View allAll Photos Tagged POLICIES
Estimated average impact of energy and climate change policies on household, business and energy intensive industry energy bills compared with the absence of policies.
27 March 2013.
Policy Statements ITU PP-22
H.E. Ms Ursula Owusu-Ekuful
Minister for Communications and Digitalisation
Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation
Bucharest, Romania
26 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
Maldivian Democratic Party’s guest house policy launching by presidential candidate President Mohamed Nasheed was initiated at L. Gan at a – ceremony held at 4:00 pm today. The policy was then launched across 21 islands from 19 atolls and 2 cities by members of Maldivian Democratic Party’s ministerial cabinet, leadership and parliamentary group.
raeesnasheed2013.com/guesthouse/downloads/mdp_guesthouse_...
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Benito Santiago JIMÉNEZ SAUMA
First Secretary
Embassy of Mexico in Romania
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Ms Bolor-Erdene Battsengel
Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Communications
Ministry of Digital Development and Communications
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
10/10/2009 - Speaking at the education ministerial round table organised by the UNESCO, Angel Gurría, OECD Secretary-General, underlined that education is the key to addressing the economic and social challenges of our times. Unesco headquarters, Paris.
For more information about the work of the OECD in Education, visit: www.oecd.org/education
Ref: CD209-135-80294705
© OECD/Unesco/Andrew Wheeler
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Ms Khumbudzo Ntshavheni
Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies
Ministry of Communications and Digital Technologies
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP-22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Cooper Kruah
Minister of posts and Telecommunications
Ministry of Posts and Telecommunication
Bucharest, Romania
28th September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
Policy Statements ITU PP-22
H.E. Ms Ursula Owusu-Ekuful
Minister for Communications and Digitalisation
Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation
Bucharest, Romania
26 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Eric Lebédel-Delumeau
Ambassador
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
Melissa Garren - The Sea We've Hardly Seen
Researcher
Microfluidics visionary
Melissa is interested in the many ways that microscopic organisms support the health and vitality of our oceans. Although invisible to the naked eye, there are five million bacteria and fifty million viruses in an average teaspoon of clean seawater. These unseen communities are the masterminds behind the beautiful blue, vibrant, productive oceans we can see with our naked eyes. Much of her work to date has focused on the ways in which coastal pollution disturbs these healthy microbial processes, particularly on coral reefs, with the aim of finding more sustainable solutions for land and coastal water use practices. She is currently delving deeper into coral-microbe interactions by studying the ways humans can influence individual pathogen behavior. As a postdoctoral fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she is applying cutting edge microfluidic technologies to understand how and why microbial diseases are infecting so many corals around the globe. By combining tools from engineering and biophysics, she is able to study coral disease at the scale on which it actually occurs: the microscale. She ultimately hopes to work at the interface of research and policy by facilitating the integration of microbial processes into conservation planning. Melissa holds a B.S. in molecular biology from Yale University and both an M.S. and a Ph.D. in marine biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego.
Estimated average impact of energy and climate change policies on household energy bills in 2020.
27 March 2013
From left to right:
Daniel Maxwell, Henry J. Leir Professor in Food Security, Friedman School of Nutrition, Tufts University
Shenggen Fan, Director General, IFPRI
Katherine Marshall, Senior Fellow, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, Georgetown University; Executive Director, World Faiths Development Dialogue
David Beasley, Executive Director, U.N. World Food Programme
Paul Dorosh, Director, Development Strategy and Governance Division, IFPRI
Tony P. Hall, Executive Director Emeritus, Alliance to End Hunger
Rajul Pandya-Lorch
Chief of Staff, Director General's Office, IFPRI
Photo credit: Melissa Cooperman/IFPRI
PP-22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Sumbue ANTAS
Ambassador, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Other International Organisations, Geneva, WTO and to the Swiss Confederation
Bucharest, Romania
30th September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
This snow hut's doors are always open. Visitors welcome.
Big Creek Baldy Snow Hut. Kootenai National Forest, Montana.
