International Migration Review
Spring 2014 Volume 48, Issue 1 Pages 3–279
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/imre.2013.47.issue-4/issuetoc
Original Article
Competing for Lebanon’s Diaspora: Transnationalism and Domestic Struggles in a Weak State
Wendy Pearlman
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014
DOI: 10.1111/imre.12070
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/imre.12070/abstract
Abstract
Just as state strength influences relationships between state and society and among social forces within a national territory, so does it shape relationships between states and their emigrants and diasporas across territorial borders. Scholars debate how transnational migration affirms or challenges the dominance of the nation-state. When sending states are weak, however, diaspora–homeland linkages can undermine the role of the state in a way that is not transformative, but sustaining of the status quo. Examining Lebanon, this paper explores how domestic actors extend their struggles to vie over and through kin abroad. Three realms of competition are paramount: demography, votes, and money. The resulting transnational outreach reproduces a politics in which both expatriates and the state function as resources as much as actors.
SPECIAL COLLECTION OF ORIGINAL ARTICLES: INTERNATIONAL MIGRATIONS IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH
Introduction to the Special Collection: South–South Migrations: What is (Still) on the Research Agenda? (pages 103–112)
Philippe De Lombaerde, Fei Guo and Helion Póvoa Neto
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12083

Everyday Restriction: Central American Women and the State in the Mexico-Guatemala Border City of Tapachula (pages 113–143)
Lindsey Carte
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12072

“Those who come to do harm”: The Framings of Immigration Problems in Costa Rican Immigration Law (pages 144–180)
Caitlin E. Fouratt
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12073

“Big Fish in a Small Pond”: Chinese Migrant Shopkeepers in South Africa (pages 181–215)
Edwin Lin
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12074

Inducing Development: Social Remittances and the Expansion of Oil Palm (pages 216–242)
Marvin Joseph F. Montefrio, Yasmin Y. Ortiga and Ma. Rose Cristy B. Josol
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12075

Social Capital and Livelihoods in Johannesburg: Differential Advantages and Unexpected Outcomes among Foreign-Born Migrants, Internal Migrants, and Long-Term South African Residents (pages 243–273)
Tyler W. Myroniuk and Jo Vearey
Article first published online: 25 MAR 2014 | DOI: 10.1111/imre.12076

The Lancet
Mar 29, 2014 Volume 383 Number 9923 p1099 – 1182 e15
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current

Viewpoint
Responding to the Syrian crisis: the needs of women and girls
Samira Sami, Holly A Williams, Sandra Krause, Monica A Onyango, Ann Burton, Barbara Tomczyk
Preview |
Women and girls are disproportionately affected by conflict because of a lack of access to essential services, as learnt from humanitarian crises in recent years.1,2 Poor access to sexual assault treatment and emergency obstetric care can contribute to negative health outcomes.1 In Syria, women and girls are strongly affected by the recent conflict and, according to the UN Population Fund, about 1•7 million women and girls might need access to reproductive health services.3 Because women often have an essential role in postconflict reconstruction, their basic needs should be met so they can emerge from this ongoing crisis as essential stakeholders in the recovery process.

