ETHIOPIA: Drought, floods hit education [Posted on: Jan 23, 2012 - 15 days ago]
IRIN: ADDIS ABABA, 18 January 2012 (IRIN) - Parts of Ethiopia are still reeling from the effects of recent drought, flooding, conflict or a combination of the three, resulting in increased numbers of children dropping out of school, say officials.
Winnipeg Free Press: Climate change contributes to starvation in Africa [Posted on: Jan 19, 2012 - 19 days ago]
The United Nations and several Winnipeg-based aid agencies say climate change is already responsible for more frequent and intense natural hazards, such as droughts and devastating floods, on the African continent.
The Development Newswire: Aid activities restricted in Ethiopia refugee camps [Posted on: Jan 17, 2012 - 21 days ago]
Aid agencies have restricted their operations in five Somali refugee camps in Ethiopia following an isolated security incident there last week.
First look at possible Rio+20 outcome document [Posted on: Jan 13, 2012 - 25 days ago]
A draft of the proposed outcome document for the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development has been released. And it includes a proposal to draft new global targets past the 2015 deadline of the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.
Embassy: Major foreign policy rethink coming in 2012 [Posted on: Dec 16, 2011 - 53 days ago]
Observers say the Canadian International Development Agency is revamping its list of focus countries. If it does so, mineral-rich countries could become new favoured nations because of the links with Canadian mining firms, they say
BBC: East Africa drought 'remains huge crisis' - UK official [Posted on: Oct 20, 2011 - 110 days ago]
Three months after famine was declared in Somalia, the scale of the crisis in the Horn of Africa remains huge, says a British official.
How To Help Africa Become Independent From Aid [Posted on: Oct 20, 2011 - 110 days ago]
African countries can achieve aid independence within a generation, given “right thinking” and “enough political will” from leaders of both developing and developed countries, according to former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is patron of the Africa Governance Initiative.
Media Global - World Food Day: A discussion that cannot be ignored [Posted on: Oct 17, 2011 - 113 days ago]
Despite the current severe drought in East Africa and resultant famine in Somalia, northern Ethiopia has thus far escaped this year's drought. The region has, however, been devastated by lack of rainfall in the past and Satterthwaite's program was ...
CBC: East Africa famine donation matching ends Friday [Posted on: Sep 18, 2011 - 142 days ago]
It's not known how much was collected in the last week as aid agencies made a final plea for more. "Once the deadline is reached at tonight, midnight, then reports will start coming into CIDA," the Canadian International Development Agency, ...
Reuters Alertnet: Humanitarian situation improving in Ethiopia, continued challenges in Somalia [Posted on: Sep 18, 2011 - 142 days ago]
Together with our partners, UNHCR has been making progress in delivering health and nutrition services to Somali refugees in the Dollo Ado camps in Ethiopia. The measles vaccination campaign, completed two weeks ago, has resulted in a sharp decrease in ...
Bloomberg: Ethiopia to Import 300,000 Tons of Wheat to Build Reserves [Posted on: Aug 29, 2011 - 162 days ago]
25 (Bloomberg) -- Ethiopia will import 300000 metric tons of wheat for reserves and to assure food supply amid drought, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said. The milling wheat, a variety used to make bread, has already been bought and will now be shipped, ...
AFP: Ethiopia, Kenya better 'prepared' for food crisis: IFRC [Posted on: Aug 29, 2011 - 162 days ago]
GENEVA — The Ethiopian-born secretary-general of the Red Cross said his native country is better "prepared" to handle Africa's worst drought in decades than it was when millions died of starvation in the 1980s. "Twenty years ago, it was terrible," ...
The Humanitarian Coalition: Member updates from East Africa - Aug.24 [Posted on: Aug 29, 2011 - 162 days ago]
Ottawa, ON (August 24, 2011) - Canada’s leading humanitarian organizations and members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are working in East Africa and are providing urgently needed relief to the most vulnerable people affected by this crisis, including women, children and the elderly. HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have raised over $7.7 million from the Canadian public for relief efforts. A further $8.5 million has been allocated to three members (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada and Plan Canada) from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
The Guardian: Somali refugees in Kenya and Ethiopia suffer a cholera and measles epidemic [Posted on: Aug 15, 2011 - 176 days ago]
An even greater number have travelled to sprawling drought-affected refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. In Kenya's Dadaab settlement, about 1400 Somalis arrive every day, pushing the number of recorded refugees past 400000. ...
AFP: MSF Launches Mass Vaccination in Ethiopian Camp [Posted on: Aug 15, 2011 - 176 days ago]
DOLO ADO , Ethiopia — Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) launched a mass vaccination Thursday against measles at a refugee camp in southern Ethiopia hosting Somalis who have fled a severe drought. The Dolo Ado camps host 118400 Somali ...
