Journal articles on the topic 'Humanitarian assistance – Africa'
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1
Kalu, Kelechi A. "Political Institutions and Official Development Assistance in Africa." International Studies Review 10, no. 2 (October 15, 2009): 1–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-01002001.
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This paper analyzes the domestic and external factors that impede effective use of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It argues that while foreign aid, especially ODA to Africa has significantly increased over the years, SSA has become more dependent on foreign assistance, and economically and politically weaker relative to other less developed states in the international system. Furthermore, it argues that reversing the trend of increasing aid and declining economic productivity in Africa will require that foreign aid, except for direct humanitarian assistance in crisis situations, be completely stopped. The paper concludes with policy directions for reforming the African state, and building strong and sustainable political, economic and socio-cultural institutions for promoting effective ODA for SSA.
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Juma, Monica Kathina. "Asylum and the Politics of Humanitarian Assistance in East Africa." Proceedings of the ASIL Annual Meeting 94 (2000): 136–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0272503700055361.
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Asplet, Mike, and Megan Bradley. "The African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention)." International Legal Materials 52, no. 1 (February 2013): 397–410. http://dx.doi.org/10.5305/intelegamate.52.1.0397.
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Known as the Kampala Convention, the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa is the first regional treaty to comprehensively address the issue of internal displacement. Having entered into force with its fifteenth ratification on December 6, 2012, the Convention tackles a major humanitarian, human rights, and development issue for the African continent, as there are more than 9.7 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in sub-Saharan Africa alone. The treaty builds on the 1998 Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, integrating international human rights and humanitarian law norms as they relate to internal displacement, and incorporating principles from African regional standards such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Great Lakes Protocol. While rooted in these standards, the Convention also reflects recent developments and the evolution of best practice regarding IDP protection. In so doing, the Convention advances the normative standard on internal displacement in a number of important areas, including in terms of the prohibition on arbitrary displacement; the responsibilities of international and regional organizations; internal displacement linked to the effects of climate change; and remedies for those affected by displacement.
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Fomekong, Steve Tiwa. "Reflections on humanitarian law dimensions of the African Union Convention for the protection and assistance of internally displaced persons in Africa." African Yearbook on International Humanitarian Law 2020 (2020): 78–120. http://dx.doi.org/10.47348/ayih/2020/a4.
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While significant attention has thus far been paid to the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), the rules of humanitarian law that it sets out have not yet been the subject of a specific in-depth analysis. This contribution aims to fill this gap in the literature. It specifically examines the humanitarian law rules contained in the Kampala Convention to determine their meaning and scope, as well as their contribution to strengthening international humanitarian law (IHL). It begins by analysing the articulation of these regional humanitarian rules with the universal rules of IHL that preceded them to determine whether there is any divergence between them. Next, the paper attempts to determine the extent to which the humanitarian law provisions of the Kampala Convention enrich the legal protections provided by IHL for the improvement of the plight of internally displaced persons from armed conflict. Finally, with an approach centred around making suggestions for law reform, the paper demonstrates why and how these rules should inspire the future development of conventional and customary norms that would assist with the challenges of conflict-induced displacement.
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Godovanyuk, K. A. "ON THE PROSPECTS OF THE UK-AFRICA COOPERATION AFTER BREXIT." Вестник Удмуртского университета. Социология. Политология. Международные отношения 4, no. 2 (July 3, 2020): 179–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.35634/2587-9030-2020-4-2-179-185.
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UK’s interests in Africa are driven by economic perspectives and natural resources. This becomes more relevant in the age of global transformation of contemporary system of international relations. In 2018 British government set to become the biggest investor to Africa among G7 countries. On the eve of formal withdrawal from the EU, London hosted the first UK-Africa Investment summit confirming British commitment to strengthen economic and business cooperation with Africa in post-Brexit age. After leaving the EU, the UK is free to pursue its own international trade agenda, the authorities pledged to boost UK position in Africa in light of growing competition. The UK’s historical ties with the region is an advantage (19 out of 53 members of Commonwealth is located in Africa). The author concludes that the African countries expect that London will liberalize its internal market for African products and migration rule for African people. Of particular importance in the dialogue with the countries of the Black Continent is the rhetoric of promoting the environmental agenda and assistance in combating epidemics. Discussion remains, however, about the extent to which Britain's humanitarian programmes and international development assistance can contribute to London's strategic objectives in Africa. In light of COVID-19 pandemic London has a chance to enhance its image in Africa.
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Abraham, Garth. "“Africa, the tragedy; Africa, the challenge” NEPAD and the new humanitarian agenda." International Review of the Red Cross 85, no. 852 (December 2003): 717–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0035336100179894.
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Résumé L'action humanitaire est associée à la fourniture d'une assistance extérieure en temps de crise. Le « nouvel agenda humanitaire » fait valoir aue ce type d'action humanitaire est impropre à combattre de manière adéquate les causes profondes des crises. L'action humanitaire devrait plutôt être orientée vers le développement. Tel est le principal objectif du Nouveau Partenariat pour le développement de l'Afrique (NEPAD). De nombreux obstacles potentiels pourraient empêcher l'initiative de réaliser son objectif de régénération du continent. Celle-ci représente néanmoins quelque chose d'unique, et mérite donc l'attention – c'est une initiative d'inspiration africaine, qui tente d'imposer aux Africains la nécessité de véritablement reconnoître leurs responsabilités à l'égard de leurs concitoyens et du continent.
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Ripoll Gallardo, Alba, Frederick M. Burkle, Luca Ragazzoni, and Francesco Della Corte. "Yemen’s Unprecedented Humanitarian Crisis: Implications for International Humanitarian Law, the Geneva Convention, and the Future of Global Health Security." Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness 10, no. 5 (August 11, 2016): 701–3. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2016.50.
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AbstractThe current humanitarian crisis in Yemen is unprecedented in many ways. The Yemeni War tragedy is symptomatic of gross failures to recognize, by combatants, existing humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention that have become the new norm in unconventional armed conflicts and are increasingly replicated in Africa, Afghanistan, and other areas of the Middle East with dire consequences on aid workers and the noncombatant population. The health and humanitarian professions must take collective responsibility in calling for all belligerent parties to cease the massacre and commit to guaranteed medical assistance, humanitarian aid, and the free flow of information and respect for the humanitarian principles that protect the neutrality and impartiality of the humanitarian workforce. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2016;page 1 of 3)
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Usmanov, Yu, and O. Vergeles. "The problem of humanitarian access in armed conflicts." Uzhhorod National University Herald. Series: Law, no. 69 (April 15, 2022): 461–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.24144/2307-3322.2021.69.76.
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Humanitarian access is an essential factor in humanitarian action in situations of armed conflict since it is impossible to provide direct humanitarian assistance without it. Unfortunately, the imposition of prohibitions and barriers to humanitarian aid by the warring parties has become a trend in modern armed conflicts worldwide, particularly in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America.
The right of access to victims of armed conflict is a fundamental element of humanitarian action since it allows humanitarian aid organizations to make independent needs assessments, ensure their effectiveness and monitor the fair distribution of such aid. However, gaining and maintaining access to the population to provide humanitarian assistance is difficult for humanitarian organizations. The provision of such access may be limited by the very fact of armed conflict and the fact that humanitarian access is usually considered ad hoc, so there are often no established methods or rules for granting such access.
Although humanitarian access is not a new issue in international law, there are several challenges today in ensuring and maintaining such access in situations of armed conflict, including the understanding of the term "humanitarian access," the rights and responsibilities of participants in armed conflict, obligations, and restrictions on humanitarian organizations themselves, criteria for granting humanitarian access in various situations, etc.
This article will consider the most common problems in gaining humanitarian access during armed conflicts and suggest possible ways to solve them.
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Harnisch, Christoph. "Le CICR en Afrique: contexte et défis." International Review of the Red Cross 85, no. 852 (December 2003): 737–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0035336100179900.
