Pakistan Islamic Republic

Election Pakistan 2008 : Fair Peaceful Transparent All Credits For President Musharraf Victory For Pakistan.

President Pervez Musharraf Monday said the winning party or a coalition would form the next government and he would work with it according to the constitution. Talking to Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who is Co-Chair of the Pakistan Caucus on the Hill, at the President’s Camp Office here he said there was no conflict in his role with the Prime Minister in accordance with the Constitution, which was based on the parliamentary system.

The President said holding of the general election have belied those who raveled in conspiracy theories and spread misperceptions.

Sheila Jackson, who is in Pakistan to observe the elections, exchanged views about the political process and the democratic elections in the country.

President Musharraf gave an overview of the developments leading up to the election and said that the government was committed to full transition to democracy and these elections were yet another evidence of the sincerity of his commitment.

He said Pakistan suffered from many misperceptions such as the doubts that were being cast over the holding of the election especially when these were briefly postponed after the tragic assassination of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.

Sheila Jackson said as member of the House she reflected feelings of her colleagues on the Hill who desired to see democratic, stable and strong Pakistan that continues to play its important role for peace and progress in the region and in the world.

They wanted to see Pakistan emerge as a role model following the elections, she added.

She recalled that she visited Pakistan earlier while accompanying former President Clinton and was impressed by the vision of the President for Pakistan.

Sheila Jackson appreciated President’s policies especially for empowerment of women and promotion of a vibrant free media with scores of private sector TV channels operating in the country.

She praised the role of Pakistan in fighting terrorism and paid tribute to the sacrifices made by the Pakistan armed forces. She affirmed that as a friend it would remain her endeavour to present an honest and correct perception of Pakistan .

ismaili.us

ismaili.us/pakistan

U.S. President George W. Bush, in a speech opening the Annapolis conference on the Middle East here on Tuesday, said Israelis and Palestinians reach an agreement to launch immediate, bilateral talks aimed at reaching a comprehensive peace deal by the end of 2008.

Reading the joint statement by the Israelis and Palestinians, President Bush said the two sides agree "to engage in vigorous, ongoing and continuous negotiations and shall make every effort to conclude an agreement before the end of 2008."

President Bush Tuesday launched his biggest initiative for Middle East peace, brushing aside skeptics by insisting the time is right for Israelis and Palestinians to end their six-decade conflict. He also dismissed suggestion that this is not the right time to re-launch the Middle East talks.

"I believe that now is precisely the right time to begin these negotiations," he said.

"The task begun here at Annapolis will be difficult. This is the beginning of the process, not the end of it, and much work remains to be done," the President added.

President Bush urged Israel and Palestine to fulfill their commitment under the "Roadmap" plan drafted by the Quartet, or the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and Russia, in 2003.

The U.S. leader has held summit talks with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, insisting that the time is right for the two sides to end the decades long conflict. For the Palestinian leaders, they "will create opportunity for all its citizens and govern justly and dismantle the infrastructure of terror," President Bush said, adding that Israeli leaders must "show the world that they are ready to begin to bring an end to the occupation that began in 1967, through a negotiated settlement."


"Israel must demonstrate its support for the creation of a prosperous and successful Palestinian state by removing unauthorized outposts, ending settlement expansion, and finding other ways for the Palestinian Authority to exercise it's responsibilities without compromising Israel's security," President Bush said.

For the United States, "America will do everything in our power to support their quest for peace, but we cannot achieve it for them. The success of these efforts will require that all parties show patience and flexibility and meet their responsibilities," the President said.

Reading the joint statement by the Israelis and Palestinians, President Bush said the two sides agree "to engage in vigorous, ongoing and continuous negotiations and shall make every effort to conclude an agreement before the end of 2008."

U.S. President George W. Bush Tuesday launched his biggest initiative for Middle East peace, brushing aside skeptics by insisting the time is right for Israelis and Palestinians to end their six-decade conflict. President Bush also dismissed suggestion that this is not the right time to re-launch the Middle East talks.

