Africa is on my mind. John has shared with me so many stories and beautiful pictures from his trip there, that I can't stop thinking of the people even though I have never met them. They are a gorgeous people, and the children are impishly cute. John said there were kids everywhere. Some villages seemed to be filled with mobs of children, and hardly any adults could be found. Perhaps this is because on average there are 8 children per adult.
It's a complex problem. A large unemployment rate leaves a lot of spare time with not much to do. The mortality rate is high, so having more children will ensure that at least some will live. Culturally it's not uncommon to have a large family. And education on contraception and family planning is only recently becoming available.
Showing posts with label ONE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ONE. Show all posts
Friday, January 28, 2011
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Day 84: Short Listed
Rotavirus is on the short-list of childhood illnesses that is being dominated by research and science. There is hope for children around the world, that they may not have to suffer from this virus for much longer and lives can be saved. It is the most common cause for diarrheal diseases in children under the age of 5, and is the cause of more than 500,000 child deaths each year.
Huge steps have been made in the last decade in securing a safe vaccination against this disease, and it has become more widely used even in the last two years. "In June 2009, the World Health Organization recommended that the rotavirus vaccination be included in all national immunization programs to provide protection against this virus...WHO announced that clinical trials of Rotarix vaccine “in high-mortality, low-socioeconomic settings of South Africa and Malawi, found that the vaccine significantly reduced severe diarrhea episodes due to rotavirus.” WHO now recommends that rotavirus vaccine be included in all national immunization programs and the incidence of rotavirus disease in the United States has declined since introduction of rotavirus vaccination for children." Wikipedia
Isla received her vaccination, and took each of them (there are 3 doses) like a champ. Slurped it down like it was candy. Other children, all over the world, are going to be given the opportunity as well. For some the journey will be to a nearby clinic, just down the street. Others may have to travel a long way to receive this medicine. But the distance is worth it. No more upset tummies, dehydration, or diarrhea. That is good news.
Living Proof | A Rotavirus Vaccine's Journey from ONE Campaign on Vimeo.
Huge steps have been made in the last decade in securing a safe vaccination against this disease, and it has become more widely used even in the last two years. "In June 2009, the World Health Organization recommended that the rotavirus vaccination be included in all national immunization programs to provide protection against this virus...WHO announced that clinical trials of Rotarix vaccine “in high-mortality, low-socioeconomic settings of South Africa and Malawi, found that the vaccine significantly reduced severe diarrhea episodes due to rotavirus.” WHO now recommends that rotavirus vaccine be included in all national immunization programs and the incidence of rotavirus disease in the United States has declined since introduction of rotavirus vaccination for children." Wikipedia
Isla received her vaccination, and took each of them (there are 3 doses) like a champ. Slurped it down like it was candy. Other children, all over the world, are going to be given the opportunity as well. For some the journey will be to a nearby clinic, just down the street. Others may have to travel a long way to receive this medicine. But the distance is worth it. No more upset tummies, dehydration, or diarrhea. That is good news.
Living Proof | A Rotavirus Vaccine's Journey from ONE Campaign on Vimeo.
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Monday, December 20, 2010
Day 68: Feed the hungry
Yesterday's post was about the generosity of a single man and his family, cooking and providing meals to those in a down-and-out position. Today I've chosen to look a little further at hunger, in a global sense, to see what is being done for the hungry around the world.
I tried to pull up some statistics, that might help in comprehending this issue a bit more in depth. A couple of questions came to mind as I was thinking about this: 1) Is there enough food to feed the world's population? 2) If there is, what is impacting it from reaching those who need it?
1) Is there enough food to feed the world's population?
"The world produces enough food to feed everyone (6.7 billion people). World agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 percent population increase. This is enough to provide everyone in the world with at least 2,720 kilocalories (kcal) per person per day (FAO 2002, p.9)." Worldhunger.org
2) If there is, what is impacting if from reaching those who need it? The answer to this question was found at the World Food Programme website. I have only listed the main causes, but clearly it is a complex problem.
- Nature - weather and climate change
- War - conflict, displacement of millions
-Poverty Trap - the poor are hungry and their hunger traps them in poverty
-Agricultural infrastructure - high transportation costs, lack of storage facilities, and unreliable water sources
-Over-exploitation of environment - poor farming practices, deforestation, over-cropping and over-grazing
Is there good news here? There is. The hungry haven't gone unnoticed. The United Nations has as one of their Millennium Development Goals to halve the number of people who are hungry by the year 2015. It is a continual challenge, especially with the recent global economic crisis, but the goal is still present. People and organizations are still working to get to food into the hands of those who are hungry. Here is a blog article, written by Martin Kabaluapa. "He works with the World Food Programme's Purchase for Progress project to help farmers in Kenya grow their own food to feed their own people. In this blog post, he explains how the project works - and why it's so successful."
As the Purchase for Progress (P4P) Coordinator in Kenya, I tour the country to see how the World Food Programme (WFP) can use its purchasing power to promote agricultural development and improve market access for small-scale farmers.
