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Excellent - provide some comments about the items.

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Excellent - provide some comments about the items.

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1. Three things which I learned today are what NGOs support Burkina Faso and that Australia doesn't provide aid to them, that ODA provided 14.5% of Burkina Faso's GDP in 2009, and that there is discussion about a move from international development to global development.

2. Today's learning was helpful for my learning, because I became more aware about the future of development and I learned that NGOs are different to foreign/international aid, which has helped me to develop my understanding about different types of aid. I got a bit confused between humanitarian aid (NGOs) and international/foreign aid, the difference between these two could have been discussed. However, my confusion was due to my misunderstanding, so this may not be needed for everyone or need to be discussed.

3. I'm still a bit unsure about how foreign/international aid supports development in Burkina Faso because I focused on NGOs, which is part of humanitarian aid instead, when researching for my part in the group task. The discussion after I completed my section helped me to understand how foreign/international aid supports development a bit more, but I still don't feel entirely confident about it.

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1. I learnt what a spillover effect is, what Burkina Faso is doing to achieve the SDGs although it may be minimal, and that Australia isn't doing as well as I thought regarding the SDGs.

2. Yes it was useful, because I learnt more about SDGs and I gained a better understanding of how they are progressing/being achieved in Australia and Burkina Faso.

3. Something which is still a bit unclear for me is specific examples of how Burkina Faso is achieving the SDGs. Although we found information sharing what Burkina Faso is targeting and that NGOs support them in achieving the SDGs, we couldn't find anything more specific about what exactly they are doing to achieve the goals specifically in Burkina Faso.

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Week 9 - Environment and Development (SDGs) (Questions)

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Week 9 - Environment and Development (SDGs) (Questions)

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1. What are the links between environment and development?

2. What role does poverty and inequality play for achieving SDGs?

3. What are the SDGs and what is your view on their role and potential effectiveness? - with a focus on 'your' country

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Week 9 - Environment and Development (SDGs) (Responses)

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Week 9 - Environment and Development (SDGs) (Responses)

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1. The environment and development are strongly linked and reliant upon each other. Development and increased demands for resources has caused natural resource exploitation, causing environmental degradation and deterioration. This decreases agricultural productivity, contributing to food insecurity and restricting economic development. Development, including goods production, causes environmental crises and pollution, damaging and depleting natural resources and creating issues regarding increasing resource demands. Environmental crises can increase poverty levels, destroy livelihoods, and increase state fragility, threatening development. Climate change is the biggest environment-development challenge and is caused by exceeding planetary boundaries, significant ecological footprints and Anthropocene, threatening biodiversity, food security and development.

2. Poverty poses significant challenges when achieving SDGs. Poverty can detrimentally impact the environment, a major aspect of SDGs, as many poor people’s livelihoods depend upon agriculture and many must deplete resources just to survive. Poverty limits state’s abilities to achieve SDGs, as poverty increases vulnerability to disasters, conflict, and restricted development. Since gender impacts all SDGs, gender inequalities create significant challenges, as discrimination eradicates dignity, and basic rights and opportunities of girls and women. Inequalities to food and water access threatens achievement of SDGs, particularly in poor countries. Poverty and environmental, gender and resource inequalities often are detrimental to achieving SDGs. Therefore, environmental and international justice, universal social protection systems, food and water security, and gender equality are vital.

3. SDGs are 17 inter-linked and non-binding objectives, applicable to all countries, with 169 targets and have the purpose of establishing global peace, wealth and development by 2030. SDGs integrate the three pillars of sustainable development, involves intergenerational/intragenerational equity, focuses on stronger international cooperation, and stronger and transformational governance. The SDGs are not country-specific, so particular goals/targets may be less achievable for some, including Burkina Faso which faces challenges including political instability, low education and conflict. Although achieving SDGs in Burkina Faso may seem unrealistic, they could become progressively more effective through appropriate and relevant actions and choices. I think SDGs could be achieved, but potentially not by 2030.

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Week 5 - Globalisation and Development (Questions)

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Week 5 - Globalisation and Development (Questions)

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1. How are globalisation and international development linked?

2. Is globalisation overall a positive or negative process for overcoming international inequalities and global poverty? What is your view?

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Week 7 - Security, Conflict and Development (Questions)

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Week 7 - Security, Conflict and Development (Questions)

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1. What is the link between security, conflict and development?

2. What is needed to avoid/overcome insecurity and conflict?

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Tutorial 8: Culture and Development and Gender

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Tutorial 8: Culture and Development and Gender

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I didn't attend the tutorial this week or contribute to the group Padlet, so this reflection is based on what I gained from the lectures and readings

1. Today I learnt about what gender mainstreaming means as it was a term I hadn't heard before, I gained a better understanding of how culture impacts/is impacted by development, such as economic, human, global and community development, and I understood the meaning of a 'gendered approach', as my previous understanding of this term was not very deep.

