Education

Fulfilling our collective responsibility: Financing global public goods in education – policy paper
UNESCO – Policy Paper 34
March 2018 :: 16 pages
PDF: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0026/002615/261530e.pdf
Summary
This paper argues that global public goods in education – such as internationally comparable data and statistics, basic research addressing the challenge of improving learning outcomes for sustainable development, and networks for peer learning – are in short supply, poorly funded and rarely coordinated. It calls on the international community to develop a joint vision and finance their provision sustainably to alleviate major constraints to achieving Education 2030 targets.

Key messages:
:: Global public goods are the institutions, mechanisms and outcomes that provide benefits to all, transcend borders and extend across generations.
:: One cross-cutting global public good is knowledge for global development. In the case of education, such knowledge takes three forms: comparable data; research on issues of global relevance; and peer learning networks. These need to build on local capacity.
:: Multilateral institutions, and the World Bank in particular, have played a major role in scaling up interventions related to global public goods. But such support has been plagued increasingly by lack of vision and a stronger focus on short-term results.
:: Financing modalities that focus on short-term results, which also come with increased donor control and alignment to their strategic objectives, may not support the purpose global public goods are supposed to serve.
:: Successful global public goods initiatives in other sectors suggest that their case has to be championed at the global level through strong institutional and intellectual leadership, and that such initiatives need to stay flexible to motivate continual fundraising.
:: It is time for strong institutional and intellectual leadership, building on a consultative approach, to help prioritize a range of global public goods in education that are fit for the purpose of achieving SDG 4 and establish the appropriate governance and funding structures to support their provision. Examples are provided as a starting point for discussion.

Heritage Stewardship

Qatar Fund for Development boosts UNESCO’s Heritage Emergency Fund with US $2 million contribution
02 March 2018
The Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) and UNESCO signed a new agreement this week to supplement the financing of UNESCO’s Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF) with US$2 million.
“More than ever, we need to respond quickly and efficiently to assess, secure and safeguard threatened heritage, said UNESCO’s Director-General, Audrey Azoulay “The Heritage Emergency Fund is a key tool for doing this and I see this renewed contribution by QFFD as a call to the international community to join forces with UNESCO in this regard.”

H.E. Khalifa Bin Jassim Al Kuwari, Director General of the Qatar Fund for Development, joined Audrey Azoulay, at the signing ceremony, which took place at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. This latest installment of US $2 million follows an earlier QFFD contribution of an equal amount, as part of a pledge Qatar made at the 38th Session of the World Heritage Committee in Doha in June 2014. On that occasion, Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister, committed a total of US $10 million to support and strengthen UNESCO’s ability to preserve cultural and natural heritage in areas that may be vulnerable to disasters or may be affected by armed conflict.

“The initial contribution by the Qatar Fund for Development towards the Heritage Emergency Fund and the continued funding of this instrument reaffirms Qatar’s commitment to protecting and preserving the heritage of the world. We hope this donation will act as a catalyst that will trigger further contributions by other donors,” affirmed H.E. Khalifa Bin Jassim Al Kuwari.
UNESCO’s Heritage Emergency Fund is a multi-donor fund established in 2015 as a pooled, non-earmarked funding mechanism that gives UNESCO flexibility to respond quickly and effectively to crises to ensure safeguarding of cultural heritage.

To date, it has been used for activities related to the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, the earthquakes in Ecuador, Myanmar, Nepal and Iran, the hurricanes Matthew in Haiti and Irma in the Caribbean, as well as the floods caused by El Nino in Peru. Activities implemented range from rapid damage assessment and urgent safeguarding interventions to capacity building of professionals and the development of innovative partnerships.

Other donors that have joined the initiative include Norway, Canada, the Principality of Monaco, the Netherlands, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Republic of Estonia, the Slovak Republic, the Principality of Andorra, ANA Holdings Inc. and individual donors.

International organisations issue joint pledge on safeguarding
Islamic Relief has joined eight other international organisations in expressing grave concern about reported cases of sexual misconduct by staff of humanitarian aid agencies, and pledging to improve policies and processes to ensure better protection for vulnerable people.

As organisations whose core aim is to help the most vulnerable people in the world, to secure human rights and protect the environment we must always confront and eradicate abusive behaviour and the misuse of power. When it comes from individuals within our own staff it is a double betrayal, not just of the people we exist to serve, but of the people (staff, volunteers, supporters, donors) who work with extraordinary engagement to achieve our mission.

There can be no tolerance for the abuse of power, privilege or trust by individuals within our organisations or in our work. Our utmost priority is to those victims and survivors of abuse – to atone for damage that has been done and to stand in solidarity with those women who have faced such injustice. We have an absolute duty to our staff, our supporters and, above all, the people we seek to help to ensure we do everything in our power to prevent, detect and eradicate unethical behaviour.

We take every necessary step to prevent any wrongs occurring and to respond quickly and decisively if they do – and we will deepen these efforts further. We also have a clear responsibility to ensure that the people we seek to serve are not the ones punished for our mistakes. The widespread public outcry at this behaviour demonstrates that people feel profound compassion for those who need civil society organisations’ help. We must honour that drive, and the rights and needs of the communities with which we work, by continuing to provide vital support but also by constantly seeking to improve.

We are fully committed to being transparent and accountable towards the people we serve, our partners, supporters and the public at large. That is why we are collectively announcing the following series of urgent and immediate measures:
:: We commit ourselves to adhering to existing ethical standard frameworks and to intensify our work with the independent organisations that ensure our compliance. We have mandated a review under the lead of Accountable Now of the ethical standards employed across the sector
:: We will all increase the resources we devote to preventing and safeguarding against abuse and misconduct – meeting our responsibility to protect the people we serve, our staff, and our partners
:: We will collectively review our current human resources referencing systems so that people found to have abused their power or behaved inappropriately are not re- employed in the sector – including in ICSOs, government agencies, the UN and other associated multilateral, bilateral and domestic agencies
:: We will work with these authorities and regulatory bodies to ensure any individual caught abusing their power are sanctioned and cannot do so again.

In taking these steps, we are also asking people to come forward to report unacceptable behaviour. We hope these measures send a clear message to those who experience or witness any form of abuse or have done so in the past – it is essential that they know we take their reports seriously and that we will take action.

These actions are only the first step as, collectively and individually, we do everything possible to ensure that our organisations, our staff and our work meet the most fundamental principle for all civil society organisations – to do no harm. We are truly sorry that there have been occasions when this has not been the case. We must and will do better.

CBM
Transparency International
ADRA
Islamic Relief
VSO
YWCA
Women for Women
Plan International
SOS Children’s Villages

Action Against Hunger strongly condemns any inappropriate conduct of humanitarian aid workers, and have a policy of zero tolerance toward abuse of power, sexual exploitation, and unethical behaviour.
Posted on 12 February 2018
This longstanding commitment is stated in our Charter of Principles. These core principles and institutional commitments are served by specific policies, such as our Code of Conduct and Child Protection policy. These are applicable to all employees, officers, directors, board members, or any person acting on behalf of Action Against Hunger. Robust internal processes exist to educate staff on these policies and to detect potential breaches.

Action Against Hunger has a strict recruitment process which includes tests, interviews, individual references checks, and contact with former employee organisations according to French labour regulation. This procedure was followed prior to the employment of Roland van Hauwermeiren. During this process, Action Against Hunger received no information regarding any inappropriate or unethical behaviour by Roland van Hauwermeiren while he was with Oxfam in Haiti, or any warning on the risks of employing him.

