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Donate to PPAF
 
 
DreamWorks Commits $100,000 to Support Project C.U.R.E.

 
 
 
Sustainable Tourism Document Translated into English

Opening of the General Assembly

Volunteers and Interns

Contributions
Vol. 2, No. 3/December 2008


 
From the Executive Director

In the context of world economic crisis, development aimed at helping people lift themselves out of poverty is both more critical and more elusive.  The recently concluded UN Conference on Financing for Development, held in Doha, Qatar, points to the critical issues and actions needed on a global basis.
 
You’ll see in this newsletter that PPAF has continued developing partnerships in the UN and in both Madagascar and the Dominican Republic, with exciting results and plans.  It covers activities and events from September to the beginning of December 2008.  Highlights include participation in policy activities at the UN, especially in relation to the General Assembly High Level Segment on Africa; facilitating a Project C.U.R.E. needs assessment of health and medical services to Madagascar, which has led to a $100,000 contribution from DreamWorks; collaboration on the development of greenhouse vegetable production and export to the US from the Dominican Republic; work on Ethanol for Development; and the translation of several important documents on microfinance and sustainable tourism.
 
We can only pursue this work with your help.

Please make as generous a donation as you can to PPAF before the end of the year. Send your check, payable  to PPAF c/o WAFUNIF  (our fiscal sponsor) addressed to:  PPAF c/o WAFUNIF, United Nations FF646; 405 E. 45th Street, New York, NY 10017.  See also the article on Contributions.

PPAF gives many opportunities to become involved. See the article about our volunteers.  We are also seeking financing, investments and partnerships for specific projects.  I would be happy to talk with you about any of these opportunities.

David Stillman
ppafoundation@gmail.com

UN Conference on Financing for Development Takes Place November-December 2008
 
Participants from over 160 countries met in Doha, Qatar from November 29 to December 2 to review and reconfirm agreements on Financing for Development that were reached in 2002 in Monterey, Mexico.  The current global financial crisis and its impact on development gave urgency to the gathering.  As stated by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, “If not handled correctly, today’s financial crisis will become tomorrow’s human crisis.”  He went on to say that while no nation has been spared, it is the poorest countries that will bear the brunt of the economic slowdown.

The Conference agreed on the need to meet existing aid commitments to poor nations, even amidst the current economic slow-down, and called on the United Nations to continue to focus on the current financial crisis and its impact on development.
 
The Conference Declaration made commitments on many issues:  domestic resources; foreign direct investment; trade; financial and technical cooperation; external debt; the institutional mechanisms of the international monetary, financial and trading systems; and other challenges and issues including climate change, and the volatility of food and energy prices.  Within this context the meeting also emphasized the importance of gender and development, corporate social responsibility, public-private partnerships, renewable sources of energy and workers’ remittances.

The major themes and subtexts of the conference are of great importance worldwide.  As seen below, PPAF works for change in a number of these areas in our focus countries.
 
 

UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe



Project C.U.R.E. Needs Assessment Team Visits Madagascar - September-November 2008
Building upon its Partners Against Poverty meeting at the UN in July, PPAF, with support from several donors and is own funds, provided $3,000 to Project C.U.R.E. to enable a Needs Assessment in Madagascar in September.  A cost-effective measure, this piggybacked on an assessment by Project C.U.R.E. for a World Bank Project working in three target regions of the country. Thank you to all who donated to this appeal!
 
At the request of the Madagascar Mission to the UN, the Project C.U.R.E. team of Claire Cunningham and Marc Dumond undertook the assessment with representatives of the Ministry of Health.  A special need identified was equipment to permit surgery for conjoined twins, which would be the first of its kind in the country.
 
The team conducted needs assessments in approximately 30 healthcare facilities.  These included the District Hospital in Andavakotoko, Hell-Ville and several dispensaries and clinics in Nosy Bey and Hell-Ville; two Mada Clinics Association facilities through Maventy Health International; the Regional Hospital of Diego Suarez (Diana), Diego; and the Toamasina Clinic in Tamatave.  In Antananarivo they conducted assessments at the Befelatanana Hospital and the Joseph Ravoahangy Andrianavalona Teaching Hospital.
 
The next steps will include gaining support from corporate donors to fund the shipments of medical supplies and equipment. Donors include corporations, individuals, grants and in-country partners.  The average cost for shipment of a 40 ft. container is about $20,000, which includes Project C.U.R.E.’s support costs.  The contents are typically valued at about $400,000.
 
