In a message to his donors, Helping Hand for Relief and Development (HHRD) CEO Javaid Siddiqui stated, “We are committed to extending a helping hand to our brothers and sisters in need around the world and hope you will continue to be our partner in this journey of service to humanity.” Though the organization has worked in more than 85 countries, Helping Hand has consistently engaged in refugee work in Jordan. Its work in the country is not only admirable but also a reflection of its impactful, long-term service to all of humanity.
In 2013, HHRD established an office in Amman, Jordan as the headquarters for HHRD-MENA. HHRD-MENA is a branch of Helping Hand that focuses on providing relief to the Middle East and North Africa. Since then, Helping Hand has provided clean water, proper food, education, development programs and stable homes for different Syrian and Palestinian refugees throughout Jordan.
Refugees in Jordan
Surrounded by countries suffering from conflict and disaster, Jordan hosts the second-highest number of refugees when comparing population sizes. Since the Syrian war in 2011, it has almost 1.4 million Syrian refugees. As of 2019, around 650,000 of them still have refugee status. Though most of the 2 million Palestinian refugees in Jordan have received citizenship, 370,000 are currently living in refugee camps in different parts of Jordan. The remaining 84,000 refugees currently living in Jordan are from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan.
Most of the Syrian refugees live in urban areas and 85% of them are living below the poverty line. Many of the Syrian and Palestinian refugees in the city are not only suffering from poverty but also psychological trauma and lack of educational opportunities. Around 10,000 Syrian refugees are between the border of Syria and Jordan. They live in informal settlements, where access to basic needs and services is minimal and relies on humanitarian aid.
In an interview with The Borgen Project, Abdullah Sheikh, a participant in Helping Hand’s annual Youth for Jordan trip, described the different refugee situations he witnessed during his 2018 visit. “There are various camps, like the organized ones run by the government, which are usually huge. The camps we went to were people who would cross the border and then prop up a makeshift tent. And when I say tent I mean like a towel or a big blanket and a pair of sticks or something.”
Building Temporary Homes
According to Abdullah Sheikh, part of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan involves providing decent shelter to refugees living outside the organized, official camps. During his visit, he assisted in the establishment of what Helping Hand calls a “micro-home.” These caravans replace the handmade shelter of the refugees, providing them with a temporary home until they are safe to return to their homeland. Within the micro-homes are two rooms, a small kitchen, running water and a toilet. Each home costs $5,000.
To install the homes, the team uses a crane to lift the micro-home out of the back of a truck. Then, all the members work together to place the home on rocks to keep it stable. Since the start of the project in 2016, Helping Hand has established 1,000 micro-homes. These homes have benefitted more than 5,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan as well as Lebanon.
Supplying Food and Water
When describing the food situation for the refugees, Abdullah Sheikh noted that it was “different depending on the camp.” He explained, “The [unofficial camps] in the desert, they really just rely on whatever people give them. [The refugees] just have a big tank of water in the middle of the camp and Helping Hand comes and refills it. And the food, Helping Hand would just bring them bread, oil and other things they can use to make food.”
Helping Hand’s food refugee work in Jordan also includes a Ramadan Iftar Tent. There, it provides Iftar meals for families every year. In 2020, it provided 160 families with proper meals. Besides the Iftar Tent, Helping Hand also distributes food packages and donated meat to refugees throughout Jordan all year round. In just May 2020, the team distributed a total of 3,000 food packages. Helping Hand also provides drinking water within the food packages.
Developing Programs and Schools
A big part of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan involves educating children. Another major component is providing resources for adults to develop life skills. Just in 2019, Helping Hand provided 800 men and women in Jordan with life skill training through its development program.
Many of the women participated in the development programs near the HHRD-MENA office in Amman. The purpose of this specific program is to teach women different careers to earn a living. These careers include sewing, other crafts and computer training. With knowledge of finance and different skills, the women from this program can secure an income by opening up their own businesses and/or obtaining a job. Abdullah Sheikh says that his team had the opportunity to buy some of the products of the current trainees.
Through the Education Support Program, Helping Hand also provided 1,590 Syrian refugee children with basic education scholarships and tutoring in 2020. The organization gave seven students four-year scholarships to the University of Jordan.
