What an outstanding opportunity to tell you about THE VIRGINIA GILDERSLEEVE INTERNATIONAL FUND.

This NGO, established in 1970 and named for the first woman dean of Barnard College and a participant in drafting the charter of the United Nations, provides small grants of $3,500 to $5,000 to NGO's in developing economies.

These grants are awarded annually to NGO applicants which demonstrate (1) partnership with other local NGO's, (2) include an educational component, and (3) support initiatives which benefit women and girls.

Throughout it's 40 year history, The Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund has provided grants to over three dozen countries worldwide for projects from community ovens, to community kitchens, training programs for farming and marketing products, educational programs about maternal health, legal rights of women and the value of women in local elected positions.

With recent funding, the infrastructure of the organization has been strengthened and the highly engaged international members of the Board of Directors has completed its Strategic Planning for the coming five years.

I anxiously await a confirmation that you have received this introductory message.

And, thank you for this opportunity.

My best regards,

Carrie Gallagher,
Convener, VGIF Development Committee

Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund
Three West 29th Street - Suite 1001
New York, New York, 10001
212.213.0622

At a time when the world is being engulfed by unparalleled disasters, targeting women and children for financial support is one attempt among many that could save this world. The recent earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, China, and the untold stories of the "invisible" women and children buried alive in the Bududa landslides in Uganda, are critical incidences demanding our enduring attention.

The landslides tragedy in Bududa took place on March 1, and again recently on May 18th, 2010. Unlike other tragedies, the Bududa incident did not draw much attention from the global community. However, the impact of this disaster has had far-reaching implications for rural families and particularly, for women and children. Not only did the massive rolling rocks destroy three villages including trading centers and a health clinic, they claimed over 300 people, burying them alive and living relatives searching with bare hands, garden hoes, and sticks. Today, about 5,000 people in the surrounding villages are internally displaced because of the continued cracking of rocks on Wanale-- (Mt. Elgon). Women's productive and reproductive roles are being severely constrained as a result of lack of land on which to cultivate food, and also, by lack of a place they can call home and nurture their loved ones. The plight of children is made worse. Hundreds of children cannot find their families. They have no school to attend since classrooms were buried by the avalanche, and several of their teachers are dead. Bududa district already ranks second to last in the entire country on primary leaving exams. There is hardly a college graduate in the villages that were hit, let alone a high school graduate. The situation is even worse for girls because many of them drop out of school early due to problems unique to women.

I believe that in a region where 56% of the people live below poverty line compared to the national average of 31%, empowering women to access critical resources would trickle down to benefit children and the entire families. There is an urgent need in Bududa for economic incentives such as microfinance to revitalize the communities, in addition to providing the daily necessities of food, clothing, beddings, cooking utensils, and shelter. This tragedy has opened our eyes to realize that the people of Bududa need modern technology. They need training in modern farming techniques to reduce pressure on land and to boost yields to maintain food security. Funding should target women's grassroots initiatives to include land terracing, training programs in nutrition and reproductive management. There is also a need to invest in youth mentoring programs to provide psycho-social support for youths who are currently living in camps to help them transition smoothly into their homes when that time comes.

I hope that the tragedy that befell the people of Bududa, and the continuous socioeconomic hardship facing them are good reasons for the Melinda and Bill Gates Fund to support women and children in Bududa.

Florence

If you take the non-profit organisation engaged in the field of concern you will be effcetively able to utilise your money for the greater benefit of the poor and the underprivilaged. Your policy of collaboration with government and governmental bodies are leading to greater corruption and non utilisation of fund for the earmarked purposes. So my humbel suggestion is to take into confidence the NGO sector who have proved their metal by their constructive action among the poor in developing countries.

Philomina Thomas

The funds could be utilized to procure Sgreening machines for Cancer of thr Gervix, . a machine costs 25.000USD, ...if at least 1000. health centre at parish level had a machine it could make a difference.

additionally the training of rural health workers in the routine screening for cancer of the cervix in these centres would help.

mobile ambulances to sensitize the women and men who may not have access to the information as well as a screening facilitywithin those ambulances

purchase of the drugs for the treatment of same

Funding fot the vaccinies for teenage girls and those not yet sexually active. a dose of 3 shots costs USD 300.00, well beyond the means of many girls and families

I am the Director, Ujamaa Family Centre based in Mukuru kwa Njenga slum in Nairobi. The slum houses many Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees.

There are Four ways I would suggest based on my experience working in the slums of Kenya and with refugees.

1. Pap smear and breast cancer tests/information for women in the slum areas who hardly know about these services leave alone having access to them.

2. clean up exercises in colaboration with partners and government in the slums areas to ensure reduction of communicable/ infectious disease which affect women and children more.

3. Carry out a pilot project in the slum areas of the use of solar energy. This will reduce the incidences of respiratory tract infections caused by the use of locally made tin lamps

It will also reduce the number of deaths in children left in houses uncared for and end up burning in the houses when trying to light the lamps.

4. Income generating Activities that can improve the economic status of women to enable them seek better medical services. Poverty is a major hindrance in realizing women's health

First and for most, I wish that Bill and Milinda's money to be invested in maternal health: training of midwives, equip in materials and human ressources at least 2 main maternity wards in the 5 East African Countries, strengthen the communities' health insurance, and cooperate with the EAC Forum of Parliamentarians for Health, Population and Development.
Pls feel free to contact me if interested or willing to have more clarifications. Odette

i would suggest that better health delivery systems for women,educational facilities for women,who suffer from cancer or,aids or abuse be provided ,

About half a billion women and girls in the world live a life of extreme poverty and lack any prospect of changing that.

One key asset could help change that—land.

