No Images? Click here Newsletter June 2019 HEADLINESThe Alliance opens its doors to individual membersWe are delighted to announce the launch of our new category of Individual Membership, celebrating the contribution of individuals – alongside and in collaboration with organisations – as we work towards our collective vision of creating a fairer world. On 15th May, current and future members of the Alliance got together at the prestigious Royal Society of Edinburgh to celebrate the launch by Sir George Reid FRSE of our new individual membership category. Good Humanitarians? Holyrood Cross Party Group explores Scottish Government's Humanitarian Emergency FundThe Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group on International Development met on 29 May 2019 at Holyrood to discuss, for the first time, the Scottish Government’s Humanitarian Emergency Fund (HEF). MSPs and members of the public heard from a range of speakers, including representatives of some of the 8 agencies that make up the HEF panel. The £1 million annual fund, now into its third year of operation, has been used to respond quickly and effectively to humanitarian crises across the world with life-saving relief. Not one single country set to achieve gender equality by 2030With the recent launch of the new SDG Gender Index, finding that 2.8 billion women and girls currently live in countries that are not doing enough to improve women's lives, we think it is right that this year's Alliance Annual Conference will be putting gender front and centre. The new index measures progress against a set of internationally agreed targets, and shows that even the Nordic states, who score highly, would have to make massive changes to achieve parity across all indicators by 2030. Nonetheless, the biggest changes are needed across the developing world. The bottom ten countries in the index all also appear on the OECD’s 2018 list of fragile states. Come together with around 200 other delegates from the international development sector in Scotland to explore what is being done and what more needs to be done to achieve gender equality. WHAT ARE OUR MEMBERS UP TO?Improving long-term resilience among women farmers in Sierra LeoneMichael Agyemang, Programmes Assistant at Feed the Minds, tells us about their new project in Sierra Leone that aims to sustainably increase the income and financial security of 1,000 marginalised women and their families. Promoting disability rights and eradicating mobility povertyKeith Robertson, from Disability Beyond Borders, explains about their work in Scotland and Ukraine helping to create accessible environments for disabled people. Its a big task, but one they are dedicated to. IN OTHER NEWSMake your voice heard in Scottish Parliament external affairs inquiryNew Secretary of State for International Development pledges £1B more for climateCGD on the EU Elections - Europe more fragmented, but populist wave containedAlliance brings together big donors and small charities for first timeUK releases main messages on SDG progress, but leaves questions unansweredScottish Government announce support for women in RwandaUPCOMING EVENTSPutting Gender Front and Centre25th September 2019 This year’s Alliance Annual Conference will be putting Gender Front and Centre to ask ourselves the question, “How can we make better progress for women and girls?” Taking place at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Wednesday 25th September 2019, the conference will explore on a practical level what Scotland’s international development community can do in order to make concrete steps towards advancing gender equality globally. |