NGOs welcome Senate leadership in international humanitarian funding
WASHINGTON, May 24, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Leading NGO alliance InterAction is heartened by the international affairs spending bill approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee today and urges the House to follow the Senate's lead when the two bills are reconciled. The Senate committee approved the bill with an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 29-1.
"This bill shows the wisdom and courage to invest in international development and humanitarian assistance programs. InterAction urges the House to adopt the Senate's funding levels when the final bill is negotiated," said Samuel A. Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction.
The committee released a summary of the bill on Wednesday, and the full text of the bill is expected to be released in the coming days.
"InterAction applauds the extraordinary leadership and vision of Senators Leahy, Graham, Inouye and Cochran, which was reflected in the bill approved today. When U.S. support helps a child get vaccinated or go to school; helps a community construct a well or be better prepared for a disaster, this fulfills our moral imperative to offer a hand up to those less fortunate than us around the world. This support helps create more self-sufficient communities in the future," added Worthington, "when young democracies are nourished and citizens are empowered to hold their leaders to account, America and the world benefit."
The Senate FY2013 State, Foreign Operations appropriations bill provides for $52.1 billion in discretionary spending for the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development and other international development and humanitarian assistance programs, $1.2 billion less than was provided for the current fiscal year and $2.6 billion less than the administration request. The House version of the bill provides $48.4 billion, about $5 billion less than the current year, $6.3 billion less than the request and $3.8 billion less than the Senate bill.
Key accounts in the Senate bill include:
$2.9 billion for USAID's global health programs (House level: $2.5 billion) $3.1 billion for Development Assistance (House level: $2.5 billion) $1.3 billion for International Disaster Assistance (House level: $923 million) $2.3 billion for Migration and Refugee Assistance (House level: $1.7 billion)
Source: InterAction
---------------------------------------------------
Seminar focuses on modern media’s influence on politics – Intellectual dialogue with NGOs
KUWAIT: Laying an emphasis on modern media and its role in political work, the Institut Francais du Koweit (IFK) held a three-day symposium titled ‘Modern Media Tools and Democracy.’ It was held at all of the Graduates Society, the Bar Society, and the Kuwait Journalist Association (KJA). The last of these was held at KJA on Wednesday evening entitled ‘Modern Media and Arab Spring.’
“The subject of this symposium is very interesting and important. We, at the French Embassy and the French Institute (IFK) encourage engaging in intellectual dialogue with local NGOs and academics in Kuwait. This is a great opportunity to exchange opinions and experiences on modern media and its role in political work. The modern media and social media tools have influenced politics in strengthening democracy and freedom of expression,” said Nada Yafi, French Ambassador to Kuwait.
Dr Yves Gonzales-Quijano, Professor at the University of Lumiere, Lyon and Researcher at the French Institute at the Near-East, Beirut highlighted the importance of evaluating the role of modern media in the Arab Spring. “The Arab Spring movement has become very popular in Arab and western media. I think that this expression is not positive, and not 100 percent precise. I think it was developed by the American Mcling in his analysis of the modern media,” he noted.
He opined that Kuwait’s political situation is unstable because of conflicts between political powers. “Also, there are some reports about religious issues like blasphemy, leading to political discussion about the criminal law related to what comprises insults to God and ridiculing religion,” he added.
He also spoke about the negative impact that the Arab Spring has on Egypt, Tunisia, Syria and Bahrain. “Social media like Facebook, Twitter did not result in massive changes, and Syria is an example. Social media is used differently in different countries. Then there are optimists and pessimists. We should study the social media deeply to understand its impact on the Arab Spring,” concluded Quijano.
Dr Fatiha Dazi-Heni, political expert in the Arab region and a teacher at the Institute of Political Studies in Paris thinks that the positive aspect of social media in inspiring the Arab Spring revolution should be preserved, even if a negative situation prevails in Yemen and Syria.
“We should adopt a pragmatic political opinion regarding the Arab Spring, which is not the case in some Arab countries like Syria and Bahrain. It is important to see how the youth use social media to consolidate power in attempting to bring in change, which is incomplete due Islamists being criticized in Egypt, and the Nahdha party in Tunisia. The social media did precipitate the revolutions. It only had a positive effect on it. They pose a danger to some totalitarian governments,” she explained.
