What We’re Reading 3/10/10

Mar 10th, 2010 11:42 AM UTC
By Steve Wilson

NY Times—Somalia Food Aid Bypasses Needy, U.N. Study Says
As much as half the food aid sent to Somalia is diverted from needy people to a web of corrupt contractors, radical Islamist militants and local United Nations staff members, according to a new U.N. Security Council report. The report, which has not yet been made public but was shown to The New York Times, outlines a host of problems so grave that it recommends that Secretary General Ban Ki-moon open an independent investigation into the World Food Program’s Somalia operations. It suggests that the program rebuild the food distribution system — which serves at least 2.5 million people and whose aid was worth about $485 million in 2009 — from scratch to break what it describes as a corrupt cartel of Somali distributors.

Washington Post—Bill Clinton and George W. Bush put together team to oversee Haiti aid fund
Former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush announced late Tuesday that they have appointed a six-member board of former Democratic and Republican senior government officials to oversee the humanitarian fund the presidents established in the aftermath of the Jan. 12 earthquake that devastated Haiti. Clinton and Bush have tapped Gary Edson, who served as Bush’s deputy national security adviser and helped establish the anti-poverty Millennium Challenge Corporation, as chief executive officer of the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund.

Politico—Gateses to address House Democrats
Bill and Melinda Gates will speak to House Democrats on Wednesday about their Foundation’s work during the Democrats’ closed-door afternoon caucus meeting. Also today, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on global health with Bill Gates, former President Bill Clinton, Rajiv Shah, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, and Eric Goosby, who coordinates U.S. government activities to combat HIV/AIDS globally.

The Economist– Wominnovation
The Economist looks at a new study by the International Centre for Research on Women, which details several innovations in the developing world that can empower women. The study’s authors examine eight inventions that they say have already helped women dramatically, including village mobile phones, microcredit and even scooters.

NY Times—Climate Goal Is Supported by China and India
China and India formally agreed Tuesday to join the international climate change agreement reached in December in Copenhagen, the last two major economies to sign up. The two countries, among the largest and fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, submitted letters to the United Nations agreeing to be included on a list of countries covered by the Copenhagen Accord, a three-page nonbinding statement reached at the end of the contentious and chaotic 10-day conference.

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