The Montreal Gazette: Thousands struggle in Ethiopia's "green drought" [Posted on: Aug 11, 2011 - 180 days ago]
SHEBEDINO, Ethiopia — Shundure Tekamo faces a tough choice — stay with her severely malnourished son in hospital, or return home in the desperate search for food for her five other children. "I cannot think of anything, because I want only to save my ...
Voice of America: Ethiopian Food Prices Up Nearly 50 Percent [Posted on: Aug 10, 2011 - 181 days ago]
August 09, 2011 Ethiopian Food Prices Up Nearly 50% Peter Heinlein | Addis Ababa Ethiopians awoke Tuesday to news that food prices had increased nearly 50 percent over the past year. They didn't need to be told. Even middle-class Ethiopians are finding ...
SOS Children's Villages Canada: Emergency Measles Vaccination Drive to be Launched in Ethiopia Tomorrow [Posted on: Aug 08, 2011 - 183 days ago]
Aid workers from the UNHCR have leapt into action, vaccinating hundreds of children already in the Ethiopian refugee camp where the outbreak occurred. Children, whose bodies are still in development, are particularly vulnerable. ...
Bloomberg: Ethiopian Inflation Rate Climbed to 39.2% in July as Food Prices Increased [Posted on: Aug 08, 2011 - 183 days ago]
By William Davison - Mon Aug 08 09:30:36 GMT 2011 Ethiopia's inflation rate climbed to 39.2 percent in July from a year earlier, the Central Statistical Agency said in an e-mailed statement today. Inflation accelerated from 38.1 percent in June
Voice of America: Famine Expected to Hit All of Somalia, Parts of Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia [Posted on: Aug 04, 2011 - 187 days ago]
August 03, 2011 Famine Expected to Hit All of Somalia, Parts of Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia Fighting and insecurity are the main stumbling blocks to getting food aid to starving people Kim Lewis The UN is warning that famine conditions are likely to ...
Voice of America: WFP: Ethiopia’s Emergency Food Reserve Near Zero [Posted on: Aug 04, 2011 - 187 days ago]
The head of World Food Program in Ethiopia says the country's emergency food stocks are almost gone, the latest trouble caused by the drought in the Horn of Africa.
Huffington Post Canada: Transparency and Canadian Foreign Aid [Posted on: Aug 02, 2011 - 189 days ago]
It has always been hard to get timely information on Canada's foreign aid. Now, thanks to the new "Open Government" initiative, data are easier to access on the Canadian International Development Agency's website.
UN World Food Program readies aircraft to fly food aid to Somalia [Posted on: Jul 27, 2011 - 195 days ago]
THE UN's World Food Program readied aircraft with food aid bound for the Somali capital Mogadishu, as relief efforts continued for millions affected by drought across the Horn of Africa. However, hopes that the aircraft could take off yesterday were dashed by last minute bureaucratic hurdles in Kenya. "The aircraft are loading with the hope that they can take off on Wednesday," said WFP spokesman David Orr. "This will be the first of a series of flights -- once they start, they will just keep coming and coming in an ongoing operation," he added. The flights have only a narrow timeframe to fly, offload their critical cargo and then return to Nairobi, Orr added, and a wait for clearance permission in Nairobi had delayed the mission. An estimated 3.7 million people in Somalia -- around a third of the population -- are on the brink of starvation and millions more in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda have been struck by the worst drought in the region in 60 years. The UN last week officially declared a famine in two regions of southern Somalia, and on Monday called for "massive" action to support 12 million people affected by drought. Relief efforts will be the focus of a donor and aid agency meeting in Nairobi on Wednesday, as discussions continue on how to tackle the crisis, including delivering aid into areas held by Somalia's Shabab Islamist insurgents. UN officials say the drought has killed tens of thousands of people in recent months, forcing hundreds of thousands to walk for weeks in search of food and water. At an emergency meeting on the Horn Africa drought in Rome on Monday, officials said the UN had received about $US1 billion ($A924.56 million) since first launching an appeal for the region in November 2010 but needs a billion more by the end of the year to cope with the emergency. The World Bank on Monday pledged more than $500 million, with the bulk of the money set to go towards long-term projects to aid livestock farmers while $12 million would be for immediate assistance to those worst hit by the crisis. However charities have slammed low aid pledges and say not enough is being done. Aid agency Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned in a statement yesterday that the situation remains dire for more than 387,000 mainly Somali refugees now in the Dadaab camp complex in eastern Kenya. Thousands of refugees continue to arrive but are not receiving basic support, MSF said. "Whilst many of these refugees remain on the outskirts of the camps they are still not receiving adequate assistance," MSF said in a statement. "Delays in registration and access to food, water and shelter are tipping them over the edge." The WFP flights will be carrying around 14 metric tonnes of high energy food aimed to combat malnutrition, especially for children. Flights will also go to the Ethiopian town of Dolo on the border with Somalia and to the town of Wajir in northern Kenya. Other organisations have already made relief deliveries, with the UN children's agency airlifting five tonnes of aid into rebel-held part of southern Somalia earlier this month. The International Red Cross on Sunday said it had handed out 400 tonnes of food in drought-hit areas controlled by the hardline Shebab insurgents, the first ICRC-led drops into such areas since 2009. The WFP was forced to pull out of southern Somalia last year after a series of threats and curbs on its operations from Shebab rebels, but it has continued to operate in Mogadishu and central and northern regions of the war-torn country. In Mogadishu alone, WFP assists approximately 300,000 people and it has been scaling up operations with three new centres to feed the large numbers of internally displaced people flooding into the city from the south.