Land is often the most important asset held by poor, rural families. It is critical for shelter, food production, access to credit and investment, and is often the basis for social and economic networks.

Unfortunately, culture and gender have traditionally barred women and girls from land ownership.

Despite the fact that women do the majority of farming in much of the developing world, a male family member usually holds title to the land. He makes the decisions about the way the land is used, and controls any income generated from the land. And in most households, when he dies his sons will inherit the land, to the exclusion of his daughters. Without assets such as land, women and girls are vulnerable. A host of social ills stem from this position.

Studies have found that when women have secure rights to the land they farm:

Family nutrition improves
Women are less likely to contract and spread HIV/AIDS
domestic violence rates are lower
children are more likely to be educated
women can access micro-credit and other government programs

In short, investing in women's land rights creates a powerful ripple effect that spreads to her family, village, and entire region.

In many countries however, women can't own property, they ARE property.

Working to change that, by creating institutions and laws that promote and protect women's ownership of land will fundamentally change the nature of land ownership in developing countries. And it will create long-lasting, transformative and generational change that will allow women to fully participate in their local economy and build a better future for themselves, their families, their countries and the world.

I am part of the Communications team at the Rural Development Institute, a Seattle-based non-profit that focuses on partnering with developing countries to make these fundamental changes to their institutions and laws that give the poor the opportunity to escape poverty through land rights. We've seen over and over again that land rights can provide ladders out of poverty for the landless poor, reduce conflict, promote better land stewardship, and create a prosperous and stable future for us all. The effect of freeing modern day serfs from the shackles of feudalism is proven. So is the fact that when the beneficiary is a woman it pays dividends.

Thanks giving us the oportunity to say something about what we see and have little way of helping out. I belong to an organisation called Austin/Maseru Sister City which deals in the main in helping the needy arround the Maseru area. We are mainly interested in helping needy children in providing anything from food packages to mainly education which would include fees where appropriate, to clothing and food. We have also been able to provide some aid to HIV stricken by supporting village support groups.
We have aspiration which we cannot meet at this time, ie providing a home for orphans and care. There is an organisation SOS which has started but cannot take everybody. The Org provides a home and family for Orphans, schooling and feeding.
We belief Education is the key to opening doors to anybody in the world but for the poor children it becames a dream seen through those who have been fortunate.

Carry out public awareness campaigns about the value of girl children, the role of the male in the determination of the sex of a child, and against female infanticide and selective abortion. This would also involve long-term education and training programmes that enable girls/women to be financially viable rather than seen as financial burdens. In some parts of some countries (e.g. China, India and Vietnam) there are up to 120 boys born to every 100 girls - a timebomb waiting to explode in terms of men with no women to marry, human trafficking and forced prostitution. In fact, it's already happening...

A few related links:

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/extract/327/7427/1297

http://www.gendercide.org/case_infanticide.html

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/reprint/338/apr09_2/b1211.pdf

http://www.ipas.org/Library/News/News_Items/Finding_the_root_causes_of_sex-selective_abortion.aspx

http://dalje.com/en-world/asia-missing-96-million-women/296993

http://faculty.washington.edu/cportner/papers/ssa_may_2010.pdf

When I first read about using the money, I thought, "this should be easy enough!" But it's not. In fact, reading through the press release on the grant specifications raises more questions than answers.

Off the bat, my questions would be:
1. Just what are comprehensive integrated programs? As a statement in itself it is too broad. Granted we are talking about bettering women and children's lives (with particular regard to health) but life does not happen in organized vacuums. There is always cross over. There have to be definitions in place so that measurement (and evaluation) can be effected.

2. What does development of the comprehensive integrated programs mean? What programs are we measuring against to measure failures and/or successes? Develop implies beginning a project from scratch. Is that what we really want to do?

3. Who would be the best people to develop this program? Do we use researchers, academic institutions, Ministries of health and other government organizations, already established NGO’s and health workers as first ports of call?
As a social program it is important to define these roles, especially if we want to be effective.

4. Who qualifies as a strategic partner and why?

5. Interventions are only effective in as far as "the watch dogs are still present". Isn’t there a more sustainable way to effect change? And quiet honestly, once the novelty of the intervention has worn off, people revert to their original behavior. We should be affecting human behavior, right?


Using the Press release grant out line, I would use the money through four integrated steps.


A. Develop the program framework
1. What it is
2. Who is doing what and why?
3. Who strategic partners are (long terms Vs short term)
4. The parameters for social and behavioral research, its frequency, reach
5. How to get the program from an “ideal” to a practical application. Will we need to retrain people? Will we need people with new skill sets?
6. Determine the communication plan (internal, with strategic partners and the public)
7. Determine tools for measurement and evaluation

B. Implement it
Pull all the various aspects together and actually go into the community and change lives.

C. Evaluate
Continuous evaluation only makes programs more effective.

D. Share it with the world.

What a wonderful initiative.

I believe, however that in order to ensure women and children's quality of life are improved in some of the world's poorest countries we need to be tackling some of the wider causes that are leading to poverty, illness and lack of access to resources.

These include climate change, environmental degradation and pollution. The urban poor in many developing countries live in terrible conditions, surrounded by open sewage as well as plastic, organic and chemical waste of all kinds. In rural areas, land erosion due to deforestation, the blocking up of waterways with plastic waste and chemical outflows and dwindling of fish stocks is making it harder and harder for people to scrape a living.

Lack of governmental and donor attention to environmental and public health related issues in developing countries is consequently threatening the health and thus the lives and livelihoods of thousands of people both in rural and urban areas. If attention is not paid to these issues and Governments of developing countries are not pressed by donors to focus on environmental issues, then the health, well-being and life-opportunities of women and children cannot, in the long-term be improved. The poorest, whose lives are most precarious will always suffer the worst in the face of any large scale natural or man made disaster.

