What We’re Reading 1/29/10

Jan 29th, 2010 11:50 AM UTC
By Robyn Mitchell

The Washington Post: Gates makes $10 billion vaccines pledge
The Washington Post reports that The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will donate $10 billion over the next decade to research new vaccines and bring them to the world’s poorest countries. Calling upon governments and business to also contribute, Bill Gates said the money will produce higher immunization rates and aims to make sure that 90 percent of children are immunized against dangerous diseases such as diarrhea and pneumonia in poorer nations. Gates noted the announcement comes on the 10th anniversary of the foundation’s partner GAVI Alliance, which he praised for its work in immunizing children against killer diseases. Said Gates, “We must make this the decade of vaccines…Innovation will make it possible to save more children than ever before.”

The Huffington Post: A People’s Plan of Action to Fight Extreme Poverty (Op-Ed)
John McArthur, CEO of Millennium Promise and Johann Koss, President of Right to Play, argue that government leaders cannot solve global challenges on their own anymore and that “everyday people…have the potential to be the world’s big new problem solvers.” Referencing the coordinated relief efforts in Haiti, McArthur maintains that the same mindset of partnership, urgency, and “all hands on deck” is also required to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, the world’s integrated targets for tackling extreme poverty by 2015. According to the authors, “individuals, companies, and non-governmental organizations need to stand alongside their governments to advance the best solutions to extreme poverty, to sustain public engagement, and to hold their governments accountable. The Goals are too important to wait on politics. World leaders urgently need our help. It is time for a people’s plan of action.”

The Economist: Haiti two weeks after the earthquake – Scrabbling for survival
The Economist explores the situation in Haiti two weeks after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake ravaged the impoverished island country. After the country’s initial shock and grief, tempered by the urgent need to save lives, the search-and-rescue operations are official over, forcing Haitians to “confront the devastation wrought on their perennially troubled land.” According to the Economist, despite homelessness continuing to be a problem, the past week has seen remarkable progress, with outside help beginning to make a difference. The Haitian Culture Minister is optimistic about her country’s chances of dragging itself back to its feet. Said the Minister, “This time is different. The national palace, the cathedrals and the ministries have been destroyed, and everyone has lost someone. In their name, we are obliged to rebuild. Otherwise, we’re not a real people.”

New America Media: Africa a Challenge for Obama in 2010
A new report from a pair of Africa policy think tanks says that President Obama is “missing a historic opportunity” to improve lives across Africa. The annual report release by Africa Action and Foreign Policy in Focus urges the president to create a new, “people-centered” strategy in Africa to tackle major ongoing challenges including HIV/AIDS, poverty, human rights violations, and climate change. Despite his bold commitments to human rights during his campaign, the report states that the Obama administration has failed to increase funding for HIV/AIDS programs, bolstered the much maligned International Monetary Fund (IMF), and tripled the budget for the U.S. Military Command in Africa (AFRICOM) — all actions that will further entrench poverty on the continent rather than improving the lives of African people.

AFP: Food crisis threatens millions in West Africa: aid official
The European Commission Humanitarian Aid organization (ECHO) said Thursday that millions in Niger and across West Africa face food shortages after erratic rains hit farming in countries in the Sahel region south of the Sahara desert. According to ECHO’s regional sector head, Brian O’Neill, the crisis is centered in Niger, where an estimated 2.7 million people are expected to experience a severe food crisis. O’Neill emphasized that strong leadership would be required from the United Nations and the rest of the international community to mobilize aid, saying that “”If we work fast enough, early enough, it won’t be a famine. If we don’t there is a strong risk.”

The Huffington Post: Catholic Relief Services: New Focus at Davos: Rethink, Redesign, Rebuild in Haiti
Lesley Anne-Knight, the Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis looks at the relief effort in Haiti through the lens of this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos. She argues that the key to rebuilding Haiti is ensuring the nation is never placed in a similar state of vulnerability.

TAGS: ONE, What We're Reading