February 2009

Over the past year the world has experienced unstable prices in more ways than we could have imagined not that long ago. Just as turbulent as international stock exchanges and food prices? Crude oil.

Over the summer of 2008, oil prices peaked close to $150 a barrel. Last week it was selling below $40. Crashing prices mean tightening budgets in many countries that rely on income from oil extraction. In places such as Russia, Venezuela, and Iran, social programs that derived most of their funding from resource sales have been drastically cut. 

Did you know that South Asia has the highest rates of malnutrition and the largest numbers of undernourished children in the world? About 38-46% of the population suffers from malnutrition, compared to 28% in sub-Saharan Africa. This is surprising, given South Asia’s recent impressive economic growth, and it’s become an urgent priority for development in the region. The effects of malnutrition can be far-flung; for example, a child who is undernourished during his or her first two years is less likely to complete in school and will earn, on average, a 10-17% lower income than one who was well-nourished.

If you’re part of a project that’s addressing malnutrition in South Asia, or just want to learn more about the issues, be sure and check out the South Asia Regional Development Marketplace (DM). This year, the DM is calling for innovative projects to improve nutrition among infants and children under 2, and also among pregnant women.

There's been a lot of crowing in Washington these past few days. As the US, and the rest of the world, try to navigate through our current financial crisis and recession, governments are increasingly turning to fiscal stimulus packages in attempts to boost domestic economies. 

The idea is simple enough. Fiscal stimulus is basically a fancy way of saying that the government will borrow money, either from its citizens or other countries by issuing bonds, to spend on infrastructure renewal, industrial development, or even tax cuts for corporations and citizens. It's difficult for even the world's best economists to really determine how effective such programs are in the long term but as unemployment continues to rise around the world, policymakers are beginning to wonder whether they have any other options.

There has recently been some big news regarding treatment of malaria. First the good news.

Generally, visiting health centers where I work is one of the parts of my job that I most enjoy. But there is one part of the experience I really can’t take: watching kids take their medication. While this may seem like the easiest part of the process, getting a small child to swallow a large, bitter, scary pill can be quite an ordeal. I often remember one particular little girl in Chad screaming (or rather gargling) in terror as her mouth filled with blood (she bit her tongue) while the nurse held her nose and poured the medication into her mouth. Not a pretty sight. And besides being such a traumatic experience for the child, she ended up spitting out most of her anti-malarial treatment.