Dr. Nada Al-Mutawa, an expert in Strategic Affairs at Kuwait University stressed that the Arab Spring resulted owing slow economic growth, absence of economic equity and poor administration, connecting the economic and administrative reforms with the political ones. “In Egypt, social media played the role of a coordinator, and was a good tool of communication between young people. However, it failed in the executive phase. This is the situation of the modern media, which needs effective and continues administration,” she pointed out.
She also spoke about the role played social media in the recent Kuwait elections. “These media were called the ‘electronic diwaniya.’ The main users were female candidates. Election news was announced on Facebook and this site was used as a way to stay in touch with voters and post news at election headquarters,” she explained.
Source: www.news.kuwaittimes.net
----------------------------------------------------
Fixmo and Mobileyes Solutions Bring Defense-Grade Mobile Application and Data Security to Canadian Government
Fixmo, the mobile risk management company, today announced that Mobileyes Solutions Inc. , the mobile solutions experts serving federal and provincial government departments and non-government organizations (NGOs) across Canada, has become the first Canadian partner to join the Fixmo SafeZone™ Certified Partner Program. The partnership enables Mobileyes Solutions to build custom enterprise applications for iOS and Android devices that leverage Fixmo’s defense-grade mobile security architecture and the Fixmo SafeZone secure workspace.
Mobileyes currently resells and implements the Fixmo Sentinel solution for mobile device security, integrity assurance and risk management. Under the expanded partnership, Mobileyes will now act as an authorized reseller of Fixmo SafeZone as well as a Certified Development Partner for securing mobile applications with the Fixmo SafeGuard SDK and deploying them into the Fixmo SafeZone secure workspace for government agencies and enterprise customers.
Fixmo SafeZone is the Secure Messaging and Data Container solution for iOS and Android that keeps corporate data encrypted, contained and under IT control. Developed as part of Fixmo’s Co-operative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), Fixmo SafeZone enables government agencies and enterprise customers to embrace iPads, iPhones and Android-based devices while protecting corporate data and mitigating the risk of data loss and compliance breaches. In addition to offering secure corporate email, browsing and documents, Fixmo SafeZone enables custom enterprise applications to be deployed to smartphones and tablets while ensuring they can be secured, contained, and managed by IT.
“The rapid proliferation of mobile devices throughout the Canadian public sector has created strong demand for mobile security solutions among government and enterprise employees,” said John MacBeth, President and CEO of Mobileyes. “Partnering with Fixmo gives us a unique opportunity to address our customers’ need to ensure iPad, iPhone and Android devices are used in a safe and secure manner by providing them with a best-in-class mobile security solution.”
“As a leader in mobile solutions delivery and secure application development, Mobileyes offers a unique value proposition to the Canadian Public Sector,” said Bruce Gilley, President of Fixmo. “Through the expanded partnership, Mobileyes and Fixmo can help government agencies and crown corporations across Canada deliver defense-grade wireless email, browsing and custom applications to their employees on their device of choice whether it be the iPad, iPhone or the latest Android device.”
About Mobileyes Solutions Inc.
Mobileyes is a dynamic and innovative digital communications solutions provider. An Ottawa-based, 100% Canadian owned private corporation, Mobileyes has been providing expert mobile solutions and creating and distributing digital content for over 14 years. Largely a public sector enterprise, Mobileyes proudly serves federal and provincial government departments, crown corporations and non-government organizations (NGOs). For more information, please visit www.mobileyes.ca.
About Fixmo
Fixmo Inc. is the mobile risk management (MRM) company that helps organizations identify, mitigate and manage the risks associated with mobile devices in the workplace. The company’s MRM solutions enable protected and compliant mobile computing, helping organizations embrace a wide range of mobile devices and applications while maintaining system integrity, protecting confidential data and proving regulatory compliance. Fixmo’s MRM technology has been developed as part of a Co-operative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA). Fixmo is headquartered in Sterling, Virginia and Toronto, Canada. Additional information on Fixmo can be found at www.fixmo.com.
Source: www.sys-con.com
------------------------------------------------------
Cost of living citizens’ biggest worry
Pakistanis are most concerned about the cost of living, followed by unemployment and then load-shedding, according to a survey of more than 10,000 households that was part of a United Nations Development Programme national report for 2012 presented here on Tuesday in collaboration with the Aurat Foundation.
