Good News Agency – Year VI, n° 6
Weekly - Year VI, number 6 – 22
April 2005
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 3,700 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 in the web
site http://www3.unesco.org/iycp/uk/uk_sum_monde.htm
International legislation – Human rights – Economy and development – Solidarity
Peace and security – Health
– Energy and Safety – Environment and wildlife
Religion and spirituality – Culture and education
State of the World 2005 - Introduction by Mikhail S. Gorbachev
14 April - The international
treaty against nuclear terrorism adopted by the United Nations General Assembly
this week bolters the global legal framework to counter terrorist threats,
including cooperation with the IAEA. The International Convention for the
Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism opens for signature in September this
year.
The Convention is a key part
of global efforts to prevent terrorists from gaining access to weapons of mass
destruction, the use of which could lead to catastrophic consequences. Based on
an instrument originally proposed by the Russian Federation in 1998, the
Convention provides for a definition of acts of nuclear terrorism and covers a
broad range of possible targets, including those against nuclear power plants
and nuclear reactors. Under its provisions, the alleged offenders must be
either extradited or prosecuted. It also encourages States to cooperate in
preventing terrorist attacks by sharing information and assisting each other in
connection with criminal investigations and extradition proceedings. The treaty
requires that any seized nuclear or radiological material is held in accordance
with IAEA safeguards, and handled in regard to the IAEA´s health, safety and
physical protection standards.
The Convention´s adoption,
after many years of negotiations, is a "vital step forward in multilateral
efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism," said UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
The IAEA recently held a
nuclear security conference in London that renewed global efforts through IAEA
and other programmes to combat nuclear terrorism and raise levels of nuclear
security. See Story Resources for more information.
http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2005/conv_nuclterror.html
Brussels, 14 April 2005 (ICFTU Online). At a meeting in
Brussels today organised by the ICFTU, Shaher Sae'd, General Secretary of the
the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) and Amir Peretz,
Chairperson of the Israeli trade union centre Histadrut, discussed a series of
key issues facing the trade union movements in Israel and Palestine and agreed
to move forward quickly on finalising a joint cooperation agreement between the
two organisations. Key issues for the agreement include access for Palestinian
workers to employment in Israel, relief funds for Palestinian workers and their
families, action to prevent and resolve cases of exploitation of Palestinian
workers, implementation of a March 1995 Cooperation Framework, and perspectives
for future cooperation between the two organisations.
The two organisations
reiterated their commitment to the “Road Map” for the achievement of a
comprehensive peace between Israel and Palestine, based on the existence of two
sovereign, independent and viable states, and plan in the near future to adopt
a formal Cooperation Agreement following further consultations within their
respective structures. (…)
http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991221502&Language=EN
22 April 2005- The ESCWA Center for Women, will launch its flagship
report entitled “Arab Women: Beijing+10”on Friday 22nd of April . The report
documents the most important achievements of Arab women and highlights the
obstacles and challenges they have faced in the ten years following the Beijing
Conference.
It recommends a regional framework to overcome these obstacles and
challenges in the next decade based on the Beirut Declaration on Arab Women
launched last July at the conclusion of the Arab regional conference “Ten Years
after Beijing: Call for Peace” and organized by UN-ESCWA. The report was
launched during the 5th Conference of the National Council for Egyptian Women
held in Cairo from 14 to 16 March 2005.
http://www.escwa.org.lb/ecw/ev_details.asp?ID=37
Yerevan, 13 April - UNICEF has hailed Armenia’s ratification of the
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the
Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict and ILO Convention 182 on the Worst
Forms of Child Labour. Both were signed by President Kocharyan today
after being cleared by the Armenian National Assembly on 21 March
2005.(…)
The Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict
raises the minimum age for direct participation in hostilities to 18 years from
the minimum age of 15 years specified in the Convention on the Rights of the
Child. It also raises the age of mandatory recruitment to the armed
forces from 15 to 18 and the minimum age for voluntary recruitment to 15
years. (…) UNICEF estimates that 250 million children worldwide are
engaged in child labour. Many are working in horrific conditions, working in
mines, working with chemicals and pesticides and working with dangerous
machinery. (…)
Armenia is the 154th country to ratify ILO Convention 182. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_26000.html
Third Arab Human Development Report called “Courageous and Impartial”
Amman, Jordan, 5
April - The third Arab Human Development Report, calling for greater freedom and good governance in the Arab world, was
welcomed at a launch ceremony here today by Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister
Marwan Muasher and Prince Turki Ben Talal Ben Abdul Aziz, president of the Arab
Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organizations, along with other
dignitaries and officials. (…) The Arab Human Development Report 2004, the
third of a four-part series, was written by an independent group of leading
Arab scholars and intellectuals, and was sponsored by the United Nations
Development Programme together with the Arab Fund for Economic and Social
Development and the Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development
Organizations (AGFUND). The authors call for urgent and sweeping political
reforms throughout the Arab world. (…)
Noting that the first two Arab Human Development Reports had stimulated
discussions on change, AGFUND President Prince Turki Ben Talal Ben Abdul Aziz
said he believed the new Report would generate “controversial discussions and
badly needed dialogue” on freedom and good governance--“the issue of the
hour.”(…)
http://www.undp.org/dpa/pressrelease/releases/2005/april/pr5apr05.html
Astghik Margaryan is a
seventh-grade pupil at the Yerevan Public Art School. She is among 10 winners
of a drawing competition held by the ICRC on the theme of international
humanitarian law. Over 100 schoolchildren from all over Armenia took part in
the competition.
On 8 April the winners
gathered at the training centre of the Armenian Red Cross Society, where their
drawings had been exhibited. "The topics of the competition were so
fascinating that we felt happy just to participate," said Astghik on
receiving her award.
The drawings were based on
topics included in the ICRC's My Little Planet and Man to Man textbooks for
pupils in the fifth and seventh grades respectively. Each year 120,000
schoolchildren study the textbooks as part of a course on Armenian literature.
Efforts to teach Armenian schoolchildren the basic rules of humanitarian law
are part of a joint project launched by the ICRC and the Ministry of Education
and Science in 1996.
Tangier, 15 April - A gender
workshop in Tangier, Morocco, has called for moving women from the fringes of
the economy to the centre. The two-day meeting, held from 11 to 12 April and
convened by ECA’s North Africa office, brought together experts from seven
North African countries around the theme: “Women: Source of Wealth and
Opportunities”.
Participants stressed the need
for decision-makers to mainstream female concerns in economic and social
policies so that woman can become the “creators of wealth and jobs”.
“Women need to move from the
fringes of the economy (micro-credit and micro-enterprises) to the centre of
the economy, where most of the resources are to be found,” they said. The
experts – drawn from diverse sectors such as government, academia, civil
society, international organizations and the private sector – came up with a
set of recommendations to boost women’s opportunities, particularly in
traditional knowledge, social services, and information technology. The meeting
enabled them to share experiences in creating women’s employment.
The workshop was organized in
collaboration with UNIDO, UNFPA, UNDP/Morocco and UNDP/Tunisia in preparation
for an inter-governmental committee of experts due to meet in Tangier this
month.
Rome, 13 April -
Globalized livestock markets can increase national income and improve
nutrition, but they are also posing potential risks to livelihoods, human
health and the environment. The livestock sector, traditionally based on local
production and consumption, supports the livelihoods of an estimated 600
million rural poor, FAO said in a report submitted to the agency's Committee on
Agriculture, meeting in Rome from 13-16 April 2005. Meat production in
developing countries has grown by 230 percent and milk production by 200
percent since the early 1980s. Population growth and higher incomes have both
contributed to rising demand. By 2030, FAO estimates, the developing world will
consume almost two-thirds of the global milk and meat supply, compared to just
one-third 25 years ago. (…)
The benefits globalized markets are offering to producers, traders,
processors, suppliers, retailers and consumers are: new employment
opportunities, increased income, direct cost savings and an increased choice of
products, FAO said. Consumers will also benefit from more competition, reduced
prices and an increase in product quality due to higher food standards.
