The Climate Change Action Plan 2021–2025 aims to advance the climate change aspects of the WBG’s Green, Resilient, and Inclusive Development (GRID) approach, which pursues poverty eradication and shared
The Asian Development Bank sees the
The judgment one reaches on what the current year's Budget will do for farmers will vary depending on whether its provisions are seen as a sui generis exercise or are viewed within a longer term per
World Bank yesterday approved a US$65.33 million credit for Sri Lanka to improve the operational efficiency of some 80 ageing dams and to establish sustainable institutional arrangements for safety m
It is raining and Tirana's main rubbish dump in the Sharra valley, about five kilometres outside the capital, is covered in sticky mud. However, for Ardian Alu it is business as usual. Together with his two young sons, Mr Alu, a member of Albania's Roma community, sifts through piles of waste selecting recyclable materials he can sell to a local trader. He is paid Lek14 (
When economist Carl Pray heard about plans for the first international assessment of agricultural research, a gold standard sprang to mind: the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). But things didn't turn out the way he expected.
The Wild Ass Sanctuary in Little Rann of Kutch has been selected by Centre for Biodiversity Conservation and Rural Livelihood Improvement project.
The purge of slums to free up real estate in cities began in 1994, through
The World Bank (WB) would provide 25 million dollar for Balochistan Small-Scale Irrigation Project (BSSIP), which will support efforts by the Government of Balochistan (GoB) to improve the management of scarce water resources in the Pishin Lora Basin (PLB) by reducing the overall impact of the present water crisis. The project's objectives include increasing surface water availability and reducing groundwater depletion, increasing water productivity through a combination of engineering, management and agricultural measures and expanding local capacity and participation of farmers to implement similar schemes and formulate plans for sustainable water resources development and watershed management. The project will focus on the PLB in the northern part of Balochistan. The project will follow three components that include partial restoration of the water storage capacity, developing small-scale irrigation schemes in the PLB and strengthening and building the capacity of the Irrigation and Power Department, water management institutions, and farmer and community organisations, and implementing studies. The project can contribute to strengthening provincial water management capabilities. The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved the credit with maturity of 35 years and 10 years grace period. Copyright Business Recorder, 2008
The public health system in Orissa is on the brink of collapse. Most government hospitals in the state are running without doctors, para-medical staff, medicine and basic infrastructure. The outbreak of cholera in Koraput last year and the recent cases of anthrax-related deaths have already exposed the weak links in the health system. What's worse, at a time when the government is grappling with controversies like irregularities in the Rs 415-crore World Bank-aided Orissa Health Systems Development Project and the fake medicine scam, about 3,000 government doctors have threatened to quit their jobs. On February 18, government doctors across the state put in their papers en-masse demanding higher salary and more privileges. The doctors have given a time-frame of one month to the government to either consider their 18-point charter of demands or accept the resignation letters. Their demands include basic salary of Rs 12,000-Rs 16,500 per month at the entry level (subject to revision, as per recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission), specialist allowance of 30% of the basic salary, in-service post-graduation study and housing accommodation for doctors from primary health centres to block headquarters and, above all, security to all doctors. The doctors demands are not illogical, say observers. With the population:doctor ratio touching a new low (roughly one doctor to 8,000 patients), the doctors in government hospitals have to bear the burden of a huge workload. Unable to meet the growing demand, these doctors end up facing public wrath. There have been many such incidents in various parts of the state. Moreover, these doctors see no reason why they should serve the government when higher salaries and better privileges await in the private sector. Amidst all this, it is the patients who have been suffering. Orissa is virtually running short of doctors, particularly allopathic, in recent years. There are 929 posts of doctors that have been lying vacant in various streams. Of these, 765 are for allopathic, 77 ayurvedic and 87 homeopathic doctors. The highest number of 31 vacancies in allopathy has been reported in Sundergarh district. Even though state health minister Sanatan Bisi has assured the people that the vacancies would be filled up, the fact is that adequate number of doctors are not available in the state. The few doctors who pass out from the three government medical colleges migrate to other states in search of higher compensation, promotional avenues, professional security and social status. There are 150 seats each in the three medical colleges and hospitals in the state, while in private medical colleges there are 300 seats. In a desperate bid, the state government is now considering enhancing the entry age limit of doctors for government jobs from 32 years to 45. It also proposes to raise the retirement age of government doctors from the present 60 to 62. Meanwhile, the state government has empowered the chief district medical officers to appoint on contract those MBBS pass-outs who have failed to make it in the Orissa Public Service examinations and have crossed the age limit. Retired doctors can also be appointed on contract basis till 68 years of age. An incentive of Rs 4,000 a month has been announced, besides salary, for doctors posted at the district and sub-divisional headquarters of KBK, Boudh and Gajapati districts. Doctors on rural stint in these districts get an incentive of Rs 8,000 a month. Contractual doctors in KBK, Gajapati and Boudh districts get Rs 18,000 a month while in the rest of the districts, the salary amounts to Rs 12,000 a month. "There is requirement of an additional 5,000 doctors in the state. From where will such a huge number of doctors come'? says Madhusudan Mishra, president of Orissa Medical Service Association (OMSA). He suggests that the state government should take immediate steps to retain existing doctors and provide them all the facilities. "The doctors demands will be taken up for consideration soon after the on-going Budget session is over', health minister Bisi said.
M. Shashidhar Reddy, Congress MLA and member of the National Disaster Management Authority, on Sunday wanted the World Bank to focus on funding disaster prevention. Delivering the keynote address at the opening session of the Sustainable Development Network Week organised by the Global Forum for Disaster Risk and Recovery (GFDRR) of the World Bank at Washington, Mr. Reddy said the bank at present approached natural disasters in a manner that was reactive rather than proactive and strategic. "When the World Bank is being reactive, project objectives provide for short-term fixes and rarely address the root causes of disaster. Projects are rushed to approval but then disbursement is delayed. Reconstruction projects build infrastructure that is not disaster resilient and the time required for implementation is consistently underestimated,' he said in a press release from Washington. Need for review There was a need to review the working of the World Bank itself to see how it could further get involved in disaster prevention, which will contribute significantly to sustainable development. Quoting from an evaluation about the bank's funding of projects across the world, he observed that it had mostly lent for emergencies since its inception. Some 110 countries have borrowed for natural disasters for about 528 projects covering more than 60 different activities. Reconstruction focus But these focused primarily on reconstruction with just 21 (out of 528) projects being wholly devoted to prevention. His other suggestions included preparing a strategy that takes into account the differing vulnerabilities of borrowing countries, modifying current operational guidelines so that they address the long-term development needs of borrowers and ensuring that the bank has sufficient specialised expertise available to respond quickly. Highlight A highlight of this year's events was the session under the cross-cutting theme "Investing in Disaster Prevention for Sustainable Development,' he said. The opening session was chaired by Kathy Sierra, Vice-President, Sustainable Development Network of the World Bank. "In India there is now a paradigm shift in our approach from the rescue and relief centric approach to a holistic approach covering all phases including pre-disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness,' he said.
