On the Web United Nations U.S. State Dept. NATO World Health Org.
Poverty is in.
At least, poverty and the killer diseases that come with it are very much on people's minds. Mark Malloch Brown, who has been the administrator of the U.N. Development Program since Secretary General Kofi Annan plucked him from the World Bank a year ago, was back in Washington this week to nudge Congress on U.S. contributions, which he said are diminishing compared with those of the rest of the world. France, Italy and Ireland increased their donations last year by more than 20 percent each, he added. Malloch Brown, whose skills as a publicist and administrator have stood him in good stead, is remolding the program's priorities and strategies to embrace long-term goals of good governance and human rights work. Donor fatigue notwithstanding, Malloch Brown envisions an elaborate consulting role by helping countries with national development reports and plans for poverty reduction.