 
Photos provided by Claire Cunningham


DreamWorks Commits $100,000 to Support Project C.U.R.E. for Madagascar


On November 18, Claire Cunningham of Project C.U.R.E. sent this message to PPAF and the Madagascar Mission to the UN:

I am writing this with some terrific news and a huge smile on my face: DreamWorks has committed to $100,000 for shipping containers to Madagascar!!!  Project C.U.R.E. is the only non-profit/charity that DreamWorks will be supporting on behalf of the movie, Madagascar II.
 
I wanted to personally thank each of you as everyone played an instrumental role in making this extraordinary donation happen.  Scott [Wright] originally contacted Project C.U.R.E. and my relationship with PPAF originated through our conversations.  David Stillman’s invitation to the PPAF conference in New York facilitated the introduction to Ambassador Zina [Andrianarivelo] and the PPAF Needs Assessment in Madagascar.  Lila [Andrianantoandro] coordinated and help develop our relationship with the Ministry of Health.  And of course, everyone’s efforts in outreach to DreamWorks.  Ambassador [Andrianarivelo] signed the original letter encouraging DreamWorks to support Project C.U.R.E.

This was very much a team effort.  Thank you to everyone for all the encouragement, support, and patience through this process.  Now the fun part begins as we’ll start the process of delivering all the containers of life-saving medical supplies and equipment!  I am picturing the children’s hospital in the Tana right now.  The good doctor will have the tools to save the children’s lives that now will have a second chance.


Collaboration Begins for Dominican Greenhouse Vegetable Production and Export to NYC - October 29, 2008

A meeting on October 29 hosted by Delio Fernandez of Super-Produce initiated collaboration among several partners to strengthen the capacity of Dominican farmers for greenhouse vegetables production and export to the USA, especially the New York metro area. 

The group included a vegetable producer who represents a network of growers and other businesses (Nicolas Guillen); the government representative responsible for promoting Dominican trade interests in New York (Jorge Selman); a fruits and vegetables distribution company (Delio Fernandez and Franklin Soto); and PPAF (David Stillman).

The group focused on several main points --

o        New York market: The requirements for meeting market quality, quantity and timing standards for the New York market;

o       Dominican productivity:  The need for capacity-building among farmers to meet export quality standards, which include ripeness, appearance, packaging, shipping, shelf-life, cold storage, etc.

o       Dominican entrepreneurship:  The importance of Small and Medium Enterprises to understand the costing of inputs and outputs for their business, so they will know the break-even points and the profitability margins of their production. Considered here are seasonal variations, annual expectations, business management and accountancy.

o       Distribution and buyers.  It is vital for producers to gain the confidence and commitment of distributors and buyers. Likewise, producers need to obtain fair prices, in order for the relations to be sustainable.

Guillen is leading efforts of the Dominican-Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce of the Cibao to promote greenhouse vegetable production and export. He is developing a business profile for a Greenhouse Vegetable Joint Venture between local producers and Dominican businessmen in the U.S. Recent related efforts include convening a high-level meeting of Dominican public officials, private interests and representatives of PPAF in Santiago in April; organizing an international seminar and exposition on controlled environment agriculture in Santiago in June, which drew 1,000 participants; participation in the PPAF “Partners against Poverty” event at the UN in July; related discussions in New York with potential buyers and sources of finance; recent visits and preliminary negotiations with numerous commercial interests in the Netherlands, France and Florida; continuing contacts with Ministry of Agriculture, the Dominican Agribusiness Board (JAD), growers and other representatives in the Dominican Republic; and steps toward cooperation with other organizations.

Selman is developing a project on behalf of CEI-RD to promote agricultural exports from the Dominican Republic to the U.S.  This focuses on strengthening capacities of producers to make them more competitive; identifying the best products to promote, strengthening the supply chain; government involvement in capacity-building; and taking advantage of incentives under the DR-CAFTA program.

Stillman emphasized the importance of collaboration among government, business, non-governmental organizations, and others to achieve solid and sustainable results. He highlighted poverty reduction and the promotion of partnerships as the core of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, as well as the labor, human rights, environment and anti-corruption principles of the UN Global Compact.  He stated that PPAF was happy to collaborate in thinking together, in refining the draft proposals, and in seeking financial and technical support.

The group plans to meet from 11-14 December in the Dominican Republic with growers in the Cibao region, the Ministry of Agriculture and several other government and independent institutions.  The aim is to achieve agreements among producers, distributors and buyers for export of greenhouse vegetables to the New York market.  For PPAF the aim is to promote development and reduction of poverty through agribusiness.


Ethanol for Development


PPAF is taking steps toward the formation of a Global Alliance for Ethanol for Development in collaboration with the United Nations and others.  Discussions were held at PPAF’s Partners Against Poverty event at the UN in July and other meetings in New York and in the Dominican Republic. The next step will be to convene a multi-stakeholder conference in New York in Spring 2009.

