News

"For centuries, malaria has stalked sub-Saharan Africa, causing immense personal suffering,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “We have long hoped for an effective malaria vaccine and now for the first time ever, we have such a vaccine recommended for widespread use. Today’s recommendation offers a glimmer of hope for the continent which shoulders the heaviest burden of the disease and we expect many more African children to be protected from malaria and grow into healthy adults.”

Click here for more details about what this vaccine will mean for children in sub-Saharan Africa.

October 1^st of every year marks the International Day of Older Persons.  It is an occasion to celebrate older persons’ contributions to society.  It is also an opportunity  to educate ourselves on issues of concern such as the impact of ageism seen during the pandemic and, going forward, the need for digital equity for all ages so that no one is left behind.  

GRAN invites you to reflect on and celebrate your own contributions to your family and your community.  May we also suggest watching the 11-minute video, Change The Way You Think About Age or perhaps attending an online event such as the UN’s Digital Equity for All Ages webinar. You may also wish to learn what you can do to join the global community in the fight against ageism. 

However you mark this day, we wish you a happy International Day of Older Persons!

Congratulations to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) on a successful replenishment at the Global Education Summit last week. US$4 billion was pledged, putting the GPE firmly on the path to achieving its target of raising at least US$5 billion over the next five years.

GRAN would like to thank all who supported our GPE campaign with your letter writing, phone calls, Letters to the Editor and raising awareness through conversations and on social media.  Thank you for lifting your voices for young girls and women to access quality education, giving them hope for a better future.

We are disappointed that Canada did not increase its pledge of CAN$300 million made earlier this year at the G7 summit, but we realize that this has been a particularly difficult year to advocate for development aid for education.

To read about the many positive outcomes from last week’s Global Education Summit, click here. 

HelpAge International has just released Bearing the Brunt, a report on the impact of COVID-19 on older people based on insights from research in low- and middle-income countries. The report provides clear recommendations to ensure older people are included in recovery efforts and their rights are respected. It calls on all actors to work together to build a society where everyone lives with dignity, no matter our age.

To read the Africa region report, click here, and here for the full global report.

During the recent G7 summit, Canada announced a commitment of $300 million to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), far short of the $500 million that GRAN and other civil society organizations were asking for.  Click here to read a full response from GRAN and our partners in the Canadian International Education Policy Working Group (CIEPWG).

Can education help solve the climate crisis? Is this too good to be true? What if there were a new way of educating and engaging youth and adults in climate solutions?  In a report from the Brookings Institution, recent research shows a powerful connection between education and climate change and the positive results that can be achieved.  Read on to learn about the ambitious plan for a new green learning agenda that they suggest should be included in all curriculums.  Click here for more.

As we heard from Dr. Elizabeth Vibert in a recent GRAN Learning Event, food insecurity is growing in sub-Saharan Africa. Global hunger has been rising steadily since 2015 due to the intersecting crises of protracted conflicts, the rapidly changing climate and, more recently, the pandemic.

In response, the first-ever UN Food Systems Summit has been scheduled for September 2021. The UN Special Envoy to the Summit, has said that the process is meant to build healthier, more inclusive, nutritious, and resilient global food systems over the next decade. However, some farming organizations and human rights groups have raised the alarm that the planned Summit is driven by private sector interests in industrial farming, with the serious risk that decisions arising from the Summit may result in loss of food sovereignty for small-scale farmers around the globe. Read more here.

Some investments made in Federal Budget 2021 are a step in the right direction toward Canada’s ability to meet its national climate targets.  And new federal dollars for early learning, child care, expanded employment insurance and emergency benefits are all consistent with the principles for a just recovery that 150 Canadian non-profits and campaign groups, including GRAN, adopted last year. 

However, it was disappointing not to see a bigger commitment to fighting the pandemic globally, and equally disappointing to note the lack of long-term commitments to helping people in sub-Saharan Africa who are profoundly affected by the climate emergency, poverty, and hunger.    

Read more here.

The federal government released Budget 2021 yesterday.  While there was some investment in international assistance, the Budget falls short in responding to the urgent need of the world's most vulnerable. $375 Million was pledged for international COVID response (part of a $1.4 billion increase in international assistance, spread over five years). We contrast this with the Government’s commitments for 2020-21, which were about $1.2 billion. Budget 2021 investments do not reflect or respond to the dire humanitarian needs around the globe.  Two components of international assistance funding, not mentioned in Budget 2021, are global education and international climate finance.  We are cautiously optimistic that additional announcements regarding funding commitments for these two GRAN priorities will be made in the near future.

You can read the budget response released by Cooperation Canada by clicking here.  If you are on social media, please re-tweet the statement from Cooperation Canada as well as tweets from GRAN.

The success of the new “African Continental Free Trade Area” (AfCFTA), which took effect on January 1, 2021, will depend on the capacity of African governments to tap into the potential of human capital.

With 60% of its population under 25, robust investment in education with emphasis on STEM education, innovation and 21^st century skills, must be urgently made for Africa to achieve its goals.

Click here to read more at this GPE blog.