Today marks the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day. Across the development community, top leaders are focused on the importance of investing in women and girls around the world. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton authored an op-ed published by Bloomberg News, saying “If we invest in women’s education and give them the opportunity to access credit or start a small business, we add fuel to a powerful engine for progress for women, their families, their communities and their countries.” Later today, the Senate may take test votes on the House-passed continuing resolution (H.R. 1) and the Senate Democratic alternative unveiled Friday.  Neither plan is expected to gain the 60 votes needed to move forward

Must Reads

Who’s In the News

Peace-Building That Pays Off (Gen. Anthony Zinni, New York Times)

IN voting last month to eliminate financing for the United States Institute of Peace, members of the House of Representatives did not do their research. You will find the institute’s competent work behind practically every American success in Iraq and Afghanistan. It has undertaken missions from the Balkans and Sudan to the Philippines and Somalia, where I supported the institute’s efforts to mediate conflicts, promote the rule of law and encourage democracy.

Women’s Work-More, Earn-Less Plan Hurts (Sec. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bloomberg News Wire)

Throughout the world, women do two-thirds of the work, yet they earn just one-third of the income and own less than 2 percent of the land. Three billion people don’t have access to basic financial services we take for granted, like bank accounts and lines of credit; the majority of them are women. If we invest in women’s education and give them the opportunity to access credit or start a small business, we add fuel to a powerful engine for progress for women, their families, their communities and their countries. Women invest 80 percent of their incomes on their families and in their communities.

Politics/Foreign Policy

State Department’s training program falls short (Josh Rogin, the Cable blog)

The State Department spends over $250 million a year to train its professionals but lacks a good overall strategic plan to ensure that training is efficient and achieving the desired results, according to a new report.

Gates in Afghanistan to Assess Troop Withdrawals (Elisabeth Bumiller, New York Times)

Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates landed here on Monday for an unannounced trip to meet with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and begin assessments to determine the number of American troops to be withdrawn from the country in July.

Yemen Appeals for Aid to Counter Economic Crisis (Laura Kasinof, New York Times)

As protests calling for the fall of the Yemeni leadership spread to new areas of this impoverished country on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Abu Bakr Al Qirbi appealed to rich Gulf countries for $6 billion in additional aid to confront an economic crisis.

The Gates of Resignation (William Kristol, the Weekly Standard)
And let someone take over as secretary of defense who believes in the missions in which American forces are now engaged, and who does not shy away from the understanding that American power is a crucial force for good in the world.