Despite major advances in knowledge and unprecedented gains in global wealth, health inequities between the rich and poor are increasing, both within and among countries (1). Poverty, poor living and working conditions and the inability to influence these conditions are directly related to poor health. The 2008 report of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Commission on Social Determinants of Health observes that ‘social injustice is killing people on a grand scale’ (2).   Read more>>

Leading aid models focus on economic growth and poverty reduction. The well-being approach aims for more comprehensive change. A recent study designed tools for implementing this new concept.   Read more>>

Switzerland is among the world’s richest countries, yet its government has been tight-fisted with development aid contributions. In 2008, parliament increased the aid budget, but many NGOs say it’s not enough.   Read more>>

Twelve South American countries have decided to deepen regional integration by investing heavily in intraregional infrastructural projects. But economic rationale collides with social and ecological goals.   Read more>>

Attaining women’s rights is central to addressing broader issues, such as ending poverty. Shareen Gokal of the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID) talks about the negative impact a rise in religious fundamentalism is having on women’s rights, how research can help improve understanding of fundamentalist groups and ways in which they are organized and funded in order to better combat the problem.   Read more>>

A review of Le Rendez-vous des civilisations by Youssef Courbage and Emmanuel Todd Demographic data suggest that the world is not facing a ‘clash of civilizations’ between the Muslim and western world, according to Youssef Courbage and Emmanuel Todd. In their book, Courbage and Todd compare trends in Islamic nations with those of other countries. Parts of the Muslim world show a certain lag in the increase of literacy, a decline in the number of children born per couple, changing gender roles and shifting political ideologies. The overall pattern, however, is not much different from other parts of the world. The demographic development of Tunisia and Iran, for example, does no longer differ from that of France.   Read more>>

In the late 1990s, the so-called sector-wide approach (SWAp) became a fashionable new method for handling development aid. It was part of an international quest for more efficient and effective aid delivery that would truly contribute to poverty reduction. Donors agreed to start coordinating their funding: for example, the health sector in, say, Zambia would be guided by a single policy and expenditure programme instead of by a myriad of programmes and projects. And the responsibility and leadership would be squarely on the Zambian government.   Read more>>

According to a recent International Labour Organization (ILO) report, some 74 million children below the age of 14 are engaged in the so-called ‘worst forms’ of child labour. Although this number has been declining over time, it is still too high and is a shameful reminder of our inability to achieve global justice. The ‘worst forms’ of child labour lead to suffering and a loss of schooling opportunities for the children involved. Limited ‘accumulation of human capital’, to speak in economic jargon, perpetuates poverty and thus creates conditions that increase instances of child labour – it is a depressing cycle.   Read more>>