United Front to Help The Poor

Today, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will address the Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan, Republic of Korea.  A united front from the international community needs to happen if the Millennium Development Goals are to be reached.  The forum will be in process until Thursday to discuss the effectiveness of aid and how it is vital for those who are desperately in need.  The forum will focus on how aid will be delivered, how MGDs will be achieved, and measures to help reduce maternal mortality and severe poverty.  It is known that a worldwide economic crisis is underway, but by no means is it an excuse to hide behind it.  Now is the time to come together and live up to your commitments.  

-Georisa Chang

SOURCES: UN News Center

Common-Sense Investments Can Lead to Eradicating Poverty

Are we in danger of not meeting the Millennium Development Goals deadline?  According to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the fight for global poverty appears to be headed in the wrong direction.  Our failure seems to resonate in the lack of focus in putting people at the center of our development policies and strategies concerning economic recovery.

The fears of job loss, inability to feed their families, and access to health care are concerns, but to overcome these and many other challenges faced globally, common-sense has to come in play. Investment needs to be in the source, the people.  Continuing to ignore the voices of the poor and the youths will only deter us from ultimately achieving our goals of eradicating poverty.

An expert in extreme poverty and human rights, Magdalena Sepulveda, urged States to immediately address the growing inequalities between the rich and the poor.  "These rising inequalities have diminished social cohesion and increased insecurity and exclusion through out the world." stated in her message.  Also noted was that the poorest and most excluded are taking the hardest hits with these financial crisises, while the richest continue to prosper.  "What is required are recovery measures that are equitable, accompanied by human rights safeguards and designed from the ground up, taking into consideration the specific needs of vulnerable populations."

"As we work to avoid a global financial meltdown, we must also work to avoid a global development meltdown."

-Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations

-Georisa Chang

SOURCE: UN News

Ban Ki-moon: Global Aid For Trade Is Vital For Boosting Development

United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, addressed the WTO's Third Global Review of Aid for Trade in Geneva on July 19th. He urged the donors to maintain their support of "Aid for Trade." These efforts help developing countries, especially the poorest, accelerate their development and benefit from economic growth.

Aid for Trade was launched by the World Trade Organization (WTO) more than five years ago and it specifically helps developing countries develop trade-related skills and infrastructure in order to benefit from WTO agreements and expand trade.

Ban stated that Aid for Trade is crucial for building global partnerships and for global development.

However, with the economic decline, budgets are tight. "this is no excuse for letting up our efforts," stated Ban. The Secretary-General stressed the need to pay attention to the needs of the least developed countries and ensure that they are not left behind.

Another main topic of the speech was the necessity of sustainable development. "Meeting our development goals is ultimately about building self-sufficiency and helping people feed themselves," said Ban.

-Gabrielle Gurian

SOURCE: UN NEWS WIRE

Global Poverty Rate is Dropping

The global poverty rate is falling. An annual progress report shows that the Millennium Development Goals are on track to lower poverty rates despite the recent economic set backs.

The poverty rate is expected to fall by 15% by 2015. This is a significant achievement as it is well below the 23% target that was set.

And interestingly, it is not the developed countries that are making the difference. The world remains on track due to the momentum of growth in the developing world. In fact, the number of people in developing countries that live in extreme poverty (less than $1.25 a day) is estimated to fall below 900 million due to the growth of developing countries in the last decades.

East Asia has the record for the greatest reduction in poverty, especially China and India. In both countries the number of people living in poverty fell by 455 million between 1990 and 2005.

Despite these significant reductions in poverty, world hunger remains an issue, which is another target of the Millennium Development Goals. Access to food and high food prices has proved to be a problem for policy makers.

"We have success stories," stated Bank Ki-moon, the UN Secretary General, "but achieving all the MDGs will require extra effort." Progress is not universal and the benefits are not evenly shared.

According to Ban Ki-moon, achieving the MDGs will require equitable and inclusive economic growth that reaches everyone. "World leaders must show no only that they care, but that they have the courage and conviction to act."

