Organization of American States (OAS) [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_releases.asp

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April 22, 2016
Belize/Guatemala: OAS Repudiates Death of Guatemalan Minor and Will Investigate Incident
The OAS General Secretariat repudiates the death of a Guatemalan minor at the hands of a Belizean patrol, and urges both sides to redouble efforts to establish a lasting peace in the adjacency zone between the two countries.
The OAS Office in the Adjacency Zone of Belize and Guatemala will investigate the incident at the request of both governments. Once the investigation is concluded the report with its results will be delivered to both Foreign Ministries for the appropriate actions.
During the incident on April 20, in addition to the death of the minor, his father and brother were wounded by gunfire. The OAS expresses its most sincere condolences to the family…

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April 15, 2016
OAS Highlights Solidity of Democratic System of Costa Rica in February 2016 Municipal Elections

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April 15, 2016
FACT SHEET: Inter-American Program of Judicial Facilitators
:: 5.5 million citizens in the Americas have access to a judicial facilitator
:: There are more than 11,500 judicial facilitators in eight countries of the Americas: Argentina, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Paraguay.
:: The Inter-American Program of Judicial Facilitators of the OAS improves access to justice for millions of citizens of the Americas.
:: Facilitators are leaders chosen by their communities and trained by the Program that act as mediators and conciliators and ease the workload and the costs of the regular judicial process.
:: Facilitators resolve many cases quickly and at lesser cost than via the judicial path.
:: Judicial Facilitators collaborate without pay, in their free time…

Group of 77 [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.g77.org/

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(New York, 11 April 2016)
Statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China by H.E. General Surasak Karnjanarat, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of the Kingdom of Thailand, at the High-level Signature Ceremony for the Paris Agreement (New York, 22 April 2016)

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Statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China by H.E. General Surasak Karnjanarat, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of the Kingdom of Thailand, at the Plenary of the High-level Thematic Debate on Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (New York, 21 April 2016)

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Statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China by H.E. Mr. Virachai Plasai, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Thailand, at the Special Event on Promoting South-South and Triangular Cooperation on Climate Change and launch of the southern climate partnership incubator to support the SDGs (New York, 21 April 2016)

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Intervention by H.E. Mr. Virachai Plasai, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Thailand to the United Nations, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, after the adoption of intergovernmentally agreed conclusions and recommendations at the inaugural ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development follow-up (New York, 20 April 2016)

UNCTAD [to 23 April 2016]
http://unctad.org/en/Pages/AllPressRelease.aspx

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22 Apr 2016 –
Luxembourg named best place to shop online
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21 Apr 2016 –
Report: cocoa industry reform needed to stop farmers from being left behind
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19 Apr 2016 –
Data protection frameworks must be compatible with international data flows for developing countries to benefit from the global digital economy
UNCTAD/PRESS/PR/2016/010
Geneva, Switzerland, (19 April 2016)
National and regional legal frameworks that protect data in the ever-expanding digital economy are often outdated, incompatible or missing, UNCTAD has found. This will store up problems for the future integration of developing countries into the global economy and threaten the amazing benefits they could derive from cross-border e-commerce.

In a new report, Data Protection Regulations and International Data Flows: Implications for Trade and Development, UNCTAD says that coherent and compatible data protection regimes will be ever-more important in the face of new technologies such as cloud computing, big data, and the Internet of Things. More dialogue between all stakeholders is needed to achieve adequate protection, the report urges…

World Trade Organisation [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news_e.htm
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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Russian Federation ratifies Trade Facilitation Agreement
The Russian Federation has become the 77th WTO member to ratify the new Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). The Russian Federation’s Minister of Economic Development, Alexey Ulyukaev, met with Director-General Roberto Azevêdo on 22 April and presented his country’s TFA instrument of acceptance.

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India ratifies Trade Facilitation Agreement
India has ratified the new Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). India’s WTO ambassador Anjali Prasad handed over her country’s instrument of acceptance to Director-General Roberto Azevêdo on 22 April.

