Authors

This blog was created by Ethan Nauman, Nick Berg, Jeff Hessburg, and Megan Starry

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Megan Starry, Nicholas Berg, Jeff Hessburg
Millennium Development Goal 8: Global Partnership for Development
•Target 8.A: Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system
•Target 8.B: Address the special needs of the least developed countries
•Target 8.C: Address the special needs of landlocked developing countries and small island developing States
•Target 8.D: Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries through national and international measures in order to make debt sustainable in the long term
8.1 Net ODA, total and to the least developed countries, as percentage of OECD/DAC donors' gross national income
8.2 Proportion of total bilateral, sector-allocable ODA of OECD/DAC donors to basic social services (basic education, primary health care, nutrition, safe water and sanitation)
8.3 Proportion of bilateral official development assistance of OECD/DAC donors that is untied
8.4 ODA received in landlocked developing countries as a proportion of their gross national incomes
8.5 ODA received in small island developing States as a proportion of their gross national incomes
8.6 Proportion of total developed country imports (by value and excluding arms) from developing countries and least developed countries, admitted free of duty
8.7 Average tariffs imposed by developed countries on agricultural products and textiles and clothing from developing countries
8.8 Agricultural support estimate for OECD countries as a percentage of their gross domestic product
8.9 Proportion of ODA provided to help build trade capacity
8.10 Total number of countries that have reached their HIPC decision points and number that have reached their HIPC completion points (cumulative)
8.11 Debt relief committed under HIPC and MDRI Initiatives
8.12 Debt service as a percentage of exports of goods and service
•Target 8.E: In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries
8.13 Proportion of population with access to affordable essential drugs on a sustainable basis
•Target 8.F: In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications
8.14 Fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
8.15 Mobile-cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
8.16 Internet users per 100 inhabitants
Indicator Discussion:
8.2 is a particularly important indicator because with most solutions and interventions, monetary backing is a crucial component. 8.2 discusses how money from donors (ODA) is divided up between topics, especially social services. Fortunately, often times a large proportion is put towards social services which includes, health, education, and sanitation practices. With more money focused on these topics allows for greater success and penetration into rural areas, areas that often get passed over due to a reduced population compared to large cities. With more funding, health facilities can be more up to date, offer more treatment options and handle more health concerns. As we’ve seen with many of the other MDGs education is of utmost importance and with an increase in education often times things like health are increased and more emphasis is put on proper hygiene and sanitation.  
This is not to say these are the only areas to focus money. Focusing on job growth and sustainable, scalable jobs are important and crucial to health as well. With education comes a workforce more prepared for skilled jobs often times that are more safe and reduce injury, thus increasing health of people and offering opportunities to rise up over poverty.  

Many decisions and worldly events have affected progress towards MDG 8 since the establishment of the MDGs. Overall progress was made in terms of global market positioning with several years of commodity goods increasing in price. One setback was the global economic crisis which influenced many regions and Latin America & Caribbean was no different. Through trade agreements, many export deals have been made, some with long term implications that is encouraging for growth and expected to be extended through future deals. Addressing the ICT and the level of information available: as of late 2008 more emphasis has been put on policies regarding information. These policies support that by strengthening, communication and information channels often leads to better economic and social developments which directly helps the population and allows for growth. With ever increasing technology, giving youth the tools to educate themselves on this tech encourages success in the future and keeping the region current with more developed parts of the world.
We are starting to see preliminary research done on the costs of biodiversity reduction in Latin America. For most in the region this is a new concept and we are hopeful that with this new information comes swift and effective decisions promoting the decrease in biodiversity loss.  
Although there are challenges in overcoming this loss, even the smallest step towards succeeding the eighth MDG can be crucial as it relates to the other seven MDGs. From strengthening global partnership within the Latin American and the Caribbean region just through promoting debt relief from increasing poverty-reducing expenditures, citizens of the region will have the competency to acquire an income provide food, shelter, better primary education and a healthy lifestyle for their children, impregnated wives, and the elderly. Not to mention, if/when the eighth MDG has been met, there will be increased efficiency in the relation of reduction of mortality, conquest of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, and ensuring a more environmental sustainability. Though with the market collapse that happened in 2008, globally, it has been a challenge to continue evolving the progress towards succeeding and acquiring the goal of the eighth MDG. But, thankfully, the region has been making progress from participating in interventions.
free-trade-benefits-and-disadvantages.jpg
Intervention:
Free trade is a trade between two countries without any trade restrictions or regulations such as tariffs or quotas. The Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) was set into place February 1, 2009. The PTPA “eliminates tariffs and removes barriers to U.S. services, provides a secure, predictable legal framework for investors, and strengthens protection for intellectual property, workers, and the environment” (ustr.gov). PTPA is the first provision protecting the environment and labor rights as part of the Bipartisan Agreement on Trade Policy, which was set in place on May 10, 2007 by the Bush Administration. This has caused total trade to almost double from $9 billion in 2009 to $16 billion in 2013. The PTPA creates new opportunities for increased exports of farm products to Peru. The Peru environment is now more protected with less illegal logging and wildlife trade. There will be more U.S. investors in Peruvian stock because there is a more secure and predictable legal framework.