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Résumé Africa is home to many armed conflicts, waged in an environment in which it is already difficult for people to live and for countries to develop. The ICRC has long been and still is widely active there. This article first outlines the general context in which many of the African conflicts take place, giving a brief account of Africa's position in world politics and the prevailing socio-economic conditions. It then goes on to describe the nature of the – mainly internal – armed conflicts that plague the continent. Although most of them seem to have abated, the relative calm remains very fragile. After indicating some of the main characteristics of armed conflict in Africa, the author also points out the effect of a revival of interest in Africa in connection with the global “war on terror”, Finally, the work of the ICRC in Africa is analysed: how is the ICRC perceived on the continent, what does it actually do? And above all, what are the obstacles to efficient humanitarian assistance and protection, and what challenges lie ahead?
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Avatkov, V. A., and Y. O. Tomilova. "THE PROSPECTS OF TURKISH RISE IN AFRICA AS A KEY PLAYER." MGIMO Review of International Relations, no. 4(31) (August 28, 2013): 227–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2013-4-31-227-233.
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In article the analysis of foreign policy of Turkey during 2002-2012 in Africa is given. The special attention is paid to use of "the soft force" as main instrument of strengthening of influence of Turkey on the African continent. Problems and prospects of formation of Turkey as the leading player in Africa are considered. The integrated approach to cooperation is effective way of consolidation of positions of Turkey in Africa. In addition, that fact has impact on strengthening of influence of Turkey in Tropical Africa that the countries of this region never were under sovereignty of Turkey, so have no joint negative historical experience. Moreover, large volumes of humanitarian assistance and lack of any pressure from Turkey allow the African countries to feel grateful to the partner, but not restrained or obliged to it. Such approach allows to create favorable climate in the bilateral and multilateral relations and to strengthen trust.
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Mindry, Deborah. "Engendering care: HIV, humanitarian assistance in Africa and the reproduction of gender stereotypes." Culture, Health & Sexuality 12, no. 5 (June 2010): 555–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13691051003768140.
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Shlihter, Alexey. "Humanitarian activities of American NGOs and charitable foundations in developing countries." Obshchestvo i ekonomika, no. 2 (2022): 105. http://dx.doi.org/10.31857/s020736760018657-1.
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The article discusses the mechanisms and directions of charitable activities of US non-profit organizations and foundations in developing countries, which determine the humanitarian direction in the framework of International Development Assistance. Currently, humanitarian problems are exacerbated due to the growing risks to human life in the context of globalization, which, while providing a wide range of self-realization opportunities available to every person, at the same time expanded the boundaries of using human potential as a “consumable” material, increased risks and devalued the status of human life. Today, humanitarian crises cover entire regions - Tropical Africa, the Near East, a number of Central American countries, where, due to the limited capabilities of the respective states, NGOs and charitable foundations operate within the framework of social, technical, educational and medical programs. Independent studies show that often the services of the non-profit sector have no analogues in the commercial sphere - they often provide assistance to the population of developing countries in hard-to-reach locations, in places engulfed by military conflicts, develop and use new approaches and communication and information technologies in their work.
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Jabea Eluke, Emmanuel. "Features of US-Cameroon Relations in the Central Africa." Історико-політичні проблеми сучасного світу, no. 43 (June 15, 2021): 22–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.31861/mhpi2021.43.22-29.
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The study is the first to examine U.S.-Cameroon relations in the context of competition of regional centers of power in Central Africa. The study aims to examine the benefits/advantages of the U.S.-Cameroon relations to Cameroon in the leadership competition in the Central African region. Following up on the latest developments in Cameroon regarding Central Africa was another method used in the study. U.S.-Cameroon relations are positive, although they have been negatively affected by concerns over human rights abuses, especially in the Anglophone Northwest and Southwest Regions. Cameroon plays an essential role in regional stability, especially in the Central African Republic's peace process and defeating piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. Cameroon is a crucial regional player in the fight against terrorism, in the Lake Chad Region in particular and in the Central African region in general. America's and Cameroon's governments collaborate and cooperate positively on many issues, including democracy and governance, environmental protection, health, humanitarian assistance, and regional security in Central Africa. US-Cameroon relations have put Cameroon at the forefront of the leadership competition in the Central African region. The U.S. considers Cameroon to be the 'natural and legitimate' leader in the Central African region.
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Stych, Marek, Beata Pawlica, and Malgorzata Kmak. "AID FOR AFRICA AS ONE OF THE ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT BY POLISH NGOs: LEGAL AND SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH." MEST Journal 10, no. 1 (January 15, 2022): 72–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.12709/mest.10.10.01.09.
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This article tackles the issue of aid for African states. Africa is one of the poorest continents, with many people living on the verge of poverty and suffering from malnutrition or famine. Hence, the humanitarian aid provided to the people of this continent is of particular importance. In Poland, such aid activities undertake entities defined in the Polish legal system as non-governmental organizations (NGOs). NGOs also conduct many other kinds of activities. The Act on public benefit and volunteer work is an example of creating legal mechanisms for the functioning of civil society in the legal system to provide international aid to those it needs. Assisting other societies is important for modern civil society the same as political or economic cooperations are. The role of NGOs operating in health protection, education, or entrepreneurship areas is crucially important. The authors of this paper discuss the issue of the said aid provided by selected Polish NGOs. The article aims to determine the extent and scope of the assistance to African countries provided by the NGOs, based on the respondents' experiences, whether such assistance is necessary, and what form it should take.
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Weiss, Thomas G., and Larry Minear. "Do International Ethics Matter? Humanitarian Politics in the Sudan." Ethics & International Affairs 5 (March 1991): 197–214. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-7093.1991.tb00238.x.
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Weiss and Minear explore the problems associated with attempting to operationalize the evolving international humanitarian norm that civilians, regardless of location, are entitled to sustenance and medical assistance. In a host of recent civil wars in Africa, the attention of the international community has been drawn to the use of food deprivation by both governments and insurgents. The use of such deprivation has traditionally been part of the arsenals of warring factions, but the widespread and active mobilization of international public opinion against such tactics is relatively new. The authors argue that, while all historical situations are in some sense unique, Sudan is not so idiosyncratic that the lessons and the precedents cannot be replicated elsewhere to protect civilians caught between warring sides in civil wars.
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Carruth, Lauren, Carlos Martinez, Lahra Smith, Katharine Donato, Carlos Piñones-Rivera, and James Quesada. "Structural vulnerability: migration and health in social context." BMJ Global Health 6, Suppl 1 (April 2021): e005109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2021-005109.
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Based on the authors’ work in Latin America and Africa, this article describes and applies the concept ‘structural vulnerability’ to the challenges of clinical care and healthcare advocacy for migrants. This concept helps consider how specific social, economic and political hierarchies and policies produce and pattern poor health in two case studies: one at the USA–Mexico border and another in Djibouti. Migrants’ and providers’ various entanglements within inequitable and sometimes violent global migration systems can produce shared structural vulnerabilities that then differentially affect health and other outcomes. In response, we argue providers require specialised training and support; professional associations, healthcare institutions, universities and humanitarian organisations should work to end the criminalisation of medical and humanitarian assistance to migrants; migrants should help lead efforts to reform medical and humanitarian interventions; and alternative care models in Global South to address the structural vulnerabilities inherent to migration and asylum should be supported.
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Tinashe Sithole. "The Political Economy of Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Insurgency and its Impact on Southern Africa’s Regional Security." Politikon: The IAPSS Journal of Political Science 52 (March 31, 2021): 4–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.22151/politikon.52.1.
