Running out of/on water?!

Several messages in the past week have highlighted the various ways in which water is becoming more and more a challenge in the lives of disaster-afflicted populations.
In Kenya, for example, the first climate change refugees have given up their herder life styles to settle down to make charcoal or sell firewood. Droughts in the country have gone up from once every decade up to almost every year. This gives nomades too little time to recover from losses suffered. In addition to the greater scarcity in drinking water, drought-induced hunger is more and more becoming a security concern in the country as well, with higher levels of violence reported.
In a similar vein, Timor Leste President Ramos-Horta warns for land-and-water wars in the near future, unless more attention will be paid to the rural areas that are more and more affected by the disastrous impacts of climate change.
On the other hand, several countries, notably in the Caribbean area, are hit by hurricanes and floods with greater intensity every year, said John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. If no drastic reduction in carbon house emissions is negotiated at Copenhagen in December, he warns, these extreme water conditions (both the lack and abundance of it) will lead to unprecedented population movements, with high potential for conflict.
In a response to these threats, Reuters reports,

A 155-nation conference in Geneva agreed on a plan to improve climate information to help people cope with ever more droughts, floods, sandstorms and rising sea levels projected this century. The plan for a "Global Framework for Climate Services" includes the appointment of a task force of high-level, independent advisors within four months.

The panel's report is expected in twelve months, with recommendations on among others disaster risks, human health, transport and tourism, managing water, energy and securing food supplies.

Reuters/Guardian: Record budget shortfall for UN aid agencies

Thanks to Michael Bear for highlighting a Reuters news release and a Guardian analysis on the Humanitarian Relief blog.

Reuters reports that both the global economic downturn and the drastic increase in needs in Pakistan have contributed to a record funding gap of $4.8 billion.

Yet some 43 million people need assistance this year, up from 28 million in 2008.
While there have been no large natural disasters so far in 2009, the global downturn has amplified needs in impoverished countries, and especially in those in protracted crisis such as Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.

This situation is not likely to improve, as the 2009 contributions of the major donor countries had already been set before the economic crisis had hit them.
However, the main problem is one of political will rather than lack of money. As Conor Foley in his Guardian analysis points out,

It would cost around 1% of the money thrown at western banks in the last six months to bridge the current humanitarian deficit. Yet politicians will continue to play a game of cynical brinkmanship over where the money should come from, confident that it will be the UN itself that gets blamed for the resulting deaths and human misery.

For more figures on how the economic crisis has affected other humanitarian organisations, see another blog entry by Michael Bear.

HPN/Reuters: Afghanistan

In issue 43 of the Humanitarian Exchange Magazine, Jon Bennett writes about the the Britain Afghanistan policy and future expectations for the latter country. Recently, this policy has moved towards a strategy of stabilisation, linking DfID, MoD and the Foreign Office in a mutual strategy of engagement, stabilisation and development, aimed at bridging the counterinsurgency and the "Afghanisation" of the country's future.

More recent information on Afghanistan on the Civil-Military Relations blog:
Terrorism kills more Afghan civilians than any other military action - next to Afghan civilians, also international aid workers have been the target of increased terrorist attacks in the country. This raises many concerns in the light of the upcoming presidential elections on 20 August.
Cost of insecurity in Afghanistan impedes humanitarian work - humanitarian organisations diverge in their approach in dealing with the increased insecurity in the country, with the ICRC firmly avoiding armed escorts and demonstrating its impartial credentials and emblem.

A new pressrelease by Reuters tells about Karzai's plans in his election manifesto to regulate foreign troops in Afghanistan:

Afghan President Hamid Karzai , setting out his election manifesto, has vowed to make foreign troops sign a framework governing how they operate in a bid to limit civilian casualties. Karzai, widely criticised this week for withdrawing from a televised debate with two of his main rivals in the Aug. 20 presidential election, has unveiled a manifesto covering foreign troops, talks with insurgents and reconstruction. Civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO operations, particularly air strikes, have become a source of increasing outrage among ordinary Afghans and their leaders this year, even as insurgent violence hit its worst levels in the eight-year-old war.