Case study:
Aftermath of the PTPA has shown that the government of Peru has had trouble enforcing all of the labor standards contained in the Peru Trade Promotion Agreement. Especially in the garment, textile, and agricultural export sector. Combined these sectors produce billions of dollars of goods for the U.S. market. An example is that the Peruvian government has failed to enforce everything is Topy Top. Topy Top is one of the biggest Peruvian garment and textile companies. Instead of employing long term workers like they were asked, they instead employ short-term contracts. This is to avoid unions.

Question
What is free trade, and how can it benefit Latin American and the Caribbean financially?

Sources:
http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/librarypage/mdg/mdg-reports/lac-collection.html

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

MDG 7 Ensure environmental sustainability

Millennium Development Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability
Target 7.A: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources
  • 7.1 Proportion of land area covered by forest
  • 7.2 CO2 emissions, total, per capita and per $1 GDP (PPP)
  • 7.3 Consumption of ozone-depleting substances
  • 7.4 Proportion of fish stocks within safe biological limits
  • 7.5 Proportion of total water resources used
  • 7.6 Proportion of terrestrial and marine areas protected
  • 7.7 Proportion of species threatened with extinction
Target 7.B: Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss
  • 7.8 Proportion of population using an improved drinking water source
  • 7.9 Proportion of population using an improved sanitation facility
Target 7C: By 2015, halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
Target 7.D: By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers
7.10 Proportion of urban population living in slums
Ethan Nauman, Nicholas Berg, Megan Starry, Jeff Hessburg
Progress Regarding MDG7
Progress has been made regarding MDG 7 but it is a complex issue with many factors and facets. 7.1 comes into play largely regarding Latin America and the Caribbean. This region is home to the fastest rates of deforestation. To date there are almost no real incentives to protect the forests and essentially nobody is weighing the future costs of taking these forests down now. A recurring theme surrounding all the issues that the MDGs are addressing are people looking for immediate wealth without considering future costs. Each day more forests are being cut down and the region gets further and further away from achieving the 7.1 target.
7.2 can easily be linked back to 7.1 as it addresses CO2 emissions. A majority of the emissions released in the region can be linked to the massive amounts of deforestation occurring. If deforestation is decreased and 7.1 improves, so will 7.2
7.3 addresses the release of ozone depleting substances and this is an area where decent progress has been made. Much of the progress can be linked to the Montreal Protocol which phased out a lot of products that involved the release of ozone depleting substances. If the current trend continues the release of ozone depleting substances will eventually stop altogether, maintaining the current progress is a battle in itself however.
7.8 and 7.9 are issues that in many ways are being addressed together. In Latin America and the Caribbean the two goals have been for the most part achieved in urban areas but there is still room for improvement and focus is now being turned to rural areas where infrastructure is much more remote and harder to access. Maintaining clean and plentiful access to water requires a lot of financial backing with constant maintenance. This makes it rather difficult in areas with high rates of poverty.
Addressing 7.10 is a rather complex issue. The way the goals are written out makes the situation in LA&C seem better than it is. On paper the goal has been reached but when looked at more closely ⅙ of the population is still living in unacceptable conditions. On top of that the progress that was being made has been thrown off because of worldwide economic issues and often times it hurts the people who have the least the most. Reducing slums is not as easy as throwing money at people and hoping they lift themselves out of poverty. It involves education and specific policies in place to protect those who are trying to remove themselves from the slums and making sure they have the necessary tools to make sure they do not fall backwards back into the slums.  
Relationship with Other Millennium Development Goals
