Contents:

http://www.unicef.org/newsline/01pr81.htm

UNICEF hails entry into force of optional protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography

New York, 23 October - A major step forward in the protection of children from exploitation, trafficking and sexual abuse has just been achieved, UNICEF stated today, welcoming the imminent entry into force of the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. With the submission of Romania's tenth ratification last Thursday, the Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child will become a legally binding instrument on the 18th January 2002. This three month interval is in accordance with the procedures outlined in the Protocol. (…)

Once ratified and translated into national law, the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography places responsibility squarely with the adults involved in these activities, criminalizing these violations of children's rights. It also calls for measures towards increased public awareness and international co-operation in efforts to combat them.

Carol Bellamy, UNICEF Executive Director, congratulated the first ten countries ratifying this treaty (Andorra, Bangladesh, Cuba, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Panama, Sierra Leone, Norway, Morocco and Romania) and called upon all states to swiftly move to making this same commitment to their children.

Human rights

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Nobel Laureate calls for decent work, basic labour rights

Geneva, 2 November - The Nobel economics laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz of Columbia University today urged world political and economic leaders to back the International Labour Organization (ILO) goals of "decent work, full employment and better working conditions" and said development requires "basic labour rights."

Speaking on the second day of a three-day Global Employment Forum at the ILO, Professor Stiglitz argued in his keynote address that current international policies often fail to take account of the human value of labour, instead treating it as a commodity.

"Equitable, sustainable and democratic development requires basic labour rights, including freedom of association and collective bargaining," he said.

The Forum has drawn some 700 world political and economic leaders here to discuss the theme of " Creating Decent Work in the 21^st Century" and address what ILO Director-General Juan Somavia has called the "biggest threats to human security affecting the largest number of people - rising unemployment and poverty." (…)

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inf/pr/2001/45.htm

Central Africa: Countries meet to coordinate policies and efforts

2 November - Representatives from the governments of the CAR, DRC, the RoC, Gabon and Angola met last week in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, to synchronise their policies and efforts on behalf of refugees IDPs in the region. The meeting was organised by the l'Association des parlementaires Europeens pour l'Afrique (AWEPA), in collaboration with the government of the DRC and the UNHCR, from 24 to 26 Oct. (…) The primary objectives of the conference included the promotion of human rights, and in particular the rights of refugees, with special attention to women and children in light of their vulnerability; seeking long-term solutions to the problems of refugees and IDPs with a view to a safe return to their places of origin; and adoption in each country of national legislation and a national commission for refugees where no such thing already exists. (…)

http://www.irinnews.org

Philippines government launches a national action plan against trafficking in human beings

Joint UN-Philippines initiative leads to strong coalition of government agencies in the fight against trafficking in human beings

Vienna, 30 October - On 24 October, 14 Ministries and Government agencies of the Philippines signed a Covenant to implement the Philippines Strategic Action Plan for a National Coalition against Trafficking in Human Beings. The Action Plan is the result of the work of an alliance of government departments and agencies, the Inter-Agency Executive Committee, led by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of the Interior and Local Government to strengthen national action in the international fight against trafficking in human beings. The Committee was set up by the Philippines Government in cooperation with the United Nations Centre for International Crime Prevention (CICP). (…)

http://www.undcp.org/press_release_2001-10-30_1.html

Women peace leaders address Security Council members – Women from Afghanistan, Kosovo and East Timor ask for increased protection from abuses during war

New York, United Nations, 30 October - Women peace leaders from Afghanistan, Kosovo and East Timor today spoke to Security Council Members about violations committed against women during and after war and women's role in peace negotiations and peace-keeping efforts. International experts Elisabeth Rehn, former UN Under-Secretary General, and Maha Muna from the NGO Working Group on Women, International Peace and Security also addressed Council Members at the meeting in New York.

