Welcome to IRIN's reading list.
Every week our global network of specialist correspondents will share some of their top picks of recent must-read research, reports and in-depth articles while also highlighting key upcoming conferences and policy debates.
Five to read:
Global Nutrition Report: Actions and accountability to accelerate the world's progress on nutrition
Ahead of one of the largest nutrition conferences in 20 years (see below), this in-depth report looks at the state of malnutrition in the world and analyses the successes and failures of attempts to tackle it. Among the key findings are the need to impose tougher accountability measures for missed targets, techniques to improve coordination, and the need to lobby for nutrition to be a greater part of the forthcoming 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Humanitarian aid after Ebola
In this short but thought-provoking piece, Bertrand Taithe, executive director of the Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute (HCRI) at the UK’s University of Manchester, ponders whether Ebola will be a turning point for the humanitarian system. “You may be able to negotiate in politics but you can’t do so with viruses,” he argues, questioning whether “the recourse to security-based frames of analysis may change durably how humanitarians reflect on danger and the world”.
The growing battery of imaging satellites gets more of a humanitarian side
Satellite imagery is shaking off its snooping image as companies like Skybox, a newly-acquired part of Google, pledge to provide free pictures for work it classes as “for good”. Satellite pictures are a useful tool to help crisis management in disaster zones, tracking natural events or movement of people or armies. The UN Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT) already does a fair bit of its own mapping, but it seems like more pictures are going to be made available.
Uprooted by Conflict: South Sudan’s displacement crisis
The International Rescue Committee’s latest report focuses on the needs of the 1.4 million people who have been displaced by violence in South Sudan and the more than 455,000 refugees who have fled South Sudan for neighbouring countries. It also examines the special problems confronting host communities in South Sudan and in neighbouring countries that have taken in refugees.
No Escape: Civilians in Syria Struggle to Find Safety Across Borders
This new report from the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and International Rescue Committee (IRC) paints a bleak picture about the plight of Syria’s civilians. Many men, women and children are being turned back at borders and blocked from escaping, and those that do make it out are falling victim to the limited international support being given to neighbouring host countries. IRC President David Miliband describes the situation as a “depressing failure of international solidarity” and calls on the “world's wealthier countries” to take action.
Upcoming event:
The Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2)
Taking place 19-21 November at the Rome HQ of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), ICN2 is jointly organized with the World Health Organization (WHO). The event brings together global policymakers and stakeholders to discuss what next for nutritional policy and goals. Expect nutrition to lead next week’s development agenda.
In case you missed it
The End of Aid: Does foreign aid maintain poverty?
Watch this interesting panel discussion featuring former UK Secretary of State for International Development Hilary Benn, World Bank economist and development expert Thomas Dichter, author and former UN economist Janne Teller, and others. The group digs deep in questions about aid effectiveness and whether we should be seeking out a new model. Arguments that aid does not stimulate growth and that it is an outdated tool of neo-colonialism are pitted against moral obligation and responsibility. We have heard a lot of this before, but this is still an engaging debate.
From IRIN:
Crypto-currencies and the aid industry
IRIN takes a deep dive into the possibilities of using an online currency like Bitcoin as a tool to support humanitarian response. Bitcoin has already been used in a small way to raise money for the Ebola response in Sierra Leone but could it help facilitate mechanisms like cash transfers?
Our new interactive portal for all our top Ebola news, including on the ground diaries, photogalleries and in-depth stories.
Have we missed a key report or event this week from the humanitarian world? Let us know in the comments below, or via Facebook or Twitter.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