IPU Inter-Parliamentary Union [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.ipu.org/english/news.htm

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19 APRIL 2016
SDGs roadmap agreed by MPs from Eastern and Central Europe
MPs from seven countries and the European Parliament have pledged at a meeting in Romania to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using an inclusive approach focusing on “People, Peace, Prosperity, Planet and Partnerships”. The Central and Eastern Europe regional seminar in Bucharest on 18 and 19 April was organised by the Romanian Parliament and IPU. In a closing statement, delegates stressed the role of good governance in implementing the SDGs and urged all parliaments to make use of the new toolkit being developed by IPU to help determine whether their working processes are capable of delivering the goals…

International Criminal Court (ICC) [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.icc-cpi.int/en_menus/icc/Pages/default.aspx

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19/04/2016
ICC Permanent Premises officially opened by His Majesty King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands

World Bank [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/all
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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The World Bank and France Partner to Strengthen the Climate Resilience of West Africa’s Coasts
NEW YORK, April 21, 2016 — The World Bank and the French Ministry of Environment, Energy, and the Sea announced today a joint effort in support of West African countries to strengthen the resilience…
Date: April 21, 2016 Type: Press Release

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UN Secretary-General and World Bank Group President Appoint the Members of the High-level Panel on Water
WASHINGTON, DC, April 21, 2016 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim announced today the appointment of 10 Heads of State and Government, as well as…
Date: April 21, 2016 Type: Press Release

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Carbon Pricing Panel – Setting a Transformational Vision for 2020 and beyond
Vision Statement by the Carbon Pricing Panel: Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, President of Chile Michelle Bachelet, Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia Hailemariam Dessalegn, President…
Date: April 21, 2016 Type: Speeches and Transcripts

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Leaders Set Landmark Global Goals for Pricing Carbon Pollution
Call for faster action on carbon pricing to deliver on Paris climate change agreement
April 21, 2016 Type: Press Release
[see Week in Review above for more details]

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Vaccination Boost for Pakistan’s Children: World Bank and Partners Provide New Funding for Immunization
Washington DC, April 21, 2016—The World Bank approved today an International Development Association (IDA) credit of $50 million to increase the availability of vaccines for infectious diseases, including…
Date: April 21, 2016 Type: Press Release
[see Week in Review above for more details]

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Speech by World Bank Group Senior Vice President Mahmoud Mohieldin: Towards Transformative Economic Growth and Regional Integration in Africa
Date: April 20, 2016 Type: Speeches and Transcripts

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Boosting African Agriculture: New AGRA-World Bank Agreement to Support Farming-Led Transformation
Date: April 20, 2016 Type: Press Release

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Global Leaders Launch First-Ever Investment Framework for Nutrition and Call for Immediate Action
Additional nutrition investment of $2.2 billion/year over 10 years could save 2.2 million lives and reduce the number of stunted children by 50 million Washington, DC – Leading researchers and economists…
Date: April 18, 2016 Type: Press Release

IMF [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.imf.org/external/news/default.aspx
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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Press Release: International Organizations Take Major Step to Boost Global Cooperation in Tax Matters
April 19, 2016
[see Week in Review above for more details]

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Press Release: African Consultative Group Meeting: Statement by the Chairman of the African Caucus and the Managing Director of the IMF
April 17, 2016
Mr. Abdoulaye Bio-Tchané, Chairman of the African Caucus, and Ms. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), co-chaired the African Consultative Group meeting today at the IMF Headquarters. They issued the following statement after the conclusion of the Group’s meeting in Washington.1

“We had very productive discussions on Africa’s economic prospects, highlighting the near-term policy challenges as well as the continued opportunities. Reflecting the more difficult external economic environment and, in particular, the sharp drop in commodity prices, and tighter financial conditions, growth in Africa is projected to decline to about 3 percent in 2016, the lowest level in a long while. However, there is significant variation in growth performance across countries, with low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa continuing to grow by over 5 ½ percent.”

“We concurred that the decline in commodity prices is likely to be long lasting, as the causes seem structural rather than temporary—including the ongoing rebalancing of demand in China and, in the case of oil, technological innovation that has enhanced supply. We also recognized that non-economic shocks such as weather- and security-related challenges, are posing downside risks to Africa’s economic prospects.”

“Against this backdrop, we agreed that prompt fiscal adjustment is needed to safeguard macroeconomic stability and rebuild policy buffers across the region, especially in oil-exporting countries. We also concurred that, in pursuing these consolidation efforts, country authorities should aim at protecting priority expenditures, such as social expenditures and well-prioritized and efficient infrastructure spending, with a view to ensuring that longer term development goals remain achievable. Furthermore, we agreed that, where feasible, the exchange rate should be allowed to adjust as needed to absorb shocks and improve competitiveness, with central banks’ interventions limited to mitigating disorderly market movements…

