Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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5 Charities Operating in Pakistan

Charities Operating in Pakistan
Giving charity is important to many people living in Pakistan. In fact, a study from 2021 reported that 84% of people gave charity during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in one way or another. It was also reported that 79% of those unemployed also gave charity at some point. With the country currently struggling with financial debt and food crises, the value of charity has risen in importance. Below are five charities operating in Pakistan.

5 Charities Operating in Pakistan

  1. Islamic Relief: This charity operates throughout Pakistan, working with communities to implement sustainable and innovative projects. In Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the organization worked to show communities how to adapt to the effects of changing weather patterns. In the aftermath of the summer floods of 2022, Islamic Relief worked to rebuild villages, install water and sanitation facilities and helped to rebuild small businesses and housing. In addition, the charity had a seasonal aid program, including a 1:1 child sponsorship program. In 2005, Islamic Relief received an award from the Government of Pakistan for its efforts during the devastating earthquakes that year.
  2. AAM Nation Care: AAM Nation Care is a charity that aims to help those who are poor and less fortunate in Pakistan. Its work occurs through a multidimensional approach, as it will reach out to low-income communities and help them develop specific ways to grow and find aid. The charity’s work includes establishing a free online academy to educate poor students and provide lower-income families with food and cash.
  3. Save the Children: Save the Children is a world-renowned organization that is a global leader in helping children to prevent, prepare and recover from calamities due to changing weather patterns. The charity first started working in Pakistan in 1979, through its work with Afghan refugees. Today, its work includes providing child rights and development and humanitarian response programs. In addition, it works alongside many other charities operating in Pakistan and Pakistani civil society to implement programs that work with child health, nutrition, education, protection, disaster response and preparedness and gender equality. In the last year, Save the Children helped more than 19,000 children in Pakistan.
  4. Red Cross: The Red Cross is an organization that has been working for almost 150 years, and is the largest humanitarian network in the world. The charity worked tirelessly during the recent floods to ensure aid reached all the affected areas. The primary focus of their relief effort continues to involve saving lives, providing temporary shelter and blankets to those whose homes were destroyed and clean water, food, medical support and sanitation to prevent the spread of water-borne diseases. In addition, the Pakistan Red Crescent works currently to help relieve the pressure on the health care system, supporting households and helping local communities.
  5. Human Appeal: Since 2006, Human Appeal has been one of the major charities operating in Pakistan. Subsequently, they have implemented several different relief programs, by supporting education, livelihoods and clean water projects. Its current programs include constructing girls’ primary schools, education for orphaned girls, providing COVID-19 protection kits, supporting small businesses and providing schools with water coolers.

Looking Ahead

In Pakistan, estimates have indicated that 30% of people continue to live in poverty. The recent floods alleviated several issues in the country, including the loss of large amounts of agricultural land and livestock. However, there are many charities operating in Pakistan that work tirelessly and efficiently to provide aid to those who most need it.

– Saad Haque
Photo: Flickr

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Ban of Toxic Skin-Lightening Cosmetics Gets Global Push

Toxic Skin-lightening Cosmetics
The fact that mercury is a common ingredient in skin-lightening cosmetics poses serious human health concerns. Furthermore, many cultures continue to use toxic cosmetics to lighten skin by suppressing melanin production. Luckily, global humanitarian organizations are now collaborating with several countries to ban toxic skin-lightening cosmetics.

The Harm of Toxic Skin-Lightening Cosmetics

Women and men both use skin-lightening cosmetics to lighten their skin, fade blemishes and freckles and treat acne. However, people who use these products do not realize the damage they can cause because they contain mercury. Toxic skin-lightening cosmetics can cause skin rashes, scarring and digestive, neurological and immune system damage.

Not only are those who use mercury-laden products at risk, but the toxic skin-lightening cosmetics harm children through breastfeeding and other family members when users wash off the products. The washed-off products contaminate the family’s food chain. Moreover, these washed-off products can travel far without breaking down, contaminating both soil and water.

Global Demand for Skin Lightening

The skin-lightening cosmetics industry is slated to grow to $11.8 billion by 2026. High demand stems from a growing South Asian middle class and changing demographics in the Caribbean and Africa. Although the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) bans cosmetics with mercury, it recently found mercury in numerous products that did not indicate its presence on their labels.

