MSF Report: Where is everyone? Responding to emergencies in the most difficult places
July 2014
-pdf: http://www.msf.org/sites/msf.org/files/msf-whereiseveryone_-def-lr_-_july.pdf [44 pages]
-interactive: http://www.flipsnack.com/9666CCC7C6F/fun8r599

Foreword [by Dr. Joanne Liu, MSF International President]
The international humanitarian aid system has more means and resources at its disposal and greater know-how than ever before. But, on the ground, whether in Syria, DRC, South Sudan or the Central African Republic, MSF teams have repeatedly seen that:
:: Humanitarian responses are slow and cumbersome, and lack impact.
:: UN agencies and INGOs are increasingly absent from field locations, especially when there are any kind of significant security or logistical issues.
:: In acute emergencies, when assistance is most needed, international staff of humanitarian agencies are rapidly evacuated or go into hibernation, and programmes downgrade to skeleton staff or are suspended.
:: Many agencies are concentrating only on the easiest-to-reach populations and ignoring the more difficult places.
:: Many humanitarian actors are now working at arm’s length through local NGOs or government authorities, acting more as technical experts, intermediaries or donors than field actors.
:: These local organisations have enormous burdens placed on them to respond, but often do not have the skills and experience required to conduct technically difficult interventions; further, it can be difficult for them to operate in contested areas and to be seen as neutral and impartial.
:: Some humanitarian agencies simply wait until the emergency passes to continue their usual, long-term programmes.
:: Technical capacity in sectors such as water and sanitation or health also seems to be declining in emergency settings.

The result of all of this is that people in desperate need of lifesaving assistance are not getting it – because of the internal failings of humanitarian aid system. The findings in this report are based on research into three major displacement emergencies of recent years, but are also corroborated by our field staff all over the world. We are seeing these conclusions reinforced in the major crises of the day. In the Philippines response to Typhoon Haiyan, for example, where there is good access, funding and visibility, the UN and INGO community has deployed a massive response which has been largely effective, although very costly. Yet in the
Central African Republic and South Sudan, countries with considerable security and logistical challenges, persistent problems remain with the scale up of the UN and INGO response, which is characterised by bureaucracy and risk aversion. What assistance there is in these contexts is largely concentrated on the capital cities and/or in a small number of very large, officially recognised refugee camps; very little reaches the periphery.

In this report we level criticism at the UN for its lack of flexibility and effectiveness. In particular, we highlight the way the current UN system inhibits good decision-making, in particular in displacement crises where a number of UN agencies have a responsibility to respond.

We also put the choices made by INGOs, our peers, in the spotlight: to profile themselves as emergency responders, but without building the technical and human capacity to respond quickly and effectively; to work as implementers for the UN agencies, and become trapped in their bureaucracies; to avoid risk to the extent that they won’t work where people most need them; and to become dependent on the geopolitical interests in play in various conflicts and crises.

Donors should also examine their contribution to the atrophy of the humanitarian system, in particular their funding systems which are slow, inflexible and not suited to emergency situations. The “value for money” of a late, badly targeted and ineffective response is surely close to zero.

Some of the problems identified in this research are also challenges for MSF. In some conflicts and emergencies, our emergency medical capacities can be almost monopolistic. In camp settings we can be too focused on hospital care and not do enough community outreach. We are reviewing our approach to vulnerability.

We will undertake a review of our own emergency response capacity, and continue to examine the evidence of the system’s response in key contexts such as the Central African Republic and South Sudan. We also will engage with donors, and take a special look at how to improve our engagement with Emerging Actors.

Although we keep our distance from the formal institutions of the UN, MSF is part of the humanitarian aid system. And for all of its ‘smartness’ and wealth, it is not able to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable people affected.

For MSF this poses a huge challenge; in places like CAR and South Sudan our operations have grown enormously to respond to the massive needs caused by the crisis. We risk being the de facto substitute for the Ministry of Health. This exposes our teams in areas where there is great insecurity and we are the only health care providers. It also makes it a real challenge to scale down and to exit. Should we encourage or enable others to scale up? Or should we increase even more to fill the gaps? Presently, we are stuck with a strategy which vacillates between the two.

We put our conclusions forward at a time when the humanitarian system is taking the opportunity to review how it functions, in the lead up to the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in 2016. We hope that this will be a time of reflection leading to changes, rather than a reaffirmation of the status quo. MSF is ready to contribute to making these changes.

UN: Global Sustainable Development Report – Prototype
:: Global Sustainable Development Report – Prototype (PDF) [165 pages]
:: Summary (PDF) [27 pages]
Excerpts
Foreword
Sustainability science emerged as a new inter-disciplinary endeavour around the year 2000. In 2012 alone, more than 40,000 authors from 2,200 cities around the world published some 150,000 articles on sustainable development – six times more than ten years before. However, to-date, there exists no global sustainable development report that comprehensively looks at global progress and the future outlook in a truly integrated way, taking into account the range of perspectives in different scientific communities across the world.

The Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR), requested by Governments at Rio+20, is the first and only comprehensive, global report on sustainable development.

