Issue: 5
“My boss made me do overtime because I was late to work this morning.”
“I’ll be going home late tonight, what am I going to tell my mother?”
“We received a very big order today, mummy.”
These were the words of some children who were asked to make up imaginary stories, during a project activity.
Another child starts another story: “I dropped my money into the manhole on the way to the grocery store to buy some peppermint. My mother is going to kill me now!” The other completes it: “On the way home, a truck hits me and I die!” imagines another young one.
Actually, these stories are not altogether imaginary for these children, because they are 8-10 year-old child workers, mostly working on the streets. They are kids who arrive late to work, who take and deliver orders, shine shoes, do all sorts of odd jobs. And who are in constant danger on the streets, going back and forth between home and work.
During the ‘Reading Days’ organized by UNDP, Southeastern Anatolia Project Regional Development Agency and Can Publications, in order to support the schooling of working children, these little big boys and girls re-create their own stories.
Participating at the reading activities held at the Community Centre of Şahinbey Municipality’s Social Services Directorate in Gaziantep and at Süleymaniye Municipality’s Community Centre in Şanlıurfa on 17-18 April, these children had the opportunity to meet with the author Cemil Kavukçu and theatre actress/children’s book writer Görkem Yeltan. Kavukçu read stories from his books, while Görkem Yeltan helped the children create and act a play she called “How to Become Writer/Brother Cemil”, to enhance their imagination and social participation skills. Raising reluctant hands to speak at first, the kids soon started to compete with each other to join in the play.
The children participating in the activities in Şanlıurfa say they are very happy to be visiting the Community Centre. The kids get help from the teachers at the Centre to catch up with the school work they miss, carry out social activities, and even find comfort and solace there. They were proud to give a folk-dance performance to “Brother” Cemil and “Sister” Görkem, with the rare happiness of being in a truly children’s world reflecting in their eyes.
Only a few of these children are full-time students. Most of them both work and go to school. Others don’t go to school at all and work as full time labourers. Out of need, some families pull their children out of school and put them to full time work. But some other families are happy to see their young ones go back to school after the kids have tried but could not keep up work life.
Mehmet dropped out of 4th grade; he’s now a shoeblack boy. Apparently, both school life and work life proved too hard for him, because when we ask him which one he prefers, he can’t answer; he’s too shy. Mehmet’s family is very poor; that’s why they took their son out of school and placed him in this job.
On the other hand, poverty is not always force majeure in the case of female child worker. Traditionally, parents of female children often stop their girls’ education after elementary school. Families prefer the elder sister to babysit her younger siblings at home, rather than sending her to school. But the majority of these primary-school-age girls wish to go to school, instead of baby sitting and house serving. Interpreting Cemil Kavukçu’s short story entitled “The Boy Called Sarı”, the kids all together agree that “if Sarı went to school, he would have become a respectable man in society”!
They are afraid of some other kids in the neighbourhood who are drug addicts. They are scared of walking alone on the streets. Mehmet’s brother was even once attacked by some glue-sniffers. Nilgün aspires to be a policewoman “in order to protect her country from all these evils”; similarly Mehmet wants to become a police soldier, a gendarme. Mahide who takes painting lessons at the Community Centre dreams of becoming an artist, İbrahim and Özgür a teacher, Ömer a soccer player, Erhun a tae-kwon-do performer, and Halil a basketball player... But they are all aware that they can’t achieve their ambitions without proper training. Some of their teachers at school encourage the kids to read one book every week. At the end of the year, the student who has read the biggest number of books will be awarded with a high grade. One of them has already devoured 13 books and made a summary of each one. Others who haven’t read so many books seem embarrased, “I read, too, but from now on I’ll read even more”, they promise!
“Rehabilitation of Children Working on the Streets” project, carried out within the context of the “Reduction of Socio-Economic Differences in the GAP Region” programme is evidently playing a distinct role in encouraging the children to love reading books. So much so, that the most repeated question coming from the children was “How does one become a writer?” during ‘Reading Days’, which have been conducted almost every week in Batman, Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep since the beginning of March with the participation of different guest writers and theatre artists.
Children working on the streets of Şanlıurfa are also interested in drawing, as they are in literacy. The ones, who attended drawing lessons in the Community Centre, displayed their work in the Exhibition Hall of Şanlıurfa Municipality between 24 April-1 May. There was a big interest in the exhibition which was opened by the Governor of Şanlıurfa, Yusuf Yavaşcan. Children, who welcomed their visitors with great anticipation, proved how much they can achieve when given opportunity.
