In an open letter to the G8 leaders made public today, renowned singers Angelique Kidjo, Annie Lennox, Emmanuel Jal, and Miguel Bose joined celebrated actors Bill Nighy (who is currently at the G8), Colin Firth, Djimon Hounsou, Gael Garcia Bernal, Kristin Davis, Minnie Driver, Rahul Bose, and Scarlett Johansson to call on the heads of state to raise their game on poverty, especially in the face of a worldwide food crisis. The G8 meets in Japan from 7-9 July for their annual summit, with the food crisis high on the agenda along with climate change, oil prices, inflation and the economy, and African development.

"Through our work with Oxfam, each of us has been involved in the ongoing fight to end extreme poverty. Whether in classrooms in India, orphanages in South Africa, camps in Chad, farms in Ethiopia or health clinics in Tanzania, many of us have witnessed at first hand that aid works; that ordinary people achieve remarkable things every day but also that there is a great deal more that needs to be done," the ambassadors stated in the joint letter.

Oxfam's ambassadors have seen the importance of development aid first hand after travelling around the world with the humanitarian organization. Bill Nighy travelled to Tanzania with Oxfam last year and is currently in Japan lobbying G8 leaders to put poverty issues at the top of the agenda. Last year, Scarlett Johansson travelled to India and Sri Lanka with Oxfam where she visited a school for girls, and survivors of the tsunami. Kristin Davis has recently returned from her second trip to South Africa with Oxfam, where she met with community organizations fighting against the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

"The Millennium Development Goals that were set out in 2000 were chosen because they were ambitious, but also because they were realistic and achievable," continued the letter. "The current delays in meeting these commitments are a disgrace."

The ambassadors issued a call to action to the heads of state, reminding them that it is the world's poor who are most vulnerable to increased food prices and the negative impacts of climate change.

"We look to you to address the global economic uncertainty, but you must also look beyond your own borders and not turn your backs on the world's poorest people," continued the letter. "Only then will you lead the way to a more prosperous and safer future for us all."

Five million Afghans are facing food shortages, including 1.8 million at high risk from malnutrition, especially young children, pregnant and lactating women, and the elderly, said the international aid and development agency.

"The winter snows have come early this year, which hinders the provision of vital assistance to rural families," said Matt Waldman, Oxfam International's Head of Policy in Afghanistan.

"Young children, pregnant women and the elderly are already suffering from malnutrition. With the harsh Afghan winter approaching, the international community must do everything possible to support the vulnerable and prevent avoidable deaths," Waldman continued.

Despite repeated warnings from aid agencies, the United Nations' joint emergency appeal to tackle the food crisis is only half funded. The UN also has insufficient capacity for essential planning, coordination, and information gathering.

"To reduce vulnerability to disasters, it is essential that more resources are invested in agriculture and rural development. Although some three-quarters of the population are engaged in farming and connected trades, last year US funding for agriculture was less than one per cent of its assistance to the security sector," said Waldman.

Despite the fact that some 80% of Afghans largely depend on agriculture, the sector receives only a fraction of international funding and less than 5% of the United States Agency for International Development's budget for Afghanistan since 2002.

Although relief operations are under way, Afghan and foreign aid agencies have been urging the international community to dedicate more resources for the food crisis and ensure that the UN rapidly increases its staff, so it can deliver assistance and coordinate the aid effort effectively. The agencies have also called on all parties to the conflict to allow humanitarian access so that food and other assistance reaches vulnerable Afghan families.

The food crisis in Afghanistan has been compounded by years of drought, conflict, and soaring global food prices. Oxfam and its partners are working to strengthen winter food stocks for vulnerable Afghan families, and promote sustainable rural development in the longer term. While the global financial crisis has created a strain on economies worldwide, during these times of global economic distress the burden rests especially heavily on those struggling to overcome extreme poverty.

Only half the critical issues have been addressed and while there have been some improvements in rich country positions, the demands on developing countries are still disproportionate and their potential impact uncertain until further details emerge.

Isabel Mazzei, Head of Oxfam International?s office in Geneva said: ?There are some potentially serious pitfalls lurking in this outline agreement and it represents a serious watering down of original ambitions for trade reform to reduce poverty. For a deal to be worth welcoming there must be tighter disciplines on developed countries? agricultural spending and poor countries must have proper flexibilities to promote rural livelihoods and adequate space to develop their industries.?