The present prototype global sustainable development report is the result of a collaborative effort of more than two thousand scientists and 50 staff from 20 UN entities from all world regions. The report illustrates a range of potential content and discusses potential overall directions for the Global Sustainable Development Report.

The report maps sustainable development assessments and related processes, and identifies key remaining challenges: to eliminate poverty and hunger; to feed, nurture, house, educate and employ the global population; to ensure peace, security and freedom; and to preserve the Earth’s basic life support systems.

The report sketches an alternative sustainable development pathway for the future. It shows that, if we significantly adjust our current patterns of consumption and production, we can help build a more sustainable world in 2050.

The report also identifies a range of estimates of total, global investment needs to achieve global goals and commitments.

The report identifies lessons learnt from national, regional and global case studies of the climate-land-energy-water development nexus. It takes an integrated approach that looks at clusters of issues and their inter-linkages rather than specific sectors or topics…

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Summary [sample sections]
4. Review of progress from 1950 to 2013 [p.7]
The challenge is to eliminate poverty and hunger; feed, nurture, house, educate and employ more than nine billion people; secure peace, security and freedom; and preserve the Earth’s basic life support systems.

The report looks at three generations into the past (1950-2013) and two generations into the future (until 2050). The challenge is to learn from what we have tried in the past, in order to put our societies and economies firmly on the path to sustainable development by 2050. The report takes an integrated approach that looks at clusters of issues and their interlinkages rather than specific sectors or specific topics.

Sustainable development trends and progress
Historical progress towards sustainable development has been mixed. Some progress has been at the expense of worsening trends in other respects.

The world has managed to feed, nurture, house, educate and employ on the order of an additional 800 million people every decade from 1970 to 2000, and even 1.1 billion people in the 2000s. In the past 12 years alone, we have built cities for 770 million people (equivalent to 93 New York cities), more than in any decade before. These are enormous achievements.

Today’s world GDP is more than ten times larger than in 1950 and average per capita GDP is four times larger. Yet, we have not managed to employ our much greater wealth and technological capacity to eliminate poverty and hunger. 850 million people go hungry today, a number which has hardly changed over several decades. There are two hundred million more slum dwellers today than twenty years ago.

The unabated rise in the scale of materials consumption has increased global environmental, social and economic pressures. There is increasing evidence that we are jeopardizing several of the Earth’s basic life support systems. Countries and people trapped in persistent poverty have probably suffered most from these impacts. And future generations will most likely face much greater challenges to meet their own needs.

Progress has been mixed towards achievement of goals or commitments in 19 SDG-relevant focus areas [p.9]
Initial discussions of the UN Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) considered 19 focus areas as potential areas for future SDGs. These have now been narrowed down to a fewer number of areas with a view to the OWG’s finalizing its report by the end of July 2014. An analysis of the initial 19 focus areas, a number of which build on the MDGs, suggests that progress towards goals or commitments in 11 of the 19 focus areas is off-track, in 4 shows limited or mixed progress, and in another 4 shows good progress or early achievement (poverty eradication; food security and sustainable agriculture; water and sanitation; and health). Clearly, the level of progress depends, inter alia, on the level of ambition of the goal or commitment in the first place. Early achievement of a goal might reflect faster than foreseen progress or an inadequately ambitious goal. For example, it is doubtful whether the target of improving the lives of 100 million slum dwellers was sufficiently ambitious, given the rate at which the population of slum dwellers has expanded since 1990.

WHO: Progress on the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
Fact sheet N°290
Updated May 2014 [FULL REPORT: English ]
Excerpt
Key facts
:: Globally, the number of deaths of children under 5 years of age fell from 12.6 million in 1990 to 6.6 million in 2012.
:: In developing countries, the percentage of underweight children under 5 years old dropped from 25% in 1990 to 15% in 2012.
:: While the proportion of births attended by a skilled health worker has increased globally, fewer than 50% of births are attended in the WHO African Region.
:: Globally, new HIV infections declined by 33% between 2001 and 2012.
:: Existing cases of tuberculosis are declining, along with deaths among HIV-negative tuberculosis cases.
:: In 2010, the world met the United Nations Millennium Development Goals target on access to safe drinking-water, as measured by the proxy indicator of access to improved drinking-water sources, but more needs to be done to achieve the sanitation target.

Progress report on the health-related MDGs
While some countries have made impressive gains in achieving health-related targets, others are falling behind. Often the countries making the least progress are those affected by high levels of HIV/AIDS, economic hardship or conflict.
:: Millennium Development Goal 1: eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Target 1.C. Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger
Undernutrition which includes fetal growth restriction, stunting, wasting and deficienceies of vitamin A and zinc, along with suboptimal breastfeeding; is the underlying cause of death in an estimated 45% of all deaths among children under 5 years of age. The proportion of underweight children in developing countries has declined from 25% to 15% between 1990 and 2012. This rate of progress is close to the rate required to meet the MDG target, however improvements have been unevenly distributed between and within different regions.