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This article investigates the political economy of Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado insurgency and its implications on the regional security of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC). The conflict in Cabo Delgado has drawn attention to the SADC’s vulnerability to conflict, specifically with respect to Islamic extremism. Southern Africa has enjoyed relative peace in comparison to other regions on the continent, but studies on intrastate conflicts have indicated that conflict is likely to spill over into neighboring countries. Secondary data was used to analyze how natural resource governance practices have contributed to intrastate conflicts and how this has driven Islamic extremism and insurgent behavior in Mozambique. This study argues that the SADC must actively intervene by providing humanitarian and military assistance through training and deployment of military personnel to restore peace and security in Mozambique, and that the consequences of inaction have escalated the conflict, as illustrated by the humanitarian crisis. Unless the SADC deploys military personnel and training, there remains a risk of conflict spreading to vulnerable neighboring countries, consequently destabilizing the region.
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Sholeye, Yusuf, and Amal Madibbo. "Religious Humanitarianism and the Evolution of Sudan People’s Liberation Army (1990-2005)." Political Crossroads 24, no. 1 (September 1, 2020): 23–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.7459/pc/24.1.03.
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During the Cold War, military and economic tensions between the US and the Soviet Union shaped the process of war in conflict regions in different parts of the world. The end of the Cold War in the early 1990s reshaped the balance of power in global politics, as new actors appeared on the global scene and global foreign policy shifted to mediating and providing humanitarian assistance in conflict regions zones. Humanitarianism became the method of conflict resolution, which provided humanitarian organizations, especially the religious ones among them, with the opportunity to have more influence in the outcomes of sociopolitical events occurring in the world. These dynamics impacted conflicts in Africa, especially within Sudan. This is because that era coincided with Sudan’s Second Civil War (1983-2005) between the Sudan People Liberation Army (SPLA) and the Government of Sudan (GofS). During the Cold War, both the US and Russia intervened in the civil war in Sudan by providing military and economic assistance to different parties, but, again, in the post-Cold War era humanitarianism was used in relation to the civil war. Transnational religious organizations provided humanitarian assistance in the war-torn and drought-afflicted regions in Southern Sudan, and sought to help implement peace initiatives to end the war. The organizations included Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS), a consortium of UN agencies and NGOs1 which was created in 1989. In addition, transnational religious groups based in the United States and Canada such as the Christian Solidarity International (CSI), the Canadian Crossroads, Catholic Relief Service, Mennonite Central Committee and the Lutheran Church got involved in humanitarian relief in Sudan. The global focus on religious humanitarianism extended to Southern Sudan as the New Sudan Council of Churches (NSCC) was founded in 1989-1990 to coordinate the humanitarian assistance. Because SPLA has led the civil war on behalf of Southern Sudan and had suzerainty over territories there, the humanitarian organizations had to build relationships with the SPLA to deliver relief through Southern Sudan and negotiate peace initiatives. This article analyzes how the transnational activities of the religious humanitarian groups shaped the evolution of SPLA from 1990 to 2005, with a particular focus on the US and Canadian organizations. We will see that the organizations influenced SPLA in a manner that impacted the civil war both in positive and negative ways. The organizations were ambivalent as, on one hand, they aggravated the conflict and, on the other hand influenced the development of both Church and non-Church related peace initiatives. Their humanitarian work was intricate as the civil war itself became more complex due to political issues that involved slavery, and oil extraction in Southern Sudan by US and Canadian multinational oil companies. All the parties involved took action to help end the civil war, but they all sought to serve their own interests, which jeopardized the possibility of a lasting peace. Thus, the interpretation of that history provides ways to help solve the current armed conflict in South Sudan.
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Rye Olsen, Gorm. "European public opinion and aid to Africa: is there a link?" Journal of Modern African Studies 39, no. 4 (December 2001): 645–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022278x01003731.
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The current international debate on aid to Africa seems to assume that public opinion matters, i.e. it presupposes the existence of a ‘bottom-up’ relationship between public opinion and aid policy. This paper shows that it is rather the other way round. It is only possible to understand the relationship between decision-making on aid and public opinion as a ‘top-down’ relationship. The conclusion is supported by case studies of five European aid donors: France, the UK, Germany, Denmark and the European Union. The ‘missing link’ between opinion and policy-making is mainly to be explained by the high degree of centralisation of decision-making and the weak link between government and society in this particular policy field. On the other hand, opinion surveys show that there are strong popular sentiments in Europe in favour of ‘helping the poor’. Also, surveys indicate that European public opinion believes that emergency assistance basically is the rationale for development aid. The humanitarian attitudes in favour of ‘helping the poor’ find an outlet in the growing amount of emergency assistance going to Africa, thus leaving decision-making on development aid to the elite in a typical top-down way.
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Rogozhina, Evgeniya Mikhailovna, Natal'ya Mikhailovna Morozova, and Anna Nikolaevna Solodovnikova. "Analysis of the effectiveness of cooperation between China and the African Union within the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation during the period of the COVID-19 pandemic." Мировая политика, no. 2 (February 2021): 34–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.25136/2409-8671.2021.2.35801.
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The authors study the cooperation between China and the African Union during the period of the COVID-19 pandemic within the Forum on China-Africa cooperation, and consider the peculiarities of relations between China and the African continent. The article studies China’s regional interests before and during the pandemic. Using the analysis of China’s humanitarian work in Africa and its comparison with the assistance of the U.S., Europe, and Russia, the authors detect the obvious interest of Beijing in the cooperation with the countries of the continent, and its urge to press the U.S.’s hegemony in Africa and strengthen China’s positions in the region through cooperation within the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation bypassing other global actors. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the analysis of cooperation between Beijing and the African continent in the context of the Forum on China-Africa in the coronavirus period. In the pre-COVID epoch, China’s activities in Africa, its political, economic and imperial ambitions have been actively studied; the economic, political and military perversion of China through the Forum on China-Africa, ASEAN, the Asia-Pacific Region and China’s initiatives like “One belt and one road” have been studied thoroughly. However, the assessment of the COVID period has become possible only recently when the results of new cooperation concepts became visible. The authors formulate the following conclusions. The effectiveness of cooperation between China and Africa in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic is still high and is further deepening. The Forum on China-Africa, in which each country of the African Union is represented and has a voting right on the equal basis with other member-states, plays a significant role in cooperation strengthening. The authors believe that it is early days yet to speak about China’ supremacy over the U.S. and Europe in Africa, but Beijing is moving in this direction.
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Adeola, Romola. "The Kampala Convention and the Protection of Persons Internally Displaced by Harmful Practices in Africa." Journal of African Law 65, S1 (March 17, 2021): 101–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0021855321000073.
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AbstractArguably the least discussed root cause of internal displacement, harmful practices are a prevalent concern in many African societies. The explicit mention of harmful practices is one of the many innovations of the Kampala Convention and reinforce its forward-looking, context-specific focus on Africa. This article argues that the convention has an absolute prohibition of harmful practices. This is an important starting point from which to discuss the content of states’ obligation to set measures for preventing harmful practices. However, in the event that displacement occurs due to these practices, it is important that protection, humanitarian assistance and durable solutions are provided. This article argues that states must set measures for ensuring that non-state actors are held accountable in the event that they orchestrate harmful practices. In fostering compliance, this article argues that there is an important role for institutions beyond the state, particularly those emphasized under article 14 of the convention.
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Greenberg, Alexandra, Georgia J. Michlig, Elizabeth Larson, Ilona Varallyay, Karen Chang, Blessing Enobun, Ellen Schenk, et al. "“I Knew I Could Make a Difference”: Motivations and Barriers to Engagement in Fighting the West African Ebola Outbreak Among U.S.-Based Health Professionals." Qualitative Health Research 29, no. 4 (April 21, 2018): 522–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1049732318771306.