The Minamata Convention on Mercury

As more becomes known about the harm of toxic skin-lightening cosmetics, countries and global organizations are mounting campaigns to reduce or eliminate their use. Gabon, Jamaica and Sri Lanka are collaborating as part of a $14 million comprehensive strategy to prohibit mercury from skin-lightening cosmetics and promote the beauty of all skin tones. Their Minamata Convention on Mercury strives to severely limit mercury in cosmetics.  This group set a limit of 1 mg/kg of mercury in cosmetics; however, tests have proved it is difficult to get compliance. In 2018, tests showed that 10% of 300 tested cosmetics in 22 countries exceeded the limit and worse yet, some exceeded the limit by 100 times.

Still, the Mimamata collaboration continues to work towards its goal. The Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP-5) will have its fifth summit in Geneva, Switzerland during the fall of 2023.

World Health Organization and the Biodiversity Research Institute Leadership

The World Health Organization and the Biodiversity Research Institute are now collaborating with the governments of Gabon, Jamaica and Sri Lanka. They are leading the effort for the Global Environment Facility (GEF)-funded, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)-led campaign “Eliminating Mercury Skin-Lightening Products.” This project hopes to eliminate skin-lightening cosmetics that include mercury by:

  • Assisting governments by creating new laws and regulations as well as strengthening those that already exist all in accordance with the Minamata Convention.
  • Improving national capabilities for evaluating and tracking skin-lightening goods.
  • Increasing awareness of the problem in the project nations as well as on a global scale.
  • Enlisting participants in the supply chain in an attempt to prevent the manufacture, sale and distribution of skin-lightening goods.

Moving Forward

The collaboration between Gabon, Jamaica and Sri Lanka and global partners in the “Eliminating Mercury  Skin-Lightening Products” campaign is significant and the fifth Minamata Convention should synergize global efforts to raise awareness of the harmful effects of skin-lightening cosmetics.

– Lauryn Defreitas
Photo: Flickr

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The Power of CARE’s VSLA Program in Yemen

VSLA Program in Yemen
The Pilot Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) program in Yemen is a microfinance initiative that aims to provide access to financial services to low-income households in rural areas of the country. The program is a joint effort between the Yemeni government and international organizations. Its ultimate goal is to empower communities and promote economic growth.

Approximately 1.1 billion women around the world are excluded from their respective countries’ formal financial systems. This reality becomes exacerbated during humanitarian crises. When a country experiences a crisis, its formal institutions stop operating optimally. This is exactly what has occurred in Yemen, as it continues to be the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Almost 23.4 million people in Yemen are in need of assistance, and approximately 13 million of those people are children. The crisis has completely crippled Yemen’s political and financial institutions, and this vacuum is slowly filling with humanitarian agencies.

CARE International and VSLA

CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) is a major international humanitarian organization that delivers emergency relief and administers developmental projects around the world. Its aim is to fight global poverty and hunger. In 2021, CARE formulated and enacted a pilot program that ran from November 2020 to October 2021 and established 12 VSLAs in Taiz, Yemen, a city that has been a central and critical location during the civil war in Yemen.

A VSLA works by establishing a group of 15 to 30 members who meet regularly to provide the group with a safe and secure place to save money and access loans from the money collected from the members of the group. VSLAs also set up insurance funds to allow members to access money in times of emergency and crisis. An external party, such as CARE, provides training to these members to agree on a purpose for the VSLA, devise and settle rules for savings and loans and run regular meetings, amongst other responsibilities.

Benefits of VSLAs

One of the key benefits of VSLAs is that they are highly decentralized and community-driven. They do not rely on external funding or financial assistance. This allows them to be more sustainable in the long run. And, because the groups are self-governing, they are able to adapt and acclimate to the distinctive needs and circumstances of their respective communities. The main purpose of a VSLA is to serve people with low income who live in remote and poverty-stricken areas and have little to no credit. Ultimately, over time, a VSLA should increase access and control over assets and resources for group members.

 VSLA Distribution in Taiz

Although CARE initially planned to institute only 12 VSLAs in Taiz, it ended up with 16 formal VSLAs with 300 women by the end of 2021 because demand was high. Before the establishment of VSLAs in Taiz, 97% of people did not have any savings to fall back on in times of emergency, and almost 40% of households had to depend on negative coping strategies such as selling homes, skipping medication, or forcing kids to drop out of school. Afterward, the percentage of people in VSLAs with savings increased from 3% to 100%.

Furthermore, almost 50% of VSLA members were able to start small businesses, and the percentage of people using negative coping strategies dropped to 28%. Additionally, people in the community replicated these model VSLAs to create their own VSLAs, which resulted in total participation of 600 people in fully functioning VSLAs by the end of the program in Taiz. Additionally, over the course of the program, 88% of VSLA members distributed money from their respective VSLA social fund to assist people in need who were not part of VSLAs, creating a social security network in the city.