The highlights of the framework agreement, hammered out between 7 key players and then consulted on with a wider group, are as follows:

• Cap on overall trade distorting farm subsidies of $14.4bn for the US and ?22bn for EU.
• Developing countries can designate 12% of agricultural tariff lines as ?special?, which means they will be subject to lower tariff cuts. 5% will face no cuts at all. These are products deemed vital for food security and rural livelihoods.
• Developed countries can designate 4% of agricultural tariff lines as ?sensitive?, again meaning they are subject to lower cuts. These are likely to include dairy and beef.
• The proposals on the Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM), designed to allow poor countries to protect small farmers against agricultural import surges, would allow tariffs to go above Uruguay Round levels only if imports increased by 40% or more, and then only on 2.5% of tariff lines in any year.
• Developing countries like India, Brazil, Indonesia, South Africa and Venezuela will have to cut industrial tariffs by around 57% on average, with no flexibilities. If they opt for slightly higher overall cuts (60% or above) they will have some more room to move, but still not enough to ensure they will be able to successfully industrialize.
• Crucially and controversially, the flexibilities in the industrial market access deal (known as NAMA) cannot all be used for the same sector (?anti-concentration?). At least 9% of the total value of the trade in any sector and 20% of tariff lines must be exempt from protection. This means a country could not amass flexibilities to fully protect its automobile industry, for example.
• Countries are under pressure to open certain industrial sectors faster or deeper than others. They will be given fewer flexibilities if they don?t do this. This is despite the fact that participating in these so-called ?sectoral? initiatives was meant to be optional.
• There will be a separate meeting on services liberalisation today. This includes sectors like banking, insurance, communications. Countries will be asked to signal the offers they intend to make.

Oxfam analysis

• The draft text caters to and reflects the concerns and sensitivities of major developed countries, while granting inadequate or ineffective instruments of flexibility for developing countries.
• The US agriculture offer is an improvement but still a ?glass half full?. A cap of $14.4bn will not require them to cut a cent from current spending, which stands at around $7bn. EU cap of ?22bn may cut into current spending but there is still room for them to move.
• Clearer disciplines on rich countries? subsidies, including for specific products, are very important (and the details of these are yet to emerge). This is because both the EU and US are very good at exploiting loopholes in WTO rules. They have both used the WTO box system to reclassify subsidies rather than cutting them.
• The so-called ?Green Box?, for allegedly non-trade distorting subsidises, is being exploited by the EU in particular, which has shifted a huge amount of spending into this category. Oxfam analysis suggests subsidies in this box will still distort trade and hurt poor countries? farmers.
• The new US Farm Bill, recently passed by the US Congress, also exploits flexibilities in the box system, with the result that the overall level of subsidy spending may actually increase in the US.
• Earlier in the week, the US indicated that it wanted immunity from future legal challenge at the WTO—a request which, if granted, could completely undermine the minimal benefits of reform by rendering WTO rules unenforceable.
• The flexibilities for developing countries are inadequate. They are not what they were asking for and not enough in light of recent food price volatility.
• The G33 group of food importing countries wanted 20% of tariff lines to be designated Special Products, with half of these subject to no cuts.
• The SSM proposals are very problematic and far from what developing countries need.
• The SSM has so many conditions attached as to render it operationally ineffective.
• The WTO principle of Special and Differential Treatment for poorer countries is violated across the board.
• The issue of US cotton subsidies has not been addressed, even though it was meant to be fast tracked as a priority and is of vital significance for the economies and people in a number of African countries, notably Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad and Benin.
• The non-agricultural market access (NAMA) deal is very bad for poor countries. It is a direct violation of the principle of less than full reciprocity, in that it would require developing countries to make significantly bigger tariff reductions than developed.
• The NAMA deal will undermine future industrial development in poor countries, locking them into low value economies. All now-industrialized countries, including the EU, US, Korea and Japan, used tariffs to protect infant industry. The imposition of big cuts and limited flexibilities now for poor countries is a case of ?do as we say, not as we did."
• The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) estimates that the NAMA deal could lead to substantial job losses in developing countries ? 200,000 in Argentina, as 1.2m in Brazil and 150,000 in Tunisia.
• The link between sectorals and flexibilities is very problematic

Mazzei: ?Rich countries have made some concessions but developing countries are being made to give much more. This is turning a ?development round? on its head.?

Ministers will continue negotiating in Geneva, with talks possibly lasting until Wednesday.

?Now more than ever, poor countries need a fair trade deal. Rising food and fuel prices are hitting the poorest hardest and undoing progress on poverty reduction,? said Jeremy Hobbs, Executive Director of Oxfam International. ?However, locking in lower tariffs will not solve the crisis but will expose poor farmers to more shocks, especially if the US and EU make only cosmetic reforms to their unfair subsidies. High prices are an opportunity for reform, but this looks set to be squandered.?

