UN Women [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.unwomen.org/

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Press release: UN Women launches HeForShe IMPACT 10x10x10 Initiative
Date : January 23, 2015
Top global leaders join campaign to advance gender equality. Watch the livestream of the press conference as UN Women’s HeForShe initiative unveils a new campaign to engage governments, corporations and universities as instruments of change positioned within some of the communities that most need to address deficiencies in women’s empowerment and gender equality.

Ending gender inequality through the post-2015 agenda
Date : January 20, 2015
At a panel discussion organized by UN Women on “The Centrality of Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls for the Post-2015 Development Agenda,” panelists took at a deeper look at the latest post-2015 discussions, stressing that only a transformative approach can steer the world onto a more just, equitable and sustainable path.

Women, Peace and Security: Seeking Synergy with the Reviews on Peace Operations and Peacebuilding
Date : January 20, 2015
Speech by Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, Lakshmi Puri at a panel organized by the Netherlands on “Women Peace and Security: Seeking Synergy with the Reviews on Peace Operations and Peacebuilding,” 20 January 2015, New York.

WHO  [to 24 January 2015]
:: 136th WHO Executive Board session
26 January–3 February 2015 –
– Main Documents: http://apps.who.int/gb/e/e_eb136.html

:: Noncommunicable diseases take 16 million lives prematurely annually
19 January 2015 — Urgent government action is needed to meet global targets to reduce the burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), and prevent the annual toll of 16 million people dying prematurely – before the age of 70 – from heart and lung diseases, stroke, cancer and diabetes, according to a new WHO report. The report states that most premature NCD deaths are preventable.
– Read the news release on the new NCDs status report
– Read the NCDs status report

:: Global Alert and Response (GAR): Disease Outbreak News (DONs)
– Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – Oman 23 January 2015
– Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – Saudi Arabia 20 January 2015
– Human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus – China 19 January 2015

:: The Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) for 23 January 2015, vol. 90,4 (pp. 17–24) includes –
Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety, 3–4 December 2014

WHO Regional Offices

WHO African Region AFRO
Press Releases
:: More than 2.5 million people reached in emergency response campaign with anti-malarial medicines in Sierra Leone – 22 January 2015
:: Meningitis A vaccine now recommended in routine immunization schedules
Brazzaville, 20 January 2015 – The World Health Organization (WHO) now recommends the conjugate meningitis A vaccine MenAfriVac® to be introduced in routine immunization schedules in sub-Saharan Africa. This recommendation ensures that infants are protected against meningitis and population-wide immunity is maintained.The use of the MenAfriVac® vaccine to prevent meningitis A epidemics is one of the greatest vaccination success stories in public health history and highlights what partners can accomplish when unified by a compelling cause. In 2014, the MenAfriVac® campaigns reached more than 63 million people with remarkable success.

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WHO Region of the Americas PAHO
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WHO South-East Asia Region SEARO
:: India: first to adapt the Global Monitoring Framework on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)
January 2015
Every year, roughly 5.8 million Indians die from heart and lung diseases, stroke, cancer and diabetes. In other words, 1 in 4 Indians risks dying from an NCD before they reach the age of 70. Full story – India: first to adapt the Global Monitoring Framework on NCDs

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WHO European Region EURO
:: Ukraine health system buckling under weight of humanitarian crisis 19-01-2015

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WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region EMRO
:: WHO provides support for hearing impaired children in Iraq
22 January 2015 – WHO and the Ministry of Health of the Kurdistan region have provided cochlear implants to 20 internally displaced and refugee children in Iraq as part of a larger WHO disability prevention and reduction project targeting internally displaced persons, refugees and affected host communities in Dohuk. WHO is also providing support to strengthen health services. To continue to improve its humanitarian response in Iraq, WHO requires more financial resources. Of the US$ 187 million needed, the Organization has so far raised only US$ 55 million (29%).

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WHO Western Pacific Region
No new digest content identified.