The Lancet
Mar 29, 2014 Volume 383 Number 9923 p1099 – 1182 e15
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current
Early Online Publication, 12 March 2014
Efficacy of a monovalent human-bovine (116E) rotavirus vaccine in Indian infants: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial
Nita Bhandari PhD a, Temsunaro Rongsen-Chandola MSc a, Ashish Bavdekar DNB b, Jacob John MD c, Kalpana Antony MBA d, Sunita Taneja PhD a, Nidhi Goyal DPH a, Anand Kawade MD b, Prof Gagandeep Kang PhD c, Sudeep Singh Rathore MBBS a, Sanjay Juvekar PhD b, Prof Jayaprakash Muliyil DrPH c, Alok Arya MPharm a, Hanif Shaikh MPharm b, Vinod Abraham MPH c, Prof Sudhanshu Vrati PhD e, Michael Proschan PhD f, Robert Kohberger PhD g *, Georges Thiry PhD h, Roger Glass PhD f, Prof Harry B Greenberg MD i, George Curlin MD f, Krishna Mohan PhD j, G V J A Harshavardhan BVSc j, Sai Prasad MBA j, T S Rao PhD k, John Boslego MD m, Dr Prof Maharaj Kishan Bhan MD l, for the India Rotavirus Vaccine Group
Summary
Background
Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe dehydrating gastroenteritis in developing countries. Safe, effective, and affordable rotavirus vaccines are needed in these countries. We aimed to assess the efficacy and tolerability of a monovalent human-bovine rotavirus vaccine for severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in low-resource urban and rural settings in India.
Methods
We did a randomised double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial at three sites in Delhi (urban), Pune (rural), and Vellore (urban and rural) between March 11, 2011, and Nov 5, 2012. Infants aged 6—7 weeks were randomly assigned (2:1), via a central interactive voice or web response system with a block size of 12, to receive either three doses of oral human-bovine natural reassortant vaccine (116E) or placebo at ages 6—7 weeks, 10 weeks, and 14 weeks. Infants’ families, study investigators, paediatricians in referral hospitals, laboratory staff, and committee members were all masked to treatment allocation. The primary outcome was incidence of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis (≥11 on the Vesikari scale). Efficacy outcomes and adverse events were ascertained through active surveillance. Analysis was by intention to treat and per protocol. The trial is registered with Clinical Trial Registry—India (CTRI/2010/091/000102) and ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01305109).
Findings
4532 infants were assigned to receive the 116E vaccine and 2267 to receive placebo, of whom 4354 (96%) and 2187 (96%) infants, respectively, were included in the primary per-protocol efficacy analysis. 71 events of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis were reported in 4752 person-years in infants in the vaccine group compared with 76 events in 2360 person-years in those in the placebo group; vaccine efficacy against severe rotavirus gastroenteritis was 53•6% (95% CI 35•0—66•9; p=0•0013) and 56•4% (36•6—70•1; p<0•0001) in the first year of life. The number of infants needed to be immunised to prevent one severe rotavirus gastroenteritis episode was 55 (95% CI 37—97). The incidence of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis per 100 person-years was 1•5 in the vaccine group and 3•2 in the placebo group, with an incidence rate ratio of 0•46 (95% CI 0•33—0•65). Prevalence of immediate, solicited, and serious adverse events was similar in both groups. One case of urticaria in the vaccine group and one each of acute gastroenteritis and suspected sepsis in the placebo group were regarded as related to the study product. We recorded six cases of intussusception in the vaccine group and two in the placebo group, all of which happened after the third dose. 25 (<1%) infants in the vaccine group and 17 (<1%) in the placebo group died; no death was regarded as related to the study product.
Interpretation
Monovalent human-bovine (116E) rotavirus vaccine is effective and well tolerated in Indian infants.
Funding
Department of Biotechnology and the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council, Government of India; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to PATH, USA; Research Council of Norway; UK Department for International Development; National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, USA; and Bharat Biotech International, Hyderabad, India.

The Lancet Global Health
Apr 2014 Volume 2 Number 4 e182 – 241
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/issue/current
Comment
Why are economic growth and reductions in child undernutrition so weakly correlated—and what can public policy do?
Abhijeet Singh
Preview |
Child undernutrition in developing countries remains a persistent problem. It contributes importantly to child mortality and carries long-term consequences for malnourished children, including reduced cognitive development, worse economic outcomes, and lower offspring birthweight.1 In 2011, an estimated 165 million children in developing countries were stunted and 101 million children were underweight.2

