Just released by the World Bank, a visual mapping of progress towards the 17 Sustainable Development goals which include: ending poverty, good health, access to education, sustainable cities. Each section highlights progress and challenges.

Access the Visual Map

It takes a wee while to load, so be patient.
 

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, celebrated Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St Peter's Basilica for the 50th anniversary of the encyclical 'Populorum Progressio' 

Text of sermon

The NCR reports that Catholic organisations have objected to President Trump's latest executive order which will roll back environmental protections and impact the policy on climate change. Details here. 

 

A conference to mark the 50th Anniversary of the publication of the papal encyclical Populorum Progressio.

 

Renfield St Stephens Centre.

Saturday, 18th March, 2017.  9 AM - 4:30 PM

 

18th March, 2017. Renfield St Stephen's Centre

 

The programme for the day begins with a morning input by Fr Donal Dorr MD. Fr Donal is a priest of St Patrick’s Missionary Society, and well-known author and presenter. His book Option for the Poor and for the Earth is recognised a classic in its field. Later in the morning, there will be an opportunity for discussion with Fr Donal. 

The afternoon will see Duncan Maclaren KCSC, discuss Integral Human Development and the contribution we in Scotland can make. It also gives us a forum for consideration of the import of the Dicastery for IHD which Pope Francis has created and which came into operation on 1st January this year.

This conference is free and open to all.

Tickets from Eventbrite

New Aid Bill

The government is putting a bill through parliament which might divert part of the aid budget to private business investments.

Known as the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) Bill, it would allow International Development Secretary, Priti Patel, to give aid money to a company called the CDC Group.

Further details here.
 

Progressio email action
We all know that UK Aid achieves incredible and inspiring things, and Progressio has witnessed this first-hand. They have been working on projects for years that, through UK Aid, have changed lives and enabled people all over the world claim their rights and overcome the structural barriers that trap them in poverty.

Hope In Action - Inspiring a culture of hope
One World Week is a Development Education Charity. Each year, "The Week" is an opportunity for people from diverse backgrounds to come together to learn about global justice, to spread that learning and to use it to take action for justice locally and globally.

Nepal was hit by a second massive earthquake, just two weeks after more than 8,000 people were killed and an estimated 8 million were affected by a devastating earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale. As with other disasters, the British public have responded with extraordinary generosity, pledging £50 million to the Disasters Emergency Committee so far. Yet today Nepal is making a $3.5 million debt payment to the IMF, and a total of $210 million of debt payments are due this year.

One World Week "Living Differently" Breaking Chains - Making Change

The United Nations General Assembly opened its 69th annual session on 16 September with the body's new President declaring that it would be a historic opportunity to formulate a post-2015 development agenda that is transformative, brings tangible results in fighting poverty, and leads to improving lives of all people. (Ekklesia)

Forty years ago the UK Government committed to investing 0.7% of our national income in aid. Four years ago all three major UK political parties said they would enshrine that commitment in law. On Friday 12th September, that promise could be fulfilled with the second reading of the International Development Bill. The Bill, proposed by Michael Moore MP, is the last opportunity for this government to keep its promise to the UK electorate and to the world's poorest people. The rules in parliament are complicated, but if 100 supportive MPs turn up, there is a good chance of turning this long-held pledge into law.

Make sure they hear your calls for tough action on supermarkets. Email today. (Traidcraft Action)

Please ask your MP to sign this EDM
That this House notes with concern the US Supreme Court's rejection of an appeal by Argentina against a ruling that it must repay in full creditors who purchased Argentinian debt at a discount on the secondary market, with the intention of extorting full payment; disagrees with the Court's decision to prioritise the greed of vulture funds over the Argentinian people's sovereignty and the country's ability to repay its legitimate creditors; observes that this case sets a worrying precedent and creates a disincentive for creditors to negotiate rather than demanding full payment;

‘Fairtrade, Employment and Poverty Reduction (FTEPR) in Ethiopia and Uganda’
The Fairtrade Foundation welcomes the underlying research for this report, which included interviews with 1,700 workers in areas where both Fairtrade and non-Fairtrade smallholders and plantations were operating across the tea, coffee and flower sectors in Ethiopia and Uganda. We will study it with a view to improving our work in those two countries. Fairtrade has always recognised that agricultural labourers are extremely poor, and we agree that more needs to be done to help them.