A chat with Cemil Kavukçu, visiting author at the ‘Reading Days’
Cemil Kavukçu was one of the literary guests who participated in the Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep legs of the Reading Days, held on 17-18 April, 2006. “First you must read lots and lots of books...”, he answered the questions of 8-14 year-old children on how to become a writer. Kavukçu has published 9 short story books and 3 novels; he also wrote a children’s book collecting the stories of child characters in his short stories.
We chatted with him about his books, about education, socio-economic disparities in different parts of Turkey, and of course the mainstreaming of working children into formal schooling.
UNDP Turkey: How did you come to participate in the ‘Reading Days’, which is conducted by UNDP and GAP Regional Development Agency, and supported by Can Publications?
Cemil Kavukçu (C.K.): Can Publications offered me an invitation to join this project and I gladly accepted. Initially, I didn’t know the dimensions of the project and how
it would develop. I lived and learned here. It has been a very interesting and fulfilling experience for me in many ways. It gave me an opportunity to meet with a segment of our society that hardly has any access to the world of books and literature. These are the children working on the streets, too poor to buy books, magazines or even newspapers; in whose families the habit of reading is nonexistent. We don’t know how much creative power these children can develop. To discover that kind of talent depends only upon chance and coincidence, as it is. Maybe there are potential writers and literary artists among these kids, but the fact is they are not born with the opportunity or privilege to use their talents. They were born here, under these poor conditions, and they continue to live under these conditions. But if single one of them ever discovers himself/herself to be a writer during these Reading Days, what an achievement and happiness that would be!.. Let alone discovering a potential writer, if these kids discover the world of books and the joy of reading, that would be a great success on our part. We complain about the low level of readership in Turkey today, but we can contribute to raising that level through such activities as these ‘Reading Days’. I would be extremely happy if I can be a part of this effort.
UNDP Turkey: In one of your previous interviews, you said “If I had stayed in my little home town, I would not have been able to write anything. What enables me to write is the cultural environment of big cities”. Do you think that children in underdeveloped regions cannot use their real potentials due to lack of opportunity?
C.K.: I certainly do. Although I used to read as much as I could back in my little home town, I could not have improved my writing abilities there. Had I not moved to the cultural environment of the big city, I could have continued to read, keep diaries or perhaps write my memoirs, but they would have been left in my desk drawer and never got to be published. I could not have discovered the real writer in me. I am very lucky to have made this discovery. But I believe there are many others who are not as lucky as I am, who live and die without discovering the talent inside them. We must create opportunities for such people; every body must help in any way he/she can.
I am so happy to have participated in the ‘Reading Days’. In the future too, I’ll drop everything and willingly go anywhere I’m invited. It was such an excitement to have met these children, to tell them my story, to read to them, to have them listen to me with rapt attention and to answer their interesting questions. Kids dream as they listen. They vividly imagine the characters of the story. They re-create the adventures of their favourite heroes. That’s how they participate and re-animate my books. For example, the boy I named “Sarı” in my story became a different Sarı as we talked on with the kids. Sarı walked on a different street, had a different kind of boss. Each kid imagined something different. What I had in mind while writing this story and what these kids concocted were quite distinct. It was very pleasant to experience such an interaction.
UNDP Turkey: Are these projects effective in reducing the inter-regional socio-economic differences in Turkey?
C.K.: I think they are. But a project like Reading Days should not be limited to the period March-June. It should continue throughout the year and in the forthcoming years, too. Other writers should also join this effort. Children will pick up different things from different writers, who will open up new horizons for them. Because when this project is over, the children will probably forget the things that have happened, or maybe just reminisce about them as pleasant memories. But if many other writers continue to visit these kids to share their stories, these activities will be more than occasional events to remember, and become a real experience influencing their daily lives, giving a sense of direction.
UNDP Turkey: How do you evaluate the state of education in Turkey?