Spending Time with Children
“My favorite part was when we played soccer in the camps in Mafraq near the Syrian border, with some of the kids there. It was just fun,” said Abdullah Sheikh. Throughout his visit with Helping Hand, he spent a lot of time playing with the refugee children his team came in contact with. “Some of the camps we went to twice. So, we bought [the kids] a soccer ball and then played with them again, because the ball they had was super messed up.”
During their visit to the refugee orphanages located in Amman, Jordan, the 2018 Youth for Jordan team went to a strip mall with some of the orphans. There, they played games and enjoyed rides. Another one of the days, the team spent the day with young Palestinian boys in a skills development program. Later during the week, they drove out to the Dead Sea where they hung out at the beach.
From building homes to providing support to helping children, all of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan is a reflection of the organization’s hard work and dedication. In Jordan and around the world, humanitarian organizations have the ability to make a significant impact on the lives of refugees.
– Maryam Tori
Photo: Flickr
IMF’s Role in Preventing a Post-Pandemic Debt Crisis
With the 2020 onset of the COVID-19 pandemic came a drastic slow in economic activity and collapse in government revenue, prompting a widespread increase in both government and private debt levels. Currently, at the beginning of 2021, with no concrete prediction for the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses and the private sector continue to accumulate great foreign currency debt. There is a steady increase in government loans for funding and there has been at least a 20% reduction in 2020 remittances from global citizens and diasporas. Developing nations report skyrocketing borrowing needs that are usually that advanced economies can usually only manage. Additionally, central bank purchases of corporate bonds to boost the money supply of local firms have stifled the debt ratings of local firms in emerging markets and developing economies. As a result, our world is facing rising budget pressures, which a wave of sovereign debt downgrades that are likely to lead to a post-pandemic debt crisis are accompanying.
Context and the Role of the IMF
In comparison to the end of 2019, in addition to already unusually elevated figures and debt distress, expectations have determined that 2021 debt ratios will increase by 20% GDP in advanced economies, 10% in emerging market economies and 7% in low-income economies. Unfortunately, the emerging and developing world have much smaller borrowing capacities, and so for some, a post-pandemic debt crisis appears imminent.
In the past, debt crises have set the global economy into long-lasting instability. In order to prevent such an economic downfall on top of a global health crisis, many of the leading international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have prepared to help keep nations afloat. While the IMF has provided over $30 billion in emergency funding to its member countries in a response to the pandemic, it has also given direct attention to implementing measures that contribute to debt-service relief. Here are some of these measures.
4 Measures to Contribute to Debt-Service Relief
Cause for Optimism
With the measures above, as well as the collaborative effort of the entire globe, according to the IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, “the global economy is beginning to climb back from the depths of the crisis, but this calamity is far from over.”
Thankfully, the IMF continues to show its commitment to providing financial support, capacity development and debt relief, especially for its poorest, most affected and vulnerable member countries in this unprecedented time, as the world works to stave off an impending debt crisis.
– Rebecca Harris
Photo: Flickr
Changes in Foreign Aid to Greece from 2010-2020
The history of foreign aid to Greece dates back to the late 1940s and the Truman administration when the Marshall Plan underwent enactment. Although the Marshall Plan funding came to an end in 1951, the European nations collected almost $13 billion in aid. This money acquired shipments in fuel, food, machinery and more, creating investments in industrial capacity in Europe.
According to The George C. Marshall Foundation, between April 3, 1948, and June 30, 1952, the Marshall Plan provided grants to Greece in the amount of $706.7 million. Today, that would add over $69.7 million.
Council on Foreign Relations
According to the Council on Foreign Relations, in 1957, a common market-free area of trade emerged known as The Treaty of Rome. It led to the acceptance of Greece as the “10th member of the European Economic Community (EEC).”
The Council on Foreign Relations reported that in 1992, 12 member states of the ECC signed the Treaty of Maastricht forming the European Union (E.U.) and the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). This led to the 1999 Euro currency in existence today.
However, as the Council on Foreign Relations reported, in 1999 Greece could not adopt the Euro currency because it could not meet the economic rules that the Maastricht established. All members must meet the fiscal criteria. This means inflation has to be, “below 1.5 percent, a budget deficit below 3 percent, and a debit-to-GDP ratio below 60 percent.”