Research undertaken in Asia, Africa and Latin America by National Resources Institute (NRI) found that “women and children had particularly benefited from the Fairtrade Premium investments..." Voluntary sustainability standards have proliferated in recent years and grown in market sales, but evidence on their poverty impact has been lacking. The purpose of this study is to “systematically examine the impact of voluntary social and environmental standards on poverty and livelihoods, particularly for the most disadvantaged workers and producers in developing countries”.

Contact your MP
Britain has made a bold stand by banning vulture funds – the insidious hedge funds who buy up bad debt and drag developing countries through the courts until they pay it back. But now we need to go further by trying to get other countries to do the same! There is currently an Early Day Motion (no 666) in Parliament calling for this to happen, so we need as many MPs as possible to sign. Can you write to your MP asking them to sign the motion? You'll find all of the information you will need on the Jubilee Scotland website.

We all know that the brutal and futile retail battles are unsustainable for everyone: consumers at home and farmers and workers in developing countries. If our retailers can’t or won’t act it is up to the government to take action. We are deeply disappointed that Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, is trying to pass the buck. In his response to our campaign, he says he supports Fairtrade’s work and believes that businesses must take a long-term view in the interests of suppliers and consumers. However, he believes the market is working for consumers who get cheap bananas and makes no suggestions as to how UK regulators will uphold the rights of banana farmers.

Traidcraft campaign
One man in Brussels is on the verge of a decision which could stop bullying by Europe’s biggest supermarkets. In these next critical weeks will you help to keep the pressure up?  Whether you’ve already taken action on this issue or not please add your voice now. Call on the Commissioner to announce tough European action on supermarkets. Email Commissioner Barnier today.

The European Parliament elections are looming (22nd May).  Join TJM members and campaigners to call on their MEP candidates to Take Back the Power and sign their pledge.  With trade deals in the pipeline with some of the world’s poorest countries, as well as with the US, and companies using investment rules to challenge government policy making, this a key time to  to demonstrate our opposition to trade deals which are giving more and more power to big business. It is also an opportunity to promote alternative trade policies which work for people and the environment.

Find out what is happening at the Fairtrade Foundation and the Scottish Fairtrade Forum

Justine must hear Unbreakable women's voices

Against some of the worst odds in the world, women in ‘fragile states’ like Somaliland, Zimbabwe and Yemen are organising to improve women’s lives by tackling the political, economic and social structures that keep them poor and marginalised. And they’re making powerful progress. Call on the UK government to support demands for a bigger role in political, environmental and social decision-making for women living in fragile states." (Progressio)

The Robin Hood Tax campaign is facing a tough opponent – not just from the usual source of the financial sector and their allies, but from legislation currently going through our House of Lords. The lobbying bill is due to go to its crucial report stage next week. The Robin Hood Tax campaign cannot support it for a number of reasons, and we urge peers of all political colours not to rush the bill through just to get it passed in time for the 2015 election. Those peers who have expressed support for Robin Hood previously should bear in mind that this legislation is not helpful to our cause.

That this House welcomes the impact of the Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 in preventing vulture funds taking an estimated £145 million from developing countries; further welcomes the passing of similar laws in Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man; notes that vulture funds are trying to force Argentina to default on its debt through a legal case in New York; further notes that vulture funds are making large profits on Greek debt repayments owed under UK law, despite other creditors agreeing a reduction in the amount they are owed; is concerned that vulture funds are preventing the fair implementation of debt restructuring; and urges the Government to share its experience of legislating on vulture funds with the US administration, bring forward legislative proposals to prevent vulture funds ignoring international agreed debt restructuring for Argentina and Greece in UK courts, and support the creation of a fair, independent and transparent arbitration mechanism for sovereign debt.