:: Millennium Development Goal 4: reduce child mortality
Target 4.A. Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate
Globally, significant progress has been made in reducing mortality in children under 5 years of age. In 2012, 6.6 million children under 5 died, compared with 12.6 million in 1990. Between 1990 and 2012, under-5 mortality declined by 47%, from an estimated rate of 90 deaths per 1000 live births to 48. The global rate of decline has also accelerated in recent years – from 1.2% per annum during 1990–1995 to 3.9% during 2005–2012. Despite this improvement, the world is unlikely to achieve the MDG target of a two-thirds reduction in 1990 mortality levels by the year 2015.
More countries are now achieving high levels of immunization coverage; in 2012, 66% of Member States reached at least 90% coverage. In 2012, global measles immunization coverage was 84% among children aged 12–23 months. During 2000–2012, estimated measles deaths decreased by 78% from 562 000 to 122 000.

:: Millennium Development Goal 5: improve maternal health
Target 5.A. Reduce by three quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio
Target 5.B. Achieve, by 2015, universal access to reproductive health
Despite a significant reduction in the number of maternal deaths – from an estimated 523 000 in 1990 to 289 000 in 2013 – the rate of decline is less than half of what is needed to achieve the MDG target of a three quarters reduction in the mortality ratio between 1990 and 2015.
To reduce the number of maternal deaths, women need access to good-quality reproductive health care and effective interventions. In 2011, 63% of women aged 15–49 years who were married or in a consensual union were using some form of contraception, while 12% wanted to stop or postpone childbearing but were not using contraception.
The proportion of women receiving antenatal care at least once during pregnancy was about 81% for the period 2006–2013, but for the recommended minimum of 4 visits or more the corresponding figure drops to around 56%.
The proportion of births attended by skilled personnel – crucial for reducing perinatal, neonatal and maternal deaths – is above 90% in 3 of the 6 WHO regions. However, increased coverage is needed in certain regions, such as the WHO African Region where the figure remains less than 50%.

:: Millennium Development Goal 6: combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Target 6A. Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
Target 6B. Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it.
In 2012, an estimated 2.3 million people were newly infected with HIV – 33% less than the 3.4 million people newly infected in 2001. Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 70% of all the people who acquired HIV infection globally.
There were an estimated 35 million people living with HIV in 2012, an increase from previous years. As access to antiretroviral therapy in low- and middle-income countries improves (around 9.7 million people in low- and middle-income countries received treatment in 2012), the population living with HIV will continue to grow since fewer people are dying from AIDS-related causes.
Target 6C. Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases
Malaria
About half the world’s population is at risk of malaria, and an estimated 207 million cases in 2012 led to approximately 627 000 deaths – most of these in children under the age of 5 living in Africa.
During the period 2000–2012, malaria incidence and mortality rates of population at risk have both fallen globally, 29% and 42% respectively. An estimated 3.3 million lives were saved as a result of scaling-up malaria interventions during the same period.
The coverage of interventions such as the distribution of insecticide-treated nets and indoor residual spraying has greatly increased, and will need to be sustained in order to prevent the resurgence of disease and deaths caused by malaria.
Tuberculosis
The annual global number of new cases of tuberculosis has been slowly falling for a decade thus achieving MDG target 6.C to reverse the spread of the disease by 2015. In 2012, there were an estimated 8.6 million new cases and 1.3 million deaths (including 320 000 deaths among HIV-positive people).
Globally, treatment success rates have been sustained at high levels since 2007, at or above the target of 85%. Between 1995 and 2012, 56 million people were successfully treated for tuberculosis and 22 million lives were saved. However, multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), which emerged primarily as a result of inadequate treatment, continues to pose problems.
Other diseases
Neglected tropical diseases are a medically diverse group of infections caused by a variety of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, protozoa and helminths.
The 17 diseases prioritized by WHO are found in 149 countries and can cause multiple infections in one person and are almost always associated with poverty.
Leprosy has now been eliminated as a public health problem in 119 out of the 122 countries where it was previously endemic. Dracunculiasis (also known as guinea-worm) is a crippling parasitic disease on verge of eradication, with only 148 cases reported in 2013.
In addition, 728 million people worldwide were treated for at least 1 NTD through preventive chemotherapy in 2011.
However, neglected tropical diseases still affect more than 1 billion people worldwide.
Despite renewed momentum characterized by unprecedented progress, some neglected tropical diseases (like dengue) remain a significant obstacle to health, making it harder to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, and pose an ongoing impediment to poverty reduction and overall socio-economic development.

:: Millennium Development Goal 7: ensure environmental sustainability
Target 7C: By 2015, halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
The world has now met the MDG target relating to access to safe drinking-water. In 2012, 90% of the population used an improved source of drinking-water compared with 76% in 1990. Progress has however been uneven across different regions, between urban and rural areas, and between rich and poor.
With regard to basic sanitation, current rates of progress are too slow for the MDG target to be met globally. In 2012, 2.5 billion people did not have access to improved sanitation facilities, with 1 billion these people still practicing open defecation. The number of people living in urban areas without access to improved sanitation is increasing because of rapid growth in the size of urban populations.

