The First Tranche

Welcome to the First Tranche, the AidData blog--a forum for analysis and discussion of information about development finance, and how it can be used to improve development practice and research. The First Tranche publishes independent views and analysis from a variety of bloggers who are interested in aid transparency, aid effectiveness, and better/more accessible aid information.
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The First Tranche | a blog by the staff of AidData

Friday, March 23, 2012


This week in aid and transparency


As proposals for the U.S. FY2013 budget roll in, the question of what will happen with foreign assistance is on the minds of many. One.org has launched a campaign to Protect Funding That Saves Lives and has created an interactive application where US taxpayers can calculate how much of their taxes went to foreign assistance based on annual income, and what that amount can do in terms of providing HIV treatment, vaccines, and bed nets. Rajiv Shah, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, testified concerning the budget and the need for development funding, while Interaction (among others) worries that cuts will be deep.

Not surprisingly, everyone was talking about water on World Water Day. This article takes a look at the WHO/UNICEF data and asks whether the goal for safe drinking water, which they recently announced has been met far ahead of time, is fair. Participate by calculating your water footprint at Waterfootprint.org. Climate change is affecting access and quality of water; read how ICT4Ds have the potential to alleviate the stress. 

After World Water Day, it’s time to look to World Tuberculosis Day, which takes place this Saturday, March 24. The World Health Organization released a report which states childhood tuberculosis has been a “hidden pandemic.” USAID hopes to fight TB with mobile phone technology, and the Sentinel Project tells moving stories of children with drug-resistant tuberculosis. Get involved by making your own poster or video.

On the subject of geocoding conflict data, Foreign Policy shares a powerful visualization of the US bombing of Cambodia. 

Finally, with the release of the Hunger Games movie tonight at midnight, based on the young adult novel by Suzanne Collins, one organization is taking advantage of the hype to spark social change. Hunger is Not a Game is a new focus for The Harry Potter Alliance’s Imagine Better organization. You can read more about this movement and how it first got started with the release of Harry Potter on the New York Times Opinionator.

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