Improving the quality of the environment through research and advocacy for policy change as well as educational outreach initiatives aimed at raising awarenesss and changing behaviours is one of the key ways for improving people's lives. Failing to recognise this will constitute a 'band-aid' effect in which only the symptoms and not some of the major causes of the problems are addressed.

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Investing in women is definately the way to go, even the MDGs alludes to this! However, we need not forget to Invest in the girl child (focusing on their survival, protection, participation and general development). This will yield better and sustainable dividends for the future generation of well informed and empowered girls, women and their children.........And in turn, a transformed generation.

I would like to say that these resources can be used to salvage our young women in South East Asia. These can be used to help prevent the cycle of ABUSE, NEGLECT and ABORTION. I am in a professional counseling work which is designed to help men and women coming from backgrounds of ABUSE, NEglect and Abortion.
I help educate young men and women here in my country and in other Asian countries that Abuse and Abortion never comes alone. It always comes with neglect ans is a cycle. The more neglected a person is, the more they are prone ot abuse and the more abused and neglected they are, the easier they do abortion.

If only we have more resources n Hope Alive Asia, we could be helping more men and women who can counsel people coming from these backgrounds. If I had resources like these, I will be training more women and men so they can help women be healed from the damages of their abuse, neglect and abortion.

We would like you to consider investing in our Hope ALive Asia work. We are affiliated with acounseling programme based in Canada abut we function separately and we raise our resources in Asia. If you guys are willig, we would be greatly appreciative any help to minister to as many more women in ASIA and their familes

Blessings to you.

Dr. Orpah Marasigan
Hope Alive Asia,
COunsellor , Supervisor and Trainer
P.O Box 458 Manila 1099
MObile +63917-6284554

Wonderful news from the Gates'. I sat with Melinda at a conference of the World Economic Forum earlier in the year and was impressed with her cogent understanding of the issues and her passion. To have women leaders in positions who commit in this way is heartening.

I campaign on a "single-issue" cause, whose roots do not lie in a single issue solution.

The cause is female genital cutting. it impacts on four of the MDGs. At the moment, three million girls a year in 21 countries in Africa alone are cut - with short term impacts of pain, infection, in some cases death. in the longer term, there are also huge impacts on maternal mortality, neo-natal deaths and life-long health complications as well as psychological complications.

FGC has its roots in the control of women. It ensures a woman's chastity, fidelity and marriageability.

Since witnessing this is Ethiopia last year, I've been struck how FGC is the most under-resourced, under-represented and silenced issue. The scale of the issue is not properly known. We seem to think of it as "African" yet it is prevelant in Indonesia, Kurdistan, Yemen and of course, in Europe, USA and other countries with diaspora communities.

However, this is not just a call from the West to end FGC - 20 African countries recently called on the UN to adopt a global ban on FGC.

This is a real story of hope - there are amazing innovative programmes that have had amazing success, where entire communities are empowered to abandon FGC. This is achieved through a rights-based, educative approach. Compared with some other approaches, these are sustainable, cost-effective and are community owned. Have a look at www.tostan.org for more information.

The Orchid Project campaigns to get more awareness about FGC as well as more resources to the communities on the ground who wish to end this within the next generation.

I would urge some of these resources to go towards breaking this taboo, breaking this silence and investing in women and, particularly, girls' own power to meet their own potential.

I am working with World Vision International at Islamabad, Pakistan, during my 18+ years of experience with UN, INGO and public sector for mother and child health in the developing countries, I witnessed different projects which were successful in bringing positive changes into the life of women and children, however the project that had long-term impact was Saving Newborn lives in Pakistan supported by Gates Foundation; This project was able to add N (neonatal) to traditionally/historically known Maternal and Child Health Care as change in Pakistan national health policy. Projects can only be successful and sustainable, if comprehensive, are relevant to the need of the country, integrated within the existing health care program. The Govt; of Pakistan with support of other donor has continued focus on MNCH as priority in the health policy and programs. The program aims at training of health care providers, raising awareness of community to increased demand for utilization of services and training of community or traditional birth attendants in identification and referral of mothers with danger signs.
Major gaps exist in accessing the quality basic and comprehensive EmOC services in rural and urban areas. The lack of Skilled Birth Attendant(SBA), poverty, lack of roads, long distances, and family opposition are major contributing factors to the increased ratio for maternal mortality in Pakistan specifically in Baluchistan province (600-800/100,000live births). Integrated MNCH programs with strategy in provision of sustainable economic opportunities, selecting and supporting the training of health workers from same community in as SBA, training of women, family member (especially males) and potential birth attendant in birth planning process, establishing an institute for skill training, skill building with follow-up of care providers for basic and comprehensive EmOC services.

Globally there is need to exchange the lesson learnt, what works well in what circumstances and how, in order to help and encourage developing world adopt and implement strategies that proved successful.

There are many immediate healthcare needs/issues regarding women and children that the organization is already aware of and willing to address. However, I just wanted to emphasize that in order to promote the value of women and children in those rural areas in an effort to protect and improve their lives, you must shift the conscienceness of an entire culture that is deeply rooted in outdated thinking. The shift must occur in the villages, in the homes, and in the minds of those who this organization is tryiing to reach. Alot of the funds must be allocated towards a grass roots campaign of educating the MEN of these areas regarding attitudes towards women. And perhaps the best strategy is to start with the young men and boys of the area who may be more willing/able to listen and understand the value of women in their lives.

