The ambassadors' message: Worldwide, it's women who often bear the brunt of the effects of climate change, including more frequent and severe floods, droughts, and hurricanes. The US must invest now in adaptation projects, like elevated flood-proof houses and drought-resistant seeds, to help women and families build their resilience to these new and heightened risks.
"It's important to talk about the cost-effective nature of investing in the world's most vulnerable populations, both for their stability and for global security," said Sisters on the Planet Ambassador the Hon. Barbara Lawton, lieutenant governor of Wisconsin. "Whether it's women and families in the US, in Sudan, or in the Arctic Circle... our destinies are linked."
Joining Lawton on the Congressional visits were Linda Adams, secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency; Elizabeth Becker, journalist and author; Rev. Dr. Miriam Burnett, president of the Resource and Promotion of Health Alliance, Inc.; Dr. Kristie Ebi, human health author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; Rachel Larson, executive director of Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility; Sharon Hanshaw, executive director of Coastal Women for Change; and Mary Wilson, president of the League of Women Voters.
Oxfam's Judith Brackley, a member of the event planning team, said the participants reflect a diverse group of more than 25 Sisters on the Planet Ambassadors, including business leaders, artists, university presidents, and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. (Read a full list of Sisters on the Planet ambassadors.)
"Though they come from different backgrounds, these are all women of influence, who can speak on behalf of women around the world—many of whom have no voice or access to seats of power," said Brackley.
As a result of the ambassadors' visits, 10 members of Congress agreed to sponsor an upcoming bipartisan Congressional resolution on women and climate change. Others pledged to support international adaptation funding in future US climate legislation.
The ambassadors particularly targeted their efforts to women leaders. Representative Anna Eshoo, Democrat of California, joined them for a question and answer session over dinner, while Representative Doris O. Matsui, Democrat of California, signed on as the newest Sisters on the Planet Ambassador.
Brackley said the ambassadors will play an ongoing role as spokeswomen for Oxfam's climate change campaign. Many came away from the event with new connections to one another and new ideas for spreading the word among constituents.
Burnett, a physician and minister, talked about Sisters on the Planet the following Sunday morning—International Women's Day—on her satellite radio talk show targeting the African-American community.
"When I look at climate change and poverty—all the things Sisters on the Planet talks about—I've seen that in the work I've been doing here in the US. When I see the droughts that are occurring where they use trickle irrigation, and I turn around and look at drought in farmland in middle Georgia, I see common ground," Burnett said.
Join the effort: Take the Sisters on the Planet pledge.
]]>"President Obama has said that promoting development is an essential part of the strategy for Afghanistan. But our development tools need major reform if we want them to deliver results," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America.
"Our foreign aid must focus on poverty reduction and empowering Afghans to lead their own development, which is the surest way of meeting Afghan needs," said Offenheiser. "The Obama Administration has an important opportunity to enhance the effectiveness of US aid to Afghanistan—and other countries—by creating a US national strategy to support global development.
"The strategy must have clear objectives for all US foreign aid: focus on fighting poverty, streamline and coordinate all sources of US funding, and give recipients the lead in determining the needs of their communities."
The Oxfam report, Smart Development In Practice—Field Report from Afghanistan, is based on a series of interviews in Kabul with individuals involved in the delivery of US aid, including employees of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), other foreign donor contractors, consulting companies, Afghan and international nongovernmental organizations, as well as Afghan government officials.
According to interviewees, there has been limited success in part because the US uses foreign aid to achieve short-term or security objectives. The report also identifies insufficient US support for long-term capacity building and an excessive volume of funds absorbed by private contractors. Agriculture and rural trade sectors, which are critical to the daily lives of Afghans, have not received the focus and resources they require.
However, the report also highlights success stories, where development initiatives have had clear development objectives and a high level of local ownership. One example is the Afghanistan community midwifery program, started in 2002 by the government of Afghanistan, which USAID is funding.