More about this in the extended blog entry.
In issue 43 of the Humanitarian Exchange Magazine, Jon Bennett writes about the the Britain Afghanistan policy and future expectations for the latter country.

Recently, this policy has moved towards a strategy of stabilisation, linking DfID, MoD and the Foreign Office in a mutual strategy of engagement, stabilisation and development, aimed at bridging the counterinsurgency and the "Afghanisation" of the country's future.

It has been difficult for aid agencies and DFID to focus on reconstruction and development when access to populations is largely determined by which areas are ‘secured’ by British and Afghan military forces. Development here requires longer timeframes and a more sophisticated form of interaction with target beneficiaries. It is also difficult to find technical experts willing to stay on the ground for any length of time in a highly volatile and dangerous environment.

Also, there are two separate foreign military forces present on the ground - the Coalition Forces and the NATO/ISAF operation forces. However distinct, the public does not make a distinction between the two and their actions affect each other, potentially affecting the acceptance of their actions (and, concomitantly, of the aid agencies affiliated to them or operating under their protection). In reaction, several international aid agencies have expressed their desire to decouple aid delivery from military goals and refused to be any longer part of the Provincial Reconstruction Teams.

Further complicating these matters is a general lack of coherency between the major donors, lack of legitimacy of the central government and the fact that in the country as a whole, the lack of good national or provincial data and security constraints on access to beneficiaries impede an accurate assessment of project progress.

Here are some excerpts from the latest news items posted on the Civil-Military Relations blog.

13 July 2009: Terrorism kills more Afghan civilians than any other military action.

Recent violence has also targeted those trying to help the fledgling democracy rebuild. Last month three national staff members of a local non-governmental organization (NGO) were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in was destroyed by a roadside bomb in Jawzjan province. In addition, the office of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Kunduz was attacked in early June with a rocket-propelled grenade having been fired at the compound.
The ongoing violence is of particular concern as the country gears up for presidential elections slated for 20 August. The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, Kai Eide, has highlighted the critical importance of the upcoming polls, noting that it is about more than choosing the country’s future leaders.

14 July 2009: Cost of insecurity in Afghanistan impedes humanitarian work.

While large swathes of the country, mostly in the south and east, are no-go zones for most agencies, the increasing use of armoured vehicles, barricaded compounds and restrictions on movement have also had an impact on operations in relatively safe areas, such as Kabul, where many organizations recommend armoured vehicles for their staff. [...]
However, some organizations like the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) prefer not to use them. “Armoured vehicles are both expensive and inconsistent with the nature of our work,” Patrick Hamilton, deputy head of the ICRC delegation, told IRIN, adding that the organisation was more inclined to seek security guarantees for its staff and activities through negotiations with warring parties and host communities. However, the ICRC’s modus operandi is extremely difficult, if not impossible, for other aid agencies to replicate, specialists say. [...]
The ICRC says it will continue avoiding armed escorts and demonstrating its impartial credentials and emblem. “We seek security through local acceptance and support,” said Hamilton. Others, including Donini, advise aid agencies to negotiate a “humanitarian consensus” with all warring parties and neighbouring countries as the UN did in the 1980 and 1990s. “Immediate steps should be taken to build a relationship of trust with all parties to the conflict,” said Donini.

OCHA's humanitarian Dashboard

Thanks to iRevolution for this:

The goal of the Dashboard is to ensure evidence-based humanitarian decision making for more needs-based, effective, and timely action. The business world is well-accustomed to dashboards for senior executives in order to provide them with a real-time overview of core business data, alert them of potential problems, and keep operations on-track for desired results.

Stephen Few, a leader in dashboard design defines a dashboard as “a single-screen display of the most important information people need to do a job, presented in a way that allows them to monitor what’s going on in an instant.” Such a single-screen or single-page overview, updated in real time, does not currently exist in the humanitarian world.”

Read more at iRevolution.