Thank-you Neil for bringing forward this post, and providing a space for the Conservationists on this Blog to devise innovative ways for Bill & Melinda Gate to spend the funds in their recently announced $1.5 billion fund for maternal and child health in developing countries. I always enjoy the task of spending someone else’s money, especially when the investment is sure to have lasting impact worldwide for the benefit of women and children around the world.

In thinking about why they have chosen to focus their funds towards women and children, I looked to the Global Fund for Women (GFW). When asked why they are focused on women, GFW responds with: Investing in women is the single most effective antidote to the world's pressing problems: war, poverty, disease. Women play a special role in society by contributing not only to family wellbeing, but to community wellbeing as a whole.
• A World Bank study in Bangladesh showed that when women started small businesses to increase their income, they spent the money on improving the welfare of the family, including education for both girls and boys.
• A study by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) shows that increases in women's education make the greatest contribution to reducing the rate of child malnutrition.
• The UNFPA has also found that women's empowerment and girls' education are the single most effective strategies for reducing population growth.
• According to the United Nations, economies in the developing world grow by three percent for every 10 percent increase in the number of women who receive secondary schooling.

So, how would I spend the money?

I would invest in education, health promotion, healthcare, and businesses developed by and for women. Provided the funds addressed the projects identified in the press release impact would be significant. I would also provide some of the funds as non-repayable grants, and a good portion as investments that will be returned and the funds recycled so that the $1.5 billion can continue to grow the projects, and be repurposed by ingenious female entrepreneurs for sustainable income generation for the investees.

As an example, I would support the work of Tostan in Africa: http://www.tostan.org/

Global maternal and child health outcome statistics are troubling. These are important questions, as financial support really must reach the children, their mothers and families. After a lot of thought on this, Philomena Thomas's suggestion above makes a lot of sense to me. If there are already non profit organisations working with the intention of giving local, relevant support to families, they have the proven experience. They would certainly need the money.

The new pledge by the Gates Foundation to invest $1.5 billion over the next five years to support maternal and child health, family planning, and nutrition programs in developing countries is truly welcomed, timely and extremely needed. Certainly, as many negative maternal and perinatal health outcomes are linked to coercion and violence against women and girls it would be critical to address these issues as well, as a part of a strategic approach aimed at prevention of undesirable consequences.

Violence against women and girls is a global pandemic of alarming proportions, deeply rooted in gender inequality and discrimination. It is a gross violation of human rights, a threat to a woman’s health and well-being and a barrier to economic growth and development. It is a cause of maternal and child deaths with as many as 1 in 4 women experiencing physical or sexual violence during pregnancy. Between 23 and 53 percent of women physically abused by their intimate partners during pregnancy are kicked or punched in the abdomen. This increases the likelihood of miscarriage, stillbirth and abortion, as well as premature labour.

Furthermore, women and girls who are subjected to physical and sexual violence and/or coercive sex are at greater risk of contracting HIV, not only because condoms are not used in this scenario but also as a direct consequence of the physical trauma, injuries and bleeding. They are often the first members of their family to find out their HIV status because when they are pregnant they are tested in antenatal clinics. The risk of transmission of HIV from mother to child can be greatly reduced by medical intervention. However, violence can also be a barrier to their access to HIV-related services: many women who suffer domestic abuse have little recourse to protection or access to necessary medical treatment, often due to being prevented from seeking health care by partners.

In conclusion, we look forward to seeing the Gates Foundation tackling the issue of maternal and child health with a strategy that includes two domains of interventions: response to and prevention of violence against women and girls.

I am writing on behalf of women and adolescent girls in Afghanistan and Sierra Leone, who have the highest risk in the world of suffering pregnancy related complications and death. To improve their situation will require a longterm commitment, but some solutions could be put in practice immediately if funding were available. Using mobile phones would offer many approaches. In collaboration with the local NGOs, national authorities and private sector we are proposing to do the following:
1. in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies, a free hotline service will be set up for mobile phone users (most likely these will be young people) to access information about family planning
2. to help pregnant women and their partners to receive reminders of antenatal care visits, an SMS based service will be developed
3. a system for service availability mapping in which the health provider at the primary care level will use the mobile phone in order to send to the central level information about the supplies and equipment needed, using applications and software transforming the data into visually attractive maps and graphs prompting quick action to respond to the needs
4. in addition, the mobile phones will be used to improve referrals in emergencies ( mostly pregnancy and delivery complications)
5. If more sophisticated phones were made available to health providers, they could be used for mentoring. This would improve the retention of health workers in rural areas and increase job satisfaction and of course, quality of care.
6. Another important way of improving maternal health would be to monitor the progress of labor and take necessary action when there is lack of progress. Using a mobile phone application, the health worker could do it more easily than currently happens and the data would be also transfgerred to the next referral level that would be a security measure in order to get right away a second opionion relating to the urgency.

There are many other ways to use the mobile phones ( "sky is the limit", literally!), but if we could start with the ones described above, would be fantastic! We have already eager, skilled, passionate people lined up both in Afghanistan and in Sierra Leone to start the action the moment the funds are there. Thank you in advance!

I would like to see three main things. One, attention to women's sexual and reproductive health - safe, affordable and accessible termination of pregnancy; access to affordable contraception; a focus on healthy relationships with men and women to improve women's ability to control sexual and reproductive decision-making. Two, improving literacy for women and girls - reading and writing; health literacy and financial literacy. Three, improving women's access to employment options - through micro-credit and support for sustainable small businesses. Women's Health West have some terrific programs that we would be happy to provide share and that could be translated into projects to meet local needs. Three examples are Lead On Again: a leadership program for young women from diverse backgrounds; Girls Talk Guys Talk: a whole-school sexual and reproductive health program developed in tandem with students, teachers, parents and local agencies to meet the expressed needs of students at the particular school (one school per year); Financial Literacy education with women from Karen, Somali and Burmese backgrounds who are recently arrived in Australia. See our website, including newsletters, for further details.