PP-22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Gospel KAZAKO
Minister
Ministry of Information and Digitalization
Bucharest, Romania
30th September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
This photo was taken at the Policy Dialogue on Sustainable Sanitation in Asia held in Tokyo, Japan on 21-22 Sept 2018.
Life Insurance Companies offers the best life insurance policy in India. Check out various Life Insurance services and secure yourself with ease and convenience. For more details www.bajajallianzlife.com
Main message to Rwanda is that “Good policies pay off.” Let me set this in a broader context by saying that I am very happy to have the opportunity to visit Rwanda at such a pivotal moment in its history. The horrific events that occurred 20 years ago tore the social and economic fabric of the country, and it is uplifting to see the progress in rebuilding, in peace efforts, and in improving the welfare of all Rwandans.
This truly is an example in terms of social and economic transformation. It proves that effective policies and inclusive growth can be transformational.
The economic performance has been remarkable, with strong annual growth for the past 15 years. This has helped Rwanda make progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. The poorest have benefited from a focus on inclusive growth, with the poverty rate falling to 45 per cent of the population in 2011 from 60 per cent in 2000.
Of course, this rate is still high, but it is definite progress and we see the trend continuing. So, while there has not been a magic bullet or a single trigger, a holistic approach, that also included a focus on the agricultural sector, employment, and gender equality, has been instrumental in sharing the fruits of high growth more widely.
What is the status of IMF relations in Rwanda at present?
We have a very close economic policy dialogue and the IMF is currently supporting the government with a Policy Support Instrument (PSI) – designed for low-income countries that have graduated from financial support but still seek to maintain a close policy dialogue.
The PSI signals the strength of a country’s policies to donors, multilateral development banks, and markets. We also provide technical assistance as part of the Fund’s efforts to increase local capacity and know-how. We have an office in Kigali, where a resident representative, currently Mitra Farahbaksh, ensures our presence in the field.
Rwanda’s PSI, which is in its second year, supports Rwanda’s own policy priorities for strong and inclusive growth, with an emphasis on domestic resource mobilization, private sector development, export diversification, regional integration, and financial sector development.
We recently reviewed this programme and welcomed the country’s continued strong performance. We also agreed with the government that more work needs to be done to further reduce Rwanda’s reliance on aid and increase its resilience to external shocks.
What is your economic outlook for the country between now and 2020?
Our outlook for Rwanda is positive. The economy is recovering from a weak performance in agriculture and delays in related project implementation in recent years. Growth rebounded last year and inflation remains well contained. We expect GDP growth rates to rise gradually towards 7-7.5 per cent in the medium term, while inflation remains within the medium-term target of 5 per cent.
I am particularly impressed with the government’s continued commitment to poverty reduction.
As part of my stay here, I will be visiting the Agaseke Handicraft Cooperative and the ICT hub (knowledge Lab) in Kigali to see firsthand how the government has managed to improve the welfare of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups such as women and youth.
As your readers are aware, the Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy for 2013–18 focuses on economic transformation, rural development, and youth employment. The strategy is rightly aimed at further reducing poverty.
I think that the continued rollout of planned measures and the successful inclusion of the private sector in leading economic development will help make sizeable inroads in making growth even more inclusive and in reducing inequality.
In a recent advisory by the IMF Board, they encouraged Rwanda to widen its tax base and put emphasis on domestic revenue sourcing. What is your advice on this?
We are devoting a significant portion of our technical assistance to support Rwanda’s efforts to reduce its dependence on foreign aid. The focus is appropriately on widening the tax base – not higher taxes, but all paying a fair share.
The government has already made significant progress in the areas of revenue administration.
The push to increase the number of registered VAT payers through the introduction of electronic billing machines, and the switch in the collection of local taxes and fees from the local governments to the revenue authority, should be useful in bringing more businesses under the tax system.
The introduction of tax regimes for agriculture and mining, and improvements in property taxation, should also help achieve the goal of providing budgetary resources for key expenditures, particularly those aimed at scaling up social spending and infrastructure in a context where donor resources are likely to be limited.