As trade ministers from around 35 countries gather at the WTO in another attempt to forge a trade deal, Oxfam is calling for a clear and transparent process that involves all members and gives each a formal opportunity to respond to proposals.

If current offers are accepted, the US may not have to cut a penny from current spending on agriculture and the EU will only have to cut around ?2.6bn ($4.1bn), from a total of ?30bn ($48bn), according to Oxfam. The proposals on non-agricultural trade will lock poor countries into low-value economies by preventing them from building up infant industries through strategic trade policy.

?Delivering on long-overdue promises could make a massive difference to people living in poverty, but the latest proposals fall far short of what is needed and continue to prioritize the interests of rich countries,? said Hobbs. ?A deal that shores up political reputations and accommodates vested interests will not help promote development or reduce poverty.?

The recently passed US Farm Bill has landed like an unwelcome guest at the negotiating table. In a new analysis released today, Oxfam outlines how the Farm Bill undermines the potential for progressive reform. Despite the fact that US farmers are enjoying very high prices and record farm income ? an average of $89,000 per farm ? the US Congress actually expanded government farm subsidies in the 2008 Farm Bill and reinstated cotton subsidies previously ruled illegal at the WTO.

?Not only does the 2008 Farm Bill contradict existing obligations at the WTO, it also defies the objectives of the talks by maintaining or even increasing precisely the agricultural subsidies and market protections that developing countries entered these negotiations to stop,? said Hobbs.

Meanwhile, Europe continues to insist on exemptions for its sugar, beef and dairy farmers, while simultaneously denying poor countries the space to safeguard their own farmers? livelihoods. The EU is also demanding big concessions on non-agricultural market access, while failing to acknowledge the development needs of developing countries? industry.

Hobbs: ?A good trade deal would cut trade distorting subsidies, allow flexibility for poor countries to promote food security, livelihoods and rural development, and address the major obstacles holding poor countries back. Instead, we see offers that will entrench rich countries? advantages and increase poor countries? vulnerability. Until this changes, there is no good reason to sign on.?

Oxfam?s report, "Mirror on America: How the state of Gulf Coast recovery reflects on us all," comes just days before the anniversary of one of the most devastating natural disasters in American history and a week before a September 5 deadline for Louisiana residents to apply to the state?s Road Home program for assistance. With the passing of this deadline, thousands of residents in that state will no longer be able to receive needed assistance so that they can return home.

?The uneven and inequitable state of recovery of the Gulf Coast is a national embarrassment,? said Oxfam America President Raymond C. Offenheiser. ?Although the force of the storms was an act of nature, the failures of the recovery are an act of our government. If we refuse to address this as a nation, it will go down in history not only as a failure of leadership, but also as a failure to hold our government accountable.?

The barriers to a complete recovery are most apparent in the housing and jobs sectors.. More than 35,000 individuals still living in FEMA trailers in the Gulf Coast, according to Oxfam?s report. In Louisiana, 82,000 apartments were damaged or destroyed by Katrina and Rita, but the highest official estimate proposes to replace only about 25,000 affordable units. In Mississippi, federal money that was mandated for use in rebuilding low income housing was, instead, diverted to improving the shipyards in Biloxi.

Workers living along the Gulf Coast have been hit by a double injustice. On one hand they can?t afford the rising costs of rent, housing, insurance and utilities. On the other, they can?t find the kind of jobs they need to offset those increased expenses. Only 12 percent of African-American evacuees who returned to New Orleans after the hurricanes were able to find work, compared with 45 percent of white evacuees, according to the report. Compliance with federal labor laws has been ignored with frequent occurrences of safety and health violations, wage theft and exploitative treatment of immigrant workers.

?It was the perfect storm of worker exploitation and wage suppression,? said Tracie L. Washington, president and CEO of the Louisiana Justice Institute in the report. ?We should have found ourselves in a situation where, because of the dearth of employees, workers could have found wages that equaled or exceeded those of workers in places like New York and New Jersey. But instead you had people brought in, trafficked in, through artificial government support.?

Oxfam?s is calling on national leadership to convert this national tragedy into an opportunity to ensure the security and prosperity of the Gulf Coast region, urging the next administration to create an Office for Gulf Coast Recovery headed by a federal coordinator; to make sure all federally subsidized housing destroyed in the storms is reopened or replaced; to require states Gulf Coast states that receive federal recovery dollars to provide regular reports on the use of those funds; and to ensure compliance with labor laws.

?The transition to a new administration is a critical opportunity to rebuild the Gulf Coast better and stronger,? said Offenheiser. ?Not only can we help the Gulf Coast recover, we can take the opportunity of the rebuilding effort to address the long-standing root causes of poverty and vulnerability that existed in these two states long before the storms of 2005.?