Association between economic growth and early childhood undernutrition: evidence from 121 Demographic and Health Surveys from 36 low-income and middle-income countries
Prof Sebastian Vollmer PhD a d, Kenneth Harttgen PhD b, Malavika A Subramanyam DSc c, Jocelyn Finlay PhD d, Prof Stephan Klasen PhD a, Prof S V Subramanian PhD d
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X%2814%2970025-7/abstract
Summary
Background
Economic growth is widely regarded as a necessary, and often sufficient, condition for the improvement of population health. We aimed to assess whether macroeconomic growth was associated with reductions in early childhood undernutrition in low-income and middle-income countries.
Methods
We analysed data from 121 Demographic and Health Surveys from 36 countries done between Jan 1, 1990, and Dec 31, 2011. The sample consisted of nationally representative cross-sectional surveys of children aged 0—35 months, and the outcome variables were stunting, underweight, and wasting. The main independent variable was per-head gross domestic product (GDP) in constant prices and adjusted for purchasing power parity. We used logistic regression models to estimate the association between changes in per-head GDP and changes in child undernutrition outcomes. Models were adjusted for country fixed effects, survey-year fixed effects, clustering, and demographic and socioeconomic covariates for the child, mother, and household.
Findings
Sample sizes were 462 854 for stunting, 485 152 for underweight, and 459 538 for wasting. Overall, 35•6% (95% CI 35•4—35•9) of young children were stunted (ranging from 8•7% [7•6—9•7] in Jordan to 51•1% [49•1—53•1] in Niger), 22•7% (22•5—22•9) were underweight (ranging from 1•8% [1•3—2•3] in Jordan to 41•7% [41•1—42•3] in India), and 12•8% (12•6—12•9) were wasted (ranging from 1•2% [0•6—1•8] in Peru to 28•8% [27•5—30•0] in Burkina Faso). At the country level, no association was seen between average changes in the prevalence of child undernutrition outcomes and average growth of per-head GDP. In models adjusted only for country and survey-year fixed effects, a 5% increase in per-head GDP was associated with an odds ratio (OR) of 0•993 (95% CI 0•989—0•995) for stunting, 0•986 (0•982—0•990) for underweight, and 0•984 (0•981—0•986) for wasting. ORs after adjustment for the full set of covariates were 0•996 (0•993—1•000) for stunting, 0•989 (0•985—0•992) for underweight, and 0•983 (0•979—0•986) for wasting. These findings were consistent across various subsamples and for alternative variable specifications. Notably, no association was seen between per-head GDP and undernutrition in young children from the poorest household wealth quintile. ORs for the poorest wealth quintile were 0•997 (0•990—1•004) for stunting, 0•999 (0•991—1•008) for underweight, and 0•991 (0•978—1•004) for wasting.
Interpretation
A quantitatively very small to null association was seen between increases in per-head GDP and reductions in early childhood undernutrition, emphasising the need for direct health investments to improve the nutritional status of children in low-income and middle-income countries.
Funding
None.

PLoS One
http://www.plosone.org/
[Accessed 29 March 2014]
Research Article
Designing and Piloting a Program to Provide Water Filters and Improved Cookstoves in Rwanda
Christina K. Barstow, Fidele Ngabo, Ghislaine Rosa, Fiona Majorin, Sophie Boisson, Thomas Clasen, Evan A. Thomas mail
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0092403
Abstract
Background
In environmental health interventions addressing water and indoor air quality, multiple determinants contribute to adoption. These may include technology selection, technology distribution and education methods, community engagement with behavior change, and duration and magnitude of implementer engagement. In Rwanda, while the country has the fastest annual reduction in child mortality in the world, the population is still exposed to a disease burden associated with environmental health challenges. Rwanda relies both on direct donor funding and coordination of programs managed by international non-profits and health sector businesses working on these challenges.
Methods and Findings
This paper describes the design, implementation and outcomes of a pilot program in 1,943 households across 15 villages in the western province of Rwanda to distribute and monitor the use of household water filters and improved cookstoves. Three key program design criteria include a.) an investment in behavior change messaging and monitoring through community health workers, b.) free distributions to encourage community-wide engagement, and c.) a private-public partnership incentivized by a business model designed to encourage “pay for performance”. Over a 5-month period of rigorous monitoring, reported uptake was maintained at greater than 90% for both technologies, although exclusive use of the stove was reported in only 28.5% of households and reported water volume was 1.27 liters per person per day. On-going qualitative monitoring suggest maintenance of comparable adoption rates through at least 16 months after the intervention.
Conclusion
High uptake and sustained adoption of a water filter and improved cookstove was measured over a five-month period with indications of continued comparable adoption 16 months after the intervention. The design attributes applied by the implementers may be sufficient in a longer term. In particular, sustained and comprehensive engagement by the program implementer is enabled by a pay-for-performance business model that rewards sustained behavior change.

Stability: International Journal of Security & Development
http://www.stabilityjournal.org/articles
[accessed 29 March 2014]
Special Collection: Surviving Violence: The Politics of (Self) Protection
“A refugee is someone who refused to be oppressed”: Self-Survival Strategies of Congolese Young People in Uganda
Christina Clark-Kazak
http://www.stabilityjournal.org/article/view/sta.dj
Abstract
Drawing on Ruth Lister’s conceptual approach to agency, this paper shows how Congolese young people in refugee contexts in Uganda ‘get by’, ‘get (back) at’, ‘get out’, and/or ‘get organized’. These purposeful responses to violence and structural constraints contrast with dominant discourses about refugee young people as inherently vulnerable and in need of protection from outside agencies. The article thus concludes with some suggestions of how researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners can better recognize and support young people’s own survival strategies in contexts of violence and displacement.