2. Today's learning was useful for my learning, as I gained a deeper understanding and awareness of gender and the issues associated, particularly in developing nations. It has also taught me to be more analytic and consider the root causes of issues and how issues can be targeted, as the lectures and readings discussed that gender and culture are both integral aspects of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. I had not considered this previously, but after hearing and reading about these ideas, it helped me to realise to a greater extent how many aspects influence not only the SDGs, but also any goal or area in life.

3. Something which I'm still a bit unsure about is appropriate strategies which could be integrated to address gender, development and culture, particularly those which we could apply ourselves here in Australia. However, some were covered which has still given me a better awareness and understanding.

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Burkina Faso bans more media over coverage of alleged massacre

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Burkina Faso bans more media over coverage of alleged massacre

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Authorities in Burkina Faso have suspended further foreign media over their reporting of an alleged massacre of hundreds of civilians by the Burkinabe army.

The decision was announced in a statement over the weekend, days after the military government suspended the BBC, Voice of America and the international watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW), halting broadcasts and blocking websites, after the latter's scathing report on Thursday.

HRW accused troops of killing at least 223 people in attacks on two villages in the west African country's north, near the Mali border, on 25 February. As many as 56 of the victims were reportedly children.

A statement by the Burkinabe authorities said on Monday: "The media campaign orchestrated around these accusations fully shows the unavowed intention ... to discredit our fighting forces."

The Guardian was named in the latest round of suspensions, alongside half a dozen other organisations including the French outlets Le Monde and TV5Monde, the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle and the Swiss-based Agence Ecofin. Access to their websites had been blocked until further notice, the statement said.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called the suspensions "grave and abusive decisions".

HRW had said in its report on Thursday that "these mass killings ... appear to be part of a widespread military campaign against civilians accused of collaborating with Islamist armed groups, and may amount to crimes against humanity".

It said villagers had said the killings were reprisals for an attack by jihadists at a military camp close to the villages earlier on 25 February.

Late on Saturday, the Burkinabe communications minister, Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo, said the report was baseless and accused HRW of "boundless imagination".

The suspensions are the latest media restrictions to be imposed by the junta led by Ibrahim Traoré, the 36-year-old who became Africa's youngest leader after a coup in September 2022.

French media have been particularly targeted as relations between the former colonial power and French-speaking Africa continue to sour.

Traoré's ascendancy to power came against the backdrop of insurgent violence that began seeping in from neighbouring Mali in 2015 and has precipitated political instability across the Sahel region.

More than 2 million people have been displaced and thousands of civilians and security personnel have been killed in Burkina Faso. Not even the change of political order has extinguished the conflict: there was an uptick in violence in 2023, with 8,000 deaths that year, data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (Acled) shows.

This has led to a war against armed non-state actors, and led to the army and state-backed vigilantes reportedly torturing or killing villagers believed to be harbouring or aiding the rebels.

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Burkina Faso bans more media over coverage of alleged massacre

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The Guardian and Le Monde among latest outlets blocked, following on from BBC and VOA last week

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Burkina Faso suspends BBC over HRW report on alleged mass killings

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Burkina Faso suspends BBC over HRW report on alleged mass killings

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Burkina Faso suspends BBC over HRW report on alleged mass killings

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BBC websites and radio are blocked for two weeks over a Human Rights Watch report on alleged mass killings.

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Week 7 - Security, Conflict & Development (Responses)

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Week 7 - Security, Conflict & Development (Responses)

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1. Security is linked with development, because if there is little security, economic growth can be limited as people are restricted from working, leading to low development. Conflict is also connected, as states significantly affected by violence can struggle to provide citizens with a life free from conflict, provide human security, and support people’s livelihoods, creating development barriers. Connections between security, development and conflict are also expressed through the security-development nexus. Many argue that there is no development without security and vice-versa. While this can be true, this idea is much contested. A lack of development regarding gender can be a root cause of security threats affecting women and can cause conflict. Climate security is connected to these themes, as climate change is the biggest development threat, increases fragility, threatens human security, and causes conflict over resource scarcity. Armed conflict can be caused by corrupt governance and state fragility or failure, threatening development, dignity and human security. Limited development in post-conflict states can increase vulnerability of recurring violence.

