Good News Agency – Year V, n° 6
Weekly - Year V, number 6 – 30
April 2004
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi,
Ph. D.
Rome Law-court registration
no. 265 dated 20 June 2000.
Good News Agency carries
positive and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary
work, the work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations, and
institutions engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn
out” in the space of a day. Editorial research by Fabio Gatti. Good News Agency
is published in English on one Friday and in Italian the next. It is distributed free of charge through
Internet to the editorial offices of more than 2,400
media in 48 countries, as well as to 2,500 NGO and service associations.
It is a service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della
Buona Volontà Mondiale, NGO associated with the United Nations Department of Public
Information. The Association has been recognized by UNESCO as “an actor
of the global movement for a culture of peace” and it has been included as an
international organization in the web site http://www3.unesco.org/iycp/
International legislation – Human rights – Economy and development – Solidarity
Peace and security – Health
– Environment and
wildlife
– Culture and education
EUHR Solana welcomes the
successful outcome of the presidential election in the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia
April 29 - Javier SOLANA, EU
High Representative for the CFSP, welcomes the successful outcome of the
presidential election in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Brussels)
Following the election of
Branko Crvenkovski as president of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,
Javier Solana, EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security
Policy (CFSP), welcomed today the successful outcome of the election: "The
successful outcome of the election is positive for the country. It is a display
of maturity and responsibility. It is a victory for those leaders engaged in
the implementation of the Ohrid Agreement and a vote for Europe. It is also a
positive signal for the region. The people have spoken: there is no doubt today
that Skopje is the capital of a functional, multi-ethnic, democratic State.
What is now most important is that the President, a new Prime Minister and all
political leaders rapidly resume work on the crucial reform agenda, in
particular in the area of decentralisation. We will continue to assist the
country on its path towards the European Union."
http://www.europa-eu-un.org/article.asp?id=3452
Non-Proliferation
of Weapons of Mass Destruction
On April 22, Irish Ambassador Richard Ryan spoke on behalf of the EU at the UN Security
Council's open debate on the Non-Proliferation
of Weapons of Mass Destruction. The
European Union welcomes and strongly supports this initiative by the Security
Council to address the problem of the potential acquisition of nuclear,
chemical or biological weapons or materials by non-state actors. Measures are
needed to address this important issue and enhanced international cooperation
is required. Ambassador Ryan
summarized the important EU efforts in this arena.
For a copy of his statement, please visit http://www.europa-eu-un.org/article.asp?id=3425.
Liberia: ICRC launches poster
campaign to reunite children with their families
23 April - The ICRC and the
Liberian National Red Cross Society have launched a new tracing campaign. The
campaign involves ICRC delegations and Red Cross Societies throughout West
Africa, who are joining forces to trace the relatives of Liberian children
separated from their families. The pictures of 495 Liberian children registered
by the ICRC in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Nigeria
appear on posters and booklets under the slogan “Help us find our parents."
The materials are displayed in public places, such as markets, hospitals,
schools and camps, both in Liberia and in the surrounding countries.
The campaign will cover all 15
counties in Liberia. It will involve every ICRC delegation in this part of
Africa and will get pictures of these children into the remotest areas. Using
posters will enable the ICRC to help children who can give no information about
their families, or who have given incorrect information.
The ICRC has already run three
similar campaigns in Liberia, in 2002 and 2003. The results were highly
encouraging: between October 2003 and March 2004, 527 Liberian children
re-established contact with their relatives, and 194 were reunited with their
families in Liberia. Currently, the ICRC is handling the cases of 1,891
Liberian children looking for their families. (…)
Humanitarian groups respond to needs
of migrants expelled from Angola into Western Democratic Republic of Congo
New York, 21 April (OCHA) --
In response to the humanitarian needs of thousands of Congolese migrants who
have been expelled from Angola into the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),
United Nations humanitarian agencies and their non-governmental organization
(NGO) partners conducted an assessment mission to a town in DRC’s Western Kasai
Province yesterday. The mission, led by
the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), to Tshikapa,
some 750 kilometres from Kinshasa, has revealed urgent humanitarian needs for
food, health care, clean water and transport.