Challenges with the VSLA Program

Despite this success, the VSLA program in Yemen still faces a number of challenges. The biggest one right now is the ongoing civil conflict which makes it difficult and dangerous for external agencies to reach certain areas and guarantee the safety of program members. Additionally, because VSLAs are highly decentralized, it is difficult to replicate them in larger communities. As a result, the program could have a hard time reaching a larger number of people.

Looking Ahead

Thus far, the VSLA pilot program in Yemen is showing promising results in the communities it has impacted thus far. It has the potential to trigger economic growth and empower women in rural and impoverished communities. With continued support from the Yemeni government and CARE, VSLAs in Yemen could have the potential to create long-lasting economic transformation for low-income households in Yemen and beyond.

– Aemal Nafis
Photo: Flickr

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What to Know about India’s Mid-Day Meal Scheme

India's Mid-Day Meal Scheme
India aimed to address hunger among students through its mid-day meal scheme, officially implemented in 1995 to feed 120 million children studying in government-funded schools, making it the “world’s largest school food program.” India’s mid-day meal scheme, now known as Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman Yojna (PM Poshan), is a central government scheme with the objective to reduce hunger and malnutrition among children. The PM Poshan scheme already covers more than 1.2 million schools and provides one daily hot meal to pre-primary children and students from classes one to eight.

History and Objectives

The central government under the prime ministership of P.V. Narasimha Rao launched India’s mid-day meal scheme on August 15, 1995, as the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (now PM Poshan). The scheme aimed to feed impoverished children enrolled in government schools. One of the main objectives of the scheme was to reduce child malnutrition in India, which, at that time, accounted for 40% of the globe’s malnourished children. The mid-day meal scheme also aimed to encourage children from poor backgrounds and disadvantaged sections to attend school.

However, the history of the mid-day meal scheme goes back to the 1920s when the Chennai Corporation Council passed a resolution approving a proposal for providing ‘tiffin,’ or a light meal, to children of a local school. The ‘tiffin’ scheme has been a success — the school noticed a rise in attendance rates.

The PM Poshan meal scheme, which received approval on September 29, 2021, will run until 2026. This new version of the mid-day meal scheme also benefits about 120 million children.

Program Challenges

The mid-day meal scheme has faced some challenges. for instance, due to caste discrimination in some rural areas, upper-caste parents and students would refuse to eat meals prepared by a lower-caste cook. Low quality and minimal quantities of food also stood as an issue, among several other challenges.

Poor hygienic practices during food preparation and food contamination have led to the deaths of several students across several schools. Most recently, in January 2023, several children at a school in West Bengal had to go to the hospital after consuming a mid-day meal that allegedly contained the body of a snake.

Regardless of these challenges, with a commitment on the part of the government to sufficiently monitor the program and put in place protocols and standards to address the issues, the continuing program has the potential to bring benefits to India’s most disadvantaged children.

Revised Guidelines

The government of India released extensive guidelines on the mid-day meal scheme in December 2022 to address the issues the program has run into. In particular, the government sets out guidelines regarding the quality and safety aspects of the scheme. For instance, the government directs that meals be nutritious and well-balanced and has increased the production cost of meals to ensure meals of higher quality and quantity.

The protocols include specific rules regarding storage, handling and preparation of food to reduce the risk of contamination. The teachers must also taste the food before serving it to learners and must keep a log book in this regard.

Furthermore, “hot cooked meals provided to children shall be evaluated and certified by the Government Food Research Laboratory or any laboratory accredited or recognized by law, so as to ensure that the meal meets with the nutritional standards and quality specified,” the guidelines direct. Specific hygiene and cleanliness regulations apply to kitchen personnel and kitchen premises. Furthermore, schools must take pest control measures to ensure kitchens are pest-free.

Positive Outcomes

According to a December 2021 press release by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, India’s food and nutrition programs have led to a reduction in malnourishment among children under 5 from 38.4% to 32.1% by 2021.

The program hires women from the community to fulfill the roles of the kitchen staff as of way of empowering women and reducing local unemployment rates. The scheme promotes community engagement with the mothers of the students watching and overseeing the feeding of their children. Mothers can also give their suggestions to improve the meal program. The program terms this “Mothers Watch.” This has also helped to reduce caste bias as it gives employment opportunities to Dalit (lowest class) women, making them crucial contributors to the program.