:: Millennium Development Goal 8: develop a global partnership for development
Target 8E. In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential medicines in developing countries
Many people continue to face a scarcity of medicines in the public sector, forcing them to the private sector where prices can be substantially higher. Surveys undertaken from 2007-2012 show the average availability of selected generic medicines in low- and middle-income countries was only 57% in the public sector. Patient prices of lowest priced generics in the private sector averaged 5 times international reference prices, ranging up to about 16 times higher in some countries.
Even the lowest-priced generics can put common treatments beyond the reach of low-income households in developing countries. The greatest price is paid by patients suffering chronic diseases. Effective treatments for the majority of the global chronic disease burden exist, yet universal access remains out-of-reach.

WHO response
WHO works with partners to support national efforts to achieve the health-related MDGs. WHO’s activities include:
:: setting prevention and treatment guidelines and other global norms and standards;
:: providing technical support to countries to implement guidelines;
:: analysing social and economic factors and highlighting the broader risks and opportunities for health.
WHO assists national authorities as they develop health policies and plans, and helps governments work with development partners to align external assistance with domestic priorities. WHO also collects and disseminates data on health so countries can plan health spending and track progress.

UN: World Urbanization Prospects – The 2014 Revision
ST/ESA/SER.A/352
Department of Economic and Social Affairs
July 2014
Excerpt from Press Release
…The 2014 revision of the World Urbanization Prospects produced by the UN Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs notes that the largest urban growth will take place in India, China and Nigeria. These three countries will account for 37 per cent of the projected growth of the world’s urban population between 2014 and 2050. By 2050, India is projected to add 404 million urban dwellers, China 292 million and Nigeria 212 million.

The urban population of the world has grown rapidly from 746 million in 1950 to 3.9 billion in 2014. Asia, despite its lower level of urbanization, is home to 53 per cent of the world’s urban population, followed by Europe with 14 per cent and Latin America and the Caribbean with 13 per cent.

The world’s urban population is expected to surpass six billion by 2045. Much of the expected urban growth will take place in countries of the developing regions, particularly Africa. As a result, these countries will face numerous challenges in meeting the needs of their growing urban populations, including for housing, infrastructure, transportation, energy and employment, as well as for basic services such as education and health care.

“Managing urban areas has become one of the most important development challenges of the 21st century. Our success or failure in building sustainable cities will be a major factor in the success of the post-2015 UN development agenda,” said John Wilmoth, Director of the Population Division in the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs…

Amref Health Africa [to 12 July 2014]

Amref Health Africa and Partners hold Cross-Border Meeting on Eradicating Polio
07 July 2014
Excerpt
Amref Health Africa, with support from the Core Group-funded Polio Eradication Project in South Sudan and the Ministry of Health Central Equatorial State, held a cross-border collaborative meeting to discuss eradicating polio. The cross-border meeting took, place in Kaya County and was attended by representatives from neighbouring districts of Koboko and Arua in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda respectively.

In his remarks to officially open the meeting, Morobo Commissioner Hon Moses Soro noted that “diseases have no borders”. He added that collaboration was important between South Sudan, Uganda and the DRC because people constantly moved across borders and it was impossible to control them.

The main objectives of the meeting were to share information between the bordering countries on the status of polio eradication activities; to identify migrant, mobile and hard-to-reach populations along the South Sudan-Uganda-DRC borders and agree on strategies of how they can be reached; to discuss mechanisms of strengthening surveillance and addressing population immunity gaps along the borders; and to strengthen advocacy, communication and social mobilisation for polio eradication along the border areas.

Following the discussions, a plan of action was agreed upon by the participating countries to strengthen implementation of synchronised immunisation activities and disease surveillance. The plan includes intensification of active case searches, particularly along the borders, and increased delivery of immunisation services to populations in hard-to-reach areas…

Amref Health Africa is the implementing partner for the Polio Eradication Project in Morobo. The project seeks to strengthen routine immunisation services in the county and improve case detection by strengthening community involvement.

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Amref Health Africa @AMREFUSA • Jul 7
Our #eLearning program in #Uganda is exciting and saving lives! http://bit.ly/1vTeYVH

Amref Health Africa @AMREFUSA • Jul 1
What’s new with us? See the latest in our eNews, including @USEmbassyKenya’s visit to one of our projects! http://icont.ac/2rWmr

Aravind Eye Care System [to 12 July 2014]

AravindEyeFdtn @AravindEye • Jul 2
Last month #Aravind nurses and doctors performed 29,266 surgeries and saw 246,441 patients! Thank you for eliminating needless #blindness

AravindEyeFdtn @AravindEye • Jul 1
Congrats to #Aravind’s Mr. L. Kirubanithi, who received the T. Mark Hodges International Service Award by the Medical Library Assc.