In response to needs in the
affected zones, the DRC’s Ministry of Solidarity and Humanitarian Affairs is
opening two humanitarian crisis cells.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is bringing in other
supplies, including medical and water/sanitation equipment for 35,000
people. Médecins sans frontières,
Belgium (MSF-B), the main NGO on the ground, is providing medical, transport,
logistics and storage support. The OCHA
in DRC has organised, led and financed two inter-agency missions to the areas
in the past week. In order to ensure
the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Kahungula, BandunduProvince, OCHA is
tapping into its emergency humanitarian intervention fund to support MSF-Belgium
and local partners. (…)
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/afr907.doc.htm
Palestinian Relief Agency
resumes distribution of emergency food in Gaza strip
Gaza, 21 April
(UNRWA) -- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
(UNRWA) today recommenced the distribution of emergency food aid to some
600,000 refugees in the Gaza Strip. UNRWA’s emergency food programme was
suspended on 1 April following restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities
at the sole commercial entry point for Gaza.
Those restrictions prevented UNRWA from transporting empty freight
containers out of Gaza, causing the Agency a bottleneck that prevented 11,000
tons of food from entering from the Israeli port of Ashdod and costing UNRWA
around $130,000 in fees.
For most of the last two
weeks, the Israeli authorities have operated workable arrangements -- as is
required under international humanitarian law -- at the Gaza entry point. These have permitted the Agency to bring
sufficient amounts of humanitarian aid into the Strip. The Agency now has enough food in Gaza to
provide for the needs of the refugees for the next 30 days. (…)
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/pal1978.doc.htm
OCHA launches new web site
New York, 7 April (OCHA) --
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today launched
its new Web site, OCHA Online (http://ochaonline.un.org), with an expanded
content and revamped design. “The coordination of response to humanitarian
crises has emerged as one of the most important functions of the United
Nations”, said Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland. “OCHA is uniquely placed at the centre of
this coordination through its mandate, and this new Web site provides an
insight into OCHA’s functions and activities.”
The new OCHA Online features
tools and services that are critical for carrying out humanitarian operations. The site also includes in-depth coverage of
issues of concern to the humanitarian community, such as the protection of
civilians in armed conflict, the plight of internally displaced persons and the
humanitarian impact of sanctions.
A virtual news centre makes it
simple to obtain press releases and the latest situation reports on natural
disasters and complex emergencies, as well as the text of statements made by
OCHA senior managers. Publications,
including newsletters and other documentation produced by OCHA, are also
featured on the news centre. (…)
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/iha894.doc.htm
CARE partners with USAID and
others to promote safe drinking water
New York, April 22 - A
strategic public-private collaboration devoted to ensuring safe drinking water
was officially launched today at the United Nations' Commission on Sustainable
Development meeting in New York. The Safe Drinking Water Alliance includes
CARE, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health/Center for Communication
Programs (CCP), Population Services International (PSI), and Procter &
Gamble. The group will receive $1.4 million over the next 18 months from the
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Global
Development Alliance, designed to promote partnerships such as this in the
developing world.
USAID's financial contribution
leverages substantial in-kind and financial contributions from Procter &
Gamble (estimated at approximately $3.5 million), as well as technical and
program support resources from other partners. The alliance is designed to
develop innovative approaches to ensure the safety of drinking water. Alliance
members joined forces to offer their respective expertise and resources to
better understand the behaviors and motivations for choosing particular
technologies for treating household water, to share the knowledge gained, and
identify opportunities for scaling up successful efforts to ensure safe
drinking water. (…)
http://www.careusa.org/newsroom/pressreleases/2004/apr/04222004_unwaterpr.asp
Nine Sister City Partnerships
awarded sustainable development grants
Washington, March 23 - Nine
sister city partnerships were awarded $45,000 in grant funds by Sister Cities
International to fund joint projects focused on sustainable development in
Eastern Europe and Eurasia. The grants are funded and managed by the Office of
Citizen Exchanges, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department
of State. (…)
These are the first grants the
network has awarded. A total of $45,000 will be distributed as $5,000 seed
grants. Funded projects will tackle issues such as micro-financing, tourism
development, economic development, government, youth education, health care and
environmental management. (…)
Representing more than 2,400
communities in 123 countries, Sister Cities International (http://www.sister-cities.org) is a citizen
diplomacy network creating and strengthening partnerships between the U.S. and
communities abroad. (…) Sister Cities International promotes peace through
mutual respect, understanding and cooperation by focusing on sustainable
development, youth and education, arts and culture, humanitarian assistance and
economic growth programs.
For further information: Ami
Neiberger-Miller amiller@sister-cities.org
Success of Asian highway would lead to
economic integration, cultural contact across vast continent
New York, 20 April -- A UN
treaty-signing event 26-28 April in Shanghai, China, if successful, will ensure
completion of a multi-pronged 140,000-kilometre highway corridor connecting 32
Asian nations and linking Europe to Asia.