Climate and Development
Volume 6, Issue 1, 2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/tcld20/current#.Uzg0pFcWNdc
Disasters and climate change in the Pacific: adaptive capacity of humanitarian response organizations
Anna Geroa*, Stephanie Fletcherb, Michele Rumseyb, Jodi Thiessenb, Natasha Kuruppua, James Buchanb, John Dalyb & Juliet Willettsa
DOI: 10.1080/17565529.2014.899888
Published online: 24 Mar 2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17565529.2014.899888#.Uzg0TlcWNdc
Abstract
Climate change is likely to affect the pattern of disasters in the Pacific and, by extension, the organizations and systems involved in disaster response. This research focused on how immediate humanitarian health-related needs following disasters are met using the concept of adaptive capacity to investigate the resilience of organizations and the robustness of the broader system of disaster response. Four case study countries (Cook Islands, Fiji, Samoa, and Vanuatu) were chosen for deeper investigation of the range of issues present in the Pacific. Key findings were that adaptive capacity was enhanced by strong informal communication and relationships as well as formal relationships, appropriate participation of traditional leaders and churches, and recognition and support for the critical role national disaster management offices play in disaster coordination. Adaptive capacity was found to be constrained by lack of clear policies for requesting international assistance, lack of coordinated disaster assessments, and limited human resources for health in disaster response. Limitations in psychosocial support and Australian medical services to meet specific needs were observed. Finally, the research revealed that both Pacific and Australian disaster-response agencies would benefit from a strengthened ‘future’ focus to better plan for uncertainty and changing risks.

[PDF] Experiences of National Governments in Expanding Their Role in Humanitarian Preparedness and Response
Jeremy Harkey
Oxfam America and the Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
Janaury 2-14, 96 pages
Executive Summary Excerpt
This paper presents the findings of four case studies of how national governments strengthen capacity to manage natural disasters. It looks at what factors contributed to each country’s decision to strengthen the national system, what the strengthening process has consisted of, and what role different actors have played in the processes. The four case study countries are El Salvador, Mozambique, the Philippines, and
Indonesia….

Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies
An International Interdisciplinary Journal for Research, Policy and Care
Volume 9, Issue 2, 2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rvch20/current#.Uzg2bFcWNdc
Indicative evaluation of psychological disturbance amongst young children affected by the January 2010 Haiti earthquake, in Port-au-Prince
Yoram Mouchenikab*, Alexandra Marty-Chevreuilc, Caroline Marquerd, Nephtalie Eva Josephe, Jean Weber Ducassee, Casseus Ryswicke, Alex Dejeane, Rogenette Georgese, Judith Blancf, Daniel Derivoisg, Thierry Baubeth & Marie Rose Moroi
DOI: 10.1080/17450128.2014.901589
Published online: 24 Mar 2014
Abstract
The article presents a research for the indicative evaluation of psychological disturbance amongst young children following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. We used a new psychological evaluation questionnaire for young children, the PSYCa 3–6. It is a hetero-evaluation tool and is completed on site by the interviewer. The questionnaire was conducted in Port-au-Prince. The average age of the 166 children taking part in the study was 58 months. Psychological disturbance score appears to be high amongst our child population in Port-au-Prince. This corroborates other research into the psychological condition of natural disaster victims. A higher score of psychological disturbance was observed amongst boys and in the youngest group of children. This first application of the PSYCa 3–6, in a natural disaster area, highlights its capacity to identify children in great difficulties, the acceptability of the questionnaire and its appropriateness for use in humanitarian crisis areas.

The Journal of Medical Investigation
Vol. 61 2014
http://medical.med.tokushima-u.ac.jp/jmi/vol61/index_1.html
[PDF] Development of a mutual-assistance capability training program to safeguard the health of local residents in evacuation shelters after a disaster
Michiko Takeda1), 2) and Toshiko Tada3)
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to create and evaluate a program to enhance the mutual-assistance capability of community members to safeguard their health during time spent in evacuation shelters after a disaster. In previous research, “Supporting people in need of assistance after a disaster,” the participants’ awareness of the need for mutual assistance was low and their relevant knowledge and skills were insufficient. Accordingly, this became a priority in the developed program. Twenty-eight people at six different facilities participated in the program. We collected data using a questionnaire survey and group interview with the participants. After conducting the program, the participants’ mean scores of mutual-assistance capability were higher than the mean pre-study scores for 25 out of 26 items. The results of group interview implied that the participants acquired [Realization of issues], and not only shared a [Sense of crisis among participants] but also felt a [Sense of responsibility for mutual assistance in the community]. We considered that our mutual-assistance training program at the time of a disaster is effective for developing mutual assistance for safeguarding health where local residents are unprepared to support those in evacuation shelters requiring assistance after a disaster.

