Showing posts with label Poverty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Poverty. Show all posts

Sunday, September 17, 2023

The United Nations must keep its promises to end extreme poverty and ensure no person goes hungry

  • World leaders meet tomorrow (18 Sep) at the United Nations in a bid to salvage ambitious promises to lift the planet's poorest.
  • But the development summit, on the eve of the annual UN General Assembly that opens Tuesday, threatens to be eclipsed by growing geopolitical tensions -- which will be symbolized by the presence at the meeting in New York of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
  • In 2015, UN member states adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, 17 targets to transform the world by 2030 including by completely ending extreme poverty and making sure not a single of the planet's eight billion people goes hungry.
  • UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the summit will seek a "global rescue plan" on the targets, as he acknowledged that only about 15 percent were on track to be met and that metrics on some were heading in reverse.
[NOTE from Sudan Watch Ed: Ukraine and Russia must stop their senseless war immediately. Ukraine must not be given any funds needed by the UN to keep its promises to transform the world, eradicate hunger and extreme poverty. Leaders must be held accountable if those promises are broken.]

Read full story.

FROM AFP NEWS 
Published by The Barron's Daily
Written by Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS
Dated Sunday 17 September 2023 - here is a full copy:

UN Meet Looks To Salvage Promises On Helping World's Poorest

Image: Women who fled the war in Sudan await the distribution of international aid rations at the Ourang refugee camp, near Adre town in eastern Chad on August 15, 2023 (Photo credit: Mohaned BELAL)


World leaders meet Monday at the United Nations in a bid to salvage ambitious promises to lift the planet's poorest, at a time when vulnerable nations are facing a volley of crises.


But the development summit, on the eve of the annual UN General Assembly that opens Tuesday, threatens to be eclipsed by growing geopolitical tensions -- which will be symbolized by the presence at the meeting in New York of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.


In 2015, UN member states adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, 17 targets to transform the world by 2030 including by completely ending extreme poverty and making sure not a single of the planet's eight billion people goes hungry.


UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the summit will seek a "global rescue plan" on the targets, as he acknowledged that only about 15 percent were on track to be met and that metrics on some were heading in reverse.


The goals are "about the hopes, dreams, rights and expectations of people and the health of our natural environment," Guterres said.


"They're about righting historic wrongs, healing global divisions and putting our world on a path to lasting peace," he said.


Efforts to devote money and attention to the goals have been repeatedly set back, including by the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and other tumult, worsening climate catastrophes and sharp increases in the cost of living.

Image: A light display created using drones is performed before the city skyline and United Nations headquarters as part of a campaign to raise awareness about the Amazon rainforest and the global climate crisis ahead of the 78th United Nations General Assembly (Photo credit: Ed JONES)


The United Nations summit "is a vital space to make change," said Abby Maxman, the president of anti-poverty activist charity Oxfam America.


"Leaders must be held accountable, heed the calls of those on the front lines and use this time to listen, make meaningful commitments and follow up with real action," she said.


She said that one powerful step would be for wealthy nations to back reforms of international economic institutions to address the crushing debts impacting parts of the developing world.


A Group of 20 summit in New Delhi this month took initial steps to address representation in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.


"But overall, will this SDG summit reignite a sense of 'hope, optimism and enthusiasm,' as it's been billed?" asked Noam Unger, a development expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.


"Rising authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, but also geostrategic competition and economic distress, those are likely to overshadow other fundamental issues related to climate change and global development," he said.


Developing countries' leaders will be present in force on Monday. The United States, which has pumped $43 billion in military aid into Ukraine to help defend against Russian invasion, has hoped to show it is also interested in development.

Image: People rally to end fossil fuels ahead of the 78th United Nations General Assembly and Climate Ambition Summit in New York on September 17, 2023 (Photo credit: LEONARDO MUNOZ)


"The world's most vulnerable are looking to us, like the young woman I met in Chad (in September), who fled unthinkable -- unthinkable -- violence in Sudan and had to leave her family and her education behind," said Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the United Nations.


"This young woman is counting on us. She's counting on the world in her time of need," she said.


But a senior European diplomat warned the gap was growing between the developing and developed worlds.


