Global Health Magazine just posted this interesting interview with Ambassador Eric Goosby, the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator. In it he discusses the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) at length as well as the Obama Administration’s plans for combating the global AIDS epidemic.

Excerpt below, full interview here

Q: What are you spending most of your time on now?

Goosby: The main focus has been in understanding what we’ve done in the first five years in the PEPFAR programs (and) in each location how our response in both prevention and treatment do or do not relate to the demographics of the epidemic in each of these settings. In each city, there are multiple epidemics. Each has their own population, and movement of the virus through that population. And we’re looking at how well our prevention programs understand that movement of the virus, and if they have indeed positioned themselves in front of it.

A second focus … has been appreciating the complexity of our partnering network within the country, in the NGO community in particular. It’s been astonishing to see how well we have done in urban populations.

But now the fragility of these health systems is what I’m most concerned about it. They are as fragile as the NGO who is involved in the delivery, and that is dependent on continued resources from us to support them in that effort.

Some friends recently alerted me to the fact that the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is now officially on Facebook.

This is a pretty cool development, and my immediate impression of the page is that it’s a really nice platform to disseminate up-to-the-minute information about the program and to interact with constituents. You can check out the page, and become a fan, at www.facebook.com/PEPFAR. You can also now follow PEPFAR on Twitter.

Also, Nandini Oomman and Christina Droggitis from the Center for Global Development offer some sharp analysis and suggestions for PEPFAR’s engagement with social networking here.

Check out this post from our partner Women Thrive Worldwide about the importance of the GROWTH Act, which has reintroduced in the Senate this summer.
-Margaret McDonnell

People thought Alicia would never do anything more than sweep streets. After she had to drop out of school, they thought she would never go back. When she got married at 15 and had her first child, her fate was sealed in the eyes of her community – she would spend the rest of her life sweeping streets, struggling to earn enough to feed her children.

But Alicia had other plans.

The daughter of a desperately poor family in Colombia, Alicia del Socorro Meneses has spent her whole life overcoming what could easily have been crippling challenges.

When a bloody conflict unfolded in her village, she and her husband were forced to leave their home. They moved to a new city, Agua Blanca, and hand built a house from cardboard in the slums. Alicia struggled for five years, until she met a group of Catholic nuns who gave her a small micro-loan through one of their development programs. Alicia used the loan to start a small business selling food from her house. She called her business “Alicia’s Delicacies.” Soon she was making a profit. Her husband started treating her with more respect, she was able to buy her children more necessities, and her neighbors began to view her as a community leader – she was even elected for local office!


With her new success, Alicia enrolled in a university certificate program to study business development, cooperatives, and project management. Her new skills enabled her to grow her business and employ four new women. Today Alicia’s Delicacies is thriving and Alicia is working with the same nuns who helped her, to teach other women in the area how to start their own businesses.

Says Alicia, “Now I am able to train other women and I hope that they will be able to lift themselves from poverty just as I have.”

Alicia’s story is a testament to the power of micro-finance to transform women’s lives. Last year, Alicia traveled from Colombia to Washington, DC to convince lawmakers to pass the Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive Act (GROWTH), a bill now in the Senate that would give millions of women the opportunity Alicia had.

Walking through the halls of Congress with Women Thrive staff Alicia said, “I really want the U.S. Congress to pass the GROWTH Act because […] it would open the doors for women to benefit from micro-finance and invest in local organizations like mine – we are the key because we know best how to solve local women’s issues on the ground.”

Activists around the country are participating in a call-in effort to urge Congress to pass the GROWTH Act. We need your voice: Please call your Senators TODAY and ask them to support the GROWTH Act!

Here’s how to take action:

1. Call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senators’ offices.

2. When an office staffer answers the phone say, “As a constituent of Senator ______, I am calling to ask the Senator to highlight his/her commitment to ending global poverty and empowering women worldwide by co-sponsoring the Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive Act, S. 1425.”

Please take action for women like Alicia: Call your Senators today!

-Mckenzie Lock, Women Thrive Worldwide

Photo caption: Alicia and a Senate staffer outside the office of former Oregon Senator Gordon Smith

While some used the last week of August to get ready to go back to school or get in that last summer vacation, ONE members across the country were busy attending meetings with their Members of Congress! Each of these meetings are important and provide an opportunity for ONE members to use their voice for the world’s poorest people. The meetings let Senators and Representatives know that their constituents truly care about the fight against extreme poverty and preventable diseases like HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria.

