Bezalel

Building on a legacy spanning three decades, UNFPA Country Offices in the Asia-Pacific region and their faith-based partners came together for a two-day consultation to assess the nature and impact of these partnerships in the areas of maternal health, gender equality, migration and youth welfare. This report documents the experiences and lessons learned from the varied initiatives of faith-based organizations, as well as the best practices emanating from these strategic alliances around the region. The discussions, recommendations for action and the many voices of critical faith-based actors, are all documented in this report.

'Secondary urban centres lack the scale of larger urban utilities, a feature which attracts both public and sometimes private investment (national and international); yet they are often too large to benefit from the community-based and micro-finance mechanisms that are often applied with success in rural areas. Given their scope, there are potentially significant economic development and poverty reduction impacts to be gained through sustainable access to safe water, sanitation programs, and effective drainage in these areas. Thus, financing water supply and sanitation services in Secondary urban centres demands creative thinking. This paper reviews some of the creative ideas that have emerged to address the financial constraints to Secondary urban centres water and sanitation service delivery. The paper emphasizes domestic sources of finance for both hardware and software investments. These ideas involve a range of different stakeholders, including users, informal providers, utilities, governments, NGOs, domestic banks, and donors.'

'This paper presents an analysis of Official Development Assistance (ODA) flows to the water and sanitation sector, based on data gathered from the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and Creditor Reporting Systems (CRS) databases, as well as current knowledge in the sector. As part of this analysis, ODA flows to the health and education sectors, as well as to broader topics including governance and finance, are also considered. Where possible, policy implications and specific discussion about small towns is provided, however there is a general lack of information about financing flows to small towns, due to the nature of the accounting systems used by donors (and reported to the OECD).'

'This case study is the third and final in a series of three that examines how the entry of microcredit (MC) into village and household economies in Afghanistan affects informal credit relations and livelihood outcomes, either directly or indirectly, through effects on the overall village economy. It builds on past AREU research on informal credit systems, answering questions raised within that study about: the assumptions driving the introduction of microcredit in rural Afghanistan, particularly around lack of access to credit and the existence of a large, unmet demand; the successes claimed in terms of clients served and repayment rates; and how informal and formal credit systems interlink and feed off each other as well as the corresponding effects on livelihood security and debt burdens.'

'This paper argues that mobility and migration have always been an intrinsic part of human development. Migration can be considered as a fundamental capabilities-enhancing freedom itself. However, any meaningful understanding of migration needs to simultaneously analyse agency and structure. Rather than applying dichotomous classifications such as between forced and voluntary migration, it is more appropriate to conceive of a continuum running from low to high constraints under which migration occurs, in which all migrants deal with structural constraints, although to highly varying degrees. Besides being an integral part of human development, mobility also tends to affect the same structural processes of which it is part. Simplistic positive-versus-negative debates on migration and development can be overcome by integrating agency-structure dialectics in the analysis of migration impacts. This paper argues that (i) the degree to which migrants are able to affect structural change is real but limited; (ii) the nature of change in sending and receiving is not pre-determined; and (iii) that in order to enable a more focused and rigorous debate, there is a need to better distinguish and specify different levels and dimensions at which the reciprocal relationship between human mobility and development can be analysed. A critical reading of the empirical literature leads to the conclusion that it would be naïve to think that despite their often considerable benefits for individuals and communities, migration and remittances alone can remove more structural development constraints. Despite their development potential, migrants and remittances can neither be blamed for a lack of development nor be expected to trigger take-off development in generally unattractive investment environments. By increasing selectivity and suffering among migrants, current immigration restrictions have a negative impact on migrants' wellbeing as well as the poverty and inequality reducing pot

The world's poor are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation and lack of access to clean, affordable energy services. Climate change, loss of biodiversity and depletion of natural resources are both national and global issues requiring cooperation among all countries. UNDP works to strengthen national capacity to manage the environment in a sustainable manner while ensuring adequate protection for the poor, by identifying and sharing best practices, providing policy advice and forging partnerships.

'Women are increasingly significant as national and international migrants, and it is now evident that the complex relationship between migration and human development operates in gender differentiated ways. However, because migration policy has typically been gender-blind, an explicit gender perspective is necessary. This paper attempts this, beginning with an examination of recent trends in women's migration, internationally and within nations. It then considers the implications of the socio-economic context of the sending location for women migrants. The process of migration, and how that can be gender-differentiated, is discussed with particular reference to the various types of female migration that are common: marriage migration, family migration, forced migration, migration for work. These can be further disaggregated into legal and irregular migration, all of which affect and the issues and problems of women migrants in the process of migration and in the destination country. The manifold and complex gendered effects of migration are discussed with reference to varied experiences. Women migrants' relations with the sending households and the issues relevant for returning migrants are also considered. The final section provides some recommendations for public policy for migration through a gender lens.'

'As globalization accelerates, the range of information and communication technology expands, becoming more accessible to more people, ultimately impacting the way that humans interact. The same is as true for human trafficking as it is for legal business enterprises; technology offers traffickers more creative and complex ways to commit their crimes while at the same time, presenting the global anti-trafficking community with more opportunities to respond to it.'

