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IMF, Globe Bank Endorse $4.6B Debt Relief For Liberia

“The International Monetary Fund [IMF] as well as the Globe Bank said on Tuesday they supported a $4.6 billion debt relief program for Liberia,” Reuters reports. The debt relief would make offered resources for Liberia to use for rebuilding following years of civil war that damaged infrastructure and has resulted in a “generation of traumatized child soldiers” (6/30).

“Liberia can now mobilize additional resources to rebuild the road network along with the electricity supply system, providing the infrastructure needed to allow economic growth, while continuing to expand the well being care and education systems,” Chris Lane, IMF mission chief for Liberia, said in an IMF press release, Agence France-Presse reports. Pamela Gomez, a policy advisor for Oxfam, said the move was a “step in the right direction.” Gomez said the a current study by Oxfam and partners “found that Liberia is facing a public wellness crisis – three out of four people have no access to safe water, and lack of water and sanitation cause 18 percent of deaths in that country,” AFP reports (6/29).

Haitian Elections To Be Held In November

Nov. 28 has been established as the date for Haiti’s elections after the country’s president, Rene Preval, on Tuesday signed a “much anticipated decree” along with the prime minister and members of the Cabinet, the Connected Press reports.

“The date itself is not a surprise: Haiti’s existing constitution mandates elections be held the last Sunday of November in the fifth year with the president’s term. But opponents had expressed concern that Preval was dragging his feet on holding the election, especially soon after he signed a decree extending his term by three months if voting was not held on time,” the AP writes. In addition to voting for a new president, Haitians will also elect new “legislators for Haiti’s now mostly vacant parliament” (Katz, 6/29).

14 Months Soon after H1N1 Emerged, Mexico Lifts Flu Alert

The government of Mexico on Tuesday lifted its H1N1 (swine flu) alert, “officially ending the wellness emergency in the country where the illness first appeared 14 months ago,” the Related Press reports. “Secretary of Well being Jose Angel Cordova said that as recently as October, 90 percent of influenza cases in Mexico were swine flu. But by May, it was down to 10 percent, the rest being cases of seasonal influenza virus that is less contagious,” the news service adds. Despite lifting the alert, Cordova said Mexico’s government will continue to monitor the flu cases (6/29).

Male Circumcision Program To Begin In Uganda

“The Ugandan government will begin a nationwide male circumcision programme in July as part of its HIV prevention strategy, a senior government official has said,” IRIN/PlusNews reports. There has been “criticism with the delay in launching the circumcision programme,” which the government began drafting in 2008. “We needed funding; PEPFAR … has stepped in to give the ministry and its partners US$5 million for male circumcision over the next year,” Alex Opio, assistant commissioner in Uganda’s wellness ministry said. In accordance with IRIN/PlusNews, circumcision is “relatively new to Uganda, where only 25 percent with the adult men are circumcised.” Even so, one study found that “62 percent of men in four districts would consider being circumcised,” IRIN/PlusNews reports (6/29).

This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Wellness Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Tuesday “he expects the FY10 supplemental spending bill will move in the House ‘within the subsequent couple of days- certainly by Friday,’” CongressDaily reports. Hoyer said the prediction was “more than optimism. That is my intent” (House/Sanchez, 6/29).

The Senate already passed its version of the measure, which includes $2.8 billion for the Haitian rebuilding effort (Kaiser Daily Global Well being Policy Report, 5/28).

“Asked if the supplemental would be divided into at least two parts, with one devoted solely to U.S. military funding, Hoyer said: ‘That will most likely be our procedure,’” CongressDaily reports, noting the concerns over funding for military operations in Afghanistan. “This strategy runs the risk that Republicans – who have been calling for a supplemental bill that does not include any funding not related towards the wars – may not vote for the package out of a concern that their ‘yes’ votes would enable a lot more spending amid high debt and deficits,” based on the publication.

House Republican leaders did not comment on how they strategy to deal with the supplemental, CongressDaily reports (6/29).

