One of the more promising pieces of information being realized in the developing world deals with the immense economic potential of Africa. Already, the United States is beginning to see the nations there as equal partners in world economic affairs, and this isn’t by accident. Briefly, continued attention from nongovernmental aid organizations including the United Nations in conjunction with individual developments in Africa has, over years, vastly increased the capacity of Africans. People all over the continent are slowly winning the war against poverty. In a recent trip to the continent, President Obama made known the intention of the United States to become a global economic partner to help Africa realize its potential and rise up out of its poverty-stricken circumstances. Specifically, Mr. Obama touted the “Power Africa” initiative which would support the proliferation of electricity in the sub-Saharan region.
While the President did not visit Somalia during his trip, the progress made there captured his attention. Somalia is going through many of the same difficulties that plague other African countries such as drought, civil unrest, and economic conflict. With a lack of education and training, the people of Somalia struggle to overcome these situations.
Thankfully, with the help of the organization Adeso: African Development Solutions, many were able to escape their circumstances and become models of the immense potential Somalians hold.
Adeso has more than 20 years of history in Africa, being registered as a nonprofit group in Kenya, the United States, and England and Wales. They focus on garnering results by using the resources and processes that are familiar and accessible to those they are helping; drawing a solution from within a community. This is done with humanitarian aid, skill building, policy change, fostering communication, and working to bolster local economies.
A three year project undertaken in Somalia aimed at building entrepreneurship recently yielded very positive results. Adeso, using it’s Bakool Entrepreneurship Skills Support Action (BESSA), was able to help people diversify their skill sets and thereby increase income. Adeso helped to link national markets and gave farmers and small businesspeople more options in their work. Community-based groups taught new skills and literacy to people, increasing their capacity and understanding of the changes. The outcomes included households that were ready for economic shock, more steady incomes, and more mobility for women who now have more options and buying power.
Increased business is guaranteed to help the Somalian economy, especially in the wake of civil unrest. Despite lack of national cohesion and infrastructure, entrepreneurship can be a tool for uniting people. Mohamed Ali, a Somali refugee who has since returned to his homeland, has started the Iftiin Foundation to promote business values much like Adeso has. Citing that many Somalis are young and unemployed, building those skills and capacities early will promote peace and prosperity. Somalia has much to look forward to with partners like Adeso and the Iftiin Foundation.
– David Smith
Sources: Obama in Africa Adeso All Africa
Photo: Facebook
Sierra Leone Demands Maternal Health Improvements
In Sierra Leone, a new initiative is encouraging local communities to demand a higher level of health care services, in order to reduce the country’s high maternal mortality rates. One in every 21 women in Sierra Leone is at risk of death due to childbirth, and the campaign aims at empowering communities to push healthcare higher on the political agenda, by providing evidence to local authorities that they require higher standards.
The initiative, Evidence for Action (E4A), works in Sierra Leone and five other sub-Saharan countries, and brings together experts from academic institutions, internationally recognized advocacy and accountability coalitions and civil society organizations. E4A acknowledges while progress is possible, reducing infant and maternal mortality requires the effort of everyone involved. The leader of the project, Dr. Mohamed Yilla, said “The issue of babies and maternal health should no longer just be a government issue; it should be of community interest. The community can bring about the sustainable health system and maintain it.”
As part of E4A, the MamaYe! campaign is an program that advocates for safer maternal clinics. The campaign provides information to individuals and communities so that they can make more well-informed decisions about supporting maternal healthcare and encourage government authorities and politicians to improve healthcare services. The project collects data from clinics across the country, and draws attention to those that fall short on utilities such as electricity, running water and blood supply.
Last year, the program distributed 5,000 score cards to communities, rating clinics from all over the country. Yilla notes that thanks to the information, people started to ask questions and demand more from their government. Since the election in November 2012, Sierra Leone’s health spending has increased from 7.5% to 10.5%. Regarding the increase in spending, Yilla said, “Attribution is always difficult, but this advocacy work showed we were way below the budget target and contributed to that increase.”
Looking forward, Sierra Leone has huge prospects, partly due to a thriving mining industry and iron ore production. With an increase in GDP, along with more awareness concerning the condition of maternal healthcare facilities, Yilla is hopeful that investment in health will see major progress over the next two years.