(…) Globalized markets are typically
riskier for producers, FAO said, since the entire market can close down with
the outbreak of a disease or the discovery of a quality problem. (…) Another
concern in developing countries is the pollution of soil and water caused by
waste from commercial livestock units. (…)
The FAO Committee on Agriculture, which meets every two years, will also
discuss Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development (SARD) and Good
Agricultural Practices (GAP) and FAO's Strategy for a Safe and Nutritious Food
Supply.
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2005/100678/index.html
Governing Council breathes new strength into UN-HABITAT
Nairobi, Kenya, 13
April – The new budget represents an increase of close
to 60 percent on the previous US$ 50.5 million budget for 2004-2005 approved
two years earlier at the 19th session of the Governing Council, which itself
was double the budget approved by the 17th Session.
More than 800 delegates from 92 member countries of the United Nations,
including 48 Member States of the agency’s Governing Council, attended the
conference which meets every two years to set UN-HABITAT’s budget and work
programme for the next biennium. The meeting also drew 39 representatives of
Local Governments and their organizations, officials of 92 Non-Governmental
Organizations, as well attendance from the private sector and other UN and
international organizations(…)
It affirmed the importance of sustainable relief interventions in post
conflict, natural and human-made disasters. Other positive outcomes included
gender mainstreaming and youth involvement, as demonstrated by the UN-HABITAT
Youth Forum and Women’s Caucus in Nairobi, and the adopted resolutions on
gender equality and youth in human settlements development. It also agreed to a
European Union proposal on developing a medium-term strategic and institutional
plan that will also contribute to both the strengthening and visibility of
UN-HABITAT.
The plan will take into account the evaluation
of the Habitat Programme Managers, and show evidence of their impact on further
enhancing the performance of UN-HABITAT.(…)
http://www.unhabitat.org/gc/gc20/gcfeature12.asp
A major Earth Charter
gathering will take place at the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam, five
years after the launch of the Earth Charter. This event is being made possible
by the collaboration of the Earth Charter International Secretariat, the
Netherlands National Committee for International Cooperation and Sustainable
Development (NCDO), the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), and Plan Netherlands.
In addition to celebrating the
accomplishments of the Earth Charter Initiative, Earth Charter+5 will have the
following general objectives:
1. To assess the impact of the
Earth Charter Initiative and its strengths and weaknesses
2. To set goals, priorities,
and strategies for the future
3. To plan a realistic
fundraising strategy
4. To create an appropriate
governance structure for the future
5. To provide Earth Charter
organizers and activists an opportunity to share experiences and learn from
each other.
6. To generate increased
public awareness, build new partnerships, and strengthen commitment to the
goals of the ECI.
http://www.earthcharter.org/news/index.cfm?id_activity=634&actual=2005
Whole foods shareholders
applaud company's new policy to label genetically engineered foods
Boston, MA, USA, April -
Prompted by a shareholder resolution, Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFMI)
announced yesterday a new policy of labeling its private label foods to
indicate that they are not sourced from genetically engineered seed. The
proponents of shareholder proposal congratulated the company yesterday. The
resolution called for labeling of Whole Foods’ private label products with
respect of genetically engineered ingredients. The change was announced at
Whole Foods’ annual stockholder meeting in New York City.
In October 2001, Whole Foods
and Wild Oats (NASDAQ: OATS) simultaneously announced that their private label
brands’ ingredients would be sourced exclusively from non-genetically
engineered seed. This information has not been conveyed on product labels or
packaging, however, where consumers are most likely to seek information about
ingredients. This prompted a group of Whole Foods shareholders to begin
pressing for explicit product labels that state that genetically engineered
foods were deliberately avoided. (…)
http://www.iccr.org/news/press_releases/pr_wholefoodsgmos041205.htm
Dushanbe, Tajikistan, 14 April
- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a cash
contribution of US$950,000 (JPY100 million) from the Japanese Government to
assist vulnerable and food insecure households in Tajikistan.
This donation, approved by the
Japanese cabinet on 18 March 2005, is part of an aid package of US$19 million
from the Japanese Government to assist refugees, internally displaced persons
and victims of natural disasters and poverty in Africa, the Middle East, Latin
America, Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). (…)
The donation comes at a
crucial moment for WFP’s operations in Tajikistan, which is ranked as one of
the poorest countries in Central Asia. Funding shortfalls are forcing WFP to
suspend its general food distribution to 200,000 beneficiaries, and to scale
down other activities by almost 80 percent to concentrate scarce resources on
school feeding, nutrition and health activities. The funds will be used to buy
2,172 metric tons of fortified wheat flour from Kazakhstan, contributing to the
regional economy.
Historically, Japan has been
one of WFP’s top donors. In 2004, it gave US$136 million (approximately JPY14
billion). In Tajikistan, Japan is the second largest donor to WFP. (…)
New York, 13 April - Former
United States President Bill Clinton, stepping into his new role as special
envoy to lead UN tsunami recovery operations, said that a successful UN tsunami
reconstruction effort could serve as a model for rebuilding in other stricken
areas recovering from future crises.
“No one could be possibly be
better qualified for this task than President Clinton,” said UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan as he introduced the special envoy. As the effects
of the tragedy have largely faded from front pages and the nightly news, he
said, it is “vitally important that we have someone with vision and commitment
to ensure that, this time, the international community really does follow
through and support the people and the transition from immediate relief to
longer-term development.”
Recovering from a recent heart
operation, Clinton said he would devote “whatever time it takes” and, as a
first priority, work to ensure that donor funds are spent effectively,
responsibly, and in a transparent manner. (…)
http://www.undp.org/tsunami/features.htm
Simeulue, Indonesia, April 8 -
In the aftermath of Sumatra, Indonesia's most recent earthquake on March 28,
CARE continues to coordinate with local and international partners to
distribute food, water purification kits, tents, blankets, soap, jerry cans,
basic medicines and other necessities to help thousands of survivors in the
hardest hit areas.
CARE staff has assessed the
situation in seven hardest-hit villages (…) In response, CARE is moving forward
with the following activities: unloading and distributing a 300 metric ton
shipment of food from the World Food Program in Sinabang; distributing 362
tents, 1 metric ton of rice, 176 jerry cans and a generator in Sinabang;
coordinating the delivery of 5000 family kits, 5000 hygiene kits and 2000 jerry
cans for water; sending 1000 family hygiene kits, 648 jerry cans and 149 tarps
to Simeulue; distributing plastic sheeting and other non-food items: 1000
sleeping mats, 500 hygiene kits, tents, buckets and jerry cans, provided by
UNICEF and CONCERN; Pooling non-food items with Save the Children and Cordaid
for distribution to various areas; meeting with World Food Program to
coordinate blanket distribution for Simeulue over the next two weeks.
http://www.careusa.org/newsroom/pressreleases/2005/apr/20050408_quakeupdate5_pr.asp
Baltimore, 8 April - Living in
certain parts of Kosovo is a daily struggle – one that doesn’t get any easier
with time. Six years since the NATO bombing campaign, and a year since the
renewed violence against minority communities in Kosovo, residents there
continue to suffer from a lack of security, mobility, services and, in some
cases, proper shelter. This despite the efforts of the international community
to help all ethnic groups in Kosovo coexist and build opportunities for
reconciliation, stability and prosperity in the troubled province.
International Orthodox
Christian Charities (IOCC) is responding to the nutritional and hygiene needs
of minority communities in Kosovo through a new project that will provide more
than 1,000 families with food and hygiene parcels and support the operations of
a soup kitchen in Prekovac.
IOCC has identified the
Pomoravlje region and the Gnjilane, Novo Brdo, Vitina, Pristina and Gracanica
enclaves as the most vulnerable areas because they host many displaced people.
Within these enclaves, IOCC will provide assistance to people living in 10
isolated villages.