C.K.: The state of education in Turkey is rather sad. School curriculums are always a topic of debate in this country. Text books are very frequently and arbitrarily changed. Unfortunately, we are far from reaching the contemporary level of education. There are two different schooling systems in Turkey: on the one hand, there is this private education network which the economically powerful can easily benefit from; on the other hand, there are the schools the poor children go to. Many of the state schools and those in underdeveloped regions fall in the second category. The situation of underprivileged children is grave. On the other hand, children living in large cities are dragged into a rat race, starting from primary school, to be able to enter a good university. But the race doesn’t end there, they have to struggle for a good job, as soon as they graduate. Tough as it may be, the children in underdeveloped regions don’t even have that chance. Those coming from wealthier families in these regions may seize an opportunity, but they’ll still be disadvantaged compared to big city children. Hence, a great majority of poor children cannot continue their education after the 8th grade or maybe 11th grade at the most. That’s all. Adding insult to injury, the education they receive does not prepare them for a future. On the contrary, the years they spend at school may cost them the opportunity to learn a vocation or even an apprenticeship. Hence, we have a youth in limbo, without a job, without a future.
UNDP Turkey: The percentage of students in primary education in the 2003/04 academic year was announced as 91.95%, but this figure falls to 46.47% in secondary education and 13.09% in higher education. Do you think the fact that primary education is compulsory is not sufficient in pointing out the importance of education to students and especially to their families?
C.K.: Not only that, there is also an economic reason. Not everyone can afford to send their children to preparatory courses or to private schools. The educational system has shifted to private hands today, in the form of commercialized prep courses and private schools, which in a way replaced state education. On the other hand, underprivileged children who have to go to public schools are deprived of a good education; they don’t have the economic means. What does the 8-year compulsory education give them, other than teaching to read and write? The rate of literacy which is already low is increasingly going down due to economic reasons.
UNDP Turkey: The percentage of literate people aged 15+ was announced as 88.3% in 2004. But as the Minister of Education Hüseyin Çelik also stated*, the percentage of people who read books regularly is only 4,5%. Knowing how to read and write does not necessarily bring about the habit of ‘reading’, unfortunately.
C.K.: Success in school and success in life are not the same thing, anyway. To be successful in life, a student has to learn and read by himself/herself outside of school,to
The picture about the dangers of landmines is a pessimistic one. According to the latest figures deaths and injuries from landmines world wide have decreased from 26,000 a year in the late 1990s. But the often hidden devices have left over from conflicts are still killing and maiming between 15,000 and 20,000 annually, without distinguishing between the combat boots of a soldier and the football of an innocent child.
An estimated 110 million landmines are strewn across the world in more than 70 countries. The most heavily mine-affected countries in the world, according to a UN study, are: Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cambodia, Croatia, Eritrea, Iraq, Mozambique, Namibia, Somalia, Nicaragua and Sudan. These 12 countries together account for almost 50 percent of the landmines currently deployed in the world and also suffer the highest number of landmines casualties.
Annan’s statement
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan marked the day by a written statement: “Landmines are cruel instruments of war. Decades after conflicts have receded, these invisible killers lie silently in the ground, waiting to murder and maim. Through them, 20th century battles claim 21st century victims, with new casualties added every hour. A single landmine – or even the fear of its presence – can hold an entire community hostage. It can prevent farmers from growing crops, refugees from returning home, even children from playing. It blocks the delivery of humanitarian relief and impedes the deployment of peacekeepers. In post-conflict societies landmines remain one of the greatest impediments to rebuilding and renewal.
Situation in Turkey
According to a report last year by the International Landmine Monitor Group (www.icbl.org/lm) there are a total of 920 thousand landmines planted in Turkey’s border regions. The government signed an international treaty banning landmines in 2003 and started the implementation in March 2004. To abide by the treaty Turkey stopped producing and purchasing landmines.
Some estimates show that the majority (650,000) of the landmines are placed at the Turkish-Syrian border. According to official sources Turkey first started planting landmines in 1959 to stop illegal trespassing at its borders. Nearly 40 thousand landmines were planted in the eastern and south-eastern provinces of the country for anti-terror reasons between 1989 and 1992.
Bigger picture
In 2004, nearly $400 million was donated for mine action, with nearly $100 million coming from the United States. Afghanistan was the largest recipient of international mine-clearing aid that year, getting more than $90 million.
Still, attempts to prohibit the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of landmines could have been more fruitful.
The vision of the United Nations is a world free from the threat of landmines and explosive remnants of war, ERW, where individuals and communities live in a safe environment, helpful to development and where the needs of mine and ERW victims are met and where victims are fully integrated into their societies.
There are 14 UN departments, programmes, funds and agencies that provide various types of services. Some of these UN bodies target their services to a particular group of people, such as refugees, or to a special circumstance, such as a humanitarian crisis, and still others focus on a particular pillar of mine action.