Roland van Hauwermeiren worked for Action Against Hunger as Country Director in Bangladesh between August 2012 and August 2014. He has not worked for us since the end of his assignment in Bangladesh.

According to our records, we have not received any alerts regarding sexual misconduct or abuse during Roland van Hauwermeiren’s assignment with Action Against Hunger. We have now, however, begun a process to closely scrutinise the time he was employed by us, and Action Against Hunger commits to full disclosure, collaborating in full with the authorities.

In addition, we are reviewing our recruitment and safeguarding policies and procedures to ensure they meet the highest possible standards.

Message from UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore to staff about ending sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment
NEW YORK, 28 February 2018 – These past weeks have given us an opportunity to have frank discussions about how we live up to UNICEF’s core values like care, respect, equality and trust. These values animate everything our staff members do in communities around the world in support of the world’s children.

To all of you who sent messages and e-mails about your concerns and ideas about harassment in the workplace: thank you. Please know that we have heard your concerns — and we will continue listening as we articulate and put into action our responsibilities in the days and weeks ahead.
We have no tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse or harassment of any kind — including abuses of power and authority. Anywhere.

There have been failures in our culture and processes. This problem has lingered for too long.
But we are united in our desire to change, and create a culture where harassment is never tolerated. We must never forget that those who suffer harassment and abuse are, often, victimized several times: by those who commit these abuses, and by those who enable them. By those who do not take action…by those who do not offer support…and by those who shun a person who is abused or is a whistleblower.

This must be a new era for UNICEF. I want every person who works at — and with — this wonderful organization to feel safe entering UNICEF offices, workplaces or project sites, and remember two words: not here.

I also want you to know that, if you see or experience any form of harassment or witness the sexual abuse and exploitation of children or women, you will have the tools and the power to report it, without shame or fear of reprisal. I am committed to creating a culture of trust and safety so that every employee feels able to come forward.

Finally, I want you to know that all reports will be swiftly addressed. We will keep anyone who comes forward informed, and they will receive protections throughout any investigations. And there will be consequences for those who fail to live up to UNICEF’s values, including dismissal.
Today, I want you to know of a number of initial actions we have put in place to prevent, report and respond to all forms of harassment in the workplace — including abuse of power — and the sexual exploitation and abuse of children and women. Taking decisive action on these two issues goes to the heart of who we are as an organization.

We are improving staff vetting and screening for new hires — including professional, background and criminal-record checks. In addition, a specialized UN reference-check facility is being established, and UNICEF will be part of it.

We are hiring independent advisors to review our practices on both workplace harassment and the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. I will make their findings public. We are also establishing external task forces and internal units to help shape our policies and practices in the weeks and months ahead.

We are launching several measures this week, available to each of you, to report incidents, and obtain ethics, legal and medical support, as well as counselling services. These include a new webpage that will have, for the first time, a button that, with one click, will give you the power to alert managers that a problem exists in a particular office. The existing email to report misconduct — integrity1@unicef.org — will be complemented by a new telephone hotline. We will announce the phone number in a few days.

Our online harassment training is now expanding to include mandatory, in-person training for all staff members.

To ensure that you have an opportunity to voice your opinions, we are launching online tools and open conversations so you can help us shape UNICEF’s harassment policy by year’s end.
And we are reminding all UNICEF staff members that engaging in commercial and other transactional sex or accessing any pornographic material on UNICEF computers or devices is prohibited, and will lead to immediate consequences, which may include dismissal.

Yes, the past is disappointing to us all. But today is our time to shape an open, respectful and inclusive culture — for ourselves, and for future generations of proud UNICEF staff members.
UNICEF is a great place to work. In my short time here, I have seen example after example of the pride that UNICEF’s staff members rightly have in our organization. With your help, and your voice, we will make it even better.
Sincerely,
Henrietta H. Fore

Five-point plan to prevent and address all forms of harassment for greater accountability and transparency within UNAIDS
27 February 2018
The Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, has announced a five-point plan to prevent and address harassment, including sexual harassment, and unethical behaviour within UNAIDS. The plan will ensure that inappropriate behaviour and abuse of authority are identified early on, that measures taken are properly documented and that action to be taken follows due process and is swift and effective.

“I am putting mechanisms in place to review all UNAIDS policies on sexual harassment, abuse of authority and unethical behaviour and ensuring a professional assessment of all actions taken to date to identify if there are any gaps in implementation,” said Mr Sidibé. “This will further enhance the transparency of our processes and allow us to continue moving forward.” The five-point plan will be led by the newly appointed UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Management and Governance, Gunilla Carlsson.

First, focal points will be appointed in each department, country office, liaison office and regional office, who will have structured reporting mechanisms in place, reporting back directly to Ms Carlsson.

Second, an open platform will be created for staff to report on harassment, abuse of authority or unethical behaviour within the organization. The open platform will also enable staff to propose innovative options for preventing harassment.

Third, training will be stepped up, with face-to-face training to help staff recognize inappropriate behaviour, improve their skills to prevent harassment and empower them to rapidly report any cases of abuse they may encounter or witness. The training will also include recognizing unconscious bias and encourage increased understanding and tolerance within the multicultural environment of the United Nations.

Fourth, UNAIDS will develop and conduct an annual comprehensive and independent, organization-wide survey on staff well-being that includes questions on harassment, sexual harassment and unethical behaviour.

Fifth, the recently introduced performance management system will be further enhanced. As well as being evaluated on work-based performance, targets met, management effectiveness and progress achieved, staff at all levels will also be evaluated on their ethical behaviour in the workplace. A 360-degree evaluation will be incorporated as part of the assessment process.

The new initiatives will be integrated with a number of progressive policies that UNAIDS has already in place to facilitate the reporting of cases of abuse, including an anonymous, free, 24-hour hotline accessible from anywhere around the world. Wellness and capacity-building teams with specialized staff will visit and work with field offices or departments to address management and operational concerns in order to ensure a constructive working environment in all UNAIDS offices worldwide.

This initiative is in line with the United Nations Secretary-General’s action plan on sexual harassment. UNAIDS has been a frontrunner of United Nations reform and is leading work to ensure gender equality in the workplace. In 2013, UNAIDS launched a Gender Action Plan, which had six targets to reach to ensure gender balance across the organization, including ensuring a 50/50 gender balance in the UNAIDS Secretariat and that 50% of UNAIDS country directors are women. By the end of 2017, 48% of UNAIDS country directors were women and the gender balance across the organization was 53/47, with slightly more women working for the organization than men.

“UNAIDS’ vision stands for zero: zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths,” said Mr Sidibé. “Zero tolerance for sexual harassment is part our mission and is central to our work,” he added.

