Research

Kicking Down the Door

mborum — 2009-05-27T23:05:57Z

The US, along with other rich countries and international financial institutions, is pressuring developing countries to open their markets for rice and other basic foods, while maintaining heavy subsidies and protections for its own producers. From DR-CAFTA to the WTO negations, the US pushes a double-standard on developing countries. Forcing the opening of markets for rice and other basic commodities in developing countries can have disastrous effects on poor farmers. But the US continues to forge ahead irrespective of the consequences for development.

Lessons in disaster management

ktighe — 2009-06-30T16:11:08Z

Oxfam joined with the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) of Sri Lanka to assess the disaster management policies enacted by the government of Sri Lanka after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The findings, which led to changes in some of the policies, offer insights into translating national government policies into local practices, the role of NGOs and the private sector, and the increasing importance of disaster risk reduction.

Like Machines in the Fields

mborum — 2009-06-08T16:20:28Z

"The right to a just wage, the right to work free of forced labor, the right to organize... are routinely violated when it comes to farmworkers in the United States."
—Lucas Benítez, winner of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award for 2003.

In the United States nearly two million farmworkers, mainly immigrants, toil without rights, earn sub-living wages and exist in dehumanizing conditions. In the fields of Florida, California, North Carolina and other states, one million farmers earn less than $7,500 per year. To earn $50 a day a tomato farmworker must pick nearly two tons of tomatoes. The reason? The supply-chain model of global economics has tightened profit margins. In 1990 growers received 41 percent of the retail prices of tomatoes; by 2000 they were receiving barely 25 percent. Value is passed up the chain, while workers at the bottom pay the price.

Listening to disaster-affected communities

ktighe — 2009-06-30T16:08:56Z

Oxfam and its research partners set out to improve the response to the Indian Ocean tsunami and contribute to the knowledge of the global humanitarian community. Embedded in their findings on nearly every topic was a common message: communities want a chance to guide the programs aimed at assisting them.

Meeting humanitarian needs on the Kenya border with Somalia

mborum — 2009-03-27T20:23:31Z

1.3 million Somalis are currently displaced and 3.5 million are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance, a 77 percent increase since January 2008. However the impact of the crisis inside Somalia on humanitarian needs elsewhere in the region, particularly Kenya, has received much less attention from regional governments, donors and the media. Kenya has been the host to the largest concentration of Somali refugees in the world for almost two decades. The three Dadaab camps- Ifo, Hagadera and Dagahaley- were built in Northeastern Province in 1991 to host 90,000 refugees. Long lacking adequate resources and international attention, Dadaab is currently one of the world’s oldest, largest and most congested refugee sites. The camp population has exploded along with the conflict in Somalia and now stands at close to 250,000 with over 60,000 new arrivals in 2008 alone, mostly from the conflict-affected areas of Mogadishu and Lower Juba.

Metals, mining, and sustainable development in Central America

mborum — 2009-03-11T20:42:59Z

Mining communities throughout the world know firsthand that those closest to mining development get hit the hardest. If mining is to realize any of its promise, it must be done with the full sanction and support of local communities. The mining industry must respect local communities' right to free, prior, and informed consent. Furthermore, it must integrate tightly into local economies and allow for cooperative decision-making on a continuing basis. If these circumstances do not exist, communities have grounds to reject mining projects—because the costs will likely outweigh the benefits.

Mining conflicts in Peru: Condition critical

mborum — 2009-03-23T16:33:34Z

The Peruvian government, the mining industry, international donors and civil society must act quickly to help the country break the current cycle of conflict and ensure that mining helps reduce poverty and contributes to Peru’s development.

Mirror on America

mborum — 2009-06-08T15:45:34Z

When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita exposed long-standing inequities in the US, President Bush vowed to "confront this poverty with bold action." But after three long years, many people on the Gulf Coast still lack homes and jobs.

Although the force of the storms was an act of nature, what the American people have since witnessed—an uneven and often incompetent recovery effort—is the result of deliberate human acts. 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.

Two fundamental indicators, housing and jobs, provide stark proof of the stalled recovery. Full recovery is possible only when affordable homes are coupled with secure, decent jobs. Without quality jobs and affordable housing, low- and moderate income families are unable to return to their former lives. Decent wages allow people to return home and recreate vibrant communities by providing the necessary workforce to rebuild the region.

The situation grows increasingly critical, but despite challenges, there is a way forward. We face a historic election; the next president of the US must guarantee a just, equitable, and complete recovery. America must take immediate action to ensure that people struggling to rebuild their communities get the support that their hard work and innovation demand.

Open publication

Mission incomplete

rbaker — 2009-05-29T20:46:00Z

The international community took an important step in deploying the UN and EUFOR mission to volatile and insecure eastern Chad. However, one year on, this mission is not capable of adequately protecting civilians and requires urgent reform. EUFOR has made many civilians feel safer, but as a military force is ill suited to an environment of lawlessness and banditry. A year on the policing elements of the mission are yet to be deployed. Finally, 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.