?This is our community, we want it back the way it was—or better,? said Sharon Hanshaw, Executive Director of Coastal Women for Change in Biloxi, MS. ?You take care of where you live.?

"Congress should take up this legislation urgently because hundreds of millions of poor people facing skyrocketing food costs need help," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. "The critical short-term funding this legislation addresses is needed, but just as important are longer-term investments to reduce the vulnerability of poor people to the kinds of food price shocks we've seen this year."

The Lugar-Casey Global Food Security Act would create a new food security emergency fund for rapid response to urgent problems. In addition, the bill would authorize substantial new funding to assist developing countries in improving their agricultural infrastructure, thus averting future crises and helping farmers in developing countries—many of them among the poorest people in the world. The bill specifies new investments in research and would encourage new education partnerships to promote agriculture research and development. Perhaps most important, the bill would require a government-wide strategy by creating a new position in the White House to oversee and coordinate action, while emphasizing the central role of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in managing America?s strategy to address food insecurity.

"Congress is understandably concerned about the US financial crisis, but it cannot turn a blind eye to the millions of people who are at terrible risk of hunger and disease as a result of the food crisis," said Offenheiser. "Support to assist poor people is a bargain for the money. It provides taxpayers returns in the form of economic growth and political security."

The Lugar-Casey Global Food Security Act is an important step in the short-term and will help equip the US government to save lives and address the urgent global food crisis. But it cannot be a substitute for fundamental reform of American global development tools. The ultimate path to food security rests on effectively fighting global poverty and right now, the US foreign aid system is falling short on this fight. The next President and Congress must tackle fundamental reform of the law, strategy, structure and practice of US programs to fight global poverty.

?Right now, US foreign aid is not doing all it can to reduce poverty. As commodities, goods, labor, and services cross borders with increasing speed, so do disease, ideology, and unrest. Skyrocketing food prices have set off riots in countries across the world where people were already living on a knife?s edge,? said Raymond C. Offenheiser, panelist, and president of international relief and development agency Oxfam America. ?In this closer, more interdependent world, persistent poverty anywhere in the world threatens our own future. The next president must reform US foreign aid so that it more effectively reduces poverty.?

Oxfam is advocating that four reforms be prioritized by the US to deal with the global challenges of the 21st century. The US needs to create a national development strategy, rationalize its aid structure, rewrite the Foreign Assistance Act, and get its development agencies more resources and authority.

?Global interdependency has made issues like poverty increasingly a national security issue, but our current foreign aid system is a vestige of the Cold War and ill-equipped for the challenges of today,? said panelist Jim Kolbe, senior transatlantic fellow at The German Marshall Fund of the United States and former Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations in the US Congress. ?The United States must help build institutions, rule of law, and economic development in places like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, and the Horn of Africa. Making our aid more effective and increasing international cooperation will be critical to addressing such threats in the next U.S. administration.?

The panel, The Future of US Foreign Assistance: Effective Development and National Security, was part of the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs? America?s Future series during the Republican National Convention. A panel discussion examined options for the fundamental reform and modernization of United States? approach to international development and security. It addressed security measures aimed to fight poverty, encourage economic development around the world, and build a lasting national security framework for Americans at home and abroad.

Other panelists included: US Rep. John Boozman (R-AR), House Committee on Foreign Affairs; Hon. Vin Weber, chairman, National Endowment for Democracy; Hon. Michael Wilson, Canadian ambassador to the United States of America. The moderator was Matthew McLean, vice president, Millennium Challenge Corporation. The event was hosted by the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

?A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Myanmar and the threat of a second wave of death must drive discussions on Sunday towards cooperation, compromise, and creative responses to getting more aid into the Irrawaddy Delta,? said Sara Ireland, Oxfam?s regional director for East Asia, Sarah Ireland.

?Some aid is getting through and there are signs that more will be delivered but not in enough quantity and not quickly enough. The aid bridge that ASEAN has begun to create into Myanmar must rapidly become a highway wide enough to meet the needs of the people in the hardest hit areas,? she said.

After weeks of uncertainty about how to get access to assist those affected by Cyclone Nargis, ASEAN on Monday announced that it would lead a coordinating mechanism that would work closely with the UN to get more aid into Myanmar.

?The ASEAN initiative is a real chance to begin the turnaround for the people of Myanmar. The donor community must also seize this opportunity and fully support it,? Ireland said.

?This is going to be a long haul and a massive aid effort will be needed as part of the ASEAN mechanism and the international aid community, which includes aid workers and agencies from many countries around the world, will need to support and assist in this effort with technical expertise, experience and skills.?