UN-ISDR: 2009 Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and Poverty in a Changing Climate

The Report is the first biennial global assessment of disaster risk
reduction prepared in the context of the International Strategy for
Disaster Reduction (ISDR). The ISDR, launched in 2000, provides a
framework to coordinate actions to address disaster risks at the local,
national, regional and international levels. The Hyogo Framework for
Action for Action 2005-2015 (HFA), endorsed by 168 UN member states at
the World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Japan in 2005,
urges all countries to make major efforts to reduce their disaster risk
by 2015.  

Download the report from Reliefweb.

Ask UN's Chief of International Strategy for Disaster Reduction

Via Zehra:

YOUR TURN TO ASK: Reducing risk in a world of disasters
11 May 2009 15:36:00 GMT
Written by: AlertNet

This Sunday, the United Nations will be launching an important new report looking at how, where and why disaster risk is increasing globally.
Drawing on more than 30 years of data, the study will analyse how climate change and other factors are changing the map of vulnerability. It will also come up with key recommendations for making the planet safer.
The contents of the report are under lock and key until the May 17 launch in Bahrain. But AlertNet has asked the United Nations' top official on disaster risk reduction to field questions from readers ahead of the event.
Margareta Wahlstrom, chief of the U.N.'s International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, will answer your burning questions about climate change, vulnerability and the risks faced by developing countries. You can participate by using the comments section below or by using the #askmw tag on Twitter.

We'll get as many of your questions to Wahlstrom as possible, and we'll be publishing her replies on AlertNet on Friday, so keep checking back!

New to Twitter? If you aren't using Twitter already but want to post a question or see what other people are asking Wahlstrom through Twitter, just get yourself a Twitter account, search for the #askmw tag and view all questions. You can post a 140-character question yourself, making sure to use the #askmw tag somewhere in your post so it sits with all the other posts from people across the Twittersphere.

IASC Annual Report 2008

The first IASC report produced for the wider humanitarian sector, and includes items on:

• 'Humanitarian reform - no longer a trend, but the way we work'
• 'Discussions on humanitarian space with DPKO'
• the Early Recovery cluster

Download the report from Reliefweb.

UNAIDS : NEW DIRECTOR AND DIRECTION

On his first country visit, the new Executive Director of UNAIDS, Mr Michel Sidibé outlined his vision and priorities for UNAIDS in the township of Khayelitsha in South Africa. Speaking to community and political leaders, Mr Sidibé praised the resilience and perseverance of the community working together to achieve goals in the face of incredible challenges.

Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region most heavily affected by HIV worldwide, accounting for two thirds (67%) of all people living with HIV and for three quarters of AIDS deaths in 2007. The nine countries in southern Africa continue to bear a disproportionate share of the global burden-35% of HIV infections and 38% of deaths due to AIDS.

Like other regions of the world, southern Africa is feeling the effects of the global economic crisis. Mr Sidibé stressed the need for follow through on domestic and international investment commitments to meet 2010 country targets.

Most countries have set universal access targets for 2010 that are ambitious and reach real people. For countries to reach the specific targets they have set, an estimated investment of US$ 25 billion will be required in 2010, which is US$ 11.3 billion more than is available today.
For further info see UNAIDS WEBSITE.

Tufts: Iraq: more challenges ahead for a fractured humanitarian enterprise

Greg Hanson, consulting researcher for the Feinstein International Center.

The work is an update of an earlier study on perceptions of humanitarian action in Iraq, which was part of the Humanitarian Action 2015 program. The report draws upon five years of active monitoring in Iraq and the region, a relatively long period in which agencies have had many opportunities to adapt to a difficult context. The report argues that despite some improvements in security for Iraqis, the ability of the international community to provide for the most vulnerable is impaired by the continued politicization of humanitarian response and systemic deficiencies in coordination mechanisms. The report concludes the both the UN system’s integrated mission approach and the UN’s relatively risk-averse security model have hampered the efficiency and effectiveness of the overall humanitarian response. Areas are highlighted where there are opportunities for improvement.