This booklet provides a snapshot of UNFPA's programming efforts to advance gender equality and empower women. It reports on activities undertaken in various priority areas like empowerment, reproductive health, youth and adolescent, conflict and emergency situations, etc. The report is based on contributions from the global, regional and country levels over the course of two years (2007-2008).'

'The effects of the recent financial crisis are only beginning to be felt in many developing countries, but economic activity is declining rapidly with far reaching impacts. It is estimated that the high food and fuel prices alone have increased the number of extremely poor in the world by at least 100 million. While impacts of the crises affect both urban and rural populations, the urban poor have been hit hardest in this recent food and fuel crisis, and in previous financial crises, given their heavy reliance on the cash economy, no agricultural production to fall back on, and wage reductions and employment losses at urban based industries. This has resulted in social unrest in a number of cities earlier in 2008 all over the developing world.

The Countdown 2008 Report is based primarily on data drawn from national surveys and global databases. It measures coverage of basic health services proven to reduce maternal and child mortality. It also assesses the strength of health systems, the status of policies related to maternal, newborn and child health and how equitably health services are distributed. KEY MESSAGES FROM THE 2008 REPORT *Many countries have made rapid progress in preventing childhood illness, but vital clinical care for women and children lags behind. *A functioning continuum of care can ensure no one falls through the cracks. *Investment in life-saving services during the period before pregnancy and through two years of age is critical to maternal, newborn and child survival. *Governments and partners must urgently address undernutrition. *To reduce inequalities, health services must be targeted to the poorest. *Investment and political commitment translate directly into lives saved. *If maternal, newborn, and child survival is the destination, we need reliable data to guide our action.

This resource book on women's health needs and problems in Africa. Designed for use by health workers and others who provide information and counseling to women at the community level. It addresses reproduction and sexuality, pregnancy and childbirth, adolescent health, menopause, gender issues, and social and cultural determinants of women's health.

Improving the reproductive health of young women in developing countries requires access to safe and effective methods of fertility control, but most rely on traditional rather than modern contraceptives such as condoms or oral/injectable hormonal methods. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative research to examine the limits to modern contraceptive use identified by young women in developing countries. Focusing on qualitative research allows the assessment of complex processes often missed in quantitative analyses.

This briefing introduces the contribution of the right to the highest attainable standard of health to reducing maternal mortality. This briefing indicates key contributions that the right to health can make in the context of policy making and through the human rights community's traditional techniques, such as letter writing campaigns, taking court cases and advocacy. It also indicates key actions that may be required by policy makers and the human rights community.

This document celebrates success stories from countries with high maternal, newborn and child mortality, and shows specific actions taken towards achieving Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 on maternal, newborn and child health.

The authors highlight some of the factors that constrain the effective use of research in policymaking, including the influence of powerful international actors - including major donors and multilateral organisations - on national policies, a preference for experimental research methods that assess single interventions rather than complex health systems, and conflicting attitudes within countries concerning research agendas and the capacity of local researchers. They provide a number of recommendations for action, from supporting context-specific research to promoting new research models - including a more open critique of the limitations of evidence-based research methods for investigating health systems issues such as maternal and neonatal health.

Changing Lives: Rural Water Schemes in Sri Lanka 'A film captures rural communities' feats in increasing water supply coverage, improving hygiene, and fostering greater unity.'

Water is essential to all life. And yet one in five Asians lacks access to safe drinking water and half the people living in the Asia Pacific do not have access to adequate sanitation. Conflicts over sharing of scarce water resources are increasing at an alarming rate. The Water Voices is a seven part documentary series featuring stories about people tackling the Asia Pacific's water problems. It recognizes the power of good examples and lessons learned to inspire "homegrown" solutions to water problems.

'The limited availability of freshwater in the Arabian Gulf region has, for decades, presented a significant challenge to the people and the governments of the region. Scarce rainfall, together with a high rate of evaporation and consumption, leads to deficits in the water budgets of the countries of the Arabian Gulf region. This Policy Brief covers various issues related to water, such as current water status in the Arabian Gulf countries, water and agriculture, climate change and water, and water conflicts. Finally, water policy issues in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and recent initiatives are discussed.'

'The effects of the recent financial crisis are only beginning to be felt in many developing countries, but economic activity is declining rapidly with far reaching impacts. This crisis comes at a time when most countries are still struggling with the impacts of rising food and fuel prices. Though global food and fuel prices have softened somewhat in recent months from the highs earlier in 2008, there has been much volatility and they are anticipated to remain high over the medium term. It is estimated that the high food and fuel prices alone have increased the number of extremely poor in the world by at least 100 million. While impacts of the crises affect both urban and rural populations, the urban poor have been hit hardest in this recent food and fuel crisis, and in previous financial crisis, given their heavy reliance on the cash economy, no agricultural production to fall back on, and wage reductions and employment losses at urban based industries.'