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The 2014 West African Ebola outbreak was unprecedented in scale and required significant international assistance. Many U.S.-based health professionals traveled to West Africa to participate in the response, whereas others considered participation, but ultimately decided against it. This study explores motivators, facilitators, and barriers to international health care worker mobilization. We conducted 24 semistructured in-depth interviews and one focus group discussion with clinical and nonclinical responders and nonresponders. Responders reported feeling duty-bound to help, confidence in their training, and prior experience in humanitarian response. Media coverage was perceived to create environments of stigma and misinformation. Supportive workplaces and clear leave of absence policies facilitated engagement, whereas unsupportive workplaces posed barriers. Although nonresponders were included in the study, the dynamics of nonresponse were less clear and warrant further exploration. Understanding how to support health professionals in responding to outbreak situations may improve mobilization in future public health crises.
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Morton Hamer, Melinda J., Paul L. Reed, Jane D. Greulich, and Charles W. Beadling. "Enhancing Global Health Security: US Africa Command’s Disaster Preparedness Program." Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness 13, no. 02 (March 7, 2018): 319–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2018.17.
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AbstractUS Africa Command’s Disaster Preparedness Program (DPP), implemented by the Center for Disaster and Humanitarian Assistance Medicine, partnered with US Government agencies and international organizations to promote stability and security on the African continent by engaging with African Partner Nations’ (PN) civil and military authorities to improve disaster management capabilities. From 2008 to 2015, DPP conducted disaster preparedness and response programming with 17 PNs. DPP held a series of engagements with each, including workshops, strategic planning, developing preparedness and response plans, tabletop exercises, and prioritizing disaster management capability gaps identified through the engagements. DPP partners collected data for each PN to further capacity building efforts. Thus far, 9 countries have completed military pandemic plans, 10 have developed national pandemic influenza plans, 9 have developed military support to civil authorities plans, and 11 have developed disaster management strategic work plans. There have been 20 national exercises conducted since 2009. DPP was cited as key in implementation of Ebola response plans in PNs, facilitated development of disaster management agencies in DPP PNs, and trained nearly 800 individuals. DPP enhanced PNs’ ability to prepare and respond to crises, fostering relationships between international agencies, and improving civil-military coordination through both national and regional capacity building. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:319–329)
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Heleta, Savo. "Securitising humanitarian assistance and post-conflict reconstruction in Africa: A critical review of South Africa's new defence policy." African Security Review 25, no. 1 (January 2, 2016): 4–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2015.1124794.
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Funk, Chris, Shraddhanand Shukla, Wassila Mamadou Thiaw, James Rowland, Andrew Hoell, Amy McNally, Gregory Husak, et al. "Recognizing the Famine Early Warning Systems Network: Over 30 Years of Drought Early Warning Science Advances and Partnerships Promoting Global Food Security." Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 100, no. 6 (June 2019): 1011–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/bams-d-17-0233.1.
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AbstractOn a planet with a population of more than 7 billion, how do we identify the millions of drought-afflicted people who face a real threat of livelihood disruption or death without humanitarian assistance? Typically, these people are poor and heavily dependent on rainfed agriculture and livestock. Most live in Africa, Central America, or Southwest Asia. When the rains fail, incomes diminish while food prices increase, cutting off the poorest (most often women and children) from access to adequate nutrition. As seen in Ethiopia in 1984 and Somalia in 2011, food shortages can lead to famine. Yet these slow-onset disasters also provide opportunities for effective intervention, as seen in Ethiopia in 2015 and Somalia in 2017. Since 1985, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) has been providing evidence-based guidance for effective humanitarian relief efforts. FEWS NET depends on a Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) to help understand, monitor, model, and predict food insecurity. Here we provide an overview of FEWS NET’s DEWS using examples from recent climate extremes. While drought monitoring and prediction provides just one part of FEWS NET’s monitoring system, it draws from many disciplines—remote sensing, climate prediction, agroclimatic monitoring, and hydrologic modeling. Here we describe FEWS NET’s multiagency multidisciplinary DEWS and Food Security Outlooks. This DEWS uses diagnostic analyses to guide predictions. Midseason droughts are monitored using multiple cutting-edge Earth-observing systems. Crop and hydrologic models can translate these observations into impacts. The resulting information feeds into FEWS NET reports, helping to save lives by motivating and targeting timely humanitarian assistance.
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Bartenev, Vladimir. "European Donors in the Arab World: Redistribution of Resources and Roles." Contemporary Europe 99, no. 6 (November 1, 2020): 76–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.15211/soveurope620207689.
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The article explores official development assistance flows from European countries to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and highlights certain specifics and the logic of redistribution of resources and roles between the largest European donors throughout the 2010s – since the Arab Spring, which transformed the political landscape of the entire region. This trend is explained by uneven dynamics of the donor activities of three states with a direct access to the Mediterranean – France, Italy and Spain ‒ and other countries. This dynamic seems to be caused by differences in domestic economic and political environment and dissimilarities in motivation and strategy which manifested themselves in allocation of resources between MENA and other regions, humanitarian and non-humanitarian assistance, various sectors, sub-regions and recipient countries. The Arab Spring made these dissimilarities even more acute and created an illusion of a conscious 'division of labour'. However, leading European powers – Germany, France and the United Kingdom – compete actively with each other as well as with non-European actors. A wide range of new and unexpected challenges such as a recent destabilization in the countries to a lesser extent affected by the Arab Spring (Algeria, Sudan, Lebanon and Iraq), escalation of tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, a devastating explosion in the Beirut port etc., notwithstanding mid- and long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, might make this competition even more dynamic.
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Tabarintseva-Romanova, K. M. "The Italian model of humanitarian diplomacy." Diplomaticheskaja sluzhba (Diplomatic Service), no. 12 (December 7, 2022): 458–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.33920/vne-01-2206-05.
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Тhe term humanitarian diplomacy is undergoing a number of changes in the political discourse of international relations. Already, various states and international organizations are investing in it with diff erent content. In this article, we will look at how Italy, the ancestor of the modern diplomatic system, puts into practice humanitarian diplomacy in the broad sense of the term. If initially the concept of "humanitarian diplomacy" meant only "providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable segments of the population during a confl ict and victims of natural or man-made disasters", today it is already a whole umbrella concept that includes a wide palette of humanitarian cooperation on an ongoing basis in such areas such as: culture, science, education, youth, tourism. Particular attention is paid to the institutionalization of humanitarian diplomacy in the process of "transformation" of the foreign policy system of the Italian Republic. In addition, the author studies the cultural and scientific component of the international activities of the state on the example of cooperation with such "vulnerable" regions as: Africa and the Mediterranean. As the analysis of plans and reports of the relevant Italian structures, namely: the Ministry of Foreign Aff airs and International Cooperation, the Italian Cooperation Agency, showed, the main areas for cooperation in the humanitarian sphere are: education, fundamental research on environmental issues, agriculture, clean water and gender policy. In fact, activities in the fi eld of humanitarian diplomacy cover most areas of a universal, comprehensive nature. It is concluded that the Italian model of humanitarian diplomacy follows the global "trends" of reforming the ministries of foreign aff airs, and also "creates" its own practices of diplomatic discourse — legal and "hybrid" diplomacy, which, unfortunately, are not currently widely used and in its essence, in the first case, it is part of a multilateral (conventional), and in the second, it is rather a characteristic than an independent form of foreign policy activity, in the extreme case, a part of public diplomacy.
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Bangura, Abdul Karim. "Who Gave More United States Foreign Aid To Sierra Leone? George W. Bush vs. Barack H. Obama." Cross-Currents: An International Peer-Reviewed Journal on Humanities & Social Sciences 5, no. 10 (October 25, 2019): 310–15. http://dx.doi.org/10.36344/ccijhss.2019.v05i10.004.
