Global Health: Science and Practice (GHSP)
June 2015 | Volume 3 | Issue 2
http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/current

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COMMENTARIES
Leveraging the Power of Knowledge Management to Transform Global Health and Development
Good knowledge is essential to prevent disease and improve health. Knowledge management (KM) provides a systematic process and tools to promote access to and use of knowledge among health and development practitioners to improve health and development outcomes. KM tools range from publications and resources (briefs, articles, job aids) and products and services (websites, eLearning courses, mobile applications), to training and events (workshops, webinars, meetings) and approaches and techniques (peer assists, coaching, after-action reviews, knowledge cafés).
Tara M Sullivan, Rupali J Limaye, Vanessa Mitchell, Margaret D’Adamo, Zachary Baquet
Glob Health Sci Pract 2015;3(2):150-162. First published online April 27, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.9745/GHSP-D-14-00228

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How Can We Better Evaluate Complex Global Health Initiatives? Reflections From the January 2014 Institute of Medicine Workshop
An IOM workshop on evaluation design drew on recent evaluations of 4 complex initiatives (PEPFAR; the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria; the President’s Malaria Initiative; and the Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria). Key components for good evaluations: (1) a robust theory of change to understand how and why programs should work; (2) use of multiple analytic methods; and (3) triangulation of evidence to validate and deepen understanding of results as well as synthesis of findings to identify lessons for scale-up or broader application.
Sangeeta Mookherji, Kate Meck
Glob Health Sci Pract 2015;3(2):174-179. First published online May 20, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.9745/GHSP-D-14-00184

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Establishing and Scaling-Up Clinical Social Franchise Networks: Lessons Learned From Marie Stopes International and Population Services International
Sarah Thurstona, Nirali M Chakrabortyb, Brendan Hayesc, Anna Mackayc, Pierre Moonb
Family planning social franchising has succeeded in countries with an active private sector serving low- and middle-income clients, with services provided mostly by mid-level providers, such as nurses and midwives. Key support for social franchising includes: clinical training and supportive supervision, help building sustainable businesses, marketing and demand creation, and mechanisms to make services affordable for clients. The forward agenda includes selectively introducing other priority health services, improving cost-effectiveness of the model, and promoting sustainability and health systems integration.
Abstract
In many low- and middle-income countries, a majority of people seek health care from the private sector. However, fragmentation, poor economies of scale, inadequate financing, political opposition, a bias toward curative services, and weak regulatory and quality control systems pose serious challenges for the private sector. Social franchising addresses a number of these challenges by organizing small, independent health care businesses into quality-assured networks. Global franchisors Marie Stopes International (MSI) and Population Services International (PSI) have rapidly scaled their family planning social franchising programs in recent years, jointly delivering over 10.8 million couple-years of protection (CYPs) in 2014—up 26% from 8.6 million CYPs just 1 year prior. Drawing on experience across MSI’s 17 and PSI’s 25 social franchise networks across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, this article documents the organizations’ operational approaches, challenges faced, and solutions implemented. The organizations provide intensive capacity building and support for private-sector providers, including clinical training, branding, monitoring quality of franchised services, and commodity support. In addition, franchising programs engage providers and clients through behavior change communication (BCC) and demand generation activities to raise awareness and to attract clients, and they implement initiatives to ensure services are affordable for the lowest-income clients. Social franchise programs offer the private sector a collective platform to better engage government in health policy advocacy and for integrating into new public health care financing and procurement mechanisms. The future of social franchising will require developing approaches to scale-up and sustain the model cost-effectively, selectively integrating other health services into the franchise package, and being responsive to evolving health care financing approaches with the potential to contribute to universal health coverage

Health Policy and Planning
July 2015 30 (6)
http://heapol.oxfordjournals.org/content/current

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Applying lessons learned from the USAID family planning graduation experience to the GAVI graduation process
Angela K Shen*,1,2, Marguerite M Farrell3, Mary F Vandenbroucke4, Elizabeth Fox5 and Ariel Pablos-Mendez1
Author Affiliations
1Bureau for Global Health, US Agency for International Development, Washington, DC, USA, 2US Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC, USA, 3Office of Population and Reproductive Health, US Agency for International Development, Washington, DC, USA, 4Office of Country Support, US Agency for International Development, Washington, DC, USA and 5Office of Health Infectious Disease and Nutrition, US Agency for International Development, Washington, DC, USA
Abstract
As low income countries experience economic transition, characterized by rapid economic growth and increased government spending potential in health, they have increased fiscal space to support and sustain more of their own health programmes, decreasing need for donor development assistance. Phase out of external funds should be systematic and efforts towards this end should concentrate on government commitments towards country ownership and self-sustainability. The 2006 US Agency for International Development (USAID) family planning (FP) graduation strategy is one such example of a systematic phase-out approach. Triggers for graduation were based on pre-determined criteria and programme indicators. In 2011 the GAVI Alliance (formerly the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations) which primarily supports financing of new vaccines, established a graduation policy process. Countries whose gross national income per capita exceeds $1570 incrementally increase their co-financing of new vaccines over a 5-year period until they are no longer eligible to apply for new GAVI funding, although previously awarded support will continue. This article compares and contrasts the USAID and GAVI processes to apply lessons learned from the USAID FP graduation experience to the GAVI process. The findings of the review are 3-fold: (1) FP graduation plans served an important purpose by focusing on strategic needs across six graduation plan foci, facilitating graduation with pre-determined financial and technical benchmarks, (2) USAID sought to assure contraceptive security prior to graduation, phasing out of contraceptive donations first before phasing out from technical assistance in other programme areas and (3) USAID sought to sustain political support to assure financing of products and programmes continue after graduation. Improving sustainability more broadly beyond vaccine financing provides a more comprehensive approach to graduation. The USAID FP experience provides a window into understanding one approach to graduation from donor assistance. The process itself—involving transparent country-level partners well in advance of graduation—appears a valuable lesson towards success.

