Archive for June, 2008
On Wednesday I dropped off 900 pages worth of letters to Senator Wayne Allard’s office asking the senator to become a cosponsor. The letters made quite the impression on the staff there. After dropping them off we talked at length about the type of work ONE does and the development issues we are working on.
Back in 2002 only 50,000 people were receiving ARV’s from our programs. Today, because of PEPFAR, over 2 million people are getting the life saving drugs they need. A big thanks to all the Coloradoans who stepped up and added their name to the letter as well as additional comments, it made a big impact and hopefully it will help move PEPFAR forward.
-Matthew McAllister
Last night Senate Majority Leader Reid issued a statement setting Tuesday, June 24, as the deadline to complete talks about PEPFAR and move the bill forward.
Some excepts from his statement:
“…Because Democrats and Republicans worked together and reached that common goal, we have had a positive impact on the lives of tens of millions of Africans. That is a tremendous start.
But the work still ahead is just as daunting as the work completed…
That is why we must renew the commitment that President Bush, Democrats and Republicans in Congress all made together in 2003. It is time to reauthorize the PEPFAR program. The House of Representatives passed the reauthorization bill by an overwhelming bipartisan vote. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee followed suit. President Bush and Senate Democrats strongly support this legislation.
As is the case with every compromise, the legislation is not perfect but it is a crucial next step. We stand ready to act because we know that AIDS is not a Democratic problem or a Republican problem. No one owns this problem. It falls to all of us, Americans and all people of the world, to fight and beat it…
It is confounding and indefensible that a small group of Republican Senators have placed a hold on this legislation, preventing us from moving forward. They should have followed the lead of President Bush, Members of Congress from both parties, and a diverse group of world health organizations and nonprofits. They should have abandoned their obstruction long ago….
These negotiations are ongoing and we are all hopeful that we will soon have a compromise agreement. Given the importance of this legislation, I have set a deadline of next Tuesday for all parties to reach a final agreement. I want to be clear that I am committed to getting this legislation completed.”
You can read Senator Reid’s full statement after the jump. (more…)
The DATA Report, which ONE launched in Paris on Wednesday, tracks each G8 country’s progress towards delivering its commitments on aid to Africa.
This year’s report found that although U.S. delivery has been slower than hoped, increases in assistance primarily for HIV/AIDS and malaria (areas in which the U.S. is a clear leader) are starting to come. By next year, we predict the increases will double and analysis shows that by 2010 the U.S. is likely to have delivered on its commitment.
Though good news, it’s our job to make sure this actually happens! You can help by signing the PEPFAR petition.
At a time when the U.S. is electing a new president, we hope the current commitments will be seen as a floor to build upon. The U.S. commitment was smaller than others when you compare it to the size of our economy, so now that the U.S. looks likely to achieve this commitment, it would be good to see the U.S. take leadership and make a bigger commitment.
Here are the numbers:
· 2010 Target for ODA to Africa: $8.8bn
· 2007 ODA to Africa: $5.414bn
· Change in ODA to Africa between 2006-2007: $413m
· Change in ODA to Africa between 2004-2007: $581m
· % of increases achieved: 15
· Increase needed between 2007-2008: $1.2bn ($1.1bn in 2004 prices)
· Estimated increase between 2007-2008: $940m ($868m in 2004 prices)
(More G8 countries’ reports to follow.)
-Josh Lozman
It’s always refreshing to see when good deeds don’t go unnoticed. When President Bush presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom – the nation’s highest civil honor – to a number of individuals just this morning, PEPFAR was the name of the game.
The Medal of Freedom was awarded to the late Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.). His wife, Mrs. Annette Lantos, received the award on his behalf. By many standards, Rep. Lantos’ stature as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee was enough to make him a hero. This was a man who escaped a forced labor camp in World War II, emigrated to the United States and, after a career as a professor, earned his place as an esteemed member of the House of Representatives.
But Rep. Lantos didn’t stop there. Throughout his entire life, Mr. Lantos strove to extend the qualities of justice and equality throughout the world. He championed PEPFAR, working to make it a program that would be “sustainable for generations to come.” As chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Lantos shaped and pushed legislation that has provided treatment for 1.4 million people. Even more, PEPFAR has provided care for AIDS orphans, prevented new treatments and made significant progress to treat and prevent new infections of malaria and tuberculosis.
(more…)
I just got this email from our legislative director Tom Hart!
“Friends, we have some good news. McCain confirmed he will add his name as a cosponsor of the Biden-Lugar bill, perhaps as early as today. This should help “unstick” the bill. Great collective effort, particularly from Porter Delaney here in DC and Matthew Bartlett in NH.
So just this week, we have both Obama and McCain added as cosponsors.
All the best.
Tom Hart
ONE”
Ashley Judd visited Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo as an Ambassador with Population Services International’s Five and Alive program in late April. She documented her impressions and experiences in a personal journal, which have been transformed into a week-long series of blog posts.
Day Four:
I am here (in Goma, DRC) to visit our clinics that specialize in family planning, maternal and child health, and the treatment and prevention of malaria. (We also do safe water and HIV prevention in this area of the DRC). I also hope to visit with women who are rape victims. Rape is an epidemic here. It is an emergency. It is everywhere, on a massive scale. It is not altogether unreported in the western media, but it is grossly underreported. An ancient and common tool of warfare, this area’s female population has been hostage to gender based violence for decades.
What a shocking difference a few feet make. On the Rwandan side of the crossing, the roads are tidy, neat, maintained. The earth is red and the wind blowing through the trees, the lapping of the shores of Lake Kivu, is serene. There is a sense of orderliness and even within the clear poverty; I feel the purposeful attempt at self improvement, through agriculture and the tiny, colorful flower gardens.
Passing into the DRC…Oh my God.
-Ashley Judd
Read the rest of this entry, on Five & Alive’s website.and check back to the ONE Blog next week for highlight’s from Ashley’s journal on days 5,6 and 7 of her trip.
Five & Alive, a program of Population Services International (PSI), provides children and their families with the education, products, services and care needed to improve health and save lives in more than 30 countries. www.fiveandalive.org
From the AP:
“PARIS (AP) — Bono, Bob Geldof and other celebrities pressed the world’s wealthiest countries Wednesday to come through with more pledged financial aid for Africa…
“What this big, long, exact, cold and brutal analysis shows us is that halfway to this historic date of 2010 — halfway — these wealthy countries … have delivered 14 percent. How tragic is that?” Geldof told reporters in Paris….
The report said that 2.1 million Africans are on life-saving AIDS drugs, up from 50,000 in 2002; that 26 million children were immunized against life-threatening diseases from 2001 to 2006; and that 29 million children in Africa entered school for the first time between 1999 and 2005 because of debt relief and increased aid.”
Stay tuned for more posts about details in the report, or check it all out yourself here.