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It behooves me to begin this article by making it very clear that it is not about explaining the causes/reasons and effects/outcomes for the amounts of the economic aid (i.e. humanitarian and development assistance) and military aid (i.e. military and police assistance) provided to Sierra Leone by the George W. Bush Administration (2001-2008) and the Barack H. Obama Administration (2009-2016), as I have done for a number of previous United States administrations in earlier works (Bangura, 2001, 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2015). Instead, the objective here is to determine which of the two Presidents provided more of this aid to Sierra Leone. In essence, it is a descriptive account. And, as I describe it and its import in our book titled Peace Research for Africa: Critical Essays on Methodology, the descriptive account seeks to answer the what is question; it is therefore important in developing an accurate profile of situations, events, or persons (Bangura and McCandless, 2007:128 & 165).
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Patrick Mwai, Karanja, Kennedy Onkware, and Angela Maiyo. "Strategies Applied By Humanitarian Organizations As Interventions To Foster Refugee Children Needs At Kakuma And Kalobeyei Refugee Camps, Kenya." International Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities Invention 9, no. 07 (July 6, 2022): 7065–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.18535/ijsshi/v9i07.02.
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In Africa, 15,000 people are displaced every day. Despite the acknowledgment of special needs of unaccompanied and separated children, questions still abound on the role of existing humanitarian organizations in providing these needs. The study was underpinned by the Ecological System theory. The study was conducted in Kakuma 1 & 2 taking care of the old Kakuma camp and in Kalobeyei villages. The study employed descriptive survey research design. The study utilized both probability and non-probability sampling techniques. Data was collected through the use of questionnaires, focus group discussion and key informant interviews. Qualitative data was analysed via content and thematic analysis while Quantitative data was analysed using Social Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26 to generate descriptive statistics the findings revealed the most commonly used strategies to foster intervention for refugee children included Coordination and facilitation of relief assistance supported by 179 (62.6%) of respondents and Policy development and advocacy as supported by 143 (50%) of the respondents. The study concludes that the humanitarian organizations have applied various strategies as interventions to foster refugee children needs
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Stambach, Amy, and Tyler Hook. "Faith and Charity: Religion and Humanitarian Assistance in West Africa, edited by Marie Nathalie LeBlanc and Louis Audet Gosselin." Anthropological Forum 28, no. 3 (May 5, 2018): 303–4. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00664677.2018.1469238.
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Shimada, Go. "The Impact of Climate-Change-Related Disasters on Africa’s Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Conflicts: Can Humanitarian Aid and Food Assistance Offset the Damage?" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 1 (January 1, 2022): 467. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010467.
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This study analyzed the impact of climate-related natural disasters (droughts, floods, storms/rainstorms) on economic and social variables. As the Africa-specific empirical literature is limited, this study used panel data from 1961–2011 on Africa. The study used a panel data regression model analysis. The results showed that climate change-related natural disasters affected Africa’s economic growth, agriculture, and poverty and caused armed conflicts. Among the disasters, droughts are the main cause of negative impact, severely affecting crops such as maize and coffee and resulting in increased urban poverty and armed conflicts. In contrast, international aid has a positive effect but the impact is insignificant compared to the negative consequences of climate-related natural disasters. Cereal food assistance has a negative crowding-out effect on cereal production. International donors should review their interventions to support Africa’s adaptative capacity to disasters. Government efficiency has reduced the number of deaths, and this is an area that supports Africa’s adaptative efforts.
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Salami, Bukola, Stella Iwuagwu, Oluwakemi Amodu, Mia Tulli, Chizoma Ndikom, Hayat Gommaa, Tina Lavin, and Michael Kariwo. "The health of internally displaced children in sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review." BMJ Global Health 5, no. 8 (August 2020): e002584. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2020-002584.
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BackgroundInternally displaced children are those who have been forced to flee their homes due to severe unfavourable conditions (war, violence or disasters) but have not crossed international borders. Emerging research shows these children face multiple health challenges. However, we found no review focused solely on the health of such internally displaced children. Thus, this review sought to examine what is known about their health and their health concerns.MethodsA scoping review of the literature was conducted. A total of 10 databases were searched in January 2019, yielding 6602 articles after duplicates were eliminated. Two research assistants independently selected articles that met inclusion criteria. A numerical summary and thematic analysis were conducted to facilitate data extraction and data analysis.ResultsA total of 25 articles met the inclusion criteria, including 16 quantitative, 6 qualitative and 3 mixed methods studies. The findings reveal elevated mental health problems and infectious diseases in this population. Findings on the nutritional status of internally displaced children as a broad group are mixed, with some studies showing poorer nutritional status among the children in this group and others showing poorer nutritional health status among host society children. Internally displaced children also experience challenges with access to health services. Premigration factors (trauma) and postmigration factors (humanitarian assistance on displacement) all contribute to the health of internally displaced children.ConclusionFindings provide insight into the complex array of factors influencing the health of internally displaced children. More intervention studies are required to address the needs of this population.
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Filippov, Vasily R. "African politics in Paris during the pandemic." LOCUS people society cultures meaning 11, no. 3 (2020): 151–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.31862/2500-2988-2020-11-3-151-168.
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The article discusses the possible transformation of the geopolitical situation in the Francophone countries of Tropical Africa in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, based on the information published in the French media. And also, the analytical report, sent by experts of the Paris Center for Analysis, Forecasting and Strategy (CAPS), to the President and the French Foreign Ministry was used. The article contains a list of the main epidemiological, social, humanitarian, and political threats that will destabilize the situation on the Black Continent, as well asmade a prediction attempt of the dynamics of international relations in the post-coronavirus period. The aim of this study is to find out how the balance of forces of traditional and relatively new actors in international relations has been changed in the countries of Tropical Africa in the period of present observation. Particular attention is paid to the initiatives of the Champs Elysees, designed to preserve the traditional political, economic, and military dominance of the Fifth Republic in African countries, the territories of which were part of the French colonial empire. Emanuel Macron’s proposals regarding forgiveness of external debts and economic assistance to African countries are analyzed. It is concluded that the initiatives of the President of France cannot be implemented in political practice and are aimed only at countering the growth of anti-French mood in the Sahel. A political analysis of the situation comes to the conclusion that, as a result of the economic and political upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic, it is very likely that the interests of France will be supplanted from Tropical Africa by China and, in part, by Russia.
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Kaviani Johnson, Afrooz, and Julia Sloth-Nielsen. "Safeguarding Children in the Developing World—Beyond Intra-Organisational Policy and Self-Regulation." Social Sciences 9, no. 6 (June 8, 2020): 98. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/socsci9060098.
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Safeguarding in the context of development and humanitarian assistance has received heightened international attention since 2018. Emerging literature has not yet investigated the extent to which responses are evolving in the best interests of the child, in line with the treaty-based rights of children. This article makes a unique contribution to scholarship by applying a child rights lens to safeguarding efforts in the aid sector with a focus on the least developed countries in Africa. The article first reviews the safeguarding landscape—providing a snapshot of self-regulatory and standard setting initiatives by non-government organisations (NGOs) and bilateral government donors. Next, the article examines the relevant standards in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and respective Committee observations to enrich the safeguarding discussion. Finally, the article discusses key dilemmas and remaining challenges for safeguarding children in the developing world. The article suggests that a rights-based approach provides for a more nuanced and contextualised response, avoiding the temptation of ‘tick-box’ exercises driven by reputational management and ‘programming siloes’ imposed by humanitarian and development actors. To support sustained and consistent progress, efforts should go beyond intra-organisational policy and sectoral self-regulation. Child rights law monitoring mechanisms can be leveraged to encourage effective government oversight of NGOs in contact with children, as part of national frameworks for child protection. Donor governments should also consider and increase investment in national and local child protection systems to address risk factors to child abuse and ensure appropriate responses for any child that experiences harm.
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Oganisyan, L. D. "The European Union’s Policies Towards Iraq (2014–2020)." Moscow University Bulletin of World Politics 12, no. 1 (November 19, 2020): 87–120. http://dx.doi.org/10.48015/2076-7404-2020-12-1-87-120.
