable people worsened.
Several organizations have since taken up the task of aiding Armenia’s long-term development. USAID is the leading donor agency in Armenia, focusing operations on diversifying Armenia’s economy and agriculture, rebuilding infrastructures, fueling education and bolstering Armenia’s economic competitiveness.
In addition, USAID has partnered with several inter-World Bank and IFC Armenian initiatives to provide extensive technical assistance as well as monetary aid to the bolstering of water safety, road construction and the modernization of healthcare and the public sector.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has focused on increasing investments by $2.5 million to improving food safety measures of Armenian meat factories; improving food safety practices to international standards would bolster future international trade potentialities and competitiveness. The IFC has invested $271.5 million in the country over 44 projects spanning several diverse sectors.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization is also supporting the Armenian Government in the improvement of food safety; methods involving training government assessment personal and educating rural farmers. The World Bank has invested $1.746 million to dozens of projects in Armenia, focusing on job creation and again economical competitiveness. The World Bank has since renewed its partnership with the Republic of Armenia for 2014 to 2017, paying particular attention to rapidly reducing both urban and rural poverty.
Armenia is one of the international success stories of multi-lateral humanitarianism. The country that crumbled economically two decades ago has seen vast improvements and is on its way to economical sustainability and independence, but only as a result of international collaboration and investments.
– Malika Gumpangkum
Sources: Action Against Hunger, World Food Programme, World Bank, The Armenian Weekly, World Bank, World Food Programme, World Bank, United Nations Development Programme, USAID, USAID
Photo: Ararat Magazine