IN THIS ISSUE
EVENTS
DEVELOPMENT
“Disability Rights in a Changing World”, November 05 – Bahrain
Water, Heath and environment 2005 - September 05 – Egypt
MEDIA
Global forum for media development (GFMD) - October 05  – Jordan
NEWS
ENVIRONMENT
New Arab environmental organization to address overdue sector problems
GENDER/ THE REGION
Activists in Lebanon campaign to grant women equal citizenship.
African Women's Development Fund AWDF
Iraq, the Constitution and Women
Homosexual community in Lebanon.
Palestinian woman to reach Europe's highest peak
Rights group urges Afghanistan to protect women candidates
Needs of blind women in Lebanon.
HUMAN RIGHTS
Prince Talal calls for reform and a Saudi constitution
Reports blames Lebanon for Palestinian refugees' plight
REPORTS & BOOKS & ARTICLES
DEVELOPMENT/ THE REGION
Economic integration among the League of Arab states
Emerging trends in urban livelihoods
Inequality threatens MENA development despite decline in poverty – United Nation 2005
The Tsunami's impact on women - Oxfam (2005)
MENA pension systems in dire need of reform – World Bank
GENDER/ THE REGION
Freedom of Iraqi women
Israel and the occupied territories: conflict, occupation and patriarchy, women carry the burden  Amnesty International (AI) (2005)
Promoting Global sexual and reproductive health - ICPD at Ten - (UNFPA) 2005.
Women's right and the meaning of citizenship in Kuwait – the Tharwa Project (2005)
Women in Afghanistan– ActionAid International (2005)
TRAINING MATERIALS/ TOOL KITS
Child Protection Policies & Procedures
Engendering ICT Toolkit - World Bank 2005.
Gender and Training – Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation – SDC (2005)
Measuring Empowerment: Cross Disciplinary Perspectives
NGO-in-a-box

EVENTS
DEVELOPMENT
"Disability Rights in a Changing World", Nov 14-16, 2005 - Manama - Kingdom of Bahrain
The Rehabilitation International Arab Regional Conference affirms two important matters of great importance; First is to work hand in hand to highlight and define the basic rights of people with disabilities in a rapidly changing world, and second, to put in mind the rights need cooperation and coordination of effort of various sectors, including the input and contribution of the disabled people themselves, their organizations, families and members of the community.
More details and information about the conference: http://www.ri-arab.org

Water, Heath and environment 2005 - Sep 13-15 2005 - Tanta, Egypt
The conference is the first in a series of events initiated by the Department of Water Engineering on "Remediation and Restoration of Water Resources Ecosystems". This first event will present the most recent technological and scientific developments associated with the health, water, environment, hydrology, ecology and all water related sciences.
More details: http://topics.developmentgateway.org/water/calendar/showCalendarItemDeta...
 
MEDIA
Global forum for media development (GFMD) Oct 1-3 2005, Amman – Jordan

This forum seeks to address challenges and opportunities facing the media development sector. Participants are expected from over 100 countries, including independent journalists, broadcasters,
activists and representatives from media support non-governmental organizations.

More details: http://www.comminit.com/events_calendar/2005-events/events-3996.html
Contact: contact@gfmd.info

NEWS
ENVIRONMENT
New Arab environmental organization to address overdue sector problems
With the financial costs of increasing environmental degradation reaching astronomic figures in Lebanon, the need for implementing environmentally sound projects is becoming more and more of a pressing issue, according to Arab officials gathered to form a regional body to address the issue.
More details: www.dailystar.com.lb/articles.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=182...

GENDER/ THE REGION
Activists in Lebanon campaign to grant women equal citizenship rights
With the aim of securing a Lebanese woman's right to pass on her nationality to her children, a national campaign for equal citizenship rights for men and women kicked off on August the 24th at the Press Federation. Organized by the National Meeting to eliminate all Forms of Discrimination against Women, the event was attended by representatives of several non-governmental, human and women's rights organizations, alongside independent feminists and human rights activists. More details

African Women's Development Fund AWDF
AWDF Funds local, national, sub-regional and regional organizations in Africa working towards women's empowerment. The AWDF funds work in the areas of women's human rights; political participation; peace building; health, reproductive rights and HIV/AIDS; and economic empowerment.
Rolling Deadline

