InterAction is an alliance of 180 U.S.-based international organizations, predominantly NGOs, which work around the world to aid the poor. InterAction brings these organizations together to capitalize on their collective resources, mobilize members, and serve as the premiere thought leader in the NGO community. InterAction’s mission is to eliminate extreme poverty, uphold human rights, safeguard a sustainable planet, and ensure human dignity for poor and vulnerable populations.
InterAction is the largest coalition of NGOs in the United States. Through collaboration and transparency, InterAction partners support one another. According to Samuel Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction, “As development shifts toward multi-stakeholder partnerships, U.S. international NGOs are an important ally to reduce suffering and combat global poverty. The many participants in development aid bring different perspectives to the table and use varying means to achieve their goals. Many of these approaches complement each other; but to ensure efficient and flexible development programs, governments, NGOs, and the private sector must build effective partnerships.” In addition, InterAction holds their partners accountable, not only to donors, but also to the general public. Upon membership with InterAction, partner organization are held to high standards of accountability and compliance with international aid effectiveness.
InterAction’s programs focus on international development, accountability, humanitarian action, and policy and action.
International Development: Programs related to international development are intended to uphold the standards of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and aid effectiveness principles. Such programs require participation from the private sector, governments, and citizens. One program, Post-2015, has studied the effectiveness of the MDGs and offered suggestions to the United Nations as to what should be done after 2015 to address extreme poverty.
Accountability & Learning: Programs related to Accountability and Learning empower citizens, governments and NGOs with up-to-date data related to program effectiveness and scope. InterAction believes that, by empowering citizens and NGOs with transparent and easily-accessible data, they can improve NGO programs and ultimately make them more efficient. Such programs include NGO mapping, PVO standards, and regular monitoring & evaluation.
Humanitarian Action: InterAction’s Humanitarian Action programs are guided by the principles of human dignity, neutrality, independence and impartiality. Without taking into account race, gender, ethnicity or political affiliation, humanitarian efforts can save lives and alleviate poverty. InterAction supports NGO humanitarian work by offering a framework for consultation, coordination and advocacy in such situations. In the past, InterAction partners have responded to crises on the Ivory Coast, Liberia, and the Horn of Africa. In June, InterAction pledged to invest $750 million in nutrition programs over the next five years. The program focuses on the critical first 1,000 days of a child’s life in which they are most vulnerable from malnutrition. InterAction estimates that for every dollar invested, $138 will be generated from improved health and increased productivity.
Policy & Advocacy: In addition, InterAction supports the policy and advocacy efforts of their partner NGOs by encouraging substantial US government investment in humanitarian aid. InterAction’s lobbyists and policy experts advocate for Budget and Appropriations, Foreign Assistance Reform, Development Policy and G8/G20. One such campaign, known as Not Just Numbers, seeks to counter the recent budget cuts to the State, Foreign Operations (SFOPs) bill. The bill, which was recently unveiled in the House of Representatives, cuts Foreign Aid by 15% from 40.1% to only 34.1%. The social media campaign, which can be found at #NotJustNumbers, seeks to get the Senate foreign aid fund allocation higher than it has been proposed in the House.
– Kelsey Ziomek
Sources: InterAction ThousandDays.org Post2015hlp.org
Global Poverty and US Foreign Policy
Defense, Diplomacy, and Development. These are the “three D’s” that the United States employs while dealing with other countries. While each brings a number of strengths and weaknesses, one must be the central focus of American foreign policy. This approach is development. By improving standards of living abroad, Americans not only improve the lives of others, but they improve their own lives. Through actions that work to increase development in foreign nations, the United States improves its national security, enhances its economy, improves the environment, and fulfills an ethical responsibility in working to eliminate poverty completely.
By ending global poverty, the United States enhances its national security. According to national security strategy documents employed by both the Bush and Obama administrations, the largest threats that the United States will be facing over the next two decades come “less from conquering states than from failing ones.” It is the failing states that likely lack the financial capital to construct sovereign governments or build strong economies. It is also within these fragile states that corruption and extremism can take hold due to a lack of effective governance. If left unchecked, these states can develop into a threat for other nations. By developing failed states into nations that can effectively rule over their own population and help foster construction of functional economies, the United States reduces the likelihood of having to deal with a conflict that emerged from a failed state’s internal disorder.