-Gabrielle Gurian

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

UN Call To World Leaders: End Aids By 2020!

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called for global action to end Aids by 2020! "That is our goal- zero new infections, zero stigma and zero Aids-related deaths," stated Ban at the UN Summit on Aids in New York. Ban acknowledged that in order to eradicate Aids, the world is going to have to face sensitive issues including drug users, homosexuality and the sex trade. Ban urged the global community to come together to achieve universal access to treatment by 2015 by lowering costs. Meanwhile, African leaders have called for greater access to resources to battle the pandemic.

The meeting in New York was attended by 30 presidents and heads of government. African leaders spoke of the desperate need in their countries for better funding to fight the disease. The Nigerian President stated, "to say that adequate funding is critical to the success of our HIV and Aids response is an understatement." Nigeria has the second highest number of HIV positive people after South Africa. Still, the resources available for Africa are insufficient against the enormous size of the HIV impact on the continent.

More than 9 million people are not able to access retroviral treatment and an estimated 1.8 million people die each year from Aids. That does not account for the other 34 million that are estimated by the UN to have Aids and not be aware of it. However, new infections have dropped by 20% since 2001 and infection rates are continuing to decrease. With the new technology available and a strong sense of global solidarity, it is likely the goal for 2020 can be achieved!

-Gabrielle Gurian

SOURCE: BBC NEWS

Tomorrow Is UN Peacekeepers Day!

On May 27th, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon paid tribute to the more than 120,000 military, police and civilian personnel who served in the numerous UN peacekeeping missions across the world. He honored those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace. "Their deployment is a manifestation of our collective conviction that people should not have to suffer through a period of insecurity, injustice and fear," was his message for the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, which is observed on May 29th every year.

When conflict strikes, violence erupts and people are forced from their homes, UN Peacekeepers are sent in to work to improve the rule of law, implement a system of rights and establish peace in an area. Peacekeeping in the 21st century is focused on building foundations for long term institution building and sustainability. UN peacekeepers send police forces to train and monitor the security systems within a collapsed country. They help restore and reform institutions and work with the court systems to become more accountable. This makes it possible for culture and the rule of law to re-develop in weak or collapsed states.

Sunday is the 9th observance day of UN Peacekeepers. It is a particularly sombre day since in early April 173 peacekeepers were lost in an attack on the UN compound in Afghanistan. Only a few days later, 32 more lives were lost in a plan crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Peacekeepers make heavy sacrifices, working towards peace in countries ranging from Southern Sudan to the Ivory Coast. There are nearly 85,000 military personnel, more than 14,000 police officers, around 5,700 international civilians and 13,700 national staff serving in 15 current operations in four continents, as stated by the UN.

"On this day of United Nations peacekeepers, focused on the rule of law, we thank the countries who contribute forces to the operations and honor the individuals who serve with such distinction and dedication," stated Ban.

On Sunday, let us all remember and honor those that have sacrificed in the name of peace and stability!

-Gabrielle Gurian

SOURCE: UN NEWS

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Encourages Business Investment in Developing Countries

BORGEN PROJECT
At the 10th annual UN Global Compact Leaders Summit in New York this week, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged business leaders to invest more in developing countries to help with global economic growth. Mr. Ban stressed that with foreign and official aid coming under pressure because of global economic woes, foreign direct investment must play a greater role in helping reduce global poverty: "As the world continues to reel from the financial crisis, and as climate change, poverty, resource constraints and other threats test our capabilities, we need business as our partner more than ever". As a child raised in the post-war Republic of Korea, Mr. Ban has seen first hand the power of foreign direct investment in developing a country.

The Global Compact initiative brings together over 8,000 companies from around the world based on the idea that "business, as a primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology, and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere," according the UNGC overview. The Compact attempts to align business ambitions with the Millennium Development Goals, the 8 eight global anti-poverty targets set out by the UN in 2000.