UNEP United Nations Environment Programme [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.unep.org/newscentre/?doctypeID=1

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New Report Identifies Key Innovations to Bridge Sustainable Development Investment Gap
Banks hold the largest pool of global financial assets
Nairobi, 21 January 2015 – A new report released today by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) identifies critical innovations in the US$300+ trillion global financial system, which, if brought to scale, could help close the widening sustainable development investment gap. The report is being launched at the World Economic Forum at Davos – at the outset of what promises to be a momentous year for sustainable development.

Following the financial crisis, increasing focus is being placed on how the financial system can fulfill its underlying purpose to serve the long-term health of the global economy.

The new publication, Pathways to Scale, is the 3rd progress report from the UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System and draws on work across 12 countries and a range of critical sectors such as banking, insurance, investment and securities. A key problem is that financial markets still do not effectively price environmental resources, with the result that the value of natural capital stocks such as clean air, productive soils and abundant water is falling in 116 out of 140 countries across the world.

The Inquiry’s high potential innovations include three major asset pools:
:: Banking: Banking: Banks hold the largest pool of global financial assets (US$139 trillion), and leadership by developing countries such as Bangladesh, Brazil and China in ‘green credit’ regulations points to a new phase in international banking standards.
:: Bond markets: The largest capital market (US$100 trillion assets) and fastest moving theme, with a tripling of ‘green bonds’ issuance in 2014 and the prize of incorporating sustainability factors such as climate risk into routine credit ratings.
:: Institutional investment: With US$93 trillion in assets under management in pensions, insurance and sovereign wealth funds, new investment structures, changes to investor governance and reform of incentives (such as remuneration) could underpin the next generation of sustainable investment.

In addition, the Inquiry has identified growing interest in two cross-cutting policy tools

Central banks’ monetary decisions, including balance sheet policies, could also have potential for marrying stability and sustainability – for example, through ‘green quantitative easing’ – although some measures remain controversial.

‘Environmental stress tests’ could help both financial institutions and financial regulators understand the financial implications of disruptive environmental threats such as natural disasters, chronic air pollution, water insecurity and climate change.

UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director, Achim Steiner, said “if we are to generate truly inclusive wealth then we need a financial system that can efficiently invest in the human, productive and natural capital on which we all depend. What is heartening is the increasing evidence that central bank governors, finance ministries and major investment funds recognize that new ‘rules of the game’ are not just necessary and possible, but can deliver real benefits.”

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IPBES Forges ahead with its Mission to Assess the Planets State of Biodiversity and Ecosystems
Green light for strategic partnerships and stakeholder engagement, and adoption of a policy addressing conflict of interest
19-1-2015
Bonn, Germany, 19 January, 2015 – The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which was created to provide policymakers with reliable, independent and credible information on the status of biodiversity, agreed today to initiate a set of regional assessments in Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, and Europe and Central Asia. These assessments will be a vital contribution for a planned global assessment to be completed by 2019.
Around 700 delegates from over 270 governments, scientific organizations, civil society and the private sector attended the Platform’s third meeting, which was held from 12 to 17 January in Bonn, Germany. IPBES Member States present at the meeting adopted a conflict of interest policy and a stakeholder engagement strategy that will support the implementation of the Platform’s work programme and approved the guidance on strategic partnerships and other collaborative arrangements. Further Resources
The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)

ILO International Labour Organization [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.ilo.org/global/lang–en/index.htm

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Private sector services and the care economy, key engines of job creation
ILO report points to accelerating job growth in private sector services over the next 5 years and an increasing demand for higher-skilled workers.
News | 22 January 2015
GENEVA (ILO News) – The greatest single source of new jobs will be found in private sector services, such as business and administrative services, and real estate, according to the latest ILO World Economic and Social Outlook report .

These and related industries will employ more than a third of the global workforce over the next five years.

Public services in health care, education and administration will continue to be a major source of employment. While increasing at a slower pace, they will still represent 15 per cent of total employment…

UNWTO World Tourism Organization [to 24 January 2015]
http://media.unwto.org/news

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INVESTOUR – creating business opportunities for Africa
22 January 2015
Now in its sixth consecutive year, the Tourism Investment and Business Forum for Africa (INVESTOUR), to be held next week at the International Tourism Fair (FITUR), will bring together a record number of African tourism projects, potential investors and business partners, opening new opportunities for sustainable tourism in the region (29 January 2015, Madrid, Spain).

