|
Ambassador Charles L. Glazer’s Remarks for the SOAGs Signing Ceremony
Mr. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Francisco Esteban Laínez
Executive Director for External Cooperation, Alberto Morales
Mission Director of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Deborah Kennedy-Iraheta
Ladies and Gentleman,
Good morning.
It is my pleasure to be here with you today.
A few minutes ago, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and I signed three Grant Amendments providing $23,482,000 in US government assistance to El Salvador to support ongoing USAID programs.
This funding will enable the United States Agency for International Development to continue its five-year, $122 million program in economic development, health, education and democracy.
But this is just one part of a larger U.S. government assistance program for El Salvador:
Another key component is the Millennium Challenge Account activities that are just starting in the Northern Zone of El Salvador.
With the U.S. contribution of $461 million, and an even larger contribution by your Government, MCC will build new roads to link 600,000 beneficiaries with the rest of the country.
It will also support the growth of productive enterprises, electrification, and improvement of water access, sanitation, education and vocational training for thousands of Salvadorans in the Northern Zone.
I am very proud of the more than 3,000 Peace Corps Volunteers who have served in El Salvador
currently, we have 165 Volunteers working at the community level and assisting with the development of youth, rural areas and municipalities.
In addition, our U.S. Department of Agriculture supports a Food for Progress program, which generates millions of dollars to support grants to Salvadoran organizations in the areas of trade capacity building, rural development and export support for small and medium enterprises.
Our military is also active in providing assistance – this year, through a visit of the U.S. Navy vessel, USS Comfort, and other exercises, the military will have delivered medical assistance to 50,000 Salvadorans – this is part of a long-term humanitarian support effort that has reached some of the country’s neediest areas.
My Public Affairs Office is also active in promoting bilateral relations, through scholarship and international visitors programs that sent 24 Salvadorans to the U.S. this year, and through grants for a variety of cultural events and other projects designed to assist the Salvadoran people.
We also have several agencies that are working together with your Government to reduce the problems of crime, both through improved law enforcement, and also by assisting at-risk youth who are targets for gang recruitment.
These are just some of the principal elements of our assistance. But today we are here to celebrate the signing of these USAID grant amendments.
At this time, I would like to call on our USAID Director, Deborah Kennedy-Iraheta, to provide some detail on the programs that USAID is carrying out. Deborah…
|
