Weekly roundup: Top international development headlines

New loans to support social projects, humanitarian support with €40 million and sustainable cities. Here is what you missed from last week’s headlines in the international development sector:

CEB approves new loans to support social projects, reaches €4 billion in project approvals for 2019

The Administrative Council of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) approved eight new project loans totaling €405 million. These approvals bring the total amount approved so far this year to €4 billion.

Bosnia and Herzegovina: a €10 million loan to ProCredit Bank Bosnia and Herzegovina to promote job creation and economic growth by supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country. The funds provided by the CEB will channel financing to SMEs for the acquisition of productive fixed assets and the construction or extension of business premises.

Estonia: a €25 million loan to North Estonia Medical Centre to improve the quality of psychiatric care services provided by the country’s largest hospital. The CEB loan will have a positive impact on the patients of the hospital’s Psychiatric Clinic, who will benefit from improved access to psychiatric care.

Republic of Moldova: a €10 million loan to ProCredit Bank Moldova to boost job creation and economic growth by supporting SMEs throughout the country. The CEB loan will be channelled through to SMEs to provide them with access to financing for their productive investments.

Montenegro: a €10 million loan to the Government to finance the construction of new pre-school units. It is estimated that close to 1,700 children will directly benefit by gaining access to modern facilities and an improved learning environment.

EU reinforces humanitarian support with €40 million as crisis worsens in Afghanistan

The European Commission has allocated an additional €40 million in emergency assistance for those affected by the worsening humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, as well as for Afghan refugees in neighbouring Pakistan and Iran. This brings total EU humanitarian aid for the Afghan crisis to €77 million in 2019: €61 million in Afghanistan, €9 million in Pakistan and €7 million in Iran.

“The humanitarian outlook in Afghanistan is as bleak as ever. Not only has the conflict between the government and non-state armed groups intensified since the beginning of the year, but devastating floods have also hit this war-torn country. The EU is boosting humanitarian aid to help those most in need, especially children,” said Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides.

The new funding will get aid to the most vulnerable families across the country, focusing on the victims of war, forced displacement and natural disasters, as well as returning Afghan refugees. This includes providing emergency healthcare, shelter, food, access to clean water and sanitation facilities, and protection services, targeting women and children. The EU will also continue to provide education for children who have had to leave their schools.

Here’s what else has happened

UNRWA: This week, as the Convention on the Right of the Child (CRC) turns 30, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reflects on the impact of its assistance to the children of Gaza, the West Bank including East Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

UNESCO: Mexico has announced a new global conference on cultural policies, Mondiacult, during the meeting at UNESCO, of 120 culture ministers who discussed the transversal role of culture in public policies for sustainable development during the 40th session of UNESCO’s General Conference.

In 1982, Mondiacult marked a major turning point in the definition of culture for development as the international community came to regard culture as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs.

China: contributes USD 500,000 to support least-developed countries and WTO accession. Initiated in July 2011 under the WTO’s Aid for Trade initiative, the China Programme aims to help least-developed countries (LDCs) further integrate into the global economy by supporting their participation in WTO activities and helping acceding LDCs in their WTO membership negotiations.

Terna and the EIB: Terna and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed an agreement for a EUR 490 million loan to support investments that will improve the reliability and quality of the electricity grid.

Reports

World’s governments plan to produce 120% more fossil fuels by 2030 than can be burned under 1.5°C warming

The Production Gap Report – produced by leading research organizations and the UN – is the first assessment of the gap between Paris Agreement goals and countries’ planned production of coal, oil and gas.

The world is on track to produce far more coal, oil and gas than would be consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C or 2°C, creating a “production gap” that makes climate goals much harder to reach, according to the first report to assess countries’ plans and projections for fossil fuel production.

The Production Gap Report complements the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Emissions Gap Report, which shows that country pledges fall short of the emission reductions needed to meet global temperature limits.

Read and download The Production Gap Report.

Persons with disabilities need new roadmap to join future world of work

Five key objectives need to be met if people with disabilities are to benefit from the major trends shaping the new world of work, according to a new report.

There are estimated to be one billion people in the world with disabilities. They already face challenges that hamper their participation in the world of work and place them at greater risk of poverty and social exclusion. Across eight geographical regions, an average of 36 percent of working-age persons with disabilities are in employment, compared to 60 percent of the general population.

As consumers, persons with disabilities represent more than US$1.2 trillion in annual disposable income, and, as societies age, this market for goods and services is expected to increase, the study says.

Read and download the report: Making the future of work inclusive of people with disabilities.

Events

Africa Against Ebola: A Private Sector and Partners Forum

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2 December 2019

H.E Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) will host the Africa Against Ebola: A Private Sector and Partners forum at the African Union (AU) headquarters in Addis Ababa.

Global Climate and Health Summit at COP25

Madrid, Spain
7 December 2019

At UN Climate Conference COP25, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA) will convene a one-day summit on climate and health. This will be the latest in the series of summits for health civil society that have been held since COP 17 in Durban.

The coming months are critical in our collective global response to climate change, and the implications for human health are immense. The Paris agreement enshrined the “right to health” as a core principle guiding action on climate change, for the first time formalizing health as a focus in the UNFCCC processes. The World Health Organization has made the “health impacts of climate and environmental change” one of its top priorities.

Time’s up for food waste! Setting the EU action agenda towards 2030

Brussels, Belgium
12 December 2019

The event held on the occasion of the 7th meeting of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste, will help define the EU action agenda and path towards the global target of halving food waste by 2030. In an interactive format, speakers and audience will discuss the Platform’s recommendations for action in food loss and waste prevention, published on that day, and their role in mobilising EU action towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 12.3. In line with the integrated, holistic approach needed to tackle food waste, the Platform recommendations will address action required, at each stage of the food supply chain including food redistribution, and involving all key players from the public and private sectors.