New Business Ethiopia: UNFPA to Produce Report on Ethiopian Population [Posted on: Jul 27, 2011 - 195 days ago]
By Andualem Sisay The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is set to launch Ethiopia’s population report focusing on the state and trend of Ethiopian population. According to the UNFPA Deputy Representative, Ibrahim Sambuli, the reason behind is to showcase the rest of the world Ethiopia’s experiences in health extension program, women initiative and the like. “We are given green light from Ethiopian government to prepare a separate report that assesses Ethiopia’s population status,” he said this morning (July 26, 2011) briefing journalists gathered in Adama town, a hundred kilometers from the capital, for a workshop that deals with population issues. Ethiopia with other few countries will also get special emphasis in the next World Population report of UNFPA, which will also be launched in November 2, 2011. The country’s population is currently growing a rate of 2.6 percent per annum. Official statistics indicates that of the total population of Ethiopia (85 million), around 30 percent are below poverty line (live on less than one US dollars per day). The latest population census of Ethiopia shows that around 60 percent of the total population is in between 15 and 38 ages. Ethiopia has not been able to feed its citizens for several decades and every year it has been dependent on foreign food aid to feed several millions. The 2005 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), one woman in Ethiopia gives birth to an average of 5.4 children. A low level of reproductive health services is often mentioned as one of the main reason for such a high fertility rate of Ethiopia. The fact that that 80 percent of the total population of the country is located in rural areas and are illiterate is attributed for the current 15 percent contraceptive coverage at national level. DHS 2005 also indicates that even if 34 percent of the total women in Ethiopia have the demand for contraceptive, they do not have access. As a result of population Behailu Gebre-Medhin, UNFPA Ethiopia Monitoring and Evaluation Officer presenting a paper for journalists on significance of reporting population issues in Ethiopia, Adama July 26, 2011 burden and lack of infrastructure and health service professionals at grassroots level, 673 mothers die giving birth out of 100,000. In addition, 77 children out of 1000 babies die before seeing glow of their first year birthday celebration candle. Some population experts suggest that the country should control its population growth rate at least to reduce the number of its foreign food aid-dependent citizens. On other hand, the country’s higher officials including Prime Minister Meles, think that more population is a bonus for Ethiopian economic growth. “People will not only come to this world with their mouths, they also come with hands and feet to work,” he said during one of his media recent briefings. “I personally don’t buy the idea,” says Behailu Gebre-Medhin, UNFPA Ethiopia Monitoring and Evaluation Officer. “Currently population is a serious problem and a burden negatively affecting the development of the country. The current population growth trend is causing severe shortages of resources and goods such as land and food, while compromising the quality of health and education services. Since the country is not fully providing some of the basic needs, services and jobs to its citizens, population is a burden to Ethiopia,” he argues. According to the United States Census Bureau, Ethiopia which had a total of 53.5 million population in 1994, will have a total of 278, 283,000 population by 2050 becoming the 7th populous nation in the world next to Pakistan which will have a population of close to 291 million. UNFPA estimates that on October 31, 2011 the total population of the world will be 7 billion.
CIDA: East Africa Drought Relief Fund [Posted on: Jul 27, 2011 - 195 days ago]
In order to better respond to the needs of those affected by the East Africa drought, and to more effectively match the generosity of Canadians, the government will match eligible donations made from July 6 until September 16, 2011. Registered charities have until September 30 to submit their declaration forms indicating the amount of eligible donations they have collected. Donating and fundraising criteria Eligible donations Additional information for registered Canadian charities Information for organizations interested in submitting project proposals to CIDA Successive seasons of failed rains-combined with increasing food prices, conflict, and limited humanitarian access-have resulted in a humanitarian crisis affecting millions of people in East Africa. To this end, the Government of Canada has created the East Africa Drought Relief Fund. For every eligible dollar donated by individual Canadians to registered Canadian charities, Canada will set aside one dollar for the East Africa Drought Relief Fund. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) will allocate these funds to established Canadian and international humanitarian organizations for humanitarian assistance efforts that benefit the people most affected by the drought. The fund will provide effective and accountable financial support to experienced Canadian and international humanitarian partner organizations working in the affected areas of East Africa.