Lately, Rwanda has taken to raising money through bonds, do you think this is viable?
Rwanda’s successful Euro-bond issuance in 2013 demonstrated that market financing can play a complementary role in financing investment plans. Several other African countries have followed suit over the past year.
The key is to ensure that Rwanda’s debt remains sustainable. I welcome the government’s commitment to fully explore concessional financing options and private sector participation before considering the use of non-concessional resources.
At the same time, the government’s decision to begin issuing domestic currency bonds in 2014 was an important step in the process of developing and deepening local capital markets.
www.newtimes.co.rw/section/article/2015-01-26/185319/
Creating jobs remains a high priority for this country, but as you know the private sector is also still young. What should Rwanda do to address these two issues?
On private sector development, Rwanda’s potential depends critically on full implementation of ongoing reforms to attract foreign investment and boost exports. These include reducing the cost of doing business; improving infrastructure; supporting skills development; and tapping into regional markets.
The increased provision of lower-cost electricity and improved transportation should help facilitate diversification and business development.
On creating jobs, the government has identified three key priorities: skills development, the fostering of entrepreneurship for small- and medium-sized enterprises, and supporting household enterprises. We at the Fund share this emphasis on building the capacity of Africa’s greatest resource–its people. Increased investment in infrastructure can help put people to work.
The IMF’s latest Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa projects regional GDP growth to pick up from about 5 per cent in 2013/14 to 5.75 per cent in 2015. That isn’t a big leap, is it? Can you elaborate on this?
Sub-Saharan Africa has made impressive progress over the past two decades, with growth averaging around 5 per cent. We expect that to continue in 2015, despite the impact of lower oil prices on some of Africa’s major oil exporting economies.
So there has been real progress, as growth has allowed for reducing poverty and improving living conditions.
For example, the number of people living on less than $1.25 a day in Africa has fallen significantly since 1990. But extreme poverty remains unacceptably high and not all countries are making progress. Some countries are still facing internal conflict and/or fragility.
Looking ahead, there are a number of longer-term demographic, technological and environmental challenges that need to be addressed in order to realise the ‘big leap’ that you refer to.
For instance, how can we tap into the productive capacity of Africa’s youth? How can Africa take advantage of technological innovation?
And how can we address the implications of climate change? Three broad policy priorities are crucial: building infrastructure, building institutions, and building people. Africa must also strengthen its institutional and governance frameworks to better manage its vast resources.
But the focus must be on people—with programmes aimed at boosting health and education and other essential social services. In fact, Rwanda is one of the countries that are effectively implementing policies in many of these areas.
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has dealt a major blow to several African economies in the region. Can the effects of this blow spread to other parts of the continent?
The Ebola outbreak is a severe human, social and economic crisis that requires a resolute response. And the focus must be on isolating the virus, not the countries.
Strong efforts are underway in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, but it is unlikely to be brought under control before the second half of 2015.
The economic outlook for these countries has already worsened since September, when the IMF disbursed $130 million to the (three) countries to boost their response to the outbreak.
If the outbreak remains limited to the three countries, the economic outlook for the rest of sub-Saharan Africa remains favourable. Some neighbouring countries like The Gambia have seen an impact on tourism.
We are working with the governments of the three affected countries to provide additional interest-free financing of about $160 million, and expect our Board to make a decision in the next few days.
Following the endorsement by the G-20 leaders in Australia, we are also looking at further options to provide additional support to the Ebola-hit countries, including through the provision of donor-supported debt relief.
International oil prices have been tumbling, is this good for Rwanda and the other members of the EAC?
Indeed, oil prices have fallen recently, affecting both oil producers and consumers. Overall, we see the price decline as positive for the global economy. As an oil importer, Rwanda and indeed the East Africa region should benefit given that lower prices will most likely have a positive impact on growth whilst also easing inflation.
Countries can make use of this window of opportunity to reduce universal energy subsidies and use the savings toward more targeted transfers that benefit the poor.
