Acting on a Bangladesh proposal made from the chair of the LDC Ministers’ Conference on the sidelines of UNCTAD XII, held in Ghana, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on 29 April that he would lead a task force to address the current global food crisis.

• What Do NGOs Do?
• Conceptualizing Civil Society
• NGO Law and Governance: A Resource Book
• Human Rights Watch 2008
• Freedom of the Press Worldwide in 2008
• Global Integrity Report 2007
• Gender Equality, the New Aid Environment and Civil Society Organizations

Global Monitoring Report 2008 is the fifth edition of this annual series. The report’s assessment of MDGs at midpoint presents a mixed picture, one of both significant progress and formidable challenges. The first MDG, reducing extreme poverty by half, is likely to be met at the global level, thanks to a remarkable surge in global economic growth over the past decade. But, on current trends, the human development MDGs are unlikely to be met. Prospects are gravest for the goals of reducing child and maternal mortality, but shortfalls are also likely in the primary school completion.

On 25 April 2008 at the close of UNCTAD XII, the 193 Member States of UNCTAD adopted by consensus a short ministerial declaration entitled the Accra Declaration together with a more detailed analysis of the challenges and opportunities of globalization for development and a new work plan for UNCTAD called the Accra Accord.

In October 2007, we advertised an ICNL-Cordaid prize competition to encourage scholarship on the legal and political environment for civil society, with a focus on civil liberties. ICNL and Cordaid have announced the award-winning manuscripts, and we are pleased to share the list with you.

By Celine Tan (TWN)—The Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness may have the effect of circumscribing national sovereignty and country autonomy over development policies contrary to its stated principles of country ownership and mutual accountability, research has shown.