The focus on ensuring environmental sustainability can be related to the previous three millennium development goals we discussed in our previous blogs: MDG 4 (reduce child mortality), MDG 5 (improve maternal health), and MDG 6 (combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases). According to water.org, an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide “safe water and the dignity of a toilet for all”, articulates “every 90 seconds a child dies from a water-related disease”. The lack of a sustainable living environment with clean drinking water is a leading cause towards the cessation of reducing child mortality in the Latin American and Caribbean region. A very common water-related disease is caused by Giardia intestinalis (“a parasite found in the fecal matter of an infected person or animal and can be spread when someone swallows water that has been contaminated with fecal matter of an infected person or animal”) (CDC.gov). Not only is there a high potential hazard to drink water within the region, but also retaining it can be a burden as water.org again states, “women and children [around the world] spend 125 million hours each day collecting water”. This journey of fetching water can be taxing on the women and children while having a concerning possible risk of disease from improper footwear. From use of improper footwear, those who get the water are at risk of wounding themselves on the foot that can further into a disease from stepping within the potentially contaminated water source, like hookworm. With initiatives to establish and maintain clean water and environment sanitation and hygiene, the Latin American and Caribbean region- and other regions for that matter- can lower the risks of getting waterborne and transmitted diseases and infections.
Decisions Affecting Progress
Deforestation occurring in Latin America
With MDG 7 covering a multitude of issues many of the indicators have to be grouped and addressed in sections rather than all at once. The deforestation of the region is at such a massive scale it is almost impossible to reduce it all at once. Some steps have been taken to address illegal logging of forests but the legal logging is what is predominantly the issue. At this point leaders in the region are to scared of cutting off logging as it is such a huge operation and source of money for the region. Once again, short term gains are being focused on without too much thought put on long term harm. Eventually there will be no forests left with land and soil that is barren and unable to produce the cash some are used to.
Major emphasis was put on increasing water quality and that's important, clean water should be accessible by anyone and significant progress has been made in urban areas where the largest populations live. Governments and organizations now have to shift their focus to the rural areas that are often times forgotten.
People getting fresh drinking water. 
Addressing the slum issues as mentioned before is a complex issue. Reducing the number of slums and people living in them is beneficial in many ways but mostly at a health level. Often times diseases like tuberculosis are spread in areas densely population with low sanitation. If slums can be cleaned up and people can be brought out of poverty, health levels will increase which allows people to focus on things such as education and growth as communities.

Intervention
WWF (World Wildlife Fund) is the world’s leading conservation organization working in 100 countries and is supported globally by 5 million people. They aim to conserve, protect, and improve; forests, oceans, freshwater, wildlife, food, and the climate. In relation to MDG 7.7 and 7.B, WWF has a program called the Forest Conservation Initiative (FCI) “with the goal of reducing conversion of high conservation value forests (HCVFs) and other non-forest areas to palm oil plantations and soy fields in key ecoregions“(WWF). The main determinant of health relating to this problem is economics. A drive for money is the main reason deforestation is occuring. In Latin America and the Caribbean they work in: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Paraguay. They engage companies that produce palm oil and soy aiming for them to adopt a landscape-level land use methodology and to not produce their products in high conservation value area (HCVA). They want to create a demand for sustainably produced commodities. This will create appropriate and better land management practice.
wwf-logo.jpg

One major intervention that recently took place in March 2016 was Canada donating $20 million to IDB (Inter-American Development Bank) for research on safe practices for extraction of natural resources (gas, oil, mining). This project will focus on supporting regional public goods that promote long term prospects, reasonable investments, and good relations between actors in the sector. Not only will IDB look at safe practices, but they will also build institutions aimed at educating workers on proper techniques and practices to keep them safe and the surrounding communities safe. The IDB was established in 1959 and is the leading source of long term fianacing for economic, social and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. IDP also provides training for the public and private sector to keep everyone aware of the safe practices that they have to offer.

