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Washington Post reports on secret U.S. efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to Syria

The Washington Post reports on U.S. efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to war-torn Syria, noting, "Out of concern for the safety of the recipients and the delivery staff, who could be targeted by the government if their affiliation to the United States were known," the mission has been operating covertly.

19 Apr 2013

USAID Administrator answers questions on proposed food aid reform during Twitter chat

"On Monday, April 15, USAID Administrator [Rajiv Shah] participated in a Twitter chat to answer ... questions on the proposed food aid reform in President Obama's 2014 proposed budget," Phillip Pollman, an intern with USAID, writes in the agency's "IMPACTblog."

19 Apr 2013

Kerry testifies in House on FY14 Foreign Affairs budget request

"On April 17, Secretary of State John Kerry testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Appropriations Committee regarding the Foreign Affairs budget for 2014," the U.S. State Department's "DipNote" blog reports.

19 Apr 2013

Proposed food aid reform garners mixed reaction from lawmakers, AP reports

"Rajiv Shah, the administrator of [USAID], said Tuesday that the system of shipping U.S.-grown food abroad has been inefficient and that changes are necessary as a humanitarian crisis in Syria and recent droughts in Africa sap food aid from other countries in need," the Associated Press reports.

18 Apr 2013

Scientists record atomic motions in real time

Call it the ultimate nature documentary. Scientists at the University of Toronto have recorded atomic motions in real time, offering a glimpse into the very essence of chemistry and biology at the atomic level.

18 Apr 2013

U.N., U.S. offer aid to Iran, Pakistan in wake of 7.8-magnitude earthquake

A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit the remote south-east Iran-Pakistan border on Tuesday, with tremors felt across Pakistan, India and the Middle East, BBC News reports (4/16).

18 Apr 2013

Private sector involvement, measuring results are key to ending poverty

Noting two global development goals recently proposed by World Bank President Jim Kim -- "to end extreme poverty, with a target reduce the global extreme poverty rate to three percent by 2030" and "to promote shared prosperity, fostering income growth of the bottom 40 percent of the population in every country" -- Nigel Twose, director of International Finance Corporation's newly created development impact department, writes in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, "While many threats remain -- including, most notably, the risk that climate change will reverse past gains -- today many developing countries can realistically aspire to end extreme poverty within a generation."

17 Apr 2013

Mozambique launches New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition

Paul Weisenfeld, assistant to the administrator at USAID's Bureau for Food Security, writes in the Feed the Future blog about the recent "official launch of Mozambique's New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition in Maputo."

17 Apr 2013

Foreign aid reform increases efficiency, should appeal to all members of Congress

"Since the Eisenhower administration, the United States generally has done food aid in a certain way: grow and pack it in this country, ship it across the world on U.S.-flagged ships, then deliver it through American charities, which sell a portion of the food to fund their other programs," columnist Michael Gerson writes in a Washington Post opinion piece.

17 Apr 2013

U.N. secretary general calls for renewed focus on MDGs as deadline nears

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday "rallied the United Nations community in a Call to Action, capping off a week of activities to spur accelerated progress in the 1,000 days to the end of 2015 -- the target date for achieving the eight anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)," the U.N. News Centre reports (4/12).

16 Apr 2013

USAID reform should be 'priority' for U.S. government

"The amount of good our nation has done for poor and hungry people around the world over the last 10 years is astounding," Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World; George Ingram, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution; and former Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.), a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States and a senior adviser at McLarty Associates, write in a Politico opinion piece.

16 Apr 2013

Development experts praise proposed changes to food aid program in FY14 budget request

"Civil society groups [in the U.S.] are praising parts of President Barack Obama's newly unveiled [FY 2014 budget request], saying it appears to build on momentum gathered in recent years toward a robust overhaul of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the country's main foreign aid agency," Inter Press Service reports.

15 Apr 2013

White House FY14 budget request includes expected changes to food aid program

President Obama unveiled a $3.8 trillion FY 2014 budget request on Wednesday, Agence France-Presse/GlobalPost reports (4/10).

12 Apr 2013

New index measures political commitment of 45 developing countries to address hunger, malnutrition

The Guardian reports on "a new index measuring political commitment to tackling hunger and undernutrition in 45 developing countries."

12 Apr 2013

European Commission blueprint on post-2015 development agenda calls for framework addressing sustainability, poverty

"The European Commission has unveiled a blueprint for global development aid and called on world leaders to replace the Millennium Development Goals with an international aid framework based on sustainable and inclusive development tackling poverty at its roots," Inter Press Service reports.

11 Apr 2013

Post-2015 must address poverty, food security

Mark Suzman, managing director for international policy, programs and advocacy at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, writes in the foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, "Last week saw two key events related to the Millennium Development Goals: the kickoff on April 5 of an ambitious global campaign focused on accelerating progress over the last 1,000 days before the 2015 deadline and a critical meeting on April 4 in Madrid to assess how hunger, food security and nutrition should be tackled in any post-2015 framework."

11 Apr 2013

USAID marks 1,000 day milestone until 2015 MDG target date with digital conversations

"On April 5, USAID joined U.N. Foundation's Momentum 1000 and millions around the globe in a digital rally to mark the 1,000 day milestone until the 2015 target date to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals: A promise made to free people from extreme poverty and extend hope and opportunity to the millions living in developing regions," the agency's "IMPACTblog" writes.

11 Apr 2013

Dermatologist shares manicure and pedicure tips for beautiful nails

Having beautiful nails is less a matter of luck and more a matter of caring for them correctly. Fortunately, there are simple steps people can take to properly care for their nails.

10 Apr 2013

OECD DAC chair says wealthy countries becoming 'risk averse' in aid spending

"Aid to the poorest countries is dropping because donors are becoming more 'risk averse,' according to a senior official from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development," The Guardian reports, noting that "OECD figures last week showed that official development assistance from rich countries fell by four percent in real terms last year, following a dip in 2011."

10 Apr 2013

Religious leaders call for heads of government to renew efforts to meet MDGs

"With fewer than 1,000 days left to meet the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, religious leaders from the G8 countries are pushing heads of government to renew their efforts to meet the anti-poverty benchmarks by 2015," the Washington Post reports.

10 Apr 2013