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2232. Global Public Health and Biosecurity: Managing Twenty-First Century Risks
- Author:
- Margaret E. Kruk
- Publication Date:
- 07-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute
- Abstract:
- In this first decade of the twenty-first century, we have reason both to commend and to decry the state of human health and our ability to improve it. We have achieved a maximum life expectancy of eighty-six years and have found a way to manage, though not cure, the most deadly epidemic since the Black Plague, AIDS. We can keep up with mutating viruses to produce a new flu vaccine every year and we can save babies born only twenty-three weeks into a pregnancy. Yet that is only half the picture. We also live in a world where a Nigerian newborn has a nearly one in five chance of dying before reaching age five and her mother a one in sixteen chance of dying in one of her pregnancies. Life expectancy in parts of sub-Saharan Africa has fallen below forty years. We have experienced remarkable scientific advances over the past fifty years, although we have not been able to apply many of these to the bedside or to public health policy. And so we have powerful genetic tools to study the components of viral RNA but cannot predict when or even if the bird flu will spread to humans.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Globalization, Health, and Science and Technology
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Nigeria
2233. Informalising Readmission Agreements in the EU Neighbourhood
- Author:
- Jean-Pierre Cassarino
- Publication Date:
- 06-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The International Spectator
- Institution:
- Istituto Affari Internazionali
- Abstract:
- A number of factors explain why some EU member states, particularly France Italy and Spain are gradually opting for informal patterns of cooperation on readmission issues with Mediterranean and African countries. This adaptive inclination is more of a necessity than an option. It reflects the more urgent need of some EU member states to find flexible solutions for cooperation on readmission rather than to conclude bilateral readmission agreements. The agenda remains unchanged, but there has been a shift in priority actions with regard to these countries. The operability of cooperation on readmission has been prioritised over formalisation.
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Canada, Shanghai, France, Spain, and Italy
2234. No Ownership, No Commitment: A Guide to Local Ownership of Security Sector Reform
- Author:
- Laurie Nathan
- Publication Date:
- 05-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Global Facilitation Network for Security Sector Reform
- Abstract:
- Experience shows that reform processes will not succeed in the absence of commitment and ownership on the part of those undertaking reforms. Assistance should be designed to support partner governments and stakeholders as they move down a path of reform, rather than determining that path and leading them down it. A major problem in the area of security system reform in some regions, particularly in Africa, has been a lack of local input to and ownership of the emerging reform agenda. This issue is most significant in 'difficult partnership' countries. OECD DAC Policy Statement on Security System Reform and Governance.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, and International Security
- Political Geography:
- Africa
2235. Uganda Defence Review: Learning From Experience
- Author:
- Dylan Hendrickson
- Publication Date:
- 09-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Global Facilitation Network for Security Sector Reform
- Abstract:
- This report critically examines the experience of the Uganda Defence Review, which was conducted between 2002 and 2004 with the assistance of the United Kingdom. The achievements and challenges highlighted here offer fertile ground for learning that may help others navigate more effectively the difficult terrain of defence and security reviews, particularly where external assistance is involved.
- Topic:
- Security and Defense Policy
- Political Geography:
- Africa and United Kingdom
2236. The Challenges Of Groundwater In Southern Africa
- Author:
- Anthony Turton
- Publication Date:
- 01-2007
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Wilson Center
- Abstract:
- It is impossible to understand the developmental constraints of Africa without grasping the significance of water resources, particularly groundwater. Southern Africa faces potentially severe groundwater shortages, which not only imperil the lives of those directly dependent on it, but also the continued development of the economic engines of the region—South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe—all of which face significant constraints on their future economic growth due to the insecurity of water supply. In addition, groundwater resources are the foundation of rural water supplies, which sustain livelihoods for the poorest of the poor communities.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Security, Development, and Environment
- Political Geography:
- Africa, South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana
2237. Environmental Change and Security Report: Issue 12
- Author:
- Patricia Kameri-Mbote, Wangari Maathai, Marc Ravalomanana, John Katunga, Milline J. Mbonile, Nana K. Poku, Anthony Nyong, Kenneth Omeje, Richard P. and Elizabeth Leahy Cincotta, Alexander Carius, and Gib Clarke
- Publication Date:
- 06-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Wilson Center
- Abstract:
- While the world focuses on war, authors in ECSP Report 12 argue that we should not miss the quiet—yet often more lethal—conflicts for shrinking resources, which are increasingly depleted by population growth, environmental degradation, poverty, and over-consumption. Eight African leaders and scholars—including Nobel Peace Prize-winner Wangari Maathai—describe their continent's struggle with resource conflict. Population and health are also linked to conflict and fragile states, say Report authors. But efforts to promote sustainability—and use natural resources as peacebuilding tools—could help turn deadly environments into safe, sustainable neighborhoods.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Security, Development, and Environment
- Political Geography:
- Africa
2238. Africa: Confronting Complex Threats
- Author:
- Kwesi Aning
- Publication Date:
- 02-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute
- Abstract:
- Africa is grappling with several difficult security challenges. These difficulties result not only from the magnitude of these challenges, but also from the lack of capacity of African states and organizations to respond quickly and effectively to them. While wide swathes of Africa are compelled to deal with problems in an ad hoc manner, there are indications that some states, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and the African Union (AU) are undertaking promising steps to respond. Some of Africa's core security challenges are (a) the legacy of historic notions of state sovereignty; (b) the rise of regionalism in the absence of common regional values; (c) the difficulty of managing hegemonic regionalism; (d) elitism in the form of regional integration occurring only at the level of leaders without permeating the consciousness of the people; (e) the creation of institutions with little or no capacity to manage them, resulting in a merely formal regionalism; and finally (f) the perception of regionalism as an externally driven project.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Development, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Africa
2239. Observing Presidential and Legislative Elections in Liberia
- Publication Date:
- 01-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Carter Center
- Abstract:
- Liberians went to the polls in great numbers on October 11 and November 8, 2005, to elect a president, vice president, 30 senators, and 64 representatives. In these first elections since the end of 14 years of civil war, voters across the country demonstrated their commitment to peace and democratic governance. Both elections were widely praised as violence-free, orderly, and well-administered. Throughout the electoral process, the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and The Carter Center sought to demonstrate international support for Liberia's democratic process and to provide Liberians and the international community with an impartial and accurate assessment of the electoral process and the political environment surrounding it.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Civil Society, and Democratization
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Liberia
2240. International Engagement in Sudan after the CPA
- Author:
- Axel Borchgrevink and Anita Haslie
- Publication Date:
- 01-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The report analyses the international engagement in Sudan since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in relation to the Principles for Good International Engagement in Fragile States and Situations, which the OECD/DAC is currently developing. The report concludes that donor coordination has been quite advanced in Sudan, with a number of innovative mechanisms tried out. Furthermore, there has been a concerted effort towards contributing to the building of the South Sudan state. This effort, however, has focused on building institutions from the top down in Juba, without a complementary emphasis on building legitimacy and the relations between state apparatus and society. Moreover, strengthening the relationship between the Government of National Unity and the Government of South Sudan has been given relatively less attention. In terms of peacebuilding, there are also challenges for international engagement. More could have been done to contribute to a short-term peace dividend, and perhaps also to support the implementation of the CPA. On the basis of the experiences of the case of Sudan, the OECD/DAC Principles are found to be very relevant for guiding international engagement.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Development, and Government
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Sudan, and Juba