School officials in South Sudan say a monthly take-home food ration from the World Food Programme (WFP) has helped to reduce the number of female students dropping out of school. TORIT – Education will be critical as the world’s newest country builds its future, and South Sudan’s girls are getting a better chance at an education thanks to WFP. WFP supports girls through what is known as the “Girls’ Incentive,” which is designed to encourage girls’ enrolment in school and keep them … [Read more...]
870 million chronically undernourished – new hunger report
October 13, 2012 by
October 2012, Rome - Nearly 870 million people, or one in eight, were suffering from chronic undernourishment in 2010-2012, according to the new UN hunger report released today. The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2012 (SOFI), jointly published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP), presents better estimates of chronic undernourishment based on an improved methodology and data for … [Read more...]
DESA, Digital Bridge to a Civil Society – ‘…a collective global good’
October 12, 2012 by
A digital bridge to civil society “Our times demand (…) a new constellation of international cooperation – governments, civil society and the private sector, working together for a collective global good”. In line with this statement of the UN Secretary-General, DESA and its UN partners continue to enhance their services to civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) across the globe. Civil society and non-governmental organizations play a vital role as partners to the … [Read more...]
Nigeria launches anti-human trafficking campaign
October 11, 2012 by
Nigeria launches anti-human trafficking campaign, as two Goodwill Ambassadors are named October 2012 - The Government of Nigeria, jointly with UNODC and the European Union, has launched a nationwide three-year anti-human trafficking campaign. Entitled "I am Priceless", the campaign is aimed at raising awareness about the reality, dangers and possible impact of irregular migration, as a consequence of either being smuggled or being a victim of trafficking in persons. UNODC also … [Read more...]
World Food Day – October 16, 2012
October 11, 2012 by
Nearly one is six people around the world do not get enough food to be healthy and lead an active life – most of them living in developing countries. It is World Food Day on 16 October as well as harvest festival assembly time, so the Guardian Teacher Network has a bounty of resources to share that introduce and delve deeper into the challenges and injustices that people face over food. Music can be used as a tool to explore global issues with these resources developed by Oxfam … [Read more...]
Andes Woman, Professor Luz Gomez Pando is Taking Action
October 6, 2012 by
For centuries, quinoa and amaranth have been cultivated in the High Andes of Peru. These highly nutritious cereals were even consumed by the Incas. Today, demand for these products is on the increase in places like North America, Japan and in European countries. Plant breeder, Professor Luz Gomez Pando, is trying to develop new varieties of quinoa and amaranth that have a higher yield and are more nutritious. She is using a nuclear technique in her work, which uses radiation to … [Read more...]
World Bank endorses new 2-year strategy for Haiti
October 6, 2012 by
The World Bank Board of Directors this week endorsed a new two-year strategy for Haiti that will continue to reduce the population's vulnerability to disasters, provide 1.5 million people with cholera education, prevention and treatment, and support the repair and reconstruction of houses so that 45,000 people can return to safe homes. The strategy will also improve access to electricity for 600,000 people and finance tuition of 100,000 children per year. According to a World Bank press … [Read more...]
CFL PINK FOOTBALL – OCTOBER 14 – TORONTO vs MONTREAL
October 5, 2012 by
On October 14th the Toronto Argonauts host their second Annual Pink Game in support of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation as they race through the final month-long sprint towards the playoffs. Win the division, and the Argonauts get a playoff bye and are one game away from the 100th Grey Cup! The Argonauts face their eastern division rivals, The Montreal Alouettes, at Toronto’s Rogers Centre both with five games remaining, making this an exciting moment for both clubs to come together with … [Read more...]
UN Women launches e-discussions on Inequalities – OCT 15
October 5, 2012 by
UN Women launches e-discussions on Inequalities as part of the consultations on the post-2015 agenda UN Women in partnership with UNICEF is co-leading the UN Development Group Global Thematic Consultation on Inequalities and will facilitate the first of a series of e-discussions which will address a wide spectrum of inequalities. The online platform for the e-discussion on addressing inequalities is now “live”. The gender inequality discussion will open on Wednesday, October 3rd … [Read more...]
UGANDA: Family planning pledges need on-the-ground action
October 4, 2012 by
KAMPALA, October 2012 (IRIN) - Family planning advocates in Uganda have scored some major financial and policy wins this year, but experts remain concerned that inadequate political commitment and poor health services will continue to impede women’s and girls’ access to contraceptives. At a global family planning summit in July, Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni announced that his government would increase its annual expenditure on family planning supplies from US$3.3million to $5million for … [Read more...]