Working through the local
partner “Majka 9 Jugovica,” IOCC will provide a one-month supply of
supplementary food and hygiene items to 1,000 families of all ethnic groups
living in private accommodations, as well as families staying in a shelter in
Gracanica. (…)
http://www.interaction.org/newswire/detail.php?id=3913
Nairobi, Kenya, 6 April –
Global chemical giant BASF on Wednesday signed a partnership with UN-HABITAT
which will see it contribute immensely to the agency’s work in tsunami hit
areas of Sri Lanka.
Under the agreement signed at
the Gigiri headquarters of UN-HABITAT, BASF will provide approximately US$
500,000 plus support in kind by providing technical personnel.
UN-HABITAT Executive Director
Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka formalized the first private sector partnership with BASF
which took place on the sidelines of the ongoing 20th Session of UN-HABITAT’s
Governing Council meeting. She said the partnership would help the agency
improve livability and quality of life for those persons hardest hit by the
devastating effects of the recent tsunami in the Indian Ocean region. (…)
http://www.unhabitat.org/mediacentre/unhsp_gc20_4.asp
Silver Spring, Maryland, April
5—The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is providing disaster
relief to 3,525 people affected by the recent flooding in Salvador da Bahia,
Brazil. ADRA is distributing mattresses, water filters, and medical support to
families with the greatest need. The project, valued at $12,850 is funded by
ADRA International, ADRA South America, and ADRA Bahia. ADRA Bahia also
collaborated with two local organizations to provide a mobile clinic.
The flooding took place on
February 16, when excessive rain pounded Salvador City, causing landslides,
property losses, and an increased risk of disease from unclean water in both
rural and urban areas.
http://www.adra.org/ADRANews/040505.html
Vienna, 4 April (UN
Information Service) -- A group of six high school students selected as this
year’s Young Civic Ambassadors by Japan’s Drug Abuse Prevention Centre (DAPC)
today presented to Sumru Noyan, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations
Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), their latest contribution of US$185,000.
Antonio Maria Costa, Executive Director, UNODC, also met the young ambassadors
and praised DAPC for their continuous support, which has surpassed US$4 million
over the last 11 years. (…)
Since 1994, DAPC has been
raising funds for anti-drug efforts, and each year six to eight of the most
active participants are labeled Young Civic Ambassadors and come to Vienna to
present their contribution to UNODC.
DAPC plans to continue this fund-raising campaign in support of the
goals set by the 1998 UN General Assembly Special Session on the world drug
problem. (…)
DAPC’s contribution to UNODC
is used for supporting NGOs in developing countries by providing grants ranging
from US$5,000 to US$20,000. More than 300 grants have been awarded to NGOs in
over 90 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Asia and Eastern
Europe in grass-roots activities for drug abuse prevention.
http://www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2005/unisnar893.html
Rome, 30 March – Caritas
Internationalis coordinator for Tsunami response programmes in Indonesia,
Jonathan Evans, reports that “the loss of life on Nias Island, off the west
coast of Sumatra, is up to 500 with over 20,000 people displaced. There is
severe damage to many homes and buildings in and around the capital city
Gunungsitole.” (…)
Caritas agencies have been
working in Sumatra with Tsunami-affected communities since the devastation from
the earthquake of 26 December 2004. “We have 125 staff in Banda Aceh at the
moment and we have the infrastructure in place to respond immediately with
programmes of assistance to the islands of Nias and Simeulue, the two closest
to Monday’s earthquake”, Evans reported from his coordination office in Medan.
The Caritas Internationalis
Confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social service
organizations is present in over 200 countries and territories. In Sumatra,
Caritas works with local Church officials from the Archdiocese of Medan, the
KWI Crisis Center, Perdhaki, and others. (…)
http://www.caritas.org/jumpNews.asp?idLang=ENG&idChannel=35&idUser=0&idNews=2861
New York, March 30 – Helen Keller International (HKI) has
signed a $550,000 grant agreement with The Nippon Foundation to combat
onchocerciasis (river blindness) in Africa.
The Nippon Foundation, a Japanese organization that supports
international programs to help people achieve a healthy life, awarded the grant
to HKI's project called “Enhancing Community-Directed Treatment with Ivermectin
for Sustainable Control of Onchocerciasis in Africa.” The project promotes onchocerciasis control and prevention
activities in three highly onchocerciasis-endemic African countries – Cameroon,
Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria. The goal is to build sustainable programs and
models that will contribute to the elimination of onchocerciasis as a public
health problem in those three countries and throughout Africa.
In Africa, onchocerciasis is
the second leading infectious cause of blindness, and, in some countries, the
leading cause. 120 million people are
at risk of the disease, of which 96% live in Africa, and about 18 million
people are already infected, 99% of them living in Africa. Onchocerciasis is transmitted by the bite of
the black fly, and the serious eye and skin manifestations of the disease are
highly debilitating. (…)
The Nippon Foundation’s
steadfast commitment to abolishing this disease has allowed HKI to make steady
progress and substantive contributions towards the development of sustainable
and effective programs. This most
recent grant will help HKI achieve the goal of eliminating the pain, suffering,
and loss of productivity caused by onchocerciasis.
http://www.hkworld.org/about/press_releases/TheNipponFoundation.htm
Netherlands:
Walking for Water, children raise funds for school sanitation projects
Over 3,000 primary school children in all parts of the Netherlands are participating in Walking for Water, organised by the Dutch NGO Aqua for All in the week of World Water Day to raise funds for water and sanitation projects in developing countries. The organisers expect to raise EUR 94,000 for the projects: EUR 58,000 by the children and the remainder through contributions from municipalities, water companies and other NGOs. Most of the projects that are being supported are aimed at providing water and sanitation facilities for schools especially in Africa.
Aqua for All, The Netherlands,
mailto:info@aquaforall.nl
Source Weekly, http://www.irc.nl/source/
By Sylvie Brigot
<brigotSPAMFILTER@icbl.org> .
Friday 15 April 2005 - From 10
to 13 April, International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) met with Bahraini
officials and civil society members and participated in a training for
journalists from the Gulf on the Mine Ban Convention organised by Protection
and the Bahrain Human Rights Society.
“Bahrain must back ban on
landmines” said a Gulf Daily News article published the day before the opening
event of a 3 day course for journalists on the Mine Ban Treaty and
International Humanitarian Law. The training was organised by the Bahraini
Human Rights Society (BHRS), in collaboration with Protection and with the
financial support of Canada. “The objective is to make the media in the Gulf
aware of the importance of the treaty” said Mr Issa Al Ghayeb, a board member
of the BHRS to the Gulf Daily News.
A total of 33 participants
attended from Bahrain, Egypt, France, Gambia, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE
and USA to discuss the Convention and the International Humanitarian Law and
Human Rights, how to organise a media campaign on landmines, the role of Civil
Society in the landmine ban, including Landmine Monitor. (…)
http://www.icbl.org/layout/set/print/news/bahrain
UNODC assists Central Asian
States, Afghanistan, Mongolia and the Russian Federation in fight against
terrorism
Vienna, 11 April (UN Information Service) -- Experts from five Central Asian States -- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan -- discussed how to develop international cooperation to prevent terrorism with their counterparts in Afghanistan, Mongolia and the Russian Federation, at a workshop in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 5 to 7 April. The workshop was organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in collaboration with the Government of Uzbekistan, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
During the workshop,
participants reviewed legislative requirements emanating from the 12 universal
legal instruments against terrorism and studied the extent to which their
respective domestic penal laws matched the standards set by these instruments
and by the counter-terrorism resolution of the United Nations Security Council,
resolution 1373 (2001). Participants agreed to expedite the drafting or
amending of their respective countries’ domestic legislations in view of the
requirements of these standards. (…)
The workshop was supported by
a generous contribution from the Austrian Government.
http://www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2005/uniscp514.html
Freetown, Sierra Leone, 4
April – Some 400 former Liberian fighters began returning home today from
internment in Sierra Leone’s Mape and Mafanta Camps. Their families are
currently staying in refugee camps in Sierra Leone, and will follow them in the
next few weeks.