In addition to improving national security, ending global poverty improves the American economy. The United States has $500 billion invested in developing countries. Working to increase economic output in developing nations allows for higher returns on those investments while improving the standard of living for those who reside within those nations. As more people in the world earn higher wages, they can then afford to buy more expensive American goods. Ending global poverty, therefore, not only improves the lives of those abroad, but it also improves the lives of Americans.
Yet another advantage of ending global poverty is reducing the toll that humans put on the environment. In many impoverished areas, access to clean and green technologies is not economically feasible. Ending global poverty allows for improved access to these ecologically-friendly technologies. By enhancing standards of living, those living in developing nations are able to use cleaner technologies to fulfill their energy needs. These cleaner technologies can help reduce carbon emissions from developing nations, which improves the lives of everyone worldwide.
Finally, ending global poverty is an ethical action that the United States has the capability to accomplish. The United Nations has stated that extreme poverty can be eliminated completely by the year 2030. The United States, as the largest economic power in the world, can help contribute to this cause by aiding in the development process that needs to take place. By continuing to provide funds to developing nations, and by supporting economic growth in these areas, the United States can help make poverty history.
Ultimately, the goal of ending global poverty should be the primary focus of United States foreign policy. Working to end global poverty improves American national security by creating stability in foreign nations. It also improves the American economy by increasing the purchasing power of people abroad, providing them with the capability purchase American goods. Additionally, improved purchasing power provides people in foreign countries with improved access to cleaner technologies, which will help reduce the global impact of humans on the environment. And finally, working to end global poverty is an ethical action that the United States has the power to carry out. Improving standards of living abroad not only benefits Americans, but it benefits the entire globe. By working to end global hunger, the United States will help make poverty a thing of the past.
– Jordan Kline
Sources: Wilson Center, US News and World Report, The Guardian
Photo: Foreign Policy
InterAction 101
InterAction is an alliance of 180 U.S.-based international organizations, predominantly NGOs, which work around the world to aid the poor. InterAction brings these organizations together to capitalize on their collective resources, mobilize members, and serve as the premiere thought leader in the NGO community. InterAction’s mission is to eliminate extreme poverty, uphold human rights, safeguard a sustainable planet, and ensure human dignity for poor and vulnerable populations.
InterAction is the largest coalition of NGOs in the United States. Through collaboration and transparency, InterAction partners support one another. According to Samuel Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction, “As development shifts toward multi-stakeholder partnerships, U.S. international NGOs are an important ally to reduce suffering and combat global poverty. The many participants in development aid bring different perspectives to the table and use varying means to achieve their goals. Many of these approaches complement each other; but to ensure efficient and flexible development programs, governments, NGOs, and the private sector must build effective partnerships.” In addition, InterAction holds their partners accountable, not only to donors, but also to the general public. Upon membership with InterAction, partner organization are held to high standards of accountability and compliance with international aid effectiveness.
InterAction’s programs focus on international development, accountability, humanitarian action, and policy and action.
International Development: Programs related to international development are intended to uphold the standards of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and aid effectiveness principles. Such programs require participation from the private sector, governments, and citizens. One program, Post-2015, has studied the effectiveness of the MDGs and offered suggestions to the United Nations as to what should be done after 2015 to address extreme poverty.
Accountability & Learning: Programs related to Accountability and Learning empower citizens, governments and NGOs with up-to-date data related to program effectiveness and scope. InterAction believes that, by empowering citizens and NGOs with transparent and easily-accessible data, they can improve NGO programs and ultimately make them more efficient. Such programs include NGO mapping, PVO standards, and regular monitoring & evaluation.
Humanitarian Action: InterAction’s Humanitarian Action programs are guided by the principles of human dignity, neutrality, independence and impartiality. Without taking into account race, gender, ethnicity or political affiliation, humanitarian efforts can save lives and alleviate poverty. InterAction supports NGO humanitarian work by offering a framework for consultation, coordination and advocacy in such situations. In the past, InterAction partners have responded to crises on the Ivory Coast, Liberia, and the Horn of Africa. In June, InterAction pledged to invest $750 million in nutrition programs over the next five years. The program focuses on the critical first 1,000 days of a child’s life in which they are most vulnerable from malnutrition. InterAction estimates that for every dollar invested, $138 will be generated from improved health and increased productivity.
