Add us as your preferred source on Google to see more of our content in Search.
Add to Preferred SourcesFamilies struggle for survival during Afghanistan’s coldest winter in a decade, EU partners with South Africa to invest €280 million in its Just and Green Recovery and securing access to electricity and heating for communities in Ukraine. Here is what you missed from last week’s headlines in the international development sector.
Families struggle for survival during Afghanistan’s coldest winter in a decade
For families living on the brink, cash and other support from UNHCR are a lifeline this winter. Fatima nurses her youngest child in her lap, as her two other children, scamper around excitedly in the confines of their small living space. She’s too exhausted and consumed by worry to react.
Her family was displaced to another district around 100 kilometres away when the conflict intensified in Bamyan province in Afghanistan’s mountainous Central Highlands region two years ago. By the time Fatima returned, she had divorced her husband, who was a drug addict, her mother and brother were living as refugees in Iran, and it was up to her alone to find a place to live with her children.
For the past eight months, that place has been a centuries-old cave in a hillside near where the ancient Bamyan Buddhas once stood – two monumental sixth-century sculptures that were destroyed in 2001. The cave is small but offers shelter from the bitter winter.
Global Gateway: EU partners with South Africa to invest €280 million in its Just and Green Recovery
As Team Europe, the EU and its Member States will invest more than €280 million in grants in South Africa, including €87.75 million from the EU budget, to support policy reforms on green recovery, unlock green investments, and build a knowledge-based transition in the framework of the Just and Green Recovery Team Europe Initiative for South Africa launched in Pretoria as part of Global Gateway.
Through this partnership with South Africa, the Just and Green Recovery Team Europe Initiative will support the country in achieving its national goal to tackle the country’s pressing socio-economic challenges through policy dialogue, facilitating investment, including for public infrastructure, and unlocking a sustainable, biodiversity-friendly and circular economy and combat climate change.
”The fight against climate change is a global responsibility. The European Union wants to work with its partners around the world, in addressing this threat together – so our future generations can live on a safe and prosperous planet. Together with South Africa, we are committed to a decarbonization pathway. The EU and its Member States will continue to partner with South Africa to implement the Just Energy Transition Partnership and make this journey just, not least with the Team Europe Initiative we are launching, ”High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell”
Securing access to electricity and heating for communities in Ukraine
Through a new partnership with the government of Denmark, UNOPS is providing electricity generators and heating devices to people living in the Mykolaiv region. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has caused significant damage to the country’s infrastructure and energy networks. In November 2022, the Ukrainian government reported the destruction of 40 percent of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Damaged infrastructure has also affected energy and heating supply to 15 regions across the country.
“Denmark stands firmly with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in their fight for freedom and democracy. Denmark is fully committed to continuing our support – both when it comes to covering urgent needs and long-term reconstruction. A significant part of our support is channeled through UN partners, such as UNOPS, doing an extremely important job,” said Dan Jørgensen, Denmark’s Minister for Development Cooperation and Global Climate Policy.
In response to the crisis, the government of Denmark tasked UNOPS to deliver $18 million worth of much-needed electricity and heating equipment – including electricity generators, boiler houses, power banks, and other essential items that will provide communities with access to electricity and heating during the cold winter months. Initially focusing on the Mykolaiv region, the project is expected to expand to other areas across the country.
DevelopmentAid Editorials
Why are women more affected by food insecurity than men? | Experts’ Opinions
Climate change, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the energy crisis have raised the level of food insecurity worldwide. However, the numbers are not only growing but hunger disproportionately affects women and men. According to the XX statistics, of over 800 million people affected by hunger, two-thirds were women. How can the gender differences in food insecurity be explained? Check the answers of several international experts.
Read the full article.
2022 – fifth warmest year globally, Copernicus report
Last year was the second warmest in Europe and the fifth warmest globally, with the average annual temperature being approximately 1.2°C higher than the pre-industrial level, the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service has revealed in its annual climate report. Some parts of the globe saw temperatures exceeding 2°C above the pre-industrial level and greenhouse gases continued to increase, reaching their highest concentrations ever. The report’s authors warn that urgent action is required to avoid the worst consequences of global warming.