 

SCIAF has launched an emergency appeal to help survivors of Friday’s catastrophic typhoon in the Philippines which has left an estimated 10,000 people dead and 9.5 million affected

Nine billion reasons to act for justice
Every year the Scottish Government spends £9 billion buying goods and services - some from Scotland, some from much further away. This autumn, the Government and MSPs will debate a new law, the Procurement Reform Bill, which will guide how this £9 billion is spent. SCIAF is launching a new campaign calling for Scottish Government to make sure our money is not used to exploit workers, damage the planet or benefit unethical businesses.

IF campaigners have helped put hunger, and some its main underlying causes, firmly at the centre of political discussions – globally and nationally – this year. The Scottish Government has some big opportunities coming up in the next few weeks to move from discussion to action, and play its part in ending the scandal of global hunger: Take action: Email the First Minister Now

Millions continue to be affected by the raging conflict in Syria as Pope Francis calls for a worldwide day of fasting and prayers for peace for September 7th. The Syrian civil war has rumbled on for over 2 years now. The most recent estimates suggest that 100,000 people have died and 3 million have been forced to flee their homes. 2 million people have been left homeless, in refugee camps or living in overcrowded housing in neighbouring Jordan and Lebanon. An estimated 560,000 Syrians have fled to Jordan, a country with a population only slightly bigger than Scotland. SCIAF has been working with our partner, Caritas Jordan, to deliver emergency aid to Syrian refugees and the vulnerable Jordanians affected by the increasing demand for resources in Jordan. Through Caritas Jordan, SCIAF has helped to provide food, water, shelter, soap, blankets, heaters and medical care.

Did you know that three of the four biggest supermarket chains in the world have their headquarters in Europe? That’s why beefing up regulation in Brussels is so important in the fight for fairer food chains. In just a few days’ time, a key group of EU policy-makers will have their say on rules that will oversee how supermarkets across the continent treat the people working in their supply chains around the world.  We need your help to make sure they join the battle against supermarket bullying: please send an email to our target Members of the European Parliament today. 

From the IF campaign's launch back in January, through 500 George Osbornes marching on Westminster, 50,000 people rallying for change in London and Belfast, and on to getting the issues at the top of the G8 agenda, you've been there every step of the way. Thank you for making such a massive noise about global hunger - you can be extremely proud of what you've achieved. Watch the thank you from IF here. Watch the Scottish Journey to Belfast here.

Accused of shoring up regime threatened by Arab Spring - Vince Cable’s Business Department has backed £2 billion of loans to the dictatorship in Oman to buy Typhoon fighter aircraft. The absolute monarchy in Oman has strict repressions on human rights; any dissent faces harsh repression and the legal system is highly personalised with limited due process. The revelations come in UK Export Finance’s annual report, part of the Department for Business which backs loans for overseas buyers of UK Exports, (released 20 June 2013). Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, has claimed Britain is 'a beacon for human rights' around the world. That claim rings hollow when his own Business Minister is facilitating future human rights abuses and turning a blind eye to past ones. Tell Nick Clegg: 'Don't break your party's promise to drop dictator debts'

Just days after the G8 agreed to support developing countries collect the taxes they are owed, a UK parliamentary committee has quashed a key piece of legislation that would have made the task easier. The Finance Bill committee voted against an amendment that would have required UK-based multinationals to report their use of tax avoidance schemes likely to have an impact on developing countries. The amendment was tabled by Labour members based on a recommendation from the Enough For Everyone IF campaign which says tax evasion by multinationals costs developing countries US$160 billion a year. (Ekklesia)

The G8 has drawn to a close here in Northern Ireland. Many thanks to everyone who took any action, via email, facebook etc. and especially to all who attended the Belfast rally.
IF reaction: The G8 agreement on tax is a step in the right direction for tackling hunger, but leaves major unfinished business. Read the G8 communiqué here.  Read the IF response here