We from t he ALL India Women's Conference are staunch admireres of the great work being done by your foundation.AIWC , one of the oldest and pioneering organisations working towards the empowerment and uplift of women and children for over 86 years, all over the country through its 550 branches and quarter million members , has been working in the field of Renewable Energy technologies ciimate change and global warming along with all the important aspects of health, education and incomegeneration for the poor etc. Being one of the founder members of INFORSE{Interntional Netwok for sustainable Energy} AIWC has closely worked with Grameen shakthi(Bangladesh),IDEA (Srilanka), CRT Nepal apart form nearly one hundred partner organisations in India , propogating the use od improved cookstoves right from 1984 onwards-after being identified asone of the Nodal Agencies by the Govt of India -the only women's organisation chosen to work in all the states with direct funding and technical support from IIT-Delhi and Kanpur, had trained more than one thousand rural women in the construction, maintenance and use of these stoves which are of great importance for women and childre'ns health to avoid all the smoke related diseases like Asthma, bronchitis, eye problems and avoid the death of millions of women exposed to the smoke from the traditional stoves. AIWC had also constructed more than hudred thousan improved stoves through these trained women in almost all the states which got many a wards for AIWC including the prestigious UNEP GLOBAL 500 Roll Of Honour to the head of the Rural Energy Dept of AIWC, Many of the women are still using these improved stoves - and are grateful that they have not only been saved from smoke related ailments, but also could make additional income by constructing these stoves in other people,s houses. Unfortunately this all important programme which was the brain child of Ministry of New And renewable energy -Govt of India was transferred to the states which did not take off at all. Apart from this AIWC has also been training master craftspersons in the use , maintenance and construction of Bio-gas plants in collaboration with various technical backup units. Later on AIWC has also conducted awareness programmes, and the instalaion of Solar P.V, and thermal devices like the solafr cookers, Dryiers, Solar water heaters, solar lanterns and homeight systems etc The current project is on using the RETS devices for income generation for the poor women apart from improving their health through Integrated programme- AIWC-USAID-Sari Energy project in a couple of re-settlement colonies in the capital- we have trained nearly one hundred members of Self Help Groups, in the use, installation, and trouble-shooting of these devices since there is a very great demand for such kind of bare-foot technicians not only in the villages but also in the urban slums etc where the electricity is practically not available. The women have started perceiving this programmeas a health giving programme apart from the idirect help of augumenting their income which inturn helps not only their childrerns education but also their health. we have made two charging stations, where these women bring thieir solar lanterns for charging after which they rent them out to weekly market vendors everyday. Since there is provision for charging the cell phones also through these lanterns they could not only use them for charging their own cell phones but also charge other people's phones for a nominal fee even when there was no electricity for hours together. Above all as a part of this integrated programme we have installed a water puifying device wich is run through specially commissioned Solar panels which ensure un-interupted pure water supply for the colony people at nominal cost. Since almost all the cities apart from rural areas are unable to supply potable water, this has to be replicated in all parts of the country along with the other manually operated models which are available now. People have started realising . the importance of using pure water to avoid the water related diseases and we at AIWC feel it is our duty to provide thse women not only clean fuel, stove etc but also clean drinking water along with sanitary fecilities etc.Provided we could get the needed funding to implement all these programmes, this could be done through our large network with minimum cost through dedicated workers

I would like the Bill Gates foundation to help strengthen research capacity of local people in developing countries so that they are empowered to work through their problems and tell their stories, eloquently, comprehensively and competently. Undoubtedly, research by researchers from developing countries for instance Africa, is grossly under-developed - and for good reasons. We do not have competent research institutions, therefore the product from these institutions is often wanting in terms of research capabilities. As a result, when matched against the rest of the world and especially the west, we fall way short. Not because we’re stupid, but because we lack proper training that is necessary to place us on an equal footing with the rest of the world. Conveniently, outsiders come to our continent and tell our story for us (no pun intended). The ultimate danger is that there has been a lot of misrepresentation, not necessarily in bad faith, but mainly because what may be ordinary to us is often construed as peculiar by outsider and is therefore reported and published from their lenses. My opinion is that the best way to tell honest stories and to bring about sustainable change to these developing countries is to equip talented and enthusiastic people from those countries with the skills necessary to identify their own problems so that they can come up with their own solutions.
The Gates foundation could help fund PhD students from developing countries to study at good universities and obtain research skills that are relevant to problems in their countries. My particular interest is on female circumcision, strikingly known to most as female genital mutilation (fgm). Unrivalled in its ability to elicit reactions of personal revulsion and collective hysteria, I as an African whose community still circumcises their women (in secret), believe that the biggest impediment to the eventual eradication of this practice is the way it is portrayed in the media and advocacy campaigns. When you approach a community and tell them that they are ‘mutilating’ their children, the immediate reaction is one of suspicion of cultural imperialism, whether perceived or real. This often fuels their reason to jealously guard that which they consider at risk. Paradoxically, to most practicing communities, the circumcision of their women is an indispensable preliminary to adulthood, a vital strand in their community’s social fibre that addresses their deepest need for identity. Often, the practice is viewed as a milestone that expresses their communal joys and life achievement, a representation of their community’s framework of living. To therefore imply that they are merely malevolent in their intentions, is to alienate the very people we seek to help. In this light, I would like to do my doctoral studies on the circumcision of women in my country. I would like to tell the story of the one of the practicing communities and to brainstorm with them ways that make sense to them of eradicating this practice. There are also communities in my country where the practice is almost extinct. I would like to tell their stories too and to explore how they got to this point. Possibly there could be some lessons there that might be relevant to policy makers and campaigners. We mustn’t lose sight of what is important here - protecting children and women. It cannot be stressed enough, that going about it the right way, is the only key to speedy solutions to thorny issues such as this one.
I work as a researcher on the circumcision of women in a practicing community in Africa would very much like to do a PhD on the practice among the community I work with my country. I would like to tell our story

Another way I would suggest that the money is spent is through education especially of the girl child in developing countries. Certainly when you educate a woman, you educate a whole community! A good project I know that promotes education for children in Africa is Friends of Kadzinuni http://www.kadzinuni.org.uk/

The main problem is that Bill and Melinda Gates have the mentality of a 18th century Malthusian ...