American Journal of Evaluation (AJE)
March 2014; 35 (1)
http://aje.sagepub.com/content/35/1.toc
Why Aren’t Evaluations Working and What to Do About It – A Framework for Negotiating Meaningful Evaluation in Nonprofits
Kellie C. Liket1, Marta Rey-Garcia2. Karen E. H. Maas3
1Erasmus Centre for Strategic Philanthropy, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands
2School of Economics and Business, University of A Coruña, A Coruña, Spain
3Erasmus School of Economics, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Kellie C. Liket, Erasmus Centre for Strategic Philanthropy, Erasmus University Rotterdam, H10-30, Burgemeester Oudlaan 50 P.O Box 1738, NL-3000 DR Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Abstract
Nonprofit organizations are under great pressure to use evaluations to show that their programs “work” and that they are “effective.” However, empirical evidence indicates that nonprofits struggle to perform useful evaluations, especially when conducted under accountability pressures. An increasing body of evidence highlights the crucial role of a participatory negotiation process between nonprofits and stakeholders on the purpose and design of evaluations in achieving evaluation utility. However, conceptual confusion about the evaluation objectives, unclear evaluation purposes, a lack of appropriate evaluation questions, and normative ideas about superior evaluation designs and methods, complicate the process. In response, we provide practical conceptualizations of the central objectives of evaluations and propose a framework that can guide negotiation processes. It presents the relationships between the evaluation purpose, evaluation question, and the different levels of effects that should be measured. The selection of the evaluation method is contingent on the choices made within this framework.

[PDF] Integrating science into humanitarian and development planning and practice to enhance community resilience
Full guidelines, January 2014, 49 pages; Numerous sponsors
Lead Author: Melanie Duncan (UCL)
Co-authors: Kate Crowley (CAFOD), Ros Cornforth (AfClix), Stephen Edwards (UCL), Richard Ewbank (Christian Aid), Parisa Karbassi (CAFOD), Charlie McLaren (UKCDS), Jose Luis Penya (Christian Aid), Alice Obrecht (HFP), Susanne Sargeant (BGS), Emma Visman (HFP)
Purpose
These guidelines are for humanitarian and development practitioners looking to effectively integrate relevant scientific understandings of risk within their humanitarian/development planning and practice, for the purpose of enhancing community resilience. Beginning with an introduction to what science is and how it might be used, followed by a breakdown of the key components for integrating science these guidelines encourage practitioners to think about the types of scientific information and expertise that they may need, how to access and use them, and how to ensure that they are applied in an ethical and accountable manner. Each section concludes with a checklist of key questions practitioners should consider throughout the process.
These guidelines are not exhaustive or prescriptive instead the aim is to enable practitioners to ask useful questions that will ultimately help them to apply science in their planning and operational decision-making. While the authors acknowledge that invaluable knowledge resides in communities at risk, the draft guidelines are about how to utilise scientific and technical expertise from external institutions….

World Water Day: World’s poorest have least access to safe water – UNICEF
NEW YORK, 21 March 2014 – Almost four years after the world met the global target set in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for safe drinking water, and after the UN General Assembly declared that water was a human right, over three-quarters of a billion people, most of them poor, still do not have this basic necessity, UNICEF said to mark World Water Day.

:: Report: 2014 World Water Development Report [link not yet available]
“Water and energy are among the world’s pre-eminent development challenges and must feature prominently in the post-2015 agenda,” said Michel Jarraud, Chair of UN-Water.  “This fifth World Water Development Report marks a milestone as the first annual edition. The new format responds to the need of the global community for an annual, factual and evidence-based publication with a thematic focus that links to World Water Day. I would like to express my profound appreciation to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for hosting and leading the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP), which has been coordinating the production and publication of the report. I am pleased that the United Nations, through UN-Water, is able to now annually deliver up-to date information on an issue that will only become more important to create a sustainable future.”

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/media-services/single-view/news/united_nations_report_warns_rising_energy_demand_will_stress_fresh_water_resources/#.Uy9JsoUWNdc

Statement: UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka on the outcome of the 58th session of the Commission on the Status of Women
22 March 2014
UN Women welcomes the outcome of the 58th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. The agreement represents a milestone towards a transformative global development agenda that puts the empowerment of women and girls at its centre. Member States have stressed that while the Millennium Development Goals have advanced progress in many areas, they remain unfinished business as long as gender inequality persists.

