What We’re Reading 4/6/09

Apr 6th, 2009 2:07 PM UTC
By Steve Wilson

Reuters—U.N.’s Ban urges $300 billion in G20 aid for poor nations
At least $300 billion of the $1.1 trillion stimulus package agreed by G20 leaders last week should be allocated toward helping developing countries, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Sunday. The U.N. leader also played down criticism that Italy, which hosts the next meeting of leaders from the G8 countries in Sardinia in July, had failed to meet financial pledges to poor countries made four years ago at the Gleneagles summit.

Financial Times—G20 aid pledges must be more than just hot air (opinion)
A Financial Times columnist writes that aid pledges from the G20 must be followed through on, especially by countries that are likely to renege on their Gleneagles commitments, such as Italy. The writer also urges the G20 to follow through on its promises to avoid trade protectionism.

AFP—Global crisis has silver lining for IMF
The International Monetary Fund was the main beneficiary at the G20 summit last week where leaders agreed to triple its war chest to $750 billion by adding $500 billion, the AFP writes. The stamp of approval on the IMF, albeit forged in the most devastating economic crisis since World War II, marked a milestone for the developing countries, which long have criticized the fund’s lending conditions as harmful and railed against its G7 domination, the story says.

NY Times—Nicholas Kristof: Pregnant (Again) and Poor (opinion)
NY Times columnist Nicholas Kristof writes that global family-planning efforts have stalled over the last several decades, and that the resulting higher-than-normal birthrates in developing countries exacerbates extreme poverty. Kristof writes that 200 million women worldwide, according to U.N. estimates, have what demographers call an “unmet need” for safe and effective contraception. That is, they don’t want to get pregnant but don’t use a modern form of family planning. Kristof says the mounting academic evidence underscores that unless family planning is more successful in poor countries, they won’t be able to overcome poverty.

Reuters—Senator to make rare Darfur visit
The chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, John Kerry, will lead a delegation to Sudan’s Darfur region, officials said today, in a possible sign of a growing willingness to engage with Khartoum. “This is significant,” a U.S. diplomatic source told Reuters. “It is the first Congressional delegation to Sudan we have had since 2007. Like the U.S. envoy’s current visit, it is a new tack.” The new U.S. special envoy to Sudan, Scott Gration, who is currently touring the country, made an unusually positive statement on his arrival in Khartoum last week, telling reporters he was looking for friendship and cooperation from the Sudanese government.

-Steve Wilson

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