The ‘Social audit of local governance and delivery of public services’ report – the third released by the UNDP after similar reports in 2004-05 and 2009-10 – states that while “some kind” of local government system was in place, it was not fully functional to ensure effective public service delivery.
It also states that elected local government systems, irrespective of their design, gave people “a sense of belonging” and “a sense of being served – not ruled”. The local government system in place in all four provinces is unelected.
The report focuses on ten service delivery areas: education, health, roads, water services, sewerage and sanitation, garbage disposal, public transport, agriculture, electricity and gas. More than 10,000 households in 179 union councils and 79 districts across Pakistan were questioned about these areas.
The report says very few respondents reported any improvement in any of the public services, while reporting deteriorations in electricity, sewerage and quality of roads. Union council secretaries questioned, on the other hand, thought that education, roads and water supply had improved. The report suggests that local government should be the “primary tier of government” and calls for the capacity building of staff.
UNDP programme officer Saima Alvi told The Express Tribune that the top most concerns of the people of Pakistan were the cost of living followed by unemployment. She said load shedding ranked third in the concerns of the people.
Alvi said the programme was initiated back in 2001, when a baseline audit was conducted under the Devolution Trust for Community Empowerment programme of the UNDP. A large number of “community organisations” working in the development sector also participated, she said. She hoped that the social audit would offer policy makers and the social development sector a qualitative and quantitative analysis of local governance and service delivery.
“The aim of the report is to highlight the importance of local governance,” said Aurat Foundation executive council member Umme Laila. She said social audits were a tool to determine the effectiveness of the development sector.
She said civil society had been demanding the effective local governance for the past four years. “Decentralisation of power does not mean merely the transfer of power from the federal to the provincial level. It means devolution of power to the district level too,” she said.
Having been launched in Karachi and Lahore, Laila said there were plans to launch it in both Quetta and Peshawar. “The impact of such social audits will be evident in the long run,” she said.
Governor Sardar Latif Khosa, speaking at the launch, said the report exposed the “non-democratic attitude” of the Punjab government. “If all funds are to be allocated to Lahore then all protests will head towards Raiwind,” he said.
He said that the government had failed to deliver services to rural areas of the province as well and criticised NGOs for concentrating only on urban areas. “Most NGO workers refuse to work in the rural areas, which is where the people need the greatest assistance,” he said.
The current economic and social deprivation could lead to “a bloody revolution” or “a war of the haves and the have-nots,” he said. The provinces should devolve power, he added.
Electricity and gas supply
The good news is that 97 per cent of households reported that they received electricity. However, satisfaction with the level of supply has been on the wane. In the first half of the decade, a majority of respondents said they were satisfied with the power supply, but this trend has reversed in the second half of the decade.
Similarly, there has been a significant increase in the percentage of households reporting access to gas. However, many households reported that they faced severe breakdowns in supply.
Researchers from eight universities helped gather the data for the UNDP report. These were the University of Karachi, University of Sindh, University of Sargodha, Islamia University Bhawalpur, Institute of Management Sciences Peshawar, University of Balochistan, International Islamic University Islamabad and Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 30th, 2012.
Source: www.bernama.com
-------------------------------------------------------
Ukhrul pushes for steady climate change action plans
Several NGOs, churches and social activists put their heads together to deliberate on many core issues of climate change with discussion on "deforestation" taking the centrestage during the day-long workshop organised at Tangkhul Theological Association (TTA) hall at Hamleikhong in Ukhrul on Tuesday.
In the one-day district level workshop on climate change, which was organised by Tangkhul Katamnao Saklong (TKS) in collaboration with Directorate of Environment and Ecological Wing, Manipur, the current status and implementation of the "action plans" on climate change in Ukhrul were put to debate and discussion by participating NGO activists, church workers, village headmen and environmental activists.
Dr.Brajakumar Singh, Research Officer in the Directorate of Environment and Ecological Wing, Manipur, delivered the key note address, while journalist Irengbam Arun made a brief exhortation during the workshop.
The day-long deliberation, though it was basically a follow-up of the "action plans" that was adopted based on recommendations of the workshop held in Ukhrul in July 13 last year, witnessed the participants sharing deep concerns over wanton deforestation in Ukhrul district.