This details was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Wellness Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) announced that the Government of Japan pledged a US$10 million grant to support AIDS vaccine research and development over the next five years. The grant, which will be channeled by means of a newly established World Bank trust fund, is the first of its kind from the Japanese government to IAVI.

“We are extremely grateful to Japan for its generous contribution to AIDS vaccine study and development, and also towards the Globe Bank for its untiring support to IAVI along with the fight against HIV/AIDS,” said Seth Berkley, President and CEO of IAVI. “Japan has been a leader in the fight against infectious illnesses and has the scientific capacity to help advance investigation for one of the toughest public health challenges we face today, the manage and ultimate elimination of HIV/AIDS,” Berkley added.

With funds from Japan, IAVI, in collaboration with its Japanese partners, will continue to advance an AIDS vaccine candidate that is constructed using a paramyxovirus recognized as the Sendai virus. Viral vectors according to the Sendai family have the potential to elicit a durable and highly-targeted immune response in mucosal tissues, exactly where HIV often establishes infection before it amplifies and spreads.

“We are pleased to continue working with the Japanese government and IAVI to support analysis on a vaccine to bring an end towards the AIDS pandemic, which has not only inflicted a widespread human tragedy but has also robbed countries of their productive citizens and workers and caused serious economic loss,” said Tamar Manuelyan Atinc, Vice President of Human Development at the Globe Bank-a founding partner at the launch of IAVI in 1996, which has supplied financial support to IAVI because 1998. “This new agreement signifies an excellent achievement during these difficult times in the global economy.”

IAVI has been working with Japan considering that 2001 to mobilize scientific, political and financial resources to support AIDS vaccine development. This has led to a collaborative development of a Sendai virus vector-based AIDS vaccine candidate, which is expected to enter Phase I testing in humans in two to three years.

The need for an AIDS vaccine remains urgent, with the epidemic contributing to reversals in health, food security, education as well as other measures of prosperity and stability. Approximately 7,400 people become newly infected with HIV each day. The pandemic is outpacing existing therapy and prevention efforts. For every two people put on remedy, five new HIV infections occur. A vaccine gives the very best hope of ending the AIDS pandemic and improving millions of lives around the world.

“Japan applauds IAVI for its dedication to developing a vaccine against a disease that continues to kill nearly two million people each year,” said Toru Shikibu, Executive Director for Japan at the World Bank, representing the Government of Japan.

Source:
International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI)

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The Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs approved a $52.7 billion FY 2011 spending bill on Wednesday that withheld $3.9 billion in aid for Afghanistan over concerns about corruption in the country, CongressDaily reports. The bill “already cut $4 billion from President Obama’s request to fund the State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development and dozens of foreign help and cooperation programs,” the publication writes.

The funding for Afghanistan will likely be blocked until the panel holds hearings on the matter of corruption, in accordance with Subcommittee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.). “Lowey and ranking member Kay Granger, R-Texas, also requested [the Government Accountability Office] to conduct a detailed audit of all U.S. funds provided to Afghanistan for the last three fiscal years. While stressing the importance of Afghanistan to U.S. national security and her support for help to education, economic development, wellness care and enhancement of women’s rights, Lowey said: ‘We have an obligation to every single American to make certain that their hard-earned tax dollars are not squandered by means of corruption and graft,’” CongressDaily reports (Kreisher, 7/1).

In the bill, a total of $8.25 billion was allocated to global health with HIV/AIDS activities receiving $5.875 billion, which includes $825 million for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, $125 million far more than Obama requested, based on a press release (.pdf) from Lowey’s office. The release also states that “$615 million [goes] to support malaria programs and increased funding for programs that address maternal and child well being, family preparing, tuberculosis and neglected tropical diseases.” Voluntary family preparing services for women in the creating globe will receive $735 million, of which $60 million is allocated for the U.N. Population Fund.

In addition, “the Committee gives $1 billion for food security and agricultural development, $300 million below the request,” according to the release (6/30).

A breakdown of the appropriations bill is obtainable here (.pdf).

This info was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Wellness Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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3 (2 votes)

A day following Haitian President Rene Preval signed a decree authorizing a date for November elections, he rebuffed other recommendations issued by the U.S. Senate, which include “holding an election for his successor, brushing off criticism that the current process will leave the shattered country without a credible leader,” the Linked Press reports.