Working with business and public sector colleagues, PPAF is investigating sugarcane-to-ethanol conversion as well as cellulosic ethanol production and combustible energy derived from algae.  We are identifying key corporations and organizations, especially those operating in Brazil and the Caribbean, in order to enlist experts, partners and investors.   Our intended conference will focus on advances and innovations for these key renewable energy sources.


We are committed to helping PPAF focus countries and others to become less dependent on petroleum and encourage sustainable development and investment in biofuels.  The aim is to help reduce poverty and foreign dependence and to stimulate local agribusiness.
 


Key Microfinance Documents Translated into French - October 2008

Thanks to Elisa Manarinjara, an intern working with Judith Bowman on the Madagascar microenterprise project, two key microfinance documents are now available in French.  Elisa has translated the Women’s World Banking (WWB) publication “Individual Lending, A Women’s World Banking How-To Guide,” written by Hans Dellien and Olivia Leland (2006).   This major document is 129 pages long in the French version.

According to the WWB website, the guide “walks users through the process of evaluating whether internal and external conditions are right for implementing individual lending, and through each step of the implementation process.   It provides microfinance institutions with a detailed understanding of considerations and risks of introducing individual lending within an institution that currently provides group loans to its clients. The guide includes examples, templates, case studies, resources and checklists for each step from planning to monitoring and evaluation.”
 
Elisa has also translated into French a microfinance business plan originally prepared in the Dominican Republic by Esperanza International.
 


Sustainable Tourism Document Translated into English - October 2008

PPAF Volunteer Kerry Stefancyk has completed the translation into English of “All Under One Roof:  For a More Competitive and Sustainable Dominican Tourism.”  This is the report of the Dominican Government – USAID conference on Sustainable Tourism held in the D.R. in April, in which David Stillman participated.  The original, in Spanish, is being used as a basis for action by Regional Clusters throughout the Country.  The English version will be useful for expanding the reach both beyond the D.R. and with non-Spanish readers in the U.S.
 


Opening of the General Assembly: Local Governments Contribute to the MDGs - September 24, 2008

Ambassador Francis Lorenzo, David Stillman and Mustafa Palancýoglu, adviser to the Mayor of Kayseri, Turkey, participated in a session on the contribution of Local Governments to the MDGs as part of the opening of the General Assembly.  Co-chaired by the mayor of Milan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy, this enabled several invited mayors and other officials to discuss their experiences and challenges in seeking to achieve the MDGs.    These noted that already half of the world’s population is urban, and the proportion is increasing.   Some cities have larger populations than some countries.  They emphasized that mayors have the freedom to act locally and get visible results, in health, education, food security, infrastructure, water and such areas.  This can help greatly toward achieving the MDGs, which, in fact, cannot be met without full involvement of local governments.  They saw MDG #8 on Partnership as vital to meeting the other seven goals and reducing poverty.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Rose Migiro noted the UN’s shift of MDG localization from the national to sub-national levels. Mark Malloch-Brown, Minister of State for Africa, Asia and the UN, UK, said strong cities are necessary for country growth.
 

Photo by Mustafa Palancýoglu
L-R: David Stillman, Mustafa Palancýoglu, Amb. Francis Lorenzo



Africa's Development Needs - September 22, 2008
PPAF participated in three events held on September 22, 2008 during the UN High Level Event on Africa's Development Needs.

          Transforming the Climate for Business
 
PPAF was a co-sponsor of “Transforming the Climate for Business to Accelerate Private Sector-Led Growth and Progress Towards the MDGs.”  Other sponsors and co-sponsors were UN Office for Partnerships, The LTB Foundation, Business Action for Africa, and Permanent Mission of the Netherlands to the UN in cooperation with the Commonwealth Business Council, The Corporate Council on Africa, Africa Investor.


PPAF leaders participating included David Stillman, Scott Wright and Judith Bowman.

The panelists emphasized that a favorable investment climate is vital for economic development.  The extent to which a….country provides an enabling environment strongly influences the decision of domestic and international investors. Business environments are shaped by government policies, laws and regulations, and the way in which they are implemented.

          Strengthening African Competitiveness
 
PPAF also participated in “Strengthening African Private Sector Competitiveness in a Global Context.”  Themes included: how the donor community and international organizations can collaborate better to enhance the competitiveness and growth of African private sector enterprises; How private sector development can foster both economic and human development; and recommendations on how to encourage the promotion of partnerships between the public and the private sector. Sponsors were the International Trade Centre, UNCTAD/WTO (ITC) the World Bank, and the UN Global Compact.