UNAIDS is continuing to strive to ensure a safe and conducive working environment for its staff in order to continue leading global efforts towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Featured Journal Content

The Lancet
Mar 03, 2018 Volume 391 Number 10123 p813-910
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current
Comment
Death and suffering in Eastern Ghouta, Syria: a call for action to protect civilians and health care
Samer Jabbour, Fouad M Fouad, Jennifer Leaning, Donna McKay, Rabie Nasser, Leonard S Rubenstein, Annie Sparrow, Paul Spiegel, Ahmad Tarakji, Ronald Waldman, Rola Hallam, Denis Mukwege, Ghanem Tayara

Since Feb 4, 2018, Syrian forces with Russian support have bombarded Eastern Ghouta, an enclave out of government control near Damascus. This military action has killed hundreds of civilians and injured more than 1550 people as of Feb 21, 2018,1 in an area where about 390 000 people, most of whom are civilians, have lived under siege since October, 2013. The recent escalation is reportedly part of a Syrian Government offensive supported by its Russian and Iranian allies to retake Ghouta. In just 1 day, on Feb 20, 2018, PAX, an international peace movement, documented 110 civilians killed and hundreds injured in 131 air strikes, 44 barrel bombs, 28 surface-to-surface “elephant” missiles, five cluster bombs, and countless other artillery and rocket fire.2 Amnesty International sees this as continuing “war crimes on an epic scale”.3

The Syrian American Medical Society, which has tracked attacks on health-care facilities during the offensive, now reports that 25 hospitals and health centres have been hit, some more than once in 4 days.4 Several health-care facilities are destroyed or put temporarily out of service, reducing capacity by 50% at a time when patients most need care. A doctor in Eastern Ghouta said, “Hospitals are overwhelmed. Floors are overflowing with injured and blood. Those patients we discharged a couple of days ago are now back with more serious injuries…The word ‘catastrophe’ can’t describe what’s happening.”4 The injured are running out of places to go. Retaliatory shelling by rebel groups on Damascus neighbourhoods has also killed and maimed scores of civilians and also deserves condemnation.

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) found that “the unspeakable suffering…was deliberately planned and meticulously implemented over time”.5 The Syrian Government has not contested PHR’s finding but says it is attacking “terrorists”. This claim is not supported by patterns of attacks,6 which predominantly target civilian areas, and demonstrate a position that all civilians in opposition-held areas are legitimate targets.7

The people of Ghouta endured a deadly sarin chemical attack in August, 2013, in which 1466 people, including 426 children, died.8 This led to the US–Russia sponsored deal to remove the Syrian Government’s chemical weapons stockpile. However, killing and destruction continued by other means. Ghouta has been subjected to regular shelling and artillery strikes, including of hospitals and civilian areas. Compounding the impact of Syrian Government violations of international humanitarian law, many Ghouta civilians suffer violence by authoritarian rebel groups and are impoverished by a war economy in which corrupt Syrian Government and rebel intermediaries participate.9 The worsening situation for civilians under siege and bombardment has long been reported but has not led to an improvement for civilians or even a slight lessening of their suffering.9, 10 The Syrian Government has allowed only minimal and intermittent aid and regularly removes urgently needed medical supplies from the very occasional convoy it permits.9, 10 In December, 2017, Ghouta doctors sent a letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, pleading for support: “Once, we were family doctors, pediatricians, specialists…now we are specialists in war trauma, chemical attacks and siege-induced starvation.”11 The Syrian American Medical Society estimates that more than 1000 critically ill patients now need medical evacuation. The Syrian Government has allowed only 37 as of Feb 17, 2018. Every day, patients die.

Inaction in the face of unrelenting attacks on civilians represents an epic failure of world leaders.12 The UN Security Council has utterly failed the people of Syria. The UN Secretariat seems to operate without an effective strategy for political negotiations or aid delivery.8, 13 These compounded failures are increasing frustrations with the UN as a legitimate interlocutor on human rights violations everywhere,14 and translate into deaths and suffering. We cannot allow this situation to continue. Political negotiations have not prioritised or reduced attacks against civilians. The Syrian Government’s continued ability to deny aid to populations it is besieging illustrates the failure of the current aid delivery process and the impotence of the UN. There are no mechanisms to ensure timely delivery of aid, delivery of sufficient aid for the entire population, or delivery of the most needed types of aid. From April to December, 2016, PHR documented that only three of the nine convoys to besieged areas in Eastern Ghouta provided aid sufficient for even half of the population living there. Of the remaining six convoys, three provided aid sufficient for less than a third of each area’s besieged population.15 Eastern Ghouta has received aid only once since November, 2017.

In the face of this desperate situation, health professionals and concerned citizens still have something to contribute; we have an obligation to do so, and there is a long history of mobilisation that makes a difference. The three most urgent priorities are to stop the targeting and besieging of civilians, to end attacks on health-care facilities and other civilian targets, and to allow unobstructed flow of aid, including medical supplies and evacuation of the wounded.

Three levels of action are possible. First, citizens and health professionals must press government officials, especially in countries directly involved in the war, to act today. The UN Security Council must end its paralysis, and Russia in particular must not block action to end the siege and attacks on civilians and hospitals. We will closely watch the expected vote on a Ghouta ceasefire at the UN Security Council. But the UN Security Council is not the only forum. Given the UN Security Council deadlock, in 2016, the UN General Assembly took the unusual step of establishing an international mechanism to investigate grave crimes committed in Syria.16 Justice for the unspeakable crimes we are witnessing is imperative for long-term stability in Syria, although it will not bring immediate relief to besieged Ghouta. While this can be a lengthy process, an initial step of imposing sanctions on parties to the crimes would have an impact.

Second, health professionals and concerned citizens must come together and mobilise. We call on health professionals and citizens around the world who are outraged about the situation in Ghouta and international inaction to join hands in advocacy, mobilisation, and public action and call for an end to the violence, attacks on health facilities, personnel, and patients, and for the protection of civilians in Syria.

Third, the UN Secretariat must change tactics and strategy to be more impactful. Protecting civilians, removing siege, and ensuring medical evacuations and flow of aid must be top of the agenda for any UN-mediated negotiation. The UN and its agencies, especially those operating in Damascus, should exert all pressure and use all leverage, including but not limited to flow of funds for aid, to ensure respect for international law and delivery of aid to people who need it the most. The lesson from the 2013 polio outbreak among children in non-government-controlled areas who did not receive vaccines is valuable. Under pressure, WHO and UN agencies used a whole-of-Syria approach to tell the Syrian Government that everyone across the conflict lines must get vaccinated in one programme. 3 million children were vaccinated across Syria, half of them in non-government controlled areas.17 Donor countries can press for reforming WHO–Syria operations to ensure this model extends to all health aid.

Collectively, these actions can contribute to protecting the people in Syria who are suffering so desperately.
We declare no competing interests.

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Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry’s (JAACAP)
March 2018 Volume 57, Issue 3
http://www.jaacap.com/issue/S0890-8567(17)X0005-1
Letter to the Editor
Mental Health in Syrian Refugee Children Resettling in the United States: War Trauma, Migration, and the Role of Parental Stress
Arash Javanbakht, David Rosenberg, Luay Haddad, Cynthia L. Arfken
Abstract
Syrian children have been exposed to war trauma, limited access to clean water, sanitation, and good nutrition, and for many, stresses of forced migration.1 Despite these exposures by the children and their families, information on the mental health of Syrian refugees is limited. Recent studies have reported the high prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety in adult Syrian refugees resettling in Middle East and the United States (US), where we found a high prevalence of possible depression (32.2%), anxiety (40.3%), and PTSD (47.7%) in adult Syrian refugees soon after arrival (A. Javanbakht et al.)

Emergencies

POLIO
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)
Polio this week as of 28 February 2018 [GPEI]
:: 23 February marked 64 years since the first large-scale trial of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV). Developed by Joseph Salk, IPV was found to be safe and effective, and is now part of routine vaccination programmes worldwide. Each year, it confers lifelong protection against polio to millions of young children.
:: Learn more about IPV by watching our brand new animation on the two polio vaccines, available in English, French, and Arabic.
:: Summary of newly-reported viruses this week:
Afghanistan: Three new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) positive environmental samples have been reported in Nangarhar province.
Pakistan: Four new WPV1 positive environmental samples have been reported, two collected in Sindh province, one in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and one in Balochistan province.

