BLADE

Seminar on "New thoughts on Aid" presented at Freedom of Expression Foundation, Oslo

(The graphic used for the seminar, "New thinking on Aid", designed by Kristine Vintervold)

Amila de Saram Larssen

The seminar, “New thinking on Aid” that took place October 3 in Oslo, addressed important issues associated with the aid industry, mainly why aid is not more effective, how aid is viewed by recipient countries, and what the future of aid might look like. 

The seminar was organized by Asle Toje.

Documenting the voiceless: Photojournalist G.M.B. Akash discusses his work

Award-winning photojournalist, G.M.B. Akash, was in Oslo this week and spoke to us about his work, how he got started, and why he believes documenting child labour, drug users, sex workers and others on the margins of society is important.

New report on Preventing Corruption in Humanitarian Assistance

This report presents research on the problem of corruption in humanitarian assistance, carried out in 2007 and 2008 by the Feinstein International Center of Tufts University (FIC) in collaboration with the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) at the Overseas Development Institute in London (ODI) and the sponsoring organization, Transparency International (TI).  Seven case studies were conducted at the field and headquarters levels and highlight the risks, challenges and consequences of corruption in development aid.  To read the full report, click here: Download Humanitarian_Assistance_Report-1.pdf

Floods in Sri Lanka: water wreaks havoc for people

 

By Sumaya Samarasinghe

The flash floods in Sri Lanka have displaced more than thousands in the districts of Galle, Ratnapura, Gampaha, Kalutara, Kegalle, and Colombo and claimed the lives of over 20 people.

Hiniduma, an area in the Galle District, is one of the worst affected areas in the country with 600 families living in the region. Caritas Sri Lanka-SEDEC provided aid in the form of dry rations to 300 families living in Hiniduma and 75 from Udugama. For most of these families, the tumultuous floods that struck were a common occurrence. Each time they suffer the same ordeal of losing their household appliances, clothes, and books, amongst others.

The forgotten survivors of Cyclone Sidr in Bangladesh

Reporting by Mahtab Haider, photos by G.M.B. Akash

The world has moved on. The international news networks are chasing new disasters: the earthquake in China, a cyclone in Burma, a humanitarian crisis in Darfur. In the 24-hour news cycle, it is a matter of days at best, before the gaze of the cameras and news anchors is diverted to a compelling new tragedy unfolding in some other forgotten part of the world. But for Hawa Begum, 25, life has remained at a standstill since the night of November 15 last year, when the devastating cyclone Sidr hit Bangladesh and killed over 4,000 people. Seven months on, her tragedy is only just beginning to unfold.

“Those who died were the lucky ones,” says Hawa. “Those of us who survived have no food, our houses give us no protection against the cold, and when the wind and the rains will come in a month we will be homeless again,” she says.