By MediaGlobal
UN PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO THE DISPLACED IN CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
3 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: The safety of citizens of the Central African Republic (CAR) is gravely threatened as rebels from troubled neighboring nations, such as Chad and Sudan, continue to use the country for transit, recuperation and escape, leaving violence in their wake. In response to this situation, the UN is actively engaged in the CAR, hoping to provide what it terms “protection by presence.” In areas near the country’s borders, however, where even the UN presence has failed to deter violence, the UN’s focus has shifted towards providing humanitarian aid to those that have been affected. “Violence has forced [people] out of their villages.” Tony Lanzer, the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the United Nations Development Program in the CAR told MediaGlobal. “People choose to stay close to their homes, but out of sight and out of harm’s way, in the bush.” Instead of setting up camps for these displaced persons, the UN is working to provide services such as bush schools and communal water sources to improve the living conditions of those who have fled towns and villages. “The UN establishes camps as a last resort,” Lanzer said. “People are more self-sufficient, independent, and in control of their lives when not in camps – even when in a situation as difficult as the one in the north of CAR.”
CHINESE AID TO AFRICA MAY LEAVE LEGACY OF DEBT
5 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: China’s aid to Africa has increased dramatically in recent years, but while Western donors often give money in the form of grants, China has offered billions of dollars in low-interest loans. The funds have built roads, railways, factories and water supply systems, but some development analysts are worried. “A loan is a loan—in theory it still has to be repaid,” Dr. David Shinn, former U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia and Burkina Faso, told MediaGlobal. “Does this mean that somewhere down the road, 15, 20 years from now there’s going to be a huge debt overhang? Well, there could be.” Many African nations welcome the loans—some of which China has already forgiven—in part because they come with few conditions. “They don’t take into account improved governance, getting rid of or reducing corruption, human rights concerns, etc, etc,” Shinn said. “Now that’s just fine with many African governments and it’s fine with China, so at the government to government level, that’s a plus.” But African civil society, labor unions and international human rights advocates may find their concerns largely ignored as China expands its economic interests on the continent. “Unlike a lot of countries in the West, I think China really does tend to look more at a window that goes out 25, 50 years.” Shinn said. “Western countries normally aren’t doing that, they’re looking at shorter-term horizons.”
WHEAT FUNGUS FOUND IN IRAN
5 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: A wheat fungus previously found in East Africa and Yemen has been detected in major wheat growing areas of Iran, reported the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. The wind-borne fungus is said to be capable of destroying entire wheat fields, and countries east of Iran, including Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, all major wheat producers, are threatened by the fungus and should be on high alert, advised the FAO. “It is estimated that 80 percent of the wheat varieties planted in the developing countries are susceptible and severe losses could be expected if the disease attacks,” Wafa Khoury, a plant pathologist for the FAO, told MediaGlobal. The fungus first emerged in Uganda in 1999 and is now called Ug99. The wheat killer subsequently spread to Kenya and Ethiopia. In 2007, an FAO mission confirmed for the first time that an Ug99 strain more virulent than the one found in East Africa had affected wheat fields in Yemen. “The fungus is spreading rapidly and could seriously lower wheat production in countries at direct risk. Affected countries and the international community have to ensure that the spread of the disease gets under control in order to reduce the risk to countries that are already hit by high food prices,” said Shivaji Pandey, Director of FAO’s Plant Production and Protection Division.
ARAB COUNTRIES SHOULD USE OIL EXPORT REVENUE TO IMPROVE AGRICULTURE, SAYS FAO
5 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: Arab nations could improve their long-term agricultural outlook by using oil export profits to boost investment, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Investment in agriculture in the region is consistently low, even though hunger and malnourishment are on the rise. Many countries in and around the Middle East are heavily dependent on outside sources for water and food and their governments are not doing enough to secure adequate supplies for the near future. The region suffers from water scarcity, land degradation and inadequate food security, all of which are intensified in conflict regions. In Somalia, where security is almost non-existent, civilians are effectively cut off from a stable water supply. “Speaking specifically to Somalia, security is the biggest issue and has been for a long time, and after that is drought and water management,” Jill Ersner of the FAO told MediaGlobal. “In other words, drought exacerbated by insecurity is what makes life so difficult for the population in Somalia.” By using oil export revenues, Arab governments could ensure that expenditure is redirected toward agricultural development. Improvements in land use and water technology would decrease the region’s vulnerability to natural disasters and food insecurity. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has a large development fund, which is currently allocating 17 percent of its funds to the agricultural sector, but, according to the FAO, it is not enough.