"I believe that now is precisely the right time to begin these negotiations," the President said.

"The task begun here at Annapolis will be difficult. This is the beginning of the process, not the end of it, and much work remains to be done," he added.

The President urged Israel and Palestine to fulfill their commitment under the "Roadmap" plan drafted by the Quartet, or the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and Russia, in 2003.

The U.S. leader has held summit talks with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, insisting that the time is right for the two sides to end their decades-long conflict. For the Palestinian leaders, they "will create opportunity for all its citizens and govern justly and dismantle the infrastructure of terror," President Bush said, adding that Israeli leaders must "show the world that they are ready to begin to bring an end to the occupation that began in 1967, through a negotiated settlement."

"Israel must demonstrate its support for the creation of a prosperous and successful Palestinian state by removing unauthorized outposts, ending settlement expansion, and finding other ways for the Palestinian Authority to exercise it's responsibilities without compromising Israel's security," he said.

For the United States, "America will do everything in our power to support their quest for peace, but we cannot achieve it for them. The success of these efforts will require that all parties show patience and flexibility and meet their responsibilities," the President said.

Nearly 50 countries and international organizations attended the Annapolis conference, the first such conference since the Bush administration took office in seven years.

Posted by: Ismaili.US, Fatimid Heritage Foundation

Labels: Aga Khan Fatimid Imam Caliph, Ehud Olmert, Fatimid Heritage Foundation, Fatimid Imamat Caliphate, Geneva Peace, Ismaili.US, Israel, Mahmud Abbas, Palestine, President Bush

Discours par Son Altesse l'Aga Khan lors du diner d'état à Madagascar,
le 27 novembre 2007



Monsieur le Premier Ministre,
Monsieur le Président de l’Assemblée Nationale
Messieurs les Ministres,
Excellences,
Mesdames et Messieurs,


Je tenais tout d’abord, particulièrement à vous remercier pour l’invitation que vous m’avez adressée au nom du Président de la République et du Gouvernement malgache, ainsi que pour l’accueil chaleureux et l’hospitalité si caractéristiques du peuple malgache, que vous m’avez réservés. Cela me va droit au coeur. Je voudrais également vous dire combien vos mots me flattent et m’honorent, tout autant qu’ils honorent ma communauté.

C’est en 1956, il y a 50 ans, que pour la première fois, j’ai mis les pieds sur le sol Malgache. Parmi les visites effectuées depuis, celle-ci revêt un caractère particulier et symbolique pour moi et ma communauté. Je célèbre, en effet, l’année de mon Jubilée d’Or et je vous remercie de vos félicitations à cette occasion en visitant tous les pays chers à mon cœur, et ayant une signification particulière pour les Ismailis et moi-même.

La communauté ismailie, implantée à Madagascar depuis une centaine d’années, s’est fortement impliquée dans la vie économique et sociale du pays et s’est fondue dans le tissu national, pour devenir l’une des nombreuses cultures et traditions qui font la richesse du pays. Les Ismailis sont établis dans près de trente-cinq pays à travers le monde et représentent un pluralisme culturel et linguistique considérable.

L’éthique de l’Islam établit un lien indissociable entre la vie spirituelle et la vie matérielle, Din et Dunya. En conséquence, mes responsabilités de chef spirituel et d’interprète de la foi vont-elles de pair avec un profond engagement en faveur de l’amélioration de la qualité de la vie. Cette action ne se limite pas à la communauté ismailie, elle s’étend à tous ceux qui partagent leur vie, que ce soit à l’échelle locale, nationale ou internationale.

Notre devoir est de chercher à libérer les hommes de la pauvreté. Et pour moi, pauvreté signifie être sans abri, sans protection, sans accès à la médecine, à l’éducation, au crédit, et sans espoir d’autonomie face à son destin. Cela veut dire la condamnation de ses enfants et petits-enfants à des conditions de vie inacceptables.

Une démarche volontariste et novatrice doit être entreprise dans la perspective de casser cette chaîne de désespoir et d’emprisonnement total.