Iraq, the Constitution and Women
Drafting a constitution and presenting it for public referendum is a critical step on the path to legitimate democracy. The language contained in the preamble to the Constitution and in its articles will serve as
an anchor for the future direction of the country. As in many post-conflict countries, Iraq has the opportunity to firmly protect women's rights and ensure that gender equality is at the foundation of all its laws and policies. More

Lebanon's homosexual community speaks out
In a country that enjoys a rather relaxed attitude toward issues concerning sex - at least, compared to the other, more conservative countries of the region - Lebanese homosexuals still suffer from prejudice and discrimination. "A day does not go by where I don't have to deal with people who point me out and call me names. More details

Palestinian becomes first Arab woman to reach Europe's highest peak
A Palestinian woman has become the first Arab woman to scale Mount Elbrus, which at 5.642 meters is the highest peak in Europe, and used her achievement to bring a message of peace to the world. Mountain climber Suzanne al-Houby, who is originally from Yafa but today lives in Dubai, reached the top
of Mount Elbrus on August 1st. More details

Rights group urges Afghanistan to protect women candidates
"Afghanistan must do more to protect women standing in next month's legislative elections from attacks and threats by warlords and Islamic militants;" Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report. The report came as Afghanistan launched a month-long campaign period for the landmark parliamentary and local elections. More details

Workshop in Lebanon focuses on needs of blind women
The Youth Association for the Blind (YAB) organized a two-day workshop on August 25th – 26th, 2005, in Beirut. The workshop was specifically for blind women and those with vision impairments, and it  discussed an informative report which highlighted the various difficulties the visually impaired women face. It also focused on introducing skills, information and activities which would enhance those women's ability to become involved in community organizations and advocacy both in their local communities and, in the broader perspective of national and international contexts. More details

HUMAN RIGHTS
Prince Talal calls for reform and a Saudi constitution
A senior member of the Saudi royal family has called on Arab rulers to introduce change before they are forced to do so under pressure and demanded the introduction of a constitution in Saudi Arabia. More details

Reports blames Lebanon for Palestinian refugee's plight
According to a report from the Frontiers Association, the Lebanese government and United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) are strongly to blame for the "legal and practical gaps" in Palestinian
refugee status. More details

REPORTS & BOOKS & ARTICLES
DEVELOPMENT/THE REGION
Economic integration among the League of Arab states: an empirical evidence
This paper investigates the extent of economic integration among five members of the league of Arab States namely Egypt, Jordon, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Syria, by empirically testing the nature of intra-trade activities in the grouping. Five of the major trading partners are included in this study: France, Germany,
Italy, UK and US. Available online

Emerging trends in urban livelihoods
This paper is part of a larger research project that aims at identifying indicators of upward or downward movements in the continuum of poverty in Afghanistan, and to isolate characteristics and determinants that shape and differentiate various situations of the urban poor in Afghanistan. It seeks to identify trends that have emerged from community discussions and the first four months of empirical fieldwork in each city under study.
The three central and interrelated themes include:
1.      Access to regular sources and different forms of credit.
2.      Security of housing and tenure
3.      Maintenance and quality of social relations.
Each of these major themes is elaborated upon in this paper which is available online.

Inequality threatens MENA development despite decline in poverty
According to a United Nations Report on the World Social Situation 2005, the inequalities persist and
threaten development strides in the Middle East and North Africa despite sharp declines in poverty from 1981 to 2001, The share of people in the region living on less than $1 a day declined from 5% in 1981to 2% in 2001, and the share of people living on less than $2 a day fell from 29 % to 23 %. At the same time, however, per capita income levels in the Middle East and North Africa have been steadily declining relative to the average per capita income in the wealthier Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. More details

The Tsunami's impact on women Produced by: Oxfam (2005)
This briefing looks at the impact of the tsunami in Indonesia, India, and Sri Lanka, and in particular at how it has affected women. It seeks to promote debate and awareness of the issues and to ensure that the recovery phase of the relief effort integrates the problems raised. It concludes with some  ecommendations about how the problems raised can start being addressed. Available
online.