According towards the news service, a report recently issued by “Sen. Richard Lugar, the ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, ‘strongly encourages’ Haiti to let its international partners help restructure the eight-member Provisional Electoral Council, which has been accused of corruption. The report also recommends ensuring the participation with the crucial opposition party of ousted former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide” (Katz, 6/30).

At a news conference, Preval said Lugar’s proposals were “unacceptable,” based on Reuters. “I cannot set up an electoral council in consultation with international partners. … I form the electoral council with national partners,” Preval said. He also rejected the call for Aristide’s party’s participation in the November elections and “repeatedly denied accusations that he handpicked members with the existing electoral council and that he was controlling them from behind the scenes,” the news service reports (Delva, 6/30).

The AP also reports that Preval “declined to answer questions about another U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee report that criticizes Haiti’s earthquake recovery, saying he would address that problem at a news conference on reconstruction next week” (6/30).

Neighborhood Haitian RUTF Producer’s Survival Struggle Highlights Foreign Aid Issues In Haiti

Foreign Policy reports on the Haitian company Meds & Food for Kids’ (MFK) struggle to sell Medika Mamba, “a thick paste used to combat childhood malnutrition.” The situation is explained to illustrate the challenges linked with foreign help.

“Local producers can rarely compete with the influx of food, medicine, and other supplies that aid agencies bring. This is portion with the reason why today -after decades of aid dependence – Haiti has almost no local economy for these goods,” the magazine writes.

The write-up outlines MFK’s struggles to compete with Nutriset – “the private French corporation that makes Plumpy’nut, the world’s most popular” ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) – as well as the difficulty MFK faced in getting its manufacturing plant approved by aid agencies.

“MFK’s way about this problem has eventually come, at last. It will soon become a component of Nutriset,” in accordance with Foreign Policy. “MFK founder and director Patricia Wolff says one with the major advantages of joining Nutriset is the credibility it gives MFK with UNICEF, the biggest potential buyer. The MFK facility will most likely be audited at last and will likely be thus able to compete for the kind of large contracts that would make it sustainable. ‘Our idea was to develop a model that was replicable,’ Wolff told me. ‘But humanitarian international buyers have never bought from the national producers. So maybe, the lesson is, it’s not sustainable’” (Bhatia, 6/30).

This data was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Well being Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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The Seattle Times’ “The Business of Giving” weblog examines global health community leaders’ reactions to the outcomes of the current G8 summit in Canada.

“Humanitarian organizations had urged leaders with the eight wealthiest nations to double their collective spending on maternal and child health to $20 billion over five years, saying the money could save a million young children a year and much more than 200,000 mothers,” based on the blog. “What the group offered was $5 billion over five years, with an additional $2.three billion from others. The Gates Foundation is picking up most of the private tab with its $1.5 billion pledge, the second largest in its history,” the weblog reports.

The piece reflects on how concerns over global economic uncertainty and growing domestic issues affected the G8 commitments, also as how “skepticism about the effectiveness and impact of U.S. foreign assistance has grown.” In accordance with the blog, next Tuesday, the non-profit Global Washington is scheduled to release a set of recommendations for reforming U.S. foreign assistance, created by panel of 45 experts from the Seattle region.

“One with the main recommendations of Global Washington is for the U.S. government to streamline the process for businesses, especially small businesses, to get involved in public-private projects created to boost wellness and development in emerging markets. Trade policy should also be linked to development objectives, the Seattle non-profit argues,” the weblog writes.

The write-up includes comments from Jack Chow, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University and former U.S. well being ambassador under Secretary of State Colin Powell, and Robert Zachritz, director of advocacy for World Vision (Heim, 6/30).

This data was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is continuing daily distributions of help in southern Kyrgyzstan with supplies boosted by the arrival of a convoy of trucks from neighbouring Uzbekistan carrying UN humanitarian relief for victims of ethnic violence.

