News headlines in 2011, page 61

The first United Nations (U.N.) Security Council resolution to specifically address women’s contributions to conflict prevention and sustainable peace was passed just 11 years ago, on Oct. 31, 2000.

U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) killed well over 1,500 civilians in night raids in less than 10 months in 2010 and early 2011, analysis of official statistics on the raids released by the U.S.-NATO command reveals.

Between 2007 and 2011, carbon emissions from coal use in the United States dropped 10 percent. During the same period, emissions from oil use dropped 11 percent.

The Syrian government has accepted several measures suggested by the Arab League aimed at halting the violence in the country, including the removal of tanks and armoured vehicles from the streets.

Rural women and small-scale producers play a key role in providing food security and food sovereignty, but many large multinational corporations threaten that progress by undermining populations' independence when it comes to food.

Cubans are still waiting for changes and measures implemented in agriculture to translate into cheaper food. Meanwhile, the government is adjusting its budget, because more than the 1.6 billion dollars initially allocated for food spending will likely be needed.

Science has shown that the first 1000 days of life have a major impact on the future of a child, her community, and her nation. If her mother is well nourished, she has a much better chance of surviving her first months of life. If she is breast-fed for the first six months and then receives nutritious baby foods containing essential vitamins and minerals until the age of two, she is more likely to complete her education, have a higher IQ, and earn up to 46 percent more over her lifetime, writes Jay Naidoo, Chairman of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN)

Our joint appeal for more sanity in global development co-operation is a reflection of our shared fear that the world will miss an important opportunity to fix what is wrong. We are looking both to the G-20 Summit in Cannes from November 3-4 and a few weeks later the High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan to ensure that this doesn't happen, write Brian Atwood, Chair of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee and Jeremy Hobbs, Executive Director, Oxfam International.

Although microfinance is more deeply rooted in Latin America than in other regions, in Argentina the sector is less developed, but has enormous potential, experts say.

Murhula’s* life changed forever when he was nine years old. It was the year that he learned to kill, torture and rape.