Speeches Shim
We are excited to announce that USAID, through the generosity of the Trump Administration, is contributing an additional $22.8 million to improve Egypt’s investment climate by supporting effective and transparent public institutions, increasing women’s participation in the labor force, and ensuring that all Egyptians benefit from essential services.
It is important to USAID to support local South African manufacturers in this way; and we are proud to do this with our colleagues from the British High Commission, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Western Cape Provincial Government. All of us share the belief that we can create sustainable growth and tap into South Africa’s entrepreneurial spirit to combat the harmful effects that COVID-19 can have on health and on livelihoods.
Sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment undermine the goals of international development and humanitarian assistance. These actions cause intolerable harm to victims, threaten our mission, and undermine the credibility of the entire development community.
We’ve seen huge failures when it comes to addressing egregious exploitation and abuse. Right now, we are beginning to come to terms with the recent allegations of widespread sexual exploitation and abuse from a number of international organizations and relief agencies. USAID, along with the international community, has expressed strong concern regarding these allegations. We urge the organizations and agencies involved to treat the allegations seriously and take the necessary and appropriate steps to address the situation in a survivor-centered manner. We also recognize that sexual exploitation and abuse often goes unreported, complicating response efforts further. As a community, we must do better. These crimes cannot continue within our ranks.
Land and resource rights are central to Zambia’s development trajectory and its movement forward on its journey to self-reliance. USAID has been collaborating with the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Department of National Parks and Wildlife, House of Chiefs, Forestry Department and Ministry of Local Government across four main areas.
In addition to the $50 million that we have already committed to Kenya’s COVID-19 response, I am pleased to announce today that we are donating 200 state-of-the-art ventilators to support the Kenyan people. This donation marks an important milestone in the U.S. Government’s support for Kenya, as we fight the pandemic together. Like our decades-long support, the donation of these ventilators is based on a relationship of partnership and mutual respect.
As many of us have expressed, women’s economic empowerment is a top priority for the Trump Administration and USAID. In fact, the U.S. National Security Strategy directly ties women’s economic empowerment globally to American peace and prosperity—particularly with the establishment of the White House-led Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative, or W-GDP.
The Trump Administration has made the protection and inclusion of religious and ethnic minorities a priority. As we continue with that emphasis, I find it extremely valuable to hear the perspectives of diverse religious leaders. Your connections to local communities usually mean that you have insights that I can’t hear anywhere else, so thank you again for being here today.
We are extremely proud of our partnership with Howard University, which manages the Payne Fellowship program. Also, our Feed the Future program to end hunger has Innovation Labs all over the country—including many at HBCUs. You’ll hear more details about both of these great initiatives later today. USAID’s work to help countries advance along their Journeys to Self-Reliance is multifaceted, highly specific, and at times, quite technical. We acknowledge that in order to execute our work successfully under these circumstances, expanding and diversifying the kinds of academic institutions we work with on research and development projects is crucial.
The United States was among the first nations to recognize the independence of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Since then, USAID has been a constant presence in Central Asia, helping the region to grow in freedom, prosperity, security, and independence.
That’s why I am excited to make a major announcement today. As a tangible demonstration of the U.S. Government’s commitment to Central Asia, it’s my privilege to announce that USAID will be opening two new missions there: one in Uzbekistan and one in Tajikistan. Missions are the hubs for USAID’s work and demonstrate that the United States is dedicated to building direct and meaningful relationships with a country’s government and people. In Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, these missions will also help ensure that our work in the region is coordinated so that no country in Central Asia is left behind.
USAID carries out nearly all of its work through partnerships. Whether through our relationships with private sector partners, host country governments or local NGOs—we couldn’t be successful without them. Foreign assistance continues to go through a profound change in both the way it is financed and delivered. All funding across all donors combined is dwarfed by the resources coming from the private sector into emerging markets.
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