Several questions were raised over depleting forest cover in Ukhrul-that has now a green cover of about 288330.98 (HA) only and measures taken to tackle the agricultural practice, particularly jhum cultivation, which is the main factor causing large scale deforestation apart from timber felling in the hill districts of Manipur.
In the "action plans" incorporated basically for Ukhrul district, the 2011's July workshop recommended "special horticulture scheme" for abandoned jhum fields, organic farming, Orange production at Kamjong and Kasom Khullen areas among others.
Today's key debate also focussed on other "action plans" including eco-system and livelihood sustainability, water resources, health, forest and biodiversity conservation, enhance energy efficiency and conservation and urban planning.
Participants also raised issue of increasing "water scarcity" during the dry season in Ukhrul town, and put forward suggestions to tackle the crisis.
Unlike previous years, the town has been hit hard this time by acute shortage of water.
This phenomenon, however, has become ubiquitous in the entire district this year with several villages reporting that the water holes are getting dry.
Tuesday's deliberation was significant with the participating NGOs, churches and other bodies pushing for early and steady implementation of the "action plans" in the district.
The state officials also admitted "implementation delay" citing various technical difficulties.
In today's meet, however, the debate did not throw much light on the relevance of "indigenous knowledge," a key element in handling climate change particularly in tribal-dominated region.
The application of "indigenous knowledge" is an indispensable component in climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.
It also forms as important guidelines in areas where "tribal customary practices" still has a strong hold.
Many recommendations were also put up in the meeting and to which the attending officials assured of forwarding the same to the government for necessary actions.
There was also a unanimous understanding among the participants on the need to take awareness campaign on climate change at grassroots level to materialise the 'action plans" .
Source: www.e-pao.net
------------------------------------------------------
Happy (belated) 4th birthday, PetFinder.my
Another year has breezed past within the blink of an eye and it has been a very eventful and exciting year for PetFinder.my.
The folks at PetFinder.my are extremely thankful to the animal lovers for their unwavering support in providing an effective technology platform for promoting the welfare of homeless animals, spreading awareness and public education.
Below are some of PetFinder.my’s key achievements over the past year:
Almost 4,000 pets have found cozy, loving homes through PetFinder.my portal in the last year, bringing it to a total of 10,000. Of course, most of the credit goes to the dedicated rescuers that have spent so much of their time, effort and money on saving the strays, nurturing them back to health, assessing adopters and ensuring that they go to good homes.
PetFinder.my Charity Fair at Sunway Pyramid raised over RM40,000 for seven participating NGOs. It was a fun-filled event with lots of activities, exciting performances, attractive merchandise and of course, adorable animal mascots. This event was successful because of the generous help and contributions of sponsors, performers, volunteers and merchants.
Launching of the Medical Fund, which allows the public to conveniently and transparently donate online towards the rescue of injured stray animals. It is hoped that this fund can better encourage people to save more animal lives, knowing that the public is ready to lend them a helping hand in footing the expensive medical bills.
The setting up of a Central News Portal, which brings the latest animal welfare updates from over two dozen leading NGOs, consolidated via their blogs, Facebook fan pages and websites. The aim is to generate better exposure of NGO efforts, and to provide animal lovers a convenient means of staying updated with all the NGOs via our website and mobile channels.
Release of Smartphone Apps for Android and BlackBerry, as well as an updated iPhone app version. Users can easily browse pets for adoption, reunite lost animals, read latest news and more. With the Mobile Website, PetFinder.my can now reach out to 100% of mobile Internet users regardless of their phones or platforms. Now everyone can save lives anywhere, anytime!
Creation of StopAnimalAbuse.my petition, initiated by SPCA Selangor and supported by NGOs nationwide. The viral petition obtained 10,000 signatures in 10 days, and was presented to the government together with follow-up animal welfare proposals.
PetFinder.my was also the winner of DiGi’s WWWOW Award in the Best Internet For Good category.
These achievements would not be possible without the great support from animal shelters, rescuers, fosterers, adopters and animal lovers. PetFinder.my would also like to express its deepest gratitude to all the media channels – newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations, websites and blogs that have played a critical role in helping us spread awareness on animal welfare.