Mugged: Poverty in Your Coffee Cup

mborum — 2009-06-30T22:18:49Z

Over the past five years, the price of coffee has fallen almost 70 percent from a high in 1997, to a 30-year low, in many cases, forcing coffee farming families out of business. Small coffee farmers in developing countries sell their beans for less than they cost to produce. Meanwhile, the largest coffee corporations continue to reap enormous profits.

In this report, Oxfam calls for the major players in the coffee industry to support a Coffee Rescue Plan to overcome the current crisis and create a more stable market. The report analyzes the origins and effects of collapsed coffee prices and urges American consumers to join Oxfam in bringing relief to farmers and a change to the system.

New Day New Way

mborum — 2009-05-26T18:50:34Z

US foreign assistance—the rationale behind it, the amount we give, its orientation and organization—has changed dramatically in the last decade. These changes have challenged its efficacy but have also created new opportunities to modernize US foreign assistance.

One Year On

mborum — 2009-05-13T18:10:32Z

On May 12, 2008, the worst earthquake to hit China in 50 years destroyed lives and livelihoods in western China. Centered on Wenchuan in Sichuan Province, it also seriously affected people in the neighboring provinces of Gansu and Shaanxi.

Oxfam Hong Kong responded with relief work in the first few months following the disaster, bringing relief supplies to 125 impoverished communities and getting children back into safe, temporary schools. As of March 31, 2009, we have worked alongside 20 organizations in 3 provinces, supporting about 700,000 people as they rebuild their communities; allocation for these 37 relief and reconstruction projects total over HK$33 million.

One year on from that terrible morning, the relief phase is over. As a poverty-relief agency, Oxfam's task is not only to help lives return to normal, but to improve economic well-being and permanently reduce people's vulnerability to future natural disasters. In this task, Oxfam's priority is to assist the poorest and most marginalized survivors of the disaster: women, children, the elderly and ethnic minorities.

Out of Site

mborum — 2009-05-28T23:26:38Z

Despite new peace agreements, continued conflict among and between armed militias and government forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in the last year has seen thousands of new internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the east of the country, many of whom have poured into camps seeking shelter and safety. This is a new development in DRC. Unlike Darfur and Uganda, IDPs in DRC have usually stayed with host families, returning intermittently to their homes, rather than fleeing to refugee-like camps. Around 70 per cent of DRC's IDPs are still living with host families, but the unprecedented upsurge in the number of those heading towards camps raises difficult questions. Have humanitarian organizations done enough to help IDPs in host families, and the host families themselves? If they have not, have they in fact encouraged the drive to the camps? Most importantly, how can IDPs with host families (as well as those in camps) be adequately assisted?

Until now, these questions have been difficult to answer because of uncertainty on whether the rising number of people in camps has been caused purely by the sharp increase in IDPs as a whole, or whether changes in the response by international agencies also played a role. This report concludes that the main drivers of the increasing population in camps has been the increasing "saturation" of communities with IDPs, and the longer periods for which people are displaced. Those are not, however, the total explanation. Humanitarian agencies have increasingly directed energy and resources towards camps, while assistance to IDPs in host families and host families themselves at the household level has mostly not been provided. Once established, camps create a multiplying effect as people follow one another in search of food and basic needs such as water and health services.

This study, based on recent interviews and field research in eastern DRC, provides new evidence to support a far higher priority to be given for assistance to hosted IDPs and their host families. This is not simply because these are vulnerable groups whose needs have been traditionally under-addressed. It is also because displaced people usually prefer living with host families rather than in camps, because they are seen as more "physically, emotionally and spiritually" secure. Providing assistance mainly through camps undermines traditional coping mechanisms that can provide safer and more effective aid, and effectively limits the choices available to displaced people. The basic principle is that people should be able to go where they feel safest and assistance should be provided in ways that support livelihoods and help to keep families together.

A publication by Oxfam Great Britain for Oxfam International.

Oxfam America Testimony on US Trade Agenda

mborum — 2009-06-08T16:13:17Z

Oxfam America submitted written comments to the House Committee on Ways and Means in response to a hearing held by the Committee on the United States Trade Agenda, which took place on February 14, 2007 with U.S.T.R. Susan Schwab as the only witness. The document presents Oxfam's critique of current U.S. trade policy and suggests ways in which this policy should change. Oxfam explains that U.S. trade policy should have development as a core objective and should seek to ensure that trade rules will help reduce poverty and inequality, which it has failed to do in recent years. The document critiques the U.S. approach to the World Trade Organization's Doha Development Round negotiations and bilateral Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and makes suggestions to reorient those agreements, as well as to improve U.S. trade preference programs. Finally, Oxfam explains that a new framework of objectives and priorities is needed for Congress to grant presidential trade negotiating authority.

Oxfam Briefing Paper: Education for All ? No More Broken Promises

mborum — 2009-03-25T20:13:18Z

In April, the world’s Finance and Development Ministers promised “to provide the necessary additional domestic and external resources” to get every child into school by 2015. They "strongly endorsed" an Action Plan to "make primary education a reality for all children." At the heart of this Plan is a fast-track initiative to coordinate additional aid to developing countries that adopt policies to deliver Education for All.

Oxfam is urging development and finance ministers to fulfill those promises by:

Committing additional annual financing of $5 billion to implement the action plan; and

Agreeing a timetable to expand the fast track list beyond the initial 18 countries.