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- UN charts progress on gender gaps
Around the world, the gender gap between women and men is closing in areas such as health and education, but increased efforts are needed to address gaps in public life and gender-based violence, the United Nations says in a new report, the World's Women 2010. Primary school education is now even for boys and girls, and women now make up the majority of those seeking higher education, the report found, even though the majority of females still earn less than their male counterparts. The New York Times (free registration) (10/20)       - China disputes ammo allegations in UN report
Some UN diplomats speaking anonymously are saying that the Chinese government is trying to quash publication of a report that claims at least a dozen brands of Chinese-made bullets have been fired at peacekeepers patrolling the Darfur region of western Sudan. Under current UN sanctions, China may sell bullets to Sudan, but they may not be used in Darfur. BBC (10/21) - UNESCO suspends support for Obiang prize
UNESCO's executive board has decided to suspend the body's participation for a science prize named after Teodoro Obiang Nguema, the president of Equatorial Guinea. Human-rights advocates and anti-corruption campaigners applied significant pressure on the executive board to end plans for the UNESCO-Obiang Prize for Life Sciences on the grounds it would provide international legitimacy to Obiang. Google/Agence France-Presse (10/21)  - Malaria deaths in India exceed estimates
New research shows that deaths in India from malaria outpace World Health Organization estimates by at least 13 times. Field workers, who placed the figure at 200,000 deaths annually, interviewed families at their homes because most deaths in India occur at home, without medical supervision. BBC (10/20) - U.K. announces austerity plan
Public services ranging from defense to universities to unemployment assistance will diminish as the result of severe austerity measures announced this week by the British government. The measures, which will be implemented in stages over the next four years, are expected to eliminate as many as a half a million jobs in the public sector and raise the retirement age to 66. TIME (10/20) - Bolivia gets ocean outlet in pact with Peru
Landlocked Bolivia has access to the ocean for the next 99 years as part of a pact signed this week with neighboring Peru. Bolivia will receive dock facilities, a specially created free-trade zone and space to conduct economic and naval activities. Authorities from both countries said the deal would not end Bolivian efforts to persuade Chile to provide Bolivia with an ocean corridor through territory Chile seized in a war during the 1880s. The Independent (London) (10/21) - Rice yields can improve with less water
A new system for growing rice uses less water, yet results in 50% higher yields, a development group says. The system, held out as a remedy to regions afflicted by drought, entails weeding by hand, planting seedlings farther apart and keeping rice paddies moist but not flooded. AlertNet.org/Reuters (10/20) - ITU: Online population will hit 2B this year
About 2 billion people or one-third of the world's population will be online by the end of 2010, per a report from the UN's International Telecommunication Union. The ITU reports that 71% of the populations in developed countries are online, compared with 21% in developing countries. The gap between developed and undeveloped widens when it comes to in-home Internet access. Computerworld (10/19) - Myanmar court takes up Suu Kyi appeal
Myanmar's highest court has agreed to hear the final appeal of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi over her latest term of house arrest even though general elections, and the expiration of her term, are only weeks away. "We believe that [she] will be released on 13 November, but we are pursuing this legal battle to prove her innocence," says Suu Kyi's lawyer. BBC (10/21) - U.S.-Saudi arms deal reflects regional concerns
A U.S.-Saudi arms deal for $60 billion worth of fighter jets, helicopters and other military equipment is being broadly viewed as an attempt by America and its allies to counter the rising military capabilities of Iran. Israel, which has traditionally objected to any American arms deals with Arab countries, has raised no concerns in what observers see as a strategic acknowledgment that both Israel and Saudi Arabia view Iran as a common threat. Google/The Associated Press (10/21) - Iran broadens banking to counter sanctions
Iran is attempting to create banks in Muslim countries throughout the world in an effort to undermine the effects of the latest UN Security Council sanctions. To date, 16 Iranian banks have been blacklisted by the United States for their alleged involvement in Iranian nuclear and terrorist initiatives. The Washington Post (10/20)
- A new poll from the Better World Campaign says that 59% of Americans support the United Nations and 63% support paying our UN dues. Surprised?
 | Yes -- those numbers seem high | | Yes -- those numbers seem low | | No -- that seems about right |
- Register now for the mHealth Summit in Washington, D.C.
The 2010 mHealth Summit brings together leaders in government, private sector/industry, academia and not-for-profit organizations to share information and experiences related to the intersection of mobile technology, health research and policy.Featured speakers include Bill Gates, Co-chair and Trustee of the Bill Melinda Gates Foundation; Aneesh Chopra, U.S. Chief Technology Officer; Dr. Julio Frenk Dean of Faculty, Harvard School of Public Health; and Ted Turner, Chairman, UN Foundation. The mHealth Summit takes place Nov. 8 to 10 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. Click here for more information and to register. |
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| | | About UN WIRE | | UN Wire is a free service sponsored by the United Nations Foundation which is dedicated to supporting the United Nations' efforts to address the most pressing humanitarian, socioeconomic and environmental challenges facing the world today. | | | | | | | | Recent UN Wire Issues: - Wednesday, October 20, 2010
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