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302. Blind Optimism: Challenging the myths about private health care in poor countries
- Publication Date:
- 02-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Oxfam Publishing
- Abstract:
- The stakes could not be higher. Every minute a woman dies in pregnancy or childbirth for want of simple medical care; every hour 300 people die of AIDS-related illnesses; and every day 5,000 children are killed by pneumonia. The world is badly off-course to achieve the internationally agreed health Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). To get back on-course and achieve universal and equitable health care for all requires a massive expansion of health services. To fail in this endeavour will be to abandon hundreds of millions of people to an early death and a life blighted by sickness. The critical question is how can such a massive scale up be achieved?
- Topic:
- Health, Humanitarian Aid, Third World, and Foreign Aid
303. The Right to Survive: the humanitarian challenge for the twenty-first century
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Oxfam Publishing
- Abstract:
- Each year, on average, almost 250 million people are affected by 'natural' disasters. In a typical year between 1998 and 2007, 98 per cent of them suffered from climate-related disasters such as droughts and floods rather than, for example, devastating but relatively rare events such as earthquakes. According to new research for this report, by 2015 this could grow by more than 50 per cent to an average of over 375 million affected by climate-related disasters each year.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, Human Welfare, and Humanitarian Aid
304. Making Pooled Funding Work for People in Crisis
- Author:
- Tanja Schuemer-Cross
- Publication Date:
- 05-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Oxfam Publishing
- Abstract:
- International humanitarian aid provides relief to tens of millions of people each year: in 2007 to more than 43 million people through UN humanitarian appeals alone. However, it is also often too little, too late, and unpredictable, or inappropriate to the needs of communities, including specific groups such as women and girls. The UN-led reforms since 2005 to improve humanitarian aid have begun - but only begun - to make a difference to this variable performance.
- Topic:
- Development, Humanitarian Aid, Poverty, Third World, and Foreign Aid
305. What Is Poverty Reduction?
- Author:
- Owen Barder
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Global Development
- Abstract:
- There is a healthy debate about how to achieve poverty reduction in developing countries, but not enough discussion of what we mean by “poverty reduction.” “Poverty reduction” is often used as a short-hand for promoting economic growth that will permanently lift as many people as possible over a poverty line. But there are many different objectives that are consistent with “poverty reduction,” and we have to make choices between them. There are trade-offs between tackling current and future poverty, between helping as many poor people as possible and focusing on those in chronic poverty, and between measures that tackle the causes of poverty and those which deal with the symptoms. Because donors focus on just one dimension of poverty reduction (growth) they marginalise other legitimate objectives such as reducing chronic poverty or providing social services in countries that cannot otherwise afford them.
- Topic:
- Development, Environment, Humanitarian Aid, Poverty, Third World, and Foreign Aid
306. International Justice and International Politics: Intertwined Paths
- Author:
- David Penna
- Publication Date:
- 01-2009
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Human Rights and Human Welfare - Review Essays
- Institution:
- Josef Korbel Graduate School of International Studies, University of Denver
- Abstract:
- The end of July 2008 was marked by an unexpected event: the announcement of the spectacular arrest and transfer of Radovan Karadzic to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia by Serb authorities. Karadzic, slightly disguised, had led a life hiding in plain view and even making television appearances in his new personality. The transfer came thirteen years after Karadzic's indictment (“Karadzic Set to Make First Court Appearance” 2008). The arrest left two indicted war criminals from Yugoslavia (Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic) remaining at large and seemed to promise some prospect that the tribunal will have a high profile conviction before it closes its doors in 2010. This is especially compelling given Karadzic's claim that he was promised immunity by the United States for agreeing to the Dayton Accords and limiting his political activity in later years; the Court rejected that any immunity could be recognized under international law (ICTY 2009, para. 5). Was the arrest an indication that international justice had triumphed over international politics? The Court seems to accept a standard of international justice that demands respect for agreed upon international standards of humanitarian law or respect for victims' rights rather than political deals, even those guaranteed by great powers to end a conflict.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid
- Political Geography:
- Yugoslavia
307. Darfur: In Search of Peace
- Author:
- George Shepherd and Peter Van Arsdale
- Publication Date:
- 01-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Human Rights Human Welfare (University of Denver)
- Abstract:
- Darfur is located in the Western part of Sudan and borders Libya to the north, and Chad and CentralAfrican Republic to the West. It had an estimated population of seven million (prior to refugee and IDPdisplacements), representing more than 70 tribes, and is potentially rich in natural resources includingoil, copper, and uranium, as well as reservoirs of subsurface "Pleistocene water."
