Huffington Post series of opinion pieces examines NGO priorities for G8

The Huffington Post is running "a series of blogs by leading NGOs to call attention to a range of issues that should be raised at the G8 summit at Camp David in rural Maryland from May 18-19," according to the news service. The following summarizes some of the posts published this week.

• Sonia Lowman, Huffington Post Blog: Lowman, a communications officer at International Medical Corps, reports on the life-saving efforts of frontline health workers in South Sudan, where "one in every 50 live births result[s] in the death of the mother." She profiles James, a 32-year-old health worker with International Medical Corps in a remote county in South Sudan's Jonglei state, and concludes, "Although we know the critical shortage of frontline health workers in developing countries will not be at the forefront of G8 leaders' discussions when they meet at Camp David, we want to emphasize that investments in global health, and especially frontline health workers, really does make a difference" (5/15).
• Neeraj Mistry, Huffington Post Blog: "While ... the past several years have been especially important for commitments related to improving the health of the world's poor, ... we're at risk of failing the poorest nations if we don't step up our efforts to address a health concern that's connected to the success of nearly every important socio-economic development milestone" -- neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), Mistry, managing director of the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases, writes. "We have an opportunity to do something truly amazing if G8 governments honor their commitments and work to encourage other donor governments to join them in the fight to expand NTD control efforts," he concludes (5/15).
• Andrea Riccardi and Kanayo Nwanze, Huffington Post Blog: When G8 leaders meet this week at Camp David, "we hope that they will take the opportunity to address the global food security crisis which is even wider and deeper than the financial and economic crisis that has been grabbing headlines across the globe," Riccardi, minister for international cooperation and integration policies of the Italian Republic, and Nwanze, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), write. They conclude, "We have high hopes that this year's G8 meeting will lead to tangible support for smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa" (5/16).