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 At least 100 homes in Lata have been completely destroyed by a one meter sea surge following today's 8.0 earthquake, according to Christian humanitarian organization World Vision. Water and electricity remain down as well. Government officials have confirmed four deaths in the islands, and there are unconfirmed reports that some people and fishing boats may have been swept out to sea by the surge. Lata is a township in the Solomon Islands' Temoto Province that was hardest-hit by Wednesday's quake.  

G20 leaders meeting in St. Petersburg in September must take bold steps to improve the lives of the most vulnerable populations, remove impediments for economic growth and encourage good governance and transparency. This policy paper, by the U.S. G8/G20 Advocacy Alliance with 50 non-governmental organizations, trade unions and think tanks, makes recommendations on key issues. The United States needs to play a leading role in encouraging the G20 to take the following steps:G20 AccountabilityUse the Los Cabos Accountability Assessment Framework to establish clear processes for who can contribute to the accountability process and how.Publish in advance the terms of reference and member information for working groups and review mechanisms.Establish clear rules requiring all G20 working groups and peer review mechanisms to seek substantial input from civil society, the private sector and affected communities.Anti-corruption and TransparencyImplement and effectively enforce international anti-corruption conventions, including the UN Convention Against Corruption and the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.Implement effective anti-money laundering actions and continue to support asset recovery initiatives. Promote integrity, transparency, accountability and prevention of corruption in the public sector.Energy SustainabilityEnsure the G20 includes language in the leaders’ communiqué that:Advances the implementation of commitments to cut fossil fuel subsidies.Establishes the goal of transitioning the global economy to renewable energy.Calls for revenue-raising mechanisms with revenues used for international climate and development finance.Financial InclusionEnsure that national financial inclusion targets set by policymakers address a full range of financial services and include marginalized groups.Implement standards for financial client protection in every country by 2020. Develop and implement indicators to measure financial capability at a national level.Food Security and NutritionCommit to ensuring that efforts to fight hunger and sustainably increase agricultural productivity benefit smallholder farmers and integrate nutrition objectives.Endorse the World Health Assembly’s global goal to prevent 70 million children under age 5 from stunting by 2025.Limit food price volatility by regulating commodity derivatives markets and ending incentives for unsustainable industrial biofuels production.Jobs and EmploymentAdvance job creation, retrain long-term unemployed, and encourage formal sector employment through better education and skill development by following through on commitments made in the Los Cabos Growth and Jobs Action Plan.Stimulate youth employment by supporting quality apprenticeships, internships, and job training programs as committed to in the 2012 G20 Employment Task Force recommendations.Commit to raising the funds necessary to support these programs and create decent work by halting illegal financial flows, closing tax havens and instituting additional financial transaction taxes.Post 2015 Development AgendaCore principles for a post-2015 framework and priority actions by the G20 should include:Take stock of evidence on inequalities and agree upon a set of recommended targets.Recommend indicators for the post-2015 framework that lead to inclusive economic growth.Endorse a bottom-up process for development of the post-2015 framework.

This article on Humanitarian Exchange Magazine article on civil-military relations was written by two InterAction Humanitarian Policy and Practice staff: Jenny McAvoy,  Director of Practice, and Joel Charny, VP for Humanitarian Policy and Practice. This article on Humanitarian Exchange Magazine article on civil-military relations was written by two InterAction Humanitarian Policy and Practice staff: Jenny McAvoy,  Director of Practice, and Joel Charny, VP for Humanitarian Policy and Practice. This article on Humanitarian Exchange Magazine article on civil-military relations was written by two InterAction Humanitarian Policy and Practice staff: Jenny McAvoy,  Director of Practice, and Joel Charny, VP for Humanitarian Policy and Practice. This article on Humanitarian Exchange Magazine article on civil-military relations was written by two InterAction Humanitarian Policy and Practice staff: Jenny McAvoy,  Director of Practice, and Joel Charny, VP for Humanitarian Policy and Practice. This article on Humanitarian Exchange Magazine article on civil-military relations was written by two InterAction Humanitarian Policy and Practice staff: Jenny McAvoy,  Director of Practice, and Joel Charny, VP for Humanitarian Policy and Practice.