I’m a new addition to the policy team here at ONE and will be sharing the latest happenings from the world of trade, agriculture, and economic development with you. To start, I came across some exciting news about trade in Africa. Last week 26 African countries agreed to establish an African Trade Union – a free trade union that will assist in eradicating poverty in the region.

The Union is a merger between three of Africa’s trading blocs – the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), South African Development Community (SADC), and the East African Community (EAC). The union incorporates a significant portion of eastern and southern Africa; it includes 530 million people and has an estimated GDP of over $620 million.

This free trade union will provide the participating countries with easier access to new markets within Africa. Rather than paying taxes like tariffs on the goods countries export, or limiting the amount of goods they export because of quotas, countries within the union will be able to freely exchange goods with each other. The new, larger union will also give the member countries greater leverage in trade discussions with developed countries.

The opportunity for these African states to gain greater access to African markets, and to collaborate on infrastructure development like transport and communication systems – while advocating for Africa in the global market – are important steps towards eradicating poverty. As Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni commented at a meeting of the heads of state who chair the three merging trade blocs, “Bigger markets are a strategic instrument of liberating people from poverty.”

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ONE member Jeni Barrientos recently attended a conference last Friday on eradicating poverty sponsored by the UN. She passed along this account:

I was invited to attend a conference sponsored by the United Nations and ATD 4th World for the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, and it was an amazing experience. The topic was “Human rights and dignity of people living in extreme poverty.” We heard heart-breaking stories from people that are living under these extreme conditions. There were stories from Peru, Haiti, Tonga, United Kingdom, and even from the USA. The one story that got me thinking was from a woman whose family was to poor to buy a whole onion, so she bought only a piece of an onion when she could afford to. This is a luxury for her to do. Can you imagine buying a part of an onion being considered a luxury? Basic food is a right, not a luxury.

The most interesting person that I met was a man named Michael Nyangi. He is a community leader in the slums around the Nairobi, Kenya area. He has started a micro-finance community based company called Lomoro Microfinance in 2003. He now has over 85 members and over 45 loans that have helped local entrepreneurs. His goal is to start a bank to help the poorest people in and around Nairobi, Kenya. He would eventually like to expand throughout Africa. He told me that about 100 people from his village accompanied him to the airport because he was “going to America.”

In the end the main point that came out of this discussion was that it is important, necessary, and vital to include those living in extreme poverty in every and all levels of policy making. Their input and ideas about what impacts their lives is important.

The day ended around 6:15 PM. I met many people from many countries and got to talk to them about the ONE Campaign. Many people knew about ONE. Those that did not, including Mr. Nyangi, now know about ONE. As I was leaving at the end of the day I was thinking about all these important people I just met. They are all leaders in what they do. And here I am, a mother of five, a grandmother of one, a widow and recent college grad from Pennsylvania, here at the United Nations with all these leaders. It just shows you that everyONE and anyONE can make a difference in this world, if we all work together as ONE.

-Jeni Barrientos. PA ONE Member

In an editorial in today’s Boston Herald, George and Jim McGovern ask both presidential candidates to focus more attention on alleviating hunger and poverty both in the US and abroad. They ask the next president to appoint a hunger czar which they describe as “a point-person in his administration to oversee and coordinate the various food, nutrition and anti-poverty programs that fall under the jurisdictions of many different departments and agencies – so we can develop a single, comprehensive and concrete plan to end hunger here at home and around the globe.”

Excerpts below, full piece here

The number of hungry people in the world is fast approaching one billion. More than 400 million are children. Here in the most prosperous nation on the planet, there are more than 35 million of our fellow Americans who can be classified as hungry. There is not a single community in our country that is hunger free.

This is a serious crisis that is getting worse. And what is maddening to us is that those in positions of power to fix the problem seem indifferent. Hunger is a political condition. We have everything we need – including enough food – to end hunger in the United States and around the world. However, we lack the political will to make ending it a priority.