The clear analysis of Member States on the shortcomings in the design and implementation of the MDGs provides us with valuable guidance as the international community devises a comprehensive post-2015 agenda. As the Commission points out, structural inequalities such as persistent gender pay gaps, women’s disproportionate share of unpaid care work, low levels of women in decision-making and the persistence of discriminatory attitudes, norms and legal frameworks impede progress.

I commend the Commission for identifying critical issues that were not sufficiently addressed by the MDGs and calling for measures to address these. Notably, Member States highlight the pandemic of violence against women and girls that affects women and girls worldwide. The Commission also points to the urgent need to fully ensure women’s access to opportunities and resources, including quality education, control and ownership of land and other productive assets, as well as women’s sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, and recommends taking steps, including temporary special measures, to achieve women’s full participation in public- and private-sector decision-making.

The safety, human rights and empowerment of women are pivotal in the post-2015 debate. UN Women is encouraged by the call of a large number of Member States for a stand-alone sustainable development goal that addresses these issues. This will require political will, backed up by commensurate resources. As the Commission rightly points out, funding in support of gender equality and women’s empowerment remains inadequate. Investments in women and girls will have to be significantly stepped up. As Member States underline, this will have a multiplier effect on sustained economic growth.

We know that equality for women means progress for all. Through the development of a comprehensive roadmap for the future, we have the opportunity to realize this premise and promise. The 58th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women has given important impetus to making equality between men and women a reality.

Statement: UNFPA Welcomes Outcome of the 58th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women

22 March 2014
UNFPA, The United Nations Population Fund, welcomes the agreement by the 58th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) that clearly reaffirms the international community’s commitments to gender equality and the empowerment and human rights of women and girls. We also welcome the Commission’s reaffirmation of the importance of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development.

UN Commission on the Status of Women CSW58 (2014)
Implementing the MDGs for Women and Girls
10-21 March 2014
United Nations Headquarters, New York
Priority theme: Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls
CSW website: http://www.unwomen.org/en/csw/csw58-2014

Report: Society at a Glance 2014 
OECD: Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs

This report takes stock of available information about the social challenges emerging since the beginning of the economic crisis, and countries’ policy responses to meet those challenges.

This seventh edition shows that despite an improving global economy, the squeeze on public spending in many countries will make it increasingly difficult to cope with the social challenges thrown up by the crisis.

Public spending on disability, family and unemployment benefits rose during the early phases of the crisis but these areas are now under pressure. Coverage has also been a challenge: while social protection programmes helped soften the blow for many people, others were left with little or no support, notably in southern Europe.

Governments need to consider any further expenditure cuts very carefully, says the OECD. These may add to the hardship of the most vulnerable and could create problems for future social cohesion. While the long-term commitment to restore public finances should be maintained in order to create confidence, it cannot happen at the cost of raising inequalities and social gaps.

Read the full publication online
Download the full pdf
Media Release: http://www.oecd.org/newsroom/urgent-action-needed-to-tackle-rising-inequality-and-social-divisions-says-oecd.htm

Report: Asylum Trends 2013
UNHCR
March 2014, 44 pages

In 2013, the number of individuals requesting refugee or asylum status in the 44 industrialized countries covered by this report increased by 28 per cent compared to 2012. An estimated 612,700 asylum applications were recorded in the course of the year, some 133,000 claims more than the year before. This is the third consecutive annual increase and the second highest annual level of the past 20 years. Only in 2001 were more asylum applications registered among the group of 44 countries. Some 30 countries out of the 44 included in this report reported a rise in asylum applicants during the year which can primarily be attributed to an increase in Syrian and Russian asylum applications. This increase notwithstanding, the last quarter of 2013 followed the seasonal patterns observed in most years whereby asylum claims drop significantly towards the end of the year.

Asylum-seekers arriving in industrialized countries undergo individual assessments to determine whether they qualify for refugee status. Consequently their numbers are always higher than those who eventually get accepted as refugees. For the 44 industrialized countries mentioned in the Asylum Trends report, acceptance rates vary widely and tend to be higher among people fleeing conflict. Acceptance rates for people from Syria, Eritrea, Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan, for example are between 62 per cent and 95 per cent. Acceptance rates from nationals of the Russian Federation and Serbia [and Kosovo: Security Council resolution 1244 (1999)] are significantly lower at around 28 per cent and 5 per cent respectively.

UNHCR tracks forced displacement globally and issues a number of reports each year showing trends worldwide. The three major components of global forced displacement are internal displacement, refugee numbers, and asylum-seekers (together totaling 45.2 million people, as of data from early 2013). UNHCR’s next major statistical update, the annual Global Trends Report, is due for publication in June of this year.