Voice of America: Ethiopia Reduces Food Rations as Prices Soar [Posted on: May 11, 2011 - 272 days ago]
May 10, 2011: Unusually poor rains in the Horn of Africa, compounded by a shortage of reserve food supplies, have forced Ethiopia to reduce the size of emergency rations to needy citizens. The sudden shortage of emergency supplies comes as over-the-counter food prices are soaring. Ethiopia’s emergency relief agency and international aid groups were caught off guard by how quickly conditions deteriorated as rains failed over the past six months. As recently as February, Ethiopia’s appeal to humanitarian agencies for food aid covered 2.8 million people, a sharp decline from recent years. But by April, as grazing lands dried up in pastoral areas over a wide swath of Eastern Africa, the appeal was revised to include an additional 400,000 Ethiopians.
IRIN ETHIOPIA: Help "trickling in” for millions needing food aid [Posted on: May 06, 2011 - 277 days ago]
ADDIS ABABA, 6 May 2011 (IRIN) - The Ethiopian government has started receiving food and non-food aid for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people in the country's southern and south-eastern lowlands after an appeal in April, Agriculture Minister Mitiku Kassa told IRIN.
Ethiopia Aid Agencies Back Call for Aid for 2 Million People Facing Hunger [Posted on: May 03, 2011 - 280 days ago]
A group of aid organizations in Ethiopia backed the government’s request for $75 million to help feed 2 million people facing hunger in the arid south and southeast of the country. The crisis has been caused by a seven-month drought that is likely to persist until October, the Ethiopia Humanitarian Country Team, or EHCT, said in an e-mailed statement yesterday in Addis Ababa, the capital. The lack of rainfall has been caused by La Nina, a weather phenomenon in which the surface of the Pacific Ocean cools and reduces moisture in the atmosphere.
La Nina threatens 2 million Ethiopians with drought [Posted on: May 03, 2011 - 280 days ago]
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - More than two million Ethiopians are in need of food aid due to drought caused by one of the worst La Nina weather phenomenon in a decade, the United Nations said. La Nina, which was blamed for Australia's floods this year, is an abnormal cooling of waters in the Pacific Ocean that wreaks havoc with weather patterns across the Asia-Pacific region, and has brought poor rains to the Horn of Africa.
Drought, scant aid funds worsen East African hunger [Posted on: Apr 28, 2011 - 285 days ago]
April 27, 2011: NAIROBI (AlertNet) – Drought has left more than 8 million people in the Horn of Africa short of food and water, and the number could rise sharply if funding to help them is not increased, British aid groups said on Wednesday.
New York Times: Food Insecurity Looms in Parched Horn of Africa [Posted on: Apr 26, 2011 - 287 days ago]
April 25 2011: ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- A drought in the Horn of Africa, triggered by the same La Niña episode that caused massive flooding in Australia last year, is plunging millions of pastoralists closer to food insecurity.
US Government releases 2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices [Posted on: Apr 19, 2011 - 294 days ago]
Click link below to download the Ethiopia Country Report directly or see this website for a list of all country reports. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/
Ethiopia: Humanitarian requirements-2011 - Joint Government and Humanitarian Partners' Document [Posted on: Apr 19, 2011 - 294 days ago]
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The overall good performance of the 2010 belg and meher rains contributed to improving the food security situation in areas that benefit from the seasonal rains, apart for some pockets in the eastern lowlands areas. The food security situation is, however, deteriorating in the south and south eastern pastoral and agro-pastoral areas following poor performance of the 2010 deyr/hagaya rains (October to December), which has resulted in water and pasture shortage. Accordingly, the findings of the multi-agency assessment and subsequent monitoring results indicate that approximately 2.8 million people require relief food assistance in 2011. The total net emergency food requirement from January to December 2011 and non-food needs for the first six months amounts to USD 180,561,400. The net food requirement, including TSF needs, stands at 234,017 MT, estimated to cost around USD 180,561,400. In addition a total of USD 45,979,151 is required to respond to non-food needs of identified beneficiaries in the health and nutrition, water and sanitation and agriculture and education sectors.
CCIC Summary of Canadian ODA in 2009 & 2010 [Posted on: Apr 05, 2011 - 308 days ago]
Responding to the requirements of the ODA Accountability Act, CIDA published on its web site the Statistical Report on International Assistance for 2009/10. While I have not had a chance to review all aspects of the numbers, CCIC provided some big picture comments on Canadian ODA for 2009/10.