The terms of release and
repatriation are governed by a recent memorandum of understanding between
Liberia and Sierra Leone, for which the ICRC provided legal support and advice
on international humanitarian law. The ICRC has extensive experience of
repatriation activities. Working closely with the authorities of both
countries, ICRC teams in Sierra Leone and Liberia will ensure that people are
only repatriated voluntarily and in a safe and dignified manner.
The operation, which is likely
to last several weeks, will end a unique situation regarding the internment of
foreign fighters in west Africa. After fleeing the civil war in Liberia, these
former fighters had been interned in Mape and Mafanta Camps, set up by the
Government of Sierra Leone in 2002 and 2003. The ICRC has been monitoring their
living conditions, providing them with safe water and other assistance and
facilitating contact between them and their families.
By Katarzyna Derlicka
<kderlickaSPAMFILTER@wp.pl> .
Poland, Warsaw, 1 April - On
March 31 the Polish Campaign To Ban Landmines (CBL) took part in the 'NGO
Information Evening' organised at the College of Europe in Natolin, Warsaw. The
aim of the event was to present to the college' students the nongovernmental
sector as one of their potential carrier opportunities, as well as to educate
future eurocrats about the NGOs' role and work.
The College of Europe is one
of two colleges sponsored by the European Commission, which main purpose is to
educate and prepare students from all over Europe to be professional staff for
EU institutions.There were several other Ngos present, such as the Polish
Humanitarian Action, the Red Cross, as well as the OSCE. The evening was
attended by about 60 students. The Polish CBL presented the goals, history and
work of the global Campaign and made available at its stand information
materials and cards, which called on the Polish Prime Minister to ratify the
MBT immediately and which were signed by the students.
http://www.icbl.org/layout/set/print/news/poland
International Meeting for
Peace Workers on the Experiment "Monte Cerro" in Tamera
In
May we would like to present the meaning and the goal of the experiment
"Monte Cerro" and the plan of the Healing Biotopes as part of a
global strategy for peace, and create a fix cooperation axle with you even if
we work on different places with different focuses. We would like to support
the ecological, technological and social, political and spiritual healing and
peacework to work together more efficiently and direct their activities by the
common basic ideas. Artists, musicians, IT experts and authors are also
welcome. (…)
Further Information and Application: tamera@mail.telpac.pt
Luanda, 15 April – Tomorrow,
1,500 scouts mobilized by the Ministry of Health with the support of UNICEF,
will go around Luanda informing its inhabitants of the Marburg hemorrhagic
fever.
“We are still at a stage where
providing well targeted information could change the course of the epidemic and
avoid it from spreading,” said Mario Ferrari, UNICEF Representative in Luanda.
“The population has to be aware of the dangers and know what to do if they come
across a suspected case. Equally important is that people develop an attitude
of collaboration with the medical and surveillance teams.”
A total of 23 groups composed
of 40 to over 100 scouts will circulate around the city centre of Luanda,
Cacuaco and Viana as of 8:30 tomorrow morning. They will stand at strategic
points such as traffic lights and important cross roads distributing brochures
containing critical information on what the epidemic is, how it spreads and
what can be done to avoid becoming infected. The youngsters will also pay door
to door visits in different neighbourhoods and, in the afternoon, they will
cover the most popular beaches to ensure they reach a maximum of people. On
Sunday, the volunteers will also distribute information at the Luanda football
stadium.
It is expected that, only in
Luanda, around half a million persons will be reached through this information
rally carried out by the scouts. A
second Marburg information round will take place next week-end. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_26025.html
Counterpart
continues to save precious infant lives across the urban slums of Gujarat State
in India thanks to a four year extension of funding from the United States
Agency for International Development (USAID).
15 April - A much-lauded child
survival and maternal health program run by Counterpart International will
continue saving precious infant lives across the urban slums of Gujarat State
in India thanks to a four year extension of funding from the United States
Agency for International Development (USAID). The new USAID funding will
strengthen and extend the Jeevan Daan (Gift of Life) Child and Maternal Health
Program until 2009.
"With this funding,
Counterpart will be able to improve the health of more than 350,000
beneficiaries – almost 90,000 children under five years and some 120,000 women
of reproductive age through community participation," said Darshana Vyas,
Counterpart's Director of Health and Child Survival Programs.
This program, which has
reached more than 133,000 beneficiaries since it began in 2000, aims to reduce
infant and maternal mortality rates sustainably through improved caregiver
practices and increased access to quality care. It promotes healthy behavioral
practices through social behavioral change, training, and community
mobilization, and creates awareness of vital health issues to those who live in
the urban slum areas of Ahmedabad, India. (…)
http://www.counterpart.org/dnn/Default.aspx?tabid=49&metaid=F5GM2120-af8
United Nations, New York, 14
April - Members of the United Nations have emphasized the need to integrate the
goal of universal access to reproductive health by 2015 in strategies to attain
the world’s development goals. Such access, they resolved, should be part of
efforts to eradicate poverty, improve maternal health, reduce infant and child
deaths, promote gender equality and combat HIV/AIDS.
United Nations Members
included these decisions in resolutions they adopted today as they concluded
the 2005 session of the Commission on Population and Development. Two main
resolutions covered population, HIV/AIDS and poverty, as well as the contribution
of the Programme of Action of the 1994 Cairo International Conference on
Population and Development (ICPD) to the world’s development goals, including
those in the Millennium Declaration. (…)
In order to fight AIDS
cost-effectively, the countries emphasized, it was necessary to strengthen
linkages and coordination between HIV/AIDS and reproductive health and include
them in national development and poverty eradication plans. This would make
anti-HIV/AIDS efforts more relevant and reduce the infection’s impact on
families and communities, they added. (…)
http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=608
Evanston, IL, USA, 12 April -
As today marks the 50 th anniversary of the declaration of Dr. Jonas Salk’s
vaccine as safe and effective, Rotary members worldwide praise this
achievement, which helped lay the groundwork for the current effort to
eradicate polio worldwide. The Salk vaccine, together with the oral polio
vaccine developed later by Dr. Albert Sabin, opened the door to an organized,
scientific assault on this paralyzing and sometimes fatal disease. As a result,
polio quickly vanished from the developed world. (…)
In 1985, when polio infected
an estimated 350,000 children in 125 countries, Rotary launched its flagship
PolioPlus program, which aims to achieve a polio-free world for all children.
In the following two decades, Rotary and its global partners at the World
Health Organization, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and UNICEF
slashed polio cases by 99 percent with 1,263 cases reported all year in 2004.
Today, there are six polio-endemic countries including Nigeria, India,
Pakistan, Niger, Afghanistan and Egypt - and five countries where transmission
has been re-established in the Sudan, Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire,
Chad and Burkina Faso. To date, over one million Rotary members have volunteered
their time and personal resources to help immunize more than two billion
children in 122 countries against polio. By the time the world is certified
polio-free, Rotary’s contributions to the global polio eradication effort will
exceed US$600 million.
In addition to raising and
contributing funds, Rotary has provided an army of volunteers to promote and
assist during national immunization campaigns. Rotary members assist with
vaccine delivery, social mobilization, and administer the oral polio vaccine to
children.
http://www.rotary.org/newsroom/presscenter/releases/2005/220.html
10,000 children in developing countries to receive
AIDS treatment in 2005
New York, 11 April – UNICEF today praised a Clinton Foundation plan that will
significantly increase the number of children receiving life-prolonging
antiretroviral (arv) drugs specifically formulated for them. (…) The plan calls
for treating 10,000 HIV-positive children in 2005, and includes an agreement
with CIPLA, an India-based pharmaceutical company to supply pediatric AIDS
drugs at less than half current market rates. Pediatric medicines have already
been ordered for China, the Dominican Republic, Lesotho, Rwanda and Tanzania,
with treatment set to begin as early as May in China. An additional five
countries are to be added during 2005. Together with UNICEF and partners, the
Foundation expects to be treating up to 60,000 children by 2006.