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Syria cVDPV2 outbreak situation report 36, 27 February 2018
Situation update 27 February 2018
[Editor’ text bolding]
:: No new cases of cVDPV2 were reported this week. The total number of cVDPV2 cases remains 74. The most recent case (by date of onset of paralysis) is 21 September 2017 from Boukamal district, Deir Ez-Zor governorate.
:: An inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) immunization round continues in accessible areas of Aleppo utilizing mobile and fixed teams. To date the round has reached a total of 233,518 children aged 2-23 months, representing 71% of the estimated target, in Damascus, Hasakah, parts of Aleppo governorates, and Jurmana district of rural Damascus.
:: All empty vials of monovalent Oral Polio Vaccine type 2 (mOPV2) have been collected and destroyed in Damascus.
:: Preparations are ongoing for a nationwide immunization round utilizing bivalent OPV (bOPV), which is planned for March. The campaign will target all children aged less than 5 years.
:: An independent external surveillance review has concluded in Iraq. The Ministry of Health Iraq has accepted a key recommendation to revitalize the AFP surveillance system in conflict affected northern governorates bordering Syria.
:: The Global Certification Commission for Polio Eradication in its 17th meeting in Geneva acknowledged the dedication of frontline health workers and their efforts to help control the cVDPV2 outbreak in Syria, noting innovative operational strategies used to overcome challenges in the field to reach all children and to ensure adequate specimen transportation.

The Sentinel

Human Rights Action :: Humanitarian Response :: Health :: Education :: Heritage Stewardship ::
Sustainable Development
__________________________________________________
Week ending 24 February 2018

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
GE2P2 Global Foundation – Governance, Evidence, Ethics, Policy, Practice
david.r.curry@ge2p2center.net

pdf version: The Sentinel_ period ending 24 Feb 2018

Contents
:: Week in Review  [See selected posts just below]
:: Key Agency/IGO/Governments Watch – Selected Updates from 30+ entities
:: INGO/Consortia/Joint Initiatives Watch – Media Releases, Major Initiatives, Research
:: Foundation/Major Donor Watch -Selected Updates
:: Journal Watch – Key articles and abstracts from 100+ peer-reviewed journals

Syria

Security Council Demands 30-day Cessation of Hostilities in Syria to Enable Humanitarian Aid Delivery, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 2401 (2018)
24 February 2018 SC/13221
The Security Council, acting unanimously today, adopted a resolution demanding parties to Syria’s seven-year-long conflict to cease hostilities without delay for at least 30 consecutive days, ensuring a “durable humanitarian pause” to enable weekly humanitarian aid deliveries and medical evacuations of the critically sick and wounded.

By the terms of resolution 2401 (2018), the 15-member Council demanded that, immediately after the start of the cessation of hostilities, all parties would allow safe, unimpeded and sustained access each week for the humanitarian convoys of the United Nations and their implementing partners to all requested areas and populations — particularly the 5.6 million people in 1,244 communities in acute need and the 2.9 million in hard-to-reach and besieged locations, subject to standard United Nations security assessments. It also demanded that the United Nations and its partners be allowed to carry out safe, unconditional medical evacuations, based on medical need and urgency.

The Council further called upon all parties to immediately lift the sieges of populated areas — including in eastern Ghouta, Yarmouk, Foua and Kefraya — and cease depriving civilians of essential food and medicine, which when used as a method of combat was an act prohibited by international humanitarian law. It demanded that the parties enable the rapid, safe and unhindered evacuation of all civilians who wished to leave — underscoring the need for them to agree on humanitarian pauses, days of tranquillity, localized ceasefires and truces — and called for the urgent acceleration of humanitarian mine action throughout Syria.

Affirming that the cessation of hostilities would not apply to military operations against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh), Al-Qaida, Al-Nusra Front and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with terrorist groups, as designated by the Council, the organ further called on relevant Member States to coordinate efforts to monitor the cessation of hostilities, building on existing arrangements. It called on all Member States to use their influence with the parties to ensure its implementation and create conditions for a durable and lasting ceasefire.

By other terms of the text, the Council reiterated its demand — reminding the Syrian authorities in particular — that all parties immediately comply with their obligations under international law concerning protecting civilians and medical and humanitarian personnel exclusively engaged in medical duties along with their means of transport and equipment, as well as hospitals and other medical facilities. It also reiterated its demand that they demilitarize medical facilities, schools and other civilian facilities; avoid establishing military positions in populated areas; and desist from attacks directed at civilian objects…

Development

The Sahel Alliance Officially Announces the Implementation of Over 500 Projects for a Total Amount of EUR 6bn to be Disbursed Between 2018 and 2022
BRUSSELS, 23 February 2018 – During the International High-Level Conference on the Sahel, the founding members of the Sahel Alliance – France, Germany, the EU, the World Bank, the African Development Bank and UNDP –, joined by Italy, Spain and the UK, officially launched the Sahel Alliance, by announcing the implementation of over 500 projects between 2018 and 2022.

EUR 6bn of investments for the Sahel region: this is the total amount disbursed by the members of the Sahel Alliance and being made available to member countries of the G5 Sahel (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger) for the implementation of over 500 projects with a capacity to transform the region by 2022.

All these projects, 12 of which were highlighted to illustrate the principles of the Alliance, were presented to Sahelian Heads of State during the G5 Sahel Summit in Niamey on 6 February 2018. They will be implemented rapidly, particularly in the most vulnerable areas, as the objective of the Sahel Alliance is to have an immediate impact on populations, in line with the priorities established by the G5 Sahel countries. To achieve this, the Sahel Alliance will take action in six priority sectors: youth employment, rural development and food security, energy and climate, governance, decentralization and access to basic services, and security.

The membership of three new countries – Italy, Spain and the UK – in this unique initiative is a sign that development actors are mobilizing for the Sahel region…

Heritage Stewardship

Over 41,000 artefacts seized in global operation targeting trafficking of cultural goods
21 February 2018
More than 41,000 objects including coins, furniture, paintings, musical instruments, archaeological pieces and sculptures have been seized in a global operation targeting the trafficking of cultural artefacts.

The seizures were made during the first joint customs and police operation codenamed Athena organized by the World Customs Organization and INTERPOL, and the Europe-focused Operation Pandora II coordinated by the Spanish Guardia Civil and Europol.

Tens of thousands of checks were carried out at airports and border crossing points across 81 countries during the operations which ran from October to December 2017. Auction houses, museums and private houses were also searched, resulting in more than 300 investigations being opened and 101 people arrested.

Online illicit markets
With the Internet becoming an important part of the chain in the illicit trade of cultural goods, law enforcement officers also monitored online market places and sales sites.

This resulted in the seizure more than 7,000 objects, nearly 20 per cent of the total number of artefacts recovered during the operations. In just one investigation in Spain, the Guardia Civil seized more than 2,000 cultural objects, the majority of which were coins from the Roman and other Empires. Officials also seized 88 pieces of ivory as well as weapons including swords, a crossbow and 39 historical firearms ranging from rifles to pistols…

Peace and security threat
“The results of the Operations Athena and Pandora II speak for themselves: cooperation between Customs and Police can yield excellent results and should be promoted and sustained at all levels. The fight against illicit trafficking of cultural objects has been long neglected by law enforcement agencies, however, we cannot turn a blind eye to it. While we lose our common history and identity, the proceeds of trafficking fuel terrorism, conflicts and other criminal activities,” said WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya. “We will keep working in this area of enforcement and will soon deploy the first specialized global training curriculum for Customs administrations – a very concrete and hands-on outcome of our common work,” he added…

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Save the seeds – and the living plants we eat and use
FAO’s new Voluntary Guidelines for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Crop Wild Relatives and Wild Food Plants outline how to craft technical rules and shepherd them into implementation and will help governments meet their international commitments.
Svalbard seed vault is the apex of a global network to protecting plant genetic resources for food and agriculture

23 February 2018, Rome – The ‘Doomsday Vault’, storing the seeds of vital crops in an underground vault near Svalbard, Norway, will celebrate its 10th anniversary soon, drawing deserved attention to the importance of conserving seeds that are vital for food and agriculture.