2. To overcome insecurity and conflict, state institutions must be strengthened. This will provide greater opportunities for increased security and development, leading to lower chances of conflict and security threats. Ending structural violence is also vital. Structural violence can be alleviated through the development of a safe and fear-free environment for people to live in with the assistance of foreign aid/ODA or through good governance. To minimise conflict and insecurity, conflict prevention must be addressed, particularly in post-conflict states, and poor governance must be avoided, which is often a root cause.  Gender issues are a cause of conflict, so integrating gender perspectives will help identify structural inequalities, which should be addressed to achieve development and maintain peace and security. Since climate change is a global political crisis which can increase global conflict and tension, there must be greater global governance and cooperation. Through effective global cooperation regarding the SDGs, insecurity and conflict can be addressed and mitigated.

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Tutorial 7: Security, Conflict and Development

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Tutorial 7: Security, Conflict and Development

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1. Three things I gained from today are a better understanding of the root causes of poor governance in Burkina Faso, the strategies and measures taken to address security threats in Burkina Faso, even though they many be insufficient, and I gained a better understanding of how security, conflict and development are linked, particularly from the lectures and readings.

2. This week we completed the Padlet from home, and I found that I didn't feel as rushed to complete the activities since I could spend a bit more time on it. Although I didn't spend too much longer than the time dedicated in class, it helped me do do a bit more research than what I would usually do and therefore helped me gain a better understanding of the topic/questions. The activity which I completed was helpful for my learning, as it helped me to develop a better understanding of human security in Burkina Faso. However, I think that I would have learned more about the other topics/questions and how they are relevant to Burkina Faso if we had been in the classroom, as I really only focused on my activity and not much on the others which my group members completed. I still understand and could think of answers to their questions, but I probably couldn't provide an in depth response.

3. Although I did some research, I couldn't really find a clear answer to the root cause of terrorism in Burkina Faso. I found that a cause of terrorism increasing was that the government following the overthrow of Blaise Compaoré did not have a strong enough security force, but this doesn't explain the motives for attacking Burkina Faso. I found a website with causes of terrorism in Africa, but they were more broad and could be more so causes of internal conflict. If I were to complete this activity again, I could look at causes of terrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although this is more broad, it might help me to develop an idea of the root causes of terrorism in Burkina Faso, and may even lead to me information relevant to this country.

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Burkina Faso junta expel 3 French diplomats over alleged subversive activities

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Burkina Faso junta expel 3 French diplomats over alleged subversive activities

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DAKAR, Senegal -- The military Junta ruling Burkina Faso have expelled three French diplomats for alleged subversive activities, according to a government document posted on social media Thursday.

The Junta named the three diplomats, two of whom are political advisors, and declared they were persona non grata in Burkina Faso, according to the document signed by the ministry of foreign affairs Tuesday. They have 48 hours to leave Burkina Faso.

The document did not give details about the alleged subversive activities.

The French foreign ministry said in a statement Thursday that it regretted the decision to expel its diplomats and rejected the accusations, stating its activities in Burkina Faso were within the United Nations framework for diplomatic and consular relations.

"The decision of the Burkinabè authorities is not based on any legitimate basis," said the statement. "We can only deplore it."

The expulsion comes amid deteriorating relations between Burkina Faso and its former colonial ruler, France. The military junta severed military ties with France in 2023, ordering hundreds of French troops to depart the West African country within a month, following in the path of neighboring Mali, also headed by a coup leader.

More than 60 years after Burkina Faso's independence, French remains an official language and France has maintained strong economic and humanitarian aid ties with its former colony. As the Islamic extremist insurgency has deepened, however, anti-French sentiment has spiked due in part to the unabating violence.

After a second coup last year, anti-French protesters began urging the junta to strengthen ties with Russia instead.

The prevailing anti-western sentiment and increasing ties with Russia and China are ongoing trends across Burkina Faso and neighbouring Mali, said Rida Lyammouri, senior fellow at the Policy Centre for the New South, a Moroccan-based thinktank.

"This is a continuation of a measure adopted by Burkina Faso and Mali that has seen the expulsion of French diplomats and journalists and suspended some international media," said Lyammouri.

The junta is also distancing itself from regional and Western nations that don't agree with its approach. This year, it left the West African regional economic bloc known as ECOWAS and created an alliance with Mali and Niger, also led by military juntas.

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Burkina Faso junta expel 3 French diplomats over alleged subversive activities

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The military Junta ruling Burkina Faso have expelled three French diplomats for alleged subversive activities, according to a government document posted on social media

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I used ChatGPT when editing my PRSP. I found it helpful as it picked up some grammer mistakes which I had made. However, it was not all relevant, as the intext referencing was not Harvard style and had a comma between the author/organisation and year.