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UNWTO activities at FITUR 2015
19 January 2015
Models of sustainable tourism production and consumption, the role of technology in accessible tourism for all, the future of tourism in the Middle East and North Africa, tourism investment in Africa and shopping tourism are among the many topics to be addressed at UNWTO activities during the International Tourism Trade Fair, FITUR. Furthermore, FITUR will once again be the stage for the UNWTO Awards for Excellence and Innovation in Tourism official ceremony (Madrid, Spain, 28 January – 1 February 2015).

ECHO [to 24 January 2015]
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/en/news

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EU Aid Volunteers: flagship initiative kicks-off
23/01/2015
Today marks the launch of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative’s activities following its three-year preparatory phase. The flagship initiative, running through 2020, will create over 4 000 volunteer opportunities in the humanitarian field.

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EU boosts humanitarian assistance to violence victims in Nigeria
19/01/2015
In north-eastern Nigeria, a brutal campaign is being waged against innocent civilians. The European Commission is providing assistance with almost €8 million to help the victims of this violence, as well as to combat malnutrition in the country.

The African Development Bank Group [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.afdb.org/en/news-and-events/press-releases/

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African Development Bank and MasterCard Broaden Financial Inclusion in Africa
22/01/2015 – On Thursday, January 22 in Davos, Switzerland, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and MasterCard announced a broad collaboration that aims to expand financial inclusion across the African continent. The collaboration seeks to develop solutions that drive inclusive growth in Africa by broadening access and usage of digital financial services.

MasterCard brings proven expertise to design and scale inclusive financial services solutions and infrastructure. The AfDB actively promotes sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction in Africa. Together they will work with African governments and local private sector companies to develop and deliver affordable services that meet the needs of a wide consumer base, especially the traditionally unbanked.

Specifically, the collaboration will seek to:
:: Build cohesive African financial systems that drive inclusion at a country level and enable service delivery to traditionally excluded populations;
:: Invest in a curated set of innovative financial services companies and solutions targeted at addressing barriers that hinder financial inclusion; and
:: Share knowledge across academic, policy and commercial sectors to create thought leadership on financial inclusion and economic development.

ASEAN [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.asean.org/news

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Indonesia Deposits Instrument of Ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution
on Tuesday, 20 January 2015.
JAKARTA, 20 January 2015 – H.E. I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, the Director General for ASEAN Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, today deposited Indonesia’s Instrument of Ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution with H.E. Le Luong Minh, Secretary-General of ASEAN…
…The Governments of the ten ASEAN Member Countries signed the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP) on 10 June 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and it entered into force on 25 November 2003. The Agreement is the first regional arrangement in the world that binds a group of contiguous states to tackle transboundary haze pollution resulting from land and forest fires. It has also been considered as a global role model for the tackling of transboundary issues. With Indonesia’s ratification, the Agreement has now been ratified by all ASEAN Member States.

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ASEAN, ACB Celebrate a Decade of Cooperation on Biodiversity Conservation
on Tuesday, 20 January 2015.
LOS BANOS, 20 January 2015 – Governments of ASEAN Member States (AMS) have increasingly recognized biodiversity’s extreme importance to human survival. National and local governments are taking individual steps to preserve flora, fauna, and other biological resources. With biodiversity knowing no boundaries, ASEAN Member States acknowledge that working together is crucial to addressing common problems.

