Robert Calderisi, whose book The Trouble with Africa: Why Foreign Aid Isn’t Working was chosen by The Economist magazine as one of the best books of 2006 (despite cheekily defending the Bank’s record on structural adjustment) has been commissioned by Yale University Press to write about the impact of the Roman Catholic Church on economic and social development in the world. Robert would welcome hearing about your own experiences of the Church’s work in Africa, Asia and Latin America, however frustrating or inspiring, amusing or grim, surprising or consistent with your earlier notions of the role of the Church. He may be contacted at calderossi@gmail.com.

Many of you have seen through the media, scenes of devastation from the Magnitude 9.0 Earthquake that occurred at 2:46 p.m. (0:46 a.m. EST) Tokyo Time on Friday March 11.  The quake centered in the Pacific Ocean about 120 km off  the coast of Sendai City, 350 km North of Tokyo; numerous major aftershocks and related earthquakes,  cased a series of  massive tsunamis that devastated a 450km stretch of the Pacific Coast well to the North of Tokyo.   The tsunami claimed many lives, injured others, while over 300,000 people sought safety in evacuation centers.  Another 200,000 residents were evacuated to avoid possible exposure to radiation from a major coastal nuclear power station damaged by the tsunami.   While Tokyo escaped major damage, life is far from normal when so many have friends and relatives severely impacted by the disaster.  The shortage of electric power is yet another reminder on people who prided in reliable power supply.   

I am inviting 1818 Society Japan Chapter Members to share their experiences with 1818 Society Members HQ and the rest of the World.  I am also inviting 1818 Society Members from HQ and eslewhere to share their thoughts on these pages.

Lecture: Gardens & Flowers in Ottoman Culture

Dear Friends,
Internationally renowned art historian Dr. Nurhan Atasoy will present a lecture on Thursday, March 10, at 6:30 p.m. at the Turkish Embassy. Please see attached invitation for details and RSVP.

Very best,
Yildiz Yagci
President
Anatolian Artisans
11325 Empire Lane
North Bethesda, MD 20852
Ph/Fax 301-231-8128

www.anatolianartisans.org

Bank-Fund Investment Club
Invites you to a seminar
Successful Investing in an Uncertain Environment
David Sotsky
Director, Convergent Wealth Advisors
Noon-1:30 pm
Thursday, March 24, 2011
J4-044
The International Investors Club (IIC) helps its members to be successful investors. To that end, the Club invites renowned investment experts covering every major segments of the securities market, including stocks, bonds, real estate, precious metals and other alternative investments. The Club runs two model portfolios, one on asset allocation,the other on stocks. In addition to the regular monthly Club’s meetings, three subgroups, presented below, meet regularly for lunch at the World Bank, managing the stock and asset allocation portfolios, and discussing classic books in the investment literature. Participation in each of the subgroups is open to all members of the Club. They select and participate in the one(s) which correspond the best to their objectives and interests.

The STOCK PICKERS’ GROUP (SPG) is for members who are interested in investing in individual companies. The SPG portfolio consists of stocks selected by the members of the group after review of their fundamentals. The SPG meets once a month in a conference room. Stephen Gibson is the current manager of the SPG.

The ASSET ALLOCATION GROUP (AAG) is designed to determine, at any point in time, what is the best allocation of resources among the various asset classes. The asset class selections of the group are materialized in the AAG portfolio. The AAG meets every other month. Francesco Scaduto-Mendola is the current manager of the AAG.

The READING GROUP (RG) provide its members with the opportunity to familiarize themselves with and to reflect upon together on the best ideas which have been expressed regarding the art of investing. Normally, two to three classic books are reviewed and discussed each year. Meetings are organized on an ad hoc basis.

 The Club subscribes to several investment letters which provide its members with relevant and up-to-date information on companies, on major market trends and on appropriate allocation of assets. In order to pay for the expenses of operations, there is an annual membership fee, currently of $100.  The Club is for individuals who have already gained valuable experience in investing, but also for those who have a keen interest to learn about investing by participating in the activities of a Club of serious investors.  If interested, please contact Philippe Beuzelin at pbeuzelin@yahoo.com.