BRAC [to 12 July 2014]

BRAC @BRACworld • Jul 11
BRAC’s dir of MF @Shameran on Client Protection, Balancing Credit/Savings & Evolving Inclusion Landscape http://bit.ly/1nm05uy @CFI_ACCION

Retweeted by BRAC
Susan Davis @SusanDavisBRAC • Jul 10
@BRACworld=@girleffect: Have you heard about #GirlEffectLive yet? Here’s everything you need to know: http://bit.ly/girleffectlive #girleffect

BRAC @BRACworld • Jul 8
Workshop on client protection in #microfinance by @SmartCampaign_ & @BRACworld underway!

BRAC @BRACworld • Jul 5
‘We believe women are the engines of development’ – BRAC Vice-Chair speaks to the @guardian http://gu.com/p/3qk6p/tw @ElizaTalks #globaldev

BRAC @BRACworld • Jul 2
Subscribe to BRAC’s YouTube channel today and be the first to know when we release a new video! http://www.youtube.com/user/bracusa1

Casa Alianza [to 12 July 2014]
Covenant House [to 12 July 2014]

Senate: Please Pass These Anti-Trafficking Laws
July 10, 2014
In his latest Huffington Post column Covenant House President, Kevin Ryan, urges the Senate to pass anti-trafficking laws.

Covenant House Pennsylvania welcomes John A. Ducoff as new Executive Director
July 9, 2014
John has served as the Senior Vice President for Strategic Planning and General Counsel of Covenant House International since 2010, and will now begin his full-time tenure as Executive Director of Covenant House Pennsylvania.

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Casa Alianza UK @CasaAlianzaUK • Jul 2
As our programme partners in #Honduras point out, #children aren’t crossing the US border for the fun of it: https://www.facebook.com/CasaAlianzaUK/

Casa Alianza UK @CasaAlianzaUK • Jun 28
Why Honduran kids are risking rape, dismemberment & death by fleeing to the US: http://bit.ly/1pJCLpb via @CounterPunchOrg #streetchildren

Retweeted by Covenant House
Kevin Ryan @CovHousePrez • Jul 5
The 4th of July has come & gone, but 2,000 homeless youth awoke under a @CovenantHouse roof today still striving for their independence

Handicap International [to 12 July 2014]

Retweeted by Handicap Int’l-US
Handicap Intl PH @HI_PH • Jul 1
New report on disability-inclusive DRM good practices http://handicapinternational.ph/new-report-on-disability-inclusive-drm-good-practices/ …

Heifer International [to 12 July 2014]

July 7, 2014
Heifer International President and CEO named to InterAction Board
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.
Pierre Ferrari, Heifer International’s President and CEO was recently appointed to InterAction’s Board of Directors. InterAction works to eliminate extreme poverty, uphold human rights, safeguard a sustainable planet and ensure human dignity for poor and vulnerable populations by advancing the goals of the U.S.-based international nonprofit community.

June 30, 2014
Heifer Uganda Voted Best in Fighting Hunger and Poverty
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.
Heifer International Uganda was recently honored with a Uganda Responsible Investment Award after it was voted the Best Hunger and Poverty Eradication organization in the country.

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Heifer International @Heifer • Jul 11
#HeiferCameroon’s introduction of biogas has brought hope to families like Rose’s. See why: http://hefr.in/1reZ1ZQ

HelpAge International [to 12 July 2014]

Sustainable Development Golas: Progress made in recognizing people “of all ages”
Posted By Toby Porter at 15:33, 09 July 2014

In May, I posted a blog which dared us all to dream about ageing being recognised in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and preventing older people from again being left behind.
I wanted to give a quick update as we approach the last of 13 “Open Working Group” sessions, where Member States of the UN debate the shape and content of the new set of goals to succeed the MDGs. It’s such an important moment for organisations working with and for older people.

Significant inroads
Well, we can still dream. Thanks to all the efforts of the HelpAge global network, we have made significant inroads.
There is now a “zero draft” of the new SDGs, in its second revision, which is being debated in New York. The latest draft of the SDGs recognises in its introduction that “people of all ages and abilities are at the centre of sustainable development”. If this wording remains, we would be delighted.

We are also pleased that the same draft calls for poverty “of all ages” to be tackled, for social protection floors to be established, for healthy life for all, for an end to violence against women and girls, and for data to be disaggregated and collected by age as well as by gender, disability and other factors.

Ageing must be embedded in the SDGs
But we know too that much more can be done to mainstream and embed responses to ageing throughout the goals and targets. Working as the Stakeholder Group on Ageing, we have come up with a call to Member States for amendments and revisions to the current draft, which the HelpAge network is relaying to policy makers. You can read the statement here.

Over the coming days, it is really important that we continue to raise these points with Member States, whether in country or in New York. We must redouble our efforts, make our voices and suggestions heard loud and clear and from the many different geographies and organisations that a network can make possible.

Policy makers, government, academia, civil society and the public must sit up and take notice of ageing and the urgency of rolling back discrimination and exclusion based on age.
Bringing together youth and ageing groups

Our strategy must also be to make common cause with others. We want to ensure older people are not excluded from the Sustainable Development Goals, and for people to understand that an older person has the same human rights as any other.