The program, trains women as midwives to improve chances of both mother and child surviving childbirth, and has begun to reduce some of world's highest maternal and neonatal mortality rates. With the help of the program, the number of facilities with skilled female health workers increased from 39 percent in 2004 to 76 percent in 2006.
The real success of the program can be seen in the active participation of individuals and communities: there were huge number of female volunteers for the program, often supported by their fathers and husbands; and women who are trained by this program can go on to earn good salaries in health clinics around the country.
"Programs like this show how critical local ownership and engagement are to the success of foreign aid projects. If we work closely with Afghans, and ultimately give them more control over their own development initiatives, we dramatically improve the chances of achieving positive change," said Offenheiser.
]]>"The number of people on this planet who suffer from chronic hunger has climbed to almost one billion—one in every six—and it's likely to get worse because of the global economic crisis and climate change," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. "Congress should urgently pass this bill to not only address the ongoing humanitarian crisis, but also lay out long term responses that will reduce the vulnerability of poor people to the kinds of food price shocks we've seen in the last year."
The US approach to food security abroad has been uncoordinated across US agencies. The Global Food Security Act is the first attempt to provide a more comprehensive strategy for the US to address food insecurity abroad, make emergency responses more effective and build long-term food security by investing in agriculture. The legislation improves our emergency response to food crises and provides funding to assist poor countries promote food security and stimulate their rural economies.
"The spotlight may currently be on the financial crisis, but the food crisis is still very real and needs an urgent and coordinated response," said Offenheiser. "Once the world recovers from the global recession, commodity prices will skyrocket again, increasing the ranks of those who go hungry on a daily basis. This legislation begins the process of forging an effective strategy for fighting hunger and poverty."
Food prices on international markets rose dramatically last year and have eased in recent few months, but prices in most developing countries have remained high or continue to increase. For example, five million people are acutely affected by rising food prices in Afghanistan. The cost of cereal in Ethiopia remains drastically higher than at this time last year, and in Zimbabwe, five million people, almost half the country's population, are dependent on food aid.
The Lugar-Casey Global Food Security Act would create a new food security emergency fund for rapid response during crises. The bill also delivers on new investments and partnerships in research and development in agriculture. Perhaps most important, the bill begins to address the lack of clear mission, strategy and coordination among US agencies that has hampered our efforts of fighting poverty and hunger.
"With billions injected into the financial sector over the past few months, the donor community is drawing on empty pockets, but we must see investing in agriculture as part of the long-term solution to food, financial and climate crises," said Offenheiser. "Congress should urgently pass this bill to help us prepare to deal with another major spike in food prices, as well investing in long-term efforts to fight poverty."
]]>"Oxfam welcomes the G20 Finance Ministers' commitment to help emerging and developing economies cope with this crisis, which was not of their making. But we are disappointed that the G20 finance ministers did not commit to an immediate rescue package for low-income countries of at least $24bn. Poor people need help now.
"A significant share of the new resources for the World Bank and the IMF must be reserved for the world's poorest countries and funding must come without harmful conditions.
"As we speak, some rich G20 countries have cut their development aid budgets, it is vitally important that leaders of rich countries get back on-track with their aid commitments at the April Summit."
"The recognition that emerging and developing economies, including the poorest, should have greater voice and representation within international financial institutions is both welcome and long overdue—as is the decision that the Head of the World Bank and the IMF should be appointed on merit.
"Now G20 leaders must guarantee equality between developed and emerging and developing countries within these institutions at the April Summit. It is time these institutions were made fit for purpose for the 21st century."
"Finance ministers have failed to agree the coordinated global action that is needed to solve the problem of tax havens. Tax havens currently cost poor countries up to $120 billion a year in lost tax on individuals' incomes and many billions more as a result of tax evasion by companies. This money could and should be used to help people out of poverty.
"If world leaders are serious about cracking down on tax havens they must commit to a multilateral agreement which all countries can sign on to and insist on automatic exchange of information between tax authorities. These steps are vital to enable developing countries to collect the money they are due."