December 2010

The Partnership for Transparency Fund, an international non-profit organization dedicated to fighting corruption, is seeking a full-time Chief Operating Officer. The COO, located in Washington, DC, will be responsible for managing the PTF’s portfolio of more than 50 grants to civil society organizations in developing countries, a pipeline of 30-40 new projects, assisting in fund-raising and managing communications and records management.  Reporting to the President, Daniel Ritchie, the COO will work closely with a group of almost 60 volunteer Project Advisers, many of whom are retirees from the World Bank, USAID, the Asian Development Bank and other donor agencies.  The position will be full-time, with compensation commensurate to Washington-Dc based non-profits.  Please check the PTF website: www.ptfund.org for more information.
Expressions of interest and CVs should be sent to info@ptfund.org.

Dated: November 11, 2010

Financial / Resource Management Consultant

Location: Washington, DC

Timeframe & duration: Immediate, for 20 days until December 15, 2010

Contact: Matthijs Schuring (mschuring@worldbank.org)

Background:

The multi-donor trust fund called the Water Partnership Program (WPP) is a Bank-administered trust funds for water in the Transport, Water and Information Communication Technology Department (TWI) of the Sustainable Development Vice-Presidency of the World Bank. This program is managed by the Water Anchor (TWIWA).

One of WPP’s funding modalities is the Expert Support Team (EST) called the Groundwater Management Advisory Team (GW-MATE), a multi-disciplinary expert advisory team in the field of groundwater resource management and quality protection, providing support globally to Bank Task Team Leaders (TTLs) and their clients, and disseminating best practices. Currently, GW-MATE has more than 20 activities in its portfolio, which is running until the end of December 2010.

Objective and tasks:

The objective of this short term consultant position is to update the GW-MATE financial management and tracking system, and assist in the monitoring and closing of GW-MATE activities. This position is funded by the WPP. The work will take place in Washington, DC.

The main tasks of this assignment are:

1. Update (if necessary redesign) the GW-MATE financial management and monitoring sheets;
2. Contact TTLs and consultants to confirm findings and numbers where necessary, and to request an update in terms of planning; and
3. Structure the records and documents in a clear way on the local network drive and in IRIS;
4. Review the financial aspects of the closure reports, follow-up issues, and financially close activities after the closure report is financially and technically approved.

 Expected outputs:

• A short report on new or adjusted design of the updated GW-MATE financial management and monitoring sheets as described above under task 1, 2, and 3;
• Completed and filed closure reports of two or more closed GW-MATE activities (task 4).

 Selection criteria:

• Advanced degree (MA/MS) or bachelor’s degree (BA/BS) and equivalent experience in a relevant discipline (finance or accounting, budgeting, economics, or other related field). 
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant experience, of which at least 3 year at the World Bank.
• Experience in financial monitoring of complex grant programs with many activities and extensive knowledge of Bank’s accounting and record keeping systems (SAP, IRIS) and experience with Bank-executed Trust Fund programs. 
• Proficiency in Microsoft Windows applications, specifically Excel.

The International Investors Club (IIC) helps its members to be successful investors. To that end, the Club invites renowned investment experts covering every major segments of the securities market, including stocks, bonds, real estate, precious metals and other alternative investments. The Club runs two model portfolios, one on asset allocation, the other on stocks. In addition, three subgroups meet regularly for lunch at the World Bank, managing the stock and asset allocation portfolios, and discussing classic books in the investment literature.  The Club is for serious investors only. There is currently an opening for a limited number of new members. Candidates will be considered on a first-come first-served basis. The next luncheon/meeting of the Club will take place at the World Bank on Thursday September 23. If interested please contact Philippe Beuzelin at pbeuzelin@yahoo.com

We would like you to have the opportunity to review these amendments before the Board has its meeting.

Communication Summary:
Merck is experiencing a shortage of the Zostavax vaccine.

Background:
Merck informed us that there will be a shortage of the Zostavax (herpes zoster/shingles) vaccine throughout 2010. Providers and pharmacies will experience backorders and there may be periods when they are unable to place orders for the Zostavax vaccine. Currently, the Zostavax vaccine may be ordered, but it may be subject to backorder.

Details:
If members are informed by their provider or pharmacy that the vaccine is not available, then they can review the supply status of the Zostavax vaccine on the federal government website:

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/shortages/default.htm

They can also check the supply status on Merck’s website:

http://www.merckvaccines.com
_______________________________________

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