Yemen: More Than a Global Security Threat

Why is the U.S. pledging to back a foreign military whose special operations forces have been accused of egregious human rights abuses?

Earlier this month, the U.S. promised to help the Yemeni military beef up its special operations forces. The Pentagon has been offering Yemeni security forces handouts all year: In February, for example, the Pentagon appropriated $150 million in military assistance for Yemen — an $83 million dollar increase over the previous year. Unfortunately, very little was offered to explain what would become of such a large chunk of change. (All that in addition to the Obama administration’s recent decision to sanction the targeting of Anwar Al-Awlaki, an American cleric residing in Yemen. )

Such funds, it’s been reported, are intended to help the country target Al Qaeda. But we’re talking about Yemen here, a country that ranks 111th on the 2009 U.N. Human Poverty Index. It’s a country that’s received far less U.S. aid than most in the region. When it comes to Yemen, it seems the U.S. sees little more than a security threat.

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What the Rise of Brand America Means

It seems that nothing’s immune from the horse race these days. Including America’s reputation: are we up, or are we down?

Well, for those of you keeping score, a recent BBC poll showing that people in other countries increasingly see the U.S. positively should have the development community counting its stars.

There’s plenty of room for speculation over what this poll means. According to the BBC, for the first time since 2005 (when the poll began), “America’s influence in the world is now seen as more positive than negative.” But while many of us have been waiting for this day since America’s reputation first took a nose-dive, what is the real significance here?

For groups working to combat global poverty, it’s an important milestone. It’s hard to work in communities that overwhelmingly distrust or dislike you. The news that U.S. is no longer seen with overriding skepticism might seem like a small thing to celebrate, but it means that some countries that have viewed us with doubt could become future partners. Work to alleviate poverty can amplify this positive feedback loop, helping strengthen new and lasting relationships.

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Growing herbs for profit in Jordan

Barack Obama, the US president, launches a new effort on Monday to build business and social ties to the Muslim world. Obama hosts a two-day presidential summit on entrepreneurship that will bring together about 250 successful business and social entrepreneurs from more than 50 countries, most with large Muslim populations, fulfilling a pledge he made in his Cairo speech to the Islamic worldlast June. The aim is to bring together successful business and social entrepreneurs from different countries, venture capitalists, development bankers and other business experts to discuss ideas and share experiences with a view towards creating support networks that will help promote development in the region. However, one businesswoman in Jordan does not require a summit to make a profit. Maisoon Zaidan set up an initiative in 2006 to capitalise on Jordan’s natural resources. Al Jazeera’s Nisreen El-Shamayleh travelled to the village of Anjara to meet Zaidan and her profitable garden.

The Nuclear Issue is a Poverty One, Too

Newspapers around the world heralded this week’s nuclear summit in Washington, DC as a huge step for the world, and evidence that President Obama is finding his groove on foreign policy. Left out of the conversation, though? The fact that nuclear proliferation’s risks can’t be exclusively resolved by high-level diplomacy — they have to be combated by poverty alleviation around the world, as well.

Not surprisingly, the media shunted such a fact aside in favor of headlines that allowed the biggest players at the table to steal the show. “In nuclear summit, Obama seeks global help in sanctioning Iran,” ran a front-page headline in Tuesday’s Washington Post. Likewise, the New York Times followed suit: “China Pledges to Work With U.S. on Iran Sanctions.” The list goes on.

There’s no disputing that Iran, Pakistan and North Korea are all pivotal to the discussion. But frankly, these headlines only skim the surface of what’s at stake (and how to tackle the issue).

To his credit, President Obama tried to make the connection between the developing world and the question of nuclear proliferation. So, too, did Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Speaking in Louisville, KY just days before the summit, she argued that nuclear proliferation works in “exact opposition” to the goal of fighting long-term challenges like poverty and disease. That connection, of course, pre-dates this week. When the 9-11 Commission released its final 2004 report reflecting on the lessons of September 11 and ways the U.S. could secure itself, members of the bi-partisan commission made it clear that poverty creates “opportunities” for terrorist networks to grow. That is, terrorist networks that might have more than a passing interest in obtaining nuclear materials to threaten the U.S. and its allies.

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US Passes Healthcare Reform

Beth

Microfinance Pioneer Muhammad Yunus Speaks at U.Va.

Microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus speaks at the University of Virginia, sharing a central message that in working together we can change the world. Mr. Yunus established Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, reaching out to people traditional banks don’t deem creditworthy. Grameen Bank now serves more than 8 million people through ‘microloans’ totalling about $1 billion a year. Mr. Yunus received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006. In August 2009, US President Barack Obama presented him with the Medal of Freedom.