Download the Asylum Trends 2013 report

Report: 2013 Global Food Policy Report
International Food Policy Research Institute
March 2014  154 pages

This is the third in an annual series that provides an in-depth look at major food policy developments and events. Initiated in response to resurgent interest in food and nutrition secu­rity, the series offers a yearly overview of the food policy developments that have contributed to or hin­dered progress in achieving food and nutrition security. It reviews what happened in food policy and why, examines key challenges and opportunities, shares new evidence and knowledge, and highlights emerg­ing issues.

In 2013, staple food prices were relatively stable, lacking the spikes that often dominated headlines in previous years. But prices of important dietary components, such as vegetables and fruits and nutrient-intensive crops, increased and fluctuated in many countries, particularly China and India. Nutrition captured the international spotlight in an unprecedented way. For instance, the high-level Nutrition for Growth summit in June resulted in commitments of US$4.15 billion to tackle global undernutrition, the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition and the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement both gained momentum, and India passed major food security legislation.

Yet the world continues to face serious hunger and undernutrition challenges: one in eight  people around the world suffers from hunger, and more than double that number are victims of hidden hunger (deficiencies in essential micronutrients). With the Millennium Development Goals set to conclude in 2015, the global community is already working to define future efforts to eradicate hunger and undernutri­tion under a post-2015 agenda.

The anchor of this new agenda is the formulation of sustainable development goals. Extending beyond traditional investments in increasing food production, this new agenda should embrace a comprehensive, long-term approach that promotes increased agricultural productivity for all farmers, links smallholder farmers’ production to markets, and ensures that their products are safe and nutritious. It is important that the post-2015 development agenda does not pursue environmental sustainability goals at the expense of the well-being of poor and hungry people. Based on the successful experiences of several developing coun­tries, we see the clear potential for ending hunger and undernutrition by 2025 if the necessary policies and investments are adopted. Among other things, reaching this goal will require a more inclusive global part­nership, one that includes regional and country levels and spans government, civil society, and the private sector. Eliminating hunger and undernutrition sustainably by 2025 will be challenging, but it is doable.

Journal Article: Nothing Succeeds Like Succession
Kim Jonker & William F. Meehan III
Stanford Social Innovation Review
One test of a nonprofit organization hinges on whether it can manage a difficult leadership transition.
Excerpt

Many nonprofit executive directors, and indeed many other leaders as well, first consider the notion of their professional mortality when they reach their late fifties or sixties. All too often, they react with denial, and with an urge to rear back and tighten their grip on power. At about the same time, other responsible parties within an organization will begin to consider when and how to replace a top leader who is nearing the end of his or her prime. The result is a primal human conflict that looms as one of the most difficult challenges that a nonprofit organization will face. In the end, however, the need to plan for the future of an organization must win out.

Intentional succession planning is imperative not only in organizations with an executive director who is heading toward retirement age, but in every kind of organization. That’s particularly true in cases where a dynamic and visionary founding leader remains at the helm.    The need for a “founder transition”—a transfer of power to a more professionalized second generation of leadership—often comes far earlier than the moment when a founder is inclined to embrace it. The failure to manage such a transition successfully is what kills most entrepreneurial ventures, be they social or commercial. In any context, founder transitions are fraught with potential challenges, and those challenges pivot around highly emotional life-and-death issues that are at least as much personal as they are institutional.

Succession planning, in fact, is one of the most frequently requested topics of discussion at the annual retreat for recipients of the Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership that we facilitate. Even the remarkable people and organizations that have won this prize struggle with handling leadership transitions. In part, that is because many Kravis Prize organizations have founders who are still active.

The dominant personality traits of those who build great social organizations include a visionary approach to society and an ability to see through constraints—the constraints of time, in particular. Many nonprofit leaders talk about the future of their organization in the present tense, as if their vision for that future had already come to pass. And with those traits comes a deep reluctance to see one’s mortality as something to plan for.

Nonprofit leaders can delay or neglect succession planning, but succession itself is unavoidable. Here, then, are three principles that typify nonprofits that are not only effective but also enduring.