Jubilee Scotland, which calls for global debt justice, has recently launched a Debt Justice Pledge. You can help spread the word and do your part to convince decision-makers that Scotland can and must be a nation of debt justice. Unjust and unpayable debts undermine development everywhere in the world. Too often, these debts have been contracted by dictatorial regimes, to buy military equipment, with the complicity of reckless lenders and without the consent of the people. Find out more and sign the pledge. Sign the pledge now

Oxfam Scotland in association with Enough Food for Everyone IF Scotland Plays its Part present the Film Premiere of 'Halima’s Story and Exaveria’s Story'. Two short films highlighting Oxfam’s work in Tanzania, funded by the Scottish Government. Key note speaker: Humza Yousaf MSP, Minister for External Affairs and International Development.  Dovecot Studios, 10 Infirmary St, Edinburgh, EH11LT. Wednesday June 19, 2013 – 6.15pm-7.45pm (refreshments provided). RSVP by FRIDAY June 14 via, scotland@oxfam.org.uk  

One of the UK's most famous locations has been ‘SOLD’! A giant white ‘Sold’ sign 40-metres wide on the side of Edinburgh’s iconic landmark Arthur’s Seat today highlighted Scottish calls for G8 leaders meeting in Northern Ireland in June to stop corporate land-grabs in poor countries. Land-grabs in Africa, Asia and Latin America are leading to poor families being evicted from their farms and unable to grow sufficient food to support themselves. This comes at a time when 1 in 8 people in the world go hungry every day. Full report on the SCIAF website. Watch a short video of the event here

 

This month EU is set to make a decision that will push many African, Caribbean and Pacific sugar cane farmers, their families and communities into poverty. We urgently need your support to tell the EU to stop this. Please send an email to Paolo De Castro, Chair of the European Parliament Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development  and call on him to represent the interest of farmers in developing countries.

Tell George Osborne to drop his legal challenge in Europe

Just a few months ago we were delighted to share the good news with you: eleven countries in Europe pledged to introduce Robin Hood Taxes -- netting a combined whopping £30 billion. It's hard to believe, but those taxes are now under threat from our government. After losing the moral and practical arguments George Osborne is now resorting to a desperate legal challenge to try and block these countries from introducing their own taxes.

Take Action for IF - Scotland plays its part. Contact your MSP's ask them to write to the First Minister, calling for action by the Scottish Government which could help make 2013 the beginning of the end of world hunger.

What should the key guiding principles be for a country's international  development policy? Should a country's values help shape that policy? if so, what values can one attribute to ones own nation? These are just some of the questions being asked about Scotland's present and future external relations. Whatever Scotland's constitutional  decision may be, be that  'devolution max', independence or a continuation of the status quo, now is the time - when questions are being asked about what direction Scotland should take both internally and externally—for us to consider Scotland's place in the world.

More than 40 years ago, rich countries made a promise to give 0.7% of their wealth to the world's poorest people every year. Thanks to your support, the United Kingdom is now the first member of the G8 to keep this promise. In tough times, we haven't turned our backs on people going hungry. You should be proud. Thank you. But we're not done yet. We still need you to j oin us as we urge world leaders to tackle global hunger at the G8 summit in June. Sign up today to the IF campaign

The fulfilment of basic human needs, our environment, socio-economic development and poverty reduction are all heavily dependent on water. Good management of water is especially challenging due to some of its unique characteristics: it is unevenly distributed in time and space, the hydrological cycle is highly complex and perturbations have multiple effects. Rapid urbanization, pollution and climate change threaten the resource while demands for water are increasing in order to satisfy the needs of a growing world population, now at over seven billion people, for food production, energy, industrial and domestic uses. Water is a shared resource and its management needs to take into account a wide variety of conflicting interests. This provides opportunities for cooperation among users.

 

Please write to the Chancellor before the 15th of March
If we are to persuade the Chancellor, George Osborne, to take action to help end the global hunger crisis, we need to flood his in-tray with personalised letters. If more than 1,000 letters are sent it’s sure to get the issues onto his radar. Please remember to send your letter before 10 March, so that he receives it in plenty of time before the Budget is announced.

