MASHAV - ISRAEL’S AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION CONTENTS 1 FROM THE DESK OF THE HEAD OF MASHAV HAIM DIVON 3 EQUAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN CAREGIVING IN HIV/AIDS MAZAL RENFORD 8 EDUCATION FOR ALL: TRAINING TEACHERS IN INDIGENOUS AREAS YUDITH ROSENTHAL 13 PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION: UNDP AND MASHAV TRI-LATERAL COOPERATION IN BENIN AVNIT RIFKIN 17 THE MILLENNIUM CITIES INITIATIVE: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO REDUCING URBAN POVERTY AND GENERATING SUSTAINABLE PROSPERITY CONTENTSDR. SUSAN M. BLAUSTEIN 22 INTERNATIONAL POSTGRADUATE TRAINING IN MEDICINE: MARKING 20 YEARS OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION TAL SHAHAR & ALISON YADAN 25 LEADING THE FIGHT AGAINST NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES IN ETHIOPIA AVNIT RIFKIN 28 SHALOM CLUBS 30 MASHAV NEWS 39 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR MASHAV Shalom Magazine for the Alumni of MASHAV Training Courses is Israel’s Agency for International published by Haigud Society for Transfer of Technology. Development Cooperation Haigud, a government company and non-profit organization, serves Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the financial and administrative arm of MASHAV, and functions as a State of Israel professional unit to assist in the implementation of MASHAV activities. F Israel is in a unique position in the international development arena: It ROM began as a developing country, and continued to be so for many years after its establishment as a state in 1948. Many of us remember the austerity measures of the 1950s and the early 60s - the shortage of basic commodities and food rationing. I At the same time, Israel received generous assistance from a few friendly THE countries, and from Jewish communities in the Diaspora. The fact that we were able to overcome severe challenges and build a strong society with an advanced economy was, for us, the first lesson regarding the importance D of sharing with other developing and newly independent countries. This tradition was bequeathed to us by the founders of the State of Israel. MASHAV ESK – Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation, is honored to continue this tradition over 50 years later. Recently I accompanied Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Avigdor Liberman in his historic visit to Africa. The minister visited OF Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda, where he met with foreign leaders; signed political, economic and development cooperation agreements and inaugurated joint projects between Israel and the African host countries. THE FM Liberman stated that he had the opportunity to witness the great esteem with which MASHAV is held and its important contribution to the people of Africa as they deal with developmental challenges. H EAD OF MASHAV Signing cooperation agreement with The Economic Community of West African States – ECOWAS: (from left to right) Ambassador Yaacov Revach, Director Africa Division, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs; FM Avigdor Liberman; Ambassador Haim Divon; and Vice President of the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Jean de Dieu Somda 1 Distributing Israeli-made agricultural equipment in Kenya: (from left to right) Ambassador Haim Divon, Head of MASHAV; Israel Ambassador to Kenya, Yaacov Keidar; Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman; Mr. David Stower, Director General, Ministry of Water and Irrigation; Prof. Jacqueline Oduol, Secertary of Children Affairs, Ministry of Gender, Children & Social Development Since its inception, MASHAV’s work has been guided by the basic approach that development work is organic in nature. It is impossible to concentrate efforts in one area, such as food security, without providing proper attention to health care, community building and education. Only through a sustainable and comprehensive development program can measured results be obtained and the desired impact can be felt by those who need assistance the most. A single individual can change an institution, a community, policy, and reality. This is our inspiration. Israel could have chosen not to be involved in the field of international development cooperation in light of its own difficulties. But that was never the case. We are proud that in spite of our own challenges we did not spare any effort in sharing what was relevant to our own development experience for the benefit of others. There is no single approach to overcoming the immense development challenges before us. We take pride in what our small nation has contributed throughout the decades, and we will continue to contribute towards the fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals. We remind ourselves that emerging from the past is a journey, not a destination. And achievements along this journey – be them small or large – help us touch the lives of millions of people around the globe. Development is a partnership that requires the commitment of all. Sincerely, HAIM DIVON Head of MASHAV Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation 2 EQUAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN CAREGIVING IN HIV/AIDS MAZAL RENFORD In the 1970s and ‘80s, women were beginning to take their first steps forward toward attaining equality. Those achievements have been eroded, however, as a consequence of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and women are reverting to the roles of caregivers or receivers of care. According to the WHO (World Health Organization), one of the consequences of HIV infection is violence against women. Women often lack the power to insist on safe and responsible sexual practices, unaware of their Ihuman rights and not realizing the choice lies in their hands. The consequences of HIV/AIDS reach beyond the women’s health to affect their roles as mothers, caregivers, and contributors to the economic support of their families. POLICY CHANGES – A NECESSARY STEP Violence against women, and other infringements of human rights, still represent a massive constraint on women’s capacity to share responsibilities. The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men can only be attained if and when policies and programs address the structural causes of that inequality and focus on empowering women and girls, both socially and economically. Indeed, social protection must be recognized as a key element of social development policy, in supporting women of all ages and in all households. Adequate mechanisms can protect the most vulnerable, raise people above the poverty line, and give them the opportunity to support themselves and cope with their problems. STRATEGIES FOR EMPOWERMENT Empowerment strategies must include creating jobs for women and facilitating an enabling environment for entrepreneurship development. Civil society must be strengthened through community mobilization, supported by educational campaigns that will reduce stigma and discrimination, in order to raise both social support and economic resources. In the present situation of financial downturn, the impact of gender inequality on women must be taken into consideration, in order to identify policy responses and mechanisms for safeguarding women, particularly in their roles as caregivers. Social policies and mechanisms are ever more urgently needed to address women’s vulnerability in the current climate, especially since women have traditionally lagged behind in terms of training, education and information. WORKING HARD TO FIND SOLUTIONS Having reviewed some of the problems, what can be done to give women a voice? What practical steps should be used to ensure the equal sharing of responsibilities between women 3 MCTC Workshop on Care and Support of Children Affected by HIV/AIDS, in cooperation with UNICEF Regional Office, West and Central Africa, 2009 and men? MASHAV, Israel’s Agency for International projects to implement and with the feeling of equality and Development Cooperation, and its professional extension, shared responsibilities. Such people make a difference, the Golda Meir Mount Carmel International Training Center creating a multiplier effect and eventually a critical mass (MCTC), have been working to answer that very question. which can influence the status quo. MASHAV promotes the equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men as an integral part of its training programs. At MCTC, emphasis is placed on TRAINING IN THE CONTEXT building women’s capacity through access to education, OF HIV/AIDS information, finance and health services. Training activities are regularly conducted on socio-economic development, In the current situation, the feminization of HIV/AIDS with gender as a cross-cutting issue, reaching tens of infection is increasing (60% of the adults living with thousands of women and men in the developing world. HIV/AIDS in the sub-Saharan countries are women), and The beneficiaries of these programs are professionals from the need for caregiving of the sick and their dependents all over the world, working for the achievement of the has reached enormous proportions. To address these dire Millennium Development Goals, specifically, eradicating circumstances, MCTC/MASHAV offers activities to train poverty and promoting gender equality. professionals on topics such as, “Education for Sexual MCTC, a voice in the arena of women’s empowerment, Health and Prevention of AIDS Among Adolescents” and offers regular trainings on topics covering socio-economic “Care and Support of Children Affected by HIV/AIDS,” the issues1. Participants in these activities, men and women latter in cooperation with the UNICEF, Regional Office for alike, return to their communities, equipped with relevant West and Central Africa [See BOX]. 1. Examples include: ‘Women’s Leadership’, ‘Support