How Geography Affects Foreign Aid
The need for foreign aid to Greece continues due to its geographic location. Greece is a destination for refugees and asylum seekers. According to The Library of Congress LAW, the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the E.U. in 2011 found Greece was lacking in its ability to handle the influx of refugees. More reception centers are necessary to house them.
A plan proposal in 2010 led to more services for asylum seekers in Greece. Although the plan ultimately failed, some things underwent adoption such as Law 3907. It supplied more services such as appeals authority and first-line reception. In 2015, the influx of refugees overwhelmed Greece’s already inefficient system to fingerprint, register and house asylum seekers.
The humanitarian needs such as access to healthcare and education are great in reception centers for refugees. In 2016 the White House Press Secretary announced, “Since the start of Europe’s refugee crisis, the United States has contributed over $44 million in humanitarian aid through international organizations.”
Recent Actions
From 2014 to 2020, the Commission and European Union increased funding to Greece for asylum and immigration.
As a result, the Migration and Integration Fund provided Greece with €294.5 million (about $328 million). The Internal Security Fund – Borders and Visas presented €214.8 million (about $240 million). Another contribution under the European Refugee Fund was emergency funding of over €50.6 million Euros (about $56.5 million).
In 2019, the U.S. assisted Greece’s military when it signed a mutual defense cooperation agreement. The intention of this agreement is for the U.S. to spend on Greece’s military infrastructure.
The need to send foreign aid to Greece continues to grow especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. As Aljazeera reported, in September 2020, Greek authorities were still having trouble with overcrowding. It is still a struggle to house every migrant and refugee but with more funding, a change can hopefully occur.
– Kathleen Shepherd-Segura
Photo: Flickr
Why Syrian Children Feel Their Country Is Unsafe
The year 2021 marks 10 years since the start of the war for Syria and its citizens. This war started shortly after Syrians launched the anti-government Arab Spring uprisings. Authorities swiftly took action and pushed back against Syrian citizens, leading to the deaths of over 500,000 people and 55,000 children, and causing Syrian children to feel their country is unsafe.
Product of War
This war scattered Syrian children throughout several countries as refugees. A Save the Children report has displayed testimonies from over 1,900 children ages 3-17, who are currently located in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and the Netherlands. About 87% of these children say they can never see themselves returning to Syria. Meanwhile, one in three children is still living in Syria. They go on daily runs through rumble-torn streets, collecting freshwater from large coolers and sitting in abandoned buildings. Some even sit with their parents at their still open food carts in front of bombed-down buildings. Understandably, these children wish they were anywhere else.
While many children in Syria do not feel safe, often children who have relocated do not feel safe either. Many children who left Syria with their families now find themselves in refugee camps, crammed into small tents with a dozen other refugees. The children feel that life is about nothing but war these days and wish to go to a place where they can be safe with toys, warm beds, plenty of food and education.
Lack of Education
About 42% of Syrian children did not attend school at the start of the war. In fact, Syria does not offer education to more than 3 million children. Meanwhile, only 31% of Syrian children have access to education in Lebanon and only 49% have access to education in Jordan. Additionally, about 25% of the schools undergo continuous bombing. As the war continues, poverty is continuing to rise, schools are experiencing destruction and teachers are becoming scarce. These circumstances help explain why Syrian children feel their country is unsafe.
Without schools, many children who still live in Syria feel no attachment to their homes and their communities. Children who still live in Syria and partook in the Save the Children survey said that they have no connection to Syria, and 58% of those surveyed have said that they experience discrimination. In fact, 44% of the children living in Lebanon and Jordan have experienced discrimination in their neighborhoods and schools.
A Better Future
When asked what they wish for the most, 26% of the children wished for a better future without violence. However, even after fleeing war-torn Syria, a country that many Syrian children feel is unsafe, refugee children frequently face extreme poverty. In Lebanon, which is facing an economic crisis, rapid spreading COVID-19 cases and an overabundance of refugees, about nine out of 10 Syrian refugees are struggling with severe poverty.
Some hope exists, though. About 70% of Syrian refugee children in the Netherlands have been receiving an education, with opportunities and freedom. About eight in 10 of these children say they wish to stay in the Netherlands where they continue to feel safe. However, while some children have been able to get opportunities for a better life, it is important to remember that millions of Syrian children are still in peril.