Read the full article.
The importance of wetlands: why care and protect them?
Wetlands are crucial ecosystems for the filtration of excessive water in some parts of the world and for storing carbon, preventing the overheating of the atmosphere. This is why they are often called the ‘kidneys’ of the landscape. Moreover, they are home to numerous flora and fauna species and thus are vital as a variety of habitats. However, human interventions sometimes have catastrophic impacts on wetlands. As nations celebrate World Wetlands Day, in this article, we examine the value of wetlands and the problems they face.
Read the full article.
Here’s what else has happened
Ethiopia: UN humanitarians reported that aid access in the north is continuing to improve with aid operations expanding following last November’s ceasefire agreement, but some civilians in the battle-scarred region “remain hard to reach.”
EU-Ukraine Summit: On the eve of the EU-Ukraine summit, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) calls on European leaders to renew their commitments to stand by the people affected by the war in Ukraine. Ukrainians need sustained support to not only make it through the cold winter months but to also rebuild their lives and gain control of their futures. Bolstering humanitarian assistance inside the country must be matched with greater efforts to protect refugees hosted across Europe.
UNHCR Pakistan: UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, launched a one-time cash assistance scheme for some 1.3 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan affected by the devastating 2022 floods as well as the prevailing economic situation.
EU: The EU has released over €43 million to address the humanitarian needs of people in Myanmar, as well as those of Rohingya refugees and their host communities in Bangladesh.
Reports
Global inflation will fall in 2023 and 2024 amid subpar economic growth
Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.4 percent in 2022 to 2.9 percent in 2023, then rise to 3.1 percent in 2024. The forecast for 2023 is 0.2 percentage points higher than predicted in the October 2022 World Economic Outlook (WEO) but below the historical (2000–19) average of 3.8 percent. The rise in central bank rates to fight inflation and Russia’s war in Ukraine continue to weigh on economic activity.
2022 Corruption Perceptions Index reveals scant progress against corruption as world becomes more violent
The 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released by Transparency International shows that most of the world continues to fail to fight corruption: 95 per cent of countries have made little to no progress since 2017. According to the Global Peace Index, the world continues to become a less peaceful place. There is a clear connection between this violence and corruption, with countries that score lowest in this index also scoring very low on the CPI. Governments hampered by corruption lack the capacity to protect the people, while public discontent is more likely to turn into violence. This vicious cycle is impacting countries everywhere from South Sudan (13) to Brazil (38).
Events
How To Capture Business Opportunities Financed By The Multilateral Development Banks | Seminar
📅 7 February 2023 🕑 9 AM – 3 PM
Egmont Palace, Place du Petit Sablon 8bis, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
With the collaboration of the Regional Export Promotion Agencies (Flanders Investment & Trade, Wallonia.be and hub.brussels), the Belgian Federal Public Service Finance and the Belgian Federal Public Service Development Cooperation organize a seminar on February 7, 2023, entitled “How to capture business opportunities financed by the multilateral development banks (MDBs)?”.
How To Capture Business Opportunities Financed By The Multilateral Development Banks | Interactive Workshops
📅 8-9 February 2023 🕑 10.00 am – 4.00 pm (TBC)
FIT HQ, Kon. Albert II-laan 37, 1030 Brussels, Belgium
In addition to the free conference that will be held in the Egmont Palace on February 7th, FIT & hub.brussels invite you to some workshops on the World Bank and other MDBs (multilateral development banks) financed procurement at the headquarters of FIT on February 8th, 2023 and February 9th, 2023.
Financial Management for Development Professionals (Finance DPro)
📅 15 March – 9 May 2023
Virtual
Registration deadline: 12 March 2023
This course helps NGO non-financial managers learn the key principles of good NGO financial management, how to manage financial resources more effectively, and how to integrate good financial management systems. After this course, the participants be ready to apply best practices to their own NGO.