C’est pourquoi, en tant qu’Imam des Ismailis, j’ai considéré qu’il était de mon devoir de relever les défis auxquels ces populations sont confrontées aujourd’hui. J’ai choisi de m’engager dans des projets de développement dans tous ces domaines, par l’intermédiaire d’un groupe d’agences privées connues sous le nom du Réseau Aga Khan de Développement (AKDN), un réseau multisectoriel ayant pour but de combattre la pauvreté, au service de tous, sans distinction de religion ni d’origine.

En mai 2005, avec le soutien du gouvernement de Madagascar et des Ministres ici présents, nous avons identifié la région de Sofia afin d’y établir un programme de développement rural et Monsieur le Premier Ministre vous avez bien voulu vous y référer. Ce programme, utilisant des méthodes novatrices, notamment dans la formation des paysans, a permis de doubler le rendement à l’hectare de la production rizicole et bénéficie d’ores et déjà à près de 10.000 agriculteurs participants.

En s’appuyant sur un savoir-faire acquis dans plus de 12 pays d’Afrique et d’Asie, nous avons également introduit en 2006 à Madagascar une agence de microfinance, la P.A.M.F. qui compte, à ce jour, sept filiales en zone rurale et urbaine et près de 3000 clients.

Parmi d’autres initiatives, le Fonds Aga Khan pour le Développement Economique (AKFED), encourage le progrès économique des pays en développement ou en reconstruction post-conflit. L’AKFED intervient dans des domaines où les retours sur les investissements sont longs et incertains, et où nombre d’investisseurs privés considèrent qu’il est risqué d’investir. Les profits générés par AKFED sont réinvestis dans des projets dans des pays, en insuffisance d’investissement étranger afin de consolider leur économie nationale. Nous avons ainsi récemment lancé des projets dans les domaines de l’énergie auxquels vous avez fait référence (avec l’inauguration il y a quelques mois d’une nouvelle centrale hydroélectrique à Bujagali en Ouganda), des télécommunications (en Afghanistan) ou du tourisme (notamment en Afrique de l’Est), où l’initiative privée se met au service des priorités nationales.

L’importance capitale que le « Madagascar Action Plan » (MAP) accorde à l’éducation a particulièrement retenu notre attention car il concourt avec l’approche de notre Réseau.

L’objectif est de stopper la fuite des cerveaux, véritable fléau des pays en voie de développement, en proposant des universités aux standards internationaux dans des campus régionaux tels que celui que je viens juste d’annoncer à Arusha qui pourrait à terme servir tous les pays de l’Afrique de l’Est et de l’Océan indien. De telles institutions permettront, je l’espère, de rompre la dépendance du Sud par rapport au Nord et de former le leadership de demain. L’amélioration des institutions d’enseignement primaire et secondaire d’excellence, avec un curriculum international et multilingue, permettra aux élèves d’accéder à ces universités ainsi qu’aux meilleures institutions dans le monde. De plus, un Centre de Développement Professionnel soutiendra l’amélioration de la compétence des enseignants, et l’introduction de méthodes d’enseignement innovantes.

Madagascar, en ayant identifié les défis auxquels sa population fait face, a clairement défini sa feuille de route. Et c’est en partageant de manière idoine avec le Réseau Aga Khan de Développement sa vision du futur, que nous pouvons dorénavant avancer main dans la main pour les générations à venir.

Merci.

Did you know...
You can access current weather conditions, local forecasts, the previous day's conditions and weather warnings in real-time via your wireless device? Access the Wireless Portal through your Web-enabled mobile device at wap.gc.ca or www.gc.ca - It's easy, it's fast, it's mobile.

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The Wireless Portal is designed to complement the existing service channels, through which you can obtain Government of Canada information. This means that the information accessible through the Wireless Portal is already available on the Canada Site, through 1 800 O-Canada or at Service Canada Access Centres.

The Wireless Portal is your quick and easy single point of access to selected government information and services on the go!