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After receiving feedback from my draft, I was advised to not include population growth as a main cause of poverty. Although it was a cause when I asked ChatGPT and I found research promoting the idea that it's a major cause of poverty, I chose to do some further research. I discovered that as ChatGPT says, education is a major driver of poverty. I found that ChatGPT was a disadvantage when I was looking for ideas at the beginning of my assignment, as it gave me the false idea that population contributes to poverty in Burkina Faso, when it is rather an effect of poverty.

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When brainstorming strategies to reduce conflict in Burkina Faso, I thought of a few broad ways to reduce conflict, which included combating terrorism and internal armed groups, creating a stronger government, and finding solutions to the issue of limited natural resources. However, I was struggling to elaborate on these strategies in a way that was specific to Burkina Faso, as I was sounding a bit general and vague. I initially asked ChatGPT 'What strategies could be used to reduce conflict in Burkina Faso?' (Q1: Part 1 and 2). However, I thought the strategies given were extremely broad and general, and didn't address how to solve conflict specific to Burkina Faso. I then asked ChatGPT 'How can conflict be reduced in Burkina Faso?' (Q2: Part 1 and 2). I thought these the ideas given by ChatGPT were better, but that some were still quite general and could be applied to other countries experiencing conflict. I drew on some of the ideas which related to the factors which I had already discussed in my PRSP, did some further research to support these ideas and elaborated on what I had written so far regarding strategies to reduce conflict.

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After doing research of my own and looking at a variety of sources, I gained an idea of three of the most significant impacts on poverty in Burkina Faso. These were population growth, conflict and agricultural productivity (not necessarily in order of importance). When I asked ChatGPT what it thought the main causes of poverty are in Burkina Faso, I had some criticisms. After my research, even though it wasn't extremely extensive, I learnt that terrorism is a major issue, and has become an increasingly bigger threat every year since 2014. However, ChatGPT says that there is 'sporadic violence' in Burkina Faso. ChatGPT's view on violence in this country makes it seem like it's not a significant issue, so I did some further research to decide whether I should include it in my paper. However, upon further research and looking at recent news articles, I found many sources on recent and frequent violence, which leads me to believe that conflict is a major source of poverty, considering the large ripple effect it has.

I also thought that some of the causes given were broad, such as points 5, 6 and 7, and that they could be given for other poor countries too. The points also give an overview and don't go into much detail. While I did have criticisms about ChatGPT's answers, I think that there were aspects which were relevant to Burkina Faso and aligned with the causes of poverty which I had already researched.

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1. I learnt more about NGOs and the role of NGOs in Burkina Faso, more about governance and how it's different to government and the state, more about the private sector.

2. I found it useful, because I gained more of an understanding of how governance and the state operate and how they're different, which I previously wasn't too sure about.

3. I'm still a little unsure about the private sector and what exactly it is. I have a general understanding of it, but I didn't spend lots of time on the readings, so I think I need to go back over the parts of the readings that discuss the private sector, particularly the first reading, so I gain a better understanding.

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Week 5 - Globalisation & Development (Responses)

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Week 5 - Globalisation & Development (Responses)

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Tutorial 5: Globalisation and Development

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Tutorial 5: Globalisation and Development

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1. Three things which I learnt today are that gold is a major part of Burkina Faso's economy, that globalisation has had an overall positive impact on this country, and I learnt more about what globalisation is.

2. This activity was useful for my learning, as it will help me to have better research skills and write more concisely in the future. During the group task, I was skim reading and didn't really take time to understand parts which I didn't quite get, and I didn't look at a wide variety of sources, causing my answer to not really reflect how globalisation impacts Burkina Faso. Something which I can improve is looking at the questions before the tutorial and potentially getting some information so I feel more prepared.

3. Something which still is a bit unclear is the specific positive impacts of globalisation on Burkina Faso. I really looked at the negatives, and didn't look at how it's beneficial.

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1. Three things which I learnt today were about structural theories (dependency and world systems), that Burkina Faso's predominant division of labour is agriculture, and I learnt more about neoliberalism, which is a theory I didn't really understand or know about previously.

2. They were useful for my learning, as my knowledge developed regarding particular theories which I didn't know much about. Something which could be improved is having a little more time, as we didn't have the chance to go over our answers as a group and I think a particular part of the question could've been expanded and answered more.

3. Something which I'm still a bit unclear about is how these theories are applicable to our country, as I didn't research this area, and the answer given by my group isn't very clear.

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For my concept map, I asked ChatGPT what the key areas of poverty are and used the 10 areas it gave to guide my creation of my concept map. I thought that the answer it gave was quite accurate and that it covered the key areas. I added more links between the concepts of poverty to my mind map, but I thought that overall, ChatGPT gave a good overview.