GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
In this section:
Forest Service Awards Agency
Call for Tsunami Warning System
HIV/AIDS Treatment Swells
Public Research Boosts GM Crops
FDA Approves Generic AIDS Cocktail
Afghan Poppy Crops Drop
USAID Works with Guinea's Cashew Sector
New Global Branding
Forest Service Awards Agency
Washington—As part of its centennial celebration,
the U.S. Forest Service presented USAID an award for its “outstanding
contributions in international cooperation and leadership
for resource stewardship” during a January ceremony.
The award recognized the almost 50-year partnership between
the two agencies in natural resources management, conservation,
and disaster management.
Through an agreement administered by the Bureau for Economic
Growth, Agriculture, and Trade, the two agencies have worked
on projects such as park management in Africa’s Congo
Basin, computer software that calculates the costs and benefits
of reduced-impact logging in Malaysia, and fire management
in South America.
The Forest Service typically matches one dollar of Agency
spending with two to three dollars of its own resources.
Call for Tsunami Warning System
NEW YORK—The United Nations is moving ahead with
plans to set up an early warning system in the Indian Ocean
for tsunamis that is similar to one that exists in the Pacific
Rim region.
“The tragic losses in the Indian Ocean would certainly
have been reduced if a similar alert system had been in place;
if coastal populations had been aware of the dangers of tsunami
and taught what to do when faced with such a threat; and building
norms and standards had taken into account the risk of tsunami
and earthquakes,” Director General of the UN Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Koïchiro
Matsuura said.
The tsunami alert system for the Pacific, initiated by UNESCO’s
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) in 1968,
remains the world’s only regional tsunami warning system.
Headquartered in Hawaii, IOC serves 26 member states, and
has been hailed as one of the most successful international
scientific programs with the direct humanitarian aim of mitigating
the effects of tsunami, saving lives and property.
HIV/AIDS Treatment Swells
DAVOS, Switzerland—The World Health Organization
(WHO) says the number of people in developing countries receiving
antiretroviral treatment for HIV/AIDS skyrocketed in 2004
to 700,000 people, an increase of 75 percent. The WHO, which
made the announcement at the World Economic Forum’s annual
meeting in late January, credited the growing amount of international
aid and determination from governments to combat the pandemic.
Financing from the United States and the Global Fund to fight
AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria were specifically credited
for boosting treatment numbers.
“Collaboration over the past year has shown that several
initiatives can work in tandem to achieve real acceleration,”
said Dr. Richard Feachem, executive director of the Global
Fund. “The work so far has been laying the groundwork
for a much larger expansion in the months and years to come.”
While highlighting the progress, health organizations stressed
that major efforts should be continued to reach “the
goal of access to treatment for all who need it.”
Public Research Boosts GM Crops
Washington—A study published Jan. 6 by the International
Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) found that public research
efforts have already created 201 genetically modified (GM)
lines in 45 different crops
The study was a joint effort of IFPRI and 15 developing
countries in three continents. In those countries studied,
public research was helping along 201 “genetic transformation
events” in 45 different crops, among them apples, cotton,
sweet potatoes, rice, bananas, and beans.
The report concluded: “Although some commercially developed
GM products have a role to play, GM crops developed by public
research institutes should be most relevant to local needs
in poor countries. Paradoxically, because they are novel,
locally developed products pose unique challenges for institutes
seeking regulatory approval. Gaining approval can be one of
the biggest obstacles facing public GM crops in developing
nations.”
FDA Approves Generic AIDS Cocktail
Washington—The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
approved Jan. 25 its first generic triple-therapy AIDS cocktail,
a move that means cheaper drugs can now be purchased by the
United States to combat HIV/AIDS in developing countries.
The drug regimen is manufactured by Aspen Pharmacare of South
Africa.
The United States intends to treat some 2 million people
with HIV/AIDS by 2008, said Randall L. Tobias, the president’s
Global AIDS Coordinator.
Tobias’ medical advisor, Dr. Mark R. Dybul, called
the move “fantastic,” according to a published report.
“We’ve been saying for a while that we want the
lowest-cost drugs, no matter where they come from, as long
as they’re safe and effective,” he said.
Groups working in developing countries also hailed the FDA
decision, saying they too would be able to purchase more HIV/AIDS
medicines.
Afghan Poppy Crops Drop
KABUL, Afghanistan—Responding to calls for an
end to opium production by the international community and
the government of President Hamid Karzai, Afghan farmers are
slashing their cultivation of poppies, government and foreign
officials say.
A drop of 30–70 percent in this year’s crop is
expected, especially in heavy producing provinces Nangarhar
and Helmand.
Karzai recently called on Afghans to erase the shame of
opium production. U.S. and other aid donors have prepared
programs, including support for alternate livelihoods such
as wheat and vegetable production, as well as support for
eradication of crops.
Some had feared eradication before alternative income was
available might push Afghans to support the rump Taliban and
other hostile forces (see FrontLines, December 2004).
“The first priority...is self-restraint and self-eradication,
and it is happening amazingly well,” Rural Development
Minister Haneef Atmar told the Associated Press.
Farmers said they had plowed in their young poppy crop late
last year because they were told to by powerful local landowners
and security officials.
USAID Works with Guinea's Cashew Sector
A Global Development Alliance with food giant Kraft Foods and other partners,
along with two local research organizations, is helping Guinea’s
cashew sector reach the world market. The project is conducting
sector analyses and identifying potential local, regional,
and overseas markets. It is also rehabilitating cashew plantations,
supporting the planting of cashews on new plantations, providing
seeds, and helping farmers organize into associations. Some
1,600 farmer’s associations have been trained in cashew
harvest, postharvest, handling, and conditioning techniques.
USAID/Guinea has worked with the cashew sector since 2002.
Although Guinea currently produces roughly 3,000 metric tons
of raw cashews annually, unprocessed cashews are largely exported
in bulk to India, where they are processed and then sold to
western companies in North American and Europe.
New Global Branding
USAID has launched a branding campaign to ensure American
taxpayers receive full credit for foreign assistance. In addition
to an updated logo, a new brandmark with the tagline “From
the American People” is now required on all programs,
projects, activities, and public communications produced by
employees and contractors.
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