Policy & Advocacy: In addition, InterAction supports the policy and advocacy efforts of their partner NGOs by encouraging substantial US government investment in humanitarian aid. InterAction’s lobbyists and policy experts advocate for Budget and Appropriations, Foreign Assistance Reform, Development Policy and G8/G20. One such campaign, known as Not Just Numbers, seeks to counter the recent budget cuts to the State, Foreign Operations (SFOPs) bill. The bill, which was recently unveiled in the House of Representatives, cuts Foreign Aid by 15% from 40.1% to only 34.1%. The social media campaign, which can be found at #NotJustNumbers, seeks to get the Senate foreign aid fund allocation higher than it has been proposed in the House.
– Kelsey Ziomek
Sources: InterAction ThousandDays.org Post2015hlp.org
Mennonite Central Committee
When several U.S. Mennonite conferences convened in Elkhart, Indiana to found the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in 1920, their aim was modest in comparison to their current work. Originally focused on providing aid and assistance to famine-stricken Mennonites in Ukraine, Russia, and Turkey, MCC’s efforts now spread over more than 50 countries across five continents, and are no longer focused on aiding those of their own faith.
MCC works primarily by partnering with local organizations, both secular and religious, to distribute aid funded primarily by donations from Mennonite and Brethren in Christ Church communities in the United States and Canada. While MCC’s mission statement is inspired by and based upon Christian scripture, in practice their work is secular and is primarily focused on peace-building efforts, disaster relief, and sustainable community development.
The work done by MCC and its partners is as diverse as the needs of the specific communities in which they operate. Their food-relief programs include both aid and development based approaches. Last year the Canadian MCC supported over $1.3 million in food aid for people whose livelihoods have been disrupted by the ongoing conflict in Syria. Just one example of MCC’s more development-focused programs is a partnership with organization Global Service Corps that works towards educating Tanzanian farmers on sustainable agricultural methods that increase crop yield and prevent soil erosion and nutrient depletion. MCC funds similar agricultural education programs in 15 other countries around the world including Mozambique, Honduras, Palestine, and North Korea.
In addition to food relief, MCC also supports initiatives that provide easier access to safe drinking water, education for children, disaster relief, and HIV/AIDS related aid and education. One area of MCC’s work that has sparked some controversy, however, is their peace and justice related work in Palestine/Israel. MCC supports a number of Palestinian and Israeli organizations devoted to reaching a peaceful resolution of the Israeli and Palestinian conflict. Some of their partners are focused on ending what they view as destructive behavior on the part of Israel’s government, such as the Israeli Commission Against House Demolitions, and the Palestinian organization Stop The Wall. This has led to the Israel-based organization NGO Monitor decrying MCC as “promoting a radical pro-Palestinian agenda.”
While MCC’s efforts to end conflict and aid communities in Palestine/Israel have seemingly shed a negative light on the organization for some in this highly politicized arena, it is clear that their focus remains global. And, despite this wide focus, the Mennonite Central Committee continues to provide aid and funding to local organizations that have real tangible impact upon the lives of those less fortunate across the world.
– Coleman Durkin
Sources: Mennonite Central Committee, ReliefWeb, NGO Monitor
Picture: Mennonite Central Comittee
Sanitation Revolution In Nigeria
Betty Torkwase Ikyaator is a water and hygiene consultant for UNICEF Nigeria. Over the last few years, Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator has transformed the hygiene and sanitation standards across Nigeria. In 2008, only 15 communities were open defecation free. Now, more than 4,500 communities are open defecation free.
In a small village of 45 households, Betty Torkwase Ikyaator asks the children for a tour. Ms. Ikyaator asked them where they used the toilet. The children point to an open field, spewing with a disgusting stench, and giggle. Ms. Ikyaator and her team of eight take the children back into the village and gather a group of villagers for a simple presentation. She puts a plate of food, an open water pitcher and pile of excrement next to one another. The villagers watch as files move from the excrement to the pitcher and back again. A simple demonstration such as this makes evident the dangers of contamination, but more importantly, the importance of sanitation.
Shortly afterwards, she led a discussion with community leaders about hygiene and the importance of proper waste disposal systems. A committee of villagers is formed which commits itself to providing each household with a toilet of its own. Ms. Ikyaator leads these discussions to enlighten villagers in the most remote areas of Nigeria about the importance of sanitation. This is no easy task, but by showing villagers the dangers of improper sanitation, Ms. Ikyaator believes that she can empower these communities with the knowledge and desire to change their current living situations for the better.