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Political instability in the Middle East and North Africa in the early 2010s, accompanied by an escalation of the terrorist threat and uncontrolled migration, caused serious concern in the European Union about the situation in the Arab world. As a consequence, the EU has noticeably increased assistance to Iraq, providing Baghdad with substantial support in the fight against the Islamic State, preventing the humanitarian crisis, stabilizing the situation and promoting post-conflict reconstruction. However, these efforts have not yet been explored in depth by the Russian experts, who traditionally focus on the EU relations with the Southern Mediterranean countries.The author aims to reveal the logic behind the evolution of the European Union’s policy towards Iraq since 2014, as well as its impact on the EU assistance programmes to this country. The paper consists of three sections: the first one outlines the evolution of the EU strategic priorities in Iraq during 2014–2019, the second covers the major assistance programmes implemented by the European Union, both bilaterally and multilaterally, in Iraq; the third examines the EU reaction to the rising tensions in Iraq at the turn of 2019–2020.The author concludes that the EU’s growing interest in Iraq in recent years stems not only from concerns about transformation of this country into a source of cross-border challenges and threats, but also from the conviction of the EU officials that Iraq might potentially become the cornerstone of a new regional security architecture. On the basis of these considerations, the EU provides a comprehensive support to Iraq, including both humanitarian aid and development assistance aimed primarily at eliminating the fundamental causes of instability and radicalization. At the same time while demonstrating its commitment to develop cooperation with both government agencies and non-governmental organizations, the EU clearly prefers to assist Iraq through international organizations, rather than directly. Although the EU’s ability to influence Baghdad remains limited, compared to that of the US and regional actors, the European Union is perceived in Iraq as a neutral player and this might facilitate the achievement of its policy objectives. However, taking into account such factors as a high level of corruption in Iraq, substantial resources for reconstruction already available for the country, as well as Brussels’ focus on Syria, the scope of the EU’s further involvement in Iraq remains unclear.
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Osuteye, Emmanuel, Braima Koroma, Joseph Mustapha Macarthy, Sulaiman Foday Kamara, and Abu Conteh. "Fighting COVID-19 in Freetown, Sierra Leone: the critical role of community organisations in a growing pandemic." Open Health 1, no. 1 (December 31, 2020): 51–63. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/openhe-2020-0005.
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AbstractAs the COVID-19 pandemic spreads in Africa, attention is increasingly shifting to the potential and ongoing impact on informal settlements, which face considerable challenges around the implementation of conventional control measures of social distancing, hand washing and self-isolation. In Freetown, Sierra Leone, residents of informal settlements have relied on local community organisations and groups, and their resourcefulness to provide essential preparedness, response and on-going support to alleviate the public health and economic risks associated with the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. This is also premised on lessons drawn from dealing with previous epidemics, notably the Ebola virus disease in 2014–2015.This paper will explain the nature and form of community organisation that can be galvanised and leveraged for COVID-19 preparedness and responses that are suited for informal settlements. Secondly, it highlights the critical contribution of community organisations in social protection measures that tackle deeply entrenched inequalities in rapidly urbanising contexts. Finally, the cases examined seek to provide evidence of the value of processes of continuous learning within community organisation that are essential for both humanitarian assistance and emergency management. Although situated in Freetown, the broad lessons drawn are relevant for urban-poor communities and informal settlements in many urban African centres.
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TRAPP, MICAH M. "Faith and Charity: Religion and Humanitarian Assistance in West Africa. Marie Nathalie LeBlanc and Louis Audet Gosselin, eds. London: Pluto, 2016. 256 pp." American Ethnologist 45, no. 1 (February 2018): 145–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/amet.12621.
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Petrovic, Jelisaveta, and Jelena Pesic. "Between integration, security and humanitarianism: Serbian citizens’ attitudes towards migrants." Stanovnistvo 55, no. 2 (2017): 25–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/stnv1702025p.
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Almost a million people from Middle East and North Africa have passed through the territory of Serbia on their way to Western Europe during 2015 and 2016. Although Serbia has predominantly been a transit country for migrants, this recent passage of a large number of people, as well as a longer retention of some migrants, opened up a number of questions on capacities for emergent acceptance but also on long term integration of this population. The paper examines the characteristics of citizens? attitudes towards the migrant population with the intention of determining which perspective - security, humanitarian or integrative - is being distinguished as a dominant one? Under the security perspective, it is understood that migrants pose a potential risk for the security of domestic population. The humanitarian perspective refers to a belief that migrants need to be provided with necessary assistance on their way to destination countries. The third, integrative perspective represents the ?most open? attitude towards migrants and implies that it is necessary to provide the opportunity for more permanent integration of the migrant population. In addition to that, the paper examines the existence of statistically significant variations in the degree of acceptance of the attitudes measuring mentioned perspectives in terms of socio-demographic and socio-cultural factors. The analysis is based on the data collected through the survey conducted in the spring of 2016 on a representative sample of Serbian citizens (without Kosovo) that numbered 998 respondents. Findings show that the humanitarian perspective is the most prevalent in the population, which is in line with the transitional character of migration. Ethnic distance is the most influential factor in shaping attitudes towards migrants. This finding indicates that attitudes toward migrants are more the result of the socio-psychological factors than the micro-structural factors or the demographic and cultural characteristics. Furthermore, this finding points to the deeper historical roots of factors shaping the examined perspectives, but also indicates the directions of potential positive action through the breaking of negative stereotypes and formulation of adequate strategies for the promotion of multicultural societies.
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Bourdeaux, Margaret Ellis, Lynn Lawry, Eugene V. Bonventre, and Frederick M. Burkle. "Involvement of the US Department of Defense in Civilian Assistance, Part I: A Quantitative Description of the Projects Funded by the Overseas Humanitarian, Disaster, and Civic Aid Program." Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness 4, no. 1 (March 2010): 66–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1935789300002445.
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ABSTRACTObjectives: To review the history and goals of the US Department of Defense's largest civilian assistance program, the Overseas Humanitarian, Disaster and Civic Aid Program and to describe the number, geographic regions, years, key words, countries, and types of projects carried out under this program since 2001.Methods: Using the program's central database, we reviewed all approved projects since 2001 and tabulated them by year, combatant command, country, and key word. We also reviewed the project descriptions of projects funded between January 1, 2006, and February 9, 2008, and examined how their activities varied by combatant command and year.Results: Of the 5395 projects in the database, 2097 were funded. Projects took place in more than 90 countries, with Southern, Pacific, and Africa Command hosting the greatest number. The most common types of projects were school, health, disaster response, and water infrastructure construction, and disaster-response training. The “global war on terror” was the key word most frequently tagged to project descriptions. Project descriptions lacked stated goals as well as implementation and coordination strategies with potential partners, and did not report outcome or impact indicators.Conclusion: The geographic reach of the program is vast and projects take place in a wide variety of public sectors. Yet their security and civilian assistance value remains unclear given the lack of stated project goals, implementation strategies, or measures of effectiveness. To facilitate transparency and policy discussion, we recommend project proposals include hypotheses as to how they will enhance US security, their relevance to the public sector they address, and outcome and impact indicators that can assess their value and effectiveness.(Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2010;4:66-73)
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Sadovskaya, Lubov M. "Non-governmental organizations in Africa: Role and place in the global political transformation." Asia and Africa Today, no. 10 (2022): 41. http://dx.doi.org/10.31857/s032150750022730-5.