African Development Bank Group [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.afdb.org/en/news-and-events/press-releases/
[We generally limit coverage to regional or Africa-wide initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]
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AfDB and GEF boost renewable energy projects across Africa and urban planning in Cameroon
20/04/2016 –
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) announced on April 15, 2016, the approval of USD 18 million in funding for two projects co-financed with the African Development Bank (AfDB). The first project aims at supporting African countries to shift toward renewable energy (RE) infrastructure through the preparation of RE projects, while the second seeks to help Cameroon to improve its urban planning and waste management.
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Ending malnutrition to boost the brainpower and spur economic growth in Africa
18/04/2016 –
“The greatest contributor to economic growth is not physical infrastructure, but brainpower, or ‘gray matter infrastructure’”, says Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank. Malnourished children do not feed their brains or bodies, and “stunted children today leads to stunted economies tomorrow”, he said Saturday in Washington during an event on global nutrition organised by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Asian Development Bank [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.adb.org/news/releases
[We generally limit coverage to regional or Asia-wide initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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22 April 2016
ADB, Japan to Help Chin State Communities Restore Livelihoods
ADB has approved a $10 million grant from the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction to rebuild cyclone-damaged community infrastructure and restore livelihoods in villages in Chin state, Myanmar.

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22 April 2016
ADB Lending Surges to Record High to Meet Rising Regional Demand
As ADB marks its 50th year of operations in 2016, the latest annual report, released today, shows that total operations surged to $27.17 billion in 2015—the highest in ADB’s history.

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20 April 2016
ADB Sells Dual-Tranche $2.5 Billion 2-Year and $1 Billion 10-Year Global Benchmark Bonds
ADB returned to the US dollar bond market with the pricing of a dual-tranche $2.5 billion 2-year and $1 billion 10-year global benchmark bond issues, proceeds of which will be part of ADB’s ordinary capital resources.

IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development [to 23 April 2016]
https://www.ifad.org/newsroom/press_release/list/tags/y2016

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21 April 2016
New country office opening signals strengthened partnership with Morocco

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20 April 2016
Italian Chef Carlo Cracco draws attention to climate change threats for small scale farmers in Cambodia

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18 April 2016
Global Science Leaders call for better policies on pulses
2016 International Conference on Pulses for Health, Nutrition and Sustainable Agriculture in Drylands opened today
April 18, 2016, Rabat, Morocco – The 2016 International Conference on Pulses for Health, Nutrition and Sustainable Agriculture in Drylands opened today in Marrakesh, Morocco, including 350 participants coming from 35 countries, alongside policy-makers, agriculture research organizations, scientists, farmers, the private sector and donors. Pulses are highly nutritious food legumes. The goal of the conference is to improve the nutritional situation of almost two billion people in sustainable environments throughout the world, and particularly in developing countries, where 800,000 people do not have access to sufficient food to meet their basic nutritional needs. This population will become even more vulnerable with climate change, droughts and heats, in particular in drylands.

The Conference schedule featured a first-of-its-kind high level discussion about enhancing policy frameworks that would enable targeted pulses research to result in producing more food with less inputs, leading to better soil health…

…Pulses, which are high in protein and form the bases of diets of millions would need an enabling policy environment to meet the current and future food and nutritional security challenges as their consumption is estimated to increase by 23% in the next 15 years.

Based on the estimated population in 2020 and 2030, and based on the last 10-year growth trend in global consumption, the demand for pulses for these two years would increase to 75.9 million tons in 2020, and 81.9 million tons in 2030, from the current level of a little over 70 million tons. The conference participants concluded that “through improved policies and investments in pulses research and technology transfer, the rising global gap between the demand and supply of pulses could be bridged.”…

:: INGO/Consortia/Joint Initiatives Watch [posts below]
We will monitor media releases and other announcements around key initiatives, new research and major organizational change from a growing number of global NGOs, collaborations, and initiatives across the human rights, humanitarian response and development spheres of action.

This Watch section is intended to be indicative, not exhaustive. We will not include fund raising announcements, programs events or appeals, and generally not include content which is primarily photo-documentation or video in format.

BRAC [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.brac.net/#news

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19 April 2016
BRAC and the LEGO Foundation Collaborate on Play-to-Learn Project
BRAC and the LEGO Foundation have announced a $4.7 million, three-year partnership to promote the importance of learning through play for early childhood education in Bangladesh, Tanzania and Uganda.

Designed to emphasize the quality of learning as a hallmark of strong early childhood education, BRAC’s low-cost, high-impact Play Lab project will reach more than 7,000 children, aged three to five, across the three countries…

CARE International [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.care-international.org/news/press-releases
21th Apr 2016
Ecuador earthquake survivors at risk of Zika virus
Ecuador
CARE International is warning of an increased risk of mosquito-borne disease in earthquake-hit Ecuador, with Zika virus and dengue fever posing immediate threats.