The seminars, organized within the framework of the UNDP Programme which aims to support the Turkish Government in developing a comprehensive project regarding Internally Displaced Persons, will be held on June 8-9, 2006. During the seminars, civil society organisations and similar groups will be trained on how to help Displaced Persons in the framework of UN’s Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and how to take part in local and regional coordination efforts in this area.
30 NGOs will attend the training programme which will be conducted by Oslo-based Norwegian Refugee Council.
Background
“The Support Programme for Internally Displaced Persons” is based on a report prepared by a United Nations expert in 2002. The report was the work of Francis Deng, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General. The Deng report noted that the Turkish Government had not been successful in developing a systematic approach to the problems of Displaced Persons in Turkey. Following the report, the government assigned the Population Studies Institute of Hacettepe University to conduct a survey on “Migration and Internally Displaced Persons in Turkey”, which would provide a foundation for the policies to solve the problems of displaced populations. Later on, UN Secretary-General’s next special Representative on Internally Displaced Persons, Walter Kälin paid a visit to Turkey in May 2005 upon the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Kälin pointed out the positive results of the government’s efforts in providing hope for displaced persons, and made recommendations regarding the issue.
Many people had fled their homes to escape from terrorism and armed conflict in southeastern Turkey during 1985-1997. UN’s global experience emphasizes the importance of NGOs’ cooperation in tackling the problems of Internally Displaced Persons. NGOs’ contributions help increase public awareness on the issue and provide aid to displaced populations based on equity. UNDP aims to assist civil society organisations in taking a step forward towards finding a sustainable solution to the problem.
Implemented within the framework of Local Agenda 21’s (LA21) “Support to Local Projects Programme”, and conducted by the local government, the town council and civil society volunteers, a cultural rehabilitation project in the historic town of Mustafapaşa in Central Anatolia has recently been completed. But “more work needs to be done”, says Süreyya Aytaş, one of the key players of the project, “we will move ahead under the action plan to not only rehabilitate the architectural form of Mustafapasa, but also restore its cultural heritage”.
The project aimed to raise awareness among local adults and youth on the importance of protecting their cultural heritage, to discuss the issue on democratic platforms and to remove the obstacles hindering protection and restoration works. The first phase of the project focused on educational seminars about protection and restoration techniques.
We spoke with Süreyya Aytaş, Secretary-General of LA21 in Mustafapaşa and Municipality Public Relations Director, about LA21 partnership and the progress of the “Protecting the Cultural Heritage of Mustafapaşa” project:
Süreyya Aytaş (S.A.): Mustafapaşa is a little-discovered town in Central Turkey, also lovingly-called by the locals as “the sleeping beauty” of the Cappadocia region. Throughout its long history, Mustafapaşa has been home to several civilizations, which have left a rich architectural heritage behind them. Currently, we have more than 100 historic mansions under protection. But there are many more buildings, structures and monuments which need rehabilitation. Mustafapaşa’s historic, natural and cultural heritage needs protection, otherwise some of our “beauties” will soon be lost; we are all aware of that. But the local people do not have the material capacity to preserve the historical buildings. We are lucky to have a plan to protect the town’s heritage. However, this is not enough; it does not guarantee a sustainable solution. We must implement more detailed plans.
UNDP Türkiye: Have you faced difficulties in implementing this project? Was it difficult to convince the people of Mustafapaşa?
S.A.: Not in the least! On the contrary, it was the local folks who demanded a restoration project. The Town Council, Women’s and Youth Assemblies and local administrators have all been very keen to see the project working. It was partly funded by the local government of Mustafapaşa, which contributed $2,000. The main sponsor was the United Nations Development Programme, with $17,925.
UNDP Türkiye: In which stage is the project?
S.A.: The project was officially launched in December 2005, and completed on 12 April 2006. However, this was only a preparation project! For the programme to be sustainable, we presented another project proposal to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, explaining how we’re planning restoration work on 20 mansions. After restoration, these 20 mansions will be opened to the public. People of Mustafapaşa have learned a lot from this initial project; they will not make the same mistakes when they move on to the restoration project. We are not worried at all because our people are very sensitive and careful in this issue. I can vouch for this as I have witnessed how our folks were committed to the project.
UNDP Türkiye: What is the next step?