Solutions
Organizations like UNICEF are doing their part to help children who have relocated due to the violence in Syria. In fact, UNICEF’s efforts have led to polio vaccines, nutrition plans, safe drinking water, education services, infection prevention, a push for educational services and an expansion of social services and social skills to ensure Syrian children have the best tools for a better future. Through efforts like UNICEF’s, hopefully, the situation for Syrian children will improve.
– Claire Olmstead
Photo: Flickr
3 Standout Children’s Programs in Vietnam
Children of Vietnam
Children of Vietnam was founded in 1998 by two friends bringing essential items to children and families by scooter. These two individuals, Ben Wilson and Luong Thi Huong, rode all the way to the Vietnam countryside. They brought food, medicine and clothing to ensure a brighter future for children growing up in poverty.
Today, Children of Vietnam has grown into an NGO that aims to “assist children, families and communities in breaking the cycle of poverty, ill health and homelessness.” It has several initiatives offering aid to children in Vietnam including education, healthcare, housing and nutrition. It also offers support systems for struggling single mothers and children with disabilities.
In 2019, Children of Vietnam successfully completed its Cycling Out Child Poverty tour. The organization was able to raise $146,974 to help Vietnamese children living in poverty.
Room to Read
Room to Read is an organization that aims to empower millions of children in low-income communities by improving literacy and gender equality in education. It operates in developing countries like Tanzania, South Africa, Bangladesh and Cambodia. Almost 90% of the staff are from the countries the organization works in. The organization particularly prioritizes the education of girls, ensuring girls receive equal opportunities for education, no matter their financial background. Room to Read supports young girls so that they can finish secondary school and learn essential life skills that can help them progress and advance.
The organization launched in Vietnam in 2001. Since then, 1.1 million children in Vietnam have benefited from the program. Almost 1,000 schools in Vietnam partnered with the Room to Read Literacy Program and 98% of students passed the program’s “gatekeeping exam” and advanced to the next level in their schooling.
Save the Children
Another organization that works to help children in multiple countries is Save the Children. Founded in 1919, the mission of Save the Children is to ensure a future for children where they grow up healthy, safe and educated. Working in more than 100 different countries, Save the Children has helped more than 144 million children around the world in 2019 alone.
Working in Vietnam since 1990, Save the Children has launched several initiatives to give Vietnamese children the opportunity for quality education, a healthier life and protection from harm. Save the Children has positively affected more than seven million Vietnamese children in 2020. In specific, Save the Children ensured:
These standout children’s programs in Vietnam have made significant strides in improving the lives of Vietnamese children over the years. From health to education and safety, organizations have committed to protecting vulnerable children.
– Celia Brocker
Photo: Flickr
Helping Hand’s Refugee Work in Jordan
In a message to his donors, Helping Hand for Relief and Development (HHRD) CEO Javaid Siddiqui stated, “We are committed to extending a helping hand to our brothers and sisters in need around the world and hope you will continue to be our partner in this journey of service to humanity.” Though the organization has worked in more than 85 countries, Helping Hand has consistently engaged in refugee work in Jordan. Its work in the country is not only admirable but also a reflection of its impactful, long-term service to all of humanity.
In 2013, HHRD established an office in Amman, Jordan as the headquarters for HHRD-MENA. HHRD-MENA is a branch of Helping Hand that focuses on providing relief to the Middle East and North Africa. Since then, Helping Hand has provided clean water, proper food, education, development programs and stable homes for different Syrian and Palestinian refugees throughout Jordan.
Refugees in Jordan
Surrounded by countries suffering from conflict and disaster, Jordan hosts the second-highest number of refugees when comparing population sizes. Since the Syrian war in 2011, it has almost 1.4 million Syrian refugees. As of 2019, around 650,000 of them still have refugee status. Though most of the 2 million Palestinian refugees in Jordan have received citizenship, 370,000 are currently living in refugee camps in different parts of Jordan. The remaining 84,000 refugees currently living in Jordan are from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan.
Most of the Syrian refugees live in urban areas and 85% of them are living below the poverty line. Many of the Syrian and Palestinian refugees in the city are not only suffering from poverty but also psychological trauma and lack of educational opportunities. Around 10,000 Syrian refugees are between the border of Syria and Jordan. They live in informal settlements, where access to basic needs and services is minimal and relies on humanitarian aid.