To illustrate this, I’m delighted to say we’re working directly with youth organisations who recognise that integrating responses to age in the framework will transform their lives now and into the future.
Two examples of this are happening really soon; today in New York we have organised a joint side event with the Major Group on Children & Youth under the auspices of the UN Millennium Campaign, with the title “Transformative Human Development: How can the new sustainable development framework support all people of all ages?”. You can read the background paper here.

Following this, next month in Nairobi, we will also be holding an intergenerational solidarity dialogue in the context of a continent-wide youth meeting.

Action/2015
Additionally, there is a forthcoming call to action under the banner of Action/2015, which is a campaign in the making to ensure the voices and opinions of citizens in the global south and north are listened to and acted on as the new goals are set.

Through Action/2015 we have the opportunity to join with a broader group of actors in a global campaign aimed at mobilising our grassroots activists in this work. This is a chance to make the link between the ongoing issues we are campaigning on and the wider framework governments are signing up to.

In the Action/2015 campaign, HelpAge will be calling for youth partners to reinvigorate the Make it Ageless intergenerational campaign, in which young and older work together in solidarity to bring about sustainable change.

We’re putting together an action team that will be co-chaired with a youth organisation. The first step is to register for the campaign online by the end of the week!
Find out more about our work on the Sustainable Development Goals and the post-2015 process.

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HelpAge @helpage • Jul 11
Over 30% of Japan’s population (40 million) is over 60. Get more #ageing #data here: http://globalagewatch.org #WPD2014 #WorldPopulationDay

HelpAge @helpage • Jul 11
World Population Day focuses on youth. But don’t forget they’re our future older population: http://bit.ly/1w9vpNR #WPD2014 #ageing

HelpAge @helpage • Jul 7
Age Helps is out! http://bit.ly/1w9vpNR Stories via @GlobalAgeing @AARPIntl @HelpAge_USA

HelpAge @helpage • Jul 2
In #Ethiopia, we’re working with community groups, young & old, to reduce vulnerability to #drought. Watch here: http://bit.ly/1mktKFg

HelpAgeUSA @HelpAge_USA • Jul 9
Just in! Latest blog by our brilliant Board Member, Jack Guralnik, Prof @UMmedschool on our Global AgeWatch #Index http://bit.ly/1qSzjMW

International Rescue Committee [to 12 July 2014]

Congressional Testimony: “Review of the President’s Emergency Supplemental Request for Unaccompanied Children and Related Matters”
09 Jul 2014 – Written statement for the record submitted by the International Rescue Committee’s Sharon Waxman, Vice President for Public Policy and Advocacy, to Senate Appropriations Committee for the “Review of the President’s Emergency Supplemental Request for Unaccompanied Children and Related Matters” hearing.

‘Where is everyone?’ We’re standing right next to you
July 8, 2014 by Bob Kitchen
Excerpt
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) released their report, “Where is everyone? Responding to emergencies in the most difficult places,” on Monday with an accompanying and eye-catching op-ed in the Guardian by popular aid-contrarian Ian Birrell. MSF certainly knows how to lead off a spirited debate by issuing a report that single-mindedly criticizes the way in which emergency humanitarian aid is delivered to the many acute emergencies the world faces right now….

Advocating change for women in Congo: Grassroots activists head to the United States
Posted by The IRC on July 11, 2014
The IRC and InterAction recently sponsored two women from Congo to travel to the United States and speak about their experiences working with women’s grassroots organizations in their country. Séraphine and Marie Jeannette Nabintu M’Mirindi reflect on their time in America and their work with women and girls in Congo.
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Congo: Dr. Jill Biden visits women who are working for their own empowerment with the IRC’s support
Posted by Tamara Leigh on July 10, 2014
On July 5, Jill Biden, wife of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, met with women who are working with and receiving support from the IRC in eastern Congo. Dr. Biden was on a three-nation tour of Africa focused on highlighting education and other issues facing women and girls.

Quoted: Humanitarian crisis on U.S. border — protecting unaccompanied minors
Posted by The IRC on July 10, 2014
The IRC speaks up on the funding needs to respond to the surge in arrivals of more than 52,000 unaccompanied children from Central America to the U.S. border since October.

IRC speaks out on behalf of the protection needs of unaccompanied children at U.S. borders
Posted by The IRC on July 10, 2014
The IRC is increasingly concerned by the humanitarian crisis now unfolding on the United States’ southwestern borders. There is no doubt that some of the unaccompanied minors now seeking refuge in the United States are bona fide refugees and that others may qualify for other forms of immigration relief.

South Sudan crisis timeline: What could happen
Posted by The IRC on July 8, 2014
On the third anniversary of South Sudan’s independence, humanitarian aid groups raise the alarm that a funding shortfall is imminent and unless new appeals are met the country faces famine and disaster.