All regions and national economies should gain tremendously, including
the region’s low-income landlocked States, primary partners in the 2002 Almaty
plan of action for landlocked and transit access countries. The 26 April
ceremony to mark the opening of the Asian Highway Agreement for signature will
take place in the context of the sixtieth session of the United Nations
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
Experts relate the ultimate
effect of the Asian Highway to the economic explosion that occurred in Europe
after 1975, when the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) engineered a similar
arrangement for that region. For
landlocked countries, the Highway portends a revival of the cross-continent
access that the legendary Silk Route provided in the early part of the First
Millennium. (…) The landlocked countries that would be linked more closely to
seaports include Bhutan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal and Uzbekistan, according to ESCAP. (…)
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/rec153.doc.htm
Fao Regional Conference For
Europe - Montpellier 5 - 7 May 2004
Rome/Montpellier, 20 April - The 24th FAO Regional Conference for Europe will be held at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure agronomique de Montpellier (ENSAM) in France between May 5th and 7th 2004. FAO Director-General Dr. Jacques Diouf will address the opening session of the conference on Tuesday 5th May at 10 am. Some 44 member states from the region, European Union representatives and other specialised agencies and observers will take part in the meeting.
The agenda includes:
The regional conference
will follow a Non-Governmental Organization Forum which will take place on the
3rd and 4th of May 2004 at ENSAM. Conference documents are available online: http://www.fao.org/Unfao/Bodies/RegConferences/erc24/erc24_en.htm
Global photography contest on
rice launched
Rome, 22 April - A global
photography contest to highlight the importance of rice as a staple food crop
and a symbol of cultural and global identity has been launched by FAO and the
United Nations. As 2004 is the UN International Year of Rice (IYR),
professional and amateur photographers are invited to capture the "Rice is
Life" theme in photographs illustrating the rich diversity of regions,
people and resources linked to this internationally vital food source. IYR aims
to promote improved production and access to this crop, which feeds more than
half the world's population while providing income for millions of rice
processors and traders. Development of sustainable rice-based systems will
reduce poverty and hunger, and contribute to environmental conservation and a
better life for present and future generations. (…)
Participants may submit
slides, prints or digital images in either black and white or color. It is free
to enter, and there are separate categories for professional and amateur
photographers.
For competition details please
visit the contest Web site at:
http://www.fao.org/rice2004/en/photog.htm.
The entry deadline is 30 July 2004.
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2004/38107/index.html
Democratic Republic of the
Congo: Relief supplies distributed in Katoyi
21 April - On 19 April the
ICRC completed a distribution of food (salt, beans, maize flour) and other
relief supplies (clothing, pots, blankets, soap, hoes, seed) to 7,600 households
(over 35,000 people) in the Katoyi area (Masisi territory) of North Kivu. Since
the roads and bridges were impassable, the distribution was carried out in
Bihambwe, a day’s walk from Katoyi. Between 14 and 19 April, seven ICRC trucks
made 40 round trips between Goma and Bihambwe to deliver the supplies.
The inhabitants of Katoyi had
been forced to flee during the fighting in 1998. Now that security conditions
have improved, most families are returning to the area. However, they are faced
with major problems due to the loss of their means of survival (tools, seed and
livestock), the damage done to their fields and the general collapse of
infrastructure. The distribution was planned to coincide with the next planting
season, which is to about to begin. Thanks to the supplies they received, the
inhabitants of Katoyi will now be able to resume their traditional farming
activities and improve their living conditions.
U.S. Rotary club efforts
revitalize education in Afghanistan
By
Vukoni Lupa-Lasaga - Rotary International
19 April - Rotarians are often
the first volunteers to venture into corners of the earth where few private and
public agencies have been working to make a difference in the lives of the
poor. In Afghanistan, Rotary club efforts are helping to bring change to a
country devastated by more than 20 years of war and neglect. Co-sponsored by
the Rotary Club of La Jolla Golden Triangle, California, USA, a brand new grade
school and a computer lab at a University in Jalalabad are just two examples of
such initiatives helping Afghans to lay the foundations of a brighter future.