"The commitment to fight all forms of protectionism is welcome. But it is vital that trade is regulated in a way that allows it to be used to help poor countries develop as promised at the World Trade Organization in 2001."
]]>On this day, it seemed highly symbolic: a clean sweep. It was a day which many Zimbabweans were praying would bring them change, after months of political deadlock, an ever-worsening economy, and a humanitarian crisis as the country battled its worst-ever cholera epidemic and serious food shortages.
It was the day Morgan Tsvangirai, the country's main opposition leader, was to take office as the country's prime minister in a new unity government.
Tsvangirai won the first round of last year's presidential elections by a small margin. But he withdrew from the run-off, citing violence against his supporters. In September, though, he agreed to a power-sharing arrangement with Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe. However the deal had been stalled for months amid political disagreements.
While there are skeptics who say the new political arrangement is a sell-out and unlikely to achieve much, many Zimbabweans beg to differ. They view the new political arrangement with optimistic caution. Many told me things couldn't get any worse, and that the formation of a new unity government gave them cause to hope again. They believed it could mark the start of change in their country, which has seen thousands killed from cholera—a curable and preventable disease—and where up to seven million people, more than half the population, are dependent on food aid.
Later in the day, after being officially sworn into office, Zimbabwe's new prime minister addressed thousands of supporters at a packed showground in Harare.
Some attending told me they'd sold household goods—a TV set; an iron; some clothing—to get enough petrol to come to Harare to listen to Tsvangirai address the crowd as the country's new prime minister.
He promised to end political violence and Zimbabwe's culture of impunity; to work for a society where people were no longer living in fear of reprisals or repression for their views. He said Zimbabwe would not be a pseudo democracy, but a functioning democracy, where the rule of law could be re-established.
A second top priority of the new government, he said, was to tackle the humanitarian crisis, to stem the cholera epidemic which has gripped the country, and to ensure that those who needed food got help—regardless of their political or tribal affiliations.
He also promised to appoint a senior cabinet member to coordinate humanitarian efforts; to remove tax duties for humanitarian food aid, and to organize a food summit to try to ensure that in the future, Zimbabweans would not go hungry again.
And he vowed to stabilize the country's economy—characterized by crippling hyperinflation; to get children back to school, hospitals to reopen, and civil servants to return to work.
All music to the ears of the crowd and—possibly good news for international governments that have said they will carefully monitor change in Zimbabwe before making serious commitments of financial help.
The crowds in the stadium cheered, danced and waved flags. Even a reporter from a government-controlled newspaper seemed happy.
"We used to be dead," he said. "Now we are alive. This is the start of change."
]]>"We hope the government of national unity can prioritize the humanitarian crisis and mobilize all the resources it can to make swift recovery possible while working to bring broader stability to the country," said Oxfam's country director in Zimbabwe, Peter Mutoredzanwa.
Oxfam also urges the new government to create the space for the active engagement of civil society in partnership to rebuild Zimbabwe. Civil society has a critical role to play in the current humanitarian crisis and the longer-term development of the country. Oxfam also asks the new government to ensure that beyond access to basic needs, people's rights to freedom of expression, movement and security are respected and protected.
"We're calling on the new government to remove all constraints and enable our staff and staff of other civil society organizations to be able to carry out their work on the ground freely and effectively" Mutoredzanwa said.
As a direct result of the deteriorating socio-economic conditions in the country, Zimbabwe is currently struggling to control the worst- ever outbreak of cholera in its history, fuelled by the collapse of the country's public health and water systems. The cholera epidemic has claimed more than 3,000 lives, and infected more than 69,000 people. In addition, nearly seven million people, more than half the population, are relying on food hand-outs because of serious food shortages. Seriously weakened, they are more vulnerable and therefore unable to fight cholera.
Hyperinflation and the dollarization of the economy has meant millions have been unable to access basic food staples, increasing the number of people needing food aid in both urban and rural areas.
