Poverty

June 25, 2007 -- FRANKFORT, Ky. — Unemployment rates fell in 73 Kentucky counties between May 2006 and May 2007, rose in 45 counties and remained the same in two counties, according to the Kentucky Office of Employment and Training, an agency of the Education Cabinet.    » read more »

17 June 2007 -- The World Food Program says the tiny South African country of Lesotho needs urgent international assistance to prevent a major food crisis this year. A report by WFP and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization finds cereal prices in Lesotho have skyrocketed after this year's main cereal harvest was ravaged by one of the worst droughts in 30 years. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.    » read more »

Council will work to improve the lives of people who are experiencing homelessness

June 15, 2007 -- CHARLESTON - West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin today announced the creation of the West Virginia Interagency Council on Homelessness (WVICH), which will develop and deliver services to help those experiencing homelessness. In addition, this council will create a statewide plan with short-term and long-term strategies to end homelessness.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2007 – The World Bank today approved a credit of US$63 million equivalent from the International Development Association (IDA) to the Indian state of Bihar, designed to enhance social and economic empowerment of rural poor people in the state.    » read more »

Cape Town, South Africa, 13 June 2007 – Today at the World Economic Forum on Africa, the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) agreed to join the World Economic Forum’s Energy Poverty Alliance as part of a drive to provide basic electricity to African citizens. Jay Naidoo, Chairman of the Board, and Paul Baloyi, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Development Bank of Southern Africa, have committed to host the Energy Poverty Action Management Unit (EPAMU) at their offices in Midrand.    » read more »

(Brussels, May 15, 2007) – In the economic boom since the end of Angola’s civil war in 2002, the Angolan government has forcibly evicted thousands of poor residents of the capital Luanda, usually with violence and almost always without compensation, Human Rights Watch and the Angolan organization SOS Habitat said in a report released today.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, DC– One hundred and four project teams from around the world are coming to World Bank headquarters May 22-23 to display their projects and vie for $4 million in grant funding in the final round of the 2007 Global Development Marketplace competition. The contest fosters innovation in development projects by having stakeholders compete for funding and selecting the best from among them.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2007 — The World Bank has agreed to assist the governments of Kazakhstan, the United States and Switzerland in setting up an independent foundation in Kazakhstan that will use approximately $84 million in frozen funds for development projects involving poor children and youth in the Central Asian country. The World Bank support is described in an agreement filed earlier today in court in New York under which the three governments agree to a mechanism to release the funds to support activities aimed at improving child and youth welfare.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, April 30, 2007 – Disenfranchised populations lacking hope and self-esteem pose a significant terrorist threat to countries around the world, a top defense official said today.

“Populations who don’t have essential services, quality of life or education (offer) no ladder for (people) to climb out,” Marine Lt. Gen. John F. Sattler, director for strategic plans and policy for the Joint Staff, told reporters at the Pentagon.    » read more »

May 2, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C—Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, released the following statement in response to the House of Representatives passage of the Improving Head Start Act.    » read more »

JAKARTA, April 26, 2007 - The World Bank Board today approved the disbursement of a special US$123 million interest-free credit to sustain and expand the activities of the Third Kecamatan Development Program (KDP3), Indonesia’s best known community-driven poverty alleviation program.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2007 – The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved an International Development Association (IDA) financing of US$100 in support of the Urban Water Supply and Sanitation project in Ethiopia. This IDA financing includes a credit1of US$65 and a grant of US$35 million.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2007 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$20 million loan for Peru to support economic growth among the rural population in the Andean highlands, or Sierra region.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2007 ― The Executive Board of the World Bank Group today approved the Fifth Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC-5) for US$190 million to the United Republic of Tanzania to support the implementation of the National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (MKUTA). The credit provides support for the three clusters of the MKUKUTA- Growth of the Economy and Reduction of Income poverty; Improvement of Quality of Life and Social Wellbeing; and Governance and accountability.    » read more »