"It is clear that in the
area in Afghanistan where we are working, Rotary is making a measurable
difference in lives. We are doing things on the same or greater magnitude as
[national] governments," says Past District 5340 Governor Steve Brown, one
of several volunteers from the club involved in the country. (…)
Most recently, Brown led a
delegation of four District 5340 Rotarians to the inauguration of the grade
school and the computer center at the University of Nangarhar. On 11 March, at
a ceremony attended by some 350 guests, the visiting Rotarians handed over the
US$60,000 computer center to the university administration, now charged with
the responsibility of running the facility that includes a satellite hookup to
the Internet. To complement the computer center, the club has undertaken a
project to teach English as a second language and distribute 12,000 dictionaries. (…)
http://www.rotary.org/newsroom/main/news01.html
UN Volunteers programme and Southern
African Student Volunteers announce new youth volunteering initiative
Pretoria, 2 April -- The UN
Volunteers (UNV) programme and the Southern African Student Volunteers (SASVO)
have joined forces to mobilize students and local communities to serve as
volunteers in rural South Africa. With technical support from the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and a new partner, the US-based
Association for Volunteer Administration (AVA), a global leader in volunteer
administration and management, the project reaches out to a huge reservoir of
untapped potential volunteers, South Africa’s young people.
By developing training modules
in the most important areas of SASVO’s interventions i.e. agriculture, HIV/AIDS
and social infrastructure, the joint project seeks to enhance the impact of
volunteer contributions in these areas, as well as expanding SASVO’s capacity
for volunteer management, and resource mobilization. The first UN Volunteers,
Programme Advisor Horrance Chilando of Zambia and Training Specialist Charles
Aheto-Tsegah of Ghana, arrived in December 2003 and January 2004, respectively,
and have already facilitated the first workshops for SAVSO staff at their
Pretoria headquarters. (…)
http://www.unv.org/infobase/news_releases/2004/04_04_03ZAF_SAVSO.htm
Turkmenistan reverses stance, will
destroy 69,000 retained mines
Engineer Forces of Ministry of
Defense of Turkmenistan prepare antipersonnel mines for destruction.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, 9
April - On 8 April, a four-person International Campaign to Ban Landmines
(ICBL) delegation observed a significant stockpile destruction event in
Turkmenistan. The destruction took place at a firing range of the Engineer
Forces of the Ministry of Defense of Turkmenistan, approximately 30 kilometers
southwest of Turkmenabad (formerly Charjoh) in the Karakum desert. While
Turkmenistan had previously reported that it intended to retain 69,200
antipersonnel mines for training purposes, it has now decided to destroy all
but 200 of those mines -- and eventually even those 200 will be destroyed.
Turkmenistan's current plan entails the destruction of 69,000 antipersonnel
mines within the next six weeks, with two or three explosive events a day.
The ICBL, which had previously
criticized Turkmenistan for retaining an unacceptably high number of mines,
applauds Ashgabat's decision. Once the destruction process is completed,
Turkmenistan will be back in line with its Mine Ban Treaty obligations to
destroy stockpiled antipersonnel mines except for the "minimum number
absolutely necessary". The ICBL thanks Turkmenistan for hosting its
delegation and for the opportunity to observe the stockpile destruction. (…)
Regional conference on landmines in
Tajikistan – May 15 and 16
ICBL delegation meeting with
Kazakhstan's Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Almaty, Kazakhstan, 11 April -
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) will participate in a
regional conference on landmines on 15 and 16 May in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The
event is organised by the government of Tajikistan and supported by the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The two days conference aims to assess
progress towards the Mine Ban Treaty objectives in Central Asia. Neighbouring
states Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzkbekistan are invited. (…)
In Central Asia, Tajikistan
and Turkmenistan are Parties to the Convention while Kazakhstan and
mine-affected Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan have yet to join. Recently Tajikistan
started mine clearance operations on its territory and completed the
destruction of its stockpile.
International Nuclear Safety Group
Inaugurated
It was announced on 26 March
that experts from 15 countries have joined to form the newly constituted
International Nuclear Safety Group (INSAG) to provide authoritative advice and
guidance on safety approaches, policies and principles at nuclear power plants
and other nuclear facilities. The group was formed at the request of IAEA
Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, and Dr. Richard Meserve, Chairman of INSAG,
who is the former head of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission and presently
President of the Carnegie Institution. INSAG Members include representatives
from Canada, France, Finland, Russian Federation, Spain, Germany, Brazil,
United Kingdom, United States, South Africa, Republic of Korea, Japan, Hungary,
India, China, and the NEA/OECD. Source: IAEA
Staff Report, 26 March 2004.