MENA pension systems in dire need of reform - World Bank
The World Bank said pension systems in Middle East and North Africa are under growing financial
stress and urgently need reform. In a report released today entitled Pensions in the Middle East and North Africa, the World Bank called for a series of measures that would allow governments to gradually
their unsustainable pension systems. Source

GENDER/ THE REGION
Don't stifle the freedom of Iraqi women
The future of Iraq now in the hands of the Iraqi National Assembly after the writing committee of the Iraqi constitution submitted its draft Monday August 22nd evening. The document will serve as the foundation of the future Iraq. Source

Israel and the occupied territories: conflict, occupation and patriarchy, women carry the burden  Amnesty International (AI) (2005)
This report – which is part of the global Amnesty campaign to stop violence against women – deals with the impact of violence against women in the Occupied Territories in the context of conflict, including
violence committed by the Israeli state or its agents; the collapse of the rule of law within the Occupied Territories leading to a lack of implementation of existing laws; and the worsening effects of existing discrimination in both law and practice. Available online

Promoting Global sexual and reproductive health - ICPD at Ten: the world reaffirms Cairo (United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) 2005.
This document reviews and appraises progress on meeting the goals and targets set out at the International Conference on Population and Development.

The authors examine progress on these goals in the context of various international meetings that occurred in 2004, including of which the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia and League of Arab States, 19-21 November 2004, Beirut,  Lebanon. Available online

Women's right and the meaning of citizenship in Kuwait – the Tharwa Project 2005
This paper examines the feminist campaign in Kuwait to bring women the right to vote, particularly in the context of the struggle for power between religious and secular political groups. The author traces the history of the feminist movement and the tension between various religious and secular factions in the monarchy and government. The paper concludes that governmental reform will open the possibility of changing the Kuwaiti political universe in a positive direction. Available online

Women in Afghanistan: challenges and opportunities for women's organizations in Afghan civil society
– ActionAid International (2005)
This report offers a brief overview of some of the key challenges and concerns faced by women's NGOs within Afghan civil society as women's rights and opportunities are pursued in the context of national reconstruction and development. The authors explore issues including how much international aid actually targets women, capacity building programmes aimed towards women, leadership opportunities for women, relationships between local and international NGOs, as well as examining how various facets of international trade and development are affecting opportunities for women in Afghanistan. Available
online

TRAINING MATERIALS/ TOOLKITS
Child Protection Policies & Procedures Toolkit: How to Create a Child-Safe Organization
This toolkit includes: information and guidelines on the recommended principles and steps involved in developing organizational child protection policies and procedures; a set of exercises which are designed
to help users understand and work through the steps described; and guidance notes for facilitators to enable the material contained within the toolkit to be adapted into a training course.

Engendering ICT Toolkit (World Bank) 2005
The purpose of this toolkit is to identify opportunities, highlight innovative projects and activities, and suggest how the World Bank and other agencies can help realize the potential for gender equality in access to and use of information and communication technologies. This toolkit should also interest development practitioners and researchers interested in gender-equitable development within
their respective fields. Available online

Gender and Training: Mainstreaming gender equality and the planning, realization and evaluation of training – Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC / DSC) (2005)
This paper provides detailed information and practical incentive for mainstreaming gender equality in the planning, realization and evaluating of training programmes. It is based on the concept of didactics that promotes gender equality. Following the introduction, the second section of this paper describes the five levels of gender equality upon which the paper is based, and the third section contains practical tips and suggestions for dealing with this issue. Available online

Measuring Empowerment: Cross Disciplinary Perspectives
This book explores aspects of empowerment and its relationship to poverty reduction by outlining a conceptual framework that can be used to monitor and evaluate programmes centered on empowerment approaches. It presents the perspectives of 27 researchers and practitioners in economics, political science, sociology, psychology, anthropology, and demography, all of whom are grappling in different ways with the challenge of measuring empowerment.

NGO-in-a-box
NGO-in-a-box is a physical box of CDs consisting of a complimentary set of peer-reviewed and selected Free and Open Source Software (F/OSS) solutions tailored to the needs of not-for-profit, non-governmental organizations (NGOs). In order to keep the product current and adapt to changing and regional
user needs, the Tactical Technology Collective recommends establishing "a community of regional point people" to review use and make recommendations on how to adapt the box to suit the needs of their users. Source