To access government information and services, point your mobile Web-enabled device (Web-enabled cell phone, PDA) to: wap.gc.ca or www.gc.ca

How to Use the Government of Canada Wireless Portal
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Anwar Merchant is a Government of Canada On-Line Research Panel member.

Fatimid Heritage Foundation invites to join for a Development Gateway co-sponsored Global Dialogue on Mobile Government: The New Frontier in Transforming Public Services. The event will take place 08.30 - 11:00 am ET on November 29, 2007 in Washington D. C. and in Delhi; you can also join via live webcast and online discussion forum, or via videoconference from one of several other participating cities. The event is co-sponsored by the World Bank, the Development Gateway Foundation, e-GovWorld, e-Gov Monitor, and IIS-Russia.

Mobile services are quickly emerging as the new frontier for transforming government towards citizen-centricity and one-stop multi-channel delivery. They extend the benefits of remote delivery of government services and information to those who are unable or unwilling to access public services through the Internet or simply prefer to use mobile devices. In theory, many government services can now be made available on a 24x7x365 basis in any place covered by mobile networks, which today means almost everywhere.

According to an estimate by R. Chandrashekar, Additional Secretary (e-Gov), Government of India, (keynote speaker at this seminar), up to 50-60% of government services in India can be delivered via mobile channels. This emerging trend in public service delivery has often been called "Mobile Government" (M-Government) and is part of a broader phenomenon of mobile-enabled development (m-development), which leverages the mobile revolution to enable development impact. The organizers hope to address the following questions at the Global Dialogue on Mobile Government:

+ According to the ITU, the total number of mobile users worldwide as of late 2006 was about 2.7 billion and the number of internet users was just above 1.1 billion. Does this provide a strong case for leveraging mobile channels to dramatically improve access to public services to those who can afford to use a personal or shared mobile phone (e.g. as in Village Phone programs)? Does this create an opportunity to connect in the near future the next two billion people to the benefits of e-government, e-health, e-education, e-banking and e-commerce?
+ How exactly can Mobile Government transform the lives of common people in developing and transition countries? What are the best examples of such impact? + What are the types of services that can be easily provided on mobile phones/devices ("quick wins") and what are the more strategic high-impact services ("killer applications")?
+ What are the key constraints to making this vision a reality? What are the critical success factors and lessons learned?
+ Should government agencies and the development community take this opportunity to drastically improve access to information and services? How should governments and donors change the way they do business to take full advantage of mobile technologies?
+ What is the role of the private sector? Are there successful business models (e.g. PPP) for private sector companies to support value-added m-government services?

This Global Dialogue seminar is organized as an integral part of the eGovWorld 2007 Conference taking place in New Delhi on Nov. 29-30, 2007 (www.egovworld.org) and will connect a large and high profile audience in India with experts and e-government champions in other countries for sharing ideas on how to take public services transformation to the next level with the help of mobile technologies.

More information about this event is available at http://go.worldbank.org/RLCVF90NB0.
JOIN LIVE WEBCAST:

The Webcast links are at: http://www.worldbank.org/edevelopment/live (registration is not required but is recommended). If you would like to send in advance questions for speakers, or if you have any questions on how to access the webcast and e-discussion, please email edevelopment@worldbank.org.
JOIN DISCUSSION FORUM:

Fatimid Heritage Foundation strongly encourages you to post your views on the discussion forum created for this event to promote the good image of your respective counties, at:
http://topics.developmentgateway.org/egovernment/discussi...

P.S. Feel free to forward this invitation to all who may be interested!

His Highness Aga Khan, the Fatimid Imam Caliph of the Ismaili Muslims, yesterday praised Mozambique as a model of successful post-conflict development and hailed the country’s economic performance and tenacity in overcoming difficulties.

“In an era when frustration often breeds cynicism concerning the possibility of progress, Mozambique can provide inspiration and encouragement to other post-conflict societies,” he said.

The Aga Khan, who is chairman and founder of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) with projects throughout Africa, noted that Mozambique's economic growth was one of the best in Africa despite continued problems. “The problems of poverty, disease and, illiteracy here are still enormous. But your recent progress has been built on sound principles – and for that reason, Mozambique has become a valuable model for the whole of the developing world,” he said.