- WFP distributed rations to 6,300 people in the central market area of Osh as part of a programme of daily food distributions. WFP staff members reported the market was open and crowded, with signs that life is beginning to return to normal.

- The 28-truck convoy which crossed into Kyrgyzstan yesterday was met on the Kyrgyz side by the High Commissioner with the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, Antonio Guterres, and WFP Regional Director for the Middle East and Central Asia, Daly Belgasmi. It included 12 vehicles carrying supplies for UNHCR and eight with help from the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF.

- Eight trucks were loaded with 150 metric tons of wheat flour, vegetable oil, pulses and beans for the Globe Food Programme (WFP), which so far has supplied food help to 270,000 people affected by the violence.

- The WFP trucks have been offloaded at a WFP warehouse in Osh as well as the food will probably be distributed to internally displaced people, returnee refugees and others affected by the violence from both the Kyrgyz and Uzbek communities in Osh.

- WFP has so far supplied some 970 metric tons of wheat flour, vegetable oil and fortified High Energy Biscuits to 270,000 people in Osh because the outbreak of violence on 10 June. Distributions to some 15,000 people in Jalal-Abad are planned over the coming days.

- As component of a joint UN fundraising effort, WFP has appealed for around US$23 million to provide emergency food rations to far more than half a million people in Kyrgyzstan.

- After the violence erupted in the southern Kyrgyz towns of Osh and Jalal-Abad, some 75,000 ethnic Uzbeks fled across the border towards the city of Andizhan in Uzbekistan. Almost all have now returned, but many are staying in camps or with host families, as their houses have been destroyed.

Source:
WFP

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The devastating impact with the 2009 Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip is detailed by 1 with the Abstracts published Online by The Lancet, written by Dr Niveen Abu-Rmeileh, Institute of Community and Public Health-Birzeit University, West Bank, occupied Palestinian territory, and colleagues.

The authors analysed health-related quality of life in terms of wellness before and following the invasion, and factors connected with poor quality of life; along with the most urgent wants of a representative sample of adults living in the Gaza strip. They collected information using a randomly selected survey of oPt households, which consisted of questions in three sections about demographic, socioeconomic, and well being details about all members of the household; housing characteristics, amenities, access to basic services, and events taking place during and right after the attacks; and quality of life, distress, insecurities, and threats (with focus on adults ?Y18 years). Some questions were specifically about the periods 6 months before the invasion, during the invasion, and 6 months following the invasion. The prevalence of all injuries and disabilities irrespective with the cause were extracted from different questions.

A representative sample of 3017 households (1% of total households within the Gaza Strip) were visited, with a response rate of 97%. Almost a third of the sample population was displaced during the war, while 39% of these 3017 homes were completely (1%) or partly (38%) destroyed. Three quarters of these homes had yet to be repaired at the end of the study (by August 29, 2009). 137 (0?7%) household members had injuries from various causes: Three-quarters of these were caused by the war (from the start of the attack until the time with the survey [July 14, to Aug 29, 2009]); and 4% of 321 disabilities were caused by the attack. A lot more than seven in ten homes were reliant on food aid.

Quality of life was rated as less than good (out of five categories very good, good, neither good nor poor, poor, very poor) by half of respondents at the time of the survey compared with 39% during the period before the war. 52% of men rated quality of life as less than good versus 48% of women. Other factors also came into play in respondents’ answers on quality of life. 69% of respondents with no one working at home rated quality of life as less than good versus 41% with one or a lot more household members working full-time; 60% of respondents with damaged homes rated quality of life as less-than-good versus 43% of those with intact homes. Finally 57% of respondents whose families received food aid versus rated quality of life as less-than-good versus 30% of respondents whose families did not.

Furthermore, 85% of respondents had moderate or high levels of insecurities, fears, and threats, whereas half reported moderate or high levels of distress. Respondents were also assessed for their level of suffering in a number of categories on a scale of 0 to 10 exactly where 10 was the worst. 92% of respondents rated their suffering as 8 or higher due towards the siege at the time with the survey (Jul to Aug 2009); 90% rated their suffering as eight or higher due to the Israeli occupation, 85% as 8 or higher due towards the most recent war, and 83% rated their suffering as 8 or higher due to internal Palestinian fighting.