Looking Forward

The mid-day meal scheme provides a daily dose of nutrition to school children. The former vice-president of India, Venkaiah Naidu, also suggested adding milk to the lunch menu to add more nutritional value to the meal. Moreover, the government of India plans to allocate more than Rs 110 billion to PM Poshan for the financial years 2023-24.

India’s mid-day meal scheme, now PM Poshan, tremendously supports health, nutrition and education among underprivileged children by fighting classroom hunger.

– Aanchal Mishra
Photo: Pixabay

Affordable Maternal Care in India

Maternal Care in India
In India, the infant mortality rate in 2020 stood at 27 deaths per 1,000 live births. Although this number is still striking, India has noted a steady decline in infant mortality rates over the years. In 2000, India’s infant mortality rate stood at 53 deaths per 1,000 live births, meaning the rate has halved over the past 20 years. This positive trend may be explained on a macro-level by increased standards of living in the country. On a micro-level, local initiatives are helping to provide affordable maternal care in India for women from lower-income backgrounds.

Maternal Care in India

Although the International Monetary Fund considers India to be “the fastest-growing major economy in the world,”  this economic growth does not necessarily translate into increased standards of living for all as many people still live in poverty and struggle to support themselves financially.

Maternal care in India is unequal, with private hospitals offering higher quality care than public hospitals. However, the cost of delivery in private hospitals is hefty. An article published in 2012 by Knowledge at Wharton staff placed the average cost of delivery in a private hospital in Hyderabad city at around $500.

While this cost is not representative of all private hospitals in India, the average cost of private hospital deliveries is out of reach for most lower-income women, considering that Indian female casual workers earned an average monthly income of approximately $69 in 2020. As a result, many Indian women rely on public hospitals, which often lack resources, trained professionals and equipment to provide adequate maternal care.

LifeSpring Hospitals: A Social Enterprise

The LifeSpring chain of hospitals was founded in 2008 by Anant Kumar as a joint venture between HLL Lifecare Limited (an Indian government enterprise) and Acumen Fund (a U.S. social venture capital firm). Their goal is to offer lower-income women low-cost but high-quality maternity care.

LifeSpring hospitals charge considerably lower rates than private hospitals, with a normal delivery costing $80 and a C-section costing $180, according to the 2012 article by Knowledge at Wharton. By focusing on para-skilling, specialization, flexible staffing and high-asset use, the enterprise is able to offer affordable services that are not out of reach for lower-income individuals.

According to the LifeSpring Hospitals website, the hospital chain currently has 10 hospitals running out of Hyderabad. The hospitals provide affordable maternal care in India “at approximately 30-50% lower than the market prices.” Additionally, the services the hospitals provide are “backed up by experience gained from 70,000+ deliveries over a period of 13 years,” the website says.

Helping India’s Impoverished

“LifeSpring seeks to lessen the burden of rising health costs on the nation’s low-income communities thereby increasing their disposable income,” the HLL Lifecare Limited website says. Furthermore, “the mandate of the company is to operate small-sized (20 bed) maternity hospitals in the proximity of urban slums, catering to pregnant women whose husbands work in the informal sector and who have no health coverage,” HLL Lifecare highlights. On top of maternal care, the hospitals offer pediatric care, laboratory testing, pharmacy services and community health care education, among other services.

By 2012, the hospitals delivered an average of 6,000 babies per year and performed better than other hospitals of similar sizes, delivering three to four times more babies on average per month. LifeSpring has goals to open up at least 100 more hospitals offering high-quality, affordable maternal care to disadvantaged women. This low-cost service is changing the lives of thousands of women every year by ensuring accessible and high-quality maternal care, thereby reducing maternal mortality rates in India.

– Alexandra Piat
Photo: Flickr

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The Swiss Charity Helping the World’s Poorest

Swiss Charity
Medair is a Swiss charity bringing resources and aid to the most vulnerable in the poorest countries. The charity specializes in providing emergency responses to countries experiencing natural disasters and outbreaks of war and disease. The organization focuses its aid on the most vulnerable populations of women and children in emergency outbreaks. Similar to various other aid charities, such as the Red Cross, Medair originated and holds its headquarters in Switzerland. One might wonder how Switzerland, a country that has received renown for having such a high GDP relative to its population size and for taking a neutral stance in world politics, offers such good conditions for philanthropy.