Case Study
The jaguar is listed as endangered due to habitat loss and overhunting. Originally having a strong presence in southern U.S. and Mexico, they are nearly wiped out. They are still prevalent in South America, but they have a declining population. Their habitat loss is due to an increase in farms, ranches, mines, roads, towns, and residential subdivisions. They are also being poached in South America as their pelts drive a high price on the black market. This is due to an economic determinant that people will do illegal things in order to get money for their families. h.
Standing_jaguar.jpg

 Antibiotic use is a major concern when dealing with people in LAC. Antibiotics have drastically reduced deaths and illness from infectious diseases, but one problem in LAC is the overuse and misuse leading to a build up and antibiotic resistance. In LAC the misuse of antimicrobials without a doctor's prescription is due to loss laws implemented on the sales of antibiotics.

Benefiting Public Health
The intervention regarding antibiotics and controlling overuse is multifaceted. On one hand it is a huge deal that people are now starting to have access to antibiotics which unlocks a ton of potential for increasing health situations. On the other hand the control of antibiotics is also important because with overuse they lose their effectiveness. The control of antibiotics in Latin America is benefiting public health because it is insuring they remain effective and helpful to patients while making sure they aren’t being improperly used and misused.

Question: Why is clean water so important to reducing child mortality in Latin America?
References
file:///home/chronos/u-05b62a2d5581519dff57d56db844db67b6990d92/Downloads/ODMAchievingthemillennium%20(1).pdf
http://tcktcktck.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Indonesia-Rainforest-Deforestation-CC-Rainforest-Action-Network-2009.jpg
http://www.wwf.org.uk/wildlife/jaguars/
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Thursday, April 7, 2016

Millennium Development Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases
Goal: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Target 6.A: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
Target 6.B: Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it
Target 6.C: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases
6.1 HIV prevalence among population aged 15-24 years
6.2 Condom use at last high-risk sex
6.3 Proportion of population aged 15-24 years with comprehensive correct knowledge of HIV/AIDS
6.4 Ratio of school attendance of orphans to school attendance of non-orphans aged 10-14 years
6.5 Proportion of population with advanced HIV infection with access to antiretroviral drugs
6.6 Incidence and death rates associated with malaria
6.7 Proportion of children under 5 sleeping under insecticide-treated bednets
6.8 Proportion of children under 5 with fever who are treated with appropriate anti-malarial drugs
6.9 Incidence, prevalence and death rates associated with tuberculosis
6.10 Proportion of tuberculosis cases detected and cured under directly observed treatment short course

Megan Starry, Jeff Hessburg, Ethan Nauman, Nick Berg

Combatting HIV/AIDs and other diseases is often times a very complex and multifaceted issue. As we’ve seen with other goals there are many factors that go into succeeding each MDG and MDG 6 is no different.

In Latin America and the Caribbean Catholicism plays a major role in a majority of people’s lives. Religion is often intertwined very deeply in people’s lives and in this region this is no different. A major area of concern from a Public Health standpoint is the lack of contraceptives used by members of the Catholic church, especially in areas where there are higher transmitted disease rates. Although in Latin America and the Caribbean disease rates are not as high as they are in other regions this is still a significant factor. If people are refusing to use contraceptives such as condoms they are putting themselves at a much more significant chance of contracting diseases such as HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. This can be connected back to many other of the MDGs as education is very important in this case and potential children are put at risk even before being born.  

