The United States says it is suspending some security assistance programs to Burundi because of abuses committed by police during political protests and the government's decision to proceed with what the U.S. says were "flawed" parliamentary elections.

In a recent report, Development Initiatives said many social programs are severely under-funded in developing countries. Across all least developed countries, only 20% of costs are financed.

The president of the Qatari National Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza, Mohammad al-Amadi, announced the launch of a number of new projects for the Gaza Strip on Saturday.  According to official figures from Gaza, 16,000 homes were completely destroyed during last summer's war and another approximately 90,000 were partially destroyed.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgiç has underlined that Turkey continues to provide humanitarian and development assistance to the besieged Gaza Strip and Palestine. 

On her China Law and Policy blog, Elizabeth Lynch has written a three-part analysis of the proposed Foreign NGO Law, the second draft of which has recently been read by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. Under the revised draft, foreign NGOs will only be allowed to operate in China with explicit permission from a related government agency and the Public Security Bureau.