Source: www.freemalaysiatoday.com
WASHINGTON, May 24, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Leading NGO alliance InterAction is heartened by the international affairs spending bill approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee today and urges the House to follow the Senate's lead when the two bills are reconciled. The Senate committee approved the bill with an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 29-1.
"This bill shows the wisdom and courage to invest in international development and humanitarian assistance programs. InterAction urges the House to adopt the Senate's funding levels when the final bill is negotiated," said Samuel A. Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction.
The committee released a summary of the bill on Wednesday, and the full text of the bill is expected to be released in the coming days.
"InterAction applauds the extraordinary leadership and vision of Senators Leahy, Graham, Inouye and Cochran, which was reflected in the bill approved today. When U.S. support helps a child get vaccinated or go to school; helps a community construct a well or be better prepared for a disaster, this fulfills our moral imperative to offer a hand up to those less fortunate than us around the world. This support helps create more self-sufficient communities in the future," added Worthington, "when young democracies are nourished and citizens are empowered to hold their leaders to account, America and the world benefit."
The Senate FY2013 State, Foreign Operations appropriations bill provides for $52.1 billion in discretionary spending for the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development and other international development and humanitarian assistance programs, $1.2 billion less than was provided for the current fiscal year and $2.6 billion less than the administration request. The House version of the bill provides $48.4 billion, about $5 billion less than the current year, $6.3 billion less than the request and $3.8 billion less than the Senate bill.
Key accounts in the Senate bill include:
$2.9 billion for USAID's global health programs (House level: $2.5 billion) $3.1 billion for Development Assistance (House level: $2.5 billion) $1.3 billion for International Disaster Assistance (House level: $923 million) $2.3 billion for Migration and Refugee Assistance (House level: $1.7 billion)
Source: InterAction
---------------------------------------------------
Seminar focuses on modern media’s influence on politics – Intellectual dialogue with NGOs
KUWAIT: Laying an emphasis on modern media and its role in political work, the Institut Francais du Koweit (IFK) held a three-day symposium titled ‘Modern Media Tools and Democracy.’ It was held at all of the Graduates Society, the Bar Society, and the Kuwait Journalist Association (KJA). The last of these was held at KJA on Wednesday evening entitled ‘Modern Media and Arab Spring.’
“The subject of this symposium is very interesting and important. We, at the French Embassy and the French Institute (IFK) encourage engaging in intellectual dialogue with local NGOs and academics in Kuwait. This is a great opportunity to exchange opinions and experiences on modern media and its role in political work. The modern media and social media tools have influenced politics in strengthening democracy and freedom of expression,” said Nada Yafi, French Ambassador to Kuwait.
Dr Yves Gonzales-Quijano, Professor at the University of Lumiere, Lyon and Researcher at the French Institute at the Near-East, Beirut highlighted the importance of evaluating the role of modern media in the Arab Spring. “The Arab Spring movement has become very popular in Arab and western media. I think that this expression is not positive, and not 100 percent precise. I think it was developed by the American Mcling in his analysis of the modern media,” he noted.
He opined that Kuwait’s political situation is unstable because of conflicts between political powers. “Also, there are some reports about religious issues like blasphemy, leading to political discussion about the criminal law related to what comprises insults to God and ridiculing religion,” he added.
He also spoke about the negative impact that the Arab Spring has on Egypt, Tunisia, Syria and Bahrain. “Social media like Facebook, Twitter did not result in massive changes, and Syria is an example. Social media is used differently in different countries. Then there are optimists and pessimists. We should study the social media deeply to understand its impact on the Arab Spring,” concluded Quijano.
Dr Fatiha Dazi-Heni, political expert in the Arab region and a teacher at the Institute of Political Studies in Paris thinks that the positive aspect of social media in inspiring the Arab Spring revolution should be preserved, even if a negative situation prevails in Yemen and Syria.
“We should adopt a pragmatic political opinion regarding the Arab Spring, which is not the case in some Arab countries like Syria and Bahrain. It is important to see how the youth use social media to consolidate power in attempting to bring in change, which is incomplete due Islamists being criticized in Egypt, and the Nahdha party in Tunisia. The social media did precipitate the revolutions. It only had a positive effect on it. They pose a danger to some totalitarian governments,” she explained.
