Chairman Cook, Ranking Member Sires, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the invitation to testify today and for holding this hearing at such a critical time in Nicaragua’s history. On behalf of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), I want to thank the Subcommittee for its unyielding commitment to advancing human rights and democracy in our hemisphere, and for your support of USAID’s work in the region, including Nicaragua.
As many of you know, the United States is the only remaining donor working on democracy, governance, and human rights in Nicaragua, and it is thanks to your support that we have been able to maintain a crucial lifeline for civil society organizations, human rights defenders, emerging leaders, and independent media -- all of whom remain under grave attack. At no time has that lifeline been more critical than in the past few months, as the Ortega government has sustained a brutal crackdown against the Nicaraguan people, censoring media, and unleashing a reign of terror against any who challenge its repression.
According to the latest figures, more than 300 people have been killed since the protests began in April 2018 -- most at the hands of the national police, youth groups, or government-led gangs, targeting any who dare raise their voices to peacefully and legitimately protest government actions, human rights violations, or continued repression and violence.
For more than 20 years, the U.S. Government (USG) has been a leader in the global effort to increase access to TB diagnosis, treatment, prevention and care, particularly in countries with the highest burden of disease. Thanks to the generosity of the American people and the strong support of the U.S. Congress, USAID is the largest bilateral donor in the fight against TB. We work in partnership with national TB programs (NTPs) in Ministries of Health (MoHs), the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the Global Fund), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Stop TB Partnership, technical assistance organizations, civil society including faith-based organizations, as well as affected people and communities. USAID has driven and funded interventions, tools, and technologies that have helped save 53 million lives from 2000 to 2016. Our efforts to build partnerships with national governments, multilateral organizations, and departments and agencies across the US Government have developed and strengthened country capacity to end the TB epidemic around the world.
I’m proud to say that our connections with the defense establishment have never been stronger. This collaboration is evident across the spectrum, from USAID personnel embedded at geographic Combatant Commands, to our ongoing implementation of the joint Stabilization Assistance Review. And, in the field, in places like Syria, USAID experts are working hand in glove with DoD and State colleagues to help stabilize areas and allow for the safe return of people displaced for years by horrific conflict.
In my testimony before you today, I will touch upon several key ways in which the executive branch agencies leverage their unique capabilities to respond to crises around the world, and how we are increasingly not just communicating, but actively collaborating with each other and our partners on the ground, including nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, contractors, and other nonfederal entities (NFEs).
USAID’s engagement in Latin America and the Caribbean is a reflection of the region’s proximity to and close ties to with the United States.
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 request for USAID fully and partially managed accounts is approximately $16.8 billion. This represents $1.3 billion more than requested last year. It requests $6.7 billion for global health and $5.1 billion for economic support and development. In terms of USAID’s humanitarian assistance, it requests over $1 billion more than last fiscal year’s request. In total, it requests approximately $3.6 billion for International Disaster Assistance.
Our supply-chain activities also provide technical assistance to build capacity and expertise in partner countries to deliver, routinely and licitly, life-saving products purchased with revenues raised locally or from other donors, while also improving trust in local health institutions and services. This technical assistance is an important contributor to Administrator Green and Ambassador Birx’s shared vision of moving countries along the path to self-reliance. I am here today to discuss with you the work we do in supply-chain management and the procurement of medicines and commodities; provide an update on the performance of our current contractor in this area; share our experience and lessons learned to date; and describe the path forward.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 request for USAID fully and partially managed accounts is approximately $16.8 billion. This represents $1.3 billion more than requested last year. It requests $6.7 billion for global health and $5.1 billion for economic support and development. In terms of USAID’s humanitarian assistance, it requests over $1 billion more than last fiscal year’s request. In total, it requests approximately $3.6 billion for International Disaster Assistance.
Thank you, Senator. And thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Leahy, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to summarize my written testimony, which you have. I'd like to begin by welcoming the nomination of Director Pompeo. We've had an opportunity to initially discuss how development and diplomacy go hand-in-hand, and I look forward to working with him closely should he be confirmed.
In the meantime, as you alluded to, Mr. Chairman, at USAID we have urgent work to do. From unprecedented humanitarian challenges, to exciting development opportunities, I believe our work has never been more important. And that's certainly been a clear takeaway from my travels over these last eight months.
The humanitarian crisis we see in Yemen today is exacerbated by the Yemeni Government’s collapse in parts of the country. The current conflict has been ongoing since Houthi attacks against the Yemeni Government began nearly four years ago. This violence between the Houthis, armed by the Iranian regime, and Yemeni Government forces, backed by military support from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, has devolved into a civil war amongst multiple, growing factions, driven in part by regional powers. Political instability, a security vacuum, and fractured governance have allowed extremist groups to expand their areas of influence. Meanwhile, more than 75 percent of the country—or more than 22 million people—need humanitarian assistance. To put that into perspective, that’s more than one and a half times the entire populations of Tennessee and New Jersey, combined.
The ongoing conflict has resulted in an estimated 10,000 civilian deaths and is also the reason why two million people are still unable to return home after fleeing for safety. Fighting has hampered commercial trade, which is devastating in a country that traditionally imports 90 percent of its food and most of its fuel and medicine. Infrastructure has been destroyed, leaving 16 million people without access to clean water or working toilets. Salaries aren’t getting paid. These conditions are unlikely to change unless until there is durable political resolution to the conflict. It is imperative that all parties to the conflict protect civilians and aid workers, who work at great personal risk to assist people in need.
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
Thank you, Chairman Royce, Ranking Member Engel, members of the committee. I appreciate this opportunity to discuss USAID's Fiscal Year 2019 Budget Request. It is wonderful to be back in this room, as a couple of you have already noted. I served on this committee during my time in the House. Of course, back then it was called the "House International Relations Committee," and we were, shall we say, more of a rag-tag bunch than the distinguished ladies and gentlemen that I see here before me. But even so, today feels like I'm coming home.
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
The President’s national security strategy states that America should target threats at their source, catalyze international response to man-made and natural disasters and provide to those in need. As the 2016 Global Food Security Act states, “It is in the national interest of the United States to promote global food security.” A food-secure world where people are not worried about their children going to bed hungry is in the U.S. interest: stability helps ward off future conflict and prosperity opens new markets for U.S. exports and trade.
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Last updated: July 12, 2018
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