In an interview with The Borgen Project, Abdullah Sheikh, a participant in Helping Hand’s annual Youth for Jordan trip, described the different refugee situations he witnessed during his 2018 visit. “There are various camps, like the organized ones run by the government, which are usually huge. The camps we went to were people who would cross the border and then prop up a makeshift tent. And when I say tent I mean like a towel or a big blanket and a pair of sticks or something.”
Building Temporary Homes
According to Abdullah Sheikh, part of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan involves providing decent shelter to refugees living outside the organized, official camps. During his visit, he assisted in the establishment of what Helping Hand calls a “micro-home.” These caravans replace the handmade shelter of the refugees, providing them with a temporary home until they are safe to return to their homeland. Within the micro-homes are two rooms, a small kitchen, running water and a toilet. Each home costs $5,000.
To install the homes, the team uses a crane to lift the micro-home out of the back of a truck. Then, all the members work together to place the home on rocks to keep it stable. Since the start of the project in 2016, Helping Hand has established 1,000 micro-homes. These homes have benefitted more than 5,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan as well as Lebanon.
Supplying Food and Water
When describing the food situation for the refugees, Abdullah Sheikh noted that it was “different depending on the camp.” He explained, “The [unofficial camps] in the desert, they really just rely on whatever people give them. [The refugees] just have a big tank of water in the middle of the camp and Helping Hand comes and refills it. And the food, Helping Hand would just bring them bread, oil and other things they can use to make food.”
Helping Hand’s food refugee work in Jordan also includes a Ramadan Iftar Tent. There, it provides Iftar meals for families every year. In 2020, it provided 160 families with proper meals. Besides the Iftar Tent, Helping Hand also distributes food packages and donated meat to refugees throughout Jordan all year round. In just May 2020, the team distributed a total of 3,000 food packages. Helping Hand also provides drinking water within the food packages.
Developing Programs and Schools
A big part of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan involves educating children. Another major component is providing resources for adults to develop life skills. Just in 2019, Helping Hand provided 800 men and women in Jordan with life skill training through its development program.
Many of the women participated in the development programs near the HHRD-MENA office in Amman. The purpose of this specific program is to teach women different careers to earn a living. These careers include sewing, other crafts and computer training. With knowledge of finance and different skills, the women from this program can secure an income by opening up their own businesses and/or obtaining a job. Abdullah Sheikh says that his team had the opportunity to buy some of the products of the current trainees.
Through the Education Support Program, Helping Hand also provided 1,590 Syrian refugee children with basic education scholarships and tutoring in 2020. The organization gave seven students four-year scholarships to the University of Jordan.
Spending Time with Children
“My favorite part was when we played soccer in the camps in Mafraq near the Syrian border, with some of the kids there. It was just fun,” said Abdullah Sheikh. Throughout his visit with Helping Hand, he spent a lot of time playing with the refugee children his team came in contact with. “Some of the camps we went to twice. So, we bought [the kids] a soccer ball and then played with them again, because the ball they had was super messed up.”
During their visit to the refugee orphanages located in Amman, Jordan, the 2018 Youth for Jordan team went to a strip mall with some of the orphans. There, they played games and enjoyed rides. Another one of the days, the team spent the day with young Palestinian boys in a skills development program. Later during the week, they drove out to the Dead Sea where they hung out at the beach.
From building homes to providing support to helping children, all of Helping Hand’s refugee work in Jordan is a reflection of the organization’s hard work and dedication. In Jordan and around the world, humanitarian organizations have the ability to make a significant impact on the lives of refugees.
– Maryam Tori
Photo: Flickr
5 Common Misconceptions of Human Trafficking
An estimated 25 million individuals are trafficked globally on any given day. About 5.4 people per every 1,000 people in the world were victims in 2016. Additionally, one in four of these victims were children and three in four were women or girls. Approximately 89 million people have experienced some form of human trafficking within the last five years. Some victims suffer for a few days while others suffer for several years. Human trafficking is widespread and pervasive, and it is imperative that people understand the problem before addressing it. There are several common misconceptions of human trafficking that can make it difficult to identify and provide relief to victims. Here are five of these misconceptions.
5 Common Misconceptions of Human Trafficking
Parker stated the one thing she wishes she could tell everyone about human trafficking is that “it is a crime of egregious exploitation, and if unaddressed in partnership throughout the world, it will continue to grow.” Furthermore, she emphasized that people should not fight by themselves, but that “the community and world need to take responsibility.” For example, governments can work with local providers to disseminate information, attend to gang violence and develop service infrastructure for survivors.
