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MANILA, PHILIPPINES - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting a key urban environmental initiative in Wuhan municipality in the People's Republic of China (PRC) that could be a model for sustainable management of wastewater sludge in the country.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is extending a $100 million loan for rural infrastructure improvement projects in Chongqing municipality in the People's Republic of China (PRC) that will reduce the income gap between urban and rural areas and provide a potential model for national replication.

With Nikki Haley, advancing to a Republican Party runoff in South Carolina's gubernatorial race last week, the spotlight is on the rise of Indian origin politicians in the United States. If she wins the general election in November, Nikki will be the first woman and first racial minority elected governor of South Carolina. The 38 year old Nikki is poised to join the ranks of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (39) as the second Indian-American to be a governor. Her political success is ascribed to her fight in pushing for smaller, more efficient government, and she led the fight for the accountability and transparency that was sorely lacking in the Legislature.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission visited the Republic of Uzbekistan from June 14 - 29, 2010 to hold discussions with the Uzbek authorities for the 2010 Article IV consultation. The mission was headed by Ms. Taline Koranchelian, Assistant to the Director in the Middle East and Central Asia Department; David Owen, Deputy Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department, joined the policy discussions.

New York: Haitian President René Préval has set 28 November as the date for the people of the earthquake-devastated nation to vote for his successor. The move was also welcomed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed its first review of the Democratic Republic of Congo's economic performance under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. Completion of the review enables the Democratic Republic of Congo to draw SDR 49.493 million (about US$73.20 million) immediately, bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 98.986 million (US$146.39 million).

New York: From peacekeepers in Darfur escorting women and girls to prevent “firewood rapes” to blue helmets in Kosovo setting up an emergency hotline for at-risk communities and lone women, the United Nations has launched its first compilation of the best practices of its staff to prevent, deter and respond to the use of rape as a war tactic.

Government support to Israeli farmers has fallen over recent years but a number of market distorting policies are still in place, according to a new OECD report. More efficient water resource management remains a critical challenge, the report adds.

In all OECD countries total spending on healthcare is rising faster than economic growth, pushing the average ratio of health spending to GDP from 7.8% in 2000 to 9.0% in 2008. Factors pushing health spending up - technological change, population expectations and population ageing - will continue to drive cost higher in the future.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has completed the first review of the Seychelles' economic performance under the three-year Extended Fund Facility Arrangement (EFF). The completion of the review makes available a disbursement of SDR 2.2 million (about US$3.3 million dollars), bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 5.28 million (about US$7.8 million). The Board's decision was taken on a lapse of time basis. The EFF for Seychelles became effective on December 23, 2009 in the amount of SDR 19.8 million (about US$29.3 million, or 225 percent of Seychelles' quota in the Fund.