Laura Gyte describes why Oxfam intervened in a court case brought against the UK government over arms sales. UPDATE: on 20 June the Court of Appeal ruled that UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia are unlawful. In April, the Court of Appeal heard a claim brought by Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) on whether the UK government’s decision to …
5 lessons learned on how to conduct a Human Rights Impact Assessment
Oxfam recently conducted a Human Rights Impact Assessment (HRIA) with Finland’s biggest supermarket. Tim Gore shares more. Human rights abuses are widespread in global food supply chains – from forced labour on fishing vessels in southeast Asia, to poverty wages on Indian tea estates, and exposure to dangerous chemicals on banana plantations in central America. Supermarkets are the powerful last …
Are supermarket canned tomatoes now free from labour exploitation?
Tim Gore shares three key findings from Oxfam’s human rights impact assessment of the Italian processed tomato sector. There have been a range of media and NGO reports in recent years about endemic labour exploitation in the Italian tomato sector. But as Oxfam’s The People Behind the Prices, shows, while some progress has been made, many of the root causes …
Debt: a noose around Somalia’s future
Full debt cancellation is the only way forward for Somalia, write Dustin Barter, Oxfam’s Senior Campaigns and Policy Manager in Somalia, and Mohamed A. Ahmed, Independent Debt Specialist. As the African Union Summit kicks off in Addis Adaba this week, Somalia remains swamped in debt, struggling to kick-start a more positive trajectory. Debt relief, a once hot topic (thanks Bono!), …
Imagining alternative futures
Programme Researcher, John Magrath, describes the process of applying ‘participatory scenario development’ to explore how Bangladesh might achieve zero hunger and zero carbon emissions by 2041. It is tempting to assume that the future will follow much the same trajectory as the past. Imagining alternative futures can be dismissed as dreaming, or science fiction. And if we do imagine the …
The intersection of inequality and climate change
Dustin Barter reflects on the glaring contrast between his recent experience of the California wildfires, and the harsh realities of climate change for many. Both inequality and climate change are hot topics, gaining traction as the bleak effects set in, but the intersection of the two demands far more attention and action. If we want to get serious on climate …
Land is where it all begins
When land rights are jeopardised, so are the livelihoods of the people who depend on it. As Oxfam launches a new land rights website, Barbara Codispoti highlights some of the key things we have learned. Land is so much more than just a means for production. Securing rights to land allows people greater political power, community representation, and economic security. …
Constant crisis: The new normal for market analysis?
Climate change and ongoing conflicts have made Pre-Crisis Market Analysis (PCMA) an essential feature of Oxfam’s humanitarian work. Corrie Sissons and Daniel Pasquini share how PCMA exercises have helped Oxfam to respond effectively in two very different contexts. One approach Oxfam frequently uses is mapping, analysing and understanding markets in emergencies. Our experience working in humanitarian relief and development has …
Why is Oxfam campaigning against ALDI?
When Oxfam scored major supermarkets according to their public policies and practices that prevent human suffering, ALDI came bottom. As part of our #BehindtheBarcodes campaign, Rachel Wilshaw explains why they ranked so low and what can be done to improve it. Update Since Oxfam started campaigning against ALDI in October, the company has published a human rights policy, appointed a …