In most developing
countries, challenges to providing treatment for children with AIDS include
lack of facilities and technologies for early diagnosis of HIV in children,
poor health infrastructure and systems, insufficient trained health personnel
and the absence of appropriate pediatric ARV formulations. Where treatments are
available cost has been prohibitive, with pediatric formulations costing up to
five times as much as ARV drugs for adults, in part because suppliers do not have
large enough orders.(…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_25964.html
23 countries race to halt the spread of the virus
before the high-transmission season starts
Dakar/Nairobi, 8 April – With the polio virus’ high-transmission season
just months away, african countries are redoubling their efforts this week to
reach 100 million children in the second of a series of three immunization drives
scheduled for 2005. This second round, from 9-12 april, aims to contain the
epidemic before the virus begins to spread most rapidly in the july to
september high season.
The stakes remain high across the continent. The Horn of Africa is under
siege following the re-infection of Ethiopia in January by polio spreading from
Sudan. Ethiopia, polio-free since 2001, has just completed its
first-round national immunization campaign. It hopes to stop the spread
of the virus within its own borders and safeguard vulnerable neighbours such as
Somalia and Djibouti. And in West Africa, Mali has become the sixth formerly
polio-free country to have officially re-established polio transmission, while
Nigeria has recorded a worrying 32 cases in the first three months of the year
(half of all cases globally).
Despite the challenges, the UN agencies and Global Polio Eradication
Initiative partners Rotary International and the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) are cautiously optimistic about the prospects for
this round.(…) Africa accounts for 75% (48 of 64) of polio cases reported
worldwide in 2005. The frontline of the virus on the continent has expanded,
with polio spreading to 14 countries, in comparison with only 3 in 2002, and
virus reported as far afield as Saudi Arabia. In many countries, low
childhood immunization rates compounded by civil unrest and population
movement, has made stopping the virus hard. (…) But funding is becoming a
critical concern. To continue to finance the 2005 rounds, US $75 million is
needed by July. A further US $200 million will be needed to support activities
in 2006. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_25943.html
8 April - A war-surgery
seminar held by the ICRC from 5 to 7 April was attended by 14 surgeons and
other doctors and clinical and orthopaedic personnel from government,
missionary and military hospitals in the Gulu, Pader and Kitgum districts of
northern Uganda.
Because the conflict in
northern Uganda has severely disrupted the delivery of health-care services,
the ICRC has been providing medicines and other medical supplies for six
hospitals in the area and for health-care centres in camps for displaced
people. The seminar was organized to raise the standard of treatment for
war-wounded people by improving surgery techniques. The topics covered included
first aid, resuscitation, treatment of thoracic and bone trauma and of landmine
injuries, transport of patients and issues of international humanitarian law.
The hospital personnel taking
part treated over 2,000 people between January 2004 and the end of February.
The ICRC transfers for specialized treatment an average of 18 people every
month from various camps to the hospitals it is supporting in the area.
Paris, 8 April - Médecins Sans
Frontières (MSF) welcomes DNDi (Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative) and
Sanofi-Aventis' joint announcement of a new product for treatment of malaria.
The product, combining in a single pill artesunate (a derivative of
artemisinin) and amodiaquine, should be available to patients in 2006. Artemisinin-based
combination therapies, or ACTs, are the most effective treatments for malaria.
Non-patented, user-friendly
and low-cost, the new formulation is a step forward for treating malaria
patients. It will be the first project to be completed by DNDi, a not-for-profit
foundation created in 2003 at Médecins Sans Frontières's initiative. The new
formulation is particularly attractive for three key reasons: User-friendliness:
the new product will only require patients to take one pill (combining
artesunate and amodiaquine) twice a day for three days, whereas existing ACTs
for adults consist of 24 pills. (…) No patent: the new combination
will not be covered by any patent. This means that any generic producer is
allowed to make a similar product. (…) Price: set at US$1 per adult per
treatment course and at US$0.50 per child, the new product is clearly cheaper
than existing ACTs. (…)
MSF treats approximately one
million people for malaria every year in nearly 40 countries around the world
and has been advocating for ACTs since 2002.
Boston, United States, April 7
- WGBH Boston and Vulcan Productions, in partnership with PBS, TIME magazine
and The Penguin Press, today announced Rx for Survival — A Global Health
Challenge, an unprecedented multimedia project that will inform Americans about
key issues in global health. In addition, humanitarian organizations CARE, Save
the Children and UNICEF, with the Global Health Council, will create an
outreach campaign to benefit children, who are most vulnerable to preventable
yet deadly diseases in the developing world.
This extensive media coverage
will uniquely focus Americans’ attention on global health through a series of
special reports this fall. Funding for Rx for Survival is provided by the Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation and The Merck Company Foundation. (…)
The cornerstone of the project
is a six-hour, primetime PBS television series filmed in more than 20 countries
around the world, including the United States. Co-produced by the WGBH/NOVA
Science Unit and Vulcan Productions, the series highlights public health breakthroughs
and interventions that have more than doubled life expectancy in developed
countries within the past century. The series also explores how lack of access
to these basic interventions leaves many impoverished countries plagued by
preventable diseases. As well, the series looks at the effort to deliver
vaccines and medicines where they are most needed. Rx for Survival airs
November 1-3 at 9 p.m. EST on PBS. (…)
http://www.careusa.org/newsroom/pressreleases/2005/apr/20050407_wgbh_boston_pr.asp
United Nations, New York, 14
April - Members of the United Nations have emphasized the need to integrate the
goal of universal access to reproductive health by 2015 in strategies to attain
the world’s development goals. Such access, they resolved, should be part of
efforts to eradicate poverty, improve maternal health, reduce infant and child
deaths, promote gender equality and combat HIV/AIDS.
United Nations Members
included these decisions in resolutions they adopted today as they concluded
the 2005 session of the Commission on Population and Development. Two main
resolutions covered population, HIV/AIDS and poverty, as well as the
contribution of the Programme of Action of the 1994 Cairo International
Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) to the world’s development
goals, including those in the Millennium Declaration. (…)
In order to fight AIDS
cost-effectively, the countries emphasized, it was necessary to strengthen
linkages and coordination between HIV/AIDS and reproductive health and include
them in national development and poverty eradication plans. This would make
anti-HIV/AIDS efforts more relevant and reduce the infection’s impact on
families and communities, they added. (…)
http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=608
New York, March 29 – Helen
Keller International (HKI) has signed a $12 million grant with the Canadian
International Development Agency (CIDA).
The purpose of the grant is to reduce under-five mortality by ensuring
high and sustained vitamin A supplementation (VAS) coverage as the cornerstone
of a low-cost, high-impact package of child survival interventions. Effective vitamin A supplementation has the
potential to reduce mortality rates in children aged six to 59 months by an
estimated 25%. In sub-Saharan Africa, it is estimated that over 42% of children
are at risk of vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and that controlling VAD will prevent
over 645,000 deaths per year. CIDA is
one of the major enablers of VAS worldwide.
HKI has decided to use its
funds from CIDA to target nine African countries: Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Madagascar, Mozambique, Senegal,
Sierra Leone, and Zimbabwe. The grant
will be carried out over three years in partnership with the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF). HKI and
UNICEF are recognized leaders in advancing the right of children to survival,
nutrition, and health, and have placed integrated VAD control at the center of
these efforts. (…)
http://www.hkworld.org/about/press_releases/CIDA.htm
(top)
Rome, 14 April - Agriculture
and forestry could become leading sources of bioenergy, a key element in
achieving two of the UN Millenium Development Goals: eradicating extreme
poverty and hunger and ensuring environmental sustainability, according to FAO.
