Here are some of the notable events in global development that took place Feb. 14.

1. This day in global development
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2. Photo by: Global Polio Eradication Initiative
A 3-day polio vaccination
drive — co-organized by
UNICEF, WHO and the
government — kicks off in
Afghanistan. The target:
2.8M children under 5.
Today, the disease remains
endemic in Afghanistan (as
well as in Pakistan and
Nigeria) and has resurfaced in
Africa.
But the aid community hopes
to see an end to polio by 2018,
and make it the first human
disease to be eradicated in
the 21st century.

3. Photo by: The White House
U.S. President Barack Obama
unveils his fiscal 2012 budget,
including $47B for the State
Department and USAID — up
1% from the 2010 level.
With a divided Congress, the
proposed budget fails to get
the stamp of approval. Worse,
foreign affairs spending for
that year suffers a cut.
The recent budget passed by
Congress, however, offers
some good news, with
increases from the fiscal 2013
level for several international
development programs.
USAID’s operational budget
though takes a dive.

4. Photo by: Essam Sharaf / CC-BY-SA
International aid groups
organize a gathering to help
their local counterparts in
Egypt develop contingency
plans amid the political
turmoil engulfing the
country.
Anti-government protests and
the violence that ensued have
forced many aid groups to
suspend their operations.
Today, three years after the
Arab Spring broke out, civil
society groups in Egypt
continue to struggle, facing
increasing restrictions from
local authorities.

5. Photo by: Pippa Ranger / DfID
The United Kingdom is giving
£280M each year through
2015 to India, aid minister
Andrew Mitchell says in an
interview with a British
newspaper.
Amid public outcry at home,
the Department for
International Development
later asserts that the United
Kingdom “is walking the last
mile” with the emerging Asian
economy.
Today, DfID no longer
provides new grants and
looks to refocus its
engagement with India on
“trade rather than aid.”

6. Photo by: Gates Foundation
Dr. Tachi Yamada, president
of the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation’s global health
program, is leaving come
June, the charity announces.
Under Yamada, the
foundation’s global health
grant portfolio tripled.
The foundation hails him for
“investing heavily in high-risk,
high-reward projects with
long-term benefits,” including
the development of new
vaccines.

7. Photo by: European Union
Tunisia wins aid pledges from
the European Union and
AfDB to help the country
transition to democracy.
Since then, Tunisia has seen
several leadership changes.
Mehdi Jomaa is now the
prime minister.

8. Photo by: Agnes Varraine Leca / Doctors of the World UK
Medecins du Monde bids
South Darfur goodbye.
Sudanese authorities accuse
the French aid group of
working “as spies” and
making “negative reports”
about the state.
Soon after, they suspend the
Catholic Relief Services ‘
operations in West Darfur, for
allegedly distributing Bibles.
Today, Darfur remains a highly
challenging place for aid
agencies to operate in, amid
continued fighting between
militia and government
forces.

9. Photo by: United Nations
Bev Oda admits altering a
CIDA memo about funding
Kairos. The move means a
loss of CA$ 7.09M for the
church-based NGO.
The uproar over the
document tampering
prompts calls for the
Canadian aid minister’s
resignation and a
parliamentary move to cite
her in contempt. Oda resigns
a year later.
Today, CIDA no longer exists.
The Canadian aid program is
now under the foreign affairs
and trade department.

10. Photo by: World Economic Forum
In Tokyo, East Asian
governments vow to “to help
guide the state-building
effort of Palestine.”
They offer no financial
assistance but instead
promise to share their
knowledge on economic
development and regional
integration.
Palestinian leader Prime
Minister Salam Fayyad has
had hopes to wean the
territories from foreign aid to
pay for the government
budget, including civil service
salaries.

11. Photo by: CIAT
IFAD imposes news rules for
paying its president.
The IFAD chief (currently
Kanayo Nwanze) will receive
the same pay as the FAO
director-general as well as
take home a $50,000 annual
representation allowance and
€180,000 in housing
allowance per year.
Other news things at the U.N.
agency: Nauru, Tuvalu and
Vanuatu become members
and the governing council
approves new lending policies
and criteria.

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