Iraqi widow with her sons. (Photo: CODEPINK Women For Peace/Flickr/CC)

Political disputes and security challenges have hindered the stability required for the development of Iraq, according to the Iraqi Al Amal Association’s contribution to the Social Watch Report 2013. To get on the right track, says Al Amal, the Iraqi government must conduct the census that has been delayed since 2007, to collect reliable information for the design of comprehensive, effective and appropriately funded development plans.

A Salvadorean woman learns to write and read. (Photo: MINED)

The first leftist government in El Salvador has been devoted, in the last three years, to support marginalized populations such as the elderly, women, children and the rural population, says the Salvadorean contribution to the Social Watch Report 2013. Improvements in health and education are apparent, but structural changes are needed to ensure the sustainability of the social programs, including a tax reform to finance them with the national budget without relying on external funds.

School lunch in Ghana (Photo: Ndcuk.org)

The lack of political will seems to be the main obstacle on Ghana’s road to development and human well-being, but it is not the only one, according to the contribution from civil society organizations of this West African nation to the Social Watch Report 2013.
Ghana has walked a long way towards poverty eradication, food security and education to all, but not all the people have access to medical services, and not all pregnant woman benefit from free health care, so maternal mortality remains very high, aggravating the endemic gender inequities. With this social landscape as a backdrop, the economy experiences a sustained growth, notes the report.

Photo: The Palestinian Monitor

The military raid on the offices in Ramallah of the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO, member of Social Watch), Women’s Union and Addameer “adds to the Israeli record of continuous violation” of the international humanitarian law and human rights treaties, and proved once again that the occupation “is the major (…) obstacle” that prevents the Palestinian society from reaching its development, stated the Arab NGO Network for Development.

The international conference “Advancing the post-2015 sustainable development agenda: Reconfirming rights, recognizing limits, redefining goals” in Bonn will bring together about 250 civil society activists and representatives from key stakeholders in March in order to draw together civil society inputs into this relevant debate.