Medair’s Background 

Medair began in the Swiss canton of Vaud in 1989, inspired by the Christian values to serve the most vulnerable people regardless of race, creed or nationality. It cites its values as integrity, hope, compassion, joy, accountability, dignity and faith. Medair goes the extra mile to help those most affected by global emergencies who are also those most difficult to reach. They are ready to act within 24 hours of a disaster, before subsequently focusing on rebuilding and strengthening communities from future disasters. The Swiss charity Medair focuses on three aspects of aid including providing shelter, clean water and sanitation, health and nutrition. They employ experts in each sector to provide hands-on help.

On the Ground: Afghanistan

Since 1996, Medair has been providing humanitarian aid in Afghanistan. Since the withdrawal of U.S. troops and the Taliban’s takeover in 2021, Medair has provided 116,171 people with direct assistance.  Following 2021, Medair built 117 clean water access points and a solar-powered water point. Many Afghan families have struggled to feed themselves because of heavy displacement since the Taliban seized power, which has led to more than 1 million malnourished children in need of acute treatment. In response, Medair has been managing 29 mobile nutrition clinics over nearly 45 locations, and within eight months, almost 40,000 women and children received treatment for malnutrition.

Switzerland: Rated Second Best for Conditions that Enable Philanthropic Engagement

In the Global Philanthropy Environment Index 2022 which the University of Indiana conducted for 2018-2020, Switzerland received a rating for second-best for conditions that encourage the creation of philanthropic and charitable organizations.

It is clear from the number of Swiss humanitarian aid charities including the Red Cross, Caritas and of course Medair, that Switzerland promotes humanitarianism despite its neutral stance in global affairs. In housing one of the U.N.’s offices, and in hosting ‘good offices,’ mediating spaces where conflicting countries’ representatives can engage in peace-making meetings, Switzerland is a country that promotes peace-making. Moreover, in 2021, Switzerland spent 0.50% of its GNI on ODA, a 0.01% increase from the previous year. In relation to the country’s GDP, Switzerland received the rating of the eighth-most-giving country in 2018.

Concluding Thoughts 

Switzerland has received renown for a high GDP relative to population size, for a strong currency and for a general population with a high amount of wealth. It is refreshing to see such a wealthy country recognize its privilege, pay it forward and play its part in reducing global poverty by encouraging the formation of hands-on humanitarian aid charities, such as the Swiss charity Medair.

– Genevieve Lewis
Photo: Flickr

What to Know about the World Bank’s Mission

World Bank's Mission
The resignation of World Bank president David Malpass on February 16, 2023, has placed a spotlight on the World Bank. Throughout the years, the World Bank’s endeavors have brought both victory and controversy. However, overall, the World Bank’s mission to end poverty has seen significant success across all regions of the world.

The Founding of the World Bank

About 12 months before the conclusion of World War II, the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference resulted in the creation of two institutions aimed at igniting economic growth and reducing poverty: the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The World Bank’s endeavors originally focused on “rebuilding the economies of countries devastated by war and increasing the economic development of developing countries,” but now, the institution works on all types of development.

According to the World Bank’s website, the World Bank’s mission is to “end extreme poverty” and “promote shared prosperity.” Made up of five institutions, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development; the International Development Association; the International Finance Corporation; the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, the World Bank partners with governments and private sectors to provide funding and assistance for poverty reduction initiatives. Since its founding in 1947, the World Bank has aided 189 member nations with $45.9 billion worth of financial assistance support for at least 12,000 development projects.

World Bank Projects in Africa

The World Bank’s website breaks down its own results into regions, starting with Africa. Its strategy for the continent aims to address extreme weather events, reduce hunger, create employment opportunities, increase resilience, safeguard the most vulnerable people and improve human capital.

In Somalia, the World Bank partnered with the Federal Government of Somalia to implement “social safety net provisions.” Within the first two years of support, more than 1 million Somalians received funding for “basic consumption needs.”

The World Bank has supported the Niger government for close to a decade to help establish an adequate social safety net. The Adaptive Safety Net Project 2 “Wadata Talaka” (PFSA 2), which launched on June 20, 2019, has provided direct support to more than 3 million Nigerien people.

Initiatives in East and Pacific Asia

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the World Bank has implemented emergency projects in many East and Pacific Asian countries, a few being the Philippines, Cambodia and Papua New Guinea. The emergency funding allows these countries to “purchase medical and laboratory supplies, train medical staff and strengthen national public health systems,” the World Bank website says.

In Vietnam, the World Bank’s endeavors have improved access to quality health care services for 13.7 million Vietnamese people in mostly remote areas in Northern Vietnam. Through the Northeast and Red River Delta Regions Health System Support Project, the World Bank “improved the treatment capacity of 74 public hospitals at the district and provincial levels by investing in upgrading the medical infrastructure and training health workers.”

