Kenya

Placing the Displaced: Accomodating the Refugee Crisis

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   The Third Committee hosted a meeting to address the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The report focused on the refugee crisis in Europe and the Middle East, where hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled to seek safety over the last few months. 60 million people worldwide are forcibly displaced as a result of war and persecution. In the past five years alone, the number of people forced from their homes every single day has quadrupled from under 11,000 in 2010 to 42,500.

   The meeting began with remarks from delegates. The first delegate was the representative of Kuwait, and he paid tribute to the High Commissioner for extending humanitarian efforts to the refugees even under every difficult conditions. He stated that Kuwait emphasizes continuation and support to the high commission, and that the country has participated voluntarily to 1 million dollars in aid. The representative also explained that he was very concerned by the suffering of refugees and displaced people in Iraq, which resulted from activity carried out by the Islamic State extremist militant group.

   Another notable speaker was the representative of Pakistan, who stated that the process of helping the refugees has been much too slow and inadequate, and that the international community has ignored this for far too long. The delegate explained that only 127,000 people were able to return home this year, which is the lowest number since 1983. One of the biggest issues is the lack of nutrition and education among children, which could lead to the risk of losing an entire generation.

   A representative who offered a different perspective was the delegate from Kenya, who explained that the burden of hosting refugees is enormous, especially financially. However, Kenya continues to welcome refugees in accordance to tradition.

Meeting: Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, questions relating to refugees, returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian questions

Date/Location: Wednesday November 4, 2015, 10:00 – 13:00; Conference Room 1

Speakers: Representative of Kuwait; Representative of Nigeria; Representative of Pakistan; Representative of Japan; Representative of Kenya; Representative of India

Written By: WIT Representative Kangho (Paul) Jung

Edited By: WIT Representative Alex Margolick

Photo Credit: Frank Augstein/AP

Ideal Ways to Fund the Addis Ababa Agenda

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    The Second Committee hosted a meeting on the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development. This agenda provides a foundation for implementing the 2030 SDGs, and it aims to foster universal economic prosperity.

    The meeting began with opening remarks from the co-chairs of the Second Committee. His Excellency Oh Joon discussed the policy aspects of the Action Agenda. He stated that taxation represents a stable and predictable source of finance, and that it is central to financing provision of public goods and services in developing countries. Finally, he explained that fiscal policy represents a social contract between the state and its citizens.

    His Excellency Andrej Logar highlighted the importance of domestic resource mobilization and international support. He also agreed with His Excellency Oh Joon on the belief that taxation is critical to financial sustainable development. He explains that there is evidence of high return in a tax collection system for developing countries, and gives the example of Kenya, which was able to increase its tax revenue from 52 million dollars in 2015 to 85 million for the following fiscal year.

    After the introductory remarks followed keynote addresses by panelists. One notable speaker was Professor David Rosenbloom, who teaches at the NYU School of Law. He has worked in the field of taxation for 47 years, and specifically international taxation for 38 years. He explains that governments need money, and taxation far beats debt financing or devaluing currency in terms of efficiency. An income tax system has three goals: efficiency in interfering as little as possible of economic choice, fairness in that taxpayers have impressions that they are treated no less fairly than everyone else, and simplicity so that tax laws could be understood.

Meeting: Joint meeting on “Domestic Resource Mobilization: Where to go after Addis?”

Date/Location: Wednesday November 11, 2015, 10:00 – 13:00; Conference Room 2

Speakers: His Excellency Oh Joon (Republic of Korea), President of the Economic and Social Council; His Excellency Andrej Logar (Slovenia), Chair of the Second Committee; Mr. Alexander Trepelkov, Director, Financing for Development Office, Department of Economic and Social Affairs; Professor David Rosenbloom, James S. Eustice Visiting Professor of Practice and Taxation, and Director, International Tax Program, New York University; Ms. Victoria Perry, Assistant Director and Chief, Tax Policy Division, Fiscal Affairs Department, International Monetary Fund; Ms. Blanca Moreno-Dodson, Lead Economist for Tax Policy, Macro and Fiscal Management Global Practice, World Bank; Ms. Gail Hurley, Policy Specialist on Development Finance, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, United Nations Development Programme; Mr. Tatu Ilunga, Senior Policy Advisor, Tax and Extractive Industries, Oxfam America; Mr. Eric Mensah, Assistant Commissioner, Ghana Revenue Authority, and Member, United Nations Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters (via telephone or video link)

