Morning Breakouts

UNICEF Publishes Vaccine Costs In Effort To Promote Price Competition

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

UNICEF for the first time on Friday published the prices it pays pharmaceutical companies for vaccines, “as the world’s biggest buyer of lifesaving immunizations aims to spark price competition in the face of rising costs,” the Associated Press/Washington Post reports (5/28).

New York Times Examines 30 Years Of AIDS

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

The New York Times looks at the evolution of the battle against AIDS since the first federal announcement of the disease 30 years ago this week.

Wall Street Journal Reports On U.N. AIDS Declaration Negotiations Prior To High Level Meeting

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

The Wall Street Journal reports on negotiations surrounding a U.N. declaration to be discussed at the High Level Meeting on AIDS scheduled for June 8-10 in New York.

Oxfam Report Warns About Steep Increases In Food Costs, Demand

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

With food costs rising for the second time in three years, Oxfam released a report on Tuesday predicting “the price of some staples such as corn will double in the next 20 years amid a permanent crisis caused by rising demand, flat crop yields and climate change,” Forbes reports (Max, 5/31).

Lax Tax Rules In Developing Countries Hinder Aid, Clinton Says

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

In a speech to the OECD last week, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said that foreign aid is undermined by lax tax enforcement systems in developing countries and their wealthy citizens who avoid paying taxes, Agence France-Presse reports.

UNAIDS Director Says Pope’s Comments On Condoms Open Dialogue For HIV Prevention

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe on Saturday “told a Vatican conference [Pope Benedict XVI] had opened the door to greater dialogue with his groundbreaking comments on condoms and HIV prevention

Advocates Express Aid Concerns After G8 Summit Ends

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

After the conclusion of the G8 summit in Deauville, France, last week, development experts expressed concern that the G8’s aid package, aimed at encouraging democracy mostly in North Africa, would result in less aid for the rest of the continent, Inter Press Service reports.

USAID Report Questions Haitian Quake Death Toll

May 31, 2011 Morning Briefing

The death toll from the January 2010 earthquake that struck Haiti was significantly lower than the toll claimed by Haitian leaders, according to the draft of a report prepared for USAID not yet publicly released, the Associated Press/Herald Sun reports.