The Aga Khan made the remarks at an official banquet in Maputo, held in his honour by Mozambique's President, His Excellency Armando Guebuza, who invited him to the country. Mozambique was the first leg of the Aga Khan’s 9-day tour of Southern Africa that also includes Madagascar. The visit is the Aga Khan’s second to Africa since July 11, which marked the start of his year-long Golden Jubilee celebrations.

In his address, the Aga Khan said that Africa has been one of his central preoccupations during his 50-year Imamat, because of the century and a half of history of the Ismaili people in the continent and the independence movement of many African nations as they “began their journey toward stability and progress as self-governing countries.” The Aga Khan said he was proud to participate in the “great, continuing story of Mozambican progress.”

The Aga Khan announced that AKDN will expand its involvement in Mozambique to establish a garment factory, as well as the country’s first microfinance bank. He also said the people of Mozambique will benefit from the construction of a new undersea high-speed fibre optic cable that will link Southern and Eastern Africa with Mumbai in India and Marseille in France – a project co-financed by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) – the network’s economic development arm. The cable will also serve Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar and Rwanda.

The Ismaili leader said he saw great potential in Mozambique as a tourist destination and announced more investments in that sector.

As he arrived at Maputo International Airport earlier in the day, the Aga Khan was greeted by Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Alcinda Abreau, and a cheering crowd of local and visiting Ismaili community members, as well as troupes of traditional singers and dancers.

Today, the Aga Khan also met with Mr Eduardo Mulembwe, the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Mozambique, after hosting a luncheon in honour of Mozambique’s President Guebuza. On Friday the Aga Khan visited field projects in Mozambique’s north-eastern Pemba region before departing for Madagascar.

In Pemba's Cabo Delgado region, the Aga Khan Development Network is involved in rural support projects designed to reduce poverty in the remote areas of the country. The programme covers 146 villages and benefits 21,000 households.

The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands in partnership with The White House Project, the Council of Women World Leaders and the Women Leaders Intercultural Forum launched the International Women Leaders Global Security Initiative in October 2006. This initiative, which will run through June 2008, aims to bring the perspectives and voices of global women leaders to the international discourse on security. As part of the initiative, the International Women Leaders Global Security Summit was held November 15-17, 2007 in New York City, New York.

The White House Project facilitated the largest gathering of women world leaders addressing issues of global security ever held in the United States. This truly significant initiative brought together current and former women heads of state and government and more than 70 other high-level women leaders from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, Europe and North America.

Empowering women is the condition for building peaceful, prosperous, societies said Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro at the New York Summit. Giving her remarks she said:


"I am honoured to be with you for this important gathering of singularly accomplished women. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to help frame the connection between women and global security.

The United Nations community is coming to understand this connection more and more profoundly. We know that achieving gender equality and empowering women is not only a goal in itself. It is also a condition for building healthier, better educated, more peaceful and more prosperous societies.

Study after study has shown us that, when women are fully empowered and engaged, all of society benefits. Only in this way can we successfully take on the enormous challenges confronting our world -- from conflict resolution and peacebuilding to fighting AIDS and reaching all the other Millennium Development Goals.

At the 2005 World Summit held at the United Nations, leaders declared that gender equality and human rights for all are essential to advancing development, peace and security.
Five years before that, the Security Council adopted resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.

The resolution was a landmark on many fronts. It highlighted the increasing, disproportionate and unconscionable toll that modern conflict is taking on women and girls. It called for special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence during conflict. It underlined the responsibility of all States to put an end to impunity and to prosecute those responsible for war crimes relating to violence against women and girls. And it emphasized the importance of women’s full and equal participation in all efforts for peace and security -- before, during and after conflict.

We have made some progress in translating those principles into action -- both in conflict-affected societies and in the international community.

More and more, women participate in mediating and negotiating peace, in searching for justice, in fostering reconciliation, in supporting disarmament and demobilization, and in shaping development policies and rebuilding institutions.