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The article is devoted to the analysis of the activities of international (INGOs) and local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in African countries. The very existence and activity of these organizations are conditioned by the needs of the development of civil society, which cannot always receive adequate assistance and support from official government structures. For this reason, different political groups often turn to NGOs for help. The article analyzes the problem of relations between non-governmental organizations and the state. They do not always add up simply, without contradictions. But, as a rule, they are built on balanced cooperation based on trust. It is important for the State to involve non-governmental organizations in solving urgent social problems, especially in the humanitarian sphere: the fight against poverty, lack of water, lack of sanitation, etc. Despite the fact that many NGOs are not subordinate to Governments, they nevertheless depend on them. The paper draws attention to the fact that NGOs in many African countries work in contact with representatives of the International Monetary Fund, as well as with such UN structures as the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and other foreign donors. This also applies to international NGOs with a political orientation. To a certain extent, they influence national politics and public opinion in their host countries in order to transform political regimes, as was the case, for example, in Tunisia and Egypt. In other African countries (Senegal, Niger) these NGOs tried to support organizations of civil protest movements during the election campaigns for the presidential election. In this regard, the problem of financing NGOs is of great importance, which has a direct impact on the trajectory of their development. Nevertheless, the State’s continued control over the activities of NGOs prevents their politicization where this trend manifests itself.
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Kaler, Amy. "Faith and Charity: Religion and Humanitarian Assistance in West Africa edited by Marie Nathalie Leblanc and Louis Audet Gosselin. London: Pluto Press, 2016. Pp. 256, $99 (hbk)." Journal of Modern African Studies 57, no. 2 (June 2019): 350–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022278x19000193.
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Tuman, John P., Jonathan R. Strand, and Craig F. Emmert. "The Disbursement Pattern of Japanese Foreign Aid: A Reappraisal." Journal of East Asian Studies 9, no. 2 (August 2009): 219–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s159824080000299x.
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Three perspectives on the determinants of Japan's official development assistance (ODA) program are often represented as distinct, valid explanations of the aid program. Yet few studies have attempted to simultaneously test the hypotheses generated from all three perspectives in a global study of Japanese aid flows. This study seeks to improve the understanding of the Japanese ODA program by addressing some of the gaps in the existing literature. Providing a comprehensive analysis, the article investigates the effects of different political and economic variables on Japanese aid disbursement in eighty-six countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East from 1979 to 2002. The findings of the study make several contributions to the literature. First, the results provide strong support for the claim that humanitarian concerns, as measured by poverty and human rights conditions in recipient countries, are important determinants of aid allocation. Second, although much of the previous literature has hypothesized that Japan's aid program seeks to promote Japan's economic interests, little empirical support for this view is found in the present study. Likewise, the disbursement pattern of ODA was associated with only a limited number of US security interests; US economic interests are shown to have no effect on ODA.
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Arsenault, Kristi R., Shraddhanand Shukla, Abheera Hazra, Augusto Getirana, Amy McNally, Sujay V. Kumar, Randal D. Koster, et al. "The NASA Hydrological Forecast System for Food and Water Security Applications." Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 101, no. 7 (July 1, 2020): E1007—E1025. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/bams-d-18-0264.1.
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Abstract Many regions in Africa and the Middle East are vulnerable to drought and to water and food insecurity, motivating agency efforts such as the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) to provide early warning of drought events in the region. Each year these warnings guide life-saving assistance that reaches millions of people. A new NASA multimodel, remote sensing–based hydrological forecasting and analysis system, NHyFAS, has been developed to support such efforts by improving the FEWS NET’s current early warning capabilities. NHyFAS derives its skill from two sources: (i) accurate initial conditions, as produced by an offline land modeling system through the application and/or assimilation of various satellite data (precipitation, soil moisture, and terrestrial water storage), and (ii) meteorological forcing data during the forecast period as produced by a state-of-the-art ocean–land–atmosphere forecast system. The land modeling framework used is the Land Information System (LIS), which employs a suite of land surface models, allowing multimodel ensembles and multiple data assimilation strategies to better estimate land surface conditions. An evaluation of NHyFAS shows that its 1–5-month hindcasts successfully capture known historic drought events, and it has improved skill over benchmark-type hindcasts. The system also benefits from strong collaboration with end-user partners in Africa and the Middle East, who provide insights on strategies to formulate and communicate early warning indicators to water and food security communities. The additional lead time provided by this system will increase the speed, accuracy, and efficacy of humanitarian disaster relief, helping to save lives and livelihoods.
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Close, Kristin L., and Floor T. E. Christie-de Jong. "Lasting impact: a qualitative study of perspectives on surgery by adult recipients of free mission-based surgical care in Benin." BMJ Open 9, no. 11 (November 2019): e028235. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-028235.
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ObjectivesThis study aimed to explore how adult patients who received free mission-based elective surgery experienced surgery and its outcomes, in order to provide recommendations for improved service delivery, measurement of impact and future quality initiatives for the humanitarian organisation Mercy Ships and other mission-based surgical platforms.SettingData were collected in June 2017 in Cotonou, Benin, where the participants had previously received free mission-based elective surgery aboard the Africa Mercy, a non-governmental hospital ship.ParticipantsSixteen patients (seven male, nine female, age range 22–71, mean age 43.25) who had previously received surgical care aboard the Africa Mercy hospital ship between September 2016 and May 2017 participated in the study.MethodsUsing a qualitative design, 16 individual semistructured interviews were conducted with the assistance of two interpreters. Participants were recruited using purposive sampling from the Mercy Ships patient database. Interview data were coded and organised into themes and subthemes using thematic content analysis in an interpretivist approach.FindingsAnalysis of interview data revealed three main themes: barriers to surgery, experiences with Mercy Ships and changes in perspectives of surgery after their experiences. Key findings included barriers to local surgical provision such as cost, a noteworthy amount of fear and distrust of local surgical teams, exceptional positive experiences with the care at Mercy Ships, and impactful surgery, resulting in high levels of trust in foreign surgical teams.ConclusionsWhile foreign surgical teams are meeting an immediate need for surgical care, the potential enduring legacy is one of trusting only foreigners for surgery. Patients are a critical component to a well-functioning surgical system, and mission-based surgical providers must formulate strategies to mitigate this legacy while strengthening the local surgical system.
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Krylov, A., and A. Fedorchenko. "Middle East in the Face of Old Problems and New Challenges." World Economy and International Relations 66, no. 3 (2022): 33–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.20542/0131-2227-2022-66-3-33-43.
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The region of the Middle East and North Africa with its numerous political, socio-economic problems and multilevel conflicts together with the rest of the world faces a new crisis – the COVID 19 pandemic. In the war-affected countries and areas of the region, there are in fact no adequate health care systems, professional medical personnel capable of providing effective assistance to the population in the situation when the pandemic continues to spread. The Arab Spring uprisings and new civil wars have only worsened the situation in the region. Apart from that, nowadays we are witnessing other negative phenomena – global warming which leads to the shrinking of agricultural lands, the deterioration of the quality of food, shortage of water resources, uncontrolled fertility and massive radicalization of the marginalized groups of the Muslim population which has strengthened the ranks of supporters of violent extremism, namely, takfirism and jihadism. The article attempts to answer the following questions: what are the political and economic consequences of the pandemic for the region? How realistic is it now to transform the political systems of Arab countries and ensure their socio-economic revival? Is there now a real possibility of reincarnation of the terrorist Islamist potential in MENA? The world community should not remain indifferent to the regional problems. Compassion must be shown to the millions in need, and the financial and humanitarian assistance they require provided. We should understand that COVID 19 is ignoring borders and, if we do not combat this evil everywhere, it can easily be transferred to all continents of the world by millions of migrants, pushed out of their home failed states by hopelessness and frustration. Israel as a Middle East enclave of the developed world is analyzed separately.
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Schwartz, David A. "Being Pregnant during the Kivu Ebola Virus Outbreak in DR Congo: The rVSV-ZEBOV Vaccine and Its Accessibility by Mothers and Infants during Humanitarian Crises and in Conflict Areas." Vaccines 8, no. 1 (January 22, 2020): 38. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/vaccines8010038.