The Sunflower, April - http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/resrources/sunflower
Celebrities lend their voices to children's
fight against malaria
Geneva, 22 April --
International celebrities Dikembe Mutombo and Youssou N'Dour have added their
voices to those of tens of thousands of children across Africa who are calling
for increased awareness, more protection and better treatment for malaria,
which kills 3000 children every day.
In the run-up
to Africa Malaria Day, commemorated on 25 April of each year, children
throughout Africa are engaging in children's parliaments, TV and radio
commentaries, plays, and other creative activities to send a clear message to
those who have it in their power to make a difference: adults, decision-makers,
governments and donors. Their intention?
To realize a child's dream of "a malaria-free future", the
theme of this year's Africa Malaria Day.
"We are suffering a lot
from malaria," says 13-year-old Efua Boateng, member of a church youth
group in Ghana, "but I don't think the rest of the world understands. We
need to let them know. We have to speak up on behalf of our younger brothers and
sisters."
Dikembe Mutombo, New York
Knicks basketball player, who comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
is supporting their efforts by urging children to sleep under
insecticide-treated mosquito nets. "Beating malaria is like winning at
basketball," says Mutombo in a public-service announcement being broadcast
Africa-wide. "You need to get to the net." (…)
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/releases/2004/pr27/en/
Rotary recognizes the
Government of Norway for its support of a polio-free world
Oslo, Norway,
20 April - In recognition of Norway's US$20 million in accumulated
contributions to the global effort to eradicate polio since 1988, Rotary
International today dedicated its Polio Eradication Champion Award to the
Government of Norway.
A highly infectious disease
that can cause paralysis and sometimes death, polio still strikes children in
parts of Africa and Southeast Asia. Following an international investment of
US$3 billion over 15 years, and the successful engagement of over 200 countries
and 20 million volunteers, world health experts say it is possible to eradicate
polio by the end of this year.
The award, presented by Rotary
International President-nominee, Carl Wilhelm Stenhammar, was established in
1995 to recognize governments and world leaders who have made outstanding
contributions toward the goal of eradicating polio. (…)
Rotary's commitment to end
polio represents the largest private-sector support of a global health
initiative ever. In 1985, Rotary members worldwide vowed to immunize all the
world's children against polio by Rotary's 100th anniversary in 2005. Since
then, Rotary has contributed more than US$500 million worldwide, and recently
raised an additional US$119 million in 2003. Rotary members in Norway have
contributed some US$2.6 million in support of polio eradication. Besides
raising and contributing funds, over one million men and women of Rotary have
volunteered their time and personal resources to help immunize more than 2
billion children in 122 countries during national immunization campaigns. (…)
http://www.rotary.org/newsroom/presscenter/releases/194.html
Youth Leaders Advise UNFPA on their
Generation's Rights and Needs
United Nations, New York, 20
April – A group of young people from around the world will advise UNFPA, the
United Nations Population Fund, on the best ways to recognize and promote the
rights and needs of youth within national development plans. The group will
also ensure that UNFPA’s global initiatives are youth-friendly and adequately
address young people’s concerns, particularly regarding their sexual and
reproductive lives, HIV/AIDS and gender issues and their link with issues of
livelihood.
The Youth Advisory Committee
was formulated during a two-day meeting in New York, where more than 20
representatives of national, regional and international youth networks voiced
their opinions on how to better integrate adolescents and youth in UNFPA’s
programmes and initiatives. The meeting, held from 15 to16 April, also provided
the participants with an
opportunity to discuss the
challenges they faced in implementing their projects, in working with adults
and in dealing with other youth. (…)
http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=445
Integrated
Traditional Medicines - Peace Education
for Better Health
World Congress 28-29-30 May,
Verbania-Pallanza, Lake Maggiore, Italy
The Lama Gangchen World Peace Foundation
is organising a World Congress on Traditional Integrated Medicines -
Peace Education for better Health in Verbania, in collaboration with the Local
Ministry for Education and Culture of Verbania. The objective of this event is
to bring a contribution towards the creation of a new world health system,
which integrates the knowledge
of ancient traditional healing methods and modern medicine; an education that
leads to wellbeing and the rebalance of the inner and outer world, creating the
conditions for better health, on the physical, amotional and spiritual levels,
and thus contribute to a more peaceful world.