Ireland said that while aid has reached some people in the delta region, major gaps remain in the level and speed of the response?particularly in crucial areas of clean water, shelter, emergency food, and medical supplies.

According to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, 500,000 people lost their homes in the cyclone. According to the UN, only 150,000 were in government or other shelters. This needs to be addressed urgently, Oxfam said.

The agency said with only 250,000 of 750,000 people in need of urgent food reached with a two-week ration of rice, food aid was vital according to the UN World Food Program. According to nutrition research by Save the Children, 30,000 children in the delta are suffering from severe acute malnutrition and will die by the first week of June unless this food gap is filled.

With the fast-approaching monsoon season and the end of the planting season in five to seven weeks, prompt action is necessary if further unnecessary suffering is to be avoided.

Oxfam said while ASEAN was working to resolve issues around access into the country it was vital that donors and aid agencies worked to help ensure access within the country to the hardest hit areas, particularly along the waterways and the dirt roads that have been all but washed away.

Given their experience in responding to disasters such as the 2004 tsunami and Pakistan earthquake in 2005, Oxfam said its staff members and their skills could play a significant role in supporting ASEAN.

In Myanmar, people?s resistance to disease is weakened daily because of lack of food and shelter, exposure to the elements, and drinking surface water that is likely to be contaminated with human and animal waste. This creates a breeding ground for diseases such as cholera and typhoid.

With people exposed to the elements, huddled together in crowded areas and suffering from hunger other risks such as measles, chest infections, pneumonia and diphtheria could devastate already weakened people, especially the very young and weak.

?As representatives from rich world governments meet this weekend they must harness ASEAN's task force and offer it financial and skilled support so that there are no further delays in getting help to those people who so desperately need it,? Ireland said.

The agency called on all donors to respond generously to the worsening crisis as, according to the UN, the total aid effort is currently under-funded to the tune of $260m.

The revised numbers of those needing emergency assistance is likely to be a conservative estimate and does not include the 7.2 million Ethiopians so chronically poor that they receive cash or food aid from the government every year.

?Today?s figures, terrible as they are, show only half the picture. Over 13.5 million Ethiopians are in need of aid in order to survive. The number of those suffering severe hunger and destitution has spiralled. More can and must be done now to save lives and avert disaster,? said Oxfam?s country director, Waleed Rauf.

"Compared with the funds going to shore up the global financial system the aid needed to save lives in Ethiopia is a drop in the ocean. The events of recent weeks clearly demonstrate that ? with the right kind of political will and ambition - action is possible in the face of urgent needs. We need donors to demonstrate that same kind of urgency when responding to acute hunger and underlying vulnerabilities in places like Ethiopia," added Rauf.

Oxfam is particularly concerned about the situation for pastoralist communities in Afar and Somali regions. In northern areas the recent minor rains season was patchy and many people will remain dependent on aid until March next year when the next rains are expected. Further south, if the October/November rains are poor people there will have to hold out until next July.

Numbers in need of help in the Somali region has doubled to nearly two million people since June. Those in need also face huge problems due to loss of their livestock with an average loss of 60 percent of cattle, 50 percent of goats and 40 percent of camels.

In July the UN?s World Food Programme (WFP) had to reduce monthly cereal rations from 15kgs a person to 10kgs. WFP has only received one third of the funds it needs and has an immediate shortfall of 229,587 tonnes food for the next six months. The UN agency fears the impact of this will include increased malnutrition.

?A number of donor countries have already made substantial contributions to the humanitarian response in Ethiopia since the beginning of this year. This has helped to save people?s lives, but now that the needs are increasing all donors must provide additional money,? said Rauf.

The Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure (EITD) Act of 2008 introduced yesterday would require oil, gas, and mining companies to publicly disclose payments made to foreign governments. The bill is identical to legislation introduced in Congress by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) in May. (A legislative hearing was held on June 26 for H.R. 6066, which has a growing number of co-sponsors.)

?More than half of the world?s poorest people live in countries rich in natural resources. Access to information is a fundamental aspect of development,? says Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. ?Senator Schumer has taken an important step to provide citizens with vital information to hold their governments accountable for how mining and oil projects will impact their lives and lands and how revenues can contribute to the long-term reduction of poverty.?

With record high oil prices and diminishing reserves, companies are increasingly operating in new areas of developing regions, including West Africa, the Amazon basin, and Southeast Asia. In Ghana, where oil production may start in 2010, government oil revenues could top $1 billion. Given the weakness of government oversight in many of these countries, it is even more important that oil and mining companies be transparent.

Countries dependent on oil and mineral wealth face a much higher rate of internal conflict and violence. In Africa?s Great Lakes region?which includes parts of Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania?five million people were killed in violent conflicts in the last decade, most of which were directly and indirectly funded by resource extraction.

