With much fanfare and well-deserved congratulation, South Sudan became the world’s newest country earlier this year on July 9th. After following through on the six year Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended a decades-long civil war between the north and south, the people of South Sudan voted to declare their independence. While the path was […]
Archives for 2011
Women Combating Climate Change
Last week I was in Durban, South Africa where I attended the Seventeenth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-17). Climate-resilient, low carbon development is sustainable development, so it’s no surprise that many of the issues addressed at COP-17 are crucially important to USAID’s development […]
FWD Campaign and MTV Announce Celebrity Auction for the Horn of Africa
Today, MTV Act, in partnership with USAID and the Ad Council, has launched the “MTV Fights Hunger Auction,” an online holiday auction that features garb from celebrities and favorite MTV stars such as the cast of the Jersey Shore. All proceeds go to a group of eight NGOs working on the ground in the Horn […]
USAID Training Brings Justice to Victim of Trafficking Attempt
While USAID’s observation of the annual 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence ended last week, stories like the one below will continue to occur – and USAID remains committed to working to end human trafficking in Nepal, Asia, and around the world. “[USAID’s training helped me] take action to protect my own daughter, who […]
For Mi Abuelita: Reflections on Child Marriage as a Form of Gender-Based Violence
Unequal gender norms limit a girl’s ability to make decisions that affect her social, economic, and physical wellbeing. As the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence ends on International Human Rights Day, I’d like to reflect on a form of gender-based violence that is often overlooked: child marriage. For more than 58 million women […]
Combating Human Trafficking
As part of USAID’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence we wanted to share with you some information on an issue that the Congressional Women’s Caucus has been working on diligently to end across the globe: human trafficking. According to Department of State estimates, roughly 800,000 people are trafficked across borders each year. If […]
Climate Change in the Context of Development
I am in Durban, South Africa at the Seventeenth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-17). These annual negotiations address issues of great importance for developed and developing countries (e.g. finance, technology transfer, adaptation, mitigation, reducing deforestation, capacity building) during the two weeks. On the […]
Taxation and Development – The Key to the End of Aid Dependency
Last week at the High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan, South Korea, I participated in one of the more interesting events of the conference: the session on “Domestic Resource Mobilization: Taxation and Development.” If you think that sounds like watching paint dry, you couldn’t be more wrong. That is because it is the […]
Supporting Disaster Risk Reduction in Africa – Periperi University
Two weeks ago I traveled to Stellenbosch University in the Western Cape region of South Africa, where I announced the next phase of a remarkably successful project called Periperi University. USAID has forged an innovative partnership with Stellenbosch University, bringing together ten universities across Africa to focus on managing and reducing the risk and impact […]
From the Field
Our weekly feature highlighting events at USAID Missions around the globe. In Tanzania, on World AIDS Day, Former President George W. Bush and his family visited sites in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The highlight of their site visits was observing an innovative HIV prevention intervention funded by USAID that takes place in Tanzanian beauty salons. Former President Bush […]
