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Wednesday, August 31, 2011

ACCELERATING CONTINGENCIES FOR THE HORN OF AFRICA

ACCELERATING CONTINGENCIES FOR THE HORN OF AFRICA

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

The international community is very much aware by now concerning the demographic catastrophe that is taking shape in the Horn of Africa. Hunger is scaling up to millions of people affected as a convergence of climatological, geological, and political-military factors push people to the brink of starvation and colossal death levels.

Donor institutions and states have demonstrated social responsibility in responding to the acute starvation problems alright, though the contingency measures are altogether reactive. There are so many folks going hungry there, to the tune of 11 million total maximum starvation & famine victims, so let’s give them bread and water to survive.

Bleeding heart responses may be appreciable in the short run, but such feel good responses do not work much to alleviate famine and hunger in the long run. Besides, there are rebel groups in the area whose very presence complicate the starvation catastrophe, rebels that could hardly wait to dip their hands by grabbing humanitarian supplies and controlling supply routes.

Below is a list of intervention measures proposed by the FAO which I find very agreeable as they provide the minimum foundations for long-term solutions to the famine & hunger problems in the Horn.

[Philippines, 31 August 2011]

http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/81662/icode/

Stepping up to the Horn / Joint FAO/WFP/Oxfam statement

Supporting small farmers will be crucial to mitigate the effects of drought.

8 July 2011, Rome - From mega-emergencies, such as the earthquake in Haiti or the floods in Pakistan, to headline-grabbing humanitarian crises, such as the conflicts in Cote d'Ivoire or Libya, the international community has stepped up to help those impacted by disaster and tragedy over the last few years.

Unfortunately, "slow-onset" humanitarian crises, such as the worsening drought in the Horn in Africa, have not received the same attention, leaving millions of women, men and children vulnerable to devastating hunger and malnutrition.

Rather than waiting for a full-blown, life-threatening disaster, that will cost exponentially more in loss of lives, livelihoods and humanitarian interventions, we must act now to save those already suffering from hunger and malnutrition as we build resiliency and food security in the region.

Unfortunately, we are already behind the curve, having lost a narrow window of opportunity to begin building upon food security gains in the Horn of Africa following several seasons of successful rains and harvests that had reduced the number of hungry people.

Today, countries in the region are confronted with the failure of the short rains in late 2010 and negative trends that threaten the long rainy season in 2011. These conditions have already increased the number of severely food insecure people.

The number of those requiring emergency assistance has grown from 6.3 million in early 2011 to 10 million today - a 40 percent increase - in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda (Karamoja region). The majority of the newly affected people are reported to be in Kenya (1.2 million). In addition, the number of Somali refugees in camps in Kenya and Ethiopia has reached the unprecedented figure of about 517,000 people.

The good news is that we know what to do. In 2010, the humanitarian community created an Action Plan to address the root causes of food insecurity to bring resiliency to a region that has suffered from protracted crises for nearly three decades. This plan calls for a partnership between countries, humanitarian organizations and the development assistance community to link long-term development efforts with humanitarian assistance to build food security.

It is critical that we build household resilience, protect productive assets, reduce the scale of emergency assistance and put in place measures to avoid a similar crisis when rain inevitably fails in the future.

To ensure that complacency does not drive destiny in this region we therefore call for:

  • Emergency and Sustainable Food Assistance - Full funding of emergency requirements to stop the current hunger and malnutrition from accelerating and support of safety net programs, such as school feeding and local purchase and P4P initiatives.
  • Small farmer support - Immediate support to national food security plans to ensure that countries support the poorest farmers with essential assistance such as tools, seeds, fertilizers, food-based nutrition and the knowledge needed to boost agricultural production and sustain rural livelihoods.
  • Proactive policy and risk reduction and investment - Supporting policies and investments that address core challenges such as climate change adaptation, preparedness and disaster risk reduction and management, rural livelihoods, productive infrastructure, production and marketing, institutions and governance, conflict resolution, pastoralist issues and access to essential health and education.

These efforts need to build upon national and regional frameworks and strategies, especially the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme led by the New Partnership for Africa's Development. Regional organizations will be crucial for mobilizing concerted action against threats to food and nutrition security. The African Union and the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development, in particular, have an important role to play.

We recognize that emergencies in the Horn of Africa will not be stopped tomorrow. But we must seize the opportunity to break the chronic cycle of food insecurity and make sure that this is the last generation to be robbed of a future through the scourge of hunger and malnutrition.

We call on the international community to extend all the necessary political, moral and financial means required to comprehensively address the worsening crisis now affecting the Horn of Africa as we help nations in the region build a food secure destiny.