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The Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak that began in Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in July 2018 is the second largest in history. It is also the largest and most deadly of the ten Ebola outbreaks to occur in DRC, the country where Ebola was first identified during the 1976 Yambuku outbreak. The Kivu region is one of the most challenging locations in which to organize humanitarian assistance. It is an active conflict zone in which numerous armed groups are conducting violent acts, often directed against the inhabitants, healthcare and relief workers and peacekeepers. EVD has been especially problematic in pregnancy—previous outbreaks both in DRC and other countries have resulted in very high mortality rates among pregnant women and especially their infants, with maternal mortality in some outbreaks reaching over 90% and perinatal mortality 100%. The development and implementation of the Merck rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine for Ebola infection has been a tremendous public health advance in preventing EVD, being used successfully in both the West Africa Ebola epidemic and the Équateur DRC Ebola outbreak. But from the start of the Kivu outbreak, policy decisions had resulted in excluding pregnant and lactating women and their infants from receiving it during extensive ring vaccination efforts. In June 2019, this policy was reversed, 10 months after the start of the outbreak. Pregnant and lactating women are now permitted not only the rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine in the continuing Kivu outbreak but also the newly implemented Ad26.ZEBOV/MVA-BN vaccine.
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Shukla, S., A. McNally, G. Husak, and C. Funk. "A seasonal agricultural drought forecast system for food-insecure regions of East Africa." Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 18, no. 10 (October 2, 2014): 3907–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-3907-2014.
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Abstract. The increasing food and water demands of East Africa's growing population are stressing the region's inconsistent water resources and rain-fed agriculture. More accurate seasonal agricultural drought forecasts for this region can inform better water and agropastoral management decisions, support optimal allocation of the region's water resources, and mitigate socioeconomic losses incurred by droughts and floods. Here we describe the development and implementation of a seasonal agricultural drought forecast system for East Africa (EA) that provides decision support for the Famine Early Warning Systems Network's (FEWS NET) science team. We evaluate this forecast system for a region of equatorial EA (2° S–8° N, 36–46° E) for the March-April-May (MAM) growing season. This domain encompasses one of the most food-insecure, climatically variable, and socioeconomically vulnerable regions in EA, and potentially the world; this region has experienced famine as recently as 2011. To produce an "agricultural outlook", our forecast system simulates soil moisture (SM) scenarios using the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) hydrologic model forced with climate scenarios describing the upcoming season. First, we forced the VIC model with high-quality atmospheric observations to produce baseline soil moisture (SM) estimates (here after referred as SM a posteriori estimates). These compared favorably (correlation = 0.75) with the water requirement satisfaction index (WRSI), an index that the FEWS NET uses to estimate crop yields. Next, we evaluated the SM forecasts generated by this system on 5 March and 5 April of each year between 1993 and 2012 by comparing them with the corresponding SM a posteriori estimates. We found that initializing SM forecasts with start-of-season (SOS) (5 March) SM conditions resulted in useful SM forecast skill (> 0.5 correlation) at 1-month and, in some cases, 3-month lead times. Similarly, when the forecast was initialized with midseason (i.e., 5 April) SM conditions, the skill of forecasting SM estimates until the end-of-season improved (correlation > 0.5 over several grid cells). We also found these SM forecasts to be more skillful than the ones generated using the Ensemble Streamflow Prediction (ESP) method, which derives its hydrologic forecast skill solely from the knowledge of the initial hydrologic conditions. Finally, we show that, in terms of forecasting spatial patterns of SM anomalies, the skill of this agricultural drought forecast system is generally greater (> 0.8 correlation) during drought years (when standardized anomaly of MAM precipitation is below 0). This indicates that this system might be particularity useful for identifying drought events in this region and can support decision-making for mitigation or humanitarian assistance.
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Benda, Martin, Jan Sobotka, and Dalibor Coufal. "Humanitarian Assistance with Bridge Construction in the Central African Republic." Key Engineering Materials 755 (September 2017): 261–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/kem.755.261.
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The paper deals with an operation of Italian engineers in Central African Republic (CAR). The aim of the operation was to construct the temporary bridge. This operation was supported by 15th Engineering Regiment and the University of Defence. Two soldiers from the 15th Engineering Regiment were sent to CAR to help Italian engineers. During this operation REACH-BACK concept between University of Defence and 15th Engineer Regiment was used. Communication and cooperation between these units was supported by Information Portal of Engineer Corps. The portal works as a support element for REACH-BACK concept.
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Andersen, Ida, Rodolfo Rossi, Polycarp Kyaave Nyamkume, and Ives Hubloue. "Mental health and psychosocial support for the war-wounded: A retrospective cohort study from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali and Nigeria." PLOS ONE 17, no. 5 (May 24, 2022): e0268737. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0268737.
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Background For more than 150 years, war surgery has been at the heart of the humanitarian assistance offered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in conflict zones around the world. Mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) is increasingly recognized as an integral part of the medical care offered to this highly vulnerable group of patients. This study seeks to identify patient characteristics associated with high distress prior to MHPSS and predictors of improvement following it. Methods Between October 2018 and April 2020, 2,008 weapon-wounded patients received MHPSS in ICRC-supported hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali and Nigeria. The 21-item Depression and Anxiety Scale (DASS21), the Impact of Events Scale Revised (IES-R) and the ICRC functionality scale for Africa were administered before and after the MHPSS response. Logistic regression models were used to measure associations between outcome and exposure variables. Data was initially collected for monitoring purposes and analyzed retrospectively for the sake of this study. Results The main reasons for surgery were firearms (65%), other weapons (13%) and mines (5%). Linear trends were found between increasing number of days between violence and first consultation and decreased likelihood of presenting high levels of anxiety (aOR 0.75, p = 0.014), and stress (aOR 0.78, p = 0.032). Violence committed by military/armed group was associated with increased likelihood of reporting high levels of anxiety (aOR 2.47, p = 0.047). On the IES-R, high scores at baseline were more likely to be found among illiterate patients (aOR 0.08, p = 0.042) and having been wounded by firearms considerably increased the likelihood of reporting high levels of PTSD (aOR 21.34, p = 0.035). Following MHPSS, 92.28% of the patients showed a reduction in symptoms on the DASS21, 93.00% showed a reduction in symptoms on the IES-R and 83.04% showed an improvement on the ICRC Africa functioning scale. On the DASS21, factors negatively associated with improved anxiety included lack of social support (aOR 0.17, p = 0.047) and suffering from a chronic medical/physical condition (aOR 0.40, p = 0.013). Patients with reduced IES-R scores were more likely to have a high level of education (aOR 8.95, p = 0.029) and to have received MHPSS that lasted between 22 and 30 days (aOR 8.73, p = 0.008). Predictors of improved functioning included being 35–44 years of age (aOR 3.74, p = 0.004) and suffering from a severe or chronic medical condition (aOR 1.66, p = 0.044). Conclusions Clinical implications of this study include the increased involvement of family and other caregivers in the MHPSS and longer-term follow-up of patients with severe and/or chronic medical conditions. Further research is needed with regard to joint psychological and physical outcomes, the role of the patient’s education level and the personal styles and techniques used by the counsellors.
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CASIS. "Why is Canada Involved in Mali?" Journal of Intelligence, Conflict, and Warfare 2, no. 2 (November 21, 2019): 8. http://dx.doi.org/10.21810/jicw.v2i2.1064.
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On June 20th 2019, the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies (CASIS) Vancouver hosted Dr. Edward Akuffo at its roundtable meeting titled “Why is Canada involved in Mali?” Dr. Akuffo is an Assistant Professor of International Relations in the Department of Political Science at the University of the Fraser Valley. He holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Alberta, MA in International Relations from Brock University, and BA Political Science from the University of Ghana, Legon. His research is focused on Canada’s security and development policy in Africa, interregional security cooperation, human security and humanitarian law in Africa, and BRIC-Canada relations. His work has been in Global Change, Peace & Security, and African Security Review. He is also the author of the recent book, Canadian Foreign Policy in Africa: Regional Approaches to Peace, Security, and Development (Ashgate). Dr. Akuffo was a fellow of the Canadian Consortium on Human Security (CCHS).