Dr. Nada Al-Mutawa, an expert in Strategic Affairs at Kuwait University stressed that the Arab Spring resulted owing slow economic growth, absence of economic equity and poor administration, connecting the economic and administrative reforms with the political ones. “In Egypt, social media played the role of a coordinator, and was a good tool of communication between young people. However, it failed in the executive phase. This is the situation of the modern media, which needs effective and continues administration,” she pointed out.
She also spoke about the role played social media in the recent Kuwait elections. “These media were called the ‘electronic diwaniya.’ The main users were female candidates. Election news was announced on Facebook and this site was used as a way to stay in touch with voters and post news at election headquarters,” she explained.
Source: www.news.kuwaittimes.net
----------------------------------------------------
Fixmo and Mobileyes Solutions Bring Defense-Grade Mobile Application and Data Security to Canadian Government
Fixmo, the mobile risk management company, today announced that Mobileyes Solutions Inc. , the mobile solutions experts serving federal and provincial government departments and non-government organizations (NGOs) across Canada, has become the first Canadian partner to join the Fixmo SafeZone™ Certified Partner Program. The partnership enables Mobileyes Solutions to build custom enterprise applications for iOS and Android devices that leverage Fixmo’s defense-grade mobile security architecture and the Fixmo SafeZone secure workspace.
Mobileyes currently resells and implements the Fixmo Sentinel solution for mobile device security, integrity assurance and risk management. Under the expanded partnership, Mobileyes will now act as an authorized reseller of Fixmo SafeZone as well as a Certified Development Partner for securing mobile applications with the Fixmo SafeGuard SDK and deploying them into the Fixmo SafeZone secure workspace for government agencies and enterprise customers.
Fixmo SafeZone is the Secure Messaging and Data Container solution for iOS and Android that keeps corporate data encrypted, contained and under IT control. Developed as part of Fixmo’s Co-operative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), Fixmo SafeZone enables government agencies and enterprise customers to embrace iPads, iPhones and Android-based devices while protecting corporate data and mitigating the risk of data loss and compliance breaches. In addition to offering secure corporate email, browsing and documents, Fixmo SafeZone enables custom enterprise applications to be deployed to smartphones and tablets while ensuring they can be secured, contained, and managed by IT.
“The rapid proliferation of mobile devices throughout the Canadian public sector has created strong demand for mobile security solutions among government and enterprise employees,” said John MacBeth, President and CEO of Mobileyes. “Partnering with Fixmo gives us a unique opportunity to address our customers’ need to ensure iPad, iPhone and Android devices are used in a safe and secure manner by providing them with a best-in-class mobile security solution.”
“As a leader in mobile solutions delivery and secure application development, Mobileyes offers a unique value proposition to the Canadian Public Sector,” said Bruce Gilley, President of Fixmo. “Through the expanded partnership, Mobileyes and Fixmo can help government agencies and crown corporations across Canada deliver defense-grade wireless email, browsing and custom applications to their employees on their device of choice whether it be the iPad, iPhone or the latest Android device.”
About Mobileyes Solutions Inc.
Mobileyes is a dynamic and innovative digital communications solutions provider. An Ottawa-based, 100% Canadian owned private corporation, Mobileyes has been providing expert mobile solutions and creating and distributing digital content for over 14 years. Largely a public sector enterprise, Mobileyes proudly serves federal and provincial government departments, crown corporations and non-government organizations (NGOs). For more information, please visit www.mobileyes.ca.
About Fixmo
Fixmo Inc. is the mobile risk management (MRM) company that helps organizations identify, mitigate and manage the risks associated with mobile devices in the workplace. The company’s MRM solutions enable protected and compliant mobile computing, helping organizations embrace a wide range of mobile devices and applications while maintaining system integrity, protecting confidential data and proving regulatory compliance. Fixmo’s MRM technology has been developed as part of a Co-operative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA). Fixmo is headquartered in Sterling, Virginia and Toronto, Canada. Additional information on Fixmo can be found at www.fixmo.com.
Source: www.sys-con.com
------------------------------------------------------
Cost of living citizens’ biggest worry
Pakistanis are most concerned about the cost of living, followed by unemployment and then load-shedding, according to a survey of more than 10,000 households that was part of a United Nations Development Programme national report for 2012 presented here on Tuesday in collaboration with the Aurat Foundation.