According to Ms. Ikyaator, follow-up is important. “We keep coming back to the community, checking in on them, giving them encouragement and supporting the procress. But once they realize the benefit, especially in keeping their children healthy, it becomes part of their way of life.”
Ikyaator’s community-led program could prove beneficial to more than just Nigeria. In Africa, 62% of all people do not have access to a toilet. For every $1 spent on improvements to sanitation, $9 USD is typically yielded in reduced health costs, increasing returns on education and safeguarding water resources. Poor sanitation is linked to cholera, schistosomiasis, trachoma and diarrhea, the second largest killer of children in developing countries. Improved sanitation has a serious impact on health and social development. Conversely, sanitation is the most cost-effective major public health intervention to reduce childhood mortality. In addition, access to proper toilets creates physical environments which promote self-respect, dignity, and enhanced safety for women and children, many of whom suffer from sexual harassment and assault when defecating at night or in remote areas.
As of right now, the world is not on track to the meet MDG 10 to halve the proportion of the population without access to safe drinking water and sanitation. From 1990-2004, the WHO and UNICEF worked together to provide 1.2 billion more people with access to improved sanitation. But, the UN is 700 million people short of missing the MDG. And without proper sanitation and clean drinking water, poverty eradication and disease control are impossible.
– Kelsey Ziomek
Sources: UNICEF, Connect Nigeria, WHO, Global Poverty Project
Photo: The Guardian
Mozambique: Stepping Up Flood Protection Efforts
This past January, Mozambique experienced massive flooding which took the lives of 70 people, left hundreds homeless and impoverished, washed away bridges, and left little soil to grow corps. This was the worst flooding in 13 years.
“I helplessly watched all my cattle disappear into the red sea of rushing floodwater while our family house was collapsing, leaving us with the clothes on our backs,” said Rofina Mathe, a mother who lives off sustenance farming. “Now we are wondering what the future has in store for us.”
The Climate Investment Funds’ Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR) has provided funding to Mozambique in the amount of $91 million. PPCR is helping Mozambique prepare for future extreme weather. The hope is that the money will go towards enhancing infrastructure that will help the people of Mozambique be more prepared when a flood occurs.
PPCR efforts aim to upgrade 7 meteorological stations and 52 hydrological stations this year. By 2015, the number of stations should increase to 35 and 71 respectively. There will also be policies to enable hydrological and weather data, as well as allow information to be shared among agencies and farmers. Furthermore the funds will go towards improving the early warning systems that warn locals about coming floods.
Since the floods, the government has increased the amount of Climate Investment fund money allocated to developing flood protection efforts and improving hydrological and meteorological services to $15 million from $10 million. The Norwegian government is providing an additional $4.5 million.
“It will be a big step (towards) climate resilience. We are moving towards investment where we want to prove that climate resilience is achievable,” said Xavier Chavana, coordinator of the program at the Ministry of Planning and Development. “The funding is coming at the right time because people will learn and be able to deal with climate change.
– Catherine Ulrich
Sources: Alertnet, IRIN Africa
Photo: ASEM
4 Questions About LINGOs Answered
What is Learning in NGOs? Formed in 2005, Learning in NGOs (LINGOs) is a nonprofit, online educational community that brings together humanitarian organizations to learn new skills and share resources with each other. LINGOs uses a variety of technology including eLearning classrooms, virtual meeting space, online libraries, and project management tools in order to create a comprehensive educational environment for professionals.
Who uses this community? LINGOs is utilized by many large nonprofit organizations who want to increase the knowledge and performance of their employees and connect them to an expansive network of colleagues. To be eligible, NGOs must be working in more than 3 countries and be focused on humanitarian issues such as social justice, crisis relief, or development. Major organizations currently using LINGOs include Habitat for Humanity, International Justice Mission, and World Wildlife Fund.
What skills can you learn through LINGOs? Through partnership with many course providers, such as eCornell and Harvard Management Mentor Program, LINGOs supplies about 40 interactive learning programs to its NGO members. Educational topics to choose from include dealing with traumatic stress in humanitarian situations, project management skills, microfinance, and human rights protection. In addition, members may choose to participate in well-known certificate programs. Some courses require much more time and focus on homework than others, but all of them are designed to provide NGO employees with greater skills.