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

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SOUTH SUDAN’S DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL VIA AGRICULTURE

SOUTH SUDAN’S DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL VIA AGRICULTURE

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Good day from the Pearl of the Orient!

The new nation-state of South Sudan, which was already fully recognized as a sovereign state by other member nations of the United Nations, has growth potentials that can be sustainable. The search for that sustainable option is not a difficult one as experts from international organizations have shown.

Such is the fortune for the new nation. For one, it is endowed with oil. Second, it is endowed with vast arable lands and potentially cultivable areas. Arguments can be raised that agriculture is more sustainable than oil production which in the long run will see oil reserves depleted.

Below is a report from the FAO concerning the subject of sustainable agriculture.

[Philippines, 31 August 2011]

Source: http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/81693/icode/

South Sudan naturally endowed for sustainable growth through agriculture / FAO land cover survey shows just 4.5 percent currently used for farming

July 8, 2011, Rome/Juba - As South Sudan celebrates its independence on 9 July 2011, the world’s newest nation faces many challenges in building a strong and stable economy that supports the food security and livelihoods of its population.

FAO has been actively working in South Sudan and stands ready to further assist the world’s newest nation to develop a strong and sustainable agricultural sector.

The UN agency has drawn up a $50 million Interim Assistance Plan (IAP) for the agricultural sector that will build capacity in ministerial and state agricultural extension offices, mediate to prevent conflict over water resources and develop the livestock sector.

The IAP will contribute to the new government’s overall development plan for South Sudan. The interim plan also includes the establishment of a seed production sector and an urban and peri-urban agriculture component as many returnees arrive in the capital Juba and other major towns in South Sudan and will need to produce as much as their own food as possible.

$61 million assistance ongoing

"South Sudan is enormously rich in terms of natural resources, and with 95 percent of the population dependent on them for survival, it has huge potential for sustainable growth through agriculture" said George Okech, Head of Office, FAO South Sudan.

FAO currently manages a $61 million emergency rehabilitation programme in South Sudan that has already helped 250 000 returnee and internally displaced households who fled their farms during the conflict return to agriculture, as well as vulnerable households who are hosting the returnees.

The support offered includes training young people in Farmer Field Schools and building administrative capacity.

Satellite view

In addition, as part of the Agency’s support effort to the new nation, FAO recently carried out an extensive satellite land cover survey that showed just 4.5 percent of the available land was currently under cultivation.

This data was then verified on the ground by local experts using GPS. The survey was carried out with the support of the €20.6 million EU-funded Sudan Institutional Capacity Programme: Food Security Information for Action.

The objective of the land-cover survey was to identify the distribution of major agricultural land, as well as other natural resources, including forest, grazing pastures and rivers.

"The launch of the land-cover database could not have come at a better time for the new nation of South Sudan", said John Chuol Dhol, South Sudan’s Director General for Agriculture Production.

Not only is the survey a new robust method for developing an improved agricultural data collection system, it could also lay the foundation for a new system of natural resources monitoring and act as a useful tool for food security monitoring.

A workshop to present the outputs and results of the land-cover database, organized by the South Sudan Government and FAO, will be held in Juba, South Sudan, in August 2011.

FAO will be discussing its $50 million Interim Assistance Plan (IAP) for the agricultural sector with donors in August in the hope of securing funding for this important programme. FAO donors in South Sudan include Canada, the EU (Echo) CERF, the Common Humanitarian Fund, France, Spain, Switzerland.

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

Social Blogs:

IKONOKLAST: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com

UNLADTAU: http://unladtau.wordpress.com

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ARTBLOG: http://erleargonza.wordpress.com

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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

AFRICAN REFUGEES IN EUROPE: DOES BRUSSELS OFFER AID?

AFRICAN REFUGEES IN EUROPE: DOES BRUSSELS OFFER AID?

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Hundreds of thousands of Africans and Arabs are pouring into Europe every year. It’s like Europe is going through a déjà vu, as the same phenomenon took place from 2,000 through 1,500 Before Present (BP), when migratory “barbarians” supposedly marauded Rome and sacked the West’s most powerful civilization then existing.

I have already forewarned, in previous articles, of the consequences of the dark agenda of Anglo-European elites to depopulate Africa and wage a global conflagration pitting the Sunni versus Shiite Muslims. Such evil agenda will eventually backfire on Europeans, as the affected states will see their peoples migrate in waves to Europe which they perceive as safe haven.