This year's harvest is predicted to be even worse than last year's and food shortages could continue into 2010. As well as dealing with immediate needs, Oxfam believes the new unity government and donors must examine ways of providing longer-term help, including inputs for farmers to prevent future food emergencies and food insecurity; and ensuring communities have access to clean water.
Oxfam calls for specific attention to be paid to the impact of this tragedy on women and girls—who bear the brunt of the HIV epidemic—are most affected by the deterioration of basic services and the lack of farm inputs.
While several governments have said they will only restore substantial aid to Zimbabwe when there is concrete evidence of political and economic reform, Oxfam urges donors to explore innovative ways to channel emergency resources to people who urgently need help and for existing pledges of aid to be translated into funds on the ground.
Oxfam supports calls for the creation of transparent mechanisms with clear benchmarks, supported by regional bodies like the African Union (AU) and Southern African Development Community (SADC), to monitor the implementation of the power-sharing agreement and policies of the new government. One key benchmark will be an open environment where civil society organizations can freely engage in a wider dialogue with the government as part of longer-term efforts to seek a resolution of Zimbabwe's problems.
]]>"We are heartened that Senator Boxer's moved swiftly in the 111th Congress to prioritize climate legislation and has started the discussion on the right foot with an assertive set of principles.
"Senator Boxer's principles move the debate in the right direction by acknowledging the importance of science in dictating the necessary emission cuts to avoid climate chaos, and recognizing the importance of the US engagement in the ongoing international negotiations for a post-2012 agreement.
"We are particularly encouraged by Senator Boxer's emphasis on the importance of using revenues from a carbon market to help poor communities around the world cope with the present and future unavoidable impacts of global warming.
"Around the world, millions of people are facing the fact that the impacts of climate change are here to stay—and will intensify no matter how quickly we cut emissions. The poorest, most vulnerable people are being affected directly—first and worst—despite being least responsible for climate global warming.
"There's no time to waste so we urge all members of the Environment & Public Works Committee to build on these principles and deliver strong climate legislation that not only tackles curbing emissions fairly, but also helps poor communities—here and abroad—prepare for and adapt to adverse climate impacts."
]]>Up to five million Afghans are struggling to meet their immediate needs, and the health of over a million young children and half a million women are at serious risk due to malnutrition, yet the United Nations emergency appeal to feed Afghans is only half-funded.
Raymond C. Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America said: "With spreading insecurity, and civilians facing critical needs, the United States must take a leading role in protecting civilians and forging a new international approach to Afghanistan."
In a memo sent to President Obama, in addition to humanitarian needs, Oxfam America raised concerns that events have reached a critical juncture in Afghanistan and that conditions could deteriorate further unless the United States takes a lead in addressing failures in governance, aid and reconstruction, and protecting civilians. In the memo, Oxfam America outlined ten essential steps to change the course in Afghanistan.
In 2008, security conditions reached their worst levels since the intervention in 2001. Civilian casualties caused by all side have continued to increase, with over 2,000 civilian deaths over the past year, including nearly 800 from operations by international and Afghan government forces. Half of the country cannot be accessed by the United Nations and attacks on aid workers continue to increase, hampering the delivery of development and humanitarian assistance.
Matt Waldman, Oxfam International's head of policy in Afghanistan, said: "The only way address the worsening conditions for civilians and stem the tide of violence, is a concerted international effort, which prioritizes the safety and livelihoods of Afghan communities."
Oxfam America's memo to President Obama outlines a plan for a better humanitarian response to the crisis, major improvements in aid effectiveness, increased support for agriculture and the rural economy, action on peace-building, regional cooperation, governance reform, and new measures to protect civilians.
View Oxfam America's memo to President Obama: Ten Point Plan to Change Course in Afghanistan.
]]>"We are heartened that President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton have moved so quickly and assertively to put in place a point person within the administration to lead the way in international climate negotiations. The appointment of the highly experienced Todd Stern demonstrates the seriousness with which the administration takes the climate challenge.