The briefing by women leaders to Council Members occurs exactly one year after the Security Council passed Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. The groundbreaking Resolution linked gender equality to global security and committed governments to include women's voices in peace negotiations while protecting them from the abuses of war. "The entire peace process benefits when women are at the table," said Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). "Recognizing and supporting women's contributions can prevent many lifetimes of untold sorrow. This is especially poignant for Afghanistan. Any UN response for Afghanistan must include women and their concerns." (…)

http://www.unifem.undp.org/pr_unseccoun2001.html

New steps against trafficking in human beings in West African States: special task forces planned to fight human trafficking

Vienna, 25 October - Experts from West African countries have agreed a political declaration and an action plan against trafficking in human beings in the region. The Meeting on Trafficking in Human Beings was held in Accra, Ghana by ECOWAS [Economic Community of West African States] in cooperation with UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP).

The plan of action commits ECOWAS countries to urgent action against trafficking in human beings in 2002 – 2003, setting achievable goals and objectives. The action plan calls for countries to ratify and fully implement crucial international instruments of ECOWAS and the United Nations that strengthen laws against human trafficking and protect victims of trafficking, especially women and children. (…)

http://www.undcp.org/press_release_2001-10-25_1.html

Economy and development

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FAO's Members end cycle of budget cuts with nominal increase for 2002-2003

Rome, 9 November - For the first time after eight years, the member countries of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have approved a nominal budget increase for the Rome-based UN agency. FAO's budget will total US$651.8 million for the years 2002-2003, the governing FAO conference decided on Friday. 107 countries voted for the increase, with 2 abstaining.

This increase maintains the budget in real terms. FAO's budget had been kept at US$650 million per biennium since 1995, forcing the Organization to absorb estimated cost increases of about US$95 million. FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf had proposed a real growth budget for 2002-2003 of $688.7 million, an increase of some $38 million above the 2000-2001 budget, but this was not accepted by the membership.

The Conference also noted that additional funds may become available during the biennium 2002-2003 in the form of payments of arrears, in particular by the biggest contributor to the FAO budget, the United States. Total payments of arrears in assessed contributions owing from the major contributor amount to US$95 million.

The Conference authorized FAO's Director-General to use the arrears for one time programme activities in the areas of biotechnology and biosecurity, natural resource assessement and conservation, multilateral trade, fisheries, information technology infrastructure, statistical data and translation services.

http://www.fao.org/unfao/bodies/conf/c2001/c2001-e.htm

IFAD to support cooperative rural finance programme in Lebanon

Rome, 5 November- A USD 12.84 million project in the Lebanese Republic –

The Cooperative Rural Finance Programme Project' will receive a USD 12.84 million loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). A loan agreement was signed today at the Fund's Headquarters by H.E. Mr. Ali Abdallah, Minister for Agriculture of Lebanese Republic and Mr. Lennart Båge, President of the Fund. (…)

The new project will benefit an estimated target group of around 250 000 rural people in 50 000 households, and will include agricultural small farmers, the landless, small rural entrepreneurs, rural women and small fishermen. Most of them identified the lack of access to credit as the main obstacle to the betterment of their income. The lack of credit prevents the poor from engaging in productive activities, including small or medium on-farm and off-farm income-generating activities. They encounter great difficulties in access to banking and financial facilities. Programme beneficiaries are or will be members of rural producers’ cooperatives or rural savings and credit cooperatives. (…)

With this programme, IFAD will have financed 4 projects in the Lebanese Republic, for a total loan amount of about USD 44.58 million.

http://www.ifad.org/media/press/2001/01-31.htm

East Timor prepares strategy against poverty

5 November - A UNDP-supported assessment will bring data about poverty from the villages to the new policy makers to East Timor's first Parliamentarians as they buckle down to draft the nation's Constitution. The three-step process will help develop a poverty reduction strategy, said Finn Reske-Nielson, UNDP Resident Representative. The first two steps included village and household surveys. Preliminary results show high rates of poverty, with only 20 per cent of aldeias (hamlets) having electricity. (…) The third step started last week with a six-day training course for 24 East Timorese development facilitators. This week, they begin work in 48 aldeias in locations ranging from the most remote highland regions to the suburbs of the major cities. (…)

New projects tackle rural poverty in Somalia

5 November - UNDP has launched a series of projects in partnership with World Vision International to reduce rural poverty and stimulate economic growth in Somalia's southwestern Bay region. The projects promote seed oil extraction, grain milling, and bee-keeping for honey production, as well as packaging and marketing these products. "These projects will benefit about 10,000 Somalis directly and help 70,000 people in the area by boosting economic activity," said Jean-Luc Stalon, UNDP programme manager in charge of poverty reduction and economic recovery. "We are now getting into the nuts and bolts of economic development at the grassroots level," he said.