What are the other benefits of this service? LINGOs believes that using their eLearning platform saves nonprofit employees time and money to invest in what really matters to the organization. In addition to many networking opportunities, there are no transportation costs, and employees can learn virtually whenever they want and from wherever they are in the world. LINGOs estimates that organizations gain over $50,000 in value from their membership. Better skills and increased performance at non-governmental organizations means that they will be able to do even more good in the world of humanitarian aid.
– Caylee Pugh
Sources: LINGOs, NGO Learning
Photo: Lingofeeds,
National Association of Social Workers
Although most people are familiar with social workers and the various governmental agencies with which they work, not many are familiar with the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). This organization was founded in 1955 as a consolidation of seven other organizations for social workers in the United States.
According to the NASW’s website, it is dedicated to enhancing the professional growth and development of its members across the country, as well as to create and maintain professional standards and ethics and to promote effective social policies.
The NASW has published a standard Code of Ethics in order to maintain consistent practices amongst social workers throughout the United States. It emphasizes the need to forego discrimination, maintain respect for all clients, and to advocate for social justice.
The organization focuses its efforts on two major aspects of social work: professional practice and social advocacy. The NASW works to encourage social workers to adopt practices that lead to the ultimate goal of providing tangible services, effective counseling and psychotherapy, and assisting communities.
Each state has a chapter of the NASW, and there are also chapters in New York City, metropolitan Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and an international chapter.
The NASW also runs a NASW Press in order to publish scholarly articles and monographs about social work. In addition to its official newsletter, the NASW Press runs the quarterly journal Social Work.
Advocacy and promoting social justice is another major focus of the NASW. It seeks to engage social workers with grassroots advocacy campaigns for federal legislation, candidate elections, and social reform. Some of the current political issues that the NASW is addressing include health care reform, immigration, and drug policy reform.
In order to keep social workers informed about ways that they can engage in advocacy campaigns, the NASW has organized a listserv for members so that the NASW government relations staff can keep members informed of different advocacy efforts. The NASW also runs a CapWiz system that allows social workers to email or send letters to their members of Congress.
In 2012, the NASW issued a document to the Obama administration entitled “Building on Progressive Priorities: Sustaining Our Nation’s Safety Net.” The document calls on the Obama administration to promote and encourage bipartisan approaches to seek sustainable and effective solutions to benefit Americans in need. It asks for the administration to invest in social work efforts, expand social work research, rebuild the economy, strengthen health care, advance the rights of women and disabled people, care for children and the elderly, and protect veterans and their families.
Beyond simply being an organization designed to unite social workers across the country, the NASW seeks to promote a code of ethics for all social workers as well as to promote activism amongst its members in order to improve the lives of people in need across the country. The NASW serves as a centralized and effective way for social workers to engage in activism, promote valuable legislation, and better serve the populations that need them the most.
– Sarah Russell Cansler
Photo: White House
Malala Day: July 12, 2013
Perhaps no adolescent in the world is regarded with more widespread veneration than sixteen-year-old Malala Yousafzai, the well-known Pakistani advocate for female education who was shot by the Taliban for her convictions in October 2012. Seriously injured from the shooting, Malala was immediately flown to the United Kingdom to undergo a series of emergency operations. Miraculously, she recovered.
Just over a year later, Malala is back in school. However, her life is far from blithe—the urgency for access to education for all girls is ever present. Thus, Malala continues to ceaselessly advocate for girl’s rights, disseminating her message on the global stage.
In order to honor her prodigious efforts in the name of girls everywhere, the United Nations hosted Malala Day on July 12, 2013, her sixteenth birthday. The event—which evolved to be known as “Malala Day”—included a speech by Malala herself, pushing for female education everywhere.
Standing amongst the most powerful leaders in the world, Malala spoke confidently. She beseeched courage from the world’s women: “Let us pick up our books and pens. They are our most powerful weapons. One child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world. Education is the only solution.”
She then addressed the personal, demonstrating the unwavering nature of her principles: “The terrorists thought that they would change my aims and stop my ambitions but nothing changed in my life, except this: weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage were born.”
In a world where 115 schools were attacked last year in Mali, 165 in Yemen, 321 in occupied Palestine, and 167 in Afghanistan, Malala’s struggle has never been more pressing.
– Anna Purcell
Sources: AlJazeera, The Guardian
Photo: National Secular Society
TechnoServe – What is it?
On a trip to Adidome, Ghana in 1963, Ed Bullard, businessman by trade, was struck by the poverty in the area and decided to help. Five years later, Ed founded a non-profit to facilitate the spread of business knowledge and the strengthening of market systems. He named it TechnoServe, an abbreviation of the phrase “technology in the service of mankind.”