Health Policy and Planning
July 2015 30 (6)
http://heapol.oxfordjournals.org/content/current

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Ten best resources on conditional cash transfers
Caroline Marshall* and Peter S Hill
Author Affiliations
School of Population Health, University of Queensland, QLD 4006, Australia
Abstract
The world’s economy is in a fragile state. Although cautiously recovering from a global recession, unemployment rates and poverty levels remain high. At the same time, food and fuel crises have resulted in skyrocketing commodity costs, straining household budgets even further than before. In the wake of these financial pressure points, there has been increased focus on social safety net programmes. More recently, Brazil’s ‘Bolsa Familia’ conditional cash transfer (CCT) programme has celebrated its tenth-year anniversary, renewing focus on this particular aspect of social transfer programmes. This essay examines one particular aspect of these social safety net programmes: CCTs. CCT programmes are useful social programmes that have had demonstrable effects on many different populations. However, they are not a ‘magic bullet’ against poverty, and their image has suffered from unreasonable expectations of their impacts. This 10 best list is an ideal starting point from which a potential user can begin to understand CCTs. There remain significant gaps in the literature behind CCTs, with a particular need for much more research on emerging areas such as impacts on gender, long-term school and health outcomes, methods for increasing efficiency and adapting conditionalities within cultural contexts, among others. However, this list can function as a starting point from which the reader can gain an understanding and appreciation for what we believe to be one of the most innovative social programmes for addressing poverty worldwide.

JAMA
June 16, 2015, Vol 313, No. 23
http://jama.jamanetwork.com/issue.aspx

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Scientific Discovery and the Future of Medicine
Science, Medicine, and Society: A View From the Wellcome Trust
Jeremy Farrar, FRS, FRCP, FMedSci, OBE

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Editorial | June 16, 2015
Development Assistance for Health Potential Contribution to the Post-2015 Agenda
Andy Haines, MD, MB, BS1
Author Affiliations
JAMA. 2015;313(23):2328-2330. doi:10.1001/jama.2015.5790.
Despite economic growth in low-income countries, the internal resources available to some governments will be inadequate to support the delivery of health care to their populations for years to come.1 Approximately 150 million people worldwide experience catastrophic expenditure annually to cover out-of-pocket payments for health.1 Despite substantial progress, 6.6 million children who were younger than 5 years died in 2012 and a quarter of all children younger than 5 years were stunted (having an inadequate height or length for age).2 Almost 300 000 women died in 2013 of causes related to pregnancy and childbirth.2 Against this background, the study by Dieleman and colleagues3 in this issue of JAMA makes a substantial contribution to the current understanding of the flow of development assistance for health (DAH) and how these resources can contribute to the achievement of international health goals…

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Special Communication | June 16, 2015
Sources and Focus of Health Development Assistance, 1990–2014
Joseph L. Dieleman, PhD1; Casey Graves, BA1; Elizabeth Johnson, BA1; Tara Templin, BA1; Maxwell Birger, BS1; Hannah Hamavid, BA1; Michael Freeman, MPH2; Katherine Leach-Kemon, MPH1; Lavanya Singh, BS1; Annie Haakenstad, MA1; Christopher J. L. Murray, MD1
Author Affiliations
JAMA. 2015;313(23):2359-2368. doi:10.1001/jama.2015.5825
Abstract
Importance
The governments of high-income countries and private organizations provide billions of dollars to developing countries for health. This type of development assistance can have a critical role in ensuring that life-saving health interventions reach populations in need.
Objectives
To identify the amount of development assistance that countries and organizations provided for health and to determine the health areas that received these funds.
Evidence Review Budget, revenue, and expenditure data on the primary agencies and organizations (n = 38) that provided resources to developing countries (n = 146-183, depending on the year) for health from 1990 through 2014 were collected. For each channel (the international agency or organization that directed the resources toward the implementing institution or government), the source and recipient of the development assistance were determined and redundant accounting of the same dollar, which occurs when channels transfer funds among each other, was removed. This research derived the flow of resources from source to intermediary channel to recipient. Development assistance for health (DAH) was divided into 11 mutually exclusive health focus areas, such that every dollar of development assistance was assigned only 1 health focus area.
Findings
Since 1990, $458.0 billion of development assistance has been provided to maintain or improve health in developing countries. The largest source of funding was the US government, which provided $143.1 billion between 1990 and 2014, including $12.4 billion in 2014. Of resources that originated with the US government, 70.6% were provided through US government agencies, and 41.0% were allocated for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS. The second largest source of development assistance for health was private philanthropic donors, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other private foundations, which provided $69.9 billion between 1990 and 2014, including $6.2 billion in 2014. These resources were provided primarily through private foundations and nongovernmental organizations and were allocated for a diverse set of health focus areas. Since 1990, 28.0% of all DAH was allocated for maternal health and newborn and child health; 23.2% for HIV/AIDS, 4.3% for malaria, 2.8% for tuberculosis, and 1.5% for noncommunicable diseases. Between 2000 and 2010, DAH increased 11.3% annually. However, since 2010, total DAH has not increased as substantially.
Conclusions and Relevance
Funding for health in developing countries has increased substantially since 1990, with a focus on HIV/AIDS, maternal health, and newborn and child health. Funding from the US government has played a substantial role in this expansion. Funding for noncommunicable diseases has been limited. Understanding how funding patterns have changed across time and the priorities of sources of international funding across distinct channels, recipients, and health focus areas may help identify where funding gaps persist and where cost-effective interventions could save lives.

Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies
Volume 13, Issue 2, 2015
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/wimm20/current#.VQS0KOFnBhW

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Special Issue: Implementing Human Rights: Civil Society and Migration Policies
NGOs and Health Services for Irregular Immigrants in Italy: When the Protection of Human Rights Challenges the Laws
Maurizio Ambrosini
pages 116-134
DOI:10.1080/15562948.2015.1017631
Published online: 17 Jun 2015

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The Integration of Forced Migrants Into the Italian Labor Market
Livia Elisa Ortensi
pages 179-199
DOI:10.1080/15562948.2014.907952
Published online: 17 Jun 2015

The Lancet
Jun 20, 2015 Volume 385 Number 9986 p2433-2546
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current

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Editorial
The G7 and global health: inaction or incisive leadership?
The Lancet
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)61121-7
Preview
“They came, they met, and nothing happened.” So was the conclusion of James Rubin, former US Assistant Secretary of State. A harsh, but many might say fair, statement about the recent G7 meeting held in Germany. A few days before the start of the Summit, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon set the scene for leaders: “When they meet at the Schloss Elmau Summit in Germany on June 7–8, G7 leaders can show they are serious about seizing the moment and protecting people and the planet.” He was right to suggest that as the international community prepares to adopt a new sustainable development agenda in New York in September, together with a new climate treaty in Paris in December, G7 countries have “a special responsibility to lead”.

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Comment
Capacity for science in sub-Saharan Africa
Alison Elliott, Barbara Nerima, Bernard Bagaya, Andrew Kambugu, Moses Joloba, Stephen Cose, Guiseppe Pantaleo, Maria Yazdanbakhsh, David Mabey, David Dunne, Ashley Moffett, Eli Katunguka Rwakishaya, Pontiano Kaleebu, Edward Katongole Mbidde
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)61111-4
Preview
During the past decade there has been an increase in funding for research capacity building in Africa. Two major European programmes are at a turning point: the Wellcome Trust’s African Institutions Initiative is about to end, while their new initiative, DELTAS Africa,1 will be launched later this year. The European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) is ending, superseded by Horizon 2020,2 with the transition of some research areas that are important to Africa into the expanded second phase of the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership.

PLoS Medicine
http://www.plosmedicine.org/
(Accessed 20 June 2015)

.Collection Review
HIV Programs for Sex Workers: Lessons and Challenges for Developing and Delivering Programs
David Wilson
Published: June 16, 2015
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001808
Featured in PLOS Collections
Abstract
There is evidence that HIV prevention programs for sex workers, especially female sex workers, are cost-effective in several contexts, including many western countries, Thailand, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. The evidence that sex worker HIV prevention programs work must not inspire complacency but rather a renewed effort to expand, intensify, and maximize their impact. The PLOS Collection “Focus on Delivery and Scale: Achieving HIV Impact with Sex Workers” highlights major challenges to scaling-up sex worker HIV prevention programs, noting the following: sex worker HIV prevention programs are insufficiently guided by understanding of epidemic transmission dynamics, situation analyses, and programmatic mapping; sex worker HIV and sexually transmitted infection services receive limited domestic financing in many countries; many sex worker HIV prevention programs are inadequately codified to ensure consistency and quality; and many sex worker HIV prevention programs have not evolved adequately to address informal sex workers, male and transgender sex workers, and mobile- and internet-based sex workers. Based on the wider collection of papers, this article presents three major clusters of recommendations: (i) HIV programs focused on sex workers should be prioritized, developed, and implemented based on robust evidence; (ii) national political will and increased funding are needed to increase coverage of effective sex worker HIV prevention programs in low and middle income countries; and (iii) comprehensive, integrated, and rapidly evolving HIV programs are needed to ensure equitable access to health services for individuals involved in all forms of sex work.

PLoS Medicine
http://www.plosmedicine.org/
(Accessed 20 June 2015)

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Policy Forum
Maximizing the Impact of Training Initiatives for Health Professionals in Low-Income Countries: Frameworks, Challenges, and Best Practices
Corrado Cancedda, Paul E. Farmer, Vanessa Kerry, Tej Nuthulaganti, Kirstin W. Scott, Eric Goosby, Agnes Binagwaho
June 16, 2015
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001840
Summary Points
:: Historically, the impact of many health professional training initiatives in low-income countries has been limited by narrow focus on a small set of diseases, inefficient utilization of donor funding, inadequate scale up, insufficient emphasis on the acquisition of practical skills, poor alignment with local priorities, and lack of coordination.
:: Fortunately, several innovative training initiatives have emerged over the past five years in sub-Saharan Africa. This articles focuses on four initiatives funded by the United States government: the Medical Education Training Partnership Initiative (MEPI), the Nursing Training Partnership Initiative (NEPI), the Rwanda Human Resources for Health Program (HRH Program), and the Global Health Service Partnership (GHSP).
:: The best practices adopted by these initiatives are: alignment to local priorities, country ownership, competency-based training, institutional capacity building, and the establishment of long-lasting partnerships with international stakeholders,
:: Based on these best practices, we outline a framework for health professional training initiatives that can help better address the health workforce shortage in low-income countries.