In a paper presented to the
nineteenth session of its Committee on Agriculture meeting here (13-16 April),
FAO recalls that around two billion people, mostly living in rural areas of
developing countries, are still without electricity or other modern energy
services.
Increased use of bioenergy can
help diversify agricultural and forestry activities and improve food security,
while contributing to sustainable development, the paper says. Bioenergy is
produced from biofuels (solid fuels, biogas, liquid fuels such as bioethanol
and biodiesel) which come from crops such as sugar cane and beet, maize and
energy grass or from fuelwood, charcoal, agricultural wastes and by-products,
forestry residues, livestock manure, and others.
Biomass is a locally available
energy source that can provide for heat and power. It contributes to the
substitution of imported fossil fuels, thus enhancing national energy security,
reducing the import bill of petroleum products and alleviating poverty.
FAO assists member countries
in their interest to convert biomass into energy and set up national strategies
and programmes. (…)
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2005/101397/index.html
Tapethok, Nepal, 6 Apr – A
solar lighting system has been installed for villagers in north-east Nepal,
thanks to efforts by WWF.
WWF Nepal, together with the
Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Association, coordinated the distribution of solar
panels to 193 households in the village of Tapehthok, which lies within the
Kangchenjunga Conservation Area.
The majority of the rural poor
living in the more remote parts of the country still depend on kerosene lamps.
For those who can’t afford kerosene, they collect pinewood to burn.
“The solar lighting system has
not only enabled us to work late but also help our children to do homework at
night,” said Bishnu Kumari Limbu, one of the villagers who received a solar
panel. “Now there is also no discomfort from the burning wood and kerosene
smoke.”
The aim of the solar lighting
system project is to encourage local people living in the conservation area to
use alternative energy and to reduce biotic pressure on the surrounding
forests. The solar panels have been provided to the poorest households of the
area who are largely dependent on forest resources for energy. (…)
http://www.panda.org/news_facts/newsroom/news.cfm?uNewsID=19577
4 April (United Nations
Information Services Bangkok -The foundation stone for the first Pro-Poor
Public Private Partnership (5P) Resource and Training Centre was laid today in
Cinta Mekar, Subang District, West Java, by UNESCAP Executive Secretary Mr. Kim
Hak-Su and the Indonesian State Minister of Cooperative And Small and Medium
Enterprises, H.E. Mr. Suryadharma Ali. Earlier in the day Mr. Kim switched on a
second generator at the UNESCAP-sponsored hydro-power plant in Cinta Mekar.
The Cinta Mekar Micro
Hydro-Power Plant, initiated in 2003 to promote rural electrification in a
sustainable way, is the brainchild of the Bangkok-based UN Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). It brings together partnerships
among the private sector, national and local governments, and the local
community.
Mr. Kim noted that the
training facility was the first of its kind for 5P in the world. "The
model developed and tested in Cinta Mekar has already positioned itself as one
of the success cases for further replication in Indonesia and elsewhere in the
region," he said. "Now it is time to share this model widely in
Indonesia and other countries of the Asian and Pacific region."
Co financed by a private company,
Hidropiranti Inti Bakti Swadaya (HIBS), and a local rural cooperative, Cinta
Mekar, with support from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the
plant generates electricity that is sold at a profitable price to the state-run
National Electricity Corporation (PLN). Each month the power plant generates
about 54,000 kWh of electricity, with a gross monthly income of approximately
Indonesian Rupiah 31 million (US$3,300). The revenues are shared equally
between the community and the private sector. (…)
http://www.unescap.org/unis/press/2005/apr/g06.asp
Stockholm, March 22 – The
Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in New Delhi, an influential Indian
non-governmental organisation led by Ms. Sunita Narain, a dynamic advocate for
water, environment, human rights, democracy and health, will receive the 2005
Stockholm Water Prize. The award has been given to CSE for its efforts to build
a new paradigm of water management, which uses the traditional wisdom of
rainwater harvesting and advocates the role of communities in managing their
local water systems. (…)
CSE will receive the $150,000
Prize from HM King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in August. The Stockholm Water
Prize is awarded annually to individuals and institutions for their outstanding
contributions to the world of water. (…) CSE’s work, through its many
publications, its research and advocacy has helped create new thinking on how
traditional systems of water management, which use rainwater endowment, once
rejuvenated could become the starting point for the removal of rural poverty in
many part of the world.
Source: http://www.siwi.org
- Source
Weekly, http://www.irc.nl/source/
New
device extracts humidity from air to produce drinking water
German company Aqua-society
has developed a device, called Aquamission, which extracts humidity from the
air by condensation to produce drinking water. The device draws in large
quantities of air, chill it to the point of condensation, and collects the
water in a tank where it is filtered and mineralised. According to the
manufacturer, in hot regions with high humidity, a single machine can produce
up to 1,000 litres of water per day, enough for the daily needs of 300 people.
US company Vapaire [http://www.vapaire.com/], produces a
similar type of device. India may prove to be a lucrative market for these
devices, since it announced that it is cutting import duty on 'atmospheric
drinking water generators' from 20 per cent to 5 per cent.
Based on same principle of
condensation, the less sophisticated technology of fog collection has been
tested in developing countries for nearly 20 years.
Aqua-society,
http://www.aqua-society.com/
Source Weekly, http://www.irc.nl/source/
Copenhagen, 15 April - Last
night the European Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA) won an
award for best new electronic information source for the publication of the
European Pollutant Emission Register (EPER). EPER is the first Europe-wide
register of industrial emissions into air and water and was launched in
February 2004. It makes detailed information on pollution from around 10,000
large industrial facilities in the EU and Norway publicly accessible on the
internet for the first time. The European Information Association awarded EPER
first place in its Electronic Sources Category, recognising it as the best of a
large number of electronic publications, databases and websites produced at
European level in 2004. (…)
EPER 2004, the European
Pollutant Emission Register, is the first Europe-wide register of emissions
into air and water from large and medium-sized industrial installations,
including pig and poultry factory farms. It covers 50 different pollutantsand
comprises data from the 15 ‘older’ EU Member States as well as Norway and
Hungary, which participate on a voluntary basis. The EPER website is hosted by
the EEA in Copenhagen. In close cooperation with the Commission, the EEA has
managed the process of collecting the data for EPER from the countries and has
been involved in the design and development of the website.
Since its launch the EPER
website, http://www.eper.cec.eu.int/
has registered 230,000 visits. (…)
http://org.eea.eu.int/documents/newsreleases/eper_award-en
Lima, Peru, 14 April -- A Lima
civil court has ordered the Peruvian Ministry of Health and the General
Directorate for Environmental Health to take steps to alleviate a public health
crisis in La Oroya, a city where the Doe Run company of Missouri operates a
multi-metal smelter.
La Oroya is a city of 30,000
located high in the Peruvian Andes. The smelter operated by Doe Run emits large
amounts of toxic heavy metals and sulfur dioxide into the environs of the city.
The contamination is so severe that a recent study by the company and health
authorities showed that 99.9 percent of the children in the neighborhood
closest to the smelter had blood lead levels that exceed acceptable levels.
This study did not examine the blood lead levels of children more than six
years old, nor did it evaluate residents of the other neighborhoods in the
city, all of which are also highly contaminated.
The court’s decision resolves
a lawsuit filed by the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law (SPDA). The
ruling, issued after more than two years of litigation, declares that
government authorities have failed to comply with the National General Health
Law, the National Air and Environmental Quality Standards, and a Supreme Decree
regarding declaring States of Emergency in cases of contamination. (…)
http://www.earthjustice.org/news/display.html?ID=985
UNEP names seven "Champions Of The Earth"
Nairobi, 12 April 2005
- The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has named seven leaders in
the field of the environment as Champions of the Earth for “setting an example
for the world to follow.”