The ‘Social audit of local governance and delivery of public services’ report – the third released by the UNDP after similar reports in 2004-05 and 2009-10 – states that while “some kind” of local government system was in place, it was not fully functional to ensure effective public service delivery.
It also states that elected local government systems, irrespective of their design, gave people “a sense of belonging” and “a sense of being served – not ruled”. The local government system in place in all four provinces is unelected.
The report focuses on ten service delivery areas: education, health, roads, water services, sewerage and sanitation, garbage disposal, public transport, agriculture, electricity and gas. More than 10,000 households in 179 union councils and 79 districts across Pakistan were questioned about these areas.
The report says very few respondents reported any improvement in any of the public services, while reporting deteriorations in electricity, sewerage and quality of roads. Union council secretaries questioned, on the other hand, thought that education, roads and water supply had improved. The report suggests that local government should be the “primary tier of government” and calls for the capacity building of staff.
UNDP programme officer Saima Alvi told The Express Tribune that the top most concerns of the people of Pakistan were the cost of living followed by unemployment. She said load shedding ranked third in the concerns of the people.
Alvi said the programme was initiated back in 2001, when a baseline audit was conducted under the Devolution Trust for Community Empowerment programme of the UNDP. A large number of “community organisations” working in the development sector also participated, she said. She hoped that the social audit would offer policy makers and the social development sector a qualitative and quantitative analysis of local governance and service delivery.
“The aim of the report is to highlight the importance of local governance,” said Aurat Foundation executive council member Umme Laila. She said social audits were a tool to determine the effectiveness of the development sector.
She said civil society had been demanding the effective local governance for the past four years. “Decentralisation of power does not mean merely the transfer of power from the federal to the provincial level. It means devolution of power to the district level too,” she said.
Having been launched in Karachi and Lahore, Laila said there were plans to launch it in both Quetta and Peshawar. “The impact of such social audits will be evident in the long run,” she said.
Governor Sardar Latif Khosa, speaking at the launch, said the report exposed the “non-democratic attitude” of the Punjab government. “If all funds are to be allocated to Lahore then all protests will head towards Raiwind,” he said.
He said that the government had failed to deliver services to rural areas of the province as well and criticised NGOs for concentrating only on urban areas. “Most NGO workers refuse to work in the rural areas, which is where the people need the greatest assistance,” he said.
The current economic and social deprivation could lead to “a bloody revolution” or “a war of the haves and the have-nots,” he said. The provinces should devolve power, he added.
Electricity and gas supply
The good news is that 97 per cent of households reported that they received electricity. However, satisfaction with the level of supply has been on the wane. In the first half of the decade, a majority of respondents said they were satisfied with the power supply, but this trend has reversed in the second half of the decade.
Similarly, there has been a significant increase in the percentage of households reporting access to gas. However, many households reported that they faced severe breakdowns in supply.
Researchers from eight universities helped gather the data for the UNDP report. These were the University of Karachi, University of Sindh, University of Sargodha, Islamia University Bhawalpur, Institute of Management Sciences Peshawar, University of Balochistan, International Islamic University Islamabad and Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 30th, 2012.
Source: www.bernama.com
-------------------------------------------------------
Ukhrul pushes for steady climate change action plans
Several NGOs, churches and social activists put their heads together to deliberate on many core issues of climate change with discussion on "deforestation" taking the centrestage during the day-long workshop organised at Tangkhul Theological Association (TTA) hall at Hamleikhong in Ukhrul on Tuesday.
In the one-day district level workshop on climate change, which was organised by Tangkhul Katamnao Saklong (TKS) in collaboration with Directorate of Environment and Ecological Wing, Manipur, the current status and implementation of the "action plans" on climate change in Ukhrul were put to debate and discussion by participating NGO activists, church workers, village headmen and environmental activists.
Dr.Brajakumar Singh, Research Officer in the Directorate of Environment and Ecological Wing, Manipur, delivered the key note address, while journalist Irengbam Arun made a brief exhortation during the workshop.
The day-long deliberation, though it was basically a follow-up of the "action plans" that was adopted based on recommendations of the workshop held in Ukhrul in July 13 last year, witnessed the participants sharing deep concerns over wanton deforestation in Ukhrul district.