2011 Canada Federal Election Platform of CCIC [Posted on: Apr 05, 2011 - 308 days ago]
The National Election campaign is nearing the end of its first week! Here is the CCIC Election Platform to End Global Poverty and Injustice 2011. Based on the sector’s 10-Point Agenda, the Platform lays out key concerns and recommendations to ensure a leadership role for Canada in the world. We hope the platform will be a resource for you as you consider what points your organization may wish to raise with Candidates and their Parties.
ETHIOPIA: The great land-grab debate [Posted on: Mar 27, 2011 - 317 days ago]
GAMBELLA, 25 March 2011 (IRIN) - Ethiopia has little time for critics of its large-scale land-leasing policy, insisting the millions of dollars of foreign investment will create jobs, improve domestic agricultural expertise and reduce both poverty and the country’s chronic food insecurity.
Ethiopia at centre of global farmland rush [Posted on: Mar 25, 2011 - 319 days ago]
Locals move out as international contractors seize opportunities offered by government to lease farmland at knockdown rates John Vidal in Gambella, Ethiopia The Guardian - Monday 21 March 2011
AMREF featured in Water Canada Magazine [Posted on: Mar 24, 2011 - 320 days ago]
As part of our Canada Water Week series, culminating in today’s World Water Day celebrations, we learned about the African Medical and Research Foundation’s (AMREF’s) work bringing water and sanitation to Kechene, Ethiopia—with the help of the community.
Handicap International receives prestigious international award [Posted on: Mar 24, 2011 - 320 days ago]
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation announced that Handicap International, the largest non-governmental organization will receive the 2011 Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize of $1.5 million for its work in assisting people with disabilities in situations of poverty, exclusion, conflict and disaster through providing assistance. The Hilton Foundation presents the annual award, the world’s largest Humanitarian prize, to an organization that is doing extraordinary work to alleviate human Suffering. Handicap International was selected for the 2011 Prize by a prestigious independent International jury
Land grabs: what’s in the contracts? And an Indian land grab in Ethiopia [Posted on: Mar 24, 2011 - 320 days ago]
One of the problems with so-called ‘land grabs’ is secrecy. Most of the contracts that seal such deals are hidden from IIED coverpublic scrutiny, which makes it very hard to establish what is really going on. The International Institute for Environment and Development, which is rapidly becoming the ‘go to’ thinktank on a whole range of resource and development issues, has managed to dig up 12 such contracts and sent in the lawyers to have a look. The result is ‘Land deals in Africa: What is in the Contracts?’
Ethiopia: Newspapers And Journalists Face Threats And Legal Pressure [Posted on: Mar 24, 2011 - 320 days ago]
Reporters Without Borders is alarmed by the steadily worsening climate of harassment and intimidation that the Ethiopian authorities have imposed on the media, especially the private media.
Harper Government Committed to Opening New Markets in Africa [Posted on: Mar 17, 2011 - 327 days ago]
March 15, 2011 - 1:40 p.m. ET - The Honourable Peter Van Loan, Minister of International Trade, today discussed Canada-Africa trade and commercial partnerships at the Africa Rising: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Frontiers conference in Toronto. During his speech, Minister Van Loan highlighted the role that Canada’s businesses and entrepreneurs can play in supporting economic growth in Africa.
Ethiopia inflation falls to 16.5 pct in February 2011 [Posted on: Mar 15, 2011 - 329 days ago]
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopia's annual inflation rate dipped to 16.5 percent in February from 17.7 percent in the previous month as food prices rose more slowly, the horn of Africa country's statistics office said on Monday. The fall in the rate followed two months of rises. Ethiopia has placed price caps on more than a dozen commodities including some essential foodstuffs. Government officials have accused traders of artificially inflating food prices on the back of higher global prices and a September devaluation of the birr currency. Food prices, which carry the biggest weighting in the basket used to measure inflation, rose by 12.8 percent during the month, down from an increase of 13.6 percent in the previous month, the statistics office said.
REUTERS Africa - Ethiopia says devaluation has narrowed trade gap [Posted on: Mar 14, 2011 - 330 days ago]
ADDIS ABABA, March 13 (Reuters) - Ethiopia's currency devaluation boosted exports in the past six months and helped narrow the burgeoning trade gap, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said. * PM says exports have grown faster than imports * Says will flood market with scarce commodities * Analysts say inflation likely to rise in 2011
Ethiopia: For NGOs get Government ban [Posted on: Mar 11, 2011 - 333 days ago]
Ethiopian authorities have revoked the licenses of four Non-Governmental Organizations (two local and two foreign). The government of the Horn of Africa country claims that activities carried out by the affected NGOs conflict with the Charities and Societies (CSO) proclamation, a law that came into force in January, 2009.
UN FAO State of Food and Agriculture Report 2010-2011 [Posted on: Mar 10, 2011 - 334 days ago]
Women in Agriculture - Closing the Gender Gap for Development More than 100 million people could be lifted out of poverty if women had the same access to productive resources as men. New figures from this year's edition of the “State of Food and Agriculture” show how improving gender equality in agriculture would generate significant gains for the agricultural sector and society as a whole.