Written By: WIT Representative Kangho (Paul) Jung

Edited By: WIT Representative Alex Margolick

Photo Credit: REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov

Cash Transfers Preserve Dignity of Older Persons and Benefit their Families

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On the sideline of the Open-Ended Working Group’s deliberation on the protection of older persons’ right to a dignified life, the Kenyan Mission hosted an event to share Kenya’s experience of implementing cash transfers to ensure older person’s economic and social rights. Mrs. Muriuki detailed the methodology of the cash transfer programme, saying that it focuses on reaching those who are extremely poor and above the age of 65. This ensures the optimal use of resources in reaching those who are most in need. Each month, those eligible are given an amount of 2000 Kenyan shillings to buy food and other basic necessities. She described the plan as a “cushion” for the poor against the shocks of poverty. Since instituting the cash transfer programme, Kenya has seen increases in household purchasing power, savings, and capital investments. This benefits not only the elderly, but also children, who now have higher retention rates at schools due to increases in household income.3650807476_1dda80858e

Speaking from the perspective of a charitable organization for the elderly, Mr. Mwega stated that the effect of the cash transfer programme has led to a reduction in the number of older persons seeking assistance from his organization for immediate food aid. Mr. Ole Sankok said that the same trend is also observed in his organization in the service of people with disabilities. Ms. Graham added that cash transfer programmes that make older persons the direct recipients of cash are important in enhancing their dignity, as older persons often feel disempowered when they cannot contribute to the family’s income.

Ambassador Kamau concluded the event by stating that the cash transfer programme is a novel initiative to solving problems related to poverty. He added that while much attention has been directed to the young in crafting the Sustainable Development Goals, the concerns of the old should not be overlooked.

Meeting Title: Event on Cash Transfers for Economic and Social Rights of Older Persons: Experiences from Kenya
Speakers: Mrs. Lydia Muriuki, Secretary (Social Development), the Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Services of the Republic of Kenya; Mr. Elijah Mwega, Karika; Mr. David Ole Sankok, Chairperson of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities; Ms. Ellen Graham, HelpAged International; H.E. Ambassador Macharia Kamau, Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations.
Location: Conference Room 9, United Nations Headquarters
Date: 30 July 2014
Summary Written By: Harrison Chung
Edited By: Marli Kasdan

Law of the Sea meeting turns into South China Sea Dispute

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The delegate of Vietnam opened the meeting with criticism towards China for illegally placing vessels and commencing deep-sea mining in the continental edge of Vietnam. Vietnam accused China of infringing sovereignty as they invade the economic zone and shelf of Vietnam including the use of military ships to fire canons at Vietnamese fishing vessels. A delegate of the Philippines fully supported statements by Vietnam. The delegate of the Philippines also emphasized that maritime zones are declared and mapped so that there is greater certainty of sovereign rights and jurisdiction. These mappings, he continued, should be based on charts, historical evidence of sovereignty as well as conventions.

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A delegate of the People’s Republic of China responded to these remarks explaining that commissions on the limits of the continental shelf give China sovereignty over the region. In particular the Xisha Islands that are an inherent part of China’s territory despite Vietnam’s claims that historic evidence gives Vietnam sovereignty over the islands and surrounding waters. China explained to the meeting that as Chinese companies started gas exploration drilling in the region armed Vietnamese boats attacked the operation undermining stability of the waters. The delegate of Russia expressed that this bilateral dispute is inappropriate to discuss on the Law of the Sea multilateral platform, Sri Lanka agreed with Russia in hope that the states would in their own time find a peaceful solution.

Delegates of Malaysia, India and Kenya all expressed concerns for long-term sustainable fisheries and conservation of the natural sea environment. A delegate of Pakistan shared that there are over 1.5 million seafarers each year, many of whom are migrating by sea and there continues to be significant safety concerns. Despite the ever increasing human, technological and financial capacity of the world today, legal frameworks and human rights regarding international waters continues to be a fragmented system needs to be repaired.

 

Meeting Title: United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – 175th Meeting
Speakers: Delegates on behalf of: Vietnam, India, Philippines, Kenya, Indonesia, China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Costa Rica, Russia, Japan, El Salvador, Somalia, Haiti, an Cyprus; Director of the Secretariat
Location: United Nations HQ, Conference Room 1, New York
Date: 13 June 2014
Written by WIT representative: Sophia Griffiths-Mark

 

Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Post-2015 Agenda

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UNPAThe final meeting of the 7th session of the conference of state parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York . This meeting was a culmination of a series of meetings that took place from the 10th to the 12th of June, 2014.