– Chloe Isacke
Sources: The Guardian, Evidence for Action
Photo: New Security Beat
World Hepatitis Day
July 28th is World Hepatitis Day, a time meant for people to learn and think about the wide-spread impact of hepatitis and how they can help combat its prevalence. Throughout the world, more people are living with hepatitis than are living with HIV or any kind of cancer, yet hepatitis lacks the large amount of public awareness that these other diseases receive. World Hepatitis Day was established to help bring a larger discussion about hepatitis and how the disease impacts global health.
Over 500 million people live chronically with either Hepatitis B or C. This translates to roughly 1 out of 12 people in the world living with a chronic form of the illness. An additional 2 billion people suffer from Hepatitis B and 150 million from Hepatitis C. Of those infected with the disease, nearly one million will die each year.
Hepatitis B and C are both transmitted through contact with infected body fluids. Hepatitis B can be spread during unsafe sex, when using unsterilized needles, or from mother to baby during birth. Hepatitis C is spread through direct contact with infected blood. In both forms of hepatitis, the infected patient will experience a swelling of the liver and will be at extreme risk of developing other liver problems. Those contracting hepatitis have a greater chance of having liver damage or developing liver cancer in the future.
One of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of hepatitis and to encourage that infected patients seek treatment for the disease is through education. World Hepatitis Day works to educate the public by encouraging that people practice safe sex, are vaccinated against the disease, and avoid sharing razors, toothbrushes, or equipment for injecting drugs with one another. It also encourages healthcare providers to ensure that their equipment is adequately sterilized between patients to eliminate the virus from their tools.
Symptoms of hepatitis are very similar to symptoms of the flu. Those experiencing flu-like symptoms are encouraged to seek care from a medical professional for accurate diagnosis and treatment.
World Hepatitis Day events will be taking place all over the world on July 28th. The World Health Organization is hoping that the day will help raise hepatitis awareness and lead to increased availability of resources to help prevent the spread of the disease.
– Jordan Kline
Sources: Medical News Today, World Hepatitis Alliance Azerbaijan News
Photo: GEO
Reducing Your Carbon Footprint by Celebrating Ramadan
This year, the United Arab Emirates will connect the religious period of Ramadan with the theme of World Environment Day, “reduce your footprint”. Traditionally a time of introspection, fasting, and prayer, the Muslim holy month of Ramadan is an important time of year, and the impact of an environmental movement during this time could be very powerful.
The Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi has partnered with charitable organizations to donate 250 meals of untouched leftover food to homeless. The agency is committed to this goal for the next 5 years. The program will be introduced at the beginning of Ramadan and launched at the end of the month around August 7.
Organic waste accounts for nearly 395 of all total household waste in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. This organic waste actually increases the percentage of waste in landfills and leads to the increase in carbon emissions as well. According to UN experts, this type of waste in landfills emits large amounts of greenhouse gases. To combat this environmental issue, The Environmental Agency will use the month of Ramadan as a moral incentive to protect the environment by reducing food waste. Using a quote from the Quran, the agency encourages people to make only enough food for the guests at the table and to measure portions amongst other environmentally friendly actions.
By reducing food waste, more meals can be delivered to the poor. Quattro Group, a food service company, will provide restaurants with 250 uneaten meals from cafes and restaurants. These meals will be given to the Saving Grace Project, which will then hand them over to low-income communities. The food-handling team has established a timetable to collect and distribute meals efficiently, as well as ensuring that health and safety are top priorities.
In addition to the food donation program, the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi has launched its own awareness campaign to encourage people throughout the country to consider waste when making food decisions. Fozeya Ibrahim Al Mahmoud, director of the agency’s environmental outreach division, has stated that waste reduction is vital for a nation with limited food and water resources. To Mahmoud and other, Ramadan is the ideal time to begin to instill a new culture of reducing food waste.
The campaign incorporates religious values with 10 tips on reducing your carbon footprint. Tips range from planning meals, avoiding grocery shopping when hungry, composting organic waste, to donating food to those in need.