Just exactly what are Europeans doing now to address the onrush flow of colored “barbarians” to their continent? At a time when Europe’s economy is in dire straits, can it accommodate millions more of Africans and Arabs, such as those 11 million that are moving towards hunger induced by drought and famine?

Below is a case report of the assistance given by the Belgian government to resettling African migrants fleeing Libya.

[Philippines, 26 August 2011]

Source: http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/media/press-briefing-notes/pbnEU/cache/offonce/lang/en?entryId=30059

IOM and UNHCR Assist the Government of Belgium in Resettling African Refugees Fleeing Libya


Posted on Tuesday, 19-07-2011

Belgium - Twenty-five Eritrean and Congolese refugees have been assisted by IOM, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the Government of Belgium to travel to and resettle in Belgium.

The resettled refugees, who arrived in Belgium on 17 July, had fled the violence in Libya and crossed into Tunisia, where they stayed at the UNHCR-run Choucha refugee camp while waiting for resettlement opportunities.

The group, including nine women and nine children, was assisted by IOM to travel from Choucha camp to Tunis airport and onwards to Belgium (Brussels National Airport). IOM staff assisted the refugees at both airports with pre-departure and post-arrival procedures including passport control and security checks.

IOM also carried out pre-departure health checks a week ago to ensure that the refugees were fit to fly. At departure, IOM staff provided a short briefing on in-flight procedures (pre-embarkation session) and handed out a short information leaflet concerning the reception and accommodation upon arrival in Belgium.

According to IOM Brussels, which organized the resettlement in close coordination with the Government of Belgium and UNHCR, the resettled refugees will be assisted by the Federal agency for the reception of asylum seekers (Fedasil), which is providing shelter and by the NGOs Caritas and Convivium, which will provide the newly arrived with an integration course. This includes language classes, educational enrolment and assistance to find employment.

This is the second time Belgium responds to an international request for refugee resettlement. In 2009, Belgium resettled 47 refugees from Iraq.

"These persons are in need of protection, I am proud that Belgium, like other European Countries, is taking up its responsibilities. Protecting those in need is not only an international obligation but it is our moral duty," says Belgium's State Secretary for Migration and Asylum Policy Melchior Wathelet.

This resettlement project is funded by the European Refugee fund (ERF). Other EU Member states such as the Netherlands, Ireland and Portugal are also taking part in this resettlement programme.

For further information, please contact:

Jo De Backer
IOM Brussels
Tel: +32 2 287 74 14
E-mail: Jdebacker@iom.int

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

Social Blogs:

IKONOKLAST: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com

UNLADTAU: http://unladtau.wordpress.com

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COSMICBUHAY: http://cosmicbuhay.blogspot.com

BRIGHTWORLD: http://erlefraynebrightworld.wordpress.com

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ARTBLOG: http://erleargonza.wordpress.com

ARGONZAPOEM: http://argonzapoem.blogspot.com

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@SOULCAST: http://www.soulcast.com/efdargon

Website:

PROF. ERLE FRAYNE ARGONZA: http://erleargonza.com

ADDRESSING HUMAN TRAFFIC VIA TRAINING: AFRICA SHOWCASE

ADDRESSING HUMAN TRAFFIC VIA TRAINING: AFRICA SHOWCASE

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Human trafficking can make or break a country that is known the seat of human traffic operations. So abhorrent is the phenomenon of human traffic and smuggling that any country named as seat of operations will need to work harder to shore up its tainted image, craft public policy to address the ailment, and strengthen institutions that can address the problem.

So gargantuan is the ailment of human traffic today as it has become globalized, with mafia groups collaborating across borders to smuggle people outside. Not only that, smuggled humans are also utilized to smuggle gold, treasures, and drugs, thus multiplying the complications to the problem.

Capacity-building initiatives aimed at training stakeholders, both grassroots and country-wide volunteer organizations, is another key result area for addressing the problem directly. Below is one such showcase training in Africa conducted by the IOM and partners.

[Philippines, 24 August 2011]

Source: http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/media/press-briefing-notes/pbnAF/cache/offonce/lang/en?entryId=30060

IOM Provides Somaliland, Puntland and Djibouti Coastguards with Lifesaving Rescue at Sea Skills to Protect Vulnerable Migrants

19-07-2011

Djibouti - Coastguards from Somalia's Puntland, Somaliland as well as Djibouti are taking part in an innovative IOM training programme to equip them with the necessary skills to assist and protect irregular migrants and asylum-seekers travelling at great risk through Somaliland, Puntland and Djibouti en route to Yemen and the Gulf States.

