Hi all

We've been asked by International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander for our ideas and comments on tackling global poverty.

Here's his statement where he outlines some of the issues and what's currently being done and what's planned. If you can post your questions/comments/suggestions here, the plan is that he will check back in the next couple of weeks and answer some of the questions/comment on the suggestions.

Over to you Douglas Alexander....

Creams, ointments, sticking plasters and an ample supply of liquid paracetamol - odds are, your medicine cupboard is stocked with the same items. The occasional spoonful of paracetamol has helped my children through many a minor illness, but in recent months, I have met families in Sudan and Afghanistan without access to proper medical care or basic medicine.

This despite a pledge from world leaders in 2000 to achieve eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), aimed at eradicating global poverty. These goals included reducing child deaths, and the deaths of women in childbirth.

There has been progress. Deaths from measles, one of the main child killers in developing countries, have more than halved since 1999. The TB epidemic is on the verge of decline and more than 2 million people are now receiving treatment for HIV/AIDS.

Yet each year 10 million children still die before their fifth birthday and every minute, a woman dies in childbirth somewhere in the world. In 2000, world leaders pledged to stop the spread of major diseases, yet each year, malaria claims a million lives, tuberculosis nearly two million lives and HIV/Aids three million lives.

That is why, this afternoon, the Prime Minister and I will join developed and developing countries, alongside the eight largest health agencies to launch the International Health Partnership.

The International Health Partnership has three aims : to better coordinate the aid given to poor countries; to focus on improving health systems as a whole; and to support the unique health plans of developing countries.

What does better aid co-ordination mean?
Zambia receives health support from more than 15 major international partners - Rwanda more than 20. The multiple partners and reporting procedures that developing countries have to deal with wastes time and resources. To help countries like Zambia and Cambodia, donor countries in the International Health Partnership will work together to reduce the administrative burden on overstretched ministries of health, thus increasing the cost effectiveness of aid.

Why focus on improving health systems?
There has been a lot of success in tackling specific diseases such as measles and TB in recent years. However, today complications in childbirth are the leading cause of death for women in the developing world aged 15-19 years. Without trained doctors, nurses and midwives, this cannot be stopped. Worldwide, it is critical to develop strong health systems that can provide health care to all members of society. The International Health Partnership aims to help other countries improve their health systems and ultimately, ensure lives will be saved.

Why is it necessary to support each country's unique and specific health plan?
Too often health plans have been drawn up by just a few individuals, when in reality, health plans must reflect the needs of a country's citizens. This means not only more joint working across Governments, but also between donors, parliamentarians, NGOs and the private sector. Just as we demand the right to shape our health care system, the Partnership commits developing countries to creating comprehensive and effective health plans and commits developed countries to help put them into practice.

No greater cause:
As the Prime Minister has said, "there is no greater cause than ensuring that every child and every family in the world should benefit from the best medicine and healthcare."

Mumsnet members, I would welcome your insights and comments on how we tackle poverty and help families in the developing world.

I think poverty and lack of access to proper health care and medication is often linked to a lack of proper distribution channels, as often as not, due to unrest, war, corruption etc.

I am not at all sure that you can effectively deal with one without dealing with the other.

That is not to say that one should not try to tackle these issues but that one should bear in mind the restrictions on successful outcomes that exist in reality.

i tell you what hasn't been mentioned in terms of healthcare -
sanitary products for women - lots of women in the countries you are talking about don't have access to sanitary towels/tampons etc as they cannot afford them
using rags, newspaper etc is not good for them, their dignity or reproductive health

yes NGOs and governments should work together but there is a history of money and medical supplies being diverted from where they are really needed - how is this going to be changed?

bump

Some thoughts I've been mulling.

People are keen and willing to help, but want to know the money is going to individuals, they can identify with ie who are perhaps at similar life stages to them (it's harder to give to a faceless 10 million than a child the same age as yours). Targetting women when pregnant and after birth - in the nicest possible way - is ideal as I think that's when you often realise just how lucky you are and would be prepared to give.

What about a system whereby you could sponsor another woman's pregnancy in the third world and/or their vaccination programme - it could be given as a birth gift via Oxfam - I know lots of folks do this already. Or what about twinning ante natal groups with pregnancy clinics in same way schools are twinned.

Education is also key. From what I know from my sis who did a stint with Comic relief the stats seem to show that where children/adults are educated, infant mortality rates are better, Aids/hiv levels drop etc etc, yet lots of African children who want to be doctors and nurses and teachers end up leaving school at 14 because that's when free school ends.

What about giving folks for whom the CTF voucher doesn't mean that much the chance to invest it for a child abroad so that they could take the money accrued (ideally at 13 rather than 18) for continued education? I know our education system needs investment but what people in the Uk want is the feeling that Africa is not a bottomless pit and the money we are putting in will enable them to provide their own healthcare/education etc as well as reducing poverty long term..

Anyway am beginning to rant so had best go and make kids' tea.

AIDS education

access to contraception

access to vaccinations

breastfeeding promotion rather than the promotion of formula milk

Put mucho resources into educating young girls and women. Women are much more likely to pass on any education they receive to others in their families and communities. Education also enables them to take control of their fertility and have the children they want/need. It also increases their chances of decently paid work - and again, women are more likely to plough their earnings back into their home communities.

Surely Douglas Alexander has policy wonks of his own, though??

make women/children a priority, esp advice/clinical services like contraception, safe abortion, obstetrics, vaccinations, more attention directed towards stopping domestic violence, help for mental health problems...the list is almost endless.

also make solutions which will work locally, not all policies bashed out in geneva work for all countries.

Gree with Lulumama

targeting mothers (and those with parental repsonsibiltiy for kids not their own as so often happens, especially in HIV ravaged communities) is surely one of the best methods as this directly and eventually should feed through to all poeple in the community via such things as the provision of health advice, nutritional info and suchlike.

sadlt I am not sure that some of the most essential interventions (contraception) could be effectively dealt with until Churches in some aras become much mroe enlightened.

However, essential though it is to target pregnant women etc- its so important that we don't forget the mroe faceless and often most vulnerable poeple in a society, the aged and disabled.

Communities have to be able to identify their own needs, so training community reps is an important task- some communities will benefit mroe from (say) cataract operation / treatment for river blindness; others are desperate for HIV education. Add these to the basics outlined by Lulumama and you might just start to get a workable system.

Oh and training poeple in advocacy too, people need to elarn how to develop their 'voices' so they can know how to campaign locally and take responsibility as aid is vital but only a stopgap