Recently, the East African Community, a regional bloc to which Rwanda subscribes, reached a landmark Economic Partnership agreement (Epa) with Europe. Do you think that these countries need such agreements?
The EPA is designed to enhance commercial and economic relations, supporting a new trading dynamic in the region and deepening cooperation in trade and investment. It can serve as an important instrument of development in many respects.
It can promote sustained growth, increase the productive capacity of EAC economies, foster diversification and competitiveness, and, of course, boost trade, investment and employment. Rwanda is a key member of the EAC that has worked hard to create a conducive and transparent business environment. So it should benefit from this agreement.
All Photos: Jack Yakubu ( Jack Nkinzingabo)
PP22 - Policy Statements
Mr Carlos Manuel Baigorri
President
National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel)
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Darsanand Balgobin
Minister of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation
Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Ms Bolor-Erdene Battsengel
Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Communications
Ministry of Digital Development and Communications
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
April 10, 2014 - WASHINGTON DC. 2014 IMF / World Bank Group Spring Meetings. Making Innovation Policy Work. Photo: Steven Shapiro / World Bank
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Damian Collins
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Technology and the Digital Economy) at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
UK Government
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Puthyvuth Sok
Secretary of State
Ministry of Post and Telecommunications
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP-22 - Policy Statements
Senator Karen Grogan
Chair, Senate Communications and Environment Committee
Bucharest, Romania
30th September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
PP22 - Policy Statements
H.E. Mr Timothy Masiu
Minister of Communication and Information Technology
National Information & Communications Technology Authority (NICTA)
Bucharest, Romania
27 September 2022
©ITU/Rowan Farrell
33 Liberty Street is the current home of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. It is located in downtown Manhattan in New York City. Built in 1924, it is where the monetary policy of the United States is executed by trading dollars and United States Treasuries. In addition, it reportedly holds 25% (unaudited) of the world's existing gold bullion, making it the largest known treasury in the world.
The visual impact of the neo-Renaissance structure derives from its monumental size, fortress-like appearance, fine proportions and the overall quality of construction. It set the precedent for many later banks which were greatly influenced by its design.
Built from 1919 through 1924, this massive building occupies an entire city block, reaching fourteen stories tall with five additional floors underground. The stone exterior is reminiscent of an early Italian Renaissance palace with the horizontal and vertical joints of the stones deeply grooved or rusticated. The building was purposely designed to resemble a Florentine palazzo so as to inspire trust and confidence.
The vault rests on Manhattan's bedrock, 50 feet (15.24 m) below sea level. The weight of the vault and the gold inside would exceed the weight limits of almost any other foundation. The gold belongs to 36 governments and is stored for free, but every time a bar is moved, a handling fee is applied. There are elaborate procedures for the handling of the gold, with three different teams monitoring every transaction.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/33_Liberty_Street
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is one of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks of the United States. It is located at 33 Liberty Street, New York, NY. It is responsible for the Second District of the Federal Reserve System, which encompasses New York state, the 12 northern counties of New Jersey, Fairfield County in Connecticut, Puerto Rico, and the U. S. Virgin Islands. Working within the Federal Reserve System, the New York Federal Reserve Bank implements monetary policy, supervises and regulates financial institutions and helps maintain the nation's payment systems.
Among the other regional banks, New York Federal Reserve Bank and its president are considered first among equals. It is by far the largest (by assets), most active (by volume) and most influential of the 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Reserve_Bank_of_New_York
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_...
Here's how to help: www.salon.com/news/haiti/index.html?story=/news/feature/2...
Published on Thursday, January 14, 2010 by CommonDreams.org
What You're Not Hearing about Haiti (But Should Be)
by Carl Lindskoog
In the hours following Haiti's devastating earthquake, CNN, the New York Times and other major news sources adopted a common interpretation for the severe destruction: the 7.0 earthquake was so devastating because it struck an urban area that was extremely over-populated and extremely poor. Houses "built on top of each other" and constructed by the poor people themselves made for a fragile city. And the country's many years of underdevelopment and political turmoil made the Haitian government ill-prepared to respond to such a disaster.