– Grace Zhao
Sources: Muslim Village, The National
Photo: Washington Post
Global Poverty Could End by Giving Women Land
Why Women?
A lack of distinct land ownership laws leads to poorly cultivated land and hungry families who are forced to work as day laborers or indentured servants. This weighs even more heavily on women, who are rarely given the opportunity to act as a land owner. In addition to benefiting the women themselves, recent studies have shown that giving land rights to women can have a direct impact on the elimination of global poverty.
Women Can Bring Home The Bacon Too
Rural women play a large part in agricultural production. According to the UN, women workers are involved in fisheries, agro-forestry, and wild-harvesting systems. They work along-side men to produce commercial crops, manage livestock and grow vegetable gardens. However, women also have the added burden of caring for their families.
Despite their crucial work in both production and family well-being, rural women are often under recognized laborers. Most rural women are unpaid or highly underpaid. This means that rural women frequently work in “unofficial” or informal agricultural settings. In India alone, 34% of informal women’s employment is made up of unpaid agricultural work. In Egypt, the percentage comes in at a staggering 85% compared to the 10% for men. Furthermore, many institutions do not recognize or define rural women’s work as economically active employment.
However, the UN is now calling for the economic empowerment of women as a means to combat global poverty. Economic empowerment can first come through the recognition of women’s land rights. Land ownership leads to greater respect, status and increased decision-making power for women.
Research indicates that land ownership can lead farming communities to reinvest in improving their production. This no doubt contributes to greater food security alongside increased welfare for individual families. Research also indicates that when women have land rights, there is an even greater improvement upon food security and hunger. This is largely due to the fact that women are more likely to focus on sustainable crops for their families as opposed to the riskier cash crops that are exported out of the nation.
Women with rights to their own land are also more likely to have a higher status and higher income within their community. This kind of empowerment enables women to make decisions that ensure improved nutrition for themselves and their children. Additionally, women with higher social standings are also likely to be healthier themselves. The effect of such is increased infant survival rate and higher birth-weight children. In fact, research on child malnourishment in Nepal suggests that infants born to mothers that own land are half as likely to be born critically underweight.
Ultimately, increased support for land rights coincides with Millennium Development goals to reduce poverty. But more importantly, land rights give hard-working rural women a chance to better enjoy the fruits of their labor.
– Grace Zhao
Sources: The Christian Science Monitor UN
Photo: Declan McCullagh
What is the LRA?
The Lord’s Resistance Army is a rebel group led by Joseph Kony that was formed in 1989 in Northern Uganda to fight the Ugandan government. The LRA is widely regarded as one of the most violent and brutal groups in the world as it regularly, murders, rapes and plunders villages. At the very height of the group’s power, 2 million people in northern Uganda were displaced.
The Lord’s Resistance Army began as a religious movement led by Alice Lakwena. Lakwena claimed the Holy Spirit was leading her to overthrow the Ugandan government. At the time, popular resentment of the government helped to intensify support for her Holy Spirit Movement. However, soon the government was able to depose of Lakwena and push back the rebel group into the bush.
However, the movement did not end with Lakwena. A man named Joseph Kony, who claimed to be Lakwena’s cousin, revitalized the group and unleashed a new reign of terror. Kony rechristened the group as the Lord’s Resistance Army. Claiming to follow the 10 commandments, Kony’s LRA gained a cult-like following and pursued its original goal of overthrowing the Ugandan government. However, Kony quickly began to lose support for his rebel group so he was forced to resort to abducting thousands of children to serve as soldiers.
The LRA has become notorious for utilizing child soldiers. Rebels often disguise themselves as Ugandan military forces and attack villagers. The LRA has slaughtered thousands. Others they mutilate to serve as warnings to the government and villages. Any captives, many of which are children, are violently indoctrinated and forced into slavery as soldiers, cooks, or sex slaves. To keep captives from escaping, the LRA often forces them to kill their own family members. Those who do not do so are killed off.
Today the LRA continues to dwindle in size due to military pressure and defection.