The poverty reduction and economic recovery programme is one of three major new programmes launched in July by UNDP Somalia. Other programmes cover peace and security and governance.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inf/pr/2001/46.htm

ILO Employment Forum calls for global jobs rescue package

Geneva, 3 November - A Global Employment Forum held at the International Labour Organization (ILO), citing the need for urgency in dealing with a growing worldwide jobs crisis, today launched a 10-point plan aimed at reversing mounting unemployment and poverty due to the dual impacts of global recession and the terrorist attacks of September 11.

The Global Agenda for Employment, adopted by some 700 world political and economic leaders meeting here at the Forum, will seek to mitigate a stunning reversal in the global economy which threatens to plunge some 24 million people into joblessness, and millions more into poverty. (…)

Delegates to the Forum also called for a global stimulus package designed to boost employment and reduce poverty, and appealed to the World Trade Organization Ministerial Meeting in Doha, Qatar on 9-13 November to join the fight for jobs by opening up international trade to developing countries. (…)

Four countries admitted to FAO on opening day of the Organization's 31st Governing Conference bringing membership to 183 countries

Rome, November 2- Four countries became members of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today, bringing membership in the Organization to 183 countries and the European Community. FAO's governing Conference approved the applications of the Principality of Monaco, the Republic of Nauru, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Yugoslavia was admitted as a new state. Previously, the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, incorporating a number of now independent states, had been a member of FAO. That state ceased to exist according to UN Security Council Resolution 47/1 of 19 September 1992.

http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/OIS/PRESS_NE/PRESSENG/2001/pren0179.htm

Leading Senegalese company joins anti-poverty initiative

1 November - One of Senegal's leading companies is joining UNDP in a programme to lift poor rural communities out of poverty by offering small business loans, widening access to social services, and training people for jobs.

Industries Chimiques du Sénégal (ICS) is supporting an initiative to make micro-finance services available to poor communities, particularly for young people and women. ICS will help small businesses set up under the country's anti-poverty programme enter into sub-contracts with it. (…) The initiative will also improve access to social services and offer training for jobs with the company. Under the agreement, UNDP will help in the design of training programmes with start-up companies recommended by ICS. (…)

http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/OIS/PRESS_NE/PRESSENG/2001/pren0175.htm

Eurofish, a new international organization to build on the development of fisheries in eastern and central Europe

Rome, 31 October - Eurofish, a new international organization for the development of fisheries in Eastern and Central Europe, has officially come into existence with the signature of the constituent agreement by Romania. Romania is now the fifth country to become a member of EUROFISH, together with Latvia, Albania, Denmark and Norway.

Several other European countries are also expected to join Eurofish during its first Governing Council in Copenhagen next January. The Council will decide on the work plan, staff arrangements and other key issues of Eurofish, which will continue and build on the activities of Eastfish, a trust fund project established by the Danish Government in 1996 and managed by FAO. For six years Eastfish has been supporting the development and modernisation of aquaculture and fish processing in Central and Eastern Europe, promoting private sector investment and partnership, developing projects with governments and acting as a catalyst for trade and market opportunities. Eurofish will also be a member of the FISH INFOnetwork, a network of regional marketing information services that FAO set up in the late 70's. (…)

Solidarity

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Uganda: Increase in Irish aid

