GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT UPDATE
ISSUE #30
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Global Development Update is a monthly bulletin that informs readers about the events, ideas, and people that are shaping an emerging world community. It is produced by The Global Citizens' Initiative- a non-profit working to help develop a sustainable world community for all. Click below to sign up for a free Global Development Update subscription.
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Photos: Black Lives Matter Movement Spreads Worldwide
Across the world, from Australia to the UK to Asia, people are standing (and kneeling) with George Floyd and the Black Matters Movement. Protestors are hitting the streets against police brutality and systemic racism. In Mexico, protesters demanded justice for Giovanni Lopez, who was allegedly beaten to death in police custody. In Tokyo, people protested the perceived mistreatment of a Kurdish man shoved to the ground by police. The death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a black woman, sparked protests in Canada.
Read on
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Global Support for Black Lives Matter
People around the world are saying George Floyd’s name. People in Paris, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Lausanne, Budapest, Birmingham, and many other cities are standing in solidarity. People are calling for an end to racial injustice and abuse of power by police. People are gathering despite “stormy weather—and in defiance, nearly everywhere, of strict social-distancing rules." Belgians started a petition calling for the country to take down statues of former King Leopold II, who is blamed for the genocide of millions in the former Belgian Colony in the late 19
th
century. In Bristol, England, protesters knocked down the statue of former slave trader Edward Colston and threw it into the River Avon.
Read on.
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The Global Pandemic’s Negative Impact on Women
COVID-19 has exposed gender fault lines in many ways. While both men and women are suffering the economic fall out of the virus, women are extra vulnerable. Take into account that women also carry the burden of unpaid labor around the world. "Crises amplify existing inequalities, and so across the globe, women are being affected more severely by the socio-economic impacts of this pandemic." In every country, women earn less, save less, are more likely to be in precarious jobs with little security or protections if they do work, or in the informal sector, with no protections at all. Thus, they have less of a buffer to economic shocks, such as the ones the world is currently experiencing.
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The Great Mask Debate
To wear a mask or not to wear a mask? That is the question. Around the world, countries are setting new policies around whether their citizens should wear masks. The World Health Organization (WHO) is advising that people wear masks if they are sneezing or coughing. However, a report by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recommends the use of medical face masks in busy and closed spaces, even if a person is not showing symptoms. In the US, the mask debate has become a culture war. In Singapore, South Korea, and the Czech Republic, people are wearing masks. On the flip side, Sweden is rejecting the guideline.
Read on.
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COVID-19 is a Massive Setback for the SDGs
COVID-19 has caused enormous human suffering, and now a UN report reveals the massive setback the virus has created for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). UN Secretary-General António Guterres warns that COVID-19 is moving from being mainly a health crisis to the "worst human and economic crisis of our lifetime." Subir Sinha, senior lecturer in institutions and development at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), says, “COVID-19 is going to make questions of hunger much worse. People are talking about a global response in terms of a vaccine. I think we should pay attention to those who are talking about a global response to the coming food crisis." Poverty progress is reversing as approximately 35 million people are expected to fall below the extreme poverty line this year as a result of the pandemic.
Read on.
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Biodiversity Can Help Prevent Pandemics
Better conservation can play a vital role in the prevention of pandemics in the future.
"Better conservation of large intact natural areas, including natural world heritage sites and urgent measures to address illegal wildlife trade, are really considered important to limit the emergence of new diseases in the future,” said Mechtild Rössler, Director of the World Heritage Centre (WHC) during a panel hosted by the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)
in May. Rössler also shared that the pandemic has forced the closure of natural areas causing significant socio-economic impact for the people living in those areas. The closures "aggravated poverty," and the lack of monitoring has led to increased illegal poaching.
Read on.
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Biodiversity is Critical for a Healthy Society
International Day of Biological Diversity is on May 22
nd
, and this year it occurred amid the global pandemic that saw cities around the world shut down for weeks. While the pandemic has wreaked havoc on human lives and the economy, mother nature got a much-needed break. Wildlife was spotted in once-busy streets, and ocean life rediscovered areas that previously had too much boat chaos. Lockdown allowed humans to see the daily impact of our habits and activities. “ ‘I’m hoping what this pandemic does for us is draws attention to the pandemic of complacency that we were in before and [how that] contributed to the higher carbon [footprint], to greater human footprint, [and] plastic pollution in the ocean,” Roderic Mast, Co-Chair of the International Union for Conservation of Nature SSC Marine Turtle Specialist Group, told IPS. “Hopefully, it'll make people realize they were having an impact."'
Read on.
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POVERTY REDUCTION & INCOME INEQUALITY
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Migrant Remittances Will Plunge
According to World Bank projections, “remittances to developing countries will slump by 23 percent this year—down to US$445 billion, versus the $574 billion it had projected without the crisis.” Millions of people around the world depend on these remittances. In places like Guatemala and Senegal, remittances count 10% and 20% of the GDP, respectively. In Haiti, remittances account for up to 30% of the GDP, and in places like Nepal, remittances make up one third. Governments and firms can help ease the negative impact by making money-transfer an essential service, temporarily facilitating competition in the money-transfer industry, and supporting more and better migration.
Read on.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE & CONNECTIVITY
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The US is MIA and China Takes the Lead
China is stepping into a leadership role as the US pulls away from the World Health Organization. Last month, Chinese President Jinping said China will provide $2 billion over two years to help with the COVID-19 response while President Trump threatened to freeze funding permanently. China also stated it will work with the UN to set up a global humanitarian response depot and hub in China “to ensure the operation of anti-epidemic supply chains and foster green corridors for fast-track transportation and customs clearance.” Meanwhile, Trump did not attend the virtual World Health Assembly meetings even though it was an opportunity for world leaders to deliver their messages, and his administration is pushing for an independent review of WHO’s response to the pandemic.
Read on.
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The Launch of World Localization Day
June 21
st
saw the launch of World Localization Day, an event hosted by Local Futures that raises awareness about the need to switch from away from dependence on global monopolies and towards decentralized regional economies. The event puts a spotlight on the importance of supporting local businesses, farmers, and farmer's markets to help keep money within the community. " Localization is not about eliminating international trade, but about reducing the power of unaccountable corporations. And it's about pressing for policy change: to shift taxes, subsidies, and regulations that currently favor a small number of global giants to support instead of a multitude of businesses and industries.”
Read on.
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Keeping the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty Alive
This year’s 2020 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is postponed because of COVID-19, and it presents states with a unique opportunity to review and reassess their current status as it relates to their commitment to this Treaty. 191 States are part of the Treaty that includes the five nuclear-weapon States – USA, Russia, China, Britain, and France. More countries have ratified the NPT than any other arms limitation and disarmament agreement, which speaks to the Treaty's importance. "There is no doubt that the implementation of disarmament commitments would have allowed more resources to be allocated for sustainable development as well as international cooperation and preparedness to deal with such public health and global emergencies.”
Read on.
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