Oxfam America http://www.oxfamamerica.org These are the search results for the query, showing results 31 to 33. OXFAMExchange Fall 2002 http://www.oxfamamerica.org/publications/fall-2002 What's in your coffee? Oxfam's coffee campaign. Plus Afghanistan, Make Trade Fair campaign, and the Hopi people's struggle for clean, safe drinking water. What's in your coffee? Oxfam's coffee campaign. Plus Oxfam in Afghanistan, Coldplay support Oxfam's Make Trade Fair campaign, southern Africa food crisis, and the Hopi people's struggle with an energy giant.

]]> No publisher mborum Afghanistan coffee indigenous people natural resources East Asia Make Trade Fair public health trade United States Central and South Asia oil, gas and mining humanitarian relief water 2009-04-30T21:05:19Z Oxfam Exchange Paris Conference Must Result in More and Smarter Aid to Afghanistan, Oxfam Says http://www.oxfamamerica.org/press/pressreleases/paris-conference-must-result-in-more-and-smarter-aid-to-afghanistan-oxfam-says WASHINGTON, DC ? Governments meeting in Paris, on Thusday June 12th, to discuss Afghanistan must give more aid and ensure it is spent more effectively if the country is to enjoy peace and stability, international aid agency Oxfam said.

Foreign aid accounts for 90 percent of public expenditure in Afghanistan, so how aid is spent has an enormous impact on the lives of almost all Afghans and will determine the success of reconstruction and development.

Matt Waldman, Afghanistan policy advisor for Oxfam International, said:

?So far, international aid to Afghanistan has not gone far enough to alleviate the poverty and suffering of the Afghan people. The amount of international aid has been wholly insufficient given the huge job of reconstruction in Afghanistan. Of the aid that has been given, too much has been driven by the priorities of the international community and its security concerns rather meeting the needs of the people and building a more effective state.

?This is a critical meeting, which will map out the direction that donors will take to rebuild Afghanistan. Too often, the country has suffered from bold promises which are soon forgotten.

?International donors meeting today must pledge more aid, but they must also make sure the money is spent better. More funds need to go through the Afghan government, whose capacity and accountability must be strengthened. Donors should agree to be open and transparent with the Afghan government on the assistance they provide and the programs they conduct. Less money should be spent on for-profit, private contracting firms and consultants. Aid needs to be more transparent and better monitored, with the emphasis being on getting help to the poorest Afghans in rural areas.?

Oxfam would like to see:

  • Donors committed to full transparency on their aid flows to Afghanistan;
  • properly established indicators of aid effectiveness;
  • the government of Afghanistan and donors undertake a full assessment of the reconstruction, development and humanitarian needs in Afghanistan;
  • better coordination among donors and between donors and the Afghan government;
  • increased and better support to agriculture and to rural developments; and
  • strenghtened capacity of the Afghan civil society to hold the Afghan government accountable.
]]> No publisher mborum Afghanistan aid reform 2009-02-08T07:43:33Z Press Release Afghanistan: Time running out to avert winter of hunger http://www.oxfamamerica.org/press/pressreleases/afghanistan-time-running-out-to-avert-winter-of-hunger Millions of Afghans face food shortages; mortality rates for women and children could rise. KABUL — With Afghanistan?s bitter winter drawing nearer, international agency Oxfam warned today that time is running out to avert a humanitarian crisis, with funding urgently needed. Up to 5 million Afghans face severe food shortages, yet the appeal for Afghanistan has a huge funding shortfall, with less than a fifth of the 404 million US dollars needed to respond, and not enough staff to organize and coordinate the massive aid effort required.

Large parts of Afghanistan are facing crisis as a result of the cumulative effect of factors including the harsh winter, high food prices, drought, and increasing and spreading insecurity.

An Oxfam assessment in one of the worst affected provinces, Daikundi, shows that people may be facing the worst conditions in over 20 years—and similar conditions can be found in other provinces. As it is almost impossible to deliver aid to rural areas during the harsh Afghan winter, concerted action is needed now to avert the crisis.

?This is a race against time, the international community needs to respond quickly before winter when conditions deteriorate. The health of one million young children and half a million women is at serious risk due to malnutrition,? said Oxfam?s Head of Policy in Kabul, Matt Waldman.

"If the response is slow or insufficient, people could be forced to sell assets or leave their homes and villages, and there could be a further deterioration of stability. Infant, child and maternal mortality rates—already some of the world?s highest—could increase even further."

Oxfam calls on donor countries urgently to provide sufficient funding for the response, especially the emergency appeal for Afghanistan launched in July, and support measures to increase the humanitarian capacity of the UN in the country. Some countries such as the US, UK, and Canada, as well as the EC, have already committed funds, but many more have not.

In a letter to International Development ministers around the world Oxfam warns that this is a crucial time to support Afghanistan?s development and also calls for long-term measures to strengthen food security and reduce vulnerability to disasters; in particular:

  • capacity-building and reform of the Afghan National Disaster Management Authority; and
  • action to enhance the effectiveness of agricultural assistance, and land and water management, including through reform of the Ministry of Agriculture.

Oxfam also believes that a range of measures are required to enhance aid effectiveness including full transparency, indicators and targets with monitoring of aid effectiveness, more effective coordination mechanisms, and greater equity in the distribution of aid.

In five provinces, including highly affected areas such as Badakhshan and Daikundi, Oxfam is assessing the impact of drought and price rises on people?s access to food and water and is planning an initial emergency response of USD 1.8 million. In Badakhshan, for example, Oxfam will assist with the rehabilitation of water supplies and provide cash to enable 17,500 people to improve their consumption of food and clean water.

Oxfam is also implementing longer-term rural programs, directly or through Afghan partners, in a total of 11 provinces. These aim to promote sustainable livelihoods including through the distribution of seeds and fertilizer, livestock, supporting grain banks and increasing people?s purchasing power through cash-for-work projects.

]]> No publisher mborum global food crisis Afghanistan food security 2009-02-08T07:42:23Z Press Release