Below are a few highlights of last week’s meetings, and make sure to check out the blog as we get more updates from around the country (click images to enlarge):

Visit to Senator Richard Shelby’s office in Mobile, Alabama

Last week Judith Smits and fellow ONE member David O’Brien met with Tara Johnson in Senator Shelby’s office in Mobile, Alabama to discuss the importance of U.S. leadership in fighting extreme poverty and global disease. Specifically, they discussed the potential impact climate change may have on developing countries. Increased droughts, floods and storms have the potential to reverse many of the gains being made against poverty and disease in some of the poorest countries around the world. Judith and David requested that Senator Shelby ensure that this year’s Senate climate change legislation meets the standard set by last year’s bipartisan Lieberman-Warner climate bill, and allocates 5% of any revenue to begin helping the world’s poorest people overcome the threats posed by climate change.

Visit to Senator Specter’s office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Last Wednesday PA ONE Members met with Senator Specter’s Community Affairs Coordinator Adam C. Pope in Pittsburgh, PA. We made sure that Mr. Pope knew how much PA ONE members appreciate Senator Specter’s leadership in the Senate and for supporting important programs like PEPFAR, the Millennium Challenge Account, and the Global Fund.

We also indicated that ONE hopes that Senator Specter will support 5% of climate related revenue to assist the world’s poorest confront threats arising from climate change. There was also discussion of the upcoming G-20 summit in Pittsburgh, the role Senator Specter will play in those events as well as ONE having a presence in the city and around the meetings.

Visit to Representative Bill Posey’s office in Melbourne, Florida

On Wednesday last week, ONE members joined Jenni Rothenberg and others from the USGLC to meet with Representative Bill Posey’s (R-FL-15) District Director, Kathryn Rudloff. We discussed the importance of development as a key foreign policy tool and the need for development strategies to be elevated to the same level as defense and diplomacy (i.e. the ‘3Ds’). We are hopeful that Rep. Posey will help us achieve this goal by supporting full funding for poverty reduction programs in the State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill conference report.

Visit to Representative Kathy Castor’s office in Tampa, Florida

On Friday last week, ONE member Alex Savelli teamed up with USGLC one more time to meet with Representative Castor’s District Director, Chloe Coney. We thanked her for Rep. Castor’s previous support on global poverty issues, including her vote in support of the FY2010 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill. She also voted against several amendments which would have substantially reduced funding for 2010 poverty-fighting programs. Rep. Castor’s continued support of full funding for the FY2010 International Affairs Budget will be critical to help elevate development assistance in order to restore America’s image in the world, increase our security and help to lift millions out of extreme poverty.

Visit to Representative Bill Young’s office in Seminole, Florida

Last week, Tampa ONE member Alex Savelli met with Shirley Miaoulis at the Seminole district office of Representative Bill Young (R-FL-10). Representative Young has been in office and serving the people of the 10th Congressional district for close to 40 years. It was great to be able to sit down with his staff and learn more about the issues that Representative Young champions, including his commitment to U.S. troops and their families. As the highest ranking Republican member on the Defense Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, his support on initiatives to end poverty and disease is critical.

During the meeting, we talked about the upcoming vote on the State, Foreign Operations conference report and asked that Rep. Young support the highest possible funding for life-saving programs such as The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and PEPFAR, The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The International Affairs Budget provides America with countless opportunities to build global stability, generate much needed allies and advance our national interests. I am hopeful that Rep. Young will support the State,Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill when he returns to Washington this fall.

-Kim Smith

Earlier today, Secretary Clinton signed a landmark agreement with Angola aimed at combating HIV/AIDS. This new “partnership framework” emphasizes a ground-up approach and lays out a five-year plan in which the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) will support health priorities laid out in Angola’s HIV National Strategic Plan.

Here are a few key excerpts from Secretary Clinton’s remarks on the agreement:

“This framework represents a new approach to our government’s fight against HIV/AIDS. It emphasizes a bottoms-up approach tailored for and by the country we are assisting. It represents an expansion of local capacity and health care systems that can last over time. It represents long-term planning and more intensive pursuit of prevention. It represents the use of measurements to assure effectiveness and accountability. It will allow for greater coordination among the many parties involved in preventing and treating HIV/AIDS. And finally, it will place greater attention of the affect of HIV/AIDS on women.”