Bullard envisioned the organization as an innovative non-profit that would empower the poor by connecting them to the resources they need to thrive while also emphasizing a commitment to integrity. Although Bullard passed away in 1996, TechnoServe has stayed true to his mission, enabling millions of people worldwide and earning a perfect score in transparency from Charity Navigator.
TechnoServe works to improve market systems as a whole, particularly focusing on markets that have a clear unmet demand for a product or service, potential for growth that would benefit poor communities, and the opportunity to impact large groups of people. The organization sees market systems as comprised of three primary facets: direct market players (e.g. consumers, producers, middlemen), suppliers (e.g. producers of intermediary products such as chicken feed), and influential entities (e.g. governments, infrastructure providers).
Based on this understanding, TechnoServe works in three main ways. First, they develop capacity by enabling individuals and communities to improve their skills, share knowledge, and gain access to necessary technologies. They also strengthen market connections by fostering collaboration between market players, and integrating new farms and businesses into the market system. Finally, they improve the business environment and facilitate independent economies by addressing policy issues.
TechnoServe operates in over 40 countries and has affected an estimated 10 million people. Their innovative and adaptable programs have proven that businesses have the potential to empower people and raise them out of poverty. For example, cacao farmers in Peru have doubled their yields thanks to TechnoServe’s training on how to properly prune and fertilize their trees, improve their handling and processing after harvest, and earn higher market prices by selling their cacao together.
TechnoServe has an impressive history of partnerships with for-profit companies. A recently announced partnership with Nespresso is creating a more sustainable coffee supply. Work is taking place in Ethiopia and Kenya to provide support for smallholder farmers and improve supply chain efficiency, and in South Sudan to rebuild the coffee industry after decades of instability. Project Nurture, a partnership with The Coca-Cola Company and the Bill & Melinda Gates, helps foster a sustainable and profitable mango and passion fruit industry in Uganda and Kenya.
Over the past 55 years, TechnoServe has positively affected the lives of millions of people by connecting them to the tools they need to create successful businesses. Their commitment to integrity has earned them the trust of individuals, communities, corporations, governments, and fellow nonprofits. Meanwhile, their work has proven that improving markets systems reduces poverty and empowers the poor. Their success is an excellent model that should be praised, supported, and followed.
– Katie Fullerton
Sources: The New York Times, Charity Navigator, TechnoServe
Photo: Humanosphere
Restored Canal in Cambodia Brings Hope
The restored canal in Cambodia has transformed lives for small rice-farming communities that depend heavily on rice for their livelihoods. Rice farming is the main source of income for 80% of Cambodia’s 14.5 million population, however, for years, farmers in the region have only been able to expect one rice cycle. Thanks to the restored canal, those in the area have enjoyed three harvests in just nine months, increasing total rice yield three times over.
Previously, the canal that zigzags across the rice paddy in the southern region of Cambodia was shallow, meaning that farmers had to depend on rainwater for a successful crop yield. Rainfall can be erratic and unpredictable. Two years before the restoration of the canal started, a bad drought destroyed rice crops, leaving scores of people hungry. The restoration involved dredging and enlarging 47 kilometers of canal in order to feed water to more than 41,100 hectares of rice in 12 provinces. Now at 6.5 kilometers wide, the canal is linked to a lake, and provides farmers with enough water to grow rice in three cycles of three months each. As a result of the project, approximately 11,240 families across the 12 provinces will have better irrigation for farming.
The restoration of the canal was funded by Sweden and Australia, and the work was carried out by an NGO in conjunction with local authorities. It was launched in an effort to help communities in vulnerable areas manage the risks of climate change. With the impacts of climate change expected to adversely affect the production of rice, it has been a goal of the UNDP to put mechanisms in place that will help to guarantee food production and food security in the future.
With rice yields already on the increase, farmers in the region are beginning to feel the financial benefits. Lim Savoeun, a rice-farmer, said the increased profits have made a big difference for her family. “In the past, we struggled to scrape by and sometimes had to loan money from others to fill the gap [in the income],” she said. “But we can avoid that since we are now able to grow rice for often that before. As long as there is water, we will keep working tirelessly on our land. We can’t complain.”
– Chloë Isacke
Sources: UNDP, United Nations
Photo: New York Times