The study echoes the findings of a parallel study on Afghanistan to be released shortly.

Download the report from the Tufts website.

Humanitarian Exchange Magazine No. 41 - Feature: The Cyclone Nargis Response in Myanmar

This edition of Humanitarian Exchange focuses on the humanitarian situation in Myanmar, with special reference to Cyclone Nargis, which struck the country on 2 and 3 May. In all, over 140,000 people were killed and 20,000 injured. The homes, communities and livelihoods of around 2.4 million people were affected, with the damage caused to infrastructure, commerce and agriculture estimated at $4 billion.

Articles in this issue explore the roles played by major international institutions in organising the response, in particular the UN and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN); issues of access for expatriate aid workers and assistance; needs assessment; and the importance of prior presence in enabling an emergency response. Other articles focus on the role of national civil society in the initial response, and initiatives to support national civil society through grants, training and capacity-building support. Taken as a whole, the articles suggest that the initial restrictions on access perhaps forced international actors into a more creative and flexible response, one which valued local and regional capacities more than is often the case.

Away from the Nargis response, a set of more general articles examine conflict-related displacement in eastern Myanmar, landmines and chronic health issues – a salutary reminder that there is a wider humanitarian crisis in Myanmar that deserves greater attention.

Other articles in this edition revisit Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)’s approaches to accountability, the need for health agencies to take chronic diseases into account in their response and the immensely challenging security environment for humanitarian agencies in Chad. One article examines the exclusion and neglect facing Aravanis (people who may be born inter-sex or apparently males, dress in feminine clothes and generally see themselves as neither women nor men) in the response to the tsunami in Tamil Nadu, India. We also have a topical examination into how humanitarian assistance is being targeted in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Finally, Maurice Herson challenges the idea of dependency in relief.

Read more on the HPN website.

UN-OCHA: Humanitarian Coordinators Pool Mapping Exercise Report

This report outlines the evolution of United Nations humanitarian leadership; reports key outcomes against the plan; reviews current leadership development across the humanitarian system (UN, NGOs, IOM, and the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement); and highlights issues of concern and ways forward for consideration of the IASC HC Issues Group and the IASC. It goes on to outline recommendations regarding the continuation of the HC Pool and the creation of an IASC Humanitarian Coordinators Assessment Panel.

More than 200 stakeholders were contacted, from operational humanitarian United Nations agencies on the IASC, International Organizations (ICRC, IFRC, IOM), NGO Consortia, key NGO humanitarian agencies and large Red Cross National Societies, key donors on UNOCHA support network, and humanitarian standard and quality projects dealing with personnel.

Read more on Reliefweb.

John Holmes: New “business model” for humanitarian aid

IRIN: You are on the WEF Council on Humanitarian Assistance. What specific ideas have you brought to the council in terms of climate change and food insecurity?

JH: What we were discussing was the need to do two things which aren’t exactly new ideas but we were trying to formulate them in a reasonably coherent way. One is to spend a lot more time and effort on what you might call the upstream side - the prevention, the disaster risk reduction, the preparedness side so that there is more effort and more resources and more thought going into that, rather than concentrating too much on the response side after the event - which is necessary because you need to help people when they’re in their moment of need but it is not a very good investment because you can’t solve any problems that way. And the second related thought is to try to empower national governments, local communities, maybe regional organisations - to make them have more capacity, be more empowered, so that the international community doesn’t need to intervene so much and can reserve itself for cases of really major need. So those two things go together if we can get that combination right. It is what we try to describe as a new business model for humanitarian assistance. These thoughts have been had before but we are trying to encapsulate them in a new way.

IRIN: But what has hindered this development? Kofi Annan when he was UN secretary-general talked about the need for humanitarians to move from a culture of response to a culture of prevention. This has not happened yet.