“I am pleased that, thanks to the very swift work between the minister of health and the global AIDS coordinator, we are going to more than double funding for PEPFAR in Angola.”

While Angola is already a PEPFAR focus country, through this new agreement, the U.S. and Angola will work together to strengthen health systems; improve monitoring and evaluation; bolster HIV prevention activities (particularly mother-to-child transmission); address TV/HIV co-infection; address discrimination issues; encourage testing; and promote the people living with HIV/AIDS in all levels of planning and implementation.
Funding will reportedly increase from $7 million to $17 million.

-Lisa Fleisher

Another post from ONE’s Edith Jibunoh from the AGOA Forum in Nairobi, Kenya.

At the AGOA ministerial opening ceremony this morning, both Kenyan President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga gave speeches after Secretary Clinton’s welcoming remarks. Prime Minister Odinga reiterated much of what he spoke about on the first day, further emphasizing the need for inter-regional trade and the importance of developing an African trade agenda. He commended the leadership of Secretary Clinton, noting her ability to accept defeat in the U.S. elections and still go on to work with her former opponent. He noted that in Africa—where had said many elections are rigged—losers often do not accept defeat. This statement proceeded to cause quite a stir, as President Kibaki was scheduled to speak next. Many will recall that President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga were at odds over the disputed 2007 Kenyan elections in Kenya. Terrible post-election violence led to over 1,200 people being killed and 300,000 people being displaced from their homes. The crisis was abated when President Kibaki accepted a brokered arrangement to share power with Prime Minister Odinga in the Kenyan government.

During his remarks, President Kibaki emphasized the importance of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and said that he hoped the AGOA forum would lead to greater product diversity and a greater share of trade between Africa and the U.S. Obstacles in the way to achieving this, he said, included inadequate financing for capacity building, inefficient production techniques, stringent certification procedures and high transport costs. Kibaki then noted that Africa has undergone tremendous changes—and Kenya was certainly no exception. The country had introduced electoral reforms, strengthened media and human rights, and had begun taking steps towards a constitutional review (which could result in a new constitution within a year), bringing greater accountability to all government actions for the good of all Kenyans.

Despite these remarks by both leaders, there seemed to be a lot of skepticism in Kenya about the sincerity of the Kenyan government in ensuring that these reforms translated into real change, both locally and globally. In a private meeting between Secretary Clinton and President Kibaki following the opening ceremony, Secretary Clinton raised the issue of the local tribunal bill (which was recently squashed in parliament). This bill was meant to initiate local tribunals that would consider cases related to the post-election violence, bringing justice to the victims. Clinton insisted that these tribunals were in the best interest of Kenyans and called on the Kenyan government to follow through on their commitment. This statement then sparked off a local debate on whether or not western nations should lecture Africans (in this case Kenya) on good governance. A poll conducted by the Kenyan television network resulted in 59% of respondents calling in to say YES, and 41% calling in to say NO.

-Edith Jibunoh

It is officially August Recess and here in Florida we are taking advantage of the opportunity to meet locally with our elected officials and their staff while they are in town.

Earlier today, we had the chance to sit down with Josh Maddock, District Representative for Congressman Ron Klein (Fl-D-22). We told Josh all about ONE and the more than 4,000 ONE members living right here in the 22nd Congressional District which spans the eastern coast of Florida from Boca Raton up through parts of Jupiter.

First and foremost, we thanked Josh for Rep. Klein’s previous support on some of our legislative priorities, including the reauthorization of PEPFAR and the Jubilee Act. We were also pleased to report that Rep. Klein voted against the Lewis/Culberson amendment which, if passed, would have cut significant funding from the FY2010 Foreign Affairs Appropriations Bill.

As a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, we knew that Rep. Klein would be familiar with recent efforts to re-write the Foreign Assistance Act with the goal of restructuring and improving coordination and aid effectiveness. We asked that Rep. Klein consider joining the more than 100 members of Congress who are already cosponsors of this important bill.