Reducing disease rates should be a goal for obvious reasons but there are also some reasons not as apparent. If a child is plagued with disease such as malaria their main focus is to get better and fight the disease when in an ideal situation they should be focused on going to school and getting an education in hopes to better themselves and their future families. This shows yet again shows how connected the MDGs are. Weeks ago we discussed how important education and growing attendance rates at school. It is one thing for a student to not attend school because they find it uninteresting but something to focus on is children not being able to attend school because their health and wellbeing simply doesn’t allow it.

Fortunately, this region is in a much better position for treating diseases such as tuberculosis yet there is still room for progress to be made. Currently 74% of tuberculosis cases are being treated successfully so the region has not quite achieved 85%. Fortunately tuberculosis is treatable and one can be cured. Unfortunately, treatment is expensive and most cases are occurring in poor, urban areas. The fact tuberculosis can be cured is great but as urbanization continues, more are being exposed to the disease. Rather than treating the disease on a case by case basis, a major area of focus needs to be getting people out of malnourished poor areas and uplifting communities through education, sanitation practices and widespread efforts. Tuberculosis has to be fought through environmental, social and economic movements.

The millennium development goals are widely connected and in many ways if one fails it makes it that much harder to succeed in the other goals. A recurring theme spreading across many of the goals is the need for awareness, education and resources. Educating people puts them at much better odds to fight issues and uplift themselves and those close to them out of bad situations and improve their lives. Education is also crucial because it informs people how to live healthier, potentially slow down and prevent the spread of disease growth and it empowers those who were kept in the dark before.

This chart represents the prevention of disease progression within the Latin American and Caribbean region. This region has a low number of known HIV/AIDS cases and tuberculosis related mortality rates within its population.

Not only is malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis diseases life-threatening to the Latin American and Caribbean regions, but an ever-growing disease called “the Zika virus” has made its way to the top of the charts. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Zika virus disease is “a disease caused by Zika virus that is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito. The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes)”. Not to mention, it also possesses the possibility of causing birth malformations and neurological syndromes. The disease causes great threat for Latin America it mainly found in  is an increase in potential international spread given the wide, geographical range of the mosquito vector and there is not yet a specific treatment or vaccination found for the Zika virus; but, researchers have added the Zika virus vaccine right up next to creating HIV and AIDS vaccinations.

For more information, watch this video about the Zika virus disease.

Interventions
The Elton John Aids Foundation (EJAF) is the world’s largest HIV grant makers. Founded in 1992 by Sir Elton John, they have raised more than 349 million dollars for the treatment and prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. Half of their effort is focused on US and the Caribbean. The way this organization works is by funding hundreds of grants to other organizations each year, and fund new ideas, and ways of working with this issue. The actively advocate their cause and make a point to educate and inform people about HIV and AIDS and the importance of preventing it. The grants EJAF gives are targeted to generate results and success in: innovative work for gay men’s health, push for better health services for youth, improve overall care and testing of HIV communities in the US, ensure that people who are HIV positive get the treatment they need, and are able to stay on that HIV treatment.  

The Global Fund is waging a three pronged attack on the world’s deadliest diseases: HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. Since the beginning in 2002, The Global Fund has become the main supporter of programs that are looking for a cure, giving $22.9 billion to over 1,000 different efforts in 151 countries. The same holds true with Latin America and the Caribbean's effort with The Global Fund. This fund will allocate $600 million to LA&C during the 2014-2016 period, this exceeds the amount the region received over the last four years.

Case Study: Communities Addressing Tuberculosis

Many communities in Latin America and other regions are turning towards community based treatment plans with the help of local health departments and NGOs. In Montero, Bolivia there is one community focused on identifying tuberculosis, treating it and stopping it from spreading. Members of the community who are selected or volunteer are responsible for overseeing treatment of patients sick and are given incentives for doing so. By making this a community focus, members of the community are gaining a medical knowledge set and also getting help for their own families while getting a chance to help fellow community members. This community focus was formed after health agencies noticed patients not adhering to TB treatments, this program adds a level of accountability and overall makes treatment of the disease more effective.  


Question: Instead of treating a tuberculosis, what is a major area of focus that can rapidly reduce tuberculosis in an area?

References
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