If they want to invest this huge amount of money they should revise this basic concept that the problem of population is only a problem of underdeveloped countries.

Bill and Melinda, the problem of the world, in my point of view, is the excess consumption per capita and not only the volume of consumption caused by the number of inhabitants. So if you want to solve the population problem, you must begin at your home country, since an American citizen consumes more than 150 Africans or Bolivians.

Safety and Security are the most basic to eradicate poverty.It is the millions of poor who are hit hard in times of conflict. They then carry its impact for generations - espceially the women and children. Millions of poor lack information of all the policies that are made on their behalf! I hope the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation would support in a more focused way to build networks among the women and children across communities, districts and regions. Such cooperations would lead to access to important information, develop mutual strategies for cooperation, educate to mitigate/transform issues, understand the importance of market networks to sustain peace, value for peaceul co-existence and reducing the risks for the poor.

The women and children should opprtunity to conduct researchers to understand imbalances to avocate policies to eradicate injustices. This would lead to giving them power to act proactively and become decision makers rather than be exploited in the hands of those who seek divides along ideological differences and those who breath violence.

This requires strengthening women and children's networks and organisations, acces information, credits, services andmechanisms to influence policy.

Maybe the question is a little back to front. I believe Bill & Melinda should not become rich from trying to sell educational software at American prices to poor countries where their parents earn just 3-4% of what an American family does.
I submit this for all to consider

THE EQUAL RIGHTS OF A CHILD TO AN EDUCATION
WITHIN A GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE BASED, INFORMATION SOCIETY
IRRESPECTIVE OF THEIR, or THEIR FAMILY’s
SEX, COLOR, CREED, NATIONALITY OR SOCIAL/ FINANCIAL STANDING