S.A.: As I’ve said, the project is now formally completed. However, much more work needs to be done. We took a big step in protecting the heritage of Mustafapaşa. Before the project was launched, people were pessimistic about it, but now the mood has transformed into optimism. We realised that we really can make a difference and improve our environment! The project opened up new horizons for us. Thus, we will move further ahead under the action plan to not only rehabilitate the architectural form of Mustafapaşa, but also restore its cultural heritage.
UNDP Türkiye: How did Mustafapaşa Municipality benefit from the LA21 Programme? What would you recommend to other municipalities in Turkey that have not taken advantage of this programme yet?
S.A.: When we became a member of the LA21 Programme in 2001, they firstly suggested that we prepare a report on the existing situation and conditions in our town, to be followed by an action plan. So, we at the Municipality, and the Town Council worked together to make a thorough survey of the town’s inventory and then prepared our action plan. This study has been our guideline. I believe all towns in Turkey should, first and foremost, prepare similar studies.
In addition to the initial report, we also began to develop projects to deal with the various problems in our town, thanks to LA21’s project training workshop for the representatives of the Women’s Assembly, the Youth Assembly and the City Council. Along the lines of LA21’s objectives, we were able to facilitate townswomen’s participation in social and work life. Currently, a great majority of our female population are in business life, mostly in the tourism sector. Female unemployment rate has decidedly dropped. Now, there are very few unemployed women in Mustafapaşa. In my opinion, the biggest contribution of LA21 to Mustafapaşa has been to pave the way, for our women, from out of their homes into the heart of social life, as individuals who can freely express themselves and try to find solutions to their needs and problems single-handedly.
We continue our training activities in other areas, as well. For example, we try to establish collective decision-making and action process amongst the youth in our town. With the help of City Council and other working groups; we managed to integrate the people into local administration. Now, decisions concerning the town are first discussed and agreed on in City Council and then sent to Municipality Council. As an example, by implementing a local development project in Mustafapaşa, which is first started in Cappadocia, we worked in cooperation with City Council and Municipality Council to establish a university in the town and we actually opened the university. The university’s mission is to grow intermediate personnel for Cappadocia region and Mustafapaşa, reduce unemployment in the district by organizing special vocational trainings for the region and prevent migration. Our University, Cappadocia Vocational School, with its five departments, started its first educational year, in 2005-2006. Besides normal faculty education, the school also gives trainings to local people and enables them to benefit from social and cultural activities.
I can easily say that LA21 had a positive impact on the town and its people. We, as local people, the Mayor and I, do whatever we can do to make this impact sustainable. We did all these activities I mentioned to make Mustafapaşa a better place to live; and other cities should actively join Local Agenda 21 programme too. I also would like to add that, LA21 has been a beacon for us, but effort of the people of Mustafapaşa is what made it possible. Our only contribution was to mobilizing these people and letting them do something for their towns.
The Secretary-General's appointments follow a comprehensive consultation process involving all Global Compact stakeholders, including its Local Networks. Each of the appointees has demonstrated a long record of commitment to the Global Compact's mission and principles and enjoys the support of a regional or constituency group. The twenty-member body is comprised of ten business representatives, four representatives of business associations and labour groups, as well as four representatives of civil society organizations. Ex-officio members are the Executive Head of the Global Compact Office and the Chair of the Foundation for the Global Compact.
The Global Compact Board is a key component of the initiative's governance framework, which was introduced following a comprehensive review of the initiative conducted in 2004-05. (Other components include the triennial Leaders Summit -next to be held in June 2007-, Local Networks, the annual Networks Forum, the Foundation for the Global Compact and the Inter-Agency Team.)
Operating under the auspices of the Secretary-General, the Board will help ensure the Global Compact's continuity and facilitate its further growth. It will provide strategic advice for the initiative as a whole and make related recommendations to the UN Global Compact Office, participants and other stakeholders. The Board will also play a role with regard to the implementation of the Compact's integrity measures. Board members will act as champions of the initiative.
The Global Compact Board will meet once a year, with the inaugural meeting planned for the summer 2006 at UN Headquarters in New York.
About Global Compact
Launched in 1999 by the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the UN Global Compact brings business together with UN agencies, labour, civil society and governments to advance universal principles in the areas of human rights, labour standards, environment and anti-corruption. With more than 2,500 participating companies in over 90 countries, it is the largest voluntary corporate citizenship initiative in the world. More than 45 local networks advance the Global Compact's principles at the national and regional levels.