These hospitals can now provide specialized health care services in the areas of “cardiology, obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, oncology and trauma (surgery).” This means patients no longer need to travel very far to seek this care.

To reduce Indonesia’s national stunting rate, the World Bank established the Investing in Nutrition and Early Years Program in 2018 to support Indonesia’s national strategy. The project managed to decrease the national rate of stunting by 6.4% in three years.

World Bank Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean

In April 2020, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Bank committed $29.1 billion to Latin America and the Caribbean to combat the crisis till June 2022. Within this region, the World Bank has been focusing on “promoting inclusive growth,” “investing in human capital” and “supporting countries’ development goals” while “fostering a green and sustainable recovery.” The World Bank has provided funding to countries such as Costa Rica, Colombia, Argentina, Ecuador and Peru, with support ranging from reformation, stability efforts, education expansion, sustainability and economic recovery.

Supporting South Asia

South Asia has received $31 billion in funding from the World Bank since March 2020. More than 857 million disadvantaged South Asians received support through $2.73 billion of funding provided by 10 initiatives supporting social safety nets. These finances provided social assistance to the most impoverished households to help them meet their basic needs. This funding has also supported health projects that have equipped health care centers, bolstered education programs and increased vaccine availability.

World Bank Projects in MENA

The World Bank’s mission in the Middle East and North Africa is to “eliminate poverty and promote shared prosperity through strengthening human capital, supporting jobs and economic transformation, advancing gender equity, addressing fragility and enabling green growth,” its website says. World Bank projects in the MENA equate to about $23.2 billion. Since April 2020, the bank has devoted $5.4 billion as of October 2021 to address the pandemic’s impacts and “protect the most vulnerable, support sustainable business growth and job creation and strengthen institutions to rebuild.”

The World Bank’s endeavors have supported the distribution of vaccines in Tunisia, Iraq, Jordan and Yemen. In 2021, the World Bank detailed its strategies for the Middle East, including efforts toward transparency and trust, improving human capital and strengthening gender equality.

The World Bank is one of the leading institutions in the fight against poverty. Its mission and impact highlight the importance of the global organization in the progress and development of developing countries.

– Audrey Gaines
Photo: Flickr

Addressing Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya

Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines female genital mutilation (FGM) as “all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.” The WHO highlights that FGM is a violation of human rights and holds no health benefits for females. Instead, it causes health complications such as excessive bleeding, infections, urinary issues and even death. In countries such as Kenya, the practice is prevalent among communities. UNICEF reported in 2021 that about 4 million females have undergone female genital mutilation in Kenya. Additionally, with the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, cases of female genital mutilation in Kenya have risen even further. The Constitution of Kenya entrenches women’s and children’s rights to good health and protection from acts of abuse or detrimental cultural practices. 

Young Girls at Risk

In Kenya, the genital mutilation procedure occurs at various ages and certain ethnic groups conduct the procedure after a girl turns 15. Other communities perform the procedure on girls as young as 9 or 10. Concern Worldwide says Kenyan girls choose to undergo this risky procedure “in order to maintain their social standing and, eventually, improve their chances of a good marriage.”

The risk for FGM across Kenya tends to be higher in rural areas and among poorer and less educated households. According to The Conversation, girls in Kenya often undergo female genital mutilation during school holiday periods. Due to the long absence from school, girls have more “time to heal from the procedure without scrutiny.” At the end of the school year, schools in Kenya close for roughly two months.

Abolishing Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya

In 2011, Kenya’s government outlawed FGM. The Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act (2011) passed on September 30, 2011, making FGM a criminal offense in Kenya. Courts punish incidents of FGM through a three-year jail sentence, a $2,000 fine or both. In the event that an FGM procedure leads to mortality, the offender will be subject to life imprisonment.

Despite the legislation, FGM is a deeply entrenched tradition that continues today. The Orchid Project explains that “Implementation and enforcement of the national law remain a challenge, due to lack of resources and difficulty accessing remote rural areas. Judges are reluctant to apply the sentences provided for in the law and sentences are regularly reduced or quashed on appeal.” 

Alternative Rites of Passage

Founded in 1952, Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO) is a nonprofit organization in Kenya that aims to improve women’s economic, social and political status in Kenya. MYWO promotes alternative rites of passage (ARP), which respect indigenous cultures and the traditional initiation process but without the need for physical cutting of the genitalia.