It was the adoption of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in 2001 that gave the impetus to the Norwegian government to proceed with the establishment of the Seed Vault; the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture welcomed and supported the initiative in 2004.

The resources and attention given to Svalbard, now the iconic home to seeds of around one million unique plants, is welcome. While farmers have bred crops for millennia, the emphasis on conservation of crop diversity ex situ is historically linked to Nikolai Vavilov, who set up one of the first genebanks in Russia in 1921. In a quest to end all famines, the botanist travelled to more than 60 countries, listening to farmers and collecting seeds with an eye to their potential to contribute to hardier crops in a changing world…

Many locally important food crops grow in parts of the world facing rapid change and high levels of food insecurity. To help countries in the daunting task of protecting the species relevant to their food supply in their natural habitats where they would continue to evolve important traits for adaptation to changes, FAO recently published Voluntary Guidelines for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Crop Wild Relatives and Wild Food Plants.

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Yemen: City’s architectural connection to Islam at risk as fighting nears
Sana’a/Geneva (ICRC) – As fighting along Yemen’s Red Sea coast continues, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is urging all parties to the conflict to protect and respect the city of Zabid, a World Heritage Site that has the highest concentration of mosques in Yemen.
Fighting would endanger civilians, Zabid’s unique architecture and the city’s cultural connection to one of the world’s major religions. Cultural property like Zabid’s is protected by international humanitarian law.

“The fighting in Hodeida governorate is at the gates of the historic city of Zabid, fanning fears for the fate of its cultural heritage,” said Alexandre Faite, the ICRC’s head of delegation in Yemen…

“International humanitarian law makes it clear that special care must be taken in military operations to avoid damaging this outstanding archeological and historical site,” Mr Faite added.

Zabid served as the capital of Yemen from the 13th century to the 15th century and played an important role in the Arab and Muslim world as a centre of Islamic knowledge. With its narrow streets and the many minarets rising from its 86 mosques, Zabid is considered an architectural jewel of the early years of Islam. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

Governance

Corruption Perceptions Index 2017 shows high corruption burden in more than two-thirds of countries
Analysis of results from Transparency International finds crackdowns on NGOs and media are associated with higher levels of corruption.
21 Feb 2018
An index released today by Transparency International, which marks its 25th anniversary this year, reveals some disturbing information – despite attempts to combat corruption around the world, the majority of countries are moving too slowly in their efforts. While stemming the tide against corruption takes time, in the last six years many countries have still made little to no progress. Even more alarming, further analysis of the index results indicates that countries with the lowest protections for press and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) also tend to have the worst rates of corruption.

The index, which ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and businesspeople, uses a scale of zero to 100, where zero is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. This year, the index found that more than two-thirds of countries score below 50, with an average score of 43.

Over the last six years, several countries significantly improved their CPI score, including Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and the United Kingdom, while several countries declined, including Syria, Yemen and Australia.

This year, New Zealand and Denmark rank highest with scores of 89 and 88 respectively. Syria, South Sudan and Somalia rank lowest with scores of 14, 12 and 9 respectively. The best performing region is Western Europe with an average score of 66. The worst performing regions are Sub-Saharan Africa (average score 32) and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (average score 34).

To view the results, visit: www.transparency.org/cpi2017

Governance-Ethics-Accountability: OXFAM et al

Oxfam releases report into allegations of sexual misconduct in Haiti
19 February 2018
A full copy of Oxfam’s final internal report into allegations of sexual misconduct and other unacceptable behaviour during Oxfam’s humanitarian response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake has been made public today.

Oxfam is publishing the report, written in 2011, in order to be as transparent as possible about the decisions made during the investigation and in recognition of the breach of trust that has been caused.

Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam International’s Executive Director, said “Oxfam is urgently committed to act upon the moral responsibilities we have towards women in Haiti. We are also meeting with the Government of Haiti to apologise for our mistakes and discuss what more we can do. It is vitally important we re-examine what happened, and learn from it.

“The measures we put in place as a result of the investigation mean that the case would be handled differently today, but it is clear that there is much more to be done. The action we are now taking, including an independent review of our culture and practices by women’s rights leaders, will help ensure abuse is rooted out of Oxfam and help us become more effective in our mission to help create lasting solutions to poverty.”

Last week Oxfam announced a comprehensive action plan to strengthen safeguarding systems across the organisation and stamp out abuse. The package of measures includes:
:: A new independent High-Level Commission on Sexual Misconduct, Accountability and Culture Change, comprised of respected women’s and human rights leaders, which will be able to access Oxfam records and interview staff, partners and communities it supports around the world. The names of the Commission co-chairs will be released shortly.
:: The immediate creation of a new global database of accredited referees – designed to end the use of forged, dishonest or unreliable references by past or current Oxfam staff. Oxfam will not be issuing any references until this is in place.
:: An immediate injection of resources into Oxfam’s safeguarding processes, with the number of people working in safeguarding more than doubling over the coming weeks and annual funding more than tripled to just over $1 million.
:: A commitment to improve the culture within Oxfam to ensure that no one faces sexism, discrimination or abuse, that everyone, especially women, feels safe to speak out, and everyone is clear on what behaviour is acceptable or not.

Notes to editors
The full 2011 Haiti internal report is available here
We have redacted names and identifying characteristics to comply with the need for due process and confidentiality required by both privacy law and recommended UN guidelines on the issue of sexual exploitation and abuse. The full, un-redacted report has been shared with the Haitian Ambassador in London and a copy will be given to the Haitian government in a meeting on Monday morning (19 February 2018). We have informed the relevant national authorities of the names of the seven men involved in sexual misconduct.

.

Haiti Suspends Oxfam Great Britain After Sex Scandal
By CATHERINE PORTER
The New York Times, FEB. 22, 2018
Saying it was “shocked at the highest level,” the government of Haiti has suspended the aid group Oxfam Great Britain for two months while it investigates allegations of sexual misconduct by charity employees in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 earthquake.

The government took the step two weeks after the organization, the British arm of the umbrella group Oxfam International, acknowledged that employees had been fired or resigned after they were found to have had sex parties with prostitutes in staff housing.

On Thursday, the Haitian minister of planning and external cooperation, Aviol Fleurant, said officials were looking into the incidents and trying to determine whether any of the women were underage.

The government raised the prospect that the British aid organization, which spends $3.9 million annually in Haiti, may not be allowed to resume its work. Mr. Fleurant told Reuters that if investigators establish a link between donations to Oxfam meant for Haiti and criminal activity, officials will “declare Oxfam Great Britain persona non grata, and they would have to leave the country without further delay.”…

Charities commit to taking better action on safeguarding
A joint letter from 22 UK charities
23 Feb 18
As organisations whose core aim is to help the most vulnerable people in the world, we must always confront abusive behaviour and the misuse of power. When it comes from individuals within our sector it is a double betrayal, not just of the people we exist to serve, but of the British people in whose name we operate. Although this is only the action of a small minority of people, it is nonetheless an issue that we will not allow to go unaddressed.

There can be no tolerance for the abuse of power, privilege or trust within our organisations or in our work. We have an absolute duty to our staff, our supporters and, above all, the people we seek to help to ensure we do everything in our power to prevent, detect and eradicate unacceptable behaviour.