The Lama
Gangchen World Peace Foundation is actively committed to the development of a
culture of peace and better living for world peace by cooperating in the
humanitarian fields of health, education, the environment, spirituality and the
preservation of indigenous cultures.
lgwpf@libero.it www.worldpeacecongress.net
Tajikistan: Queen Noor to visit
ICRC-supported limb-fitting centre
Dushanbe, 15 April (ICRC) – On
18 April, Queen Noor of Jordan will be visiting an ICRC-supported limb-fitting
centre in Dushanbe during her official trip to Tajikistan as a Goodwill
Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme.
The International Committee of
the Red Cross (ICRC) has been providing the Ministry of Labour and Social
Protection’s limb-fitting centre with financial and technical assistance since
1997. During her visit to the centre, the Queen will see the production
workshop that the ICRC renovated in 1999, the physiotherapy room and the hostel
that the Ministry renovated in 2003, where patients and family members from
outside Dushanbe will be able to stay. (…)
The Ministry’s limb-fitting
services were severely affected by the 1992-1997 civil war, but the centre was
able to start production in 1999 following the signing in 1998 of a three-way
agreement between the ICRC, the Ministry and the Red Crescent Society of
Tajikistan. By the end of 2003 the centre had produced over 1,700 artificial
legs and feet, of which almost a quarter were for people with war-related
injuries, including those caused by mines.
The ICRC will be maintaining
its support for the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, so they can
continue to provide and repair artificial limbs in the future.
Debt swap yields $10 million for
tropical forest conservation in Colombia
Bogota, Colombia, 23 April –
Colombia unveiled today a debt-for-nature swap with the United States that will
allow it to invest at least $10 million over the next 12 years to protect
nearly 4.5 million hectares of its tropical forests. Under the agreement, the U.S. Department of the Treasury will
contribute $7 million to the deal, while WWF, Conservation International’s (CI)
Global Conservation Fund, and The Nature Conservancy will contribute an
additional $1.4 million. The funds
will go toward canceling part of Colombia’s debt to the United States. In
exchange, Colombia will invest at least $10 million to protect tropical forests
in key areas of the Andes, the Caribbean coast and the Llanos, or plains, along
the Orinoco River – the world’s third-largest river in terms of volume.
Colombia is one of the five
most biologically diverse countries on the planet, harboring one of every 10
species of plants and animals in the world.
Debt-for-nature swaps were
established under the US Tropical Forest Conservation Act (TFCA) of 1998 to
allow nations to reduce their foreign debt burden in exchange for making
local-currency investments in conservation work. In the past, Bangladesh, Belize, El Salvador, Panama, Peru and
Thailand have benefited from the TFCA, which is up for reauthorization in this
session of Congress. (…)
http://www.panda.org/news_facts/newsroom/other_news/news.cfm?uNewsID=12702
Caribbean boosts search and rescue
abilities to cope with disasters
22 April - The Caribbean is
enhancing its search and rescue abilities to cope with disasters such as
hurricanes, floods, and volcanic eruptions. Representatives of disaster
management organizations participated in a training workshop in Barbados
recently on land-based search and rescue operations. They also received
satellite telephones, laptop computers, "first responder" kits and
other equipment. The event was part of a three-year US$3 million UNDP project
to reinforce the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA),
supported by the UN Trust Fund for Human Security. Japan is the main
contributor to the trust fund. The project complements search and rescue
planning and preparation activities that the United States Southern Command
(SOUTHCOM) supports.
CDERA coordinates disaster
response among Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize,
British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St.
Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turks and
Caicos. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/frontpagearchive/2004/april/22apr04/index.html
WWF Indochina's A'Vuong Watershed
Project wins US$ 75,000 award
Rüschlikon, Switzerland, 20
April – An innovative project in which indigenous mountain people of Vietnam
protect and manage their watershed has won the US$70,000 ReSource award from
one of the world’s leading reinsurers, Swiss RE (Swiss Reinsurance Company).
The ceremony took place on 5 April 2004 in Rüschlikon, Switzerland.
The A'Vuong Watershed Project
is a partnership between the WWF Indochina Programme and the Quang Nam Forest
Protection Department (FPD). Its main aim is to ensure the sustainable
management of the region's forest and rivers by the indigenous population. In
doing so, equal consideration will be given to economic, social and ecological
factors. Working together, the two parties want to curtail the overexploitation
of forests and rivers in this central Vietnamese province. The allocation of
land rights by the state to the local population is at the centre of the project,
which was launched in February 2004. (…)
The wide-ranging measures,
which can now be implemented with the support of the ReSource Award, are
urgently needed. Frequent natural catastrophes threaten to destroy the
livelihood of the people who live on the banks of the Thu Bon River in Central
Vietnam. Around one million people are affected by the consequences of
overexploited forest areas. The deforestation leads to devastating floods, such
as the ones which hit the region in December 2003, as well as to seasonal
droughts. (…)
Sustainable forest management is
gaining ground in Asia-Pacific
Bangkok, 19 April -- Most
countries in the Asia-Pacific region have developed well-defined policies and
innovative tools for sustainable forestry, but since many lack the capacity to
implement them effectively, overall progress remains slow, FAO said today.
