Forty Years of Rapid Response to Emergencies, Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance Celebrates 40th Anniversary
WASHINGTON, DC 20523
PRESS OFFICE
http://www.usaid.gov/
Press: (202) 712-4320
Public Information: (202) 712-4810
2004-087
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 22, 2004
Contact: USAID Press Office
WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) celebrates the 40th anniversary of Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA). The Administrator of USAID, Andrew S. Natsios, is the President's Special Coordinator for International Disaster Assistance and USAID/OFDA manages much of this disaster assistance.
OFDA's mission is to save lives, alleviate human suffering, and reduce the economic and social impacts of disasters. OFDA plans for, provides and coordinates assistance to those affected by natural and man-made disasters.
"The Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance is an important part of U.S. foreign policy and is essential in assisting countries trying to recover from catastrophic events caused by natural and man-made disasters. The professionals of this office have provided assistance in over two-thousand emergencies in some of the most desperate circumstances around the world. They have performed their tasks with skill, ingenuity and professionalism for over 40 years" said Andrew S. Natsios, USAID Administrator. "Today they are working in Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Caribbean and continue the long standing tradition of helping those in their most desperate hour of need."
1964 USAID Administrator David E. Bell appointed the first "Foreign Disaster Relief Coordinator. Administrator Bell took this action after recognizing the need for the United States to mount more focused and quick responses to international disasters. The change allowed the President to provide international disaster relief and rehabilitation, including assistance relating to disaster preparedness, and to the prediction of, and contingency planning for natural and man-made disasters abroad.
U.S. disaster assistance, managed by OFDA, provides help in recovering from disasters around the world. In 2004, with a budget of over $300 million, OFDA has responded to 69 disaster declarations in 58 countries. OFDA has provided assistance through implementing partners and/or deployed teams in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America. The assistance has included support in Iran and Morocco after earthquakes, the locust emergency that threatens food crops in northwest Africa; drought and food emergencies in such places as Angola and Eritrea.
Most recently, OFDA has been involved in disaster assistance following the destruction caused by this year's very active hurricane season in the Caribbean. OFDA disaster teams have been providing damage assessments and humanitarian support to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Grenada, Jamaica, and the Bahamas. This assistance has provided over 133,000 people with over $2 million in health care, emergency relief supplies, water, food and shelter. OFDA also provided humanitarian assistance in Iraq and Afghanistan immediately following the fall of Saddam Hussein and the Taliban. Currently OFDA has 14 professional staff deployed to Darfur, Sudan, and has so far provided nearly $56 million worth of assistance through international and non-governmental organizations, for a range of humanitarian goods and services.
For more information about OFDA and USAID in general, please visit our website at www.usaid.gov.
The U.S. Agency for International Development has provided economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide for more than 40 years.
Back to Top ^
|
RSS Feed for Recent USAID Press Releases