As we take every necessary step to right these deep wrongs, we also have a clear responsibility to ensure that the communities we seek to help are not the ones punished for our mistakes. The widespread distress and disappointment that we’ve heard in the past two weeks demonstrates that people feel profound compassion for those who need Britain’s help. We must honour that instinct, and the rights and needs of the communities we work with, by continuing to deliver vital aid but also changing fundamentally.

Safeguarding is something that, as a sector, we have long taken very seriously and all our organisations have systems in place to prevent all forms of abuse and misconduct. However, we can never be complacent. We must do even more to protect the very people we were set up to help.

First and foremost we must continue to create an environment where people feel safe, and confident to report any behaviour that makes them feel uncomfortable or which threatens them or their communities.

That is why we are collectively announcing the following series of urgent and immediate measures:
:: We will all increase the resources we devote to safeguarding – meeting our responsibility to protect our staff and beneficiaries.
:: We will collectively review our current referencing systems so that people found to have abused their power or behaved inappropriately are not re-employed in the sector – including in INGOs, government agencies, the UN and other associated bilateral and domestic agencies.
:: We will work with these authorities and regulatory bodies to ensure any individual caught abusing their power cannot do so again.
:: We will work with the government to ensure that we can overcome the legal and institutional barriers to rigorous background checks in the UK.

In taking these steps, we are also asking people to come forward to report unacceptable behaviour. We hope these measures send a clear message to those who experience or witness any form of abuse – it is really important that they know that we will listen and we will take action.

These actions are only the first step as, collectively and individually, we do everything possible to ensure that our organisations, our staff and the work we fund meets that most fundamental criteria for all charities – to serve people and not to exploit them.

Our collective mission is to do much more than that – the challenge we face in our own organisations is a challenge for the whole of society. This is something that requires leadership in every sector – and we ask people from all walks of life and all corners of our communities to help us to strengthen safeguards, tackle abuse and stand up for the vulnerable – and to call out inappropriate behaviour wherever we see it.

We are truly sorry that at times our sector has failed. We must and will do better.

ActionAid UK
BBC Media Action
Bond
CAFOD
CARE International UK
Christian Aid
Concern Worldwide UK
Global Citizen
Islamic Relief UK
Mercy Corps Europe
Muslim Aid
Oxfam GB
Plan International UK
Practical Action
Save the Children UK
Start Network
Scotland’s International Development Alliance
Tearfund
UNICEF UK
VSO
WaterAid
World Vision UK

Taking action to prevent and address staff misconduct – ICRC
Statement from ICRC Director-General Yves Daccord 23-02-2018
[Excerpt]
…Our response to recent misconduct
The decentralized management system we have used for decades is our established way to make life-and-death decisions on field security and aid delivery. But when this approach is applied to managing misconduct, it is difficult to accurately compile overall figures.
I have instructed my teams to scour the data we do have on sexual misconduct, and I can tell you that since 2015 we’ve identified 21 staff members who were either dismissed for paying for sexual services or resigned during an internal enquiry. Another two staff members suspected of sexual misconduct did not have their contracts renewed. I am deeply saddened to report these numbers.
This behaviour is a betrayal of the people and the communities we are there to serve. It is against human dignity and we should have been more vigilant in preventing this.
The ICRC has more than 17,000 staff members worldwide. We are concerned that incidents that should be reported have not yet been reported, or were reported but not properly handled. We are taking action to address this.
Procedures to handle misconduct allegations
All staff are contractually bound by the ICRC’s Code of Conduct, which explicitly forbids the purchase of sexual services. This ban, in place since 2006, applies worldwide and at all times, including in locations where prostitution is legal, as the ICRC believes that staff paying for sex is incompatible with the values and mission of the organisation.
In spring 2017 we created the Global Compliance Office, tasked with monitoring and enforcing staff adherence to the Code of Conduct. This office manages complaints and allegations confidentially and functions independently. Before that we created a worldwide ombudsman network to which staff can turn for advice and support.
These mechanisms are designed to give us an overview of all misconduct cases and provide institutional oversight. They should ensure overall coherence and fairness in the application of the rules.
My pledge to the people we serve and to our staff is that complaints and allegations will be acted upon firmly and consistently. Any employee found to have violated the Code of Conduct will be held accountable…

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Statement from CARE International
21st Feb 2018
CARE International works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice. Because of our mission and our focus on women and girls, we are deeply committed to building a world where violence, harassment and abuse against anyone is not tolerated.

Our ability to fulfil our relief and development mission is wholly reliant on the high standards of integrity and conduct of our staff working at all levels in the organisation; from those in head office to those working in the communities we serve.

In 2017, CARE had more than 9,000 staff in more than 90 countries. We collected figures in two separate categories: (1) sexual abuse and exploitation of community members and (2) sexual harassment within the organization.

CARE received 13 sexual abuse or exploitation reports in 2017, of which eight were substantiated. Seven of those eight staff were dismissed as a result and one resigned.

In the second category, CARE received reports of 15 cases of sexual harassment within the organization, of which eight were substantiated. Of those eight staff members: four were dismissed as a result; two contracts were not renewed; and the remaining two staff members received a warning and one no longer works for CARE.

We have researched and taken each case before us very seriously, but we also recognize that complex systems like ours are fallible. We are encouraging people inside and outside of CARE to share historical information with us.

Our global policy on Protection from Exploitation and Abuse and Child Protection explicitly outlines unacceptable behaviour, and what we will do to investigate allegations, support victims and discipline perpetrators, including referring them to the relevant authorities. We will continue to build upon this policy as we, along with others in the sector, reflect and evolve.

We have mechanisms in place to report abuse or harassment of any kind, either through management or HR structures, or through a hotline (known as the “CARE Line”). We also are now rolling out plans to strengthen our complaint mechanisms for our program participants to raise concerns or allegations of sexual harassment, exploitation or abuse. This includes our ability to track these issues across the confederation.

We will continue to focus on improving our reporting mechanisms at all levels of the organisation. At CARE, we have an uncompromising commitment to integrity and humility, which means we remain accountable to the people and partners we serve.

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UNAIDS’ Deputy Executive Director, Programme, not to seek renewal of his position
GENEVA, 23 February 2018—UNAIDS’ Deputy Executive Director, Programme, Luiz Loures, has communicated his wish to the UNAIDS Executive Director not to seek the renewal of his position as Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS. Dr Loures will end his term as Deputy Executive Director at the end of March 2018.
The Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, has accepted the decision and conveyed the decision to the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Mr Sidibé also thanked Dr Loures for his 22 years of dedicated service to UNAIDS…

Emergencies

Urgent need to scale up health services in Cox’s Bazar: WHO
SEAR/PR/1680
Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, 20 February 2018: Calling for continued efforts to further scale up health services for nearly 1.3 million people in Cox’s Bazar, Rohingyas and their surrounding host communities, the World Health Organization today said six months after the start of the refugee crisis, the vulnerable populations remain at risk of several diseases and in need of critical services for survival.

“Commendable efforts have been made by the Government of Bangladesh and partner agencies to provide health services; prevent diseases such as cholera; and rapidly control outbreaks of measles and diphtheria. However, the challenges are huge, multiple and evolving. The magnitude of the crisis requires continued efforts and generous contributions by all partners to scale up health services for the vulnerable population,” said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia.

An estimated 688,000 Rohingyas crossed over to Cox’s Bazar from Myanmar beginning 25 August 2017, joining nearly 212,500 others who had arrived in earlier waves, in one of the largest population movement in the shortest span.