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Retweeted by Intl Rescue Comm IRC
Intnl Rescue Comm UK @IRCuk • Jul 11
In 2013 @theIRC @IRCuk vaccinated over 276,000 children against disease http://sfy.co/aleg

Intl Rescue Comm IRC @theIRC • Jul 10
Rethinking how we get & use feedback from those we serve in humanitarian crises >> New #FastSlow post from @Jrannan http://bit.ly/U5yIJL

Intl Rescue Comm IRC @theIRC • Jun 30
In 2013, IRC gave 1.4 million people access to clean drinking water & sanitation. Learn more: http://bit.ly/IRCin2013

IRCT [to 12 July 2014]

News
NPM marks important milestone in the fight against torture in Peru
10-07-2014
Excerpt
The IRCT commends the Peruvian Congress for the establishment of a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) to prevent torture in the country.
In the past, the UN Human Rights Committee, the Committee against Torture and the Universal Periodic Review of the Human Rights Council expressed concern about the crisis in Peru’s criminal justice and penitentiary system. Concerns included lack of medical personnel, abuse of pre-trial detention, reports of torture and ill-treatment and overcrowding that, according to the National Penitentiary Institute, was above 100% in 2012. All these international bodies identified the NPM establishment as an essential step to improve this situation.
The IRCT applauds the commitment of the Peruvian State to promote the legislation that now establishes this key mechanism for the prevention of torture.
Now, the state must provide the Ombudsman Office (OO) with the necessary financial and human resources to implement the NPM effectively and independently. In this regard, it is essential that the views and expertise of torture rehabilitation organisations like Centro de Atención Psicosocial (CAPS), an IRCT member, are included to ensure that the NPM can adequately document torture and assess the availability and quality of rehabilitation services for torture victims in detention…

IRCT in Brussels
EU network of NGOs calls for greater human rights transparency
07-07-2014
Excerpt
On the second anniversary of the EU Strategic Framework and Action Plan, the pan-European Human Rights and Democracy Network (HRDN) has stressed the need for greater human rights protection in the EU to stop what it calls “the habit of dealing with human rights behind closed doors”.
The HRDN – an informal grouping of 42 non-government organisations (NGOs), including the IRCT, who work within the European human rights field – states that despite some progress over the last two years the EU is “punching below its weight and losing the collective energy that existed in the run up to the adoption of the human rights and democracy package.”
:: HRDN statement to mark 2 year anniversary of the EU strategic Framework and Action Plan (full statement)

MSF/Médecins Sans Frontières [to 12 July 2014]

Trans-Pacific Trade Partners Must Stand Against Higher Medicine Prices and Take Harmful Provisions off the Negotiating Table
July 07, 2014
Ottawa/New York—As Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiators convene in Ottawa for another secret round of trade talks, it is time for the US to take harmful provisions that would raise medicine prices for 800 million people across the Pacific Rim region out of the draft trade agreement, said international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

Press release
Central America: Migrants Victimized at Home and During Journey
July 02, 2014
NEW YORK/MEXICO CITY—Central American migrants in Mexico are reporting extremely high levels of violence during their journey north, and are listing the dire security situation in their countries as the impetus for leaving home, according to patient survey results released today by the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

Press release
South Sudan: Pervasive Violence Against Health Care
July 01, 2014
NEW YORK/JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN—Violence in hospitals and the destruction of medical facilities are denying medical services to many of South Sudan’s most vulnerable people, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said in a report released today.

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MSF International @MSF • 13h
3/3 #Gaza: #MSF did an emergency donation (antibiotics, gloves, pain killers, infusions, etc.) to Nasser Hospital

MSF International @MSF • 13h
2/3 #Gaza: “hospitals coping with wounded, but crisis is worsening an already precarious health situation” – N. Palarus, MSF coordinator

MSF International @MSF • 13h
1/3 #Gaza: MSF was able to go to Al-Shifa Hospital, in Gaza city, and to Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip

MSF International @MSF • 13h
#Gaza: “due to the lack of fuel, only 50% of ambulances run. Population and hospitals are under siege” – N. Palarus, #MSF coordinator

MSF International @MSF • Jul 3
Many Central American migrants treated by #MSF in #Mexico suffered violence on their journey http://bit.ly/1vAJMu2

Operation Smile [to 12 July 2014]

Upcoming Mission Schedule
July 16 – 21 | Zhangjiajie, Hunan, China
July 16 – 20 | Barranquilla, Colombia
July 21 – 24 | Hanoi, Vietnam
July 23 – 26 | Santo Domingo, Ecuador
July 28 – Aug 1 | Novosibirsk, Russia

Operation Smile @operationsmile • Jul 9
Operation Smile started in the Philippines 32 years ago. Samar, which was affected by the typhoon, was a new OS site in June #BehindTheSmile

Operation Smile @operationsmile • Jul 9
751 children and young adults received free, life-changing surgery during the Philippines “Gift of Smiles” mega mission. #BehindTheSmile.