          Confronting the Disease of Poverty
“Confronting the Diseases of Poverty to Meet the MDGs: Digital Health and African Development”  dealt with how to engage the health, technology and development communities on common goals in order to provide a common language to address challenges and progress.  Organizers included the UN Office for Partnerships, UN “Health 8” partners, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Commonwealth Business Council, African Business Roundtable, International Business Leaders Forum, Business Action for Africa, Oxford Health Alliance, and The Rockefeller Foundation.
 
 
  Photo by Mustafa Palancýoglu
L-R: Scott Wright, Mustafa Palancýoglu, Judith Bowman, David Stillman
President Leonel Fernandez Participates in First UN Private Sector Forum - September 24, 2008
 
In a high-level afternoon programme opened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, headlined by former United States President Bill Clinton and activist musician Bob Geldof, and closed by World Bank President Robert Zoellick, the first ever United Nations Private Sector Forum brought business, civic and Government leaders together to work with the world body on a long-term response to the global food crisis and endemic poverty.  In their speeches, Clinton, Geldof and Zoellick all focused on the importance of smallholder agriculture, the UN Millennium Development Goals, and the importance of private sector investment. Georg Kell, Executive Director of the Global Compact, moderated the day’s programme.

Following the Secretary-General’s remarks, Kemal Dervis,, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), introduced a number of private sector leaders to speak on innovative practices that had led to hunger alleviation. They described initiatives ranging from efforts to develop drought-tolerant maize varieties and improved rice, to agricultural enterprises that created decent work, and strategies to use water efficiently and boost productivity.

Mr. Dervis also introduced Leonel Fernández, President of the Dominican Republic, who described the extensive Global Compact network that had been built in his country.  Converting economic growth into social benefits for all citizens and assisting neighboring Haiti, however, remained great challenges, he noted. PPAF Vice Chair, Ambassador Francis Lorenzo, brought President Fernández to the event.  [Article based on summary from the UN Global Compact’s The Compact Quarterly, November 2008.]


 
NYU Graduate Students Study PPAF
 
A graduate student team from New York University has selected PPAF as their study project for their course: “Managing Public Service Organizations.”  Amber Baker, Anthony Giancatarino II, Katherine Landon, and Victoria Watts chose PPAF because of the way it bridges sectors of the private and public worlds.  The purpose of the course is to analyze organizations’ mission, strategy, culture, structure and influence as well as the other aspects of public service organizations.  The team is focusing on PPAF’s recent application for 501 (c) 3 status, and how the application process may affect efforts to improve the organization. Their project will end in December with an analytical paper.
 

 
Volunteers and Interns
 
Welcome and thanks to the following volunteers and interns!

Iris Koren is a Research Analyst working for PPAF. Her research has been on sustainable "green" energy as it relates to the Dominican Republic and Madagascar.  See the article on Ethanol, above.   Iris has a BA in physics from Cornell University and an MS in computer science from Polytechnic University.

Kerry Stefancyk, a PPAF volunteer, has translated materials on sustainable tourism from Spanish to English, and participated in PPAF’s Partners Against Poverty conference in July.   She is a Program Assistant with the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development and has worked as a Spanish language teacher.  She holds a B.A. degree from College of the Atlantic and the University of New Hampshire in Latin American Studies, and an M.A. in International Studies from the University of Connecticut ( Storrs).

Elisa Manarinjara is an intern working with Judith Bowman on the Madagascar project, especially contributing her skills in French language and her knowledge of Madagascar.  Elisa is a 2006 BA graduate of the University of Maryland, with a major in Government and Politics and a Spanish Language minor.

Johannes Vandertuin, a volunteer based in Antananarivo, Madagascar, is assisting PPAF in outreach with local contacts.   He is a 2006 graduate of Kenyon University with a B.A. in political science.  He studied Mandarin in at Tsingua University in Beijing, China, where he also taught English, and studied French at The American University’s Brussels European Union Enclave.
 



Contributions
Please consider a gift to help PPAF develop partnerships, especially in Madagascar and the Dominican Republic, to build pro-poor business opportunities.  If your company will match your gift, please let us know.
 
Until we obtain our 501(c)3 status, the World Federation of Former UN Internes and Fellows (WAFUNIF) serves as our fiscal sponsor.  Our EIN is 71-1016293.  Donations to PPAF may be made payable to WAFUNIF and should be earmarked for the Public-Private Alliance Foundation.  Donations are welcome in any amount and will be tax-exempt to the extent of the law.
 
Please send your contribution to:
 
PPAF c/o WAFUNIF
United Nations, Room FF-646
304 East 45th Street
New York, NY 10017

We would be happy to talk with you about your contribution to the work of PPAF and for details on electronic deposits. Please call 914-924-0108 or e-mail ppafoundation@gmail.com.


Jean Betsock Stillman, Editor
Samantha Young, Assistant Editor
Marc Perry, Graphic and Newsletter Design