The six-day workshop, which opened yesterday in Djibouti City, brings together 50 coastguards as part of a Japanese-funded initiative to equip them with the necessary equipment and skills to assist and protect vulnerable migrants, trafficking victims and smuggled migrants.

"This training is critical to enhance the coastguards' ability to save lives," says IOM's Mixed Migration Coordinator Husham Halim. "We are particularly encouraged to see that for the first time, coastguards from Somaliland are taking part in the training alongside colleagues from Puntland and Djibouti. This will no doubt increase their ability to respond at a sub-regional level."

These workshops are part of a broader IOM programme to strengthen the protection of, and emergency assistance to, irregular migrants and asylum-seekers from Somalia and Ethiopia travelling through the region.

Every year, tens of thousands, mainly Ethiopian and Somali migrants and asylum-seekers, make the hazardous journey from their place of origin across the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden to Yemen and beyond. These individuals, driven by political unrest and extreme poverty face not only dangers at sea but also physical risks, harassment and discrimination during their journey on land.

For more information, please contact:

Husham Halim
IOM Djibouti
Tel: +253 35 72 89
E-mail: hhalim@iom.int

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

Social Blogs:

IKONOKLAST: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com

UNLADTAU: http://unladtau.wordpress.com

Wisdom/Spiritual Blogs:

COSMICBUHAY: http://cosmicbuhay.blogspot.com

BRIGHTWORLD: http://erlefraynebrightworld.wordpress.com

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ARTBLOG: http://erleargonza.wordpress.com

ARGONZAPOEM: http://argonzapoem.blogspot.com

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@MULTIPLY: http://efdargon.multiply.com

@SOULCAST: http://www.soulcast.com/efdargon

Website:

PROF. ERLE FRAYNE ARGONZA: http://erleargonza.com

Monday, August 29, 2011

HORN OF AFRICA: MORE ON DROUGHT-RELATED MIGRATION

HORN OF AFRICA: MORE ON DROUGHT-RELATED MIGRATION

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

The famine that is now taking shape in the Horn of Africa is the subject of news features in canned Big Media outfits today. The alarm bells raised by international organizations regarding the matter have been quite successful in rapidly surfacing the malady before the public mind via sensationalized media reports.

As already noted earlier, 11 millions of folks are forecast to face starvation in the short-run largely due to drought. The congestion of migrants in resource-rich areas is complicating the issue, by depletion and competition for resources, thus deteriorating such regions into hovels of famine, hunger, diseases, and deaths.

Below is a report from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on the same subject.

[Philippines, 22 August 2011]

Source: http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/media/press-briefing-notes/pbnAF/cache/offonce/lang/en?entryId=30061

Drought Related Migration on the Increase in the Horn of Africa
Posted on Tuesday, 19-07-2011

Horn of Africa - The severe drought which is affecting vast areas of Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti is leading to a considerable increase in complex, multi-directional migration flows, both within and across international borders, according to IOM missions in the region.

Those population movements involve not only refugees and asylum seekers but large numbers of migrants and pastoralists who have little choice but to move along numerous complex migration routes, initially from rural to urban areas and for many tens of thousands, across international borders to neighbouring countries.

Although information on many of these routes remains sketchy, increased population movements have been observed from drought affected areas in southern and central Somalia towards the capital Mogadishu, where heavy rains over the past few days have wrecked havoc among vulnerable displaced persons.

Displaced Somalis are also moving along perilous land routes from impoverished rural areas towards Somaliland and the self declared autonomous state of Puntland. Others continue their journey towards neighbouring Djibouti and across the treacherous Bab el Mandeb (Gate of Grief in Arabic) to Yemen and the Gulf States.

Recent reports in the Sudanese press of Somalis drowning in the Red Sea south of the city of Port Sudan could indicate the establishment of a new hazardous migration route from Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia to Sudan's Red Sea State and then onto Saudi Arabia.

The situation in drought-affected regions of Somalia has led to a major increase of people seeking assistance in Ethiopia and Kenya, with some 50,000 new arrivals reported in June. Over the past three weeks, some 11,000 people have arrived in Ethiopia and more than 8,600 in Kenya, with daily arrivals now averaging 2,000 in Ethiopia and 1,200 in Kenya.

In Ethiopia, where the drought directly affects an estimated 4.5 million people, pastoralist communities are particularly in need of assistance because of the weakening or the death of their livestock. Their cross border movements in search of water and pasture for their livestock are creating a higher risk for resource-based conflict and further displacement, particularly in the drought-affected Northern Kenyan districts of Turkana, Wajir and Mandera, where Global Acute Malnutrition now exceeds 30 per cent among children, pregnant and lactating women.