MYWO first introduced ARP with the support of the Programme for Alternative Technology in Health (PATH) in 1996 in the Meru community in Kenya, encouraging 30 households to conduct alternative forms of ceremonies to celebrate a child’s passage into womanhood without the need for genital mutilation.

With the introduction of ARP, between 2009 and 2019, FGM prevalence rates declined by 24.2% to a prevalence of 56.6%. Widespread replacement of genital cutting with ARP will lead to prevalence rates dropping even further. Educating communities will aid in protecting the well-being of girls and women.

Over the past decade, the prevalence of female genital mutilation has fallen. By continuing efforts to end FGM in Kenya, organizations uphold the human rights of girls and women.

– Yv Maciel
Photo: Flickr

Landmines in Myanmar: Devastating Lives and the Economy

Landmines in Myanmar
The Myanmar junta, which launched a coup in February 2021 claiming that the election of 2020 was fraudulent, is planting landmines all over the country. It is doing this as revenge against its political opposition. From its perspective, every citizen it is injuring or killing deserves what happens to them because of their connection to the junta’s political and civil adversaries. Landmines in Myanmar are not only costing lives, but they are hurting Myanmar’s economy.

The Coup: Death and Destruction

Guerrilla forces have planted landmines in Myanmar since 1999, but the coup in February 2021 caused a resurgence in their use. During a period of 19 months, catastrophic explosions caused 157 deaths and 395 injuries. The newly-formed junta has ordered health care officials to refuse treatments for landmine injuries. Meanwhile, it has also personally placed mines in homes, church compounds and farms. The junta has been implicated in committing major violations of war crimes.

The Coup: The UN and Amnesty International Advocate Sanctions and Aid

In January 2023, Acting President Myint Swe extended the national state of emergency for another six months. When the country is in a state of emergency, it cannot hold elections. This strategy keeps the junta in power.

In response, the United Nations has called on member nations to form a coalition to impose sanctions on Myanmar. It considers the junta illegitimate and cites reports about the devastation since the junta took control in 2021. The U.N. special envoy to Myanmar noted that more than 17.5 million Myanmar residents needed humanitarian aid in 2023 versus 1 million before the takeover. Amnesty International’s Senior Crisis Adviser Rawya Rageh noted, “There is an urgent need for a scaled-up humanitarian response that addresses rising food insecurity and ensures proper rehabilitative, psychosocial, and other needed care for landmine survivors, as well as adequate planning for and resourcing of post-conflict demining operations, to clear contaminated areas.”

Economic Devastation

Not only do the landmines hurt Myanmar residents physically and emotionally, but the junta’s coup and the internal fighting between the resistance fighters and the military have also devastated Myanmar’s economy. A run on banks immediately following the coup resulted in a lack of cash in ATMs. This especially hurts farmers and local merchants who depend on mobile banking. Myanmar suffered an 18% GDP contraction in 2021. Foreign investment is down. Inflation is soaring and since the coup rice prices increased by 50%. Forty percent of Myanmar civilians now live below the poverty line.

In 2021, China gave $6 million to fund landmine deployment and other military activity in Myanmar. On the other hand, that same year the United States sent $50 million that same year for COVID-19 aid that circumvented the military and went directly to international organizations and non-governmental organizations that provide direct aid to civilians. Meanwhile, in 2022, Min Aung Hlang, the Junta Chief, has approved an additional $150 million to fund its operations, especially because the resistance has been successfully fighting back.

Fighting the Junta: NUG

Fortunately, there is additional pushback against the junta on several fronts. First, the resistance movement, which the National Unity Government (NUG) is leading, has begun to claim territory from the military. In fact, 71% of townships engaged in resistance activities in 2022 which is a more than 10% increase in resistance engagement since 2021. The military actually controls only 17% of the country with the rest contested land or NUG-controlled land. Zachary Abuza, a southeast Asia policy expert, argues that in addition to “hollowing out” the military, NUG needs to fight economically by pushing for more sanctions and urging countries to discontinue support of the military-controlled oil and gas pipelines.

Global Efforts to Ridding the World of Landmines

In addition to NUG’s internal pushback, global efforts to rid the world of landmines are intensifying. The European Union (EU) and the United Nations (U.N.) are taking the lead on mine clearance and support of affected communities globally and in Myanmar. In addition to the actual mine clearance, the EU support includes research and development on mine detection, risk education and stockpile destruction.

