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Indigenous peoples
Background Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights According to the United Nations (UN), there are at least 5,000 indigenous groups composed of 300 million people living …
Read morePeople with disabilities
Rationale It is estimated that there are more than 600 million people with disability in the world (WHO). This represents between 18 and 20% of …
Read morePoverty eradication and the role for social workers
1 Background 1.1 The Copenhagen Declaration describes absolute poverty as ‘a condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, …
Read moreRefugees
Policy Issue The physical needs of refugees, for food, clothing, health care and shelter, have to be met. However, policies also need to focus on …
Read moreWomen
1 Rationale 1.1 Attending to the well-being of women and girls is essential to social and economic development worldwide, as reflected in the inclusion of …
Read moreDisplaced persons
Introduction The displacement or forced migration of people within their own countries is today a common international phenomenon. Such migration may be caused by internal …
Read moreGlobalisation and the environment
Introduction Globalisation is the process by which all peoples and communities come to experience an increasingly common economic, social and cultural environment. By definition, the …
Read moreVictims of violent conflicts
Jane Addams in 1931, co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and global pioneer social worker said: We believe that war, seeking its end through coercion, …
Read moreKampala declaration
Statement of the 7th Pan African Social Work Conference, May 20-24, 2007 Kampala, Uganda STOP THE WAR! END POVERTY! “We have great challenges ahead, and …
Read moreHIV/AIDS
IFSW General Meeting. Geneva, Switzerland, 10-12 July 2002 The AIDS Conference in Barcelona this week (7-12 July) has reminded the world of the current and …
Read moreSudan
General Meeting, Adelaide, Australia 29 September – 1 October 2004 The United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 556 on 30 July 2004: “Condemning all acts …
Read moreAgeing
Proposed by the Canadian Association of Social Workers IFSW General Meeting, 25-27 July 2000 Montréal, Québec, Canada Whereas there is a rapidly growing, ageing population …
Read moreGlobalisation
Proposed by the Canadian Association of Social Workers IFSW General Meeting, 25-27 July 2000 Montréal, Québec, Canada Whereas globilazation is recognized as a world wide …
Read moreHuman rights
Proposed by the Canadian Association of Social Workers IFSW General Meeting, 25-27 July 2000 Montréal, Québec, Canada Whereas the member organizations of IFSW vary widely …
Read moreAgeing and older adults
Introduction Older adults comprise a growing proportion of the global population. This population shift has far-reaching socioeconomic and political implications for people of all ages. …
Read moreHealth
Summary IFSW asserts that health is an issue of fundamental human rights and social justice and binds social work to apply these principles in policy, …
Read moreHIV and AIDS
Introduction HIV/AIDS is a global pandemic that affects individuals, families, and entire communities around the world and has profound social and economic implications. In 2004, …
Read moreHuman rights
History of human rights The history of human rights is that of the struggle against exploitation of one person by another. It is based on …
Read moreCross border reproductive services
Rationale Social workers have committed themselves to enhancing the rights and well-being of all human beings through a variety of previous policy statements. Those that …
Read moreGenocide
Genocide has mired the history of humanity for centuries. In the 20th century alone, arguably, there have been multiple acts of genocide. The profession of …
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