The awards – for outstanding environmental achievers and leaders from
each region of the world – will be presented on Tuesday 19 April at the United
Nations Headquarters in New York to:
• The King and people of Bhutan;
• Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates
(posthumously);
• President Thabo Mbeki and the people of South Africa;
• His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew;
• Julia Carabias Lillo, former environment minister of Mexico;
• Sheila Watt-Cloutier of Canada, President of the Inuit Circumpolar
Conference; and
• Zhou Qiang and the All-China Youth Federation.
Bangkok, 12 April - A tiny
parasitic wasp may help save the coconut industries of a number of countries in
the Asia and Pacific region from a destructive pest that feeds on the developing
leaves of the coconut palm, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said
today.
Severe attacks by the coconut
hispine beetle (Brontispa longissima Gestro) can destroy palm leaves and
significantly reduce coconut yields. If a palm is young or suffers from poor
growing conditions, it may die.
The beetle has invaded coconut
plantations in the Maldives, Nauru, Thailand, Viet Nam, the Lao's People's
Democratic Republic and China, causing massive losses to local coconut
industries. In response, FAO has launched biological control projects in all
the affected countries aimed at achieving long-term control of the pest with
the help of one of its natural enemies. (…)
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2005/100736/index.html
Paris, 8 April -
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea has formally appealed to the
international community for assistance in its fight against Avian Influenza
(AI), according to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and FAO.
North Korea's official appeal was made public at an international conference on
bird flu that ended in Paris today, jointly organised by OIE/FAO, in
collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO).
Around 300 key veterinary experts and scientists met to discuss the
current scientific information on bird flu and to address different aspects of
disease surveillance and control strategies. (…)
OIE and FAO announced the launch of the New Worldwide Avian Influenza
Network (OFFLU) which will improve the collaboration between reference
laboratories specialised on AI in animals, coordinated by OIE and FAO and
laboratory networks focusing on human influenza coordinated by WHO. (...)
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2005/101678/index.html
You are cordially invited to
participate as fully as possible in the three major events the UDC is planning
for its 40th anniversary year, as well as in its ongoing programs and
projects. The three major events are as follows:
(1) Leadership
Convergence. On Saturday, June 25th, an 8 a.m.
to 5 p.m. convergence event will take place at the Davidson Conference Center
on the campus of the University of Southern California. Invited are
leaders of nonprofit organizations and businesses, as well as individuals who
are in leadership roles in the community of Southern California and
beyond.
(2) Festival Of
Faith. A tradition began in 1955, at the 10th
anniversary of the United Nations, of holding a Festival of Faith in support of
the U.N. (…) This year a Festival of Faith based on the same idea
will be held at the Los Angeles Baha'i Center, 5755 Rodeo Rd. (corner of La
Cienega) on Sunday, June 26th, from 3 to 5 p.m. It will include prayer
and meditation, as well as resolutions, from about twelve faiths. (…)
(3) Peace
Sunday. The annual tradition of Peace Sunday as a
highlight of the Holy Day Season in December will be given a special focus for
these two anniversaries. (…)
www.udcworld.org - udcworld1@yahoo.com
Antananarivo, Madagascar, 15
April - At a signing ceremony yesterday in the presence of the Ministry of
Education and UNICEF, the Government of Norway donated US$ 6 million to UNICEF
to improve the quality of primary schooling in this country. These funds, which
will be provided over the course of three years (US$ 2 million a year from
2005-2007) will ensure that the 3.3 million children who are currently enrolled
in primary school (as well as those who start school in the years to come),
will have an improved education. (…)
UNICEF will use the Norwegian
funds this year to train 25,000 teachers in improved teaching methods, to
provide 1.5 million first and second graders with school textbooks and to
ensure that all the country’s 111 school districts are able to monitor and
evaluate the education situation in their areas to create an environment for
competency based learning.
Education is a key priority
for both UNICEF and the Government of Madagascar. While net primary enrollment
rates have increased to 82% in recent years, only 39 out of 100 students
complete the primary cycle. In addition, the country has one of the highest
repetition rates in the world, with close to 30% of all children repeating a
class. UNICEF has been working with the Ministry of Education and its partners
since 2002 to put in place a system that will improve the quality of primary
education. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_26030.html
15 April – Education
International-affiliate, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) today announced that there has been a significant rise in the number of
Indigenous staff employed in Higher Education between 2001 and 2004. Data provided by
the Department of Education Science and Training (DEST) indicates that there
was a 24% increase in Indigenous staff numbers between 2001 and 2004, whereas
non-Indigenous staff numbers increased by 11% for the same period.
The most marked change in
Indigenous staff numbers occurred between 2003 and 2004 in which the number of
Indigenous staff increased by almost double that of the previous years
increase. NTEU research indicates that in 2001, just 0.6% of all staff in
higher education were Indigenous Australians, which was well below the equity
benchmark of 2.2%. (…)
The annual NTEU National
Indigenous Members' Forum to be held 23rd & 24 th April 2005 will bring
together Indigenous NTEU Members, who will also be asked to consider additional
recommendations to support existing Indigenous staff conditions and to further
increase the number of Indigenous staff overall.
http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/20050415d.htm
April 14 - China has signed an
agreement to join UNESCO in the Open Initiative on the Use of Space Technology
in Support of the World Heritage Convention. The signing - by Guo Huadong,
Deputy Secretary-General of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Director of its
Joint Laboratory for Remote Sensing Archaeology, and Marcio Barbosa, Deputy
Director-General of UNESCO – took place at Organization Headquarters on April
13. (…)
Through the agreement, China
will share its extensive expertise and know-how within the framework of the
Open Initiative, which UNESCO and European Space Agency (ESA) launched in
October 2001. The Initiative aims to provide satellite images and expertise in
space-supported conservation to developing countries, helping them monitor
natural and cultural World Heritage sites. It also provides for the development
of countries’ capacities in this area.
Since China launched its first
manned space flight in October 2003, it has demonstrated considerable expertise
in the scientific exploration of space. Satellite technology is invaluable in
observing Earth and monitoring changes there, including those caused by human
activity. (…)
13 April - An independent
evaluation of the Teachers’ Training Programme on HIV/AIDS prevention
substantiates the well-grounded and significant impact of the programme run by
Education International in collaboration with the World Health Organisation
(WHO) and Education Development Center (EDC). Launched in 2001, the EI/WHO/EDC
programme has trained 134.445 teachers in over 22.000 schools in 17 countries
badly affected by the pandemic. The
programme is designed to train teachers to use interactive teaching and
learning methods and provides them with the skills to: 1) protect themselves,
2) advocate for HIV prevention in their schools, and 3) teach students to avoid
HIV infection.
The evaluation analysis
undertaken at the end of 2004 by Dr Eric Pevzner, University of North Carolina,
USA and commissioned by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was
based on the data collected from three of the 17 countries involved in the
programme, namely South Africa, Rwanda and Senegal. In addition, the report
includes findings from several focus group consultations with teachers from
EI’s member organisations in Zambia, Malawi and Botswana (…)
The report also emphasises
that the success of the programme lies in the strong partnerships developed
between teachers’ unions, ministries of education and health and relevant
community organisations and NGO’s involved in HIV/AIDS prevention.
In conclusion, the EI/WHO/EDC
Teachers’ Training Programme on HIV/AIDS Prevention is regarded as a
commendable example that should be expanded to many other countries.
http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/20050413.htm
WFP
unveils a children's video game with a difference - teaching kids how to get
food fast to the site of a humanitarian crisis.
Bologna, 12 April 2005 - Three months after the United
Nations launched its largest ever relief operation in response to the tsunami
disaster, WFP has introduced a video game to teach children about the
logistical challenges of delivering food aid in a major humanitarian crisis.
Set on a fictitious island called Sheylan riven by drought and war, Food Force
invites children to complete six virtual missions that reflect real-life
obstacles faced by WFP in its emergency responses both to the tsunami and other
hunger crises around the world. With tens of thousands of Sheylan’s residents
displaced and in urgent need of food aid, players are required to pilot
helicopters on reconnaissance missions, airdrop high energy biscuits to
internally displaced person (IDP) camps, negotiate with armed rebels on a food
convoy run and use food aid to help rebuild villages. (…)
WFP has also launched a special web site www.food-force.com so kids from around the world can compete online for the highest score.
