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- 10/21/08: Remarks by Henrietta Fore, Administrator, USAID and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance at the White House Development Summit
- 10/08/08: Remarks by Henrietta Fore, USAID Administrator and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance at The President's Freedom Agenda
- 10/01/08: Remarks by Henrietta H. Fore, Administrator, USAID and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance, at the Ceremony Marking the Full Operational Capacity of Africa Command (AFRICOM)
- 09/25/08: Remarks by Henrietta H. Fore, Administrator, USAID and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance, at 2008 Millennium Development Goal Malaria Summit, New York - "U.S. Leadership in the Fight Against Malaria"
- 09/22/08: Remarks by Henrietta H. Fore, Administrator, USAID and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance, at the White House Symposium on Advancing Global Literacy - "U.S. Commitment to Advancing Global Literacy"
 RSS Feed for Recent USAID Speeches and Testimony
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Remarks by Andrew S. Natsios
Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development
Trois Ravines Radio Station
Haiti
July 22, 2003
[As prepared]
Good morning. It is a great pleasure to be here today. Two centuries ago, a revolt that began near here overthrew the chains of slavery and led to the creation of a new republic. The affinity between our two great nations dates from that time.
Today, the United States is the largest donor of foreign assistance to Haiti. This year our assistance will total over $70 million.
About half of that amount goes to providing food for half a million of Haiti's poorest citizens. I had a chance to meet some of them yesterday, when I visited an orphanage in Carrefour Feuilles. Thanks to the efforts of the dedicated staff there and the help we are able to give them, those children will have a chance to lead healthy, productive lives.
Another important part of our assistance is healthcare. The U.S. Agency for International Development works with some 30 Haitian organizations. Together we provide key health services to 2.7 million Haitian women and children.
Now, with President George W. Bush's major new initiative on HIV/AIDS, we will be adding substantial new resources to our efforts to help the Haitian people fight this dread disease. As one of the initiative's 14 priority countries, Haiti can expect to receive millions dollars over the next five years for our HIV/AIDS programs in this country
We are also working with the Haitian people to improve the quality of primary education, promote human rights, create jobs, increase the income of poor farmers and artisans and end the vicious practice of trafficking in human beings.
Despite the differences between our two governments, the ties between our peoples endure. The U. S. Government stands behind the Special Mission sent by the OAS to resolve the political impasse and persuade all parties in Haiti to bring about secure, free, and fair elections and restore growth and hope to this beleaguered land.
Our country's commitment to Haiti's future is taking new forms, too. Earlier this morning, I was in Bas Limbe for the inauguration of a new school, funded partially by contributions from individual Haitians living in the United States. This is a new approach for my agency, the first time we have joined forces with a diaspora community on a project of such importance in Haiti.
Now I am here at Trois Ravines to launch another new and innovative project - a twelve-part civic education radio series that can be heard on community radio stations throughout the country. It will be about your freedoms, your responsibilities, and your democracy.
It is an honor for me to be here for the opening of this series and to have an opportunity to speak with you for a few minutes about what we are doing here in Haiti.
I would like to conclude by quoting the great Frederick Douglass, the escaped slave who rose to become one of most powerful voices in history for freedom and racial justice and who ultimately became the U.S. Minister and Consul General to Haiti: "Whatever may happen of peace or war Haiti will remain in the firmament of nations, and like the star of the north, will shine on and shine on forever."
Thank you.
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