"It is encouraging to see that the concept of sustainable forestry is
increasingly gaining ground in the Asia-Pacific region," said Hosny
El-Lakany, FAO Assistant Director-General for Forestry, on the eve of the
Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission meeting in Nadi, Fiji (19-23 April 2004).
"We see regional
collaboration as a key force behind the progress that is being made," he
added.
FAO brings the countries in
the region together every two years to discuss common forest problems and
policy issues, seek solutions and learn from each other's experiences. More
than 30 countries are expected to attend the Asia-Pacific conference. (…)
Among the most pressing issues
for the forest sector in Asia and the Pacific are illegal logging,
participatory forestry, forest fires and forest rehabilitation. It is also
necessary to ensure forests' role in poverty alleviation, biodiversity
conservation and ensuring clean water, FAO said. (…)
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2004/40607/index.html
United Nations Environment Programme
opens Brazil Office
Brasilia/Nairobi, 16 April – A
new United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) office was inaugurated today in
Brazil. It will focus on issues including cleaner and greener energy, early
warning and assessment and emergency response to natural disasters. (…) The
office will help UNEP respond more effectively to the Johannesburg Plan of
Implementation, drawn up two years ago at the World Summit on Sustainable
Development (WSSD), with regard to developing new and coordinated approaches
and mechanisms for achieving sustainable development focusing on emerging
themes of local and sub-regional interest. It will also play an important role
in achieving the Millennium Development Goals, especially in ensuring
environmental sustainability and integrating the principles of sustainable
development into country policies and programmes to help reverse the loss of
environmental resources. (…)
Washington, 13 April (UNA-USA
Membership E-News) – Last week a letter was sent
to all UNA chapters inviting them to participate in The People Speak 2004,
a project launched last year by the United Nations Foundation to initiate a
nation-wide discussion of America’s role in world affairs and the future of
U.S. foreign policy. For more information on this exciting opportunity,
please see (…) the project’s website at www.jointhedebate.org.
September 13-30, 2004
We
find ourselves at a critical time in our nation's history, as America struggles
to define what it means to be a leader in the world. The mission of The People
Speak is to engage doctors and lawyers, mothers and fathers, friends and
neighbors in a discussion of the hard questions about America's role in the
world. In September 2004, high schools, colleges, civic and business groups
will be asked to organize events around one or more of the following topics: Peace, Security and Human Rights; Energy Choices and Environmental Challenges;
Prosperity in a Global Economy.
The People Speak project was launched in October 2003 to raise the level of national dialogue about America’s role in the world. The project was spear-headed by the United Nations Foundation and backed by a nonpartisan coalition of 13 national cooperating organizations from across the political spectrum, including the American Enterprise Institute, the Open Society Institute, the Jesse Helms Center, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the League of Women Voters, and Empower America.
USA: 2004 National High School Essay
Contest on the UN - Winners Announced
UNA-USA is proud to announce the winners
of the 2004 National High School Essay Contest on the United Nations: First
Place: Justin Krause, 11th grade Justin is a student at Steamboat Springs High
School in Steamboat Springs, CO and entered the essay contest through UNA-USA's
Colorado Division. Read his essay, "From Barrier to Benefit." Second
Place: Jessica Seiler, 12th grade. Jessica is a student at the Westridge School
in Pasadena, CA and entered her essay through the UNA-USA Pasadena/Foothills
Chapter. Read her essay, "Reaffirming America's Obligations to the United
Nations." Third Place: Brian Moffett Taylor, 11th grade. Brian is a
student at The Tatnall School in Wilmington, DE. He entered his essay through
the open division of the contest (for those submissions not received by a
UNA-USA chapter or division) and went
through an additional round of judging at the UNA-USA National Office. Read
Brian's essay, submitted as a memo to the President of the United States.
These essays and further information
about the National High School Essay Contest can be found on our website www.unausa.org under Education and Model U.N.
Programs - National High School Essay Contest.