Human trafficking is a global problem that requires global solutions. First, however, education and awareness must eradicate misconceptions of human trafficking. Only then, can this widespread issue be adequately addressed.
– Margot Seidel
Photo: Flickr
4 Organizations Empowering the Poor in Kolkata
The city of Kolkata, also known as Calcutta, is one of the metropolitan areas of India and the fourth most populated in India. Kolkata is the capital of the state of West Bengal where close to 20% of the population lives below the poverty line. In March 2020, like most of the world, the first few COVID-19 cases hit Kolkata. However, unlike other cities, Kolkata also weathered the cyclone Amphan a few months later. The cyclone in combination with COVID-19 has put the poor in Kolkata at risk. The following organizations are empowering the poor in Kolkata.
Kolkata Gives Foundation
Kolkata Gives is a nonprofit organization that began in 2014. It aims to connect reliable NGOs with potential donors. Additionally, the organization currently works on “project 10K” which aims to feed 10,000 affected families in Bengal along with the ‘Mask for all’ campaign that will distribute 10 lac reusable masks to those who need them. Outside of its innovative approach toward connecting the right organizations, Kolkata Gives has found the best way for people to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries during the pandemic. Since individuals cannot get together to celebrate, they can instead donate $40 to the organization to feed the poor in Kolkata.
Indian Humanitarian Foundation
The Indian Humanitarian Foundation (IHA) is an NGO that serves the poor in Kolkata through Durga Puja, an auspicious religious festival celebrated over five days in the city. The organization has been targeting areas like shelters, railway stations and people on the street who require food and rations the most during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the aftermath of cyclone Amphan.
Calcutta Rescue
Calcutta Rescue is a charitable organization that is working with communities in need of assistance. It provides free health care, vocational training and sanitation in a sustainable way for families to alleviate themselves from poverty by working toward a better future. Calcutta Rescue recognizes that a third of Kolkata lives in slums. In the wake of the current crisis, this organization has educated slum dwellers about COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Additionally, it has moved its education centers for children online on Whatsapp through videos that teachers recorded. Whatsapp is a more widely accessible free messaging application.
Child in Need Institute (CINI)
CINI is an NGO that works for the well-being of poor children in India. Based in Kolkata, CINI is currently assisting over 7 million people in Jharkhand, West Bengal and Orissa. It has reached over 30,000 wage workers, poor children and women with essential items like food and hygiene products. As its name suggests, CINI is focussing on making this pandemic easier for children in need by setting up a child helpline for distressed children.
These four organizations are a few of many that are doing incredible work for and from the city of Kolkata. Cyclone Amphan and COVID-19 have and are dismantling previous systems of upliftment. Therefore, NGOs and trusts have become key in quickly reassessing and organizing the community, to establish sustained empowerment.
– Anuja Mukherjee
Photo: Flickr
The Dayton Accords: Bosnia and Herzegovina
On Nov. 21, 1995, the Dayton Accords were completed in Dayton, Ohio. The peace agreement ended a four-year war in the Balkans that claimed the lives of an estimated 100,000 people. The deal has been declared brilliant, insufficient, crucial and shortsighted. A former Bosnian energy minister described it as, “diplomatic and political butchery,” while simultaneously stating, “it was by far the best option available at that particular moment in history.”
These juxtaposed opinions are commonplace for the Dayton Accords, as it managed to end a horrific, genocidal war while enshrining a political system in Bosnia and Herzegovina that some believed was nothing more than, “a house of cards about to come tumbling down.” As similar wars driven by territorial conflict and ethnic tension continue to haunt people around the world, it bears consideration what lessons in conflict resolution can be taken from this peace agreement.
Bringing Enemies to the Table
The agreement itself was negotiated in just 21 days from within the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. U.S. Diplomat Richard Holbrooke served as the chief negotiator between the Presidents of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Additionally, a contingency of Russian, French, British and German negotiators was present at Wright Patterson, though the U.S. took the lead in the proceedings.
One of the more notable aspects of the negotiation process was Holbrooke’s care. He sought to create an environment that forced an agreement among representatives who appeared reluctant to come to one. Representatives were not allowed to discuss the negotiations with the press. They were each given their own floor of the building so that Holbrooke could work separately with each party. He went from floor to floor, slowly hammering out an agreement to end the conflict for good. The result created one country composed of two parts. It was complex, but the preceding nightmare that brought them all there was worse.