-Matthew Thwaites

SOURCES: 'Invest more in the developing world'-UN News Centre, Overview of the UN Global Compact

Dirty Water More Deadly Than War??

As the world commemorates World Water Day next week, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon says clean water has become scarce and will become even scarcer with the onset of climate change.

"More people die from unsafe water than all forms of violence, including war," he said in a statement released Thursday.

With 87% of the worlds population - about 5.9 billion people - using safe drinking water sources, the world is on track to meet or even exceed the drinking water target of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Despite these progresses, there are still improvements to be made in the arena of sanitation. According to Serena O'Sullivan of the London-based End Water Poverty, sanitation and the water crisis undermine progress made in other development areas because it affects some 2.5 billion people, and it is killing more children than malaria, HIV/AIDS and TB combined.

To learn more read the following article posted on the IPS News Agency.

- Tiffanie Depew

SOURCE: Inter Press Service News Agency

The Developing World is Hungry for Global Food Security

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon delivered a message that reiterated his commitment to the assurance of global food security.

Mr. Ban noted the many factors that were responsible for creating the crisis, including the inability of farmers to produce enough food to meet demands due to the fluctuating of prices within volatile markets as well as a trading system that hinders their access to markets at a fair price.

Citing that smallholder farmers are hit particularly hard, many poor people often have to make the choice of caring for their children or earning an income - often leaving a dispropotionate number of women and children malnourished.

Mr. Ban reiterated the promise made by the G20 that includes a comprehensive, country-led and coordinated approach to food security that includes long-term investment to support it in addition to an African led campaign that increases investments in agriculture, infrastructure and food processing programs.

- Tiffanie Depew

SOURCE: UN News Centre

UN Chief Seeks to Make 2010 a Year of Sustainable Development

In a press conference on 1/11/10, UN Chief, Ban Ki-Moon announced a renewed focus on sustainable development for the year 2010 in order to achieve the global targets as outlined in the Millennium Development Goals. In addition, the goal and priorities of this new year will be to meet the needs of "the MDG's, promote global health, and to take the necessary steps for a lasting and robust economic recovery."

Moon also placed special emphasis on highlighting the need to "prevent and resolve deadly conflicts around the world" that seek to undermine the efforts of attaining peace, security and prosperity.

" I sense renewed energy as we start the new year and take on the heavy agenda ahead. We can make 2010 a year for action on a number of fronts" he added. "We are ready to act, ready to deliver, and ready to make 2010 a year of results for the people."

- Tiffanie Depew

SOURCE: UN News Centre

Ban tells US students about challenges of food security

Early last week on June 15, Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon told a gathering at St. Louis University in Missouri about the “bottom billion,” the one billion people around the world who live on less than $1 a day, many of whom are children suffering from starvation and malnutrition.

The talk about food security at the American University was part of the Secretary-General’s campaign to increase awareness of the UN and its goals to promote peace, security, development and human rights. Besides St. Louis, Ban has paid visits to other cities including Jackson Hole, Chicago and Atlanta.

Ban mentioned the effect of souring food prices on the bottom billion who already spend two-thirds of their income on food. With staple food costs doubling in the time span of a few months just last year, the daily reality for one third of the world’s population include choosing which of their children gets to eat, and which don’t.

“No one should face such choices,” said Mr. Ban. “No one should face such privation, not in a world of such wealth.”

The Secretary-General said that many families can’t afford to eat two meals a day and end up eating only one. Ban explained how children’s growth becomes stunted because of a lack of nutrition and become too weak to learn. As families spend more of their income on food, less goes into health and education, leading to a downward spiral for the whole society.

Because of this negative trend, Ban believes the issue of food security requires immediate attention. He stresses areas of focus including the need to strengthen agricultural infrastructure, increase productivity and remove unfair terms of trade.

“It is good that the UN’s World Food Programme [WFP] enjoys excellent ties with the United States and its farmers,” said Ban. “It’s impossible to think we can succeed without the support of the United States.”

-- Jaimie Hwang

Source: UN News Centre

or, Create a Petition

Change.org