At the heart of our efforts is a straightforward concept: supporting nations to grow their own food to feed their own people. The opportunities are great. Almost 80 percent of the nearly $1 billion of food WFP buys each year comes from developing countries. In the past three years alone, we have purchased more than $500 million worth of food from East Africa, a place that is sadly better known for its droughts than its surpluses. Can you imagine if a substantial amount of this money was going into the pockets of small-scale farmers working on an acre or so of land?
On a recent trip to Mwala, an agricultural district 60 miles from Kenya's capital Nairobi, I met with farmers, both men and women, to explain how P4P works. The enthusiasm is palpable and now I need to figure out how to best support them to meet our international food standards while maintaining competitive prices.
Here in Mwala, we scout out potential collection points that would keep the food safe and dry - and believe me, the solutions often require creative thinking. A smaller, well-maintained building close to the farms would not be reachable by large trucks. The proposed solution: use smaller vehicles to collect the food. Another option is a strategically located hotel that is still in use. The proposed solution: empty the furniture for the harvest season!
Once a storage solution is found, the real business of helping farmers get to a position of selling their food to bigger and better markets begins. With government and NGO partners, we train them on everything from planting and harvesting techniques to marketing and negotiation skills. This is invaluable as it allows them to produce and store the food and represent themselves professionally when dealing with buyers." One.org/blog
There is hope, indeed, for the hungry.
I tried to pull up some statistics, that might help in comprehending this issue a bit more in depth. A couple of questions came to mind as I was thinking about this: 1) Is there enough food to feed the world's population? 2) If there is, what is impacting it from reaching those who need it?
1) Is there enough food to feed the world's population?
"The world produces enough food to feed everyone (6.7 billion people). World agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 percent population increase. This is enough to provide everyone in the world with at least 2,720 kilocalories (kcal) per person per day (FAO 2002, p.9)." Worldhunger.org
2) If there is, what is impacting if from reaching those who need it? The answer to this question was found at the World Food Programme website. I have only listed the main causes, but clearly it is a complex problem.
- Nature - weather and climate change
- War - conflict, displacement of millions
-Poverty Trap - the poor are hungry and their hunger traps them in poverty
-Agricultural infrastructure - high transportation costs, lack of storage facilities, and unreliable water sources
-Over-exploitation of environment - poor farming practices, deforestation, over-cropping and over-grazing
Is there good news here? There is. The hungry haven't gone unnoticed. The United Nations has as one of their Millennium Development Goals to halve the number of people who are hungry by the year 2015. It is a continual challenge, especially with the recent global economic crisis, but the goal is still present. People and organizations are still working to get to food into the hands of those who are hungry. Here is a blog article, written by Martin Kabaluapa. "He works with the World Food Programme's Purchase for Progress project to help farmers in Kenya grow their own food to feed their own people. In this blog post, he explains how the project works - and why it's so successful."
As the Purchase for Progress (P4P) Coordinator in Kenya, I tour the country to see how the World Food Programme (WFP) can use its purchasing power to promote agricultural development and improve market access for small-scale farmers.
At the heart of our efforts is a straightforward concept: supporting nations to grow their own food to feed their own people. The opportunities are great. Almost 80 percent of the nearly $1 billion of food WFP buys each year comes from developing countries. In the past three years alone, we have purchased more than $500 million worth of food from East Africa, a place that is sadly better known for its droughts than its surpluses. Can you imagine if a substantial amount of this money was going into the pockets of small-scale farmers working on an acre or so of land?
On a recent trip to Mwala, an agricultural district 60 miles from Kenya's capital Nairobi, I met with farmers, both men and women, to explain how P4P works. The enthusiasm is palpable and now I need to figure out how to best support them to meet our international food standards while maintaining competitive prices.
Here in Mwala, we scout out potential collection points that would keep the food safe and dry - and believe me, the solutions often require creative thinking. A smaller, well-maintained building close to the farms would not be reachable by large trucks. The proposed solution: use smaller vehicles to collect the food. Another option is a strategically located hotel that is still in use. The proposed solution: empty the furniture for the harvest season!
Once a storage solution is found, the real business of helping farmers get to a position of selling their food to bigger and better markets begins. With government and NGO partners, we train them on everything from planting and harvesting techniques to marketing and negotiation skills. This is invaluable as it allows them to produce and store the food and represent themselves professionally when dealing with buyers." One.org/blog
There is hope, indeed, for the hungry.
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Monday, October 18, 2010
Day 8: Living Proof, Part 1
Living Proof is a campaign originally started by Bill and Melinda Gates, and has recently been transferred to the ONE organization. This campaign is highlighting the progress that has been made in the fight against poverty. Tangible evidence that there has been a reduction in disease and unnecessary deaths, and in turn has been improving lives and developing prosperous societies.
This video is of the talk that Bill and Melinda Gates gave today in Britain. Start it around minute 20:45 to get to the actual talk.
Labels:
Bill Gates,
global poverty,
Living Proof,
Melinda Gates,
ONE
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