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
http://www.plosntds.org/
(Accessed 20 June 2015)

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Research Article
Acceptability and Willingness-to-Pay for a Hypothetical Ebola Virus Vaccine in Nigeria
Maduka Donatus Ughasoro, Dorothy Omono Esangbedo, Beckie Nnenna Tagbo, Ijeoma Chigozie Mejeha
Published: June 15, 2015
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003838
Abstract
Background
Ebola virus disease is a highly virulent and transmissible disease. The largest recorded fatality from Ebola virus disease epidemic is ongoing in a few countries in West Africa, and this poses a health risk to the entire population of the world because arresting the transmission has been challenging. Vaccination is considered a key intervention that is capable of arresting further spread of the disease and preventing future outbreak. However, no vaccine has yet been approved for public use, although various recombinant vaccines are undergoing trials and approval for public use is imminent. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the acceptability of and willingness-to-pay for Ebola virus vaccine by the public.
Methods
The study was a community-based cross-sectional qualitative and quantitative interventional study conducted in two communities, each in two states in Nigeria. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect information on respondents’ knowledge of the Ebola virus, the ways to prevent the disease, and their preventive practices, as well as their acceptability of and willingness-to-pay for a hypothetical vaccine against Ebola virus disease. The association between acceptability of the vaccine and other independent variables were evaluated using multivariate regression analysis.
Results
Ebola virus disease was considered to be a very serious disease by 38.5% of the 582 respondents (224/582), prior to receiving health education on Ebola virus and its vaccine. Eighty percent (80%) accepted to be vaccinated with Ebola vaccine. However, among those that accepted to be vaccinated, most would only accept after observing the outcome on others who have received the vaccine. More than 87.5% was willing to pay for the vaccine, although 55.2% was of the opinion that the vaccine should be provided free of charge.
Conclusion
The level of acceptability of Ebola virus vaccine among respondents was impressive (though conditional), as well as their willingness to pay for it if the vaccine is not publicly funded. In order to achieve a high uptake of the vaccine, information and education on the vaccine should be extensively shared with the public prior to the introduction of the vaccine, and the vaccine should be provided free of charge by government.
Author Summary
Ebola virus disease (EVD) is highly virulent and transmissible. The transmission is mostly by direct contact with an infected person or indirectly through contact with material contaminated with the secretions or body fluids of an infected person. Currently there is no vaccine or drug for EVD. Maintaining good personal and environmental hygiene remains the only control strategy, and its implementation was a challenge in West Africa countries. Ebola virus vaccine (EVV) is being developed and may soon be deployed; thus a need to evaluate factors that can improve or discourage the uptake of the vaccine when it becomes approved for public administration. This study highlights the acceptability and willingness-to-pay for EVV. Majority of the respondents were willing to accept the vaccine and pay for it if it is not publicly funded. Of interest was that among those that accepted to be vaccinated, most would only accept to do so after they had observed the outcome on others that had received the vaccine. There is need for early dissemination of correct information and education on EVV to the populace so as to prevent any misinformation and misperception about the vaccine. This will improve universal coverage with the vaccine when deployed.

Sustainability
Volume 7, Issue 5 (May 2015), Pages 4783-6335
http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/7/4

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Article: Assessing Child Development: A Critical Review and the Sustainable Child Development Index (SCDI)
by Ya-Ju Chang, Laura Schneider and Matthias Finkbeiner
Sustainability 2015, 7(5), 4973-4996; doi:10.3390/su7054973
Received: 26 January 2015 / Revised: 13 April 2015 / Accepted: 21 April 2015 / Published: 24 April 2015
Abstract:
Children are an important stakeholder group for sustainable development, as they represent the interface between current and future generations. A comprehensive assessment of child development (CD) in the context of sustainable development is still missing. In this paper, as a first step, a literature review is conducted to identify relevant aspects and gaps related to the assessment of CD. The main issues of CD are categorized into seven themes: health, education, safety, economic status, relationships, participation, and newly proposed environmental aspects. The corresponding subthemes and criteria are classified accordingly (e.g., nutrition, child mortality, immunization, etc., are assigned to the theme health). However, gaps in current studies, such as the heterogeneous classification of relevant aspects, regional and societal bias in addressing certain aspects, the limited number of subthemes, and criteria and the missing inclusion of environmental aspects impede the assessment of sustainable child development. To address the existing gaps, a comprehensive framework, the Sustainable Child Development Index (SCDI), is proposed. The SCDI is based on sustainable development as the core value, considers relevant aspects of CD with regard to newly-proposed environmental aspects and includes 26 aspects on an outcome and 37 indicators on a context level to tackle the heterogeneous classifications and interdependencies of relevant aspects. The proposed index intends to strengthen the stakeholder perspective of children in sustainability assessment.