"In the face of a growing climate crisis, we have no time to waste in engaging in climate negotiations at the United Nations and reaching an urgently needed global deal this year.
"As Special Envoy Stern noted, the US can demonstrate leadership in the negotiations by significantly reducing emissions, while also working with developing countries to help them adapt to the serious climate impacts they face today and to pursue low-carbon energy pathways.
"We look forward to working with the Special Envoy to demonstrate this new American leadership, and working with the entire international community, including the most vulnerable countries affected by global warming."
]]>Oxfam America congratulates you on your inauguration as the 44th president of the United States. This historic moment provides an occasion to reestablish the role of the US as a global leader in fighting poverty and social injustice. And we believe you will make the most of this opportunity.
We ask that you take decisive and early action to shape how we engage in the international community. At a time when the US economy is in trouble and Americans are understandably concerned about their own economic well-being, we must not forget the needs of vulnerable populations around the world. If the US leads in the fight against global poverty, we can create positive long-term change that will result in a more just, prosperous, and secure world for all.
As your administration moves forward, you face an excellent opportunity to restructure US Foreign Assistance. Our current aid system is broken, which undermines American leadership and standing in the world. We ask that you work with foreign policy leaders in Congress to fix US foreign aid—a move that will fight poverty more effectively with no additional cost to taxpayers.
We encourage you to take bold action on climate change. The world?s poorest people—who are least responsible for climate change—are often the hardest hit by its consequences. Climate change is likely to increase economic and social instability, migration and refugee crises, and conflict over natural resources, and is quickly becoming a major driver of poverty and instability around the world. It is essential that your administration re-engage in international negotiations for a post-2012 agreement that includes significant cuts in emissions and additional funds to assist developing countries adapt to climate change. World leaders cannot create the next international climate agreement without US leadership. We also urge you to help bring about strong US legislation that not only dramatically cuts US emissions, but also provides significant assistance to poor and vulnerable communities.
Internationally, numerous conflicts continue to ravage civilian populations. We ask that you serve as a leader in prioritizing the protection of civilians in foreign assistance programs and cooperating with allies to remove obstacles to peace and stability. Yours is a unique opportunity: to build a 21st-century State Department by doubling the number of core diplomatic personnel and moving more personnel to potential and ongoing conflict zones. We know that we can rely on you to work closely with Secretary of State Clinton to achieve this vision.
In the US, we encourage you to turn your attention to the failed recovery of the Gulf Coast following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The inadequate US response to the desperate calls of her own citizens must not continue. Your administration can restore faith in government by helping to provide quality jobs and affordable housing for the low- and moderate-income families still unable to return to their former lives.
We look forward to working with you and members of your administration. We firmly believe that your leadership can help to improve the plight of millions of people who suffer from hunger, injustice, and violence around the world.
Sincerely,
Raymond C. Offenheiser
President, Oxfam America
2008 was an especially grim year in Zimbabwe—and prospects for the coming year seem little better. The fact that Zimbabweans were celebrating the new year at all might seem surprising. But many people, or at least those with some money living in the cities, were in the mood to party, if only for a night and to forget their worries.
Zimbabwe is gripped by economic collapse. Hyperinflation, the worst in the world, has seen prices skyrocketing, making it hard for many to access food and fuel. Last month, the country's central bank introduced a 10 billion Zimbabwean dollar banknote, but its actual worth, about $10 US dollars on the black market, is rapidly decreasing day by day. Most shops now only accept foreign currency not Zimbabwean notes.
On top of the economic meltdown, which has seen doctors, teachers, and most government staffers staying away from work because their pay in local Zimbabwean dollars won't even cover their crippling transport costs, there is a serious and worsening humanitarian crisis.
A cholera outbreak in August has now affected more than 30,000 people, and claimed the lives of more than 1,600 people, with cases now being reported across every province in the country.