Partners In Health [to 12 July 2014]

Jul 07, 2014
Knocking on Doors: An Interview with PIH’s Director in Peru
Dr. Leonid Lecca, executive director of Socios En Salud, PIH’s sister organization in Peru, talks about his work as the organization celebrates its 18th anniversary this week. Read More ▸

Jul 03, 2014
The Life of a Medical Resident at Haiti’s New Teaching Hospital
Surgeon-in-training Dr. Jean-Louis Willy Fils lives and works on the campus of PIH-supported University Hospital. Read More ▸

Jun 30, 2014
In Lesotho, A New Level of Accompaniment
In Lesotho, PIH and the Ministry of Health are working together to implement a national reform of the health system

Partners In Health @PIH • Jun 30
Poor nutrition causes and exacerbates ill health. How University Hospital is using food as medicine: http://bit.ly/1lkFEZA

PATH [to 12 July 2014]

Press release | July 10, 2014
Injectable contraceptive launched in Burkina Faso to expand choice and address unmet need
Three-month contraceptive in Uniject™ injection device will be introduced in four African countries. [Burkina Faso, Niger, Senegal and Uganda]

PATH @PATHtweets • Jul 12
What is the essence of PATH? A longtime colleague weighs in: http://bit.ly/1k5u3hJ

PATH @PATHtweets • Jul 6
Why does something as “good” as #globalhealth need strong advocates? @PATHAdvocacy’s Rachel Wilson explains: http://bit.ly/1c7Brsi

SOS-Kinderdorf International [to 12 July 2014]

Gaza: Air strikes reported near SOS village
09.07.2014 – SOS Children’s Villages CEO calls on Israeli and Palestinian leaders to ensure safety of children in latest outbreak of violence over Palestinian Territories.

Good Kompany: Belgian captain takes SOS to 2014 World Cup
02.07.2014 – Vincent Kompany, our International Ambassador, is leading Belgium’s national team up the rankings at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil — and he’s bringing the message about SOS Children’s Villages with him.

SOS children still waiting for peace and a way home in South Sudan
02.07.2014 – SOS children and families from Malakal in South Sudan are still waiting for a new home, while rebel soldiers occupy their plundered village; children of South Sudan plead with leaders to end the violence.

Ukraine evacuation: SOS families in Lugansk relocate for safety
01.07.2014 – SOS Children’s Villages in Lugansk, Ukraine, takes decision to relocate SOS families and children to safer locations in response to violence and civil unrest between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces.

Children’s Villages @sos4children • Jul 10
SOS Children’s Village in #Gaza is safe but all children staying indoors http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/news/israeli-air-raids-affect-sos-childrens-village-in-gaza … http://ow.ly/i/6bGWv #Palestine #Israel

Tostan [to 12 July 2014]

July 11, 2014
Putting education first: Communities in Kaolack meet to promote modern Koranic schools
On Thursday June 26 and Monday June 30, 2014, Tostan’s Child Protection Project (CPP) hosted two community meetings in conjunction with the release of a new advocacy document “Focus: Modern Koranic Schools,” which addresses the program to modernize daaras, or Koranic schools…

July 9, 2014
Raising awareness about female genital cutting in rural Senegal with computer tablets
Two months ago, the Orchid Project provided tablets to four teams of social mobilization agents throughout four regions of Senegal. These teams are working towards total abandonment of female genital cutting (FGC) in Kolda, Sedhiou, Matam, and Saint-Louis by going on monthly awareness-raising missions and facilitating social mobilization activities such as radio programs, intervillage meetings, and organized diffusion. In the short time since the social mobilization agents have started using the tablets, these tools have helped not only document the work they are doing through video, photos, and digital note-taking but also have promoted organized diffusion. Tablets provide visual proof to the communities that neighboring communities are agreeing to abandon harmful traditional practices…

July 3, 2014
Development partners gather in The Gambia for an information seminar on integrated development efforts in the Upper River Region
On June 19, 2014, Tostan Gambia, in partnership with UNICEF and the National Women’s Bureau of The Gambia, organized a day long information seminar to talk about Tostan’s Community Empowerment Program (CEP), to development partners in the Upper River Region (URR), The Gambia. The seminar was held at the Regional Education Directorate Conference Hall in Basse, Mansajang Kunda….

Tostan @Tostan • Jul 10
Our July Newsletter features: #AfricanChildDay & collaborative success w/ partner communities http://bit.ly/1jtZ5Fb

Tostan @Tostan • Jul 3
Find out how Tostan & partners in #TheGambia are planning on an integrated dev. approach in the Upper River Region http://bit.ly/1lWFjkC

Women for Women International [to 12 July 2014]

Women for Women Intl @WomenforWomen • Jul 10
Our #WfWI #DRC Country Director discusses how men are part of the solution to ending #VAW. http://ow.ly/yYvCV

Q&A with Tony Gambino, Interim CEO
by Women for Women International
July 7, 2014
This spring, Women for Women International’s board member and program committee chair Tony Gambino began his service as the Interim Chief Executive Officer. With many years of experience working across the developing world, including serving as USAID Mission Director to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tony brings first-hand knowledge overseeing development programs in conflict-affected regions….

Women for Women Intl @WomenforWomen • Jul 5
Founder of #WfWI .@ZainabSalbi offers unique insight into the humanitarian crisis in #Iraq with .@ajam http://ow.ly/yMRxG