One goal for the summit is "making sure that that rift doesn't grow further," the diplomat said.


This story was produced by AFP. For more information go to AFP.com© Agence France-Presse


Source: https://www.barrons.com/news/un-meet-looks-to-salvage-promises-on-helping-world-s-poorest-b32a31d4


[Ends]

Monday, August 28, 2023

Sudan Climate Change: Root causes of Darfur conflict

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: Taking time out to search Sudan Watch's archives and collate various posts from the past 20 years. They are taking hours to find and prepare for a series of posts focussing on peace and the alleviation of poverty and extreme poverty in Sudan and South Sudan.

To start, here is an excerpt from a post published July 14, 2006 entitled:

'The root causes of the Darfur conflict: A struggle over controlling an environment that can no longer support all the people who must live on it'


DARFUR IN THE EYES OF A NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER


Environmentalist Wangari Maathai who won the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize stated to The Washington Post on May 12, 2005 that:

"Darfur is an example of a situation where a dire scarcity of natural resources is manipulated by politicians for their own ambition. To outsiders, the conflict is seen as tribal warfare. At its roots, though, it is a struggle over controlling an environment that can no longer support all the people who must live on it. You must not deal only with the symptoms you have to get to the root causes by promoting environmental rehablitation and empowering people to do things for themselves. What is done for the people without involving them can not be sustained."

Full story: https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2006/07/root-causes-of-darfur-conflict.html


[Ends]

Sunday, May 28, 2023

Sudan crisis: The plight of casual labourers is dire –without daily income many can't make ends meet

THIS brought tears to my eyes seeing proud dignified men facing despair. [Ends]

Sunday, September 05, 2021

The International Day of Charity 5th September - Global Solidarity to Eradicate Poverty



















PHOTO: ©Sadek Ahmed


From the website of the United Nations:


Global Solidarity to Eradicate Poverty


Charity, like the notions of volunteerism and philanthropy, provides real social bonding and contributes to the creation of inclusive and more resilient societies. 


Charity can alleviate the worst effects of humanitarian crises, supplement public services in health care, education, housing and child protection. It assists the advancement of culture, science, sports, and the protection of cultural and natural heritage. It also promotes the rights of the marginalised and underprivileged and spreads the message of humanity in conflict situations.


In the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development adopted in September 2015, the United Nations recognises that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development. 


The Agenda also calls for a spirit of strengthened global solidarity, focused in particular on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable. It also acknowledges the role of the diverse private sector, ranging from micro-enterprises to cooperatives to multinationals, and that of civil society organizations and philanthropic organizations in the implementation of the new Agenda.


The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set forth in the Agenda can be grouped into six critical areas: people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership. They have the potential to transform our lives and our planet by providing the framework needed for philanthropic institutions to enable all people to contribute to the betterment of our world.


Background


The International Day of Charity was established with the objective of sensitising and mobilising people, NGOs, and stakeholders all around the world to to help others through volunteer and philanthropic activities.


The date of 5 September was chosen in order to commemorate the anniversary of the passing away of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 "for work undertaken in the struggle to overcome poverty and distress, which also constitute a threat to peace."




















Mother Teresa, the renowned nun and missionary, was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in 1910. In 1928 she went to India, where she devoted herself to helping the destitute. In 1948 she became an Indian citizen and founded the order of Missionaries of Charity in Kolkota (Calcutta) in 1950, which became noted for its work among the poor and the dying in that city.


For over 45 years she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned and dying, while guiding the Missionaries of Charity’s expansion, first in India and then in other countries, including hospices and homes for the poorest and homeless. Mother Teresa’s work has been recognized and acclaimed throughout the world and she has received a number of awards and distinctions, including the Nobel Peace Prize. Mother Teresa died on September 5th 1997, at 87 years of age.


In recognition of the role of charity in alleviating humanitarian crises and human suffering within and among nations, as well as of the efforts of charitable organisations and individuals, including the work of Mother Teresa, the General Assembly of the United Nations in its resolution A/RES/67/105 designated the 5th of September, the anniversary of the death of Mother Teresa, as the International Day of Charity.


Resources

View Original: https://www.un.org/en/observances/charity-day