The Sentinel

Human Rights Action :: Humanitarian Response :: Health ::
Holistic Development :: Sustainable Resilience
__________________________________________________
Week ending 13 June 2015

This weekly digest is intended to aggregate and distill key content from a broad spectrum of practice domains and organization types including key agencies/IGOs, NGOs, governments, academic and research institutions, consortia and collaborations, foundations, and commercial organizations. We also monitor a spectrum of peer-reviewed journals and general media channels. The Sentinel’s geographic scope is global/regional but selected country-level content is included. We recognize that this spectrum/scope yields an indicative and not an exhaustive product. Comments and suggestions should be directed to:

David R. Curry
Editor &
Founding Managing Director
GE2P2 – Center for Governance, Evidence, Ethics, Policy, Practice
david.r.curry@ge2p2center.net

pdf version: The Sentinel_ week ending 13 June 2015

blog edition: comprised of the 35+ entries to be posted below on 14 June 2015

earlier pdf editions archived here

Annual Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conflict
UN General Assembly / Security Council
A/69/926–S/2015/409
5 June 2015 :: 51 pages
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/69/926&Lang=E&Area=UNDOC

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[Excerpt]
II. Addressing the impact of armed conflict on children
A. Trends and developments
5. There were unprecedented challenges in 2014 with regard to the protection of tens of millions of children growing up in situations affected by conflict. In particular, children in several countries affected by major crises, namely, the Central African Republic, Iraq, Israel/State of Palestine, Nigeria, South Sudan and the Syrian Arab Republic, were exposed to the most egregious violations. This added to existing violations against children in protracted conflicts, such as in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Somalia. Most recently, the security situation in Yemen deteriorated further with reports, in April 2015, of significant numbers of child casualties.
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B. Abductions as an increasing trend
6. Mass abductions of civilians, including children, have become an increasingly prevalent feature of conflict in many situations described in the present report. The abduction of children had primarily been a precursor to other violations, such as killing and maiming, recruitment and use, or sexual violence. In many instances, abducted children were also arbitrarily detained by Governments and armed groups. While these trends continued in 2014, armed groups abducted children in greater numbers and increasingly used abductions as a tactic to terrorize or target particular ethnic groups or religious communities.
7. In Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic, over one thousand girls and boys were abducted by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). In one incident in the Syrian Arab Republic, ISIL abducted approximately 150 young boys on their way home from having taken school exams in Aleppo. They were released from captivity after a few months, during which they were physically abused, indoctrinated and made to observe violent practices. Towards the end of the year, ISIL issued a document justifying its sexual slavery of Yezidi girls abducted in Iraq. In Nigeria, Boko Haram abducted hundreds of women and girls in major attacks in Chibok and across the country’s north-eastern region. Video statements released by Boko Haram indicated that the abductions were in retaliation against the Government for the detention of relatives and served as punishment for schoolchildren attending Western-style schools.
8. The information contained in the present report demonstrates that the increase in the frequency and scale of abductions has resulted in greater protection needs for children. The children require safe release, family tracing, medical, psychological and legal assistance…

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Press Release
Abductions of children pose alarming new trend: Secretary-General’s Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict
11 Jun 2015
New York – Mass abductions of children and other civilians have become increasingly prevalent in many of the 23 conflict situations of 2014 that are highlighted in the Annual Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conflict, released today.

“Abductions have emerged as a rising and alarming trend that are being used in many new ways, including as a tactic to terrorize or target particular ethnic groups or religious communities,” said the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Leila Zerrougui.

“The sharp rise in abductions highlights the need for us to elevate our focus on this violation as we seek to strengthen the tools we have that are aimed at protecting children during armed conflict.”…

World Report on Child Labour 2015: Paving the way to decent work for young people
International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC)
10 June 2015 :: 112 pages
978‐92‐2‐129689‐8[ISBN]
http://www.ilo.org/ipecinfo/product/download.do?type=document&id=26977

The second volume of the ILO World Report on Child Labour series highlights the close linkages between child labour and good youth employment outcomes, and the consequent need for common policy approaches to addressing challenges arising in countries where both child labour and youth unemployment prevail.
:: Download the Report
:: Download the Executive Summary
Abstract
The Report presents empirical evidence of how child labour combined with limited education can lead to increased youth vulnerability and greater difficulties in transiting to good jobs. This evidence includes results from the ILO School-to-Work Transition Survey (SWTS) programme, an unprecedented data collection effort allowing the analysis of the trajectories followed by youth to enter the world of work in a total of 28 low- and middle-income countries around the world. The Report also reviews evidence of how the child labour-youth employment link can operate in the opposite direction, i.e., of how the difficulties faced by youth in the labour market can make personal investment in education less attractive as an alternative to child labour earlier in the lifecycle.

Hazardous work among adolescents aged 15 to 17 years is a third focus of the Report. Individuals in this critical age group, who are above the minimum working age in most countries but at the same time are still legally children, overlap the child labour and youth employment fields. Evidence is presented indicating that an alarming share of working adolescents aged 15 to 17 years are in hazardous work and therefore are child labourers.

Taken together, the evidence presented in the Report makes a strong case that the challenge of finding decent work during youth cannot be separated from the challenge of eliminating child labour earlier in the life cycle. Eliminating child labour, in other words, is a key policy goal in itself and a necessary starting point for achieving decent work for all.