Belarus school to revive local
heritage, promote ecology and jobs
23 April - Turov, a small town
in southeast Belarus, is establishing a school this year to revitalize
traditional crafts, offer education on sustainable development, and promote
ecological and agricultural tourism to improve local livelihoods. Known as the
School of Traditions — Land of Ancestors, it will support the town's
sustainable development action plan, initiated by Ecoline, an environmental
organization, in cooperation with Green Library Lund, a Swedish group. The plan is based
on Agenda 21, the UN's global blueprint for development in harmony with the
environment for the new millennium.
Town meetings helped identify
local development priorities, including preservation of cultural heritage, job
opportunities, recycling and safe landfills for household wastes, and
environmental education. The school, with support from UNDP and the World Bank,
will help advance these priorities. …)
The school will help revive traditional handicrafts of the Polessye
region, including weaving, withe (supple twigs) netting, and embroidery. Only
natural materials will go into making household and decorative goods and
clothing. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/index.html
Syria opens telecentres in rural areas
to narrow digital divide
19 April - Syria's First Lady
Asmaa al-Assad helped launch an information and communications technology (ICT)
telecentre recently in Bosra, south of Damascus, that offers training in word
processing, computer graphics, web site design and email. This and other
telecentres that opened stimultaneously in al-Zabadani, near Damascus, and
Dreikish, near Tartous on the Mediterranean coast, are part of an effort to
help rural communities close the digital divide and promote progress towards
the Millennium Development Goals.
The Ministry of Information
and Technology plans to open another 11 of these reef (rural) telecentres this
year, with support from UNDP. They will use ReefNet, a web portal providing
information in Arabic catering to rural needs, including local information and
news, food security, employment, laws and legal rights, social services, health
and environment.
According to the UNDP Arab
Human Development Report 2003, only 0.4 per cent of Syrians are Internet
subscribers, indicating that the poor have virtually no access. The telecentres
are training and service-oriented, focusing on technology as a tool to help
people gain information and modern skills to improve their lives and
livelihoods. (…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/frontpagearchive/2004/april/19apr04/index.html
TRANSCEND: Peacebuilding,
Conflict Transformation and Post-War Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and
Resolution - Cluj-Napoca, Romania, May 24 – 28
Peacebuilding, Conflict Transformation and Post-War
Reconstruction, Reconciliation and Resolution (PCTR-Cluj 2004) is designed for
practitioners, political leaders and policy makers, and organisations working
in areas affected by conflict, violent conflict, and war, as well as countries
and regions in post-war situations. Building upon experiences in peacebuilding,
conflict transformation, and post-war reconstruction, rehabilitation,
reconciliation and healing, and people-centred, participatory development, from
former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Colombia, Nepal, Somalia, Nicaragua, South
Africa, and the Middle East, as well as from the countries of the participants
themselves, the programme is highly intensive and practice-oriented. The training
is needs-based and both skills and knowledge intensive, allowing participants
to draw upon and address concrete issues and challenges facing them in their
work and country/community. (…) TRANSCEND has held more than 400 training
programmes worldwide for over 8000 participants. The PCTR is based upon the
TRANSCEND Method for Conflict Transformation by Peaceful Means – adopted as a
training manual by the United Nations – and draws upon approaches to conflict
transformation and peacebuilding from more than 100 countries and cultures
around the world. www.transcend.org
Fundación Deyna has been
leading a process to promote the Earth Charter throughout schools in Spain.
Consequently, hundreds of Spanish schools have recently endorsed the Charter
and many others are in the process of also doing so. The Secretariat has been
following up with each school with suggestions on how to implement the Earth
Charter within their institutions.
Please see list of endorsers at www.cartadelatierra.org
Multi-media centre provides
hands on training for youth in Benin
Cotonou, Benin, 19 April - The
new Multi-Media Centre complex is bustling with hands-on activity. In every
room, young people from around the country—nearly 300 in all—are learning how
to be print journalists, photographers, radio and TV broadcasters, magazine
writers, layout artists, computer graphics experts, web designers,
videographers, digital videotape editors, and radio and TV technicians. This innovative initiative was started by
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, in cooperation with the Government.
It integrates job training with education about preventing HIV/AIDS and
unwanted pregnancies, so trainees can also become local advocates for healthier
behaviour.
The Centre, next to the
football stadium in Benin’s main coastal city, has its own television and FM
radio stations offering programmes produced by and for youth. The TV station,
launched in 2003, boasts an audience of 1 million. The radio station broadcasts
24 hours, seven days a week, and reaches over 300,000 listeners every day. (…)
http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=444
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