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LDC Watch urges world leaders not to ignore the poorest countries |
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 Brussels, 25/09/08: Current development models and policies have completely failed the world’s least developed countries (LDCs), according to a statement made by LDC Watch, a global alliance of national, regional and international civil society organisations (CSOs), networks and movements based in the LDCs and supported by civil society from development partner countries, released on the occasion of the MDG summit in New York.
The statement draws attention to the fact that recent World Bank claims that extreme poverty has been reduced by half in the last 25 years should be treated with caution. The Social Watch Basic Capabilities Index published this week, which is calculated on progress in terms of basic social indicators rather than levels of income, shows that out of the 33 countries in the critical level, 28 are LDCs. The recent MDG Gap Task Force Report commissioned by the UN Secretary-General also draws discouraging conclusions. Failure to achieve the MDGs in the LDCs will be a failure of the international community to deliver on its commitments to the 750 million people living in poverty in LDCs. LDC Watch therefore states: NO MDGs without LDCs! Click here to read a press release about the launch of the Social Watch Basic Capabilities Index 2008 Click here to see the results of the Social Watch Basic Capabilities Index 2008 Click here to read an IPS News article about the launch of the Social Watch Basic Capabilities Index 2008 Click here to read a blog by Jeffrey Sachs on FT.com about the US$ 700 billion bailout of the US banking system
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Zimbabwe trade unions stand by their position on the signed agreement |
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 Brussels, 17/09/08: The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) issued a statement yesterday, 16 September, confirming that they stand by their position of 12 July stating that “a Government of National Unity is a subversion of the National Constitution and only a Transitional Authority should be put in place with a mandate to take Zimbabwe to fresh, free and fair elections that will hopefully not be disputed by the parties”.
Earlier in the day, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) announced that it was awaiting the comments of the ZCTU and that its position would be guided by the ZCTU statement. However, COSATU expressed concern over the fact that the agreement sends a dangerous signal to dictators that they can retain power through negotiations, brokered by other African leaders. The ZCTU General Council will meet on Saturday 20 September 2008 to discuss the new political situation. Click here to read a briefing paper about the new agreement by Promise Mkwananzi for Zimbabwe Watch
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1 billion Euro from CAP to boost agriculture in developing countries |
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Brussels, 10/09/08: At a hearing in the European Parliament today, the European Commission’s proposal of creating a ‘food facility” of 1 billion Euros for developing countries by using funds from the EU’s Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) was discussed. The hearing took place in the Committee on Development and included representatives from the WB, FAO and WFP who had been invited to debate the necessity and the problems of the proposal. The majority welcomed the proposal and stressed the need to avoid lengthy administration procedures in order to commit the funds by the end of the year. Some MEPs stated that the principles of transparency and accountability should not be sacrificed and emphasised that there were still some difficult technical obstacles to be over come and some reluctant member states to be won over.
Click here to read the joint SAAPE-Eurostep press release about the proposed food facility
Click here to read an article from the Financial Times on agriculture in Ethiopia
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Extraordinary meeting of the European Parliament's Development Committee |
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Brussels, 10/09/08: The European Parliament's Development Committee is holding an extraordinary meeting today to discuss the much talked about € 1 billion food facility which the European Commission has proposed as a rapid response to the global food crisis. On the occasion of this meeting, the European NGO network Eurostep and SAAPE ( South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication) have issued a joint press release in which they call on the European Union to use the € 1 billion fund as an immediate and essential response to the global food price crisis. Click here to see the agenda of the European Parliament meeting Click here to read the joint SAAPE-Eurostep press release about the proposed food facility Click here to read an article about the meeting from TheParliament.com
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UK-Bangladesh Conference on Climate Change |
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Brussels, 09/09/08: On Wednesday 10 September, the UK and Bangladesh will jointly host a high-level conference on climate change in London. The conference will serve as a platform to launch a possible Bangladesh-specific climate change action plan as well as a trust fund in line with the Bali Declaration. The Government of Bangladesh (GoB) will be sharing the Climate Change Strategy and Action for Bangladesh, the draft of which was shared with a small number of representatives of civil society during a workshop in July 2008. Despite a commitment from GoB to finalise the document by incorporating any inputs from the civil society and to publish it on the Ministry of Environment website, the document has so far remained out of the public domain. Equity and Justice Working Group Bangladesh (EquityBD) a member of the South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication (SAAPE) and LDC Watch has released a statement calling for pro-people and pro-poor actions to all relevant stakeholders. Click here to read the position paper on aid effectiveness and financing for development prepared by SAAPE and LDC Watch in conjunction with the following partners: Eurostep, Social Watch and ALOP.
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