Financial Times Reports On Oxfam’s MBA Workshops

Financial Times explores how the NGO Oxfam has started to “develop ethical trade workshops for MBA students in UK business schools, with a particular focus on overseas students” in the “hopes that by targeting the next generation of business leaders, it can influence them to make good decisions on ethical issues – from global supply chains to alleviating poverty.” The article describes how the concept of the MBA workshop originated and what MBA students can hope to take away from the lessons. “This is the first time Oxfam has worked directly on teaching inside business schools,” the Financial Times writes. “Like lots of other NGOs, we’re shifting towards working with, rather than against, the private sector since it is the private sector that creates wealth and jobs,” David McCullough, Oxfam’s trading director, said of the program. The article also includes a sidebar that adds details on several partnerships between NGOs and business schools around the world (Wylie, 1/10).

AP/Bloomberg Reports On India’s Growing Presence In Africa

Though “[t]he relations between India and Africa are centuries old. … India is now changing its relationship with Africa from the political, such as advocating an end to colonialism, to the economic. In recent years, some Indian companies have expanded their business in Africa, propelling what were once small operations into major players,” the Associated Press/Bloomberg reports, citing pharmaceuticals as one example. “[T]he bottom line,” according to the news service, “Africa represents new growth. … Along with business, India is playing a philanthropic role in Africa, while at the same time raising its profile. During a summit with African leaders in April 2008, India pledged more than $500 million in grants for development projects. It also pledged to increase by more than $2 billion its lines of credit to African countries and regional economic groups,” the news service writes (Adigun/Maliti, 1/10).

Indonesian Government Commits Funds To Improve Water, Sanitation

The Jakarta Post reports on the Indonesian government’s efforts to improve water and sanitation. “According to the Public Works Ministry, Indonesia’s rate is only 51.02 percent for adequate sanitation. About 40 million people, or 23.20 percent of the population, have no basic sanitation,” the newspaper writes. “In order to meet the MDGs target, the government is allocating Rp 7 trillion (US$777 million) for five years to provide water for regional water companies, and Rp 11.8 trillion for five years to develop water installations in rural areas,” the newspaper reports (1/8).

PRI’s The World Explores Human Trials Of Potential Malaria Vaccine Carried Out At Walter Reed

PRI’s The World reports on clinical trials of a potential malaria vaccine being conducted at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. “Right now, there is no clinically available vaccine for malaria, although there are some experimental ones in the works,” according to PRI. “If you had to do this same process out in the field … you may have to vaccinate tens of thousands of individuals and wait a year or two to determine whether your vaccine worked or not,” Col. Chris Ockenhouse, director of Walter Reed’s malaria vaccine research program explained. “Here, the research … take[s] just two weeks,” he said. The piece describes how one such trial was conducted and its outcome, tracing several volunteers in the trial (Niiler, 1/7).