Ending a War
The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina had raged for four years, with “Serb and Croat forces aiming to carve the country up into a Greater Serbia and a Greater Croatia, respectively.” Bosnia’s four million citizens belonged primarily to three main ethnic groups: Bosniak or Bosnian Muslims, Serbs and Croats which made up roughly 44%, 31% and 17% of the population, respectively. The remaining 8% was Yugoslav.
The war began in 1992 when Bosnia declared its independence from Yugoslavia and was met with a swift military assault from Bosnian Serbs seeking to gain territory and commit ethnic cleansing of the Muslim population. During the genocidal conflict, 80% of the fatalities were Bosniaks. Additionally, numerous atrocities and war crimes were committed across the conflict. One U.N. report discussing artillery attacks on Sarajevo in 1994 stated that 200 to 300 impacts were a “quiet day” in contrast to an “active day” which could see 800 to 1,000 impacts from shelling by Serb forces.
In February 1994, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) began its first combat operation in history, shooting down Bosnian Serb aircraft to enforce a U.N.-declared no-fly zone. This would be followed up with later bombing raids that would eventually force Presidents Milošević, Tudjman and Izetbegović to the negotiating table.
A New Nation
The Dayton Accords cut Bosnia almost exactly in half. The predominantly Bosniak-Croat Federation took 51%, and 49% went to the Bosnian Serbs as the Republika Srpska. There the simplicity stopped. According to The Guardian, “Dayton spawned a political system that is a cash cow for politicians. It is among the most complex in the world.” Rather than solving ethnic tensions, it froze them in time with a constitution that allocated key government posts to Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs. All other ethnic groups would remain barred from political positions throughout the government.
Beyond the issues of complexity, many view the Accords as having rewarded genocide and numerous other war crimes, as the original aggressors walked away with major territorial gains. President Milosevic of Yugoslavia, President Karadzic of Bosnian Serbia and General Mladić (known as “The Butcher of Bosnia”), all went on to be tried for international war crimes. Dayton’s harshest critics see the peace agreement as having been a strategic win for those men. It is believed that NATO forces would eventually have been able to roll back the incursions they made.
25 Years of Hindsight
The flaws that the Dayton Accords both perpetuated and created are numerous and frequently pointed to amid calls for its reform or complete scrapping. However, its legacy lives far more as a mixed bag than as an outright cautionary tale. The peace created, while fragile, has lasted longer than many experts dared hope. The Accords brought an end to a genocide, the likes of which had not been seen in Europe since the Holocaust. Yet conversely, it trapped the split nation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in unending ethnic discontent and a political system predisposed to corruption. Looking at Dayton as a future peace negotiation model will require reconciliation with each of these conflicting narratives.
– Scott Mistler-Ferguson
Photo: U.S. National Archives
International Cooperation in Distributing Foreign Aid
No unitary world body is responsible for coordinating and distributing foreign aid. Foreign aid efforts generally consist of bilateral or multilateral aid. One country directly grants bilateral aid to another, while several countries pool resources together before joint-delivering multilateral aid. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is an example of a bilateral aid organization because only the United States is part of its decision-making process. A strong example of a multilateral aid donor would be the United Nations or the World Bank, where the organizations themselves exercise a strong degree of autonomy over distributing foreign aid.
International Cooperation in Foreign Aid
The World Bank, United Nations and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are some of the biggest agenda-setters in foreign aid. While they all operate independently, each contributes to a shared effort and common understanding in achieving their goals.
In 2012, the United Nations convened a large conference to set targets and an agenda for goals in sustainable development by 2030. Of its 17 development goals and 169 targets, poverty topped the list and contained seven targets. The conference determined the most significant and salient issues relating to sustainable development until 2030. In support of this common objective, OECD also incorporated a platform regarding the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This exemplifies how one organization’s agenda can cross over and influence agendas that others set.