The Scottish Fair Trade Forum welcomed the announcement by Humza Yousaf MSP, Minister for External Relations and International Development that Scotland has met the criteria to be a Fair Trade Nation.  The success of Fair Trade across Scotland is largely thanks to the personal commitment of campaigners, who since the 1960s, have worked tirelessly towards ensuring that products exported from developing countries to developed countries are produced under fair conditions and empower producers to have more control over their livelihoods and the development of their communities.  Achieving Fair Trade Nation status for Scotland is another milestone in this decades-long process.

Kirk Jones, creator of ‘What to expect when you’re expecting’, has directed his debut political spoof, a short film made especially for the Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign. The film sees children playing members of the G8 as they gather to discuss the world’s problems. Hunger is on the agenda and we see how the children tackle the issue. We know the issue is more complex than this but sometimes it takes a child speaking the truth to point out the ludicrous faults of the adult world.

Every year rich countries throw away 220 million tonnes of food - almost as much as farmers in sub-Saharan Africa produce in one year. This is a scandal. But here’s one thing you can do right now to help change this. Join the Fairtrade foundation mini march to ask David Cameron to support smallholder farmers.

Timespan, Dunrobin Street, Helmsdale, Sutherland, KW8 6JX. Monday, March 4, 2013. 1pm - 3.30pm
The Enough Food For Everyone IF Campaign is holding a major seminar highlighting the parallels between the Highland Clearances in Scotland and land grabs in developing countries. 2013 marks 200 years since the Sutherland Clearances, when large numbers of people were forced off the land they called home. But, right now, in developing countries an area of land bigger than Loch Ness is snapped up by foreign investors every five hours. This seminar will discuss how Scottish  history can influence the global debate on land rights in order to protect the world’s poorest people.

The leaders of Scotland's four largest political parties have shown their public support for the IF Campaign during an event at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh.

Europe has given the green light to eleven countries to implement a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT). This decision shows that an alternative to austerity is possible, and that in Europe banks are now being made to pay their fair share towards a crisis which they helped cause. The UK is isolated on this issue and we need to make them feel it! We must also keep our eyes on these European Governments to make sure this money will be used to create jobs, keep schools and hospitals open, and help tackle poverty and climate change abroad. For a Robin Hood Tax to be truly won, revenue needs to be spent in this way!

Over 100 organisations have  joined together to launch a brand new campaign to make 2013 the year when we begin to end the global hunger crisis. Together, we’re calling on world leaders to tackle four big IFs. Aid, Tax, Land and Transparency. Watch the Glasgow launch on YouTube and read on for more information

 

Sharing Destiny - Moving Towards One World 21-28 October
One World Week is a Development Education Charity. Each year, 'The Week' is an opportunity for people from diverse backgrounds to come together to learn about global justice, to spread that learning and to use it to take action for justice locally and globally.

The public consultation about the Procurement Reform Bill started in August and runs through to 2 November. The bill aims to establish a national legislative framework for sustainable public procurement in Scotland. With the public procurement budget running in excess of £9 billion a year and the Government committed to procurement processes that are 'transparent, streamlined, standardised, proportionate, fair and business-friendly', there is a great opportunity to embed support for Fair Trade in any future public procurement framework.

11 European countries did something incredible. They pledged their support for a Robin Hood Tax. Now, they can work together in taking the next step in making the tax happen – via ‘enhanced co-operation’ in the European Union. Those 11 countries – Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain - should be very proud.