The purpose of this conference was to discuss the incorporation of the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the post-2015 development agenda, matters related to the national implementation of the convention and its monitoring, and concern for youth with disabilities. Delegations from all the states party to the convention were present this afternoon to put forward their views and recommendations. The international community recognizes that there is a significant portion of persons with disabilities in the world (15% of the population), who are most likely to be deprived of social and economic opportunities and therefore, they require special attention towards developmental activities if we are to achieve the Millennium Developmental Goals.

The rights of persons with disabilities are deeply rooted in the foundational principles of the United Nations Charter, which aims to promote and encourage respect for fundamental human rights. Therefore, the international community has made a commitment to the advancement and development of persons with disabilities by ensuring their inclusion and equal treatment in society.

The delegation of Honduras suggested that persons with disabilities are almost invisible because there is a lack of reliable data. All states should strive to set up a reliable system that will centralize all the information and provide high quality quantified information about their people. Jamaica stressed upon the importance of transforming global perspectives of persons with disabilities. Highlighting the role of education, many states emphasized on improving access to education in order to inform persons with disabilities about their rights and freedoms.

Meeting Title – Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Speakers: Ambassador Macharia Kamau of Kenya, the President of the Conference; Thomas Gass, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs; Ivan Šimonović, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights; Maria Soledad, Chair of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; Shuaib Chalklen, Special Rapporteur on Disability of the Commission for Social Development; and Lenin Moreno, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Disability and Accessibility
Date – June 12th, 2014
Location: CR 4, North Lawn Building, United Nations HQ, New York
Written by WIT Representative– Nusrat Laskar

Water-Energy-Food Nexus

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At the ‘Sustainable Energy for All Forums’ there was a panel discussion on the Water-Energy-Food Nexus, which highlighted interlinkages in the energy and water sector. Tania Rodiger-Vorwerk (Deputy Director General-Directorate 31, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) began the discussion, by stating that this was the very first public discussion on the HIO nexus. The demand for natural resources is consistently increasing and it is anticipated that the there will be severe shortages of natural resources if we don’t control and manage our resources effectively. Thus the aim of the nexus is to find intersectoral solutions designed to increase efficiency.
NEXUS News image 1.0.ashxRodiger also highlighted that Germany has been involved in the nexus through supporting regional dialogues through the high level African dialogue on Water-Food-Energy nexus in Nairobi in 2012 and supporting educational management. The main objectives of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development for the nexus are: collect and develop resources for nexus challenges; exchange information concerning practical experiences; integrate nexus perspective on policy level; promote nexus in other related sectors such as agriculture, irrigation etc.; and ensure HIO policy coherence.

Olivier Dubois (the Senior Natural Resources Officer and Coordinator, Energy Programme, FAO) added that nexus contributes phenomenally to sustainability, through three dimensions: resource efficiency; tradeoffs; and linking tradeoffs to opportunities. He highlighted that we are at the initial stages of building the nexus and thus need to develop nexus assessment and cost effective tools approach.Martin Hiller (Director General, REEEP) shared REEP’s contribution and initiatives, for instance a very simple technology of solar water pumps was converted into a private business in Kenya.

Anna Delgado (Water Unit, World Bank) noted that it is important to integrate energy-water planning at local and international level. The Thirsty Energy Initiative works to ensure governments integrate across the food, water and energy sectors. REEEP is in dialogue with China, as their water resources required energy expansion plans. She concluded by saying that the nexus requires a methodological approach, driven by demand and we should quantify tradeoffs.

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Meeting Title: Water-Energy-Food Nexus HIO, Sustainable Energy for All Forums
Speakers: Tania Rodiger-Vorwerk, Deputy Director General-Directorate 31, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development; Olivier Dubois, Senior Natural Resources Officer and Coordinator, Energy Programme, FAO; Anna Delgado, Water Unit, World Bank; Martin Hiller, Director General, REEEP; Klaus Rudischhauser, Deputy Director General, EuropeAid, European Commission.
Location: United Nations HQ; Conference Room B, New York
Written By WIT representative: Aslesha Kaur Dhillon