Remarks by Ambassador Lisa Kubiske for Beyond the Horizons 2012 Launch Ceremony

April 16, 2012

Ambassador Kubiske greets U.S. military personnel who will participate in the Beyond the Horizon 2012 initiative. (State Dept. Photo)

Naco, Cortes

As Prepared for Delivery

Minister Marlon Pascua,
General  Rene Arnoldo Osorio Canales,
Major General  Simeon G. Trombitas,
Community leaders and representatives,
Members of the Media,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very pleased to join you here today for the launch of this year's Beyond the Horizon 2012 initiative.  Beyond the Horizon 2012 brings U.S. military personnel to select partner nations in the hemisphere to provide medical services, construction and refurbishment projects, and other humanitarian assistance to communities in need.  It is another in a long list of examples of the positive and fruitful partnership between the United States and Honduras, and shows how our two countries are working together to make a difference in the everyday lives of Hondurans.  This year, Beyond the Horizon 2012 will bring more than 50 doctors and dentists, and 70 other skilled personnel, to work with Honduran healthcare providers to offer medical services to communities in the departments of Cortés and Santa Barbara.  It is part of broad range of USG efforts to support better access to quality health services, especially for rural and underserved populations.  The medical teams will focus on providing diagnosis and treatment of two serious but treatable diseases —diabetes and hypertension.  Our goal is to help create lasting effects in these communities through screening, referrals to Honduran doctors, and public health education.

There are proven ways to improve the health and quality of lives of people with these diseases, and it's vital that patients have access to the knowledge and treatments that will help them.  In addition to this, we welcome the Honduran Ministry of Health workers who are incorporating children's vaccination programs and women's health services to the population of these areas.  In total, we expect that U.S. and Honduran medical teams will diagnose or treat about 14,000 people and 7,000 veterinary procedures to support agriculture over the course of the 14 week Beyond the Horizon initiative.

Beyond the Horizon dental teams, meanwhile, will provide basic dental services and training on good hygiene practices.  We estimate the dental teams will provide these services to an additional 3,000 people over the course of the initiative.

This year's Beyond the Horizon initiative will supplement the robust humanitarian assistance U.S. military medical personnel provide in Honduras on a continuous basis throughout the year.  On average, U.S. military medical personnel treat 14,000 to 18,000 Honduran patients per year, and have been doing so for the past 23 years!  These health services have a direct and lasting impact on the lives of Hondurans all over the country —from Tegucigalpa to Cortés to Gracias a Dios.

Health impacts every single aspect of a person's life.  On a personal level, better health means less lost income and fewer days off school, leading to more resources for families.  Society-wide, better health translates directly to more productive economies.  According to a United Nations study, a one percentage point increase in the adult survival rate can increase labor productivity by as much as 2.8%.

Ill health also tends to disproportionately affect women, who often depend on other family members' income, who are typically the primary caregivers to children, and who more often work in the informal economy where a day off from work can mark a loss in income —or even dismissal.  Investments in health improve the condition of women and the families they care for.  Knowing this, I am justifiably proud of these joint efforts to bring vital services to the people of Honduras.

In addition to the medical services provided, U.S. military construction and engineering experts are working together with their counterparts in the Honduran military to construct health clinics and schools, and renovate other facilities in select communities.  These joint efforts during this year's Beyond the Horizon exercise will result in the construction of two new school buildings with sanitation facilities, and the renovation of a third school site, to better serve the needs of Honduran youth.  In addition, new two health clinics being constructed to replace damaged or outdated facilities will improve medical services and increase access to care for local communities.

On behalf of the U.S. Embassy, I want to thank the U.S. military personnel who will be working hard in Honduras over these next weeks and months to improve access to health services and education for the people of Honduras, our partner nation representatives from Canada and Colombia, our NGO partners —Children's International, the Honduran Red Cross Society, and the Rotary Club— for their crucial efforts in helping to facilitate Beyond the Horizon, and most of all to our hosts and key partners in the Honduran government, military, and local communities whose cooperation makes these efforts possible.