World Bank [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/all

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Most Commodity Prices Expected to Continue Declining in 2015, in Rare Occurrence, Says WB Report
WASHINGTON, January 22, 2015 – This year may well see a rare occurrence for world commodity markets – a decline in all nine key commodity price indices, says the World Bank’s latest Commodity Markets Outlook, released today.While oil prices have seen the most dramatic decline, the third largest since World War II, other commodities have also been gradually weakening in recent months. And this broad-based weakness is expected to continue throughout 2015, before beginning a modest turn around in 2016.In oil markets, a “perfect storm” of conditions has led to a plunge in prices since mid-2014: growth in unconventional oil production, decline in demand, appreciation of the U.S. dollar, receding geopolitical risks, and a major redirection toward maintaining market share rather than targeting prices by the world’s oil cartel, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)…
January 22, 2015

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Green Bonds Are Changing Investor Expectations & Making Sustainable Investing Easier
Expanding the issuer and investor basesAs the market grows, the size of green bonds is growing and new types of issuers are coming in.Cities and state agencies, which have used bonds in the past to raise money for infrastructure projects, have started issuing green bonds to help support and highlight environment- and climate-friendly projects, such as efficiency improvements and public transportation. Johannesburg, South Africa, issued Africa’s first municipal green bond last year to help finance emissions-reducing projects including bio gas energy, solar power, and sustainable transportation.Corporations and utilities have also started issuing green bonds. The French utility GDF Suez issued the largest green bond to date, 2.5 billion euros, intended to finance renewable energy projects such as wind farms and energy efficiency work such as smart metering and integrated districting heating networks
January 22, 2015

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Ebola: Most African Countries Avoid Major Economic Loss but Impact on Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone Remains Crippling
Africa-wide impact in 2015The Bank Group expects sub-Saharan Africa to grow at 4.6 percent in 2015, down from a 5.0 percent forecast in June 2014. Projections have been lowered because of global events, including the West African Ebola epidemic as well as the net effect of winners and losers from a steep fall in the global prices of oil and other commodities. Key risks to this projected growth include a renewed spread of Ebola, violent insurgencies, further reductions in commodity prices, and volatile global financial conditions.Much of the economic impact of Ebola beyond the epicenter of directly affected West African countries is based on fear, as was the case during the SARS outbreak in East Asia a decade ago…
January 20, 2015

Amref Health Africa [to 24 January 2015]
http://amref.org/news/news/

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Amref Health Africa Appoints Interim Chief Executive Officer
21 January 2015
Amref Health Africa has announced the appointment of Dr Lennie Bazira Kyomuhangi-Igbodipe as Interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective November 2014 following the retirement of Director General Dr Teguest Guerma.

Making the announcement, Amref Health Africa International Board Chair Mr Omari Issa said: “While the process of recruiting a CEO is ongoing, the Board is committed to ensuring a smooth transition and has appointed Dr Lennie Kyomuhangi-Igbodipe the interim CEO. We will announce the new CEO once the recruitment process is finalised.”

Dr Kyomuhangi-Igbodipe has been serving as Country Director for Kenya and has over 20 years’ experience within the sub-Saharan African health sector.

BRAC [to 24 January 2015]

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BRAC Sierra Leone empowers child Ebola survivors and adolescent girls in collaboration with Ministry of Social Welfare Gender and Children’s Affairs
7 January 2015, Sierra Leone. Interventions include cash transfers, radios and safe spaces for girls; efforts will help recovery efforts by providing livelihood assistance for affected families and support for adolescent girls BRAC, in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Welfare Gender and Children Affair (MSWGCA), has started distributing cash grants to young Ebola survivors with the aim of starting small livelihood activities, while also supporting adolescent girls in Ebola recovery…

ICRC – International Committee of the Red Cross [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/index.jsp

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Iran/Iraq: Soldiers’ remains returned to families
News release
22 January 2015
Baghdad/Tehran (ICRC) – The ICRC has once again participated in the handover of the remains of soldiers killed during the Iran-Iraq war. The remains were repatriated to their respective countries on 22 January 2015 during a ceremony at the Shalamcha border crossing near Basra (Iraq), attended by military and civilian officials from both countries in the presence of ICRC staff. Of the remains repatriated during this ceremony, forensic teams have so far identified 46 of the Iranian soldiers and 3 of the Iraqi personnel. Work continues on identifying the others…

Plan International [to 24 January 2015]
http://plan-international.org/about-plan/resources/media-centre

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Plan starts operations in Nigeria
20 January 2015: Plan International is launching full operations in Nigeria today, making it our 13th programme country in West Africa and 51st globally.
Plan International Nigeria will focus on health, education, economic security, child protection and child participation.

