FAST-TRACKED: EU READIES LONG-TERM COOPERATION STRATEGY FOR MALI

While Mali is still in chaos, the European Union is already gearing up to resuming development cooperation. The regional bloc has identified priority sectors, but not yet partner organizations.

The commission may mobilize as much as €250 million ($333 million) development assistance, focused on governance and economic development. A needs assessment is in progress; it will be followed by consultations with Malian government and civil society representatives, a spokesperson for the European External Action Service told Devex.

The money will be channeled through the European Development Fund, the spokesperson added.

The European Union suspended development aid to Mali following a coup attempt in March. EU’s decision to resume it would be based on the progress of a national dialogue of all forces in Mali as well as a road map leading to elections, the EEAS spokesperson stressed. Part of the EU’s goal is to help Mali build a stable democracy.

The decision to lift the hold on longer-term aid comes after EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton told European foreign ministers last week that the commission is ”looking” to increase its humanitarian support for Malians.

To that end, the EU’s humanitarian arm, ECHO, has announced it will provide another €20 million in emergency relief to help the growing number of people displaced by fighting between armed militias and Malian forces that are being aided by France and a host of other countries. The money is expected to go toward the work of ECHO partners in Mali and neighboring countries such as Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso.

European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Kristalina Georgieva made the announcement on Tuesday, Jan. 22, during a visit to Mali. Georgieva appealed to donors to “act swiftly as the populations have been weakened by months for hardship.”

Fighting continues between rebels and government-led forces. Access to many parts of the country remains difficult.

Climate change, desertification and the “government’s reluctance to implement meaningful development programs” in the north have led to rebels feeling “abandoned by the Malian state,” wrote Anna Alissa Hitzemann and Ben Zala of the Oxford Research Group in a report released Tuesday.

It is these “feelings of resentment and marginalisation that drive such conflicts” as the one in Mali, the report notes, adding: “It is the resentment towards the central government over the marginalisation of the northern territories and its population that in part has helped Islamists gain strength.”

The European Union will host a ministerial meeting of the international support and follow-up group on the situation in Mali. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is also set to discuss the situation with African leaders at the ongoing African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The focus of the Mali donor conference set for Jan. 29 in Addis Ababa, meanwhile, is on the training and deployment of African troops to Mali.

ECONOMIES REBOUND FASTER FROM CRISIS WHEN RESPONSES FOCUS ON WOMEN’S NEEDS

Women everywhere are suffering the consequences of the current global financial and economic crises, but how Governments respond can make a big difference. Citing success stories from Sweden and Argentina, as well as from Egypt, Ghana and Bangladesh, two new research papers being launched by UN Women today point the way to how countries can ensure the policies they adopt to cope with crises can protect and empower women.

UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet addresses academics

at a symposium on policy responses to financial and economic crises, being

held 21-22 January in New York. Photo credit: UN Women/Catianne Tijerina

Moreover, they argue that policies which take into account the specific impact on women workers are actually more likely to result in a sustained and equitable economic recovery.

Both research papers are being launched at the two-day workshop “Critical Perspectives on Financial and Economic Crises: Why Gender Matters” being held in New York from 21-22 January 2013. Organized by UN Women and the International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE), the workshop will consist of presentations of this work and interventions by invited experts including policymakers.

“We know that the financial and economic crisis has worsened gender gaps in unemployment across all regions and in both developed and developing countries. In 2012, the gap widened further and women lost an estimated 13 million jobs,” noted UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet, in her introductory speech.

“We need to expand our perspective by fully analysing women’s economic role in order to improve our policy responses and promote inclusive economic growth,” said Ms. Bachelet. “It is up to us to push this global debate forward to the very centers of decision-making for a real policy change.”

In “Economic crises and women’s work: Exploring progressive strategies in a rapidly changing global environment,” Professor Jayati Ghosh, Jawaharlal Nehru University, examines the economic recoveries of Sweden in the 1990s and Argentina in the 2000s, among others, and their impact on women. She concludes that stategies that protect or enhance working conditions for women can be developed as part of a broader economic policy that yields rapid economic recovery and subsequent growth.

In “Paid work, women’s empowerment and inclusive growth: transforming the structures of constraint,” Naila Kabeer, Professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, focuses on how economic opportunities have positively affected women in Bangladesh, Egypt and Ghana. In all three countries, formal employment and education had the greatest impact on women’s lives. The paper analyses policies that create “inclusive growth” that can advance women’s economic empowerment. It recommends creating an enabling regulatory environment, promoting social protection and supporting women’s efforts to organise themselves.

A total of seven research papers by renowned feminist academics will be presented and discussed at the workshop. They will be published in a special issue of the IAFFE journal Feminist Economics in spring 2013.

 UNWOMEN

ZAMBIA COACH RENARD BLAMES HIMSELF FOR DRAW

Zambia's coach Herve Renard

Zambia coach Herve Renard has shouldered the blame, admitting the defending champions were not at their best in their 1-1 stalemate against 10-man Ethiopia in their opening Group C Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) match in Nelspruit on Monday evening.

Renard was disappointed with the result, but he felt it was a fair outcome.

“I think today it’s the fault of the coach because he did not prepare his side to start very well,” Renard said.

“They (Ethiopia) have very good players, they are used to playing together. They showed for all Africa and for all around the world, like their coach said, they play very good football.

“The Zambians did not play well today, but I think the merit today should be with the Ethiopian team.”