More and more, the Security Council ensures that peace processes empower women and advance gender equality.

More and more, United Nations entities work closely and actively with Governments and women’s organizations, including through the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan on implementation of resolution 1325.

But there is much more to do. On the implementation of resolution 1325, more countries in conflict or post-conflict need to establish their own national action plans. We in the United Nations system need to work better with Governments to establish truly joint programmes, driven by national priorities. We need to work better as a team, so as to give countries access to a common entry point. And we need to appoint more women in leadership positions, at Headquarters and in our peace operations around the world.

More generally, while we have in place global goals and commitments on women’s empowerment, we still have far to go in implementing them fully -- from school enrolment to women’s economic independence and representation in decision-making bodies.

In almost all countries, women continue to be underrepresented in decision-making positions. Women’s work continues to be undervalued, underpaid, or not paid at all. Out of more than 100 million children who are not in school, the majority are girls. Out of more than 800 million adults who cannot read, the majority are women. And violence against women and girls continues unabated in every continent, country and culture.

Changing all this requires all of us -- women and men -- to work for enduring change in values and attitudes. It means working in partnership -- Governments, international organizations, civil society and the private sector. It means men assuming their responsibility. It means ensuring that women and girls enjoy their full rights, and take up their rightful place in society.
It means moving forward on several fronts at once:
-- Ensuring that men take on a greater role in household and family care;
-- Challenging traditions and customs, stereotypes and harmful practices, that stand in the way of women and girls;
-- Ensuring that women have access to education and health care, property and land;
-- Investing in infrastructure to make it easier for women and girls to go about the daily business of obtaining safe drinking water and food;
-- Integrating gender issues into the follow-up to United Nations resolutions and decisions -- including the work of recently established bodies such as the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council.

Violence against women has reached hideous and pandemic proportions in some societies attempting to recover from conflict. Together, all of us need to strengthen our collective and individual response to it. This is essential if we are to reverse the damage done by conflict, and build more inclusive, accountable and cohesive societies, underpinned by viable democratic institutions.

Earlier this year, the Secretary-General urged the Security Council to establish a mechanism dedicated to monitoring violence against women and girls, within the framework of resolution 1325.

The Secretary-General has also encouraged Member States to actively consider proposals to strengthen the United Nations gender architecture, as presented by the High-Level Panel on United Nations System-Wide Coherence.

The Secretary-General and I believe we could significantly advance our cause by replacing several current structures with one dynamic United Nations entity. Such a new body should be able to call on all of the United Nations system’s resources in the work to empower women and realize gender equality worldwide. It should mobilize forces of change at the global level, and inspire enhanced results at the country level.

And it should have mechanisms for drawing on the expertise and experience of women leaders such as all of you. You have so much to contribute –- in leading by example, in raising awareness, in identifying women candidates for leadership positions and in helping us to be bold in our thinking. With your resources, your vision and your wisdom, you are all wonderfully placed to give life to the theme of this Summit -- enhancing the effectiveness of women’s leadership on global security.

I thank every one of you for your commitment, and I look forward to working in partnership with you in the years ahead."

For more information visit

WomenandGlobalSecurity.org http://www.thewhitehouseproject.org/


Anwar Merchant is a Government of Canada On-Line Research Panel member.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced his mounting concern today at the trail of devastation and increasing death toll left by Cyclone Sidr after it tore into Bangladesh and he stressed that the United Nations stands ready to do all it can to help in the relief effort.

More than 2,000 people have been reported killed as a result of Cyclone Sidr, which struck the southwest coast of Bangladesh late on Thursday local time, bringing winds of more than 240 kilometres per hour and a water surge that created waves up to five metres high. The death toll is expected to climb further.

Thousands of homes have been damaged or destroyed, large tracts of cropland have been wiped and hundreds of thousands of people have had to evacuate their home villages and towns and now depend on aid for basic necessities.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson, Mr. Ban expressed “his profound condolences to the people and Government of Bangladesh for the many deaths and the destruction involved, and the full solidarity of the UN system at this time of crisis.”