This paper argues the right of every child to have equal access to an education irrespective of his or her colour, creed, nationality, ethnicity or social & financial status so he or she may obtain gainful employment and contribute to the growth of his or her society in the 21st century. Within a knowledge based global society the basic tools of education must include educational & operational softwares.
The interpretation of Intellectual Property Laws today is a morally unjust construal of the law and must be immediately revisited so as to allow the poor children of our global societies their human right to an equal education.
This paper seeks to rally all those who seek equality for all the children of the world, irrespective of their sex, colour, creed, nationality, or financial standing, to join the fight against those who seek only riches, by economically coercing poor & developing nations to enforce their immoral interpretations of the Intellectual Property Laws.
UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS
Article 1.
• All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
The Declaration of the Rights of the Child
1. The child must be given the means requisite for its normal development, both materially and spiritually.
2. The child that is hungry must be fed, the child that is sick must be nursed, the child that is backward must be helped, the delinquent child must be reclaimed, and the orphan and the waif must be sheltered and secured.
3. The child must be the first to receive relief in times of distress.
4. The child must be put in a position to earn a livelihood, and must be protected against every form of exploitation.
5. The child must be brought up in the consciousness that its talents must be devoted to the service of its fellow men.
Surely ‘The United Nations Human Rights’ & ‘The Declaration of the Rights of the Child’ leave no doubt that it is the right of every child to have equal access to education, irrespective of his or her, colour, creed, nationality, ethnicity, age or financial status.
Knowledge now forms a major component of all human activity, economic, social & cultural and has become the major creative force of all developed societies, hence creating new ‘Knowledge Based’ societies & economies. Knowledge is gained from access to education, hence both are essential elements for the development of all children, societies, countries, economies & humanity.
Knowledge societies are not a new occurrence. Fishermen have long shared the knowledge of predicting the weather to their community and this knowledge gets added to the social capital of the community. What is new is that,
• With current technologies, knowledge societies need not be constrained by geographic proximity
• Current technology offers much more possibilities for sharing, archiving and retrieving knowledge
• Knowledge has become the most important capital in the present age, and hence the success of any society lies in harnessing it.
All governments & individuals who truly believe in Human & Child Rights & the equality of all, must surely also believe in providing equal access to all information & tools required for their education, irrespective of a child’s, colour, creed, nationality, religion, ethnicity, age or financial status. Hence the tools & information required for a child’s education should not be withheld for the monetary gain of a few. Humanity can never allow a global society to develop that promotes the haves & have nots of a basic education.
In this high tech, computerised, interconnect world of the 21st century, both filled & reliant on high speed access to information no one country, state, city, community or village can hope to compete on equal footing with others unless their children have equal access to the programs & softwares that all others enjoy as part of their education & vocational training.
All men & women, have but their labour to give, or trade in return for the basic necessities of life, of which education is one. A man or woman from a developing country is not a lesser man or woman than that of one from a developed country. Their labour has always afforded them the basic necessities of life within their own communities because their government ensures the cost of the basic necessities of life are commensurate with the average weekly income of their country. The advent of a ‘Global Economy’ has however strained this basic principle of human existence for the poorer nations & people..
Software Piracy does not occur because the populations of poorer, or developing countries are inherently criminals. It occurs because the young people of these developing countries need to gain an education that their families can no longer afford, because of the exorbitant costs of ‘legal copies’ of these very necessary educational software programs.
PUTTING THE PROBLEM IN CONTEXT
2009 Average Salaries for Developed Nations
Luxembourg 49,663 2 United States 49,483 3 Ireland 44,013 4 Switzerland 42,980 5 Netherlands 42,514 6 Australia 42,019 7 United Kingdom 40,825 8 Belgium 40,591 9 Norway 40,177 10 Denmark 39,143 11 Austria 38,682 12 France 35,430 13 Germany 35,292 14 Sweden 33,586 15 Japan 31,773 16 Finland 31,211 17 Italy 29,198 18 Spain 28,871 19 South Korea 27,587 20 Greece 26,929 21 Hungary 21,161 22 Czech Republic 18,922 23 Portugal 18,300 24 Poland
In 2009 the average weekly wage of an American is approximately $950 / week or 49,483 /annum
The cost of Microsoft Office is $499 (December 2009)
This equates to a parent who is earning $23.70 / hour, paying the equivalent of 21 hours of their labour ( approx 3 days) to buy an essential educational tool for their child’s education .
In Vietnam the average weekly wage is $25 / week ,or $1,300 / annum
The cost of Microsoft Office is $499
This equates to a parent who is earning $0.62 / hour paying the equivalent of 804 hours (approx 100 days) of their labour to buy an essential educational tool for their child’s education .
We stated earlier that all workers have but their labour to give or trade for the necessities of life. So with that in mind if we were to reverse the situation for American workers, by developing a proportionate cost for Microsoft Office based upon their hours of labour, we would find that they would need to pay $19,050, (equivalent to 804 hours of labour,). If this was the retail price of Microsoft Office in America we would surely expect to see a Software Piracy Industry emerge in America similar to that of which we presently see in developing countries. Not because American children over night had suddenly become criminals, but because the cost of the tools needed for an education had suddenly exceeded their parent’s ability to buy.
Intellectual Property Laws are meant to protect the rights of an author to his or her developed intellectual works from being copied. They should never be misinterpreted or misused to protect his or her rights to riches, by way of exploitation or disregard of the basic human rights of all.
Equal rights must not be idle worlds of the rich, or already haves. The right of every child to shelter, food, safety & education are fundamental human rights, far outweighing economic or intellectual property rights which would not be considered fundamental Human Rights by any moral, thinking human being.
INDEXING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
Within a global, economic society the only way to achieve equal rights & access for all to an education & job, is to put in place a ‘Global Index System’ based upon the average salary of a country.
A simple example of this would be to allot America the base index of ‘1’. Hence ‘1’ would equal the average annual wage of America.
If in 2009 America’s average salary is $49,483.00 then this number will become the base (1) for all other index calculations.
If Australia’s average salary is $42,019 then its index would be 0.84 (42,019 divided by 49,483 = 0.84)
If Vietnam’s average salary is $1,300 then its index would be 0.0262. (1,300 divided by 49,483 = 0.0262)
The Intellectual Property Rights of any Educational or Vocational software would then be valued, within any country, by taking the price the software is retailing for in America and multiplying it by that country’s index. (These indexes would be set by a reputable organisation such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO) or United Nations (UN) and would be updated each year.)
Hence for equality of access by the children of Vietnam to Microsoft Office the price should be the price of Microsoft Office ($499) multiplied by Vietnam’s index of ( 0.0262) which means for equality of access the sale price for Microsoft Office should be $13.07.
INTERUM ACTION
Countries cannot disadvantage their young citizens to the right of an education by enforcing unjust & unequal global laws, when those laws do not take into account the differences between a developing and developed country. If developing countries enforce present interpretations of Intellectual Property Laws, they are ensuring that their countries will forever remain developing nations by dramatically impeding the young peoples of their countries from ever gaining the necessary education that will allow them to compete equally within the global economy, as computer literacy & skills in the 21st century are just as important as literacy itself.
Until there is a decision reached regards this very important matter, companies & governments should restrain from prosecuting persons in developing countries for using educational & vocational pirated software.
If companies do prosecute during this time of decision making, developing countries must rally behind each other and fight the case in the highest courts of their lands and in front of the Human Rights Tribunal.
If developed governments, global organisations or software companies believe that a moratorium on prosecutions for the use of pirated software is wrong then maybe they need to start implementing an interim scheme which would see Microsoft Office retailing in the United States for $19,000. This would be another way of achieving equality for all the young of the world in the short term.

Well educated, devoted teachers are the foundation for nations wellfare. Africa needs 18 milj teachers. No money pushed outside in can repair the gap without buildning up the educations system to give Education For All. MKFC Stockholm College from Sweden has started with own funds Teacher Training in Service thru ICT4D. We are happy to give children tools for change !
http://www.stockholmcollege.se/category/education/teacher-training/
marja-riitta

I will use the money from Bill melinda foundation, to renovate the maternity,buying life saving equipments like utral sound, oxygen concetrator.Health education on the prevention of Vesical Vagina Fistula, Natural Family planning,and getting the Ambulance for reffering at lisk pregnant mothers to the big Hospital from our health Centre.

Prayer Request

Brother I am doing ministry in India , Tamil Nadu from past 10 in rural areas. Please pray for Pastors, Old Age People, Orphan
Children as we are planning to help them. So that we can bring them
under the control and love of our Lord. (Psalms 146 :7-8) to praise
and glorify the name of Lord Jesus Christ. . God Bless You.

Pastor K. Ramesh
Apostolic Glory Mission Trust

are you willing to assist with supplying foodstuff and clothing to an empowernment centre for women who are abandoned by their families and society? there is also histories of substance abuse.