PANEL DISCUSSES EFFECTS OF RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM ON DEVELOPMENT
6 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: A panel of scholars gathered at the Whitehead School of Diplomacy at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey, this week, to speak about a number of wide-ranging issues concerning the effects of religious extremism in world politics. The negative impacts of extreme religiosity have been felt across the globe, and religious fervor is credited with starting wars and inspiring terrorist activity. “Religion plays a role in hurting people in various ways,” said Dr. David Little, a professor at the Harvard Divinity School. And this extremism also has a stranglehold on sustainable development. Little explained to MediaGlobal that, between 1973 and 1983, Sudan experienced a brief period of peace and prosperity under the rule of religious factions, but ultimately religious leaders in both Sudan and Nigeria have hindered peace. But religion is not always harmful. Dr. Gisela Webb, head professor of the Honors Program at Seton Hall University, told MediaGlobal that there were radical groups of Muslims in Solo, Indonesia, who have worked hard to lead a dialogue that helps integrate immigrant Muslims entering the country from the Middle East.
EFFECTIVE USE OF HUMAN RESOURCES CRITICAL TO HEALTH CARE IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
7 March 2008 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: The international health community gathered this week in Kampala, Uganda, for the World Health Organization’s (WHO) first-ever forum on human resources for health. While making effective use of health care workers is a challenge for nations around the world, many African countries are facing particularly critical shortages of health care providers. These nations often face the substantial double burden of treating both infectious diseases such as malaria and AIDS, as well as battling the emerging threat of non-infectious diseases, such as diabetes and cancer. “Generally, evidence suggests that doctors and nurses are the most mobile among health workers,” Joel Schaefer, Communications Officer for Health Systems and Services at the WHO, told MediaGlobal. “They are currently less equally distributed between urban and rural settings. For example, while 55 percent of the population lives in urban settings, 77 percent of physicians and 62 percent of nurses are in urban settings, compared to 58 percent of other health workers.” One potential solution to this shortage is to identify tasks currently performed by doctors and nurses that could instead be carried out by trained community health workers, freeing up doctors to work with more patients – a process known as “task shifting.” “Countries that are already using task shifting as a key strategy to address health worker shortages include Ethiopia, Malawi and Uganda,” Schaefer said. And so far, he added, these efforts have been largely successful. “In Ethiopia, for example, HIV testing and counseling coverage increased significantly when community health workers began performing these tasks in 2006. [And] evidence from other countries so far shows high rates of satisfaction among patients with services provided by community health workers,” he said.
INTERNATAIONAL COURT CALLED ON TO DROP CHARGES AGAINST WARLORD
7 March 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: A final peace agreement is expected to be signed by the end of the month between the Ugandan government and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a rebel group notorious for ravaging civilian populations and recruiting child soldiers during 22 years of conflict. But LRA leader Joseph Kony has threatened to disrupt the peace process if the International Criminal Court (ICC) doesn’t drop its indictments against him for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Ugandan government, which requested the ICC’s involvement in 2003, may now ask the United Nations Security Council to pressure the ICC drop charges, leaving Ugandan courts to prosecute Kony. While local leaders say forgiveness and reconciliation rituals are the best route to peace, international human right advocates have protested calls for the ICC to back down, saying dismissing charges against Kony will make prosecuting future war criminals more difficult. “It would be a mistake to drop the case with no guarantee that Kony will be prosecuted,” Geraldine Mattioli of Human Rights Watch told Reuters. Asked about the Secretary-General’s response to the UN’s involvement in the issue, UN spokeswoman Michele Montas told MediaGlobal, “This is something to be worked out between the two courts.”
Contributors: Sheana Laughlin, Adelia Saunders, Sarah Long, Joseph Deaux and Christina Rodenhizer
MediaGlobal is a leading provider of information on global development issues facing vulnerable countries in Africa and Asia. Leaders of developed countries, the global media (with media in developing countries), policymakers in donor countries, non-governmental organizations, Permanent Representatives of Missions to the United Nations and key personnel in the United Nations Secretariat, its agencies and managers in the field worldwide read MediaGlobal’s newswire stories. Contact: media@mediaglobal.org . United Nations, Room S-301, New York, NY 10017. Tel: (212) 963-9878. Fax: (609) 716-1297 Website: www.mediaglobal.org
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