JH: I think it is something to do with human nature. In our personal lives we know that prevention is better than cure, prevention health is better than response afterwards, but we don’t actually behave in ways which correspond to that. I think similarly governments and international institutions know in theory that it’s much better to invest more and do more on the prevention side but they don’t actually do it. You have to convince finance ministers, you have to convince presidents and prime ministers that they need to invest in something the results of which will only be seen in 10 or 15 years when they may no longer be in power. That is quite a tricky thing to do. So you’ve got to have your arguments marshalled. You have got to be able to prove to them - as we hope to be able to do in the new study which is under way - that this is actually a really good investment because there are going to be more and more disasters from climate change and hence the importance of the disaster risk reduction agenda because of the link to climate change.

Read more on the IRIN website.

UNISDR: Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction: Weather, Climate and Climate Change

Climate change and disaster risk reduction are closely linked. More extreme weather events in future are likely to increase the number and scale of disasters, while at the same time, the existing methods and tools of disaster risk reduction provide powerful capacities for adaptation to climate change.

This Briefing Note, prepared by the secretariat of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction Secretariat (UNISDR), outlines the nature and significance of climate change for disaster risk, as well as the main perspectives and approaches of disaster risk reduction and how they can support adaptation strategies.

Download from Reliefweb.

OCHA: Central Emergency Response Fund Two Year Evaluation

In its resolution 60/124 of December 2005, the General Assembly of the United Nations transformed the Central Emergency Revolving Fund, created in 1991, into the Central Emergency Response Fund, two-thirds of which would be for rapid response and one-third for underfunded emergencies.

A report on its operation after two years is now available for download from the OCHA website.

Alertnet: How do you think beyond food aid in a conflict?

VIEWPOINT: Luca Alinovi, Gunter Hemrich and Luca Russo from the U.N. FAO

"For too long, we simply equated a food security problem with a food gap, and a food gap with a food aid response." Dan Maxwell said this in a speech once. But achieving food security in protracted crisis situations - which are often accompanied by violent conflict and may last for decades - is a major challenge. A new book "Beyond Relief: Food Security in Protracted Crisis" draws together concrete examples from Somalia, Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo to look at what worked - and what didn't. It asks if long-term food security is ever adequately considered in crises, and if food aid is supplied as an automatic default response. In fact, the book confirms that response usually consists of a long series of short-term "emergency" interventions that often overlook the problems that caused the crises in the first place.

Read more on Alertnet.

'Eroding humanitarian principles: Who's to blame?'

By Samir Elhawary, Humanitarian Policy Group at ODI

This article is in response an earlier article expressing serious concern at current UN humanitarian reforms that seek to enhance coordination among humanitarian agencies and establish more effective funding mechanisms for emergencies, which views these latest reforms as an attempt to further align political, military and aid objectives.
Access the original article via Humanitarian Practice Network
Access the response via Humanitarian Practice Network

A recent article by members of the well known humanitarian agency Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) expressed serious concern at current UN humanitarian reforms that seek to enhance coordination among humanitarian agencies and establish more effective funding mechanisms for emergencies. It views these latest reforms as an attempt to further align political, military and aid objectives. This, they argue, blurs the lines between political and humanitarian action, fostering an environment that isn’t conducive to upholding the core humanitarian principles of independence, impartiality and neutrality. These principles are understood as vital to ensuring access to affected populations and the security of aid workers.

Reform of the institutional framework to enhance strategic coordination isn’t new, as the authors acknowledge. It’s part of a trend since the mid-1990s that seeks to achieve greater coherence among humanitarian, development, military, diplomatic and commercial interventions. This attempt to bridge aid and politics stems from the general acceptance among Western states – especially since 9/11 – that ineffective or failed states can no longer be ignored or simply provided with relief. The thinking is that instability creates fertile grounds for radicalisation which, in tern, poses severe threats to the liberal democratic world.

Afghanistan and Iraq are some of the most recent interventions that are symptomatic of this trend, and the places in which aid workers have expressed most concern over their ability to operate. In fact, in 2004 MSF pulled out of Afghanistan after several of its aid workers were killed. This would tend to reinforce concerns that greater coherence and the consequent blurring between political and humanitarian interventions are eroding humanitarian principles and hindering the ability of aid workers to save lives.