Emergency Nutrition Network Field Exchange Magazine Special Issue on Ethiopia [Posted on: Mar 10, 2011 - 334 days ago]
ENN's publication, Field Exchange just released a special edition issue on Ethiopia. It features field articles from various actors in Ethiopia, including NGO partners CARE, Save the Children, and Oxfam.
UK to Increase Development Aid to Ethiopia [Posted on: Mar 04, 2011 - 340 days ago]
The United Kingdom is set to increase substantially its development assistance to Ethiopia, despite human rights concerns, including the misuse of development aid to repress dissent, as reported by Human Rights Watch. In the next two years, the UK's Ethiopian development program is slated to become its largest bilateral program in the world, according to a March 1, 2011 news release from the UK Department of for International Development (DFID)
Banning the food Band-Aid to help the hungry help themselves [Posted on: Mar 04, 2011 - 340 days ago]
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail Published Monday, Feb. 28, 2011 Updated March 1, 2011 As negotiators from around the world try to hammer out a new agreement on international food aid, they face a perplexing situation – global food production is set to rise sharply this year, but so is the number of starving people. The dichotomy is at the root of a growing debate about international food aid and how it should be structured. And it has prompted the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to issue a call for developed countries to put more emphasis on agricultural development and less on providing food assistance during emergencies.
An international food reserve would calm markets – and donors [Posted on: Mar 04, 2011 - 340 days ago]
Article from the Globe and Mail, March 2, 2011: The way countries such as Canada share food with people caught in food emergencies is changing – and getting a lot harder. The modern food aid movement began 50 years ago, when the world’s richest countries met to decide what to do with food surpluses. Faced with a surplus at home and with millions of hungry people in the developing world, it wasn’t long before the two were put together.
Ethiopia posts big gains in access to drinking water [Posted on: Mar 04, 2011 - 340 days ago]
From less than 20% of the population having access to clean water in 2000, the figure has risen to 68.5% today. Ethiopia has tripled people's access to safe drinking water in the last 10 years in one of the most significant signs of environmental progress. New government figures suggest that over 90% of people in urban areas now live within 500 metres of a fresh water source in urban areas and two in three people in rural areas are now within 1.5km. For the full article, click the link below.
Right to Play in the News [Posted on: Feb 24, 2011 - 348 days ago]
Right to Play in Vancouver, Canada Story published on Feb 24, 2011 in "The Patriotic Vangaurd" on RTP's work and a special upcoming event in Vancouver. See link below for full story.
Government of Ethiopia Humanitarian Requirements Document Launched [Posted on: Feb 07, 2011 - 365 days ago]
The 2011 Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) was launched on 7 February 2011 and calls for US$ 226.5 million in humanitarian funding to meet food and non-food needs in Ethiopia over the respective planning periods of one year and six months. The total appeal for emergency food relief is 2.8 million people. See link below for full appeal document.
IDRC 2011 Call for Concept Notes [Posted on: Jan 28, 2011 - 375 days ago]
IDRC is pleased to announce the 2011 Call for Concept Notes as part of the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund. The deadline for submission of concept notes is March 23, 2011. Project budgets under the upcoming call will be in the range of CA$1 to $5 million. Notable changes from the 2010 CIFSRF Call for Concept notes include: increased eligibility for international organizations restrictions on the allowable number of applications in which researchers can be involved shorter project duration, which must not exceed 30 months, including field research and final reporting Read the Call for Concept Notes and related documents. The online application will be available for six weeks on the CIFSRF website, starting Wednesday, February 9, 2011 and closing Wednesday, March 23, 2011. The CIFSRF is a 5-year, CA$62-million fund that supports research partnerships between Canadian and developing-country research organizations for applied research to find lasting solutions to fight hunger and food insecurity in the developing world. The Fund is a core element of CIDA’s Food Security Strategy and of IDRC’s food security programming priorities
CARE in the News [Posted on: Dec 13, 2010 - 421 days ago]
CARE ranks 9th out of the top 20 non-profit organizations on Twitter according to "The Chronicle of Philanthropy"!
