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Two mothers killed each hour in Gaza conflict: UN Women

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: News-Reports-Studies; Published: 20 January 2024; Hits: 269

THE UNITED NATIONS - Women and children account for roughly 70 per cent of people killed in the war in Gaza, with two mothers killed every hour since hostilities erupted more than 100 days ago, according to a UN Women report published on Friday.

The report examines the gendered impact of the conflict, which has left more than 23,000 Palestinians dead, according to Gazan health authorities, about 16,000 of whom are women or children.

Failure and trauma

“We have seen evidenced once more that women and children are the first victims of conflict and that our duty to seek peace is a duty to them. We are failing them,” UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous said in a statement issued alongside the report.

“That failure, and the generational trauma inflicted on the Palestinian people over these 100 days and counting, will haunt all of us for generations to come,” she warned.

UN Women also reiterated deep concern over the accounts of unconscionable sexual violence and other gender-based violence during the Hamas-led attacks against Israel on 7 October that sparked the conflict.

The agency called for accountability, justice and support for all those affected and for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

‘Impossible decisions’

UN Women said the Gaza conflict “is fundamentally a protection crisis for women” at a time when nowhere in the enclave is safe.

Of the 1.9 million people now displaced, close to a million are women and girls, and the “impossible decisions” they have to make regarding whether to evacuate – when and how as well as where to go – “are entrenched with gender differentiated fears and experiences", given risks of attacks and harassment while on the move.

UN Women further estimated that at least 3,000 women may have become widows and heads of households, and at least 10,000 children may now be fatherless. As a result, more women fear families will resort to desperate coping mechanisms such as early marriage.

Meanwhile, women’s rights organizations continue to operate amidst the crisis. In November, UN Women conducted a rapid survey of 12 women-led organizations and one youth-led group which found that most – 83 per cent – were at least partially operating, focused mainly on the emergency response.

However, less than one per cent of funding under the 2023 Flash Appeal for Gaza has directly gone to women’s groups.

Staying the course

The report is part of UN Women’s six-month response plan for Gaza, which includes providing emergency food assistance to over 14,000 female-headed households and supporting the distribution of items requested by women on the ground such as clothing, sanitary products and baby formula.

The agency is also partnering with women-led organizations to deliver gender responsive services for gender-based violence, establishing women-led protection and response committees in shelters and convening regular consultations with women’s organizations to discuss the challenges they face.

Global Wealth Report 2023: Rich and poor see drop in wealth

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: News-Reports-Studies; Published: 18 August 2023; Hits: 347

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - How has global household wealth developed in 2022? What are the projections for the years ahead? Find out with the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on global household wealth.

Key findings

- Measured in current nominal USD, total net private wealth fell by USD 11.3 trillion
(–2.4%) to USD 454.4 trillion at the end of 2022.

- Wealth per adult also declined by USD 3,198 (–3.6%) to reach USD 84,718 per adult at the end of the year.

- Much of this decline comes from the appreciation of the US dollar against many other currencies.

- Financial assets contributed most to wealth declines in 2022 while non-financial assets (mostly real estate) stayed resilient, despite rapidly rising interest rates.

- The loss of global wealth was heavily concentrated in wealthier regions such as North America and Europe, which together shed USD 10.9 trillion.

- Asia Pacific recorded losses of USD 2.1 trillion, while Latin America is the outlier with a total wealth increase of USD 2.4 trillion, helped by an average 6% currency appreciation against the US dollar.

- Heading the list of losses in country terms in 2022 is the United States, followed by Japan, China, Canada and Australia.

- The largest wealth increases were recorded for Russia, Mexico, India and Brazil.

- Along with the decline in aggregate wealth, overall wealth inequality also fell in 2022, with the wealth share of the global top 1% falling to 44.5%.

- The number of USD millionaires worldwide fell by 3.5 million during 2022 to 59.4 million. This figure does not, however, take into account 4.4 million “inflation millionaires” who would no longer qualify if the millionaire threshold were adjusted for inflation in 2022.

- Global median wealth, arguably a more meaningful indicator of how the typical person is faring, did in fact increase by 3% in 2022 in contrast to the 3.6% fall in wealth per adult.

- For the world as a whole, median wealth has increased five-fold this century at roughly double the pace of wealth per adult, largely due to the rapid wealth growth in China.

- Global wealth is expected to rise by 38% over the next five years, reaching USD 629 trillion by 2027.

- Growth by middle-income countries will be the primary driver of global trends.

- The authors estimate wealth per adult to reach USD 110,270 in 2027 and the number of millionaires to reach 86 million while the number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) is likely to rise to 372,000 individuals.