True enough. But that's not the whole story. What's missing is any explanation of why there are so many Haitians living in and around Port-au-Prince and why so many of them are forced to survive on so little. Indeed, even when an explanation is ventured, it is often outrageously false such as a former U.S. diplomat's testimony on CNN that Port-au-Prince's overpopulation was due to the fact that Haitians, like most Third World people, know nothing of birth control.
It may startle news-hungry Americans to learn that these conditions the American media correctly attributes to magnifying the impact of this tremendous disaster were largely the product of American policies and an American-led development model.
From 1957-1971 Haitians lived under the dark shadow of "Papa Doc" Duvalier, a brutal dictator who enjoyed U.S. backing because he was seen by Americans as a reliable anti-Communist. After his death, Duvalier's son, Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" became President-for-life at the age of 19 and he ruled Haiti until he was finally overthrown in 1986. It was in the 1970s and 1980s that Baby Doc and the United States government and business community worked together to put Haiti and Haiti's capitol city on track to become what it was on January 12, 2010.
After the coronation of Baby Doc, American planners inside and outside the U.S. government initiated their plan to transform Haiti into the "Taiwan of the Caribbean." This small, poor country situated conveniently close to the United States was instructed to abandon its agricultural past and develop a robust, export-oriented manufacturing sector. This, Duvalier and his allies were told, was the way toward modernization and economic development.
From the standpoint of the World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Haiti was the perfect candidate for this neoliberal facelift. The entrenched poverty of the Haitian masses could be used to force them into low-paying jobs sewing baseballs and assembling other products.
But USAID had plans for the countryside too. Not only were Haiti's cities to become exporting bases but so was the countryside, with Haitian agriculture also reshaped along the lines of export-oriented, market-based production. To accomplish this USAID, along with urban industrialists and large landholders, worked to create agro-processing facilities, even while they increased their practice of dumping surplus agricultural products from the U.S. on the Haitian people.
This "aid" from the Americans, along with the structural changes in the countryside predictably forced Haitian peasants who could no longer survive to migrate to the cities, especially Port-au-Prince where the new manufacturing jobs were supposed to be. However, when they got there they found there weren't nearly enough manufacturing jobs go around. The city became more and more crowded. Slum areas expanded. And to meet the housing needs of the displaced peasants, quickly and cheaply constructed housing was put up, sometimes placing houses right "on top of each other."
Before too long, however, American planners and Haitian elites decided that perhaps their development model didn't work so well in Haiti and they abandoned it. The consequences of these American-led changes remain, however.
When on the afternoon and evening of January 12, 2010 Haiti experienced that horrible earthquake and round after round of aftershock the destruction was, no doubt, greatly worsened by the very real over-crowding and poverty of Port-au-Prince and the surrounding areas. But shocked Americans can do more than shake their heads and, with pity, make a donation. They can confront their own country's responsibility for the conditions in Port-au-Prince that magnified the earthquake's impact, and they can acknowledge America's role in keeping Haiti from achieving meaningful development.
To accept the incomplete story of Haiti offered by CNN and the New York Times is to blame Haitians for being the victims of a scheme that was not of their own making. As John Milton wrote, "they who have put out the people's eyes, reproach them of their blindness."
Carl Lindskoog is a New York City-based activist and historian completing a doctoral degree at the City University of New York. You can contact him at cskoog79@yahoo.com
12 september 2019 : OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum
OECD Headquarters, Paris
SUPPLY CHAIN SESSION 1.
Moderator :
Marie-Agnes Jouanjean, Agricultural Policy Analyst, Trade and Agriculture Directorate, OECD
Panellists :
Marco Aloe, Director Integrity Solutions, Société Industrielle et Commerciale de Produits Alimentaires
Aoife Cassin, Consultant, International Plant Protection Convention
Glyn Chancey, Executive Director, Canadian Seed Growers’ Association
Markus Mutz, CEO, OpenSC
Photo : © Hervé Cortinat / OECD