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Civil War, Human Rights, Human Welfare, Humanitarian Aid, Poverty, and War
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Libya
308. Using Indicators to Encourage Development? Lessons from the Millennium Development Goals
- Author:
- Richard Manning
- Publication Date:
- 01-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The Millennium Declaration included a highly significant innovation – universal, support by the world's governments for a short list of development results to be, achieved by a set date. As the target year of 2015 approaches, the paper compares the, MDG framework that emerged from the Declaration with other ways of measuring, and incentivising progress, sets out some initial hypotheses about its impact and addresses issues about its structure and coverage. This leads to proposals about how to, get the best value from the MDGs over the years to 2015 and five hypotheses about, how the world might approach the issue of what framework, if any, to put in place, to measure and incentivise development progress after 2015.
- Topic:
- Development, Health, Human Welfare, Humanitarian Aid, International Cooperation, International Political Economy, Third World, and United Nations
309. Whither aid? Financing development in Mozambique
- Author:
- Sam Jones
- Publication Date:
- 03-2009
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- Careful consideration of the appropriate level and composition of aggregate public spending is vital in low income countries, especially in the presence of large volumes of foreign aid. Not only can expansion of the public sector weaken economic growth, but also provision of public services may be difficult to retrench. These issues are relevant to Mozambique as the share of government in GDP already is comparatively high and strategic management of aggregate public spending historically has been weak. A new long-term macroeconomic model quantifies the implications of alternative aggregate spending profiles. It shows that small increases in minimum levels of government spending correspond to large increases in the duration to aid independence. Sharp reductions in aid availability would necessitate significant fiscal and economic adjustments, including cuts in real public spending per capita. For this reason, there is no room for complacency as regards the future of development finance to Mozambique.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Humanitarian Aid, International Political Economy, Poverty, and Third World
- Political Geography:
- Africa
310. Reconstructing Gaza – Lessons from Lebanon
- Author:
- Alistair Harris
- Publication Date:
- 03-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- United States Institute of Peace
- Abstract:
- Last week's international donor conference to address the question of humanitarian assistance to Gaza underscores the myriad challenges confronting the process. Namely, how should the international community respond to the complex issues surrounding assistance in post-conflict recovery and reconstruction, particularly when several key donors reject any contact with Hamas, the governing authority on the ground? By any estimation, the Gaza reconstruction process will face several perplexing issues: How can billions of US dollars be effectively, transparently and accountably dispersed in a coordinated way, when several key donors and the Government of Israel reject any moves that will bolster the fortunes of Hamas, who m they classify as a terrorist organisation? What impact will an emerging Palestinian National Unity Government have on the mechanisms for overcoming many donors' reluctance to deal directly with Hamas? What opportunities and challenges does the reconstruction of Gaza pose for a rapprochement between Hamas and Fatah? Who will lead the reconstruction process and how will meaningful activity take place in the face of severe restrictions on access and movement? With Hamas in power in Gaza and Israel ref using to consider opening their common borders until kidnapped Israeli Defence Forces Corporal Gilad Shalit is released by Hamas, how is meaningful recovery and reconstruction even possible? In the absence of a credible political process, what use is reconstruction anyway if it merely returns the population of Gaza to their pre-conflict socio-economic imperilment? Lebanon faced a similar situation following the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Political Violence, Humanitarian Aid, Peace Studies, and War
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Arabia, Gaza, and Lebanon