For the full report, visit: https://www.ubs.com/global/en/family-office-uhnw/reports/global-wealth-report-2023.html#executive

World military expenditure reaches new record

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: News-Reports-Studies; Published: 25 April 2023; Hits: 418

STOCKHOLM - Total global military expenditure increased by 3.7 per cent in real terms in 2022, to reach a new high of $2240 billion. Military expenditure in Europe saw its steepest year-on-year increase in at least 30 years. The three largest spenders in 2022—the United States, China and Russia—accounted for 56 per cent of the world total, according to new data on global military spending published today by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Invasion of Ukraine and tensions in East Asia drive increased spending

World military spending grew for the eighth consecutive year in 2022 to an all-time high of $2240 billion. By far the sharpest rise in spending (+13 per cent) was seen in Europe and was largely accounted for by Russian and Ukrainian spending. However, military aid to Ukraine and concerns about a heightened threat from Russia strongly influenced many other states’ spending decisions, as did tensions in East Asia.

‘The continuous rise in global military expenditure in recent years is a sign that we are living in an increasingly insecure world,’ said Dr Nan Tian, Senior Researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. ‘States are bolstering military strength in response to a deteriorating security environment, which they do not foresee improving in the near future.’

Cold war levels of military expenditure return to Central and Western Europe

Military expenditure by states in Central and Western Europe totalled $345 billion in 2022. In real terms, spending by these states for the first time surpassed that in 1989, as the cold war was ending, and was 30 per cent higher than in 2013. Several states significantly increased their military spending following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while others announced plans to raise spending levels over periods of up to a decade.

‘The invasion of Ukraine had an immediate impact on military spending decisions in Central and Western Europe. This included multi-year plans to boost spending from several governments,’ said Dr Diego Lopes da Silva, Senior Researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. ‘As a result, we can reasonably expect military expenditure in Central and Western Europe to keep rising in the years ahead.’

Some of the sharpest increases were seen in Finland (+36 per cent), Lithuania (+27 per cent), Sweden (+12 per cent) and Poland (+11 per cent).

‘While the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 certainly affected military spending decisions in 2022, concerns about Russian aggression have been building for much longer,’ said Lorenzo Scarazzato, Researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. ‘Many former Eastern bloc states have more than doubled their military spending since 2014, the year when Russia annexed Crimea.’

Russia and Ukraine raise military spending as war rages on

Russian military spending grew by an estimated 9.2 per cent in 2022, to around $86.4 billion. This was equivalent to 4.1 per cent of Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022, up from 3.7 per cent of GDP in 2021.

Figures released by Russia in late 2022 show that spending on national defence, the largest component of Russian military expenditure, was already 34 per cent higher, in nominal terms, than in budgetary plans drawn up in 2021.

‘The difference between Russia’s budgetary plans and its actual military spending in 2022 suggests the invasion of Ukraine has cost Russia far more than it anticipated,’ said Dr Lucie Béraud-Sudreau, Director of SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme.

Ukraine’s military spending reached $44.0 billion in 2022. At 640 per cent, this was the highest single-year increase in a country’s military expenditure ever recorded in SIPRI data. As a result of the increase and the war-related damage to Ukraine’s economy, the military burden (military spending as a share of GDP) shot up to 34 per cent of GDP in 2022, from 3.2 per cent in 2021.

US spending rises despite high inflation

The United States remains by far the world’s biggest military spender. US military spending reached $877 billion in 2022, which was 39 per cent of total global military spending and three times more than the amount spent by China, the world’s second largest spender. The 0.7 per cent real-terms increase in US spending in 2022 would have been even greater had it not been for the highest levels of inflation since 1981.

‘The increase in the USA’s military spending in 2022 was largely accounted for by the unprecedented level of financial military aid it provided to Ukraine,’ said Dr Nan Tian, SIPRI Senior Researcher. ‘Given the scale of US spending, even a minor increase in percentage terms has a significant impact on the level of global military expenditure.’

US financial military aid to Ukraine totalled $19.9 billion in 2022. Although this was the largest amount of military aid given by any country to a single beneficiary in any year since the cold war, it represented only 2.3 per cent of total US military spending. In 2022 the USA allocated $295 billion to military operations and maintenance, $264 billion to procurement and research and development, and $167 billion to military personnel.

China and Japan lead continued spending increase in Asia and Oceania

The combined military expenditure of countries in Asia and Oceania was $575 billion. This was 2.7 per cent more than in 2021 and 45 per cent more than in 2013, continuing an uninterrupted upward trend dating back to at least 1989.

China remained the world’s second largest military spender, allocating an estimated $292 billion in 2022. This was 4.2 per cent more than in 2021 and 63 per cent more than in 2013. China’s military expenditure has increased for 28 consecutive years.