Casa Alianza – Compass Children’s Charity [to 23 April 2016]
Covenant House [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.casa-alianza.org.uk/news
https://www.covenanthouse.org/

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April 21, 2016
Moms To Sleep On Streets In Five Cities Across the U.S.
On April 29th the Covenant House Sleep Out movement continues as over 180 women in five cities will sleep on the streets to raise funds and awareness for our kids.

Danish Refugee Council [to 23 April 2016]
https://www.drc.dk/news

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21.04.2016
It takes more – think long term!
The Danish government will soon adopt a new development strategy. As Denmark’s largest humanitarian organization, the Danish Refugee Council believes it is crucial to maintain focus on those displacement problems with which the world is faced. It is important that a strong link between humanitarian and developmental work be cultivated and expanded. Such a link is vital for building capacities for self-reliance among conflict-affected populations and among states. It is also key to ensuring the conditions for sustainable development, protection and people’s rights.

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19.04.2016
Danish Refugee Council expands to mainland Greece
The European Commission has today released more than 80 million euros for humanitarian assistance in Greece. The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) will receive 8 million of these, and the organization can now expand operations in Greece to include the mainland, where DRC in five different locations will assist the Greek authorities in improve conditions for the refugees who are stranded in Greece.

Fountain House [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.fountainhouse.org/about/news-press

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[undated]
Fountain House Announces 6th Executive Leadership Fellowship for Clubhouse Directors.

Handicap International [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.handicap-international.us/press_releases

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Posted on April 22, 2016
Nepal: Disaster threats linger one year after major quake

ICRC [to 23 April 2016]
https://www.icrc.org/en/whats-new
Selected News Releases and Articles
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World Humanitarian Summit: ICRC’s comment on the UN Secretary General’s Report
In February 2016, the United Nations Secretary General released his Report on the World Humanitarian Summit.
22-04-2016 | Article

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Cambodia: Physical rehabilitation programme in Battambang gets a new home
After 25 years of sharing offices with the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation’s physical rehabilitation centre in Battambang, the ICRC’s physical rehabilitation programme has a new base.
22-04-2016 | Article

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Kenya / Tanzania / Djibouti: 241,000 calls to families were made by refugees in 2015
In 2015 the ICRC continued to help hundreds of thousands of people reconnect with their families following refugee influx in Tanzania and Djibouti.
22-04-2016 | Article

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Policy and the ICRC
The ICRC’s policy objectives and positions are based on its operational experience and aim to enhance the protection and assistance of people affected by armed conflicts and other situations of violence.
22-04-2016 | Article

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Mali: Staff members freed
Geneva/Bamako (ICRC) – The three staff members with whom the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) had lost contact on 16 April were unconditionally released today, safe and sound.
22-04-2016 | News release

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South Sudan: Focusing on the most vulnerable victims of the conflict
The ICRC and South Sudan Red Cross (SSRC) are working to help the most vulnerable communities primarily with food, health care, safe drinking water and antenatal and maternal care.
20-04-2016 | Article

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Hong Kong: Competition brings humanitarian law to life for students
Students from across the Asia Pacific region recently competed in the 14th international humanitarian law moot court competition, held in Hong Kong.
19-04-2016 | Article

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Palestinian refugees from Syria now refugees in Lebanon
The Beddawi camp for Palestinian refugees in northern Lebanon is one of the country’s largest, with a population of 30,000, and the war in Syria has brought a surge in numbers.
18-04-2016 | Video

IFRC [to 23 April 2016]
http://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/press-releases/

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22 April 2016
States signing Paris agreement on climate change a win for vulnerable communities

22 April 2016
Ecuador: IFRC seeks CHF 18.4 million to assist 100,000 earthquake survivors

21 April 2016
Syria: IFRC Secretary General praises commitment of volunteers

21 April 2016
One year after the Nepal earthquake – millions of survivors remain homeless

20 April 2016
Ecuador: An estimated 10,000 children under five years in need of assistance following earthquake

18 April 2016
Ecuador: IFRC releases emergency funds to deliver life-saving assistance and health services to earthquake hit communities

17 April 2016
Ecuador: Red Cross responds to deadly earthquake; anticipates urgent health needs

17 April 2016
Japanese Red Cross scales up emergency response to Kumamoto earthquakes