2 November - Increasing Irish government development aid to Uganda, signalled again last week by President Mary McAleese during a visit to the country, was based on Uganda's sustained commitment to tackling poverty, the Irish Embassy in Kampala reported. Irish aid to Uganda is expected to reach some 28 million Irish punts (about US $32 million), in 2002, reflecting a rapid increase in Ireland's global development expenditure since it committed itself to reaching the UN target of 0.7 percent of Gross National Product by 2007, the Irish charge d'affaires in Kampala, Mairtin O'Fainin, told IRIN on Tuesday. That development aid was up from some 19 million punts ($21.8 million) in 2001 and 9 million punts ($10.3 million) in 2000, O'Fainin said, adding that next year's level of funding would put Ireland among the more significant donors to Uganda. Ireland's assistance would continue to support priorities in health and education through the central government's sector programmes, as well as additional programmes targeting particular poorer districts, he added. [For IRIN interview with Irish Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Liz O'Donnell, on the reasons for the extra aid, see East Africa page at: http://www.irinnews.org]

Mozambique: Donors pledge US $722 million

2 November - In Mozambique this week, international donors pledged more than US $700 million in support of Mozambique's poverty reduction programme. A World Bank press release said 80 percent of the pledges were in the form of grants. "These contributions are in addition to the debt service relief granted to Mozambique under the original and the enhanced HIPC (Highly Indebted Poor Countries) frameworks," the bank said. The donor support came during the 13th Consultative Group (CG) meeting of the government and its international development partners in Maputo on 25 and 26 October. The statement said donors "recognised" the government's "continued commitment" to implementing economic reforms. "Despite severe setbacks caused by floods in the previous two years, Mozambique has shown a remarkable capacity to recover," said the statement. (…)

For the full story: http://www.irinnews.org

WFP extends feeding programme in Malawi

2 November - The World Food Programme (WFP) said it was extending its emergency feeding programme for families still suffering from floods earlier this year for a further two months "in response to the alarming food situation" in the country. WFP adviser in Malawi, Ayoub Algaloudi, told IRIN that the programme which was supposed to end in October would now wrap up at the end of December. "An extension-in-time and a budget revision have been developed for two months effective 1 November 2001. The operation plans to distribute 11,330 mt to 366,000 beneficiaries, representing 73,200 families," he said. (…)

For the full story and more details on Malawi's food shortage, please see: http://www.irinnews.org

West Africa: Japanese development aid

2 November - Japan's government has granted some 156 million CFA (US $221,000) for development projects and medical aid in Cote d'Ivoire and Senegal. In Cote d'Ivoire US $136,00 will be divided between local organisations for development projects including the construction of wells, purchase of medical equipment for a children's health centre and construction of an AIDS information centre, Japanese embassy in Abidjan said in a news release.

A Senegalese teaching hospital in the capital Dakar is the recipient of medical equipment worth some 60 million CFA (US $85,000).

http://www.irinnews.org

Health

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Ethiopia: ministry launches new malaria plan

3 November - The Ethiopian Ministry of Health said on Wednesday that the government had launched a strategic plan designed to reduce malaria mortality by 50 percent by the year 2010.

http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/ethiopia/20011025.phtml

http://lnweb18.worldbank.org/news/pressrelease.nsf

International Labour Organization joins UNAIDS

3 November - The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) today announced that the International Labour Organization (ILO) has formalized its commitment to fighting the global HIV/AIDS epidemic by becoming a Cosponsor of UNAIDS.

Further details: http://www.kabissa.org/kfn/newsletter.php?id=3799

Japanese NGO becomes implementing partner in Central African Republic's HIV/AIDS strategy – Project to be funded by the Japan Social Development Fund

Bangui, October 31 - The Government of Central African Republic and Amis d'Afrique, a Japanese NGO, today signed the letter of agreement for the Japan Social Development Fund Grant in support of reinforcing HIV/AIDS responses in communities in the Central African Republic.

The grant, amounting to $630,000, will be made available from funds provided by the Government of Japan under the Japan Social Development Fund (JSDF), an untied grant facility, established in June 2000 to assist World Bank clients in tackling the poverty and social consequences of the 1997-1999 global economic crises. (…)

Energy and safety

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Small cars get 'green' light in India

1 November - A new "green rating" of India's auto industry finds small cars among the top eco-friendly vehicles, but below average performance for the industry as a whole. The environmental assessment looks at the entire life cycle, from raw materials to disposal of junked vehicles. India produced about 4.7 million vehicles in 2000.