?It is no secret that lack of transparency in the extractive industry often goes hand-in-hand with government corruption and internal conflict. The industry suffers as a result with company investments at risk and higher energy prices for consumers,? says Offenheiser. ?This legislation would foster accountability in nations where secrecy has undermined development, democracy, and human rights.?

The EITD Act would apply not only to US companies, but to all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). This includes European companies, such as Shell and BP, as well as those in emerging markets like China, India, Brazil, and Russia. Like the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 and the National Environmental Protection Act of 1969, this legislation could have a ripple effect around the world and would be an important complement to voluntary initiatives that may take hold in only a few countries.

?Mandatory revenue disclosure has the power to weed out corruption in developing countries making way for stability and real solutions to poverty that the oil, gas, and mining industries can support,? says Offenheiser. ?This legislation is an opportunity for the United States to take leadership in the international community.?

Oxfam America is working in support of the EITD Act by calling on international extractive companies to show their respect for communities? right to revenue information as well as their right to decide whether they want companies to begin or expand operations on their land.

?Revenue disclosure will give communities the tools they need to have a say in how extractive projects affect their lands and livelihoods. If communities know how much extractive companies are paying their governments for natural resources, they can advocate for a fair share of the benefits to address community needs like education, health care, and jobs,? said Offenheiser.

?The stage is set for important improvements in the way aid is delivered. But the Accra Agenda needs to be backed by urgent action if it is to live up to its name. It won?t have any impact on the lives of people living in poverty unless its promise is put into practice,? said Robert Fox, head of the Oxfam International delegation in Accra.

?This agreement must be a floor, not a ceiling. We encourage all donors to go further in accelerating the pace of reform. Oxfam knows that when aid is delivered well, it brings real results for women and men living in poverty. If governments north and south match their words with action, we could see real progress in tackling poverty.? said Robert Fox.

The Accra accord calls for donors to make longer-term aid commitments and sets a new target for donors to deliver aid through developing countries? own systems. This will be a challenge for donors, said Oxfam, citing a recent survey showing only 46 percent of aid went through recipient country systems. It also includes measures to make aid more accountable.

?We are pleased to see a stronger commitment to transparency, showing what donors fund and how recipients spend,? said Fox. ?And we welcome the recognition that citizens and their organizations have a vital role in defining development priorities and holding governments to account.?

A compromise agreement was reached among official negotiators on Wednesday, without any time-bound targets. But developing country and European ministers arriving in the Ghanaian capital Wednesday night argued for specific commitments and dates for action.

Developing countries and non-governmental organizations have pointed to the urgent need to reform aid to prevent waste and give developing countries more control. Uganda, for instance, had to deal with 684 different aid agreements, from 40 different donors between 2004 and 2007.

?There is much more that can and must be done to improve quality, but equally important we need to boost the quantity of aid if we are going to end poverty and improve access to health care, education and clean water,? said Fox. ?At the UN meetings later this month on the Millennium Development Goals and the November meetings on development finance, donor countries have to get serious about scaling up aid to meet the enormity of the challenge. With more and better aid, we can make a real difference.?

The Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure (EITD) Act of 2008 introduced today would require oil, gas, and mining companies to publicly disclose payments made to foreign governments. With more than half of the world?s poorest people living in countries rich in natural resources, this legislation would provide citizens with vital information to hold their governments accountable for how these so-called ?extractive industry? revenues are used.

?Corruption and mismanagement thrive in environments characterized by secrecy. Access to information is a fundamental aspect of development,? says Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. ?Representative Frank has taken an important step to ensure that communities know how mining and oil projects will impact their lives and lands and how money generated for their governments can contribute to the long-term reduction of poverty.?

With record high oil prices and diminishing reserves, companies are increasingly operating in new areas of developing regions, including West Africa, the Amazon basin, and Southeast Asia. Given the weakness of government oversight in many of these countries, it is even more important that oil and mining companies be transparent. In Angola, for example, more than $4 billion in state oil revenues could not be accounted for between 1997 and 2002?an amount roughly equal to the entire sum spent on social programs by foreign donors and the government in the same years.

Countries dependent on oil and mineral wealth also face a much higher rate of internal conflict and violence. In Africa?s Great Lakes region?which includes parts of Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania?five million people were killed in violent conflicts in the last decade, most of which were directly and indirectly funded by resource extraction.

?It is no secret that lack of transparency in the extractive industry often goes hand-in-hand with government corruption and internal conflict. The industry suffers as a result with company investments at risk and higher energy prices for consumers,? said Offenheiser. ?This legislation would foster accountability in nations where secrecy has undermined development, democracy, and human rights.?