Why participate?
There are numerous benefits to participating in the Global Compact. These include:
• Demonstrating leadership by advancing responsible corporate citizenship.
• Producing practical solutions to contemporary problems related to globalisation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility in a multi-stakeholder context.
• Managing risks by taking a proactive stance on critical issues.
• Leveraging the UN's global reach and convening power with governments, business, civil society and other stakeholders.
• Sharing good practices and learnings.
Koç Holding joins the "Global Compact"
The Global Compact was launched in Turkey in March 2002, during a special one-day event organised by UNDP in İstanbul. Since then UN's Global Compact initiative managed to attract more than 60 private Turkish companies. The initiative has gained momentum when UNDP's Private Sector Partnership Project Office in İstanbul opened last summer. The latest contribution to the Global Compact project has come from a leading businessman in Turkey, Mustafa Koç, who heads the biggest private employer with tens of thousands workers. During a meeting in New York on 30th of March with Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations, Mustafa Koç said that while expanding as a group of companies, they are fully aware of their responsibilities regarding the society. For his part George Kell, Executive Head of the Global Compact, said that they welcomed the commitment of Koç Holding to the initiative.
Global Compact presentations in Turkey and Northern Cyprus
Acknowledging the role of Public Relations (PR) companies in promoting the corporate values and ethics among businesses, UNDP Turkey presented the UN Global Compact to 15 (PR) companies in İstanbul on April 20th, 2006. The seminar was organized by the Association of Communication Consultancy Companies (IDA), an umbrella organisation of PR companies. The participants were provided with general information on the UN Global Compact. UNDP İstanbul's Private Sector Project Office will have follow-up meetings with the participating PR agencies in the coming weeks.
UNDP's Private Sector Project Office in İstanbul participated in another meeting on 25 April in Northern Cyprus where the Global Compact was introduced. Minister of Economy of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Dervis Kemal Deniz delivered the opening speech at the meeting, which was held upon the invitation of UNDP Office in Cyprus. Besides representatives from the Chamber of Commerce and the Chamber of Industry, NGO members and academics also participated in the meeting.
The exhibition focused on four areas: Environment, Society, Education and Industry. The main objective of the exhibition, now in its second year, was to create public awareness on sustainable development.
Children were the major contributors of the pictures on display. Before the opening of the exhibition, the EDUCAIDE Association trained nearly 50 pupils from 17 primary schools in the Beyoğlu district on sustainable development. The children took courses on society, environment, education and industry during a two-day workshop. Then, they were provided with cameras and asked to take pictures in their everyday surroundings of related subjects concerning sustainable development. Besides these children, 34 civil society organisations from İstanbul contributed to the exhibition with photographs and statistical information related to their focus areas.
In her opening speech at the French Cultural Centre, UNDP Deputy Representative in Turkey, Sarah Poole said that UNDP supports all efforts regarding sustainable development, given the fact that sustainable development can only be achieved with the participation of all segments of the society.
Sustainable development
Sustainable Development is defined as “Meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the needs of future generations”. The present generation has the full responsibility to ensure the fair distribution of resources among generations, and eliminate the irreversible costs of environmental pollution and depletion of natural resources. Future generations should not pay the cost of damage caused by present generations.
However, in truth we are lagging behind in facing up to these challenges. In thirty years' time there will be two billion more people on the planet. Already 40% of the world population is short of clean water; given the current trends this will rise to 50% by 2030, in west Asia to 90%. One-third of the world's fish stocks and one-quarter of the world's mammals are threatened with extinction. There are already over a billion urban slum dwellers. By 2010, nearly a billion more people will be added to the world’s urban population, and the increase will continue. The World Bank recently estimated that nearly one fifth of preventable diseases in the developing countries is caused by environmental factors, such as urban air pollution and unclean water.
UNDP is seeking to establish and encourage sustainable ecological, social and economic development in these countries, through public awareness campaigns, in the light of the fact that the role of society is indispensable to sustainable development.
The UNDP has supported the publication of a "guide" which aims to help improve coordination and efficiency in policy making and implementation at the central governmental level in the new and prospective member states of the European Union.
The guide is produced under the coordination of NISPAcee, a Europe wide network of institutions and schools of public administration in Bratislava, Slovakia.
The chairman of NISPAcee says that the guide should serve directly policy advisors and academic and training institutions in the region and that the overall project results will provide useful tools for improvement of advisory capacities in the region.