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Press Release
World Day Against Child Labour 2015
New ILO study points to the long-term impact of child labour
New ILO report shows the need for coherent policies tackling child labour and the lack of decent jobs for youth together.

News | Geneva/Dhaka | 11 June 2015
Around 20 to 30 per cent of children in low income countries complete their schooling and enter the labour market by the age of 15, says a new International Labour Organization (ILO) report prepared for World Day against Child Labour. Most of these children were in child labour before.

The World Report on Child Labour 2015: Paving the way to decent work for young people shows that young persons who were burdened by work as children are consistently more likely to have to settle for unpaid family jobs and are more likely to be in low paying jobs.

“Our new report shows the need for a coherent policy approach that tackles child labour and the lack of decent jobs for youth together. Keeping children in school and receiving a good education until at least the minimum age of employment will determine the whole life of a child. It is the only way for a child to acquire the basic knowledge and skills needed for further learning, and for her or his future working life,” ILO Director-General Guy Ryder said.

To take up this challenge, 2014 Nobel Peace Prize co-Laureate Kailash Satyarthi who will address the ILO’s International Labour Conference on 11 June , calls for a change of mindsets: “When we consider our biological children, we think that they are born to become doctors, engineers, and professors – the whole world is for them. But when we talk about other children, we think, ok, they are poor children, let them work, we will slowly help them. Let us consider all children our children.”

Main findings
The report addresses the twin challenges of eliminating child labour and ensuring decent work for young people. Based on a 12 country survey, it examines the future careers of former child labourers and early school leavers.

The main findings of the report are that:
:: Prior involvement in child labour is associated with lower educational attainment, and later in life with jobs that fail to meet basic decent work criteria;
:: Early school leavers are less likely to secure stable jobs and are at greater risk of remaining outside the world of work altogether;
:: A high share of 15-17 year olds in many countries are in jobs that have been classified as hazardous or worst forms of child labour; and
:: Those in hazardous work are more likely to have left school early before reaching the legal minimum age of employment.

The report recommends early interventions to get children out of child labour and into school as well as measures to facilitate the transition from school to decent work opportunities for young people.

Particular attention should be given to the 47.5 million young people aged 15-17 in hazardous work and the special vulnerabilities of girls and young women.

“National policies should be directed towards removing children and young people from hazardous jobs and, of course, towards removing the hazards in the workplace,” Ryder said.

The ILO’s most recent estimate is that 168 million children are in child labour, with 120 million of them aged 5-14. The report underscores the critical importance of intervening early in the life cycle against child labour…

Reports of the Committee on the Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy: Summary of proceedings
International Labour Conference
ILO Provisional Record No.10-2 :: 70 pages
104th Session, Geneva, June 2015
http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/—ed_norm/—relconf/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_375370.pdf

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Press Release
ILO adopts historic labour standard to tackle the informal economy
104th International Labour Conference
“It is not just the adoption of this Recommendation, it’s actually putting it into practice that will matter,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.

News | 12 June 2015
GENEVA (ILO News) – The International Labour Organization (ILO) has adopted a new international labour standard that is expected to help hundreds of millions of workers and economic units move out of informality and into the formal economy.

More than half of the world’s workforce is estimated to be trapped in the informal economy , which is marked by the denial of rights at work, the absence of sufficient opportunities for quality employment, inadequate social protection, a lack of social dialogue and low productivity, all of which constitutes a significant obstacle to the development of sustainable enterprises.

The new Recommendation acknowledges that most people enter the informal economy not by choice but due to a lack of opportunities in the formal economy and an absence of any other means of livelihood.

The Recommendation – the first ever international labour standard specifically aimed at tackling the informal economy – was passed by 484 votes in favour and garnered outstanding support from the ILO’s tripartite constituents.

The new labour standard provides strategies and practical guidance on policies and measures that can facilitate the transition from the informal to the formal economy.

The vote by the International Labour Conference is seen as a crucial step in assisting countries to set up the necessary measures to promote decent job creation and sustainable enterprises in the formal economy…

…The Recommendation is of great significance for all those who are concerned with inclusive development, poverty eradication, reducing inequalities and who are looking forward to a strong focus on the goal of decent work for all in the context of the new post-2015 development agenda.

Objectives
The new international standard provides guidance for member States to:
:: facilitate the transition of workers and economic units from the informal to the formal economy, while respecting workers’ fundamental rights and ensuring opportunities for income security, livelihoods and entrepreneurship.
:: promote the creation, preservation and sustainability of enterprises and decent jobs in the formal economy and the coherence of macroeconomic, employment, social protection and other social policies, and
:: prevent the informalization of formal economy jobs.

The Recommendation gives guidance for action in the form of 12 guiding principles. Countries’ successful experiences formed the best practices that shaped the Recommendation, which accommodates diverse national situations and provides multiple approaches but remains universally relevant.

The extent of informality
The adoption of this Recommendation constitutes a historic landmark event for the world of work, as it points to the desired direction of many countries in making the transition to formality. It provides concrete guidance about the multiple pathways to achieve decent work and to respect, promote and realize the fundamental principles and rights at work for those in the informal economy…

…Depending on the developing region, between 45 and 90 per cent of workers are in the informal economy. As concerns small and medium enterprises with 10 to 250 employees, as many as 90 per cent are informal.