Several questions were raised over depleting forest cover in Ukhrul-that has now a green cover of about 288330.98 (HA) only and measures taken to tackle the agricultural practice, particularly jhum cultivation, which is the main factor causing large scale deforestation apart from timber felling in the hill districts of Manipur.
In the "action plans" incorporated basically for Ukhrul district, the 2011's July workshop recommended "special horticulture scheme" for abandoned jhum fields, organic farming, Orange production at Kamjong and Kasom Khullen areas among others.
Today's key debate also focussed on other "action plans" including eco-system and livelihood sustainability, water resources, health, forest and biodiversity conservation, enhance energy efficiency and conservation and urban planning.
Participants also raised issue of increasing "water scarcity" during the dry season in Ukhrul town, and put forward suggestions to tackle the crisis.
Unlike previous years, the town has been hit hard this time by acute shortage of water.
This phenomenon, however, has become ubiquitous in the entire district this year with several villages reporting that the water holes are getting dry.
Tuesday's deliberation was significant with the participating NGOs, churches and other bodies pushing for early and steady implementation of the "action plans" in the district.
The state officials also admitted "implementation delay" citing various technical difficulties.
In today's meet, however, the debate did not throw much light on the relevance of "indigenous knowledge," a key element in handling climate change particularly in tribal-dominated region.
The application of "indigenous knowledge" is an indispensable component in climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.
It also forms as important guidelines in areas where "tribal customary practices" still has a strong hold.
Many recommendations were also put up in the meeting and to which the attending officials assured of forwarding the same to the government for necessary actions.
There was also a unanimous understanding among the participants on the need to take awareness campaign on climate change at grassroots level to materialise the 'action plans" .
Source: www.e-pao.net
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Happy (belated) 4th birthday, PetFinder.my
Another year has breezed past within the blink of an eye and it has been a very eventful and exciting year for PetFinder.my.
The folks at PetFinder.my are extremely thankful to the animal lovers for their unwavering support in providing an effective technology platform for promoting the welfare of homeless animals, spreading awareness and public education.
Below are some of PetFinder.my’s key achievements over the past year:
Almost 4,000 pets have found cozy, loving homes through PetFinder.my portal in the last year, bringing it to a total of 10,000. Of course, most of the credit goes to the dedicated rescuers that have spent so much of their time, effort and money on saving the strays, nurturing them back to health, assessing adopters and ensuring that they go to good homes.
PetFinder.my Charity Fair at Sunway Pyramid raised over RM40,000 for seven participating NGOs. It was a fun-filled event with lots of activities, exciting performances, attractive merchandise and of course, adorable animal mascots. This event was successful because of the generous help and contributions of sponsors, performers, volunteers and merchants.
Launching of the Medical Fund, which allows the public to conveniently and transparently donate online towards the rescue of injured stray animals. It is hoped that this fund can better encourage people to save more animal lives, knowing that the public is ready to lend them a helping hand in footing the expensive medical bills.
The setting up of a Central News Portal, which brings the latest animal welfare updates from over two dozen leading NGOs, consolidated via their blogs, Facebook fan pages and websites. The aim is to generate better exposure of NGO efforts, and to provide animal lovers a convenient means of staying updated with all the NGOs via our website and mobile channels.
Release of Smartphone Apps for Android and BlackBerry, as well as an updated iPhone app version. Users can easily browse pets for adoption, reunite lost animals, read latest news and more. With the Mobile Website, PetFinder.my can now reach out to 100% of mobile Internet users regardless of their phones or platforms. Now everyone can save lives anywhere, anytime!
Creation of StopAnimalAbuse.my petition, initiated by SPCA Selangor and supported by NGOs nationwide. The viral petition obtained 10,000 signatures in 10 days, and was presented to the government together with follow-up animal welfare proposals.
PetFinder.my was also the winner of DiGi’s WWWOW Award in the Best Internet For Good category.
These achievements would not be possible without the great support from animal shelters, rescuers, fosterers, adopters and animal lovers. PetFinder.my would also like to express its deepest gratitude to all the media channels – newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations, websites and blogs that have played a critical role in helping us spread awareness on animal welfare.
Source: www.freemalaysiatoday.com