The situation in Ethiopia is further complicated by the return of Ethiopian migrants from Yemen, where evacuation operations started in November 2010 resulted in the return of thousands of individuals to date. Major return areas are Oromiya, Tigray, and the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region (SNNPR) and Amhara regions, which are experiencing drought, crop failure and a dramatic increase in food and fuel prices.

The impact of these returns to resource-constrained communities has not yet been fully assessed, but it can be estimated that about 30 per cent returned to drought affected areas.

"Drought related migration is exacerbating an already complex situation of displacement and movement, triggered by conflict and instability and the returns of many Ethiopians and Somalis from Yemen," says IOM's Director of Operations and Emergencies Mohammed Abdiker. "Drought recognises no borders. The response to the current crisis has to take into account internal and cross border mobility as a survival strategy for large populations."

IOM and UN partners have been working with governments in the Horn and East Africa to facilitate safe movement of pastoralists across border regions as a climate change coping mechanism.

The Security in Mobility (SIM) initiative called on regional governments to develop a policy to facilitate the safe movement of pastoralists within their countries and across borders using a collaborative approach that encompasses provision of humanitarian assistance, provision of basic services, facilitated migration and comprehensive security initiatives.

"Of all the key mitigation and coping mechanisms, mobility stands out as the most essential for pastoralists," says IOM's Abdiker. "No country in the region can singlehandedly tackle the complex challenges of climate change and migration. A concerted regional effort is therefore urgently needed."

For more information, please contact:

Mohammed Abdiker
IOM Geneva
Tel: +41 22 717 93 79
E-mail: mabdiker@iom.int

or

Jean-Philippe Chauzy
IOM Geneva
Tel: +41 22 717 93 61
E-mail: jpchauzy@iom.int

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

Social Blogs:

IKONOKLAST: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com

UNLADTAU: http://unladtau.wordpress.com

Wisdom/Spiritual Blogs:

COSMICBUHAY: http://cosmicbuhay.blogspot.com

BRIGHTWORLD: http://erlefraynebrightworld.wordpress.com

Poetry & Art Blogs:

ARTBLOG: http://erleargonza.wordpress.com

ARGONZAPOEM: http://argonzapoem.blogspot.com

Mixed Blends Blogs:

@MULTIPLY: http://efdargon.multiply.com

@SOULCAST: http://www.soulcast.com/efdargon

Website:

PROF. ERLE FRAYNE ARGONZA: http://erleargonza.com

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSILITY THE BASF WAY: SUPPORTING WATER PROGRAMS FOR SCHOOLS

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSILITY THE BASF WAY: SUPPORTING WATER PROGRAMS FOR SCHOOLS

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

CSR is the fashion among corporate giants today as an expression of philanthropy. As I’ve already articulated in previous writings. CSR is the corporate deodorant of ‘late capitalism’, which disguises tax havens as sources of aid for marginal sectors.

In America, where CSR was inexistent even as corporate foundations were tasked to fund ballets and engagements that entertained the capitalists, CSR is now catching fire. Europeans have been way ahead of their American counterparts in this regard, with corporate foundations funding the philanthropy of non-government organizations in developing countries.

Below is a showcase initiative of the German chemical giant BASF to fund the major water programs for schools.

[Philippines, 20 August 2011]

Source: http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=9919&catid=7&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

BASF backs major water programme for schooles

Mangalore, India, 10 May 11
A major new water education project financed mainly by the German chemical giant BASF has been launched in Mangalore to help provide water education and safe drinking water for 25 schools and nearby communities under UN-HABITAT's Water for Asian Cities programme.

BASF's Social Foundation is contributing the lion's share of EUR 145,000 of the total USD 343,000 budget for the project to be run jointly with UN-HABITAT and the local implementing partner, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) which are providing the remainder.

Launched at a ceremony in Mangalore City on 10 May 2011, the officials said the project would boost access to safe drinking water for 25 selected schools and surrounding communities. It will also promote water, sanitation and hygiene education in schools, and establish a school-led community-based drinking water quality monitoring programme.

Under the quality monitoring component, the project will establish science laboratories in selected schools and build the capacity of resource teachers and students to support the Mangalore Municipal Corporation and overall community with the adoption of adequate measures to reduce water-borne diseases in the city.

A total of 5,000 students will be trained to analyse and monitor water quality. At the international level, the Project WET Foundation of the United States will provide additional training support on water education.

Prior to the launch event, a UN-HABITAT, BASF and TERI delegation visited selected school education and sanitation facilities and met with teachers, students and school administrators who expressed their willingness and commitment to participate in the project.