Let’s rework our foreign aid programs and reprogram some of these tax dollars to focus instead on ending hunger. Rather than sending more and more weapons, let us send increased food or funding to grow, produce and buy food in-country. It will enhance our national security. It will also save more lives, create stability and get people in other parts of the world to view the United States favorably. This may be a radical idea in Washington, but we believe when people like us they are less likely to do us harm.

-Chris Scott

With the 2008 presidential election being held a week from today, it’s a great time to take stock of the progress made during the Bush administration and what challenges we’ll confront during the next administration.

Todd Moss, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, sat down for an interview about progress in US foreign aid under the Bush administration. He also discusses ideas for how the next president could potentially continue these efforts.

Excerpts below, full piece here

Q: What has the Bush administration done to strengthen U.S. engagement in Africa?

A: I don’t think it’s too strong to say that President Bush’s Africa policy is the most distinguished foreign policy legacy of the administration. Although few expected such interest eight years ago, the president has clearly been deeply and personally committed to strengthening U.S.-Africa relations. We have not only seen U.S. assistance levels to Africa skyrocket, but the whole debate about foreign aid and Africa has changed.

Q: How so?

A: A decade ago, Washington was still arguing about whether foreign aid was a waste or not and whether we had any real interests in Africa. Today, the discussion is about how to innovate, build partnerships, and fix our aid system. The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) have been game-changers. Africa’s debt problem is essentially fixed. We have seen a huge spike in American trade and increased private investment. The U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corp. has helped to launch more than a dozen private equity funds targeting the continent. American thinking on Africa has changed completely. It’s no coincidence that views of the U.S. are still overwhelmingly positive across Africa.

-Chris Scott

Like much of the world, Africa is concerned about the financial crisis and making moves to soften the potential blow to Africa’s economy and well-being. Yesterday, the African Union announced that they are planning a summit to discuss the continent’s response to the global financial crisis. They also “urged member states to tighten their belts to help them withstand the impact of collapsing world markets.” We’ll keep you posted on developments.

Excerpts below, full piece here

“There is no doubt it will have serious repercussions on capital flows and their sustainability, as well as on trade in Africa,” [African Union Commission chief Jean] Ping said of the global financial turmoil.

The financial crisis also may reduce donors’ development aid budgets, Ping said while attending the Sixth Forum on Sustainable Development which opened in Congo Republic’s capital Brazzaville.

African economies generally have been growing at their fastest pace for years thanks in part to booming Asian demand for their commodities exports and rising foreign investment.

But with a global economic slowdown and some developed economies tipping into recession, the International Monetary Fund trimmed its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 6 percent in 2008 and 2009 from about 6.5 percent in 2007.

-Chris Scott

After a week of meetings in Rome last week, Mark Brinkmoeller could have packed up and headed back home to DC. Instead, ONE’s Senior Director of US NGO Partnerships and Faith Relations spent a 24-hour travel day crossing the heartland to Seattle. We set a full schedule of events for him here, including meetings with faith groups, partner organizations, and even a concert. Still he never complained and the jetlag never showed. That is grace!

This year, International UN Day fell on Friday, October 24, and Mark was our keynote speaker. We wanted to hear how to engage the next administration, the next congress, and each other in order to lift the profile of the Millennium Development Goals. These are increasingly trying economic times and we feel far behind the curve. Mark embarked on a theme of hope. His interaction with the audience pointed the way. Measurements of progress are encouraging, and they open the doors to greater involvement. US funding has had a massive impact across Africa including TB/Malaria funding, antiretroviral treatment for AIDS, bed nets, and putting children in school. Through the grassroots activism of organizations that have made this a priority, millions of lives are saved and federal aid dollars over the course of this administration have morphed from Millions of dollars to Billions of dollars.

Saturday’s meetings included a relation-building coffee with leaders in the Seattle Islamic community. Mark’s knowledge and experience with Islamic organizations were extremely helpful. A new Islamic Faith-In-Action forum here in Seattle this winter will likely include the ONE Islamic Faith/ONE Sadaqa materials, and we shared the ONE multi-faith videos with them to use as well.