NEW Request for Proposals from CIDA PwCB [Posted on: Dec 05, 2010 - 429 days ago]
The Partnerships with Canadians Branch is currently accepting proposals for the Muskoka Initiative Partnership Program: Partners for Development Program - Projects Under $2M Deadline for submissions: 14:00 PST, April 28, 2011 Partners for Development Program - Projects $2M and Over Deadline for submissions: 14:00 PST, March 31, 2011 Muskoka Initiative Partnership Program Deadline for submissions: 23:00 PST, January 28, 2011
New UN funding Opportunities for Gender [Posted on: Dec 05, 2010 - 429 days ago]
1. THE UN TRUST FUND IN SUPPORT OF ACTIONS TO ELIMINATE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN The United Nations Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence against Women is accepting applications for its 15th grant cycle (2010) from government authorities, civil society organizations and networks — including non-governmental, women’s and community-based organizations and coalitions, and operational research institutions — and UN Country Teams (in partnership with governments and civil society organizations). Applications should be centered on supporting implementation of national and local policies, laws and action plans on ending violence against women and girls. Applicants are invited to submit grant proposals for a minimum of US$100,000 up to a maximum of US$1 million for a period of two to three years. The application deadline is 20 January 2011. The complete Call for Proposals detailing criteria, eligibility requirements and application guidelines is available at: http://www.unifem.org/gender_issues/violence_against_women/trust_fund_guidelines.php or via the UNIFEM(part of UN Women) homepage.
New Funding Opportunity: United Nations Democracy Fund [Posted on: Dec 05, 2010 - 429 days ago]
The United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF) invites civil society organizations to apply for funding for projects to advance and support democracy. Project proposals may be submitted online between 15 November and 31 December 2010 at www.un.org/democracyfund, where applicants can also find guidelines, fequently asked questions, and lessons learned from previous rounds. Those who plan to apply are strongly encouraged to visit this page as soon as possible to familiarize themselves with what is required. Only online applications in either English or French will be accepted. UNDEF supports projects that strengthen the voice of civil society, promote human rights, and encourage the participation of all groups in democratic processes. The large majority of UNDEF funds go to local civil society organizations — both in the transition and consolidation phases of democratization. In this way, UNDEF plays a novel and distinct role in complementing the UN's more traditional work — the work with governments — to strengthen democratic governance around the world. UNIFEM (part of UN Women) assists women’s groups in the planning and implementation of approximately 10 percent of UNDEF projects. While grants across the board contribute to realizing broad gender equality goals, UNIFEM puts deliberate emphasis on ensuring that women have an equal voice in governance and public decision-making. This is the Fifth Round of Funding to be launched by UNDEF, which provides grants of up to US$500,000 per project. In four rounds of funding so far, UNDEF has supported more than 330 projects in 115 countries at a total amount of US$93 million. Applications are subject to a highly rigorous and competitive selection process, with about 3 percent of all applications approved for funding. Projects are two years long and fall under one or more of six main areas: Community development Rule of law and human rights Tools for democratization Women Youth Media
Gifts that give back - Ottawa Citizen Article [Posted on: Dec 05, 2010 - 429 days ago]
This article describes different donation programs of Canadian NGOs for this holiday season - a few of our own CANGO members are listed (CHF, Plan, and World Vision)!
New Funding Opportunity-Global Agriculture and Food Security Program [Posted on: Nov 19, 2010 - 445 days ago]
Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) Funding 3 countries (Ethiopia, Niger and Mongolia) have just received large grants to support food security programming. Please alert any partner organizations in those countries, that there may be opportunities for some of those funds to flow through civil society organizations. Background – The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) was created by the G8 in 2009 as a funding mechanism to support agricultural development. G8 and other countries were invited to contribute to it, then developing countries governments could apply to the GAFSP for funds. When CIDA announced its new Food Security theme, about 40% of the new money went to GAFSP. Other large donors are the US, Spain, South Korea and the Gates Foundation. The steering committee of the GAFSP met in early November and approved grants to promote food security in 3 countries: $52 million to Ethiopia, $33M to Niger and $13M to Mongolia. This was from a total of 21 countries that applied, requesting a total of $930M. The proposals come from national governments, should be based on a national plan to address food insecurity, and should demonstrate significant input from farmers’ organizations and other civil society organizations (CSO). Some CSOs may have been part of the process of preparing the proposal, and already be aware of the possibility of receiving funding to implement the proposal. However, many CSOs likely are not aware of it, so here is an opportunity for you to alert them. Anybody interested in following up should go to the GAFSP website (www.gafspfund.org). In addition to background on the fund, it contains the full proposals submitted by these 3 countries, so you can see what the priorities are, and how they intend to use the money. The website also contains proposals from the 5 countries that received GAFSP funding in June (Bangladesh, Togo, Rwanda, Haiti and Sierra Leone). Future – The GAFSP has spent all its money for now, but is hoping to get more before next year (from $ the US pledged but hasn’t donated yet, and from other donors). When that happens, they may call for more proposals, or just fund some of the other 18 from this round.
Trends and Prospects for meeting Millennium Development Goals by 2015 [Posted on: Nov 19, 2010 - 445 days ago]
GoE's report on Ethiopia's progress to meeting MDGs by 2010.