The UN Security Council has condemned the LRA repeatedly. In 2005, the International Criminal Court also issued arrest warrants for the LRA’s top leaders for crimes against humanity, including Joseph Kony. Many attempts have been made to reach a peace agreement between the LRA and the Ugandan government. However, Joseph Kony has avoided such meetings each time. Thus today the Ugandan government continues to battle the LRA. In October 2011, the 100 U.S. military advisors from Army Special Forces were deployed to Uganda with the intention of providing training and assistance to fight the LRA.
Currently, the LRA remains one of the most elusive and least understood rebel groups in the world. Yet its crimes hardly go unnoticed. However, with increasing foreign pressure and foreign aid, the LRA faces a bleaker future.
– Grace Zhao
Sources: LRA Crisis tracker, FAS, Department of State, Enough Project
Photo: TCON
Is a High-rise Africa Realistic?
Popular visions of an agriculturally-centered and unmodernized Africa may now be a thing of the past. In recent years, international property developers and real estate moguls have shown interest in developing sizable urbanized settlements and satellite cities in African nations creating a possible high-rise Africa. These plans would include skyscrapers and boardwalks — the common American “white-picket-fence” ideal transplanted into major African metropolises.
However, many experts on city planning are critical of these planned satellite cities, which would largely be built near already established metropolises. Vanessa Watson, a professor of city planning, dismisses urban projects like Konza Techno City in Kenya and Eko Atlantic in Nigeria as “urban fantasies.” Critics cite the example of Kilamba, an urban project in Angola that is similar to those currently being developed in other African nations, which became a “ghost town” due to the unsustainable nature of the project. The town simply failed to deliver on its promise of affordable housing.
In spite of the fears that these urban developments would geographically widen the gap between the rich elite and the poor masses in Africa, many of the projects are well underway. Alfred Mutua, the governor of the county in which Konza City will be built, stated that he “doesn’t want bad politics to slow down this project and we are not going to allow people with vested interests to undermine the construction of Konza”. 1.3 billion Kenyan shillings have already been allocated for the development of Konza this year, which is seen as the flagship of the country’s beloved development program called “Kenya Vision 2030”.
Although the developers of projects like Konza are patiently aware of the criticism launched against their programs, they are steadfast in their belief that the satellite cities will only be a boon to Africa. Marketed as the “Silicon Savannah,” Konza is adamantly described as a “sustainable, world-class technology hub and a major economic driver for the nation” on the official website.
– Sagar Desai
Sources: CNN Konza City
Photo: International Business Times
What is Guatemala’s “Milk Program”?
Guatemala is located in Central America, with borders of Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador. The country has an overall population of nearly 15 million people, and faces a chronic malnutrition rate for children under 5 of about 50%, which is incredibly high. In fact, the malnutrition rates of children in Guatemala are the 4th highest in the entire world. Guatemala helps account for a high amount of stunting, which is the inability to grow; as in, children are unable to fully grow due to lack of nutrition and proper food. In indigenous areas of Guatemala, chronic undernutrition affects about 70% of the population. Overall, over half of Guatemalans (53%) live in poverty, and about 13% live in extreme poverty. Children and women have the worst of it. There is also food insecurity and economic insecurity. Clearly, something needs to be done in order to reduce malnutrition within the country and to reduce the incredibly high rate of child mortality and stunting.
Save the Children is an organization that just launched a milk program in Guatemala in order to fight the chronic malnutrition. Save the Children fights for the rights and lives of vulnerable children and families; the organization takes part in several focus areas including emergency relief and long-term recovery programs. So far, Save the Children has help over 125 million children in almost 120 countries by working with partners and running programs to help them have better access to food and water, and to fight for their rights. Save the Children’s priorities are to “ensure that children in need are safe, educated and healthy, and are better to attain their rights.” In the case of the milk program in Guatemala, the program is meant to help children be healthy, which would result in giving them a better chance at life and success as they grow older.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. is Save the Children’s partner in the milk program in Guatemala, and so is USAID, the United States Agency for International Development. GMCR has award-winning coffee and is the creater of the popular Keurig brewing technology. Most importantly in the context of this article, they have business practices that reflect Corporate Social Responsibility. They aim to give their customers “convenience, variety and consistent great taste.” They were founded 32 years ago, and have recently released their 2012 sustainability report. Basically, GMCR wants to give back to the community, both in North America and the entire world. They have a business – “Brewing a Better World Together” – and wish to improve the world through it. Part of the way they are doing this is by supporting the milk program in Guatemala.