The EITD Act would apply not only to US companies, but to all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). This includes European companies, such as Shell and BP, as well as those in emerging markets like China, India, Brazil, and Russia. Like the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 and the National Environmental Protection Act of 1969, this legislation could have a ripple effect around the world and would be an important complement to voluntary initiatives that may take hold in only a few countries.

?This legislation is an opportunity for the US to take leadership in the international community,? said Offenheiser. ?Mandatory revenue disclosure has the power to weed out corruption in developing countries making way for stability and real solutions to poverty that the oil, gas, and mining industries can support.?

Oxfam America is working in support of the EITD Act by calling on international extractive companies to show their respect for communities? right to revenue information as well as their right to decide whether they want companies to begin or expand operations on their land.

?Revenue disclosure will give communities the tools they need to have a say in how extractive projects affect their lands and livelihoods. If communities know how much extractive companies are paying their governments for natural resources, they can advocate for a fair share of the benefits to address community needs like education, health care, and jobs,? said Offenheiser.

"Mission incomplete: why civilians remain at risk in eastern Chad" reviews the performance of the UN protection mission one year after the UN Security Council authorized the mission. The report finds a mission marked by serious delays in deployment, bureaucratic hurdles and a lack of coordination. As a result, almost half a million vulnerable people who fled their homes due to the conflicts in Darfur and Chad are not adequately protected and are exposed daily to attacks, thefts, rape and forced recruitment.

The mission, mandated by the UN Security Council in September 2007, is made up of two components: UN police (referred to by its French acronym MINURCAT)  responsible for security inside refugee camps and sites for internally displaced people, and the European Union military force (EUFOR), responsible for general security. To date, only 320 Chadian police have been trained to provide security but have yet to be deployed. This law and order vacuum has resulted in increased attacks on aid workers and civilians as bandits can rob and kill with impunity.

"Having fled the violence in Darfur and Chad, people thought they had found sanctuary in the camps.  But eastern Chad is a volatile, lawless land and they are now marooned, living under constant threat. Every day, people face the theft of livestock, attacks, robberies and rape.  They are afraid to plant their fields or collect firewood. EUFOR troops are doing their job in attempting to keep a lid on the violence, but they cannot do it alone, and urgently need the back up of the mission's promised police" said Roland Van Hauwermeiren, Oxfam's Country Director in Chad.

The report finds that EUFOR, which is almost fully deployed, has made many feel safer by patrolling the main roads, destroying unexploded ordnances, and by positioning battalions around camps during rebel and government fighting.  But the EU troops are a military force, not a police force, and are thus less capable of dealing with the upsurge in banditry and criminality.

While the UN must do more to protect civilians now, the report recognizes that without a comprehensive political solution to the internal crisis in Chad, there will be no hope of long-term security for the civilians who are currently at risk.  Oxfam thus calls on the international community to start working for a negotiated settlement of the crisis in Chad.

"Chad deserves more than band-aids. If the root causes of this protracted crisis are not addressed, the mission will have spent resources and risked the lives of its personnel in vain. The United Nations Security Council, must task the UN Special Representative in Chad with developing an inclusive peace process, as only with this political mandate will the mission be truly capable of protecting the people and securing Chad's future," said Van Hauwermeiren.

With the mission's mandate coming up for renewal on the 24 September, Oxfam is urging the United Nations Security Council to ensure that the mission is capable of dealing with current security crisis in eastern Chad and giving people the protection they urgently need by:

• Immediately deploying MINURCAT and speeding up training of Chadian police.
• Revising and strengthening MINURCAT's original mandate so as to deploy UN police squads to camps to plug the security gap in the short-term.
• Providing the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Chad with the mandate to support efforts towards a comprehensive, inclusive peace process that includes all actors ? the government of Chad, unarmed political opposition groups, armed groups, civil society and traditional leaders.

In camps across North Kivu women have been raped while searching for food and firewood and forced into doing humiliating tasks at gunpoint. Children, separated from their families, are recruited into armed groups.