Jubilee Scotland's 'Break the Chains' campaign calls on Scotland to create an ethical export agency which will strengthen and encourage trade in positive exports, and not in harmful industries such as the arms trade. As part of this campaign, they will be hosting a whisky tasting event lead by long-term debt campaigner and 'Whisky Man of the Year 2011', John Lamond. Guests will be offered a unique chance to celebrate one of Scotland’s great industries along with community leaders, Government Ministers and faith Leaders in support of the ‘Break the Chains’ campaign. The event takes place on 12 October

Two interesting articles to mark World Water Week
Efects of food and water shortages in developing countries, guardian.co.uk, Sunday 26 August
Discover of massive water source in Namibia, guardian.co.uk, Friday 3 August

 

Rainbow Turtle’s 10^TH Birthday. To celebrate 10 years of fair trade the Renfrewshire Fair Trade shop is hosting a number of events on Saturday Sept 1 in Paisley Town Hall.  Scottish Fair Trade Forum Campaign Day Featuring guest speakers, panel discussions, workshops, and much more. All are welcome: 11.30 - 4pm. Traidcraft roadshow and preview day, 10 am – 4pm. 
Of particular interest will be the talk by Paul Chandler CEO of Traidcraft, entitled ‘More than just fair trade; how Christians can put their faith into action’ 

In response, the International Monetary Fund bailed out the private banks responsible for the crisis, and forced Third World countries to impose severe austerity and structural adjustment policies. The result was two lost decades of development across Latin America, Africa and Asia, as unimaginable levels of suffering swept the continents. Read more in Nick Deardens article for the New Statesman.

asking Kraft- when will toblerone be free from child trafficking?
Kraft source a significant amount of their cocoa from the Ivory Coast where the Worst Forms of Child Labour and child-trafficking and been reported. Since Kraft acquired Cadbury, who had made a previous commitment to Fairtrade, there has been very little new movement on their part. Kraft is the world’s biggest buyer of cocoa; in 2010 they bought 440.000 tons of cocoa but only 7% was certified as Traffik-Free. Being the world’s largest buyer of cocoa, they should be leading, not lagging.

11 - 19 August 2012 Castle Street, Edinburgh
This is an international event which provides a platform for Fair Trade and ethical gifts from across the globe. Held in a marquee on Castle Street, Fair Trade on the Fringe will bring together the best of fair trade gifts, foods and drinks, crafts, fashion, jewellery as well as street performers and live music during the world famous Edinburgh International Arts Festival. You'll find products from many countries across the world. This event supports producers of these products where every penny makes a difference. Watch a video of last years event.

The UK is being repaid millions of pounds of debt for bad lending: arms debt, loans to dictators and finance for environmentally unsound mega-projects. The Scottish Government can challenge this, by pledging to audit and cancel Scotland's share of overseas debt, and put in place a responsible export credit agency that will promote sustainable and ethical overseas and domestic growth, rather than simply being an engine for unjust debt. Please take two minutes to fill in the Jubilee Scotland e-action calling for the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth to make this pledge

As the Queen's diamond jubilee celebrations come to an end, let us remember the original meaning of jubilee - a time when debts were cancelled, slaves were freed and land was redistributed.  That’s why the Jubilee Debt campaign are creating  a giant paper chain petition, to be delivered to the Prime Minister. Please sign a link in the Jubilee for Justice paper chain petition.

Help stop unfair trade agreements which threaten the futures of 750 million people worldwide - support the Stop EPAs campaign. Europe is negotiating Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with 76 countries across Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific. These trade deals could have devastating effects on some of the world's poorest countries.

Take action during the week, email David Cameron calling on him to stop blocking the tax, also contact your MP here 
Visit SCIAF to find what they have being doing to help Robin.

 

Stop press this action has been successful. Read on to find out more.  The European Union, at a meeting in Doha, is trying to silence the United Nations on the crucial issue of preventing and dealing with debt crises. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has a long history of warning of financial crises, proposing ways to prevent them before they happen, and tackle them when they've broken out.The global Jubilee movement are at this week's UNCTAD meeting in Doha, and they have alerted us to a concerted effort by powerful countries to narrow UNCTAD's mandate to exclude global financial issues, including debt. The next 48 hours will be crucial. Please email UK Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell now

For the past ten years, the European Union has been negotiating trade deals with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries known as Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs).
Many African governments have been critical of the negotiations, expressing concerns that the agreements do more to benefit European economic interests than their own. With numerous controversial issues yet to be addressed, most have resisted signing up. However, the European Commission is now presenting an ultimatum to force these agreements through. Please e-mail David Martin, the MEP responsible for preparing the Parliament's response, and call on him to reject the Commission's proposal.