"The green rating of the automobile industry is a landmark that will act as a motivating force for all stakeholders to improve upon their performance," said Dr. Manmohan Singh of the Centre of Science and Environment, which carried out the assessment with support from UNDP and the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

A significant achievement of the project has been the strong partnership among the industry, civil society, government and UNDP, said Dorothy Gordon, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative. "Concrete action plans for mitigation of environmental problems" are now needed, she said, "and all stakeholders need to be involved in the follow-up."

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-000088488nov05.story?coll=la%2Dnews%2Dscience

Environment and wildlife

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WWF completes "A New Map of Life on Earth"

5 November - "A New Map of Life on Earth," a new project of the World Wildlife Fund, charts the natural world in unprecedented detail and may help environmentalists figure out where to best direct their efforts. The project, which took eight years and the labor of more than 1,000 people to complete, divides the Earth into 867 ecoregions based on climate, plants, animals, soil type, geological features, and other characteristics. Eric Dinerstein, chief scientist at WWF, says the map was inspired by the advice of a veteran colleague: "The first thing you're going to need, to do conservation, is to go out and get a good map."

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=143&art_id=qw1004714282867B251&set_id=1

$1 million award to help preserve wild area in South Africa

5 November - The Global Environment Facility has awarded $1 million to help preserve a rugged wilderness area in South Africa's Eastern Cape. In addition to being the largest protected area in the Eastern Cape and the source of 85 percent of drinking water for nearby Port Elizabeth, South Africa, the Baviaanskloof wilderness preserve contains more than 1,100 species. Although local authorities have been committed to protecting the area's biodiversity, they were hampered by a lack of funds. The grant was announced during the seventh World Wilderness Congress, which opened Friday in Port Elizabeth. Over the last 20 years, the GEF has provided $1.3 billion to more than 400 projects in 123 developing countries.

http://www.freep.com/news/mich/drill2_20011102.htm
http://www.sltrib.com/11022001/nation_w/145376.htm

U.S. Congress bans drilling in the Great Lakes for two years

2 November - In a move that pleased environmentalists but irked industry, the U.S. Congress voted yesterday to ban new oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes for two years. The measure, which was part of a $24.6 billion federal energy and water bill, was passed overwhelmingly in both chambers despite President Bush's recent calls to tap into more domestic energy sources. Under the bill, states would be prohibited from green-lighting new projects while the Army Corps of Engineers studied the environmental impact of drilling Although none of the Great Lakes states allow drilling from rigs on the water, there are currently seven slant wells that pipe oil and gas from under the lakes to the shore; Michigan Gov. John Engler (R), for one, has been looking to expand such drilling.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com

Canada: new legislation supports conservation effort

1 November - Almost 1,2 million of threatened land north of Toronto would be protected by legislation to be announced today by the Ontario government. The conservation effort would protect more than 90 percent of the Oak Ridges Moraine, which is the source of groundwater for much of southern Ontario. The province plans to establish a $250 million fund to purchase private land on the moraine. The decision is a reversal of previous policy, in which the provincial government had left development in the area up to the discretion of individual municipalities. Environmentalists hailed the move as a decisive blow to urban sprawl.

http://www.unesco.org/opi/eng/unescopress/2001/01-120e.shtml

Culture and education

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Say Yes for Children campaign: 40 million people have pledged support for children

The Say Yes for Children campaign is designed to broaden awareness of issues affecting children and accelerate action on children's behalf. Say Yes was launched in 2001 as part of the Global Movement for Children. The campaign is built on 10 imperative actions and responsibilities which must be undertaken to ensure a better world for children everywhere. These actions cover issues ranging from poverty and education to HIV/AIDS and the environment.