The opening follows Plan International USA’s acquisition of the Centre for Development and Population Activities (CEDPA) in 2012.

“Sixteen years after Plan Niger, the last Plan office opened in the region, we are very excited to welcome Nigeria as our 13th country office in West Africa,” said Adama Coulibaly, Plan’s Regional Director for West Africa.

With a population of 160 million people Nigeria’s population is equivalent to all other West African states put together. It is also the largest economy in Africa.

Plan Chief Executive Officer Nigel Chapman said: “A strong Plan operation in Nigeria would influence and support making child rights a reality in the most populous African state. Our ambition is to make Nigeria our largest programme in West Africa by 2020.”…

SOS-Kinderdorf International [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/about-sos/press/press-releases

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ICT job prospects for young people in Africa’s Horn
14.01.2015 – A new e-Learning centre recently opened in Djibouti with the help of SOS Children’s Villages and German partners is giving disadvantaged young people the chance to learn in-demand ICT job skills and escape from a life of poverty.

GAVI [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.gavialliance.org/library/news/press-releases/

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Half a billion children vaccinated and seven million lives saved thanks to Gavi partners
Global health milestone announced days ahead of major replenishment meeting
Davos, 22 January 2015 – New figures released today by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance show that half a billion children have been reached with lifesaving vaccines in the 15 years since the organisation was founded….

Start Network [Consortium of British Humanitarian Agencies] [to 24 January 2015]
http://www.start-network.org/news-blog/#.U9U_O7FR98E

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Two more projects join the DEPP portfolio!
January 21, 2015
Posted by Tegan Rogers
We are delighted to announce that two more projects have joined the DFID Disaster Emergency Preparedness Programme (DEPP): ‘Alert’ and ‘Better dialogue. Better information. Better action.’

The Start Network’s ‘Alert’ Project, led by HelpAge, is a £2m project to develop a tool for collaboration around disaster preparedness. This is a consortium project also including members from Oxfam, CARE, Islamic Relief, Handicap International and Concern.

The CDAC-Network ‘Better dialogue. Better information. Better action’ project is a £3m initiative aimed at improving effective delivery through information sharing and two-way communication with and between disaster-affected communities.

The DEPP represents an innovative collaboration over three years between Start Network, CDAC-Network and DFID. DFID have committed up to £40m to improve the quality and speed of crisis response in at-risk countries. The DEPP aims to strengthen humanitarian capacity across the system with a focus on local humanitarian workers at the national level…

BMGF (Gates Foundation)
http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Media-Center/Press-Releases

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Bill and Melinda Gates Release 2015 Annual Letter: “Our Big Bet for the Future”
SEATTLE (January 21, 2015)— Today, Bill and Melinda Gates share their 2015 Annual Letter.
“Our Big Bet for the Future” addresses the breakthroughs they see coming over the next fifteen years that will improve the lives of people in poor countries faster than at any other time in history.

Kellogg Foundation
http://www.wkkf.org/news-and-media#pp=10&p=1&f1=news

Statement for Support: Providing equal opportunities for native children
BATTLE CREEK, Mich. – Brian Cladoosby, president of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), today articulated in his State of Indian Nations address that progress is being made in implementing policies that are strengthening tribal economies and justice systems, improving the quality of life of American Indian and Alaska Native peoples and modernizing the trust relationship between tribal nations and the federal government. Yet, Cladoosby emphasizes that much more must be done. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) fully endorses his declaration that “we must tear down barriers to growth” that are hindering opportunities for Native Americans…
Jan. 22, 2015

Statement of Support: Keeping kids at the center of our nation’s priorities
W.K. Kellogg Foundation President and CEO La June Montgomery Tabron issues statement on President Obama’s State of the Union
Jan. 20, 2015