While majority of the refugees are living in Kutapalong and Balukhali mega camps and 11 other clusters of small and big settlements, about 79 000 are living with the host population.
The mega camps are currently one of the world’s biggest refugee settlement areas and also one of the world’s most densely populated areas.

The health needs of this population continue to be immense. Women and young mothers need reproductive health services. An estimated 60 000 children are expected to be born in the camps in the next one year. Besides newborns, pregnant and young mothers; children, adults and the elderly need basic health services and that for injuries, trauma and various non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and importantly, psychosocial support.

“Water and sanitation, and shelter continues to be far from optimum, increasing the risk of rapid spread of several communicable and water borne diseases,” the Regional Director said, stressing the need to accelerate efforts to address the key determinants of health on a priority.
The upcoming rainy season and the risk of cyclone and floods, increase the vulnerability of these people to waterborne diseases such as diarrhea and hepatitis, and vector borne diseases such as malaria, dengue and chikungunya.

For keeping a close watch on the situation, WHO established the Early Warning and Response System (EWARS), early as the crisis started, to rapidly detect and respond to disease outbreak to minimize death and disease. Additionally, WHO has been periodically carrying out risk assessments to enable Ministry of Health and partners take measures to detect potential health risks and take timely and appropriate measures.

The EWARS and risk assessments helped Bangladesh’s decision to carry out large scale vaccination campaigns with cholera, measles and rubella, polio and diphtheria vaccines. WHO has been working with the Ministry of Health and partners to plan, roll out and monitor vaccination campaigns to ensure all children are protected.

WHO continues to lead and coordinate efforts of over 100 partners managing more than 270 health facilities – health posts, hospitals, treatment centers and mobile clinics – while also providing medicines and medical equipment, diagnostics, guidelines and trainings and building laboratory capacity.

Despite efforts by government and partners, challenges are many. The affected population has distinct and unique culture and language, a major barrier in impacting health seeking and hygiene behavior.

But the most impending challenge is finding a safe space to relocate the refugees in case of floods and cyclone during the upcoming rainy season, which may further impact their health.

“The Government of Bangladesh has been extremely generous and forthcoming in hosting and providing for the Rohingyas. However, the health sector is grossly under-funded and grappling to meet the needs of the affected population,” Dr Khetrapal Singh said, appealing to international community to contribute generously and commit to support what clearly is set to be a protracted emergency.

Reiterating WHO’s committed to work with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and partners to address health issues of the vulnerable population, the Regional Director said concerted efforts by both national and international community is the need of the hour to strengthen and reinforce health services for both the Rohingyas and the their host population in Cox’s Bazar.

Emergencies
 
POLIO
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)
Polio this week as of 21 February 2018 [GPEI]
:: New on http://polioeradication.org/: Ending polio and yellow fever in Nigeria, and why the polio vaccine must be delivered multiple times.
::  Our brand new animation on the two polio vaccines has been released, available in English, French, and Arabic.
:: In response to recent cases, the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has announced the circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus 2 (cVDPV2) outbreak ongoing in the country as a Public Health Emergency of National Concern. Since the outbreak began, the Ministry of Health, supported by WHO and partners of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, has implemented four monovalent oral polio vaccine 2 (mOPV2) supplementary immunization campaigns and one mop-up campaign to prevent virus spread. They have worked hard to strengthen surveillance and routine immunization in the outbreak zones and across the country, and are fully committed to ending the outbreak. The total number of officially reported cVDPV2 cases in the DRC in 2017 is 21. No cases of cVDPV2 with onset in 2018 have so far been reported.
:: Summary of newly-reported viruses this week: No new viruses reported.

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Syria cVDPV2 outbreak situation report 35, 20 February 2018
Situation update 20 February 2018
[Editor’ text bolding]
:: No new cases of cVDPV2 were reported this week. The total number of cVDPV2 cases remains 74. The most recent case (by date of onset of paralysis) is 21 September 2017 from Boukamal district, Deir Ez-Zor governorate.
:: An inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) immunization round has successfully concluded in Damascus, Hasakah, parts of Aleppo governorates, and Jurmana district of rural Damascus as part of the second phase of the outbreak response. IPV vaccination is continuing in accessible parts of Aleppo governorate.
:: Reportedly, a total of 233 518 children aged 2–23 months received IPV, representing 71% of the estimated target.
:: Post campaign monitoring of the IPV campaign has concluded in Damascus, Hasakah and parts of Aleppo governorate that completed the implementation. Overall, post campaign monitoring indicates 81% vaccination rates by parental/caregiver recall and 77% by finger marking.
:: Post campaign monitoring particularly focused on the internally displaced persons (IDP) camps; the data indicates 91% vaccination rates by parental/caregiver recall and 89% by finger marking.
:: A nationwide immunization round utilizing bivalent OPV (bOPV) is planned for March. The campaign will target all children aged less than 5 years.

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WHO Grade 3 Emergencies  [to 24 February 2018]
The Syrian Arab Republic
:: Syria cVDPV2 outbreak situation report 35, 20 February 2018
[See Polio above for detail]

Yemen 
Weekly cholera bulletins
:: Weekly epidemiology bulletin, 5–11 February 2018
Cumulative figures
-The cumulative total from 27 April 2017 to 11 Feb 2018 is 1,059,970 suspected cholera cases and 2,258 associated deaths, (CFR 0.21%), 1104 have been confirmed by culture.
– 59.3 % of death were severe cases at admission
– The total proportion of severe cases among the suspected cases is 16%
– The national attack rate is 382.7 per 10,000. The five governorates with the highest cumulative attack rates per 10,000 remain Amran (894), Al Mahwit (857), Al Dhale’e (644), Hajjah (520) and Sana’a (515).
– Children under 5 years old represent 28.8% of total suspected cases.
– In total, 29,629 rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) have been performed which represents 28 % coverage.
– 2,732 cultures have been performed which represents 22.3% coverage.
– The last positive culture was on 4 Feb 2018 in Al Harith district in Amant Al Asimah
– 182 districts are still reporting suspected cholera cases since last 3 weeks
– 123 districts (out of 305 affected districts) did not report any suspected cases for the last three consecutive weeks
Governorate and District level
– At governorate level, the trend from W4 –W6 decrease or was stable in all governorates except (Aden governorate)
(+13%).
Trends
– The weekly number of cases is decreasing for the 22 consecutive weeks.
– The weekly proportion of severe cases has significantly decreased representing now 9% of the admitted cases.
Week 6 2018
– 3,886 suspected cases and 3 associated deaths were reported
– 9 % are severe cases
– 589 RDTs were performed, 131 were positive
– No culture test was performed this week

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WHO Grade 2 Emergencies  [to 24 February 2018]
Bangladesh/Myanmar: Rakhine Conflict 2017
[See WHO announcement in Milestones/Perspectives above]

Democratic Republic of the Congo 
:: Read the health situation report in French pdf, 4.28Mb, February 2018

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UN OCHA – L3 Emergencies
The UN and its humanitarian partners are currently responding to three ‘L3’ emergencies. This is the global humanitarian system’s classification for the response to the most severe, large-scale humanitarian crises. 
Syrian Arab Republic
:: 23 Feb 2018   UN chiefs call for stepped-up support for vulnerable Syrians, refugees and host communities, amid escalating violence inside Syria

Yemen 
:: 20 Feb 2018  Yemen Humanitarian Update Covering 12 – 18 February 2018

The Sentinel

Human Rights Action :: Humanitarian Response :: Health :: Education :: Heritage Stewardship ::
Sustainable Development
__________________________________________________
Week ending 17 February 2018

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
GE2P2 Global Foundation – Governance, Evidence, Ethics, Policy, Practice
david.r.curry@ge2p2center.net

pdf version: The Sentinel_ period ending 17 Feb 2018

Contents
:: Week in Review  [See selected posts just below]
:: Key Agency/IGO/Governments Watch – Selected Updates from 30+ entities
:: INGO/Consortia/Joint Initiatives Watch – Media Releases, Major Initiatives, Research
:: Foundation/Major Donor Watch -Selected Updates
:: Journal Watch – Key articles and abstracts from 100+ peer-reviewed journals

Humanitarian Health Response – Mosul
.