However, while the evidence suggests that there has been a loss of ‘humanitarian space’, two qualifications need to be made. Firstly, as emphasised recently by Laura Hammond, increasing attacks on aid workers are more likely to be due to the considerable benefits that can be gained by those who carry out the attacks – namely, massive publicity which can be used to promote a particular message – rather than because of any erosion of principles. Attacking aid workers can also be a way to send a powerful message in terms of showing military prowess and, in effect, become a strategy of war.

Secondly, apart from those organisations that espouse a relatively strict adherence to principles of independence and neutrality, some agencies have started to actively take sides, supporting what they perceive as ‘good’ political objectives in their advocacy campaigns; such as calling for intervention in Darfur. Others have pursued a development or social justice agenda that seeks to transform the societies they engage in through ‘conflict resolution’, ‘recovery’, ‘reconstruction’ and ‘peace-building’ interventions. In such a context, talk of neutrality makes little sense. There is a need to move away from the current tendency to solely blame the role of the ‘system’ and/or other political/military actors and emphasise the fact that it is often the agencies themselves that are the prime drivers in politicising aid.

These trends raise important questions with regard to the relevance of applying humanitarian principles in the current environment. Should agencies pull out, reject funds or suspend activities if they feel the principles are being overly compromised? Or is there a case for enhanced coherence between political and humanitarian objectives in order to support the long term welfare of these societies – and perhaps also their security in the shorter-term? Until such dilemmas are resolved we will continue to see a humanitarian enterprise that is deeply divided.

UNAIDS 2008 Global Epidemic Update

According to new data in the UNAIDS 2008 Report on the global AIDS epidemic there have been significant gains in preventing new HIV infections in a number of heavily affected countries. In Rwanda and Zimbabwe, changes in sexual behaviour have been followed by declines in the number of new HIV infections. Condom use is increasing among young people with multiple partners in many countries. Another encouraging sign is that young people are waiting longer to have sexual intercourse. This has been seen in seven of the most affected countries: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Uganda and Zambia. In Cameroon the percentage of young people having sex before the age of 15 has gone down from 35% to 14%.

The report shows that the combined will and efforts of governments, donors, civil society and affected communities can make a difference. Some 105 countries have set goals and targets towards achieving universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010. "Gains in saving lives by preventing new infections and providing treatment to people living with HIV must be sustained over the long term," said UNAIDS Executive Director Dr Peter Piot. "Short-term gains should serve as a platform for reinvigorating combination HIV prevention and treatment efforts and not spur complacency".

Access this report from UNAIDS

The epidemic globally
From 2001 new HIV infections declined from 3 million to 2.7 million in 2007. Although the number of new HIV infections has fallen in several countries the AIDS epidemic is not over in any part of the world. Rates of new HIV infections are rising in many countries such as China, Indonesia, Kenya, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, and Vietnam. Increases in new HIV infections are also being seen in some older epidemics and HIV incidence is increasing in countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom and Australia.

The global epidemic has leveled off in terms of the percentage of people infected (prevalence) while the total number of people living with HIV has increased to 33 million people globally with nearly 7,500 new infections each day.
- 2.7 million people were newly infected in 2007
- 2.0 million people died of AIDS-related deaths in 2007

Treatment is saving lives
As reported earlier in 2008, some 3 million people are now receiving antiretroviral treatment in low and middle-income countries. Namibia scaled up treatment from 1% in 2003 to 88% in 2007. Similarly Cambodia scaled up treatment from 14% in 2004 to 67% in 2007. Other countries that have come close to achieving universal access to treatment are Botswana, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba and Lao People's Democratic Republic. In most parts of the world more women are receiving antiretroviral treatment than men.

In part as a result of the scaling up in the past two years AIDS-related deaths have declined from 2.2 million to 2 million in 2007. However, AIDS continues to be the leading cause of death in Africa which is home to 67% of all people living with HIV. In Africa, 60% of people living with HIV in the region are women and three out of four young people living with HIV are female.