The statement noted that UN humanitarian agencies on the ground in Bangladesh are already responding to the basic needs of some of the hundreds of thousands of people estimated to have been affected, while UN assessment teams are also ready to be deployed.

On Friday, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes said the UN would make available several millions of dollars from its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which was established to expedite aid operations following disasters.

As California continues to recover from last month’s devastating Southern California fires, the Department of General Services (DGS) is committed to continuing to do everything as the State’s business manager to help support the ongoing recovery effort. Following the devastation last month, Governor Schwarzenegger ordered all State agencies to move quickly to ensure fire commanders, emergency managers, local government officials and ultimately the general public got the help and resources they needed to respond to and recover from these devastating wildfires.

Over the past several weeks, DGS staff has been moving to secure cleanup contracts, line-up commercial space for recovery operations, and ensure that critical communications sites across the State were restored following the fires. With 4,000 staff statewide and responsibilities over managing real estate, funding school construction, purchasing and contracting, and emergency telecommunications, DGS has been uniquely positioned to help local government officials, as well as the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES), and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) get the resources they need to keep the recovery process moving forward. The other day, DGS secured contracts with nearly 90 companies that can provide help in cleaning up debris from the fires and putting erosion control measures in place across the burned-out landscape. DGS has also identified portable classrooms that school districts can use if necessary and secured 60,000 square feet of space for FEMA to warehouse donated goods. At the height of the fire siege, DGS’ Telecommunications staff was deployed to numerous fire scenes to repair critical emergency radio sites that had been damaged. Moving forward, DGS is continuing to work closely with OES to meet any ongoing business needs that are identified and appreciates the opportunity to help California recover and rebuild.


Learn more about DGS at http://www.dgs.ca.gov/.

The fall of the Soviet Union brought with it both the withdrawal of much-needed resources invested in education in Central Asia, and new opportunities to create innovative institutions that could respond to the needs of communities in the region.
In 1994, President Rakhmonov of Tajikistan and His Highness the Aga Khan conceived the idea of a new university designed to address the unique educational, economic and cultural needs of mountain communities. In December 1995, an international Commission was established to study the idea and come up with relevant recommendations. The Commission on the Establishment of an International Institution of Higher Education was made up of fourteen distinguished academics, advocates and programme administrators from around the region and the world. It was supported by an additional nineteen experts who made up various sub-committees to study curricula, planning, finances, facilities development and recruitment. The Commission and its Sub-Committees met thirteen times over eighteen months, made frequent visits to the region and commissioned or received 78 papers. In 1998, the Commission endorsed the idea of a regional university to promote sustainable economic and social development within mountain communities. It included the recommendation that three main academic programmes be developed - continuing education, undergraduate and graduate programmes - and also included several recommendations regarding teaching and learning approaches, facilities and technology and student and faculty recruitment. These recommendations created the foundation for the planning of UCA. UCA is CreatedUCA was founded in 2000 by the governments of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan, and His Highness the Aga Khan. It is the world’s first internationally chartered institution of higher education. The International Treaty and Charter establishing this secular and private University was signed by His Highness the Aga Khan and the Presidents of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan, ratified by the respective parliaments and registered with the United Nations. The Presidents are the Patrons and His Highness the Aga Khan is the Founding Patron and Chancellor of UCA. UCA is a private, independent, self-governing institution which will be governed by an independent Board of Trustees and led by a Rector. It will have three campuses of equal size and stature in each of the founding countries. Currently, the Director General of UCA is in charge of operations and planning at the Central Administration office in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic.VisionUCA was created to offer an internationally recognized standard of higher education in Central Asia and create knowledgeable, skilled and creative graduates who will contribute leadership, ideas and innovations to the transitioning economies and communities of the region.Mission & ObjectivesThe mission of UCA is to promote the socio-economic development of Central Asia’s mountain societies, while at the same time helping the diverse peoples of the region to preserve and draw upon their rich cultural traditions and heritages as assets for the future. How? Click here !

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