That night, the folk group “Real Folk” put on a benefit concert for ONE and RESULTS. Mark’s message of hope again resounded loud-and-clear encouraging us in our efforts to keep up the good fight in the north county. It’s gratifying to know that we are being heard and making a difference.

These events were also opportunities for the communities to take a photo with the traveling Jubilee USA Drop the Debt banner and sign up to ask the next administration to cancel the odious debts of highly-indebted poor countries.

Up here in Seattle, the group “Puget Sound Millennium Goals Project” couldn’t appreciate Mark’s support and encouragement more. Thank you Mark for an amazing week here, for promoting the great work of ONE and ONE Faith in the pacific northwest, and for helping Washington DC and this “other” Washington, um, “stay close!”

-Sammi Fredenburg

After abolishing and modernizing various patriarchal laws in their country, the Washington Post reports that women have become a driving force in Rwanda’s economy and government. Rwandan women have greatly progressed from once not even being able to inherit land to now holding a third of all cabinet positions and making up 56% of Rwanda’s parliament—a near perfect reflection of Rwanda’s demographics.

Excerpts below, full article here

One lawmaker said the committee has compiled “a stack” of laws to modify or toss out altogether — including one that requires a woman to get her husband’s signature on a bank loan.

“The fact that we are so many has made it possible for men to listen to our views,” said lawmaker Espérance Mwiza. “Now that we’re a majority, we can do even more.”

The unusually high percentage of women in Rwandan government is in part a reflection of popular will in a country of 10 million that is 55 percent female.

“This was a broken society after the genocide,” said Aloisea Inyumba, Kagame’s former gender and social affairs minister, who was also a prominent official in his ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front when it was still a rebel group fighting the country’s genocidal government. “We made a decision that if Rwanda is going to survive, we have to have a change of heart as a society. Equality and reconciliation are the only options.”

-Chris Scott

Last week, when Bono spoke at the California Women’s Conference, he passed along some of the startling stats (listed below) about women in Africa.

• Nearly two-thirds of adults with HIV in Africa are women young women (age 15 to 24) in South Africa accounted for around 90% of new HIV infections in 2007.
• In Africa, the likelihood of a woman dying in childbirth is 1 in 20 (compared to 1 in 2,800 in the US).
• Although up to 80% of farmers in the developing world are women, they own less than 15% of land worldwide.

You can find more facts about women in Africa, as well as inspiring facts (like the one below) about the benefits of investing in women in the developing world, in this new fact sheet.

“Investing in women is considered smart economic policy because it can often yield higher economic returns than investing in men. Providing an extra one year of education beyond the average boosts earnings by 10-20%, compared to 5-15% for males. Increasing the share of women with a secondary education by one percentage point boosts annual per capita income by 0.3% on average. A study in Kenya found that agricultural yields could be raised by as much as 20% simply by reallocating existing agricultural inputs (seeds, fertilizer, education) more equally between men and women.”

-Virginia Simmons

As you know, Bono spoke at the California Women’s Conference this past Wednesday. One volunteer Amy Quinn was in the audience, and had this to share:

I was one of the lucky 14,000 women to have attended the Women’s Conference in Long Beach last Wednesday. I left the conference with a renewed sense of purpose, which quite frankly, I desperately needed when I arrived at the conference that morning.

In particular, I was moved by Bono’s recollection of his experiences back in the mid 80’s – on his visit to Ethiopia during the horrible famine that occurred there. This is also when my “world vision or Weltanschauung” changed, and I, at the ripe old age of 14 – became a hunger/poverty activist. As Bono said – the flames of that continent sting your eyes – they sear your conscience… He said, “In my travels I have met kids the mirror image own and looked into their faces as they let go of life. And it makes me even angrier that their eyes are always free of accusation. It humbles me beyond belief that they don’t hold it against a world that couldn’t spare the twenty cent immunization that would have them back in the bosom of their family. Even their mothers and fathers…their grief is pure. There’s no blame, just acquiescence…”

As the mother of a six year old little boy – it was easy for me to substitute my son’s eyes for this image.

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