Cholera is an easily preventable and treatable waterborne disease. But its spread in Zimbabwe is being fuelled by the collapse of health, sanitation, and water services. There are limited medical supplies and many don't have access to clean drinking water or proper sanitation. The onset of heavy rains this month is worsening an already alarming situation.
A second humanitarian crisis, still under-reported, is the worsening malnutrition and food shortages. There have been several years of failed harvests; a serious shortage of seeds and fertilizers; and driving hunger is forcing many to eat seeds instead of planting them for next year's crops.
The UN has warned that around five million people, more than half of the population, will soon rely on food aid.
The country is also facing political deadlock. Efforts to form a power-sharing government between the ZANU-PF party of President Robert Mugabe, who has been in power since 1980, and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, have stalled.
I got a somber insight into many of the problems the country was facing as I visited Kadoma city in central Zimbabwe, about 112 miles west of the capital, Harare.
Oxfam has been working in the area, drilling wells so that communities can access safe drinking water, distributing hygiene kits, and undertaking health promotion work.
The health authorities have reported nearly a thousand cholera cases since mid November, with 29 deaths. Unofficial statistics put the figure even higher.
Two people had died that day; and I was shown a tent containing the wrapped corpses of seven bodies, several of which had lain there for several days and were swelling. Fuel shortages and rocketing prices meant that there were no vehicles available to take the bodies to the local cemetery.
"Things aren't stabilizing," said one nurse. "They're getting worse. We're seeing more patients every day."
With early access to treatment—intravenous fluids and oral rehydration—patients can recover quickly and be discharged within days.
But a visit to a nearby housing estate—described as a cholera "time bomb" by a senior health official—made clear why the epidemic is sweeping across the country.
The sewage system had broken down, and residents were disposing of human and other waste in the narrow lanes around their homes.
Those images haunted me as I sat in the jazz bar that night. Zimbabweans might have little to celebrate, other than surviving another difficult year; but they are still pinning their hopes that the coming year might bring some change for the better.
]]>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.
]]>The delegation of US representatives and their staff, led by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, visited Ghana as part of a three-country African tour. On March 28, they met with a number of groups in the capital city of Accra, including Oxfam America partners the Center for Public Interest Law and WACAM.
The subject of the meeting: Why does gold mining, Ghana's largest industry, make big profits for companies and the government, but bring few benefits for the poor communities where the mining actually takes place.
Daniel Owusu-Koranteng, executive director of WACAM, told the representatives that some farmers have not been not fairly compensated when mining companies purchased their land. "Companies will pay a farmer 9 Ghana cedis, about $8, for a cocoa tree, when the cocoa tree can earn a cocoa farmer about $20 per year for an economic life of 40 to 50 years."
He said gold mining has been a cause of environmental harm in Ghana, citing the US-based Newmont Mining Corporation's plans to build a gold mine in the Ajenua Bepo nature reserve—despite a petition from over 200 farmers asking them to preserve the country's rapidly dwindling forests.
The coalition also talked about the lack of transparency on the part of mining companies and governments. When contracts and payments are kept secret, corruption and mismanagement can spread, making it harder for poor communities to get their share of mining revenues. While the government of Ghana must create more transparent policies around mining, the US also needs to make a concrete commitment to help, Owusu-Koranteng said.
A new piece of US legislation could help communities by requiring mining companies to be more transparent about their practices. On May 12, Representative Frank and other members of the House Financial Services Committee will introduce the "Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act" in the House of Representatives. The bill will require oil, gas, and mining companies registered in the US to disclose the amount and type of the payments they make in the countries where they operate.
"Now that they've met our partners, and heard how mining affects people's lives, the Congressional Delegation knows that oil, gas, and mining companies must respect the rights of the communities where they operate—in Ghana and elsewhere," says Keith Slack, director of Oxfam's Right to Know, Right to Decide campaign. "We must urge other members of Congress to follow suit and pass this crucial legislation."
]]>