The UK government claims the Democratic Republic of Congo still owes it £19 million of debt, even though development minister Stephen O'Brien said last year all the debt had been cancelled.

 

Are a group of campaigning organisations from around the world united in calling on the G20 to end tax haven secrecy. While over 100 million children never get the opportunity to go to school, developing countries lose more money through tax dodging than they receive in aid.  
To stop this we need the G20 to end tax haven secrecy.

 

E mail Action. We have an opportunity at the Westminster Parliament to further one of the core aims of the Fairtrade Schoolwear Campaign, raising awareness of issues in the supply of cotton.  Early Day Motion 1284  "Human Rights and the Cotton Production Industry in Uzbekistan" refers to the hundreds of thousands of children forced to pick cotton in Uzbekistan. We need people to ask their MPs to sign the EDM. If enough sign, it could lead to a debate. Details of the EDM here. There is also information on the Environmental Justice Foundation website.  Only five Scottish MPs have signed the EDM so far:

 

International World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. It's the stuff of life. The most basic human right. The difference between life and death. Yet nearly 800 million people still live without safe water. Please tell the PM this World Water Day that everyone deserves clean water Based on current progress, Africa won't have universal access to clean water and safe sanitation for another 350 years. We believe that's too long to wait. Do you?

 

Anne Johnstone, The Herald, 1st March
I love primary one school photos: rows of neat bright-eyed five-year olds each in a brand new uniform.  Sweet? Yes but now they conjure up an image of other wee kids: like Carly, one of the estimated 100,000  children working up to 13 hours a day picking cotton in India. She featured in a recent news report, prizing  open fat cotton buds and dropping the contents into a basket. She wore a grubby dress and had no idea where her parents were. Her arms were covered  in scratches and she earned 24p a day. Child labour is tightly controlled in modern Britain but we've merely relocated the problem.

Why take a step?  Because trade isn’t working for the world’s poorest...

Millions of people in developing countries depend on farming. But they are trapped in poverty by the rules of world trade, keeping those at the start of supply chains powerless to earn enough to cover their costs and with nothing to save for their families.

But with just one step you can be part of changing this... http://step.fairtrade.org.uk/

UK government ministers are planning to use cancellation of a made-up debt to help meet their overseas aid target. Sudan currently 'owes' £678 million ($1bn) to the UK, and might qualify for debt cancellation in the next few years according to the Jubilee Debt Campaign.

Monday 14th November marked the 10th Anniversary of the launch of the Doha Development Round of negotiations at the World Trade Organisation. Ten years on and the world's poorest countries are still demanding justice from this 'soap opera' - as recently described by a representative from the African Group of States. Ahead of the next WTO ministerial in December,  take a moment to sign the petition to US Ambassador Louis Susman calling on him to end these damaging subsidies

At the November G20 meeting, a growing group of G20 countries from South Africa to Brazil backed the Robin Hood Tax, and the link between the Robin Hood Tax and fighting poverty and climate change became clearer than ever. Momentum is building and leaves leaders like David Cameron who opposed the tax looking increasingly isolated having sided not with the 99% suffering the effects of the economic crisis, but the interests of a privileged few in the financial sector.

Commenting on the failure of the G20 to do anything to bring in a global system to deal with debt crises, Tim Jones, Policy Officer at Jubilee Debt Campaign said: "It is incredible that the in the midst of another global debt crisis, the most powerful countries are still failing to regulate irresponsible lenders."  Jones continued: "An orderly system is needed to cancel unjust debts, neutral of both creditors and debtors. Yet the G20 seem happy to continue with the debt debacle currently being played out in Europe, as has been seen across the world for the last thirty years."

Newly uncovered documents by Jubilee Debt Campaign reveal that Vince Cable’s Department for Business is still demanding money from the Egyptian government in payment for loans made to General Mubarak to allow him to buy arms.  Egypt owes £100 million to the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD), nicknamed ‘the Department for Dodgy Deals’ because of its support for arms, aviation and fossil fuels.