"People have told us that they feel like they are the living dead and that their lives no longer have any value. The world needs to show them that that is not true, by redoubling their efforts to secure a ceasefire and by providing immediate additional support to the UN peacekeepers. It is clear that hundreds of thousands of people in eastern Congo are not getting the protection they desperately need," said Juliette Prodhan, head of Oxfam in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Some findings from the assessments include:

• In Kanyabayonga—which lies 30 kilometers north of the conflict's frontline—increasing numbers of armed men are creating havoc, with rape cases spiraling and stealing, looting and harassment becoming commonplace. It is reported that armed men are stealing money, food and even jerry cans of water, leaving people with nothing. Over 66 cases of rape were treated in nearby clinics last week, but the real number is likely to be much higher, as many people do not seek treatment or report their rapes due to the stigma faced by victims of this crime. When Oxfam teams last visited in May there were half a dozen cases of rape in a week.
• In the Kibati area, and further south towards Sake and Minova, forced labor and sexual violence are plaguing the communities, with residents forced to carry water and firewood for armed men. Women are routinely threatened by rape in Kibati and have been attacked when seeking food in the banana fields or collecting firewood. Women in other camps south of Goma report similar problems. In one camp, there is no plastic sheeting left on any of the residents' makeshift shelters, as all of it has been stolen by armed groups.
• Children are arriving in camps and communities alone because they became separated from family members as they fled. These children are vulnerable to forced recruitment by armed groups, and other abuses. There have been three reported cases of forced recruitment of young boys in Kibati, and in Sake and Minova many people are fleeing highland villages in the surrounding mountains because of this threat. Thirty seven children were recruited into armed groups in Rutshuru town last week, according to child protection agencies.
• In Kanyabayonga, many people are forced to keep running, with thousands heading further north to find a respite from violence. Most of the displaced in this area are from the center of the fighting in Kiwanja and Rushuru.

"There is nowhere to hide from eastern Congo's brutal violence; it follows people to places of supposed sanctuary and safety. With increased reports of rape, forced labor, and harassment by armed men in the camps and communities, it is no surprise that biggest priority amongst people is security. Many have fled for the second, third, or even fourth time. They are sick of the violence and want it to end," said Prodhan.

Oxfam is calling for immediate additional military support for the UN's peacekeeping force, MONUC, to help stop the violence, provide security, protect civilians and allow aid agencies to provide help to those that desperately need it. As Oxfam's assessments show, the peacekeepers are clearly struggling to keep the long-suffering people of Congo safe.

Redeploying troops from elsewhere in the Kivu provinces and eastern Congo is not an option as other parts of the region are also insecure and in danger of all-out conflict. To do so would leave civilians elsewhere vulnerable to attack. In Dungu in the northwest Orientale Province thousands have been forced to flee an upsurge in fighting, including 57,000 in recent attacks on 1 and 2 November.

"There appears to be no urgency in the international community's talks on the crisis, but this is a deeply urgent situation. The world is failing in its responsibility to protect Congo's innocent civilians," said Prodhan.

Deployment of extra troops must be combined with sustained diplomatic pressure to achieve a political solution and address the underlying causes of the conflict.

Oxfam is calling on the UN's special envoy Olusegun Obasanjo to unify peace efforts and find a sustainable solution to this protracted conflict.

This year, donors can snap up more than 50 unexpected gifts that do good. Make the world a greener place by planting 100 trees or giving a can of worms. Choose from life-sustaining animals: a goat, a dozen baby chicks, a pair of oxen, or a donkey. These and other essential items, such as emergency toilets, school uniforms, and water purifiers make a real difference to communities in need.

?Unwrapped?s gifts reflect the real work that Oxfam America does around the world to promote ways to make a living, provide emergency relief, and improve nutrition,? said Stephanie Kurzina, vice president of fundraising for Oxfam America. ?Whether it?s an environmental champion or a well-meaning couch potato in your life, a gift from Unwrapped is a great way to support our work in poor countries.?

Oxfam Ambassador and ?Sex in the City? star Kristin Davis has travelled to Southern and Eastern Africa with Oxfam to see programs and to hear directly from people living in poverty. She appeared last year on the ?Rachael Ray Show? with a donkey and talked about how they make women safer and more independent in war zones like Darfur.

?If you want to give a present that actually helps people, Oxfam America Unwrapped is for you,? said Kristin Davis. ?Giving through Unwrapped creates a powerful connection between you, the friend you gift, and the person at the end of the line who truly benefits.?

Here?s how it works: shoppers choose the gift and personalize a card online, their friend or loved one receives a card in the mail, and the gift helps someone in need. All gift contributions are general donations to Oxfam America and are fully tax deductible, and the online catalog makes it particularly convenient for last-minute holiday giving.

Some of the new additions to Oxfam America Unwrapped this year include:

• Pair of sheep ($90): a couple of these fleecy critters allow women to generate their own income by making local textiles.
• A farmer?s flock ($150): here?s a gift that stands out from the herd! Provide traditional herders with additional livestock, increasing income and improving nutrition. These are life-changing opportunities for a poor family.
• Rebuild a primary school ($1,500): create a safe haven for children in poor or war torn communities to go back to school, and realize their dreams of a better tomorrow.

Visit OxfamAmericaUnwrapped.com to view all 57 items available in the catalog.