It was an action-packed game, with the Ethiopians missing a penalty and ending the clash with 10 players after goalkeeper Jemal Tassew was sent off in the 31st minute, having taken down Chisamba Lungu outside the box.

The Zambians were in front at half-time, with former Orlando Pirates midfielder Isaac Chansa setting up Bucs striker Collins Mbesuma who hit the back of the net, but the east-African side showed character to bounce back through Adane Girma.

Ethiopia coach Sewnet Bishaw was pleased with the performance of his side, who are playing in their first Afcon tournament since 1982.

“Its fantastic for our football because our players have shown the world that they can play football,” Bishaw said.

“Football needs experience and we have been together for a long time. A team needs to play lots of international matches.

“We were able to challenge the defending champions, and as you know Zambia are a very strong team.”  

Sportlive 

PRINCE HARRY ENDS AFGHAN TOUR, SAYS KILLED TALIBAN

Prince Harry does a systems check in the cockpit of his Apache helicopter,

November 2, 2012, at Camp Bastion. Prince Harry said he killed Taliban fighters

during his stint as a helicopter gunner in Afghanistan, in comments that can be

reported after he completed his tour of duty January 21, 2013. AFP

Britain's Prince Harry said he killed Taliban fighters during his stint as a helicopter gunner in Afghanistan, in comments that can be reported after he completed his tour of duty Monday.

Harry, third in line to the throne, spent a 20-week posting flying scores of missions over the restive southern Helmand Province in an Apache attack chopper.

The 28-year-old said Islamist insurgents were put "out of the game" and described life in Britain's sprawling Camp Bastion base, where he slept in a tent and a shipping container.

Asked by Britain's Press Association if he had killed from the cockpit, Harry said: "Yeah, so lots of people have.

"The squadron's been out here. Everyone's fired a certain amount.

"Take a life to save a life," he shrugged. "That's what we revolve around, I suppose.

"If there's people trying to do bad stuff to our guys, then we'll take them out of the game.

"As soon as we're outside the fence, we're in the thick of it.

"We fire when we have to... but essentially we're more of a deterrent than anything else."

Harry spoke to reporters on three occasions during his time in Afghanistan under an agreement which only allowed the interviews to be released once he left the war zone.

The prince supported allied troops fighting the Taliban at close quarters and accompanied British and US helicopters on missions to evacuate casualties.

As co-pilot in the Apache, Harry was in charge of the weapons systems in the two-man cockpit, firing Hellfire air-to-surface missiles, rockets and a 30-millimetre gun.

"It's a joy for me because I'm one of those people who loves playing PlayStation and Xbox, so with my thumbs I like to think I'm probably quite useful," he said.

When on a shift requiring a high level of readiness, Harry and the other three members of his squadron sprinted to their helicopters in less than 45 seconds and were airborne within five minutes of an alert.

They did not know their missions until they were inside their £45-million ($71-million, 54-million-euro) aircraft.

Harry served in the 130-strong 662 Squadron, 3 Regiment Army Air Corps.

He insisted that his life in Camp Bastion was "as normal as it's going to get", although the prince admitted he was frustrated by staring from fellow troops he had not previously met.

"I go into the cookhouse and everyone has a good old gawp, and that's one thing that I dislike about being here," he said.

Harry admitted he would rather be out on the ground again in a small patrol base with the Household Cavalry regiment.

In his previous stint in Afghanistan, before he trained as a pilot, he served 10 weeks in 2007-2008 coordinating air attacks on the Taliban, although the deployment had to be hastily cut short when a news blackout on his deployment was broken.

Of the major royal event in his absence -- the announcement that his brother Prince William and wife Catherine are expecting a baby in July -- Harry said he "can't wait to be an uncle".

William, who flies a Royal Air Force search and rescue helicopter in Wales, has been blocked from going to Afghanistan because it is considered too dangerous to send the second in line to the throne.

Harry said: "He'd love to be out here. And, to be honest with you, I don't see why he couldn't.... No one knows who's in the cockpit.

"Yes, you get shot at. But if the guys who are doing the same job as us are being shot at on the ground, I don't think there's anything wrong with us being shot at as well."

Harry also described his "anger" at the media and accused newspapers of printing "rubbish" and depriving him of a private life.

"All it does is upset me and anger me that people can get away with writing the stuff they do," he told ITV News.

"My father (Prince Charles) always says don't read it, everyone says don't read it, because it's always rubbish. I'm surprised how many in the UK actually read it."

He stressed that the public was "guilty for buying the newspapers" but added he hoped "nobody actually believes what they read, I certainly don't".

Harry traced his mistrust of the media back to his mother's 1997 death in a Paris car crash after she was pursued by photographers.

"I think it's fairly obvious how far back it goes -- to when I was very small," he told the news network.

The prince, third-in-line to the British throne, slammed newspapers for "forcing" his brother and sister-in-law into revealing they were expecting a baby.

He also rubbished reports he had written to Catherine from his Camp Bastion base.

"How any of the papers think that they know the relationship between myself and my sister-in-law is quite remarkable," he complained. "They're wrong, as always."

According to Harry, one of the "great" things about being in the war-torn nation was that "it's away from all the media back home, which is one of the real negative points about the UK."

He highlighted the publication of nude photographs of him in a Las Vegas hotel room taken shortly before his five-month deployment as an example of press intrusion.

"I probably let myself down, I let my family down, I let other people down," the prince said.

"But at the end of the day I was in a private area and there should be a certain amount of privacy that one should expect.

"I don't believe there is any such thing as private life any more."

Nation