What we blogged about in 2011

• Busan: Can NGOs lead, as well as influence?
  Througouth the year, we posted articles relating to the Busan summit on better aid. Most of our blog posts focused on NGO preparation for the summit, and on what its outcome will mean for changing roles of International Development NGOs. (see also: Why we are going to Busan)
• Policy Coherence for Development
  The second greatest number of blog posts during the past 12 months related to “policy coherence for Development”: the commitment by EU member states not to undermine their development cooperation programmes through other policies (eg. trade, agriculture, etc) that impact on poor countries. (see also this blog post)
• Can the world feed 7 billion people?
  An overview of some of the key arguments made in relation to the growing world population.
• Making Aid More Effective: Base it on People Power!
  Another blog post in which we argue that “development” is a process, focused on including people in political and economic processes that affect their lives.

• Why Disability must be systematically embedded in all international cooperation 
  A blog post reflecting on the rights of people with disabilities, and how poverty focused aid programmes cannot but focus on their inclusion. (See also this blog post, which makes a similar case for older people)
• Aid Worker Security – Some thoughts and resources
  Recent kidnappings of aid workers should prompt NGOs to re-think their security and safety manuals – and practice
• NGO overhead costs
  We encourage anyone to ask critical questions of NGOs. Just make sure your questions focus on the quality of the work of the organisation – The ever-popular measure of the level of overheads is about the worst place to start. This article attempts to show why. (See also this blog post about NGOs, and this discussion of “what makes a good NGO?”)
• Getting ready for the Irish EU Presidency in 2013
  Ireland takes over the six month Presidency of the Council of the European Union in January 2013. This blog post looks at what this can mean for Development (and this post focuses on our theme: the post-MDG Development ‘recipe’)
• 14 Reasons not to donate to Somalia
  This blog post, and this one, highlighted a number of issue in relation to the famine in Somalia.
  (See also this blog post about the ethics of photographing human suffering)
  
  
• We also highlighted that despite the hunger crisis, 2 out of 3 developing countries are on track to halve poverty.