More than 40 million people worldwide have pledged support for children through the campaign--on pledge forms distributed to communities and through the Internet, email and mail. Those pledging to support the 10 imperative actions for children are asked to indicate the three actions they feel are most important. 'Educate every child' has clearly come out on top so far . The pledges will be taken to the first United Nations Special Session on Children at the United Nations General Assembly by champions of Say Yes for Children -- influential public figures like Nelson Mandela whom the world knows and trusts.

Say Yes for Children is preparing the world to take on the challenges the Special Session on Children will identify by posing a defining question: Would each one of you be willing to pledge your time and energies to the well-being of the world's children? This is the essence of the Global Movement, and the ultimate hope of the Say Yes for Children campaign.

Founding partners of the Global Movement for Children (http://www.gmfc.org) are BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), Netaid.org Foundation, PLAN International, Save the Children, UNICEF and World Vision. The Global Movement for Children is a force for change, calling for people throughout the world to take action and protect the rights of children.

http://www.unicef.org

Declaration on Cultural Diversity

Paris, November 2 - UNESCO’s governing body – the General Conference – today adopted the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, a text about which Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura expressed hope that it can “one day acquire as much force as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.

Mr Matsuura declared: “At a time when some might see a clash of cultures in the current international situation, UNESCO’s Member States, convening for the Organization's 31st General Conference, adopted by acclamation today the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, reaffirming their conviction that intercultural dialogue is the best guarantee of peace, thus categorically rejecting the idea that conflicts between cultures and civilisations are inevitable. (…) UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, along with the main lines of an Action Plan, is a determining instrument to humanise globalisation. UNESCO is honoured to be at the forefront of a movement that involves all of humanity. This Declaration now counts among the basic texts of new ethics UNESCO is advocating at the beginning of the 21st century.” (…)

Conflict Resolution Through Culture

III IFLAC International Conference, London, 14to 17 March 2002

The Conference will bring together academicians, specialists, writers, poets, peace researchers, media, and women leaders, from a broad range of fields, to discuss the impact of the social dimensions of Conflict Resolution through cultural bridges, and its key roles in the development, definition and construction of identity in the Middle East and in other conflicted areas.

After examining alternative cultural paths toward a more peaceful and desirable present and future, participants will work together to produce useful proposals for research and programs required to "un-violence" national cultures, and to contribute to the enhancement of a peaceful Middle East, and world. Themes to be examined and discussed at this conference by participants will include: national and cultural identity in an era of globalisation; women and peace; the communications revolution and social change, and the importance of the creation of a peace culture and a peace media. A session will be dedicated to the Ethical Code of the Media drafted and promoted by Good News Agency. The Code is available on site www.goodnewsagency.org

IFLAC PAVE PEACE, The International Forum for the Culture and Literature of Peace, is a network of researchers, writers, poets, media, and intellectuals, working together to foster joint cooperation and understanding in the Middle East and in our global village.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IFLAC_USA

http://tx.technion.ac.il/~ada/home.html

Another world means another journalism too

7 November - The main challenge facing communicators today is to coordinate existing alternative and community media into a network capable of surmounting the blockade imposed by the major information chains. That was the opinion of participants in the Congress of Latin American and Caribbean Journalists held this month in Havana. The congress highlighted a number of specific tasks to that end: demanding that governments ensure plural communication in their societies as a basic right and introduce university programmes that afford journalists an overall perspective, putting an end to the myth of the technical, impartial reporter. These and other accounts are in a report by the Chilean newspaper, El Siglo

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/other-words

www.portoalegre2002.net

Tanzania: envoy explains push on primary schooling

3 November - Tanzania is determined to see to it that no child is denied the right to education just because parents cannot afford to pay, and the government has committed itself since July to providing basic primary education free of charge to all, Tanzanian envoy Christine Kapalata told a UN General Assembly debate on child rights on 26 October.

http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/tanzania/20011029.phtml

http://allafrica.com/stories/200110120003.html

Tanzania: World Bank backing for primary education

3 November - The World Bank on Wednesday announced its approval of a US $150 million interest-free credit to support the government's efforts to improve education quality, expand school access and increase school retention at the primary level.