The U.N. sponsors an annual International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action each April 4. In 2022, it launched the campaign, “Safe Ground, Safe Steps and Safe Homes.” Safe Ground focuses on “turning minefields into playing fields” — clearing areas of mines. Safe Steps refers to the goal of helping people feel confident that they won’t maim or kill themselves by stepping on a mine. It also refers to the technology that deminers use to clear contaminated areas. Finally, Safe Homes refers to the goal of people in communities with landmines to reestablish a sense of safety in their communities and in their homes.

Moving Forward

These efforts are working. Today 164 nations have signed the Mine Ban Treaty (also called the Ottawa Treaty) to ban the production, use and stockpiling of landmines. The Mine Ban states have destroyed more than 55 million stockpiled mines. They also cleared more than 132.5 square kilometers of contaminated land in 2021 alone. The path to removing landmines in Myanmar will not be an easy one, but with continued global efforts against landmines and NUG’s efforts to join the global campaign, it should proceed steadily. NUG’s gains in convincing the global community to condemn the junta and punish it economically should further drive success in ridding the Myanmar people of deadly and illegitimate landmines. That will also help restore Myanmar’s troubled economy because people will be able to farm their land, work in their villages, attract foreign investors and return to a more robust role as exporters.

– Robin Kalellis
Photo: Flickr

Reducing Malnutrition in India

Malnutrition in India
Modern India is advancing in the sector of science and technology yet it has a serious rate of hunger and poverty. The Global Hunger Index of 2022 ranks India 107th out of 121 nations in terms of hunger, which equates to a serious level of hunger. The GHI score also reveals that 16.3% of the population in India suffers from undernourishment while 19.3% and 35% of children under 5 suffer from wasting and stunting respectively. The Government of India, however, has pushed the country’s development, specifically in health and education, through digitalization to a great extent. The Poshan Tracker app is one such initiative built with a vision of eliminating malnutrition among children and pregnant/lactating women, two groups that face dire impacts of malnutrition in India, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports. The app also benefits adolescent girls.

The Poshan Abhiyaan

The word “Poshan” is the Hindi word for nutrition. India’s Ministry of Women and Child Development launched the Poshan Tracker app on March 1, 2021, through the National e-Governance Division with the goal to monitor and track malnutrition across the country. The Poshan Tracker is an innovative tool that forms part of the Indian government’s revolutionary flagship program, POSHAN Abhiyaan, a campaign that aims to reduce malnutrition among adolescent girls, pregnant women, lactating mothers and children from 0 to 6 years of age.

The Poshan Tracker helps the government to monitor the activities of the Anganwadi Workers (AWW) and record the progress of the beneficiaries. Anganwadi Worker Centers are central government-sponsored childcare centers designed to combat hunger and malnutrition and improve nutrition among children in India. In total, India has about 1.4 million Anganwadis across the country.

According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development of India, the Poshan Tracker app, available in 22 local languages, enables a full overview of the activities of the AWW and works as a supporting application to manage the complete system of services. These AWWs have to first register in order to access the app and provide services to people. The AWWs help the beneficiaries to register on the app while verifying their identity cards.

A September 2022 POSHAN Abhiyaan e-bulletin says the Indian government has provided more than a million smartphones to the AWWs. The government also grants Rs 200 to the AWW and the lady supervisor of each center for the recharge of their smartphones every month. The POSHAN Abhiyaan bulletin revealed that, by September 2022, more than 1.2 million AWWs received training on using Poshan Tracker.

How the App Works

The Poshan Tracker is an easy-to-use app that one can install on any android mobile phone with an android version above six. The app is not for general public use, hence, beneficiaries can register themselves on the app only with the help of the Anganwadi Workers. One can access the app offline and the app saves offline data input for up to three days. The beneficiaries may take home a free ration for 21 days a month. Children between 3 and 6 are able to access a hot cooked meal at the Anganwadi Centers for 21 days a month. The Centers supplement children experiencing nutritional deficiencies with additional nutritional food too.

The Poshan Tracker allows AWWs to assess the nutritional status of children according to the standards set by the World Health Organization. The Anganwadi Workers pay home visits too to monitor individuals and fill in real-time data on the app. The beneficiaries receive timely health checkups and vaccinations for infants and pregnant women at home at just a click of a button.

Poshan Tracker has proved to be a groundbreaking application to combat malnutrition in India, benefitting 98.4 million people as of September 2022. The hopes for this app and the nutrition scheme of India have increased even more after the government announced a budget exceeding Rs 11 billion for this flagship program for 2022-2023.

– Aanchal Mishra
Photo: Pixabay