Together, Save the Children and GMCR launched the milk program in Guatemala; they opened a goat-raising center in Guatemala so that the goat milk program can fight child malnutrition. This center will raise goats in order to get goat milk, which will then be distributed to the families that are facing chronic, extreme malnutrition. In all, over 2,000 families will benefit from the goat milk program. In addition to the goat-raising center, Save the Children and GMCR will provide education of making money and sustainability; they will educate the families about selling surplus milk, and of making cheese and yogurt from the milk. The USAID Mission Director Kevin Kelly commented that the goat center would “generate income and food security among the extreme poor in Gatemala’s Western Highlands.” This center is just one small step towards fighting malnutrition in Guatemala.
– Corina Balsamo
Sources: The Examiner, GMCR, Save the Children, World Food Programme
Photo: Universal Giving
What is Adeso?
One of the more promising pieces of information being realized in the developing world deals with the immense economic potential of Africa. Already, the United States is beginning to see the nations there as equal partners in world economic affairs, and this isn’t by accident. Briefly, continued attention from nongovernmental aid organizations including the United Nations in conjunction with individual developments in Africa has, over years, vastly increased the capacity of Africans. People all over the continent are slowly winning the war against poverty. In a recent trip to the continent, President Obama made known the intention of the United States to become a global economic partner to help Africa realize its potential and rise up out of its poverty-stricken circumstances. Specifically, Mr. Obama touted the “Power Africa” initiative which would support the proliferation of electricity in the sub-Saharan region.
While the President did not visit Somalia during his trip, the progress made there captured his attention. Somalia is going through many of the same difficulties that plague other African countries such as drought, civil unrest, and economic conflict. With a lack of education and training, the people of Somalia struggle to overcome these situations.
Thankfully, with the help of the organization Adeso: African Development Solutions, many were able to escape their circumstances and become models of the immense potential Somalians hold.
Adeso has more than 20 years of history in Africa, being registered as a nonprofit group in Kenya, the United States, and England and Wales. They focus on garnering results by using the resources and processes that are familiar and accessible to those they are helping; drawing a solution from within a community. This is done with humanitarian aid, skill building, policy change, fostering communication, and working to bolster local economies.
A three year project undertaken in Somalia aimed at building entrepreneurship recently yielded very positive results. Adeso, using it’s Bakool Entrepreneurship Skills Support Action (BESSA), was able to help people diversify their skill sets and thereby increase income. Adeso helped to link national markets and gave farmers and small businesspeople more options in their work. Community-based groups taught new skills and literacy to people, increasing their capacity and understanding of the changes. The outcomes included households that were ready for economic shock, more steady incomes, and more mobility for women who now have more options and buying power.
Increased business is guaranteed to help the Somalian economy, especially in the wake of civil unrest. Despite lack of national cohesion and infrastructure, entrepreneurship can be a tool for uniting people. Mohamed Ali, a Somali refugee who has since returned to his homeland, has started the Iftiin Foundation to promote business values much like Adeso has. Citing that many Somalis are young and unemployed, building those skills and capacities early will promote peace and prosperity. Somalia has much to look forward to with partners like Adeso and the Iftiin Foundation.
– David Smith
Sources: Obama in Africa Adeso All Africa
Photo: Facebook
5 Statistics About Child Poverty
Though poverty is measured according to dimensions that include mortality, morbidity, hunger, sickness, illiteracy, homelessness and powerlessness, these measures do not fully encompass the conditions of children living in poverty. Rarely differentiated from poverty in general, child poverty affects individuals at the most crucial stage of their lives, hindering not only their physical development but also their emotional development. Listed below are five statistics about child poverty.
– Katie Bandera
Sources: UNICEF DoSomething.org Global Issues
Photo: Flickr
Top 5 Global Development Indicators
There are many global development indicators that are worth mentioning, however the five apex indicators are discussed below.
Top 5 Global Development Indicators
– Thomas van der List
Sources: FAO, The Economist, World Bank
Photo: The Guardian