Author: watchthedot
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“Literacy not only changes lives, it saves them” – International Literacy Day 2014
Image: SI Bonaberi-Douala’s adult literacy centre, Cameroon, PFR 34067 "Literacy not only changes lives, it saves them". That’s the simple and powerful truth at the heart of UNESCO’s rallying call for greater investment and a redoubling of efforts to bring literacy to all. Literacy is an absolute necessity for achieving basic rights and when women…
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Water is to the world what blood is to the body – NGO-UNESCO Forum on water for all (Ivory Coast)
Water project by Soroptimist International Cotonou Doyen (Benin) In this week’s SoroptiVoice blog, Marie-Christine Gries de La Barbelais, one of SI’s UN Representatives in Paris, reports from the 2nd NGO-UNESCO Forum on access to water, which took place in Ivory Coast. Our UN Reps in Paris, where UNESCO has its HQ, and members of SI…
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Soroptimists respond to Ebola outbreak – SI Freetown (Sierra Leone)
Members of SI Freetown (2012) Soroptimist International Freetown (Sierra Leone) has been working closely with local partners to respond to the Ebola outbreak, which has now killed over 1900 people in West Africa. According to the World Health Organisation, there have been 3500 confirmed or probable cases in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, leading…
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Campaigner urges continued advocacy to #BringBackOurGirls
Nigerian activist Hadiza Bala Usman has urged people around the world not to forget the schoolgirls abducted from Borno, northern Nigeria in April, who are still being held by Islamist militant group Boko Haram. In a video interview with former Soroptimist International UN Representative Yoko Komori Olson at the UN DPI/NGO conference in New York,…
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Educating to lead: Soroptimist Leadership Academy (FYR Macedonia)
28 young women took part in a Soroptimist Leadership Academy at Lake Ohrid in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in July this year. A joint project of SI Struga (FYROM) and the SI Turkish Union, this was a 10 day experience to help participants discover their leadership potential. Soroptimist International President Elect Yvonne…
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Influencing the Action Agenda for 2015 and beyond: SI at UN DPI/NGO Conference
This article was originally published on 22 August 2014 and updated on 26 August 2014 Image: Past President Alice Wells and President Ann Garvie at NGO/DPI A Soroptimist International delegation is attending the 65th Annual United Nations Conference for Non-Governmental Organizations this week to push for a Post-2015 development agenda that meets the needs of…
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Dream it, be it! Introducing SI of the Americas' new program for girls
As part of the Beijing+20 campaign to spark global dialogue and action on women’s rights and gender equality, UN Women is focussing on one critical area of concern each month. August’s focus is girls and the challenges they face in today’s world. Soroptimist International of the Americas recently launched a new Federation-wide programme to…
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UN Secretary General marks 500 days left to Millennium Development Goals deadline
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon marked 500 days of action until the deadline to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) at an event in New York this week. “Action now will save lives, build a solid foundation for sustainable development far beyond 2015 and help lay the groundwork for lasting peace and human dignity,” the Secretary-General said at a…
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International Soroptimists – SI post-holders share what they do and what inspires them
The Soroptimist International Board meeting in Kent, UK, last weekend brought together SI post-holders from around the world to take key decisions about the future of the organisation. These included Presidents, Past Presidents and Presidents Elect of the four Federations, as well as Federation Programme Directors, Committee Chairs and Members, and Federation Executives. So who…
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SI Board announces improved global coordination of Soroptimist programme work
A new body is to coordinate programme activity across the four Soroptimist International Federations to help plan SI’s worldwide approach to improving the lives of women and girls. It will take account of our increased recognition of ECOSOC status and the decentralisation of the United Nations to more regional centres. The group, with a working…