The Mosul Trauma Response A Case Study
Center for Humanitarian Health – Johns Hopkins University
February 2018 :: 67 pages
Full Report PDF: http://www.hopkinshumanitarianhealth.org/assets/documents/Mosul_Report_FINAL_Feb_14_2018.pdf
Exec Sum. 1: Application of Humanitarian Principles | Exec Sum. 2: Quality and Effectiveness

The Battle of Mosul was one of the largest urban sieges since World War II. From October 2016 and July 2017, Iraqi and Kurdish forces fought to retake Iraq’s second largest city, which had fallen to ISIL in 2014. They were backed by U.S.-led coalition forces. More than 940,000 civilians fled during the siege, and thousands were injured as they sought safety.

Early on it became clear that the Iraqi military did not have the capacity to provide trauma care, despite its obligations under the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols. The World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners stepped in to fill this void. This was the first time the WHO played a leading role in coordinating care in conflict, and the first time a civilian trauma setting was attempted at the frontline.

Key findings
:: Between 1500-1800 lives, both military and civilian, may have been saved through this trauma response.
:: By attempting to apply Western military standards of trauma care and ‘moving forward’ towards the frontline to save civilians lives, WHO and its partners challenged existing humanitarian principles, particularly those of neutrality and independence.
:: The Iraqi government and its military did not have medical capacity to fulfil their obligations to protect and care for wounded civilians on the Mosul battlefield, and the U.S.-led coalition did not provide substantial medical care for wounded civilians.
:: WHO-supported field hospitals filled important gaps in trauma surgical care, while post-operative and rehabilitative care warranted greater support.
:: Successful coordination among local leaders, partners, and civilian and military officials occurred, but field coordination could have been better resourced.

Recommendations
:: Warring factions, and those supporting them, need to enhance the former’s medical capacities to ensure they can fulfill their obligations under the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols.
:: Deliberation is needed regarding the benefits to and the moral obligations of governments who support such warring factions, like the U.S.-led coalition in the Mosul battle.
:: Humanitarians must take care to avoid being instrumentalized by governments or military in future conflicts.
:: Medical teams operating directly with a combatant force should not be identified as humanitarian;
:: Frontline medical services could be provided by specialized groups explicitly trained to work directly with combatant forces, possibly contracted as military support services focusing on providing frontline medical services for both injured soldiers and civilians.
:: Using private medical organizations (i.e., contractors) to provide humanitarian services in conflict settings needs further study.
:: How humanitarian actors can apply standards of trauma care that compel them to move towards the frontline to save lives, and still adhere to longstanding humanitarian principles, needs debate at senior levels such as at the Inter Agency Standing Committee or at the intergovernmental level.

Authors:
Paul B. Spiegel MD, MPH
Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH)
Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health
Kent Garber MD, MPH
Research Associate, JHSPH
Adam Kushner MD, MPH
Associate, JHSPH
Core faculty, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health
Paul Wise MD, MPH
Richard E. Behrman Professor of Child Health and Society
Professor of Pediatrics
Senior Fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
Stanford University

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The Lancet
Feb 03, 2018 Volume 391 Number 10119 p401-512 e5
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current
Editorial
Examining humanitarian principles in changing warfare
The Lancet
Published: 17 February 2018
Violence in war must have a limit. Those who are not participating in the hostilities should be protected to prevent war from sinking into barbarity. Today, this is safeguarded by international humanitarian law (IHL), of which the cornerstones are the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and its Additional Protocols. IHL provides for the wounded and sick to be collected and cared for by the warring faction that has them in their power, and for them to receive timely medical care. Traditionally, those entering into conflict could be expected to uphold these laws. But who will save the lives of the wounded if the warring factions are unable—or unwilling—to provide that care?

From October, 2016, to July, 2017, a US-led coalition supported the Iraqi and Kurdish forces in a battle to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). What became known as the Battle of Mosul was one of the largest urban sieges since World War 2. Over 940 000 civilians fled—facing bullets, mortar shells, and air strikes. Providing timely and efficient trauma care to these civilians was paramount but fraught with difficulty.

How the humanitarian community responded to this situation provides an insight into the evolving debate over the provision of trauma care in war. This was documented in an evaluation published on Feb 17, 2018 led by Paul Spiegel and colleagues of the Center for Humanitarian Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who petitioned the US Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance for a grant for this study. It is based on qualitative data (interviews, and a review of publicly and privately shared documents) and a quantitative analysis of data collected by WHO and other actors.

During the Battle, it soon became apparent that a void in life-saving trauma care urgently needed to be filled. The Iraqi military lacked medical personnel and the US-led coalition deployed few medical teams, which were tasked with providing care for wounded coalition forces and not civilians. ISIL’s tactics—use of civilians as shields, shooting at fleeing civilians, and occupation of health clinics—showed disregard for civilian and health worker protection. Humanitarian actors could not negotiate safe passage with ISIL; it was the first time the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) did not have contact with all sides of the conflict. Moreover, hospital overcrowding, extensive infrastructure damage, and checkpoints set up by the Kurdish forces substantially slowed access to care.

In a first-of-its-kind approach, the evaluation shows that, consequently, the UN and WHO had to take charge and coordinate a unique trauma response for injured civilians. This trauma pathway, modelled after military trauma systems, included so-called trauma stabilisation points (TSPs) located within 10 mins of the front line, and field hospitals within an hour’s drive. This ultimately required the humanitarians to be “colocated” or “embedded” within the Iraqi military for security and logistical reasons, minutes away from the combat zone.

This approach challenged accepted humanitarian principles. Rooted in IHL, the humanitarian principles—neutrality, impartiality, humanity, and independence—guide the work of humanitarian actors, and are usually considered indivisible. As was stated in the evaluation, by colocating/embedding humanitarians with the military, “the principle of humanity [to protect life and health] was consciously given precedence over the principles of neutrality and independence; we would also argue over impartiality as well”. When approached by WHO to staff the TSPs and field hospitals, ICRC and Médecins Sans Frontières both raised these concerns, and finally declined to participate in this specific aspect of the trauma response. WHO ended up contracting humanitarian NGOs, and, as a last resort, a for-profit medical company, to “move forward” towards the front line. Spiegel and colleagues estimate that this approach, complemented by the work of other actors also providing trauma care, likely saved about 1500–1800 lives—both civilians and combatants.

The Battle of Mosul provides an important case study for what might be to come. Above all, this should be a very rare occurrence, and The Lancet echoes the evaluation’s recommendation that governments, and possibly their allies, must ensure their militaries can fulfil the obligations of protection and care for wounded citizens under the Geneva Conventions. However, in modern warfare, access to the injured may increasingly be one sided when fighting against warring factions that see health workers and civilians as acceptable targets of war. Governments should be prepared to face this eventuality. To be able to continue providing the best standards of care and saving lives, a high-level meeting must urgently be organised to examine and answer this question: are the humanitarian principles as they are defined today still relevant for this changing warfare?