Jubilee Debt Campaign: Comedian and activist Mark Thomas narrates their new short film explaining how Britain’s Dodgy Deals continue to result in unjust debt around the world. These debts have arisen from supporting deals with dictators, arms exports, and projects which have harmed people’s human rights and environment. 

Graeme Morrice, MP for Livingston, has tabled Early Day Motion 2205 calling on parliament to support the aims of debt week and push for the cancellation of unfair and unpayable debts owed to the UK. Please email, write or visit your MP asking them to sign this motion. You can view the motion here.

People in Europe are experiencing what those in the global South have known for generations: the power of debt to dictate the course of people’s lives.  Millions of people are living in extreme poverty while governments use our money to bail out a financial system that is making the world more unequal. From 8-16 October 2011 Jubilee groups around the world will take part for a week of action against debt and the international financial institutions.

A recent survey shows that 81% of Scottish people polled were aware of Fair Trade products, above the UK average of 77% who are aware of the Fairtrade Mark. Read more from a recent survey by the Scottish Fair Trade Forum online

Excellent defence of fair trade by Margaret McGowan of Motherwell J&P and by Martin Rhodes, Director, Scottish Fair Trade Forum in recent editions of the Herald

Call on governments to save millions of lives in the Horn of Africa
Parts of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia are facing one of the worst droughts for 60 years, and nearly 12 million people are desperately in need of food, clean water and basic sanitation. Despite the urgency of the situation, most world leaders are responding too slowly. Immediate aid is essential. Yet at the same time we must not let them drop the ball on long term solutions as has too often happened in the past.

Channel 4 recently screened a Dispatches documentary, The Real Price of Gold. You can watch again online and see some of the issues with the gold that is available to buy on the high street. 
The programme highlights the need for Fairtrade and Fairmined Gold. Watch it again here and sign the pledge opposing dirty gold

Community leaders in countries including Nepal, Bangladesh, Mozambique and Yemen have written to British cabinet ministers Chris Huhne and Andrew Mitchell rejecting the loans the UK is providing to their countries to help them cope with climate change.

But millions of people whose lives they’ll affect, from Sierra Leone to Greece, have had no say. Let’s demand Christine Lagarde and Agustín Carstens are quizzed directly by people from around the world. Send an urgent email today

Contact your MSP
Patrick Harvie, MSP, on behalf of Jubilee Scotland, has officially lodged motion S4M00148, 'Supporting Jubilee Scotland's call for Debt Arbitration'. This motion is a vital part of Jubilee Scotland's Defuse the Debt Crisis campaign this year. We now need your help to ensure that as many MSPs as possible sign up to this motion - and in doing so bring us a significant step closer to debt justice.

Email the Treasury now asking it to support strong and effective regulation to stop banks from betting on hunger. The Treasury is the government department which decides whether the UK will support international regulation to rein in excessive speculation on food prices.

Take action before April 27
Jubilee Scotland asks you to call on MPs to support a 10 Minute Bill which seeks to clean up the Export Credit Guarantees Department (ECGD).  On 27th April Lisa Nandy MP will introduce the Export Credit Guarantees Department Bill) At present, the ECGD lacks transparency and accountability, and its activities fuel poverty, human rights abuses and environmental destruction. The Bill seeks to make the ECGD more accountable and ensure its operations are in line with wider government  policy on promoting development and human rights.

The Government has announced that it’s going to make the Vulture Funds law permanent. Many of you campaigned very hard to get this law passed in literally the last few minutes before the election last year. It was a tribute to people power – but there was a danger it would expire in June after a ‘sunset clause’ was added at the last minute.

Email Andrew Mitchell MP, the International Development Secretary, now
At the start of 2011, the people of South Sudan voted to become the world’s newest country. South Sudan is due to become independent in July, and negotiations are taking place right now on what should happen to Sudan’s $35 billion debt