The official launch ceremony was attended by local political leaders, civic officials, key sector representatives, and project beneficiaries. Mr. Nalin Kumar Kateel, Member of Parliament presided as the Chief Guest at the event. Mr. Jain, Member of Legislative Assembly of Moodubidri; Mr. Praveen Anchan, Mayor of Mangalore; Dr. K.N. Vijaya Prakash, Commissioner, Mangalore City Corporation (MCC); Mr. Prasad Chandran, Chairman and Managing Director, BASF India Limited and Head, South Asia Region; Dr. Hartmut Unger, Head, BASF Social Foundation; Mr. Dzikus, Chief, Water and Sanitation Section II, UN-HABITAT; and Mr. Pronab Dasgupta, Senior Advisor and Director, TERI, were also present.

Speaking at the launch event, Mr. Andre Dzikus from UN-HABITAT said that "Value-based formal and informal educational initiatives are key to bringing about behavioral change among students regarding water use".
Dr. Unger expressed his happiness on the launch of this innovative project and added "We can certainly make a difference for the children and I am convinced that the Project will be a total success".

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Come Visit E. Argonza’s blogs & website anytime!

Social Blogs:

IKONOKLAST: http://erleargonza.blogspot.com

UNLADTAU: http://unladtau.wordpress.com

Wisdom/Spiritual Blogs:

COSMICBUHAY: http://cosmicbuhay.blogspot.com

BRIGHTWORLD: http://erlefraynebrightworld.wordpress.com

Poetry & Art Blogs:

ARTBLOG: http://erleargonza.wordpress.com

ARGONZAPOEM: http://argonzapoem.blogspot.com

Mixed Blends Blogs:

@MULTIPLY: http://efdargon.multiply.com

@SOULCAST: http://www.soulcast.com/efdargon

Website:

PROF. ERLE FRAYNE ARGONZA: http://erleargonza.com

Saturday, August 27, 2011

CHINA LOCALS EXHIBIT CITY PROTOTYPES

CHINA LOCALS EXHIBIT CITY PROTOTYPES

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

China is indubitably the biggest ‘emerging market’ in the global economy. It comprises 1.5 billion people who are getting more concentrated in rapidly growing urban communities.

Eastern China has seen its urbanization treble at dizzying pace since 1980 yet. Development in the coastal regions have already reached maturity-to-overdevelopment (led by Shenzen, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong), with urban saturation point about to reach the limits to growth.

Models of planned urban development should be perfected by Western China locals in particular, as they are now experiencing high growth economic booms that the East went through over the past two decades. To exemplify the agenda for such a planning success, the Chinese province of Zhejiang opened an exhibit on cities at Nairobi very recently.

The report on the exhibition is shown below.

[Philippines, 19 August 2011]

Source: http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=9928&catid=7&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Chinese province holds exhibition on human settlements

Nairobi, 26 May 11
The Chinese province of Zhejiang on Thursday unveiled an exhibition on human settlements development at the United Nations Office at Nairobi in Gigiri.

The exhibition has pictures depicting various aspects of life in Zhejiang, including countryside images, historical edifices as well as architectural and engineering masterpieces. Also being exhibited are books on Chinese history, culture, language, arts, architecture, environment and urban development. The books will be donated to UN-HABITAT at the end of the exhibition.

Speaking during the occasion, UN-HABITAT Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos praised the Chinese saying the country was attracting a lot of interest especially in the field of urbanization owing to its cities' rich cultural background and rapid urbanization.

"Chinese contribution to urbanization is very important and that is why we are very happy with this exhibition and the book donation. Because of rapid urbanization Chinese cities have become powerhouses for making China the biggest emerging economy in the world. Their experiences and lessons need to be shared with other cities around the world," he said.

The Executive Director hailed the Zhejiang Publishing United Group- the book donors- saying their gesture was appreciated by the agency. "Chinese language is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. We need to diversify our information and collection in the UNON Library and therefore we need books about China to learn, study and to search, not only the long history and wisdom of ancient China but also the new policies and practices that make the new and strong China possible," he said.

In his speech, the deputy permanent representative of China to UN-HABITAT Mr. Zheng Guangda disclosed that the exhibition was the culmination of long discussions between his country and UN-HABITAT.

"The province of Zhejiang has taken the lead in this partnership but hopefully there will be more initiatives like this to follow because we want to expand understanding of China," he said.

The head of the Zhejiang delegation Mr. Mao Linsheng said the book donation was important not only from the cultural aspect but also due to the fact that they will help more and more people understand China better.