The PROMISED LAND FOUNDATION PHILIPPINES of # 26 Congressional Rd.Batasan Hills,Quezon City,Philippines would like to affiliate to "BILL & MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION "
Our main purpose in affiliating and being a member is to adopt its objectives, one of which is to help the Farmers, poorest people, also to plant trees to maintain the Ecological Balance and to help solve the greatest threat to our environment the GLOBAL WARMING.
In order to realize on of its objectives we are offering a parcel of VACANT LAND suited for Urban poor settlers,Free Housing to them, also the farmers, the Tree Planting is to prevent soil erosion.
The parcel of land to be developed consisted of more or less FOUR HUNDRED ( 400 HAS ) Hectares which needs to be developed and be productive. The land has been idle for the past year for lack of Financial support...so thanks to "BILL & MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION we want to offer this VACANT LAND to them...by Rev.Hermie Bathaluna

I would like to ask help, material!
The electricity is disabled inside 2 weeks unfortunately, I am at home with my lasting ill child on the other hand. Overheads I cannot pay it off already because of the many bank credits.
Something is left of my payment hardly because he is under a ban steadily, with a word onto living very little.
We talk over who can help in a letter.
Hungarian Van, they do not help here :-(
Greet: A desperate family
IBAN: HU94 1177 3535 0322 8188 0000 0000

A god blesses it

New life in Christ Ministries was founded by me in the year 1994 ,after i had come back from exile whee i had received my salvation in the year 1992.
The Church firs consisted of the ex/ prisoners who received Christ as their lord and savior and had been released after serving their sentence ,
This church ministry has now grown to 47 member Churches across Uganda.
I am their Bishop with the main Church in Kampala at a place called Bweyogerere. we are involved in training our our Church leaders , Discipleship of our church members , Support of Orphans and planting more churches by winning souls to Christ through house to house evangelism,crusade and economic development of our churches, we would welcome actors evolved in such ministry for a long partnership with an aim of developing entire church in Uganda.


The same time , I am a Director. Conquerors in Christ fellowship foundation , This was accepted in year 2004, with an aim of bringing pastors and church leaders together for first , fellowship , Training, development both economic and spiritual development of the whole church of Christ in Uganda.
We have a total Membership of 53 churches coming from different denomination found across Uganda.
We are a registered entity by the government to operate anywhere within Uganda with our Main offices in Mukono, 16km in the Eastern part of Kampala.
Currently we are involved in the discipleship of our Church leaders with an aim of equipping the to help their respective churches .
We would therefore wish to work with you Bill and merida should you agree to work with us in the area of social development to help the women and widows in our country.
However ,should you have anything that may be different from what we are doing now we would still open up for you if it is for the development of churches ,

CIUDAD PROMISED LAND COOPERATIVE - Philippines , Located at # 26 Congressional Rd.Batasan Hills,Quezon City, Philippines with Contact # ( 63 ) 917-3514135 or ( 02 ) 431-8398 .
In this connection we have at present a cooperative,CIUDAD Promised Land Cooperative, which we derived from Exodus 33.1-3.
Our purposes of the Cooperative are :
1-To build Computer Institute in every Community
2-Housing for the low-income group- the less fortunate people in our community.
111-Livelihood project to raise the living standard of our people.
1V-To take care of the young generation to give them education.
V-To protect women and children from abuses.
V1-To help the elderly and Senior Citizen.
Since your concerned as stated in your Bill & Melinda Foundation I being chosen as your friend benefactor hereby solemnly swear to the Almighty to accomplish what you are instructing one to do of the funds you are entrusting to me.
Needless, to say may I reiterate that we are always praying for your helping to recovery all the illness people in the world.

TO : BILL & MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION
FROM : DR.HERMIE BATHALUNA,# 26 Congressional Road,Batasan Hills,Quezon City,Philippines ( 63 ) 917-3514135
E-mail Address
Subject : Royal Leaders Meeting
Date : May 29,2011
MISSION :
1. To initiate a movement for a Righteous Form of Government to govern us in the next generation of righteous people.
2. To inculcate moral values to all the members to be a future righteous leaders to lead a righteous form of Government which is different from other form of government.

VISION :
1. To bring all people and all nations closer to God and have fear in the Lord who has created us.

GOALS :
1. To totally transform all leaders of all nations to govern their constituents in the righteous way, to attend peace and order in the entire world.

BENEFITS :
For Royal Leaders / Managers
a)Appointment duly approved by the Royal Ambassadors
b)Salary / wages : Php 1000. a day

Functions :
1. Invite 50 persons to undergo On the Job Training ( O.J.T. ) with ages ranging from 18 to 80 years old.
2. Php. 346,000.00 initial budget for the O.J.T.
a ) Free breakfast
b ) Merienda
c ) lunch
3. Php. 150.00 fare back & forth
4. Laptop - purchase
5. Open for all O.F.W.

For more Information :
Ask Dr.Hermie Bathaluna
mobile # 917-3514135
E-mail Add

In Christ,
Dr.Hermie Bathaluna

The BATHALUNA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL located at # 26 Congressional Rd.,Batasan Hills,Quezon City,Philippines asking your help and donation for our Poor Children here in the Philippines , they asking Books, School Supply , shoes for the Boys and Girls , Feedings , school Uniform for boys and girls , also Second Hand School Bus ,for your cash donation please Deposit at LAND BANK Philippines,
Account Number.......1691-1349-93
Account Name ........BATHALUNA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL INC.
LAND BANK Address....Commonwealth Ave.,Batasan Hills,
Quezon City,Philippines
Tel. # (02 ) 431-8398 / Mobile # ( 63 ) 9173514135

Thanks,
Dr. Hermie Bathaluna