World Facing ‘Worst Refugee Crisis Since World War II’

A Conspiracy of Neglect: Global Refugee Crisis

World leaders’ neglect of refugees condemns millions to a life of misery and thousands to death, says Amnesty in a report published today.

“We are witnessing the worst refugee crisis of our era, with millions of women, men and children struggling to survive amidst brutal wars, networks of people traffickers and governments who pursue selfish political interests instead of showing basic human compassion,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General.

“The refugee crisis is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century, but the response of the international community has been a shameful failure.”

Highlights of Amnesty Report

• Worst refugee crisis since World War II.
• One million refugees desperately in need of resettlement.
• Four million Syrian refugees struggling to survive in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.
• Three million refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, and only a small fraction offered resettlement since 2013.
• 3,500 people drowned while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea in 2014— a total of at least 1,865 so far in 2015.
• 300 people died in the Andaman Sea during January to  March 2015 due to starvation, dehydration and abuse by boat crews.

The report is posted here.

65% of Africa’s Arable Land ‘Too Damaged’ for Food Production

NO ORDINARY MATTER:

Soil degradation affecting 180 million people in SSA alone

The impacts of land degradation in Africa are substantial: 65% of arable land, 30% of grazing land and 20% of forests are too damaged for food production, according to a report published by the Montpellier Panel—a group of agriculture, ecology and trade experts from Africa and Europe.

“Affecting nearly one-third of the earth’s land area, land degradation reduces the productive capacity of agricultural land by eroding topsoil and depleting nutrients resulting in enormous environmental, social and economic costs. In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) an estimated 180 million people are affected, while the economic loss due to land degradation is estimated at $68 billion per year.”

Types of soil degradation in Africa. Source: MONTPELLIER PANEL December 2014 Report.  Read more…

 Related Links

• YESTERDAY Was World Soil Day 2014 December 6, 2014