Renewable Energy Policy Advisor, Kevin Johnstone, outlines some of the educational benefits of solar study lamp campaigns, and their potential to achieve much more. The cost of night studies Sometimes Bintu’s family couldn’t afford batteries for home lighting, and on those nights, she couldn’t complete her school work. Bintu’s mother explained that if “you don’t have batteries, your children will …
New series launch on urban development
Hashim Zaidi, Global Urban Work Lead, introduces a new blog series on urban development and why it is important to Oxfam. Cities today are home to 3.9 billion people accounting for 54% of the total world’s population. UN-Habitat estimates that an additional 2.5 billion people will live in cities by 2050 with almost 90% of this increase happening in Asia and Africa. …
Oxfam’s engagement at the Commission on the Status of Women
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the global policy making body concerning women’s rights and gender equality issues. Francesca Rhodes and Vincent Trousseau explore how and why it represents a unique opportunity to influence governments to take bold action. The Commission and what it means to Oxfam Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) is an integral part of Oxfam’s …
The SDGS, an opportunity for business to do better
Over a year in, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) show no sign of losing momentum. Ruth Mhlanga reflects on how businesses can support the SDGs to create a world free from poverty without breaking the planet. he SDGs are ambitious, but in a world where 8 men have the same wealth as the poorest half of the world, nothing less would …
Political decision on aid needs to take a more functional approach
While politicians grapple with setting course to achieve the SDGs, they need to look at the core function of development aid and the role it can and should play in leaving no one behind. ver the past few years, I have seen few policy instruments lose as much traction and commitment as aid, also known as Official Development Assistance (ODA), …
Women’s economic empowerment and cash transfer programming
Cash Transfer Programmes (CTP) are increasingly becoming more popular in relief response, but how can they help women’s economic empowerment? Rose Smith from The Cash Learning Partnership (CaLP) gives us her input. oth women’s rights and Cash Transfer Programming (CTP) have been subject to increased debate and interest over recent years. Women’s rights and gender equality have progressed to become …
Let’s take a bigger leap for women with disabilities and economic empowerment
In this latest addition to her our Her Series, we look at the barriers women with disabilities face. Hannah Loryman from CBM sheds light on just some of them. he High-level panel’s aim to put Women’s Economic Empowerment at the top of the International Agenda is hugely positive. As the Secretary General put it, the Sustainable Development Goals will only …
Older women: Invisible linchpins of the household economy
Older women are often over looked in policy making and programme development in tackling unpaid care. As part of our Her Series, Kate Horstead from Age International offers her perspective on why we must not forget this group. he global crescendo of voices calling out for women’s economic empowerment is getting harder for policymakers to ignore. But amid those diverse …
Why ‘care’ about development?
In this second instalment of our Her Series, Belén Sobrino from Oxfam Intermon sets the case to keeping unpaid care work high on the SDG agenda, and reminds us of the importance in ensuring we reduce the the burden of care, not just the work itself. omen around the world invest 2.5 times more time than men in unpaid care …