A number of crucial needs were identified by the survey: home repair was urgently necessary by 58% of households with homes damaged during the war; a source of livelihood* by 2249 (75%); and utilities (water, electricity, cooking gas) were urgently necessary by 56%.

The authors conclude: “The Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip has had a negative effect on the quality of life of adults in the general population, and has resulted in high levels of reported distress, human insecurity, and social suffering. The siege on this region continues to be the main obstacle for improvement of the living conditions and quality of life of the population, and is a priority for action.”

Note: * The siege affected the economic development in the Gaza Strip and resulted in a reduction of cash liquidity. The term ‘livelihood need’ is a combination of different needs reported by the respondent and this include the want for liquidity, the need to have for work for cash, having main a source for income and work rehabilitation. This lack of work opportunities are the result of chronic siege.

Link to Lancet – Wellness in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 2010

Source
The Lancet

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A second Comment address the politics behind aid given to the oPt, and is written by Angelo Stefanini of the University of Bologna, Italy, and Enrico Pavignani, Independent Public Well being Consultant, Bologna, Italy.

They say: “Aid to Palestinians looks like an inappropriate political tool, provided to limit the damage created by a political problem that donor countries dare not address.”

The authors point out that the International Court of Justice has ruled that states are under an obligation not to render aid that may maintain a situation created by occupation. They give as an example financing of highly localised wellness facilities to mitigate the delays caused by Israeli closures, which effectively normalises an unacceptable situation.

They add: “In view with the fact that 45% of aid goes to Israel and also the remaining 55% is divided among waste on occupation measures and actual project benefits,8 aid subsidises the Israeli expansion in the occupied Palestinian territory….Generous and unconditional help to the health sector has led to punishing levels of donor dependency: 42% of the health expenditure is financed by donors.

The role of donors and beneficiaries is put under the spotlight in the Comment. The authors say: “Donors perceive their role in different ways, as mere cash providers or as active players. Their choice of interventions is often opportunistic, thus fostering a competitive environment in which joint ventures are resisted and open discussion evaded. The resulting aid landscape is not yet populated by the good donor practices embodied in the Paris Declaration. Conversely, beneficiaries tend to favour aid as bilateral deals, biased towards generous donors who avoid awkward questions. Such an environment does not help meaningful consultations, and formal coordination mechanism may possibly be sidelined. The result is that generous aid is taken for granted and services develop free of fiscal constraints, with costs exceeding future foreseeable internal resources. Above all, donors fail to address a crucial wellness determinant in the occupied Palestinian territory: human security along with the structural violence imposed by the occupation.”

They conclude: “What can be done?…Both technical and political aspects should be tackled…Above all, the split in between the assistance provided by donors and their geopolitical views ought to be addressed. Outspoken advocacy is required to encourage the mutual understanding with the diplomatic along with the technical sides. A move towards an approach according to human rights and international humanitarian law is long overdue.”

Link to Lancet – Well being in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 2010

Source
The Lancet

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Article Opinions:1 posts

The House passed a practically “$60 billion bill Thursday to pay for wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and fund a variety of other programs,” including relief and rebuilding initiatives in Haiti following the January earthquake, Fox News’ “The Speaker’s Lobby” weblog reports (Pergram, 7/1).

“The [FY10] supplemental appropriations bill, containing billions of dollars in additional domestic spending sought by Democrats in the House, passed 239-182, with 15 Democrats and 167 of 177 Republicans voting against the measure,” based on The Hill (Allen/Berman/Tiron, 7/1).

CongressDaily notes that the bill “will head back to the Senate, which is expected to take up the amended House bill soon after the Independence Day recess” (Sanchez/Scully, 7/2). Based on The Hill, additional changes to the bill by the Senate “seem likely.” A White House statement said that President Barack Obama would veto the bill if it slashes education reform funding or includes “provisions that would undermine [the president's] ability as commander in chief to conduct military operations in Afghanistan” (7/1).

This details was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Wellness Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org.

? Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.