Sunday, February 7, 2010

Altegrity Risk International Announces Acquisition of Corporate Risk International

Altegrity Risk International, Inc. (ARI), president and CEO Michael Beber today announced that ARI—an Altegrity, Inc., company providing high-quality due diligence, investigative, analytic, consulting, intelligence, and security solutions to organizations around the world—has acquired Corporate Risk International (CRI), a global, full-service business intelligence and risk management firm. CRI has provided due diligence, investigative, and crisis management services globally for almost 20 years. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.


“The marriage of CRI’s broad industry and process expertise and ARI’s investment in technology, databases, and analytics, creates a winning combination,” said Mr. Beber. “Together under the Altegrity Risk International brand, we will provide enhanced due diligence, investigative, analytic, consulting, and intelligence solutions to our growing U.S. and international customer base.”

CRI specializes in U.S. and international due diligence and investigative projects, white collar crime investigations, business intelligence gathering, undercover investigative operations, and anti-money laundering analyses. The company also conducts security and risk assessment surveys and provides crisis management and executive protection services.

Founded in 1991, CRI is headquartered in the Washington D.C. area and has offices in Houston (which serves customers in the U.S. and Latin America), Hong Kong, and London. The company has a network of analysts, investigators, consultants, and crisis response specialists around the globe with experience in more than 150 countries. Over the past five years, CRI has conducted more than 65,000 diligence reviews and investigations, over 60 percent of which had an international scope.

In addition, through a long-term relationship with Professional Indemnity Agency (PIA), CRI handles cases involving kidnapping, illegal detention, and extortion. Since 1993, CRI has successfully responded to more than 500 such crises in every major country around the globe. ARI will continue to provide these services under the CRI brand.

“This acquisition brings together many of the top professionals in the risk management, investigations, business intelligence, and due diligence fields,” said Lee Spirer, ARI chief operating officer. “Working closely with the CRI leadership team, I have gained tremendous respect for their capabilities and the quality of their professionals at all levels. Their wealth of global experience and significant

international customer base provides a strong platform upon which we will grow. Together, we have significant aspirations for what we can help our clients achieve.”

Sean McWeeney, CRI founder and chairman, will continue to provide advice and counsel to the ARI leadership team. Jim McWeeney, CRI president and CEO, will serve as senior managing director and leader of ARI’s Decision Intelligence practice area. Tom McWeeney, CRI chief operating officer, will serve as managing director and leader of the Washington, D.C., area office.

“This is a great opportunity for CRI, our employees, and our customers,” said Jim McWeeney. “The strategic combination provides additional resources to grow our business and expand our customer-focused solutions around the world. Together, this new team will extend our solutions that help clients anticipate, prevent, and resolve issues, reduce fraud and loss, and maximize business opportunities.”

Altegrity Risk International (ARI) provides high quality due diligence, investigative, analytic, consulting, intelligence, and security solutions to multinational corporations and other organizations around the world. The company’s multidisciplinary team of experts from the fields of investigations, forensics, data intelligence, and financial technology provides its clients with specialized solutions to identify, analyze, prevent, and remediate the entire range of financial,

legal/regulatory, and reputational risks. Headquartered in New York City, ARI provides global coverage through offices in Chicago, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.

Corporate Risk International (CRI) employs a domestic and international network of 400-plus highly experienced security consultants, investigators and specialists. CRI specializes in major domestic (USA) and international due diligence and investigative projects, white collar crime investigations, business intelligence gathering, undercover investigative operations and anti-money laundering analyses. CRI also conducts security and risk assessment surveys, executive protection, emergency evacuations, and responds to cases involving kidnapping, illegal detention and extortion.

This press release contains “forward-looking” statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements identify prospective information. Important factors could cause actual results to differ, possibly materially, from those stated in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by which, such performance or results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statements are made. We assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions, or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking information except to the extent required by applicable securities laws.

Friday, February 5, 2010

WHO HAILS NEW GATES FOUNDATION SUPPORT FOR DECADE OF VACCINES

The World Health Organization welcomes the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledge of US$ 10 billion over the next ten years to accelerate global vaccine efforts.


"The Gates Foundation’s commitment to vaccines is unprecedented, but needs to be matched by unprecedented action. It’s absolutely crucial that both governments and the private sector step up efforts to provide life-saving vaccines to children who need them most," said Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General.

Vaccines and immunization have played a major role since the last century in overall health gains. Smallpox has been eradicated, polio is on the verge of being eradicated and more than 2 million deaths are averted each year.

"Building on these achievements, we can take immunization to the next level, with the expanded uptake of new vaccines against major killers such as pneumonia and rotavirus diarrhoea," said Dr Chan. "An additional two million deaths in children under five years could be prevented by 2015 through widespread use of new vaccines and a 10% increase in global vaccination coverage."