During the occasion, students from the Confucius Institute of the University of Nairobi entertained guests with a rendition of the all-time Kiswahili popular song Jambo Bwana and a Chinese number.

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IRAQ’S ROADMAP TO DECENTRALIZED GOVERNANCE

IRAQ’S ROADMAP TO DECENTRALIZED GOVERNANCE

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

There’s a good news coming from Iraq, which concerns directing the compass of governance along a decentralized trajectory. Iraq was over-centralized for too long a time since the era yet of the caliphate and onwards to the post-Ba’th Party regime, and so that centralization pattern continues as a legacy of antiquated processes and structures.

Honestly, as an analyst of long standing, I am of the opinion that a decentralization for Iraq at this particular juncture is a premature action. However, there is no stopping the change agents there that it is best to define the contours of the roadmap towards decentralization. I would hasten to add that such a roadmap must be accompanied by urban/regional planning to indicate the spatial galvanizations of the roadmap into doable city planning.

Below is a summary report about the optimistic outlook for decentralization in the newly democratized state.

[Philippines, 17 August 2011]

Source: http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=9924&catid=7&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Key representatives of the Iraqi government including Mr. Istebraq al-Shauk, Senior Deputy Minister for Construction and Housing, Mr. Kamil Chadirchi, Deputy Minister for Administrative Affairs, and Mr. Ayad al Safy, Deputy Minister for Technical Affairs, were in Amman recently to attend a high-level conference to determine the future of Iraqi governance.

"This conference represents the extent of cooperation, and of joint and serious action between the Iraqi Government and United Nations Agencies to concentrate the concept of decentralized government in Iraq," said Deputy Minister Mr. al-Shauk in his opening address.

The conference 8-10 May, organized by the UN-HABITAT Iraq office in Amman, brought together eminent speakers from the World Bank, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and United Nations agencies together with experienced practitioners in the field of local governance, to set out a roadmap that will enable Iraq to move towards a system of effective decentralized local government.

All 18 provinces, or governorates, were represented at the Iraq conference 8-10 May in Amman Jordan by members of the Iraqi Local Government Association.

"The objective of this conference is to provide an opportunity for Iraq Local Government Association representatives to learn, experience and benefit from the process of decentralization, local government building and service delivery practised in several neighbouring and selected countries," said Suman Kumar Karna, Local Governance and Decentralization Specialist with the UN-HABITAT Iraq Programme in Amman. "The conference will provide a focused practical perspective on how decentralization in urban areas promotes local government as an effective tool for service delivery."

The experience of decentralised governance in Iraq has been minimal. After adopting a federal system in 2003, the Republic of Iraq's Constitution of 2005 furthered the reform process by establishing a model of decentralized political and administrative government through devolution of power to eighteen provinces (governorates).

But many challenges remain, in particular, the devolution of authority for the delivery of services and an inter-governmental policy on the transfer of revenues to local governments from oil and other resources.

Learning from other countries

One of the speakers, Ehtisham Ahmad from the London School of Economics, said that while there was need for political decisions to made on how oil revenues are shared, it is also vital for Iraq's local governments to have their own revenue raising options.

"It is important that local governments have own source revenues with control over rates as this ensures efficient use of transfers and spending and makes local governments fully accountable," said Dr. Ahmad.

A common theme from the speakers was that Iraq must be patient as it moves from a very centralized regime to decentralized local governance. "The challenge is not to design the programme but to breach the gap between theory and practice," said Shabbir Cheema, Director at the East-West Centre in Honolulu. "With decentralization you need to be patient. Indonesia went through 25 years of failure before it got to where it is today."

Anwar Shah of the World Bank highlighted the risks if Iraq's provinces are empowered too greatly and said China could give guidelines and practical pointers to Iraq in developing its decentralized system of government. "China has made remarkable progress on poverty reduction and has 89% of its public employees at the local level," said Dr. Shah. "Past dependencies make these changes difficult in Iraq but we owe it to the millions of citizens to keep on trying."

Other speakers provided case studies from Europe (Ed Cornies of UNDP), from India (Professor Dinesh Mehta and Professor Om Prakash) and from Indonesia (Professor Tommy Firman) to explain how local governance can be made effective for urban communities. While all of these case studies are particular to the countries concerned, they can provide useful indicators for Iraq in particular where decentralization initiatives were not successful, said Professor Om Prakash.