More attention for people most at risk
Since 2005 there has been a tripling of HIV prevention efforts focused on sex workers, men who have sex with men and injecting drug users. For example of the 39 countries reporting on access to HIV prevention services for sex workers, there was a 60% average coverage rate. Nearly 50% of people who inject drugs in 15 countries and 40% of men who have sex with men in 27 countries had access to HIV-prevention services.
In virtually all regions outside of sub-Saharan Africa, HIV infections have disproportionately affected injecting drug users, men who have sex with men, and sex workers. People most at risk have better access to HIV prevention services in countries that have laws to protect them against discrimination.

'Knowing your local epidemic' remains critical to effective prevention efforts. Over time trends have changed within regions and within countries. In Thailand the main mode of transmission was sex work and injecting drug use and now the main mode of transmission is among married couples. " Countries need to focus HIV prevention programmes to where the new infections are occurring," said UNFPA Executive Director Dr Thoraya Obaid. "Knowing the epidemic and choosing the right combination of interventions are critical for an effective response. In many contexts, young people and women need special attention."

Looking ahead
The new report is being launched ahead of the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico. This event will bring together leaders, policymakers, academics, activists, community groups and other key stakeholders to review lessons learnt and build momentum towards achieving universal access goals by 2010 and the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

"Responding to AIDS is an important Millennium Development Goal which also has a direct impact on meeting the other Goals by 2015," said UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis. "The progress we make in addressing AIDS will contribute to our efforts to reducing poverty and child mortality, and to improving nutrition and maternal health. At the same time, progress towards the other Goals, such as tackling gender inequality and promoting education, is required if we are to halt and reverse the spread of AIDS."

Long-term response
AIDS is a long-term issue and that requires a response that is grounded in evidence and human rights. It requires strong leadership that can sustain commitments over time. The report calls for leaders to approach issues of human sexuality and drug use with a human rights perspective. HIV responses require long-term sustained financing. As more people go on treatment and live longer, budgets for HIV will have to increase over the next few decades. Donors will have to provide the majority of the funding required for the AIDS responses in low- and some middle-income countries, even as domestic spending on HIV has increased in these countries. The response will be helped by commitments such as the recent reauthorization of US$ 48 billion by the United States Government. The G8 at its recent summit in Japan also agreed to honour in full its commitments to continue working towards the goal of universal access to HIV prevention and treatment by 2010.

"The scaling up of the AIDS response towards universal access must be based on four key values-a rights-based approach, multisectoralism, results for people, and community engagement. These are not negotiable," said Dr Piot.

United Nations Environment Programme: 'After the Tsunami: Sustainable Building Guidelines for South-East Asia'

In the aftermath of disasters, project managers are often overwhelmed by the challenges related to reconstruction. This manual addresses those challenges by providing project managers with guidance in various aspects of sustainable reconstruction.
Access this report via ReliefWeb

The Strategic Context: Peacekeeping in Crisis, 2006-08

By Richard Gowan

There is a consensus that the UN needs a stronger strategic culture, but its strategic circumstances militate against this. Since 2006, the UN has struggled with a series of crises that have overshadowed efforts to develop the idea of integration. It also faces a systemic crisis, in that its framework for deploying missions has been undermined in Darfur. In addition it faces a paradigmatic crisis, as many of its assumptions about transitions from war to peace have been shown wanting in cases from Afghanistan to the Democratic Republic of Congo. At a time of increasing rivalry among major powers, not least in the Security Council, the UN may not develop comprehensive strategies aimed at transforming post-conflict societies. But it may be able to achieve more limited but politically credible goals.

Access this report via ReliefWeb

International Peace Institute:'Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities and the Responsibility to Protect: Challenges for the UN'

This report is the first in The Responsibility to Protect Occasional Paper Series.

It summarizes the discussion from the recent policy roundtable held in Stellenbosch, South Africa organized in cooperation with the University of Cape Town’s Centre for Conflict Resolution and the Office of the UN Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide.

Click here to access this report from ReliefWeb