Japan’s military spending increased by 5.9 per cent between 2021 and 2022, reaching $46.0 billion, or 1.1 per cent of GDP. This was the highest level of Japanese military spending since 1960. A new national security strategy published in 2022 sets out ambitious plans to increase Japan’s military capability over the coming decade in response to perceived growing threats from China, North Korea and Russia.

‘Japan is undergoing a profound shift in its military policy,’ said Xiao Liang, Researcher with SIPRI’s Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme. ‘The post-war restraints Japan imposed on its military spending and military capabilities seem to be loosening.’

Other notable developments:

- The real-terms increase in world military spending in 2022 was slowed by the effects of inflation, which in many countries soared to levels not seen for decades. In nominal terms (i.e. in current prices without adjusting for inflation), the global total increased by 6.5 per cent.

- India’s military spending of $81.4 billion was the fourth highest in the world. It was 6.0 per cent more than in 2021.

- In 2022 military spending by Saudi Arabia, the fifth biggest military spender, rose by 16 per cent to reach an estimated $75.0 billion, its first increase since 2018.

- Nigeria’s military spending fell by 38 per cent to $3.1 billion, after a 56 per cent increase in spending in 2021.

- Military spending by NATO members totalled $1232 billion in 2022, which was 0.9 per cent higher than in 2021.

- The United Kingdom had the highest military spending in Central and Western Europe at $68.5 billion, of which an estimated $2.5 billion (3.6 per cent) was financial military aid to Ukraine.

- In 2022 Türkiye’s military spending fell for the third year in a row, reaching $10.6 billion—a decrease of 26 per cent from 2021.

- Ethiopia’s military spending rose by 88 per cent in 2022, to reach $1.0 billion. The increase coincided with a renewed government offensive against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front in the north of the country.

For the full publication, visit: https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2023-04/2304_fs_milex_2022.pdf

Refugee camps in Chad overcrowded and running out of aid

Details: Written by Super User; Category: Africa; Published: 22 March 2024; Hits: 132

By JSARH NGARNDEY ULRICH and JESSICA DONATI

METCHE CAMP, Chad — Overcrowded refugee camps in eastern Chad are set to run out of money soon, exacerbating a dire humanitarian crisis caused by the spillover from a deadly conflict in Sudan, the United Nations said.

More than a million people in Chad, including refugees, face losing access to lifesaving aid unless more funding is raised to help, the U.N. World Food Program said this month.

The devastating conflict between feuding generals in Sudan has killed more than 5,000 people there and displaced over 5 million, the United Nations said. In Chad, refugee numbers are at a 20-year high. The U.N. has warned that the conflict is on course to become the world’s worst hunger crisis, with a third of Sudan’s 18 million people facing acute food insecurity already.

At refugee camps in eastern Chad, lack of clean drinking water and sanitation is causing dangerous diseases to spread. Doctors Without Borders said it has recorded almost 1,000 cases of hepatitis E in the camps and several pregnant women have died.

“The situation is dire in all camps,” said Erneau Mondesir, the group’s medical coordinator in the region. “Without swift action to improve sanitation infrastructure and enhance people’s access to clean water, we risk witnessing a surge in preventable illnesses and unnecessary loss of life.”

At the Metche Camp, which is sheltering some 40,000 refugees, people are in dire need of water, food, shelter and basic sanitation. Earlier this month an Associated Press reporter saw aid workers unload sacks of grain from trucks for distribution as fierce winds blew across the rocky, sandy terrain.

Aid workers used loudspeakers to explain the work and distribute tokens among refugees. “Here we do distribution in a targeted manner,” Ahmat Absakine, an aid worker with Caritas, another aid group in the region.

Water shortages are causing diseases to spread, and aid workers fear a catastrophe if supplies run out.

“The spillover from the crisis in Sudan is overwhelming an underfunded and overstretched humanitarian response in Chad. We need donors to prevent the situation from becoming an all-out catastrophe,” said Pierre Honnorat, the World Food Program’s top representative in Chad.

Analysts also fear the humanitarian situation could cause Chad’s own political tensions to erupt. In February, opposition leader Yaya Dillo was killed in the capital. He was the president’s cousin and a strong contender in the presidential election scheduled for May.

Finances and aid supplies at humanitarian operations are critically low. This will increase competition over resources between refugees and host communities in eastern Chad, further fueling local tensions and regional instability,” said Andrew Smith, senior Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft.

Chad’s interim president, Mahamat Deby Itno, seized power after his father who ran the country for more than three decades was killed fighting rebels in 2021. Last year, the government announced it was extending the 18-month transition for two more years, which led to protests across the country.