(…)
http://www.wfp.org/index.asp?section=2
April 05, 2005 - COMENIUS,
part of the EU's SOCRATES program, is a European cooperation which supports a
wide range of activities in the field of school education. As ICAF's partner,
COMENIUS will announce the Third Arts Olympiad in 32 countries in Europe and
will arrange funding for the European child finalists to Munich for the
European Children's Festival, in June 2006. The overall objectives of COMENIUS
are to enhance the quality and reinforce the European dimension of school
education, by encouraging transnational cooperation between schools,
contributing to the improved professional development of staff directly
involved in the school education sector, and promoting the learning of
languages and intercultural awareness.
COMENIUS focuses on the first
phase of education, from pre-school and primary to secondary school, and it is
addressed to all members of the education community in the broad (…)
The International Child Art
Foundation is a nonprofit organization that prepares children for a creative
and cooperative future so they can lead us into a safer and better world.
ICAF's headquarters are in Washington, DC and its European office is in Munich.
http://www.icaf.org/news/newsfiles/200504050001.html
The Earth Charter Initiative
is pleased to announce a new Earth Charter award, which will be presented for
the first time during Earth Charter+5, a celebration of the first five years
since the official launch of the Earth Charter. This Award has been named to
honor the memory of Juni Kalaw, the former Executive Director of the Earth
Council, and to recognize his vision and legacy in motivating and mobilizing
widespread participation by individuals and organizations in building a more
just, peaceful, and sustainable world.
Projects that have occurred
between 2000 and 2005 will be considered for recognition. Submissions may be
made by individuals or organizations, and projects can be local, regional, or
international in scope. Submissions should demonstrate outstanding work done
with the Earth Charter in accomplishing one of the following goals of the Earth
Charter Initiative:
o To promote the
dissemination, endorsement, and implementation the Earth Charter by civil
society, business, and government.
o To encourage and support the
educational use of the Earth Charter in schools, universities, faith
communities, and other settings.
http://www.earthcharter.org/news/index.cfm?id_activity=636&actual=2005
* * * * * * *
STATE
OF THE WORLD 2005
by Mikhail S. Gorbachev
This text has
been written by the Green Cross International Chairman for the introduction to
the State of the World 2005 and it has been published by World Watch Institute.
Five years ago, all 191 United Nations member states pledged to meet
eight Millennium Development Goals by 2015, including eradicating extreme
poverty and hunger and ensuring environmental sustainability. These critical
challenges were reaffirmed by health officials from across the globe in October
2004 at the tenth anniversary of the landmark International Conference on
Population and Development held in Cairo. The overarching conclusion from this
2004 meeting was that while considerable, albeit erratic, progress was indeed
being made in many areas, any optimism must be tempered with the realization
that gains in overall global socioeconomic development, security, and
sustainability do not reflect the reality on the ground in many parts of the
world. Poverty continues to undermine progress in many areas. Diseases such as
HIV/AIDS are on the rise, creating public health time bombs in numerous
countries. In the last five years, some 20 million children have died of
preventable waterborne diseases, and hundreds of millions of people continue to
live with the daily misery and squalor associated with the lack of clean
drinking water and adequate sanitation.
We must recognize these shameful global disparities and begin to address them
seriously. I am delighted that the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to
Wangari Maathai, a woman whose personal efforts, leadership, and practical
community work in Kenya and Africa inspire us all by demonstrating the real
progress that can be made in addressing environmental security and sustainable
development challenges where people have the courage to make a difference.
Humankind has a unique opportunity to make the twenty-first century one of
peace and security. Yet the many possibilities opened up to us by the end of
the cold war appear to have been partially squandered already. Where has the
"peace dividend" gone that we worked so hard for? Why have regional
conflict and terrorism become so dominant in today's world? And why have we not
made more progress on the Millennium Development Goals? The terrible tragedies
of September 11, 2001, the 2004 terrorist attacks in Beslan in Russia, and the
many other terrorist incidents over the past decade in Japan, Indonesia, the
Middle East, Europe, and elsewhere have all driven home the fact that we are
not adequately prepared to deal with new threats. But better preparation means
thinking more holistically, not just in traditional cold war terms.
I believe that today the world faces three interrelated challenges: the
challenge of security, including the risks associated with weapons of mass
destruction and terrorism; the challenge of poverty and underdevelopment; and
the challenge of environmental sustainability.
The challenge of security must be addressed by first securing and
destroying the world's arsenals of weapons of mass destruction. Both Russia and
the United States have taken numerous positive steps in this direction. But we
must accelerate these nonproliferation and demilitarization efforts and
establish threat-reduction programs around the world if we are to be truly
successful.
The world's industrial nations must also commit greater resources to the
poorest countries and regions of the globe. Official development assistance
from the top industrial countries still represents but a tiny percentage of
their gross national products and does not come close to the pledges made over
a decade ago at the Rio Earth Summit. The growing disparity between the rich
and the poor on our planet and the gross misallocation of limited resources to
consumerism and war cannot be allowed to continue. If they do, we can expect
even greater challenges and threats ahead.
Regarding the environment, we need to recognize that Earth's resources are
finite. To waste our limited resources is to lose them in the foreseeable
future, with potentially dire consequences for all regions and the world.
Forests, for example, are increasingly being destroyed in the poorest
countries. Even in Kenya, where Wangari Maathai has helped plant over 30
million trees, forested acreage has decreased. The global water crisis is also
one of the single biggest threats facing humankind. Four out of 10 people in
the world live in river basins shared by two or more countries, and the lack of
cooperation between those sharing these precious water resources is reducing
living standards, causing devastating environmental problems, and even
contributing to violent conflict. Most important of all, we must wake up to the
dangers of climate change and devote more resources to the crucial search for
energy alternatives.
It is for reasons such as these that I founded Green Cross International 12
years ago and continue to advocate for a global value shift on how we handle
Earth, a new sense of global interdependence, and a shared responsibility in
humanity's relationship with nature. It is also for these reasons that I helped
draft the Earth Charter, a code of ethical principles now endorsed by over
8,000 organizations representing more than 100 million people around the world.
And it is for these reasons that Maurice Strong, Chair of the Earth Council,
and I have initiated the Earth Dialogues, a series of public forums on ethics
and sustainable development.
We need a Global Glasnost-openness, transparency, and public dialogue-on
the part of nations, governments, and citizens today to build consensus around
these challenges. And we need a policy of "preventive engagement":
international and individual solidarity and action to meet the challenges of
poverty, disease, environmental degradation, and conflict in a sustainable and
nonviolent way.
We are the guests, not the masters, of nature and must develop a new paradigm
for development and conflict resolution, based on the costs and benefits to all
peoples and bound by the limits of nature herself rather than by the limits of
technology and consumerism. I am delighted that the Worldwatch Institute
continues to address these important challenges and goals in its annual State
of the World report. I urge all readers to seriously consider their personal
commitments to action after finishing this volume. Only with the active and
dedicated participation of civil society will we be successful in building a
sustainable, just, and peaceful world for the twenty-first century and beyond.
* * * * * * *
* * * * * * *
Good News Agency is distributed free of charge through Internet to over 3,700 editorial offices of the daily newspapers and periodical magazines and of the radio and television stations with an e-mail address in 48 countries: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Holland, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA, and it is also available in its web site: http://www.goodnewsagency.org
It is a service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona Volontà Mondiale, a registered non-profit educational organization chartered in Italy in 1979 and associated with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations.
The Association operates for the development of consciousness and promotes a culture of peace in the ‘global village’ perspective based on unity in diversity and on sharing.
Via Antagora 10, 00124
Rome, Italy. E-mail: s.tripi@tiscali.it
* * * * * * *
(TOP)