Vaccines join other proven measures, such as micronutrient supplements, oral rehydration therapy, and community delivery of antibiotics, that form an integrated approach to child health and have already brought much progress.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announcement comes on the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). Dr Chan also congratulated the GAVI Alliance on their accomplishment of reaching 257 million additional children with new and underused vaccines.

UN meeting embraces cooperation to cut risks from storms in Asia-Pacific region

Typhoon committee concludes session in Singapore

With typhoon-related damage accounting for more than half of the economic losses from natural disasters, along with a marked increase in recent extreme weather events, countries in the Asia-Pacific region have agreed at a United Nations meeting to work closely together and coordinate their efforts.


This was one of the major outcomes of the 42nd Session of ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee, convened by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP) in cooperation with the World Meteorological Organization

(WMO) and hosted by the National Environment Agency of Singapore. The five-day meeting closed today in Singapore.

This year’s session focused on the effect of climate change on tropical cyclones in the Typhoon Committee region. Results of an initial assessment show either a decreasing trend or no trend in the annual number of tropical cyclones and typhoons in the Western North Pacific and the South China Sea.

Participants pointed out that climate models project fewer but more intense tropical cyclones in this basin in a warmer climate.

Typhoons continue to cause havoc in many countries of the region. In 2009, 22 tropical cyclones formed over the Western North Pacific and the South China Sea, 13 of which reached typhoon intensity. Three of them – Ketsana, Parma and Morakot – caused severe damage and losses in the Philippines, Cambodia, Viet Nam, and Taiwan, Province of China.

The Committee identified urban flood risk management as a key area for future work, given that high damage caused by tropical cyclones usually happens in populous cities when they bring heavy rainfall. The Committee said it was well-prepared to tackle this issue since its work covers meteorology, hydrology and disaster prevention and mitigation.
The Asia-Pacific region is one of the most vulnerable to natural disasters.

From 1950 to 2005, 54 per cent of worldwide deaths caused by natural disasters – or approximately three million people –occurred in this region.

The wind storms and floods associated with typhoon-related impacts account for 57 per cent – or approximately $33.5 billion – of the economic losses in the region during the same period.
ESCAP, in collaboration with WMO, founded the Typhoon Committee in 1968.

The founding members were: China; Hong Kong, China; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Lao PDR; Philippines and Thailand. In the years since, Cambodia, Malaysia, Viet Nam, Macao, China; the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea; Singapore; and the United States of America joined the Committee, raising the membership to 14.

The Committee works on reducing the damage caused by typhoons and floods in the region by coordinating the efforts of its members as well as recommending ways to increase community preparedness, improve

meteorological and hydrological facilities. The Committee also promotes the establishment of programmes for training personnel in forecasting typhoons and other disasters.

Following the success of the Typhoon Committee in the Asia-Pacific area, WMO established four similar regional bodies under the global WMO Tropical Cyclone Programme.

THAI and Thai Government Hold Thai Rice Donation Ceremony to Haitian People

Thai Government and Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, as well as the government and private sector cooperated together in transporting 100 tons of Thai rice on a THAI freighter aircraft. The humanitarian donation of Thai rice will benefit the people of Haiti who have been affected by severe earthquake. Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva, Prime Minister of Thailand, presided over the donation ceremony witnessed by representatives from the government and various organization in the Ramp Area of THAI Air Cargo, Suvarnabhumi Airport.


Mr. Piyasvasti Amranand, THAI President, said that transporting 100 tons of Thai jasmine rice from the Government of Thailand to the Republic of Haiti was possible due to cooperation from the government and various organizations, in order to provide assistance as quickly as possible. THAI provided relief aid by conducting a humanitarian freighter flight to transport 100 tons of Thai rice that was donated from the Government of Thailand to the Republic of Haiti, on board THAI freighter flight 9S888 at a flight time of 36 hours on the route Bangkok to the Republic of Haiti. Transport by ship takes approximately 5 to 6 weeks, therefore through cooperation between the Thai Government, THAI, and various organizations, this humanitarian relief effort was possible. In particular, the donation of Thai rice reflects on Thailand’s national identity as a country that is known as a “world kitchen” and one the world’s largest sources of rice production.

The aircraft utilized in transporting 100 tons of Thai rice from the Government of Thailand to the Republic of Haiti is a THAI cargo freighter Boeing 747-300F, which the Company obtained for cargo freight transport. THAI’s cargo freighter flight departed from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on Monday, 1 February 2010 at 14.00 hours, with refueling at Incheon Airport in Korea, Anchorage, Alaska and Miami, Florida in the United States of America, and arrival at Port au Prince Airport in the Republic of Haiti on Tuesday, 2 February 2010 at 08.00 hours (local time), at a total flight time of 36 hours.