The share of women in informal employment is higher than men in most countries, and other vulnerable populations, such as youth, ethnic minorities, migrants, older people and the disabled are also disproportionally present in informality.

The adoption of the Recommendation came as the ILC is gearing to close its 104th session, where once again government, employer and worker representatives have worked together to discuss and move forward on key world of work issues.

USAID, World Bank, WHO, Countries and Partners Align on New Way Forward to Measure Impact of Country Health Programs
PRESS RELEASE
June 9, 2015
Global Health Leaders Unveil and Adopt Roadmap and 5-Point Call to Action

WASHINGTON, June 9, 2015—The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), World Bank Group, World Health Organization (WHO), and countries and partners are coming together today at the World Bank Group for a high-level summit, Measurement and Accountability for Results in Health, to examine and advance a common agenda for health measurement as we move into the post-2015 development era.

“Accurate and timely health data are the foundation to improving public health. Without reliable information to set priorities and measure results, countries and their development partners are working in the dark,” said Margaret Chan, Director-General of WHO. “Investing in measurement is an investment in health and countries that build and strengthen local capacity are better positioned to achieve greater long-term success and better health outcomes.”

Dozens of global health leaders from governments, multilaterals, academia, research institutions and civil society will endorse The Roadmap for Health Measurement and Accountability and a 5-Point Call to Action, which outline a shared strategic approach and priority actions and targets that countries and development partners can use to put effective health monitoring plans in place to strengthen health information systems.

“If we are going to ensure that people everywhere have access to quality health care, and that no one is impoverished paying for the health care they need, we need to invest in high-quality, timely, and accurate data and statistics so that countries can measure and monitor their progress,” said Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group. “Today’s investments in country health information systems will lead to a better tomorrow for billions of people.”
Supporting countries to achieve their health-related Sustainable Development Goals over the next 15 years and aligning partner and donors around common priorities are at the center of the Roadmap and 5-Point Call to Action.

“With the end of the Millennium Development Goals and advent of the Sustainable Development Goals, we are at a key moment to shape the future of international development—and that includes improving health,” said Alfonso Lenhardt, Acting Administrator of USAID. “Countries need to build and further strengthen their capacity in health so they can meet the growing demands for reliable and timely data required for effective measurement of health programs.”
The Roadmap outlines smart investments and proposes concrete actions and targets that countries can adopt to build local capacities, including strengthening basic measurement systems essential to successfully planning, managing and measuring their health programs. The 5-Point Call to Action provides concrete targets for increasing investments, strengthening institutional capacity, using data more effectively, sharing and standardizing data openly, and promoting accountability and transparency.

Panelists at the summit will represent a broad array of high-level global health leaders, country representatives and development partners, and will discuss issues related to building country capacity and demand for health data, including topics such as data revolution and the importance of country and global accountability.

The Roadmap and 5-Point Call to Action are available at: http://live.worldbank.org/measurement-and-accountability-for-results-in-health-summit. More information is available at: http://ma4health.hsaccess.org/home

USAID Announces New Partnership to Boost Climate Resilience in the Developing World
June 9, 2015
Today, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced the launch of a new public-private partnership, Climate Services for Resilient Development. The partnership aims to develop new tools, services, and approaches that bridge technology and organizational gaps in order to strengthen climate resilience to populations around the world. USAID has committed $10 million towards the partnership, with the total financial and in-kind contributions at $34 million by the founding- partners institutions: USAID (leveraging NOAA, NASA, and other U.S. agencies), UK Government (Department for International Development, and UK Met Office), Inter-American Development Bank ,Asian Development Bank, Esri, Google, American Red Cross, and Skoll Global Threats Fund.

CHS Alliance
http://chsalliance.org/news-events/news

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The CHS Alliance launches
09/06/2015
Improving quality, accountability and people management: HAP and People In Aid merger concluding with the launch of the CHS Alliance

Bringing together more than two decades of experience in quality, accountability and people management, the CHS Alliance will form one of the largest and most influential networks in the humanitarian and development sector. It will be a truly global enterprise, with a membership of more than 200 organisations headquartered in 55 capitals and operating in more than 160 countries worldwide. The Alliance will benefit from the reputations, legacies and successful working practices of HAP International and People In Aid, the two organisations which merged to form the Alliance.

The Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability (CHS) is at the heart of the work of the CHS Alliance. The Alliance intends to establish the standard as a common reference framework for all actors who put communities and people affected by disaster, conflict or poverty at the centre of their work. Chair of the Alliance, Robert Glasser said that: “Given the broad consensus on the content of the CHS, we are proposing that this Standard be endorsed at the World Humanitarian Summit as a key framework to orient, assess and measure the quality, effectiveness and accountability of humanitarian assistance.” The CHS Alliance will continue to work with colleagues in the Sphere Project and Groupe URD and other stakeholders to support the widespread uptake of the CHS…

…HAP and People In Aid have extensive expertise in the provision of services to members and partners in the humanitarian and development sectors. They have found that a mix of policy support, technical assistance, training and other capacity strengthening initiatives works best to meet the needs of individuals and diverse organisations. The Alliance will provide technical assistance and capacity strengthening in their three key areas of quality, accountability and people management. The Humanitarian Certification Initiative, an independent auditing body that will be launched in the coming months, will offer certification and external verification against the CHS.