Get Real
Stakeholders in an organization should find out if their founder or executive director has a realistic sense of when and how succession should occur. Kravis Prize recipient Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of BRAC, is one visionary leader who was able to develop realistic expectations in this area. BRAC, founded in 1972, is the largest nonprofit in the world. It reaches more than 100 million people per year in Bangladesh and across the world through anti-poverty, health care, and education programs. Abed served as executive director of BRAC until 2000, but he started identifying potential successors as early as 1990. Since 2000, BRAC has had three executive directors, and BRAC International (which oversees programs in 11 countries outside Bangladesh) has had three directors as well. Abed now serves as chair of the organization. “I have tried to ensure succession at BRAC without thinking about myself,” he says. “I wanted to address succession from the inside by gradually taking steps backwards and seeing how things worked out. I believe an organization can have more than one leader; in fact, leadership roles should be well dispersed throughout an organization.”…

…That said, we recognize that there are exceptions to every rule. Fazle Abed, as we noted, stepped down as executive director of BRAC but continues to serves as chairman of that organization, and by all accounts that arrangement appears to be working. “BRAC has benefited from the long-term commitment and continuity of its leadership,” says Susan Davis, founding president and CEO of BRACUSA. To emphasize that point, Davis notes that the founding chair of BRAC remains on the BRAC board and that the board elected a former BRAC deputy executive director to serve as its vice chair.

Deliberate, advance succession planning is important not only for the founder or executive director role, but also for other key positions on the senior management team of an organization. Focusing only on the founder “does an organization a disservice,” Abed argues. “BRAC now conducts succession planning at every level. We learned that we must pay attention to the pipeline.” Abed cites an occasion when that lesson was brought home for him: “We were taken by surprise when a critical member of the senior management team passed away unexpectedly in 2010. He had been my right-hand person since 1976. Fortunately, we had some bench strength. But we learned firsthand the importance of succession planning.”…

Full text at http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/nothing_succeeds_like_succession

AMREF  [to 22 March 2014]

AMREF joins global partners in advocating for integrated water and energy solutions
Excerpt
Water and energy have crucial impacts on poverty alleviation. Although access to water supply and sanitation in Africa has been steadily improving over the past two decades, a lot still needs to be done.  Often, the same people who lack access to improved water sources and sanitation also lack access to electricity.  Today, 1.3 billion people are in this situation; it is unacceptable and requires urgent attention. 768 million people across the globe lack access to improved water sources while 2.5 billion people do not have proper sanitation facilities.  About 340 million people in Africa do not have reasonable access to safe drinking water and nearly 230 million people defecate in the open. Despite these statistics, the continent is well endowed with fossil fuels: oil, gas and coal, and renewable resources: hydro-power and geothermal in particular. Yet access to modern affordable energy sources is still a challenge for many African nations.
This year, AMREF joins the world in celebrating World Water Day themed: Water and Energy.  In realising that water and energy are closely interlinked and interdependent, there is need to ensure that water resources are available to all, irrespective of their economic status.  Yet, these resources are scarce in developing economies even though generation and transmission of energy often requires utilisation of well-developed water resources.  Inequitable distribution of water resources has seen billions of people especially those who live in slums and rural areas suffer the consequences of unsafe water, inadequate sanitation facilities and energy services.
In most parts of Africa, the common reality for many women and children is that they have to carry 20 litres of the precious liquid and firewood for domestic energy use for very long distances of not less than one kilometre.  Sometimes it is not safe to collect firewood from the bushes thereby putting them in grave danger…
…In order to touch the lives of more disadvantaged communities, AMREF calls for the development of policies and crosscutting frameworks that will ensure the useful integrated approaches to water-energy issues to achieve greater economic and social impact.  We consistently advocate for energy access for all people living in Africa and better strategies that can benefit all across the continent.  We call on partners to ensure that the 1.3 billion people who have no access to sustainable energy get access because we are convinced that without access to energy, it will be difficult to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

AMREF ‏@AMREF_Worldwide Mar 21
We join the world in celebrating #WorldWaterDay, and work to increase access to safe water in Africa. See how: http://bit.ly/1r6yoqq

AMREF USA ‏@AMREFUSA Mar 21
Unclean #water & poor sanitation has far-reaching effects. This is why we integrate #WASH programs: http://bit.ly/1im20vo  #WWD2014

AMREF UK @AMREF_UK Mar 17
Happy Monday folks! If you didn’t get a copy of our newsletter this Spring, you can have a read of it online here: http://www.amrefuk.org/news/publications/item/371-spring-newsletter-2014 …

Aravind Eye Care System  [to 22 March 2014]

AravindEyeFdtn @AravindEye Mar 19 How being customer-centric is helping #Aravind Eye Care overcome their challenges http://social.yourstory.com/2014/03/deepa-aravind-eye-care/ … via @YourStorydotin