Before leaving, we also talked about the importance of developing a long-term approach to improve agricultural sustainability and asked that Rep. Klein become a cosponsor of H.R. 3077, The Global Food Security Act. We know that the United States is a global leader in providing emergency food and disaster assistance, however, these interventions, while critical, are not sustainable solutions to improve the lives of millions that are vulnerable to food insecurity.

-Sara J. Paterni

Here’s a post from ONE’s Edith Jibunoh, who’s on the ground at the AGOA Forum in Nairobi, Kenya. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will address the forum tomorrow morning.

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum opened today in Nairobi, Kenya, under the theme “Realizing the Full Potential of AGOA through Expansion of Trade and Investment.” AGOA allows eligible African countries to trade with the United States under favorable terms, in an effort to help increase exports from Africa to the U.S.

The first day of the three day forum featured discussions between the private sector, civil society, and African ministers. Issues addressed included AGOA’s performance, capacity development, and how to maximize AGOA’s opportunities. In the opening session, Kenya Prime Minister Raila Odinga emphasized the importance of aid, but said that is must be effectively applied. He stressed the importance of focusing locally to help build investment capacity, as rapid economic growth would be best achieved through trade. Odinga also noted that African countries had been through strict reforms, and that the continent remained weak in their export capacities due to national strategies that focused on small and medium enterprise (SME) development. While he said that SME’s could not meet the number of bulk orders from the U.S., they could certainly meet regional demands. But in order to do this, African countries had to focus more on inter-regional trade and open up their borders to encourage the free flow of goods between African countries.

Odinga closed his remarks by stating that the terms ‘governance, transparency and accountability’ were created only after the fall of the Berlin Wall and after the end of the old style of development assistance based on Cold War alliances. To this end, he called on African governments to do what they know to be right, rather than focusing on placating donors, and encouraging them to focus on trading their way out of the economic crisis.

More updates to follow.

-Edith Jibunoh

Today marks the first day of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s seven-nation, 11 day trip to Africa. Her first stop is Kenya, where she’ll speak at the 8th African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum in Nairobi, an annual forum that examines trade and investment relations between the U.S. and Africa.

Following her time in Kenya, Clinton will then travel (in order) to South Africa, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Liberia, and will end her trip in Cape Verde on August 14. As Ambassador Johnnie Carson, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, noted in a press briefing last week, the “Secretary’s trip follows the themes laid out by President Obama during his visit to Ghana: supporting strong and sustainable democratic governments; promoting sustainable economic development; strengthening public health and education; and assisting in the prevention, litigation, and resolution of conflicts around Africa.”

Check out Carson’s complete description of the trip (or click here to read the State Department’s press release.)

In the days ahead, stay tuned to the ONE blog, as we’ll continue to offer updates and insight on Clinton’s travels throughout Africa!

-Kara Arsenault

Chairman Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-TX) exemplified bipartisan leadership in navigating the $48.8 billion State-Foreign Operations bill though the House Appropriations Committee yesterday afternoon. After a few amendments, the bill passed by a near unanimous voice vote demonstrating solid support for live-saving, effective programs.

Over the past few months ONE members across the country contacted Members of Congress on the importance of fighting poverty, and it is clear that ONE has been heard. But no resting on our laurels, there is much, much more to do. The full House will take up the bill after the July 4th holiday, and the Senate Appropriations Committee will begin its work around the same time.

On our key programs, some funding levels are very good, and on others, we need to do more. For global health programs, the House Appropriations Committee provides $7.7 billion, which includes fully funding PEPFAR at $5.259 billion. The global health amount also includes $750 million for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and there is an additional $300 million in the Labor-Health and Human Services bill for a total of $1.05 billion, but the need is $2 billion, so we have some work to do in boosting the funding for this critical, proven program. Good news is that the bill fully funds the President’s Malaria Initiative at $585 million and the Millennium Challenge Account at $1.4 billion, both huge increases from last year’s levels. There is also positive funding for basic education, child and maternal health, and other development programs.

However, in addition to the Global Fund, there is another area of significant concern, and that is the funding of the President’s Food Security initiative. The President’s request was approximately $1.4 billion, but the bill provides about $1 billion, and we believe most of this cut will be felt by African and Latin American countries. This is a key initiative that will help the world’s poorest countries increase their agricultural productivity, reduce poverty, and provide economic prosperity.

Yesterday’s action marks an important step in the funding process, and also provides us with the opportunity to make a difference going forward.

-Arjun Mody