From the moment of its launch as a Swiss Association on the 9 June 2015 in Nairobi, Kenya, the CHS Alliance will have a staff presence in Bogota, Geneva, London, Madrid, Nairobi and Yangon, and a governing board comprised of representatives from leaders in the humanitarian and development sectors worldwide.

At the launch event, the Chair, Robert Glasser, announced the appointment of Judith F. Greenwood as the incoming Executive Director of the CHS Alliance. Judith, an Irish National, will take up her position on 24 August 2015. She is currently head of the people management programme at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Geneva. She joined the ICRC in 2002 and has held senior management positions in Geneva and around the world, having previously worked with Concern Worldwide and the International Rescue Committee…

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CHS Alliance launch provokes debate on the future of quality, accountability and people management in the humanitarian and development sectors
11/06/2015
Over 150 humanitarian and development leaders gathered in Nairobi on 9-10 June 2015 to celebrate the launch of the CHS Alliance. The two-day event was the culmination of a process to harmonise standards in accountability to affected populations.

EBOLA/EVD [to 13 June 2015]
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC); “Threat to international peace and security” (UN Security Council)

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WHO: Ebola Situation Report – 10 June 2015
[Excerpts]
SUMMARY
:: In recent weeks, the decline in case incidence and the contraction of the geographic area affected by Ebola virus disease (EVD) transmission that was apparent throughout April and early May has stalled. In total, 31 confirmed cases of EVD were reported in the week ending 7 June: 16 cases in Guinea and 15 in Sierra Leone. This is the second consecutive weekly increase in case incidence, and the highest weekly total number of cases reported from Sierra Leone since late March. In addition, cases were reported from a widening geographical area in Guinea and Sierra Leone, and the continued occurrence of cases that arise from unknown sources of infection highlights the challenges still faced in finding and eliminating every chain of transmission…

COUNTRIES WITH WIDESPREAD AND INTENSE TRANSMISSION
:: There have been a total of 27,237 reported confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of EVD in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone (figure 1, table 1), with 11,158 reported deaths (this total includes reported deaths among probable and suspected cases, although outcomes for many cases are unknown). A total of 16 new confirmed cases were reported in Guinea and 15 in Sierra Leone in the 7 days to 7 June. The outbreak in Liberia was declared over on 9 May…

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WHO: Over 1.3 million under five children in Sierra Leone to be vaccinated against measles and polio
FREETOWN, 5 June 2015 – The year-long Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone has had a negative impact on basic health services, especially maternal and child health, with opportunistic childhood diseases such as measles and polio continuing to challenge an already overstretched system.

So, while continuing to support the push to zero new Ebola cases, the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, in collaboration with UNICEF, WHO and other development partners, continues to work to restore basic health services – one of the Government’s priorities in the early recovery from the health emergency.

A major step forward starts today with the commencement of a six-day (5-10 June) nationwide mass measles and polio vaccination campaign for children under five years in all the districts in the country which should benefit more than 1.3 million children.

“While we laud the efforts of all the key stakeholders in this campaign and the fight against Ebola, we must not relent so as to lose focus on tackling other childhood diseases that are taking a toll on our children before they reach their fifth birthday,” said Dr Abubakarr Fofanah, Minister of Health and Sanitation.

Many children missed out on routine vaccination services due to the Ebola outbreak. Since 2014, measles outbreaks, mostly among under five children, have been reported in the country…

United Nations – Secretary General, Security Council, General Assembly  [to 13 June 2015]
http://www.un.org/en/unpress/

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Selected Press Releases/Meetings Coverage
11 June 2015
SG/A/1576-BIO/4733-REF/1208
Secretary-General Appoints Kelly T. Clements of United States Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Kelly T. Clements of the United States as Deputy High Commissioner in the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

11 June 2015
SG/SM/16838-OBV/1479
Elder Abuse Often Occurs in Quiet, Private Settings, Making Public Response More Important, Secretary-General Says in Message for Awareness Day

11 June 2015
HR/5258
Key Messages ‘Loud and Clear’ during States Parties Conference on Disabilities Convention, President Says as Session Closes amid Calls to Spotlight Issues
The Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities closed its eighth session today, adopting three decisions that laid out the terms for its ninth session, and exploring ways to overcome pervasive discrimination in the provision of everything from health care and education to employment and disaster relief.

10 June 2015
SC/11924
Peace Prospect in Sudan ‘Vain Wish in Current Context’, Peacekeeping Official Tells Security Council, Backing Disengagement Once ‘Fear and Violence’ Subside
Any exit strategy for the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) must be tied to concrete improvements in the situation of people on the ground, a top United Nations peacekeeping official told the Security Council this morning.

9 June 2015
SG/SM/16832
Secretary-General, at Maritime Meeting, Calls for Sustainable Solutions to Protect Migrants, Refugees from Human Rights Abuses
Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message to the Special Session on the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Maritime Safety Committee on Mixed Migration by Sea, held in London on 9 June.

8 June 2015
SG/A/1573-BIO/4730-ICEF/1883
Secretary-General Appoints Fatoumata Ndiaye of Senegal Deputy Executive Director of United Nations Children’s Fund
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Fatoumata Ndiaye of Senegal as Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

8 June 2015
SG/SM/16830-GA/11653-AIDS/196
Secretary-General Calls for End to AIDS by 2030, in Message to General Assembly