The Coordination Efforts of the OECD
The OECD advises the distribution and implementation of effective foreign aid flow among the aid members of its Development Assistant Committee (DAC). Within many different frameworks and groups, OECD utilizes a “gold standard” for foreign aid called Official Development Assistance (ODA). Since 1969, the largest countries convened within the DAC have adopted ODA as their primary source of distributing foreign aid. The definition of ODA is a complicated matter, because, for instance, the countries that are eligible for ODA change over time. Regardless, distributing foreign aid undergoes careful optimization to promote and target economic development and welfare in developing countries. These repercussions are wide-ranging. International bodies from the World Bank to the U.N. respect the standards that the OECD sets.
The OECD utilizes a top-down approach to achieving broader development and aid objectives. The organization regularly measures and assesses its progress in implementing its objectives. This includes providing advice to member countries. In its report on “Measuring Distance to the SDG Targets,” it provided member countries with an assistive overview of strengths and weaknesses when it comes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that the U.N. set. Such feedback helps countries stay on track to best reach the goals. Overall, the study revealed uneven progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Some targets, such as infrastructure experienced near achievement, but other targets rated medium to low progress.
The World Bank
The World Bank is something of a twin to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, instead of preventing and dealing with financial catastrophes like the IMF, “the [World] Bank is primarily a development institution.” One can see the international links when the World Bank discusses ODA while considering foreign aid flows.
In 2021, one of the World Bank’s primary objectives is to soften the economic blow of COVID-19. It plans to deploy up to $160 billion by June 2021 in support of countries’ responses to the virus. For example, the World Bank provided nearly 7,000 infection, prevention and control supplies and more than 31,000 personal protective equipment to Papua New Guinea. In Ghana, it supported the training of thousands of health professionals and technicians. Today, the World Bank is the largest external financier of education in developing countries. In its 2020 annual report, the World Bank estimated that the International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, would contribute to the creation of at least 1.9 million jobs through the projects it financed in the fiscal year 2020.
Looking Forward
Thanks to organizations such as the World Bank, the U.N. and OECD, foreign aid benefits from higher levels of cooperation than ever. While no unitary body exists to overlook aid distribution, these organizations are filling the gap. Their efforts foster hope for even greater effectiveness in distributing foreign aid.
– Marshall Wu
Photo: Wikipedia Commons
The Future of Eco-Building Materials
Green building is the practice of creating structures and using processes that are environmentally responsible. Additionally, it is resource-efficient throughout a building’s life-cycle from siting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and deconstruction. Green building is the future for more developed countries and for impoverished nations. Re-using already existing materials for structural foundations greatly benefits impoverished regions. Several of these eco-building materials consist of discarded plastics, trash and compost.
The need for more environmental-friendly building materials arose from atmospheric pollution and the lack of energy conservation. Furthermore, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is what jumpstarted this movement to create eco-building materials. Moreover, this resulted in the creation of several organizations.
Organizations Fighting for Greener Building Materials
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) strives to transform the way people design, build and operate buildings and communities. In addition, it enables an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life. This is one of the primary organizations that began to actually shed light on the urgency of the issue. Since then, numerous companies have emerged to offer newer and greener alternatives to current building materials.
Additionally, Rammed Earth Works is another company devoted to providing eco-building materials. The housing concept incorporates exposed earth walls. Housing infrastructures recognize rammed earth as a low carbon releasing process that offers an environmentally safer and more sustainable option. Furthermore, this particular process involves the layering of sediment and waste runoff to structure an exposed wall of rock that creates somewhat of a retro aesthetic. This method is more environmentally friendly and is accessible to people in areas of extreme poverty.
Recent Developments
Many people imagine fluffy pink fiberglass when considering insulation. However, a much safer and less carbon-emitting alternative is sheep wool. Yet, the actual aggregational makeup of fiberglass is harmful to the touch. Other greener insulating alternatives offer an easier installation process. In addition, it generally consists of 70% recycled materials. Sheep wool is a much more accessible product to countries currently fighting immense poverty.
One of the more recent developments in the invention of a building brick comprised entirely of recycled plastics. This new brick is not only a greener alternative to concrete blocks but is also reportedly seven times stronger and more durable. Nzambi Matee creates the bricks by breaking down plastics that can no longer be recycled or repurposed. Matee’s factory is in Kenya and has already recycled 20 tons of plastics since 2017.
Developing countries are on the path to environmental and economic success with the discovery and creation of new, greener building technologies. Having access to these materials allows these countries to evolve structurally and economically while preventing pollution.
– Caroline Kratz
Photo: Flickr