The discussions and debate from the conference will be published in the form of a toolkit, which will serve as a guiding tool to Iraqi representatives in the field. In addition, later this year there will be two days of field tours in Turkey where participants from Iraq will have the opportunity to see the results of the decentralization process on the ground. The tour to the region outside Istanbul will provide an insight into the challenges faced in the decentralization process and the means by which solutions are achieved in the field.

"The devil is in the detail and we now need to look at getting the details right on the functional and territorial assignments of responsibilities for the different services in Iraq, " said Fiona McCluney, UN-HABITAT's Programme Manager for Iraq, in her closing remarks. "If Iraq is to move from being solely dependent on oil as the main source of revenue, how cities function and are being managed, is going to be a key issue and considering this in the context of where functional responsibilities lie, is the major theme we need to work on."

For more information, pls. contact

Dr. Suman Kumar Karna
Local Governance and Decentralization Specialist
UN-HABITAT Iraq Programme
Amman, JORDAN, Email – suman.kumar@unhabitat.org

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Friday, August 26, 2011

PACIFIC COUNTRIES LAG BEHIND ASIA, CATCH UP!

PACIFIC COUNTRIES LAG BEHIND ASIA, CATCH UP!

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

A tall order it is for Pacific island countries to catch up with Asian economies. It is a challenge call actually, meant to prop up the resource-rich yet phlegmatic island republics to resonate with the Asian economies most especially the emerging markets.

Take the case of Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Timor Leste, both of which are petroleum-exporting. Resource-rich they may be, yet the gap between them and the emerging markets of Asia is so wide. The challenge is to fast-track the pump-priming strategies such as infrastructure development, while at the same time instituting safety nets.

Development should be a win/win engagement, thru a synergy of stakeholders and welfare interventions for the weaker sectors. The Pacific islands are new to the development game, so they can avoid the pitfalls of their Asian neighbors that prospered in a very lop-sided way.

Below is an analytical note from the Asian Development Bank about the Pacific island countries.

[Philippines, 15 August 2011]

Source: http://beta.adb.org/news/resource-rich-pacific-economies-thrive-while-others-lag-adb-report

Resource-Rich Pacific Economies Thrive While Others Lag - ADB Report

18 Jul 2011

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – The Pacific’s resource-rich economies of Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Timor-Leste will continue to expand strongly this year as commodity prices remain firm but growth in the rest of the region is set to remain subdued, says the new issue of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB’s) Pacific Economic Monitor.

The report, released today, projects growth in the Pacific region will reach 6.4% in 2011 before moderating to 5.5% in 2012. The petroleum exporting economies of PNG and Timor-Leste are expected to grow by 8.5% and 10.0% respectively, boosted by the high international price of petroleum, and increased investment and employment associated with the construction phase of resource extraction. ADB predicts growth of 7.5% in 2011 in Solomon Islands, driven by increased logging and the resumption of gold mining in the country.

The 11 other Pacific economies (Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Marshall Islands, Palau, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu) are expected to experience much lower GDP growth, at 1.5% in 2011 and 1.9% in 2012.

“The long term growth outlook for the Pacific region as a whole is very modest. If this trend continues, the region risks falling further behind the dynamic economies of developing Asia, resulting in a widening gap in incomes in the two regions,” said Robert Wihtol, Director General of ADB’s Pacific Department. “To avoid this scenario, Pacific governments need to focus on the core functions of good government—investing in infrastructure, improving education and providing an enabling business environment that will encourage investment.”

The July issue of the report raises inflation projections for 2011, due to the sharp rise in commodity prices. It warns that high inflation rates in Fiji, PNG, and Timor-Leste are of particular concern. For the region as a whole, inflation is expected at 8.4% in 2011, but will ease to 5.9% in 2012 as commodity prices stabilize.

The report notes that the smaller, more remote and heavily import dependent Pacific economies, such as those in the northern Pacific, are particularly sensitive to rising international food and fuel prices and are expected to be hit hard by inflation. The depreciation of most regional currencies against the US dollar adds to inflationary pressure across the region.

The ADB report assesses long-term growth prospects in the Pacific region. This assessment shows that Pacific economies can achieve modest growth in incomes in the long term assuming reasonable improvements in the efficiency of their resource use. Two groups of Pacific economies are emerging—those benefiting from their natural resources and those who are not.

To manage price volatility, the ADB report recommends developing safety nets to ensure that the poor in Pacific countries have access to food when prices become unaffordable, diversifying the agricultural base, and exploring alternative energy sources.

The report also presents an analysis of fiscal adjustment in Samoa and Tonga during the recent economic crisis. ADB helped these countries weather the crisis by providing budget support grants that ensured the continuation of essential public services amidst sharp declines in government revenues.

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