2010 Human Development Report [Posted on: Nov 16, 2010 - 448 days ago]
The 2010 Human Development Report was launched at the country level on 5 November, following the global launch on 4 November. Ranked 157 out of 169 countries on the 2010 Human Development Index (compared to 171 out of 182 in 2009), Ethiopia’s HDI score is 0.328. In the past decade, the country’s HDI has increased from 0.250 (2000) to the current 0.328, an increase of 31% per cent overall and average annual improvement of 2.8%, based on the increase in life expectancy of five years, in expected years of schooling by four years and in the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita by 75%. Yet, while Ethiopia recorded the most progress of any sub-Saharan African country, the national HDI remains below the sub-Saharan average of 0.389 and below the 0.393 average for low human development countries.
EU Commission Observer Report and Fact Sheet on Ethiopia Elections [Posted on: Nov 11, 2010 - 453 days ago]
This report was produced by the European Union Election Observation Mission to Ethiopia 2010 and presents the mission’s findings on the 23 May 2010 elections to the House of People's Representatives and State Councils. These views have not been adopted or in any way approved by the European Commission and should not be relied upon as a statement of the European Commission. The European Commission does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this report, nor does it accept responsibility for any use made thereof.
NEW CALL FOR PROPOSALS FROM CIDA PWCB [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
Highlights of the new call for proposal (on a very quick reading particularly of the guidelines: * $75 million over five years with a minimum project of $500,000 and a 25% contribution by applicant. However under cost sharing there is a small qualification that "new applicants" under $2 million may be supported 80%. * Longer timeframe than Haiti for development of proposals: January 28th, with announcements by May 31st, 2011. * Projects must align with the Muskoka Initiative government framework and be in eligible countries (not just the 20) with high levels of maternal and child mortality. But 50% must overall must be in the 11 countries of priority identified as having high levels of maternal and child mortality and 80% must be in Africa. * Projects must be completed by Dec 31, 2014 (about a three and half year timeframe after approval). * Eligibility: Any Canadian organization may submit even if they have current projects/programs with PWCB. Organizations must have at least three years' experience managing and delivering maternal and child health initiatives in developing countries. * Same five proposal assessment criteria as Haiti Call for Proposals with #1 (sound governance) and #2 (support of Canadians) mandatory. The other three are Relevance to CIDA mandate and coherence with Government of Canada policy, Results and Development Effectiveness. * There are a set of detailed guidelines that are specific (in title at least) to this call for proposals. While much is similar to the Haiti CforP Guidelines, I gleaned the following from the Guidelines: * After the project has been approved CIDA may demand changes in the project to enter into a funding agreement. "PWCB will communicate any conditions to the applicant following a decision to support the proposal, that are deemed necessary to maximize the development effectiveness of the proposal". * The average total revenue over past three years or unencumbered assets (endowments) must be greater than the average amount requested per year by the organization for the project. This adds a nuance to the Haiti guidelines. * There is an explicit acknowledgment that projects must be consistent with the ODA Accountability Act. (This is new since the Haiti RforP). * There are three key paths for support: 1) strengthening health systems in areas related to child and maternal health, 2) improved nutrition, including community level food security and micro-nutrients; 3) addressing leading diseases and illnesses that are killing mothers and children. * Projects must demonstrate collaboration with other development actors (not specified) and "support country-led national health plans and policies that are locally supported". It is an interesting qualifier "that are locally supported". If the project does not align with country health strategy then the applicant must explain why.
Human Rights Watch Report on Ethiopia [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
The US based watchdog agency has just released their latest report on Ethiopia (October 19th, 2010). Please see link below to download summary article or entire report.
Canadian Press surrounding latest HRW Report [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
Please see the following article link from the Globe and Mail Newspaper in Canada related to the recent HRW report.
Canadian Press surrounding latest HRW Report [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
Link below for the Winnipeg Free Press coverage of HRW report.
Donor Assistance Group (DAG) statement on HRW Report [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
Donor Assistance Group (DAG) statement from October 21, 2010 concerning the HRW report (under News and Highlights).
Ethiopia Government Response to HRW Report [Posted on: Nov 04, 2010 - 460 days ago]
Link attached to the Ethiopian Journal website with statement from the Embassy of Ethiopia in the UK on the GoE response to HRW Report (Oct 21, 2010).
CCFC in the news [Posted on: Aug 31, 2009 - 890 days ago]Forging Partnerships to Address Urban Poverty
Often we find that communities living in urban slums, in cities like Addis are over looked. This is due to the preoccupying focus of government and donor agencies to address larger scale critical issues in rural areas. Nevertheless, the rapid growth in population and rural-urban migration, have increased the magnitude and severity in the challenges of poverty that we are currently witnessing in most urban settings in Ethiopia. Furthermore, we find that urban poverty is being aggravated by a decline in average household income, which emanates from increased inflation rates all which are contributing to rise in crime and prostitution in these cities.