U.S. WELCOMES PROGRESS IN HAITI

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
March 18, 2015
AS DELIVERED

Thank you, Mr. President, thank you, Special Representative Honoré, for your briefing and your leadership. And thank you to all the dedicated men and women serving in MINUSTAH, who are working with you to build a more secure and stable Haiti.

The United States welcomes the recent progress Haiti has made toward holding elections this year, including the promulgation of an electoral decree on March 2 drafted by a new electoral council drawn from civil society, and that council’s subsequent announcement of voting dates. While we commend President Martelly’s efforts to promote an inclusive political process, including by forming a multiparty government, the health of Haiti’s democracy depends on restoring a functioning legislature without further delay. That is why it is so important that elections take place this year as planned, and that the government continue to use its extraordinary decree powers solely to administer elections and keep the state running. We also call upon all of Haiti’s political leaders and parties to participate in elections and to ensure an atmosphere of peace so that all eligible Haitians who wish to vote can do so without fear for their safety.

With the electoral decree in place and election dates set, urgent attention to preparing for and organizing the polls is required, to ensure elections that are free, fair, credible, and inclusive. Continued inclusive political dialogue and preparations for elections that are transparent and ensure a level playing field will be required to sustain the generally stable security situation that the Secretary-General has reported.

While MINUSTAH and the rest of the international community, including my government, stand ready to support the administration of the elections, ultimately the responsibility for ensuring their success lies with Haitians: the Haitian government, the electoral council, the political parties, and the Haitian people themselves.

The level of support provided by MINUSTAH, particularly its engineering battalions, for elections in 2010 and 2011 were part of the package of extraordinary measures that the international community took to help Haiti recover from the devastating 2010 earthquake, not an enduring precedent for elections this year or in the future. We join the Secretary-General’s call on the government to ensure the electoral council and other state institutions have adequate resources to administer elections in a manner that reflects Haitians’ increased assumption of a responsibility so central to the exercise of sovereignty. The United States will do our part in support.

Successful elections will require robust international support, of course, including from MINUSTAH. MINUSTAH should without delay catalogue the functions played in the last elections by each of its respective components, including the funds and programs. It should identify any of those critical functions each component will not be able to carry out in 2015. And it should work urgently across the UN system and with the electoral council, donors, Haitian and international civil society actors, and the government of Haiti to ensure that those functions are carried out effectively during this year’s elections. MINUSTAH also should work closely with the electoral council to identify any elements of Haiti’s election planning, including the number and location of polling centers, that may make the process more vulnerable to violence or manipulation, and to develop and implement corrective measures transparently and in consultation with Haitian political actors. The 2015 elections will not be Haiti’s last; it is important to use each electoral cycle to improve Haiti’s electoral system and to make it more sustainable.

We note the generally stable security situation that the Secretary-General reported. This comes amid the continued growth and professionalization of the Haitian National Police, to which donors and MINUSTAH should continue to offer maximum support. The Haitian National Police needs to continue to grow in size and capability. But while we were in Haiti, we heard that every trained Haitian National Policeman or woman is worth ten international police. Moreover, even with the reported increase in crime and gang-related violence, Haiti’s homicide rate remains well below the regional average. Incidents of violent unrest during the reporting period totaled only 215 events. In most of these cases, the HNP required no operational support from any MINUSTAH forces to manage the situation, and in only 16 percent of all incidents of violent unrest nationwide did the HNP require some level of operational support from MINUSTAH’s military forces.

Most of those incidents took place in close proximity to the three locations where the military component will be based following MINUSTAH’s reconfiguration. When support from the military component is required elsewhere in the country going forward, it will be available thanks to the mobility that the reconfigured Mission will have. The overall security situation in the six departments where MINUSTAH military no longer reside remains stable in this reporting period.

MINUSTAH continues to be an essential hedge against the risk of any future deterioration in security conditions. And the United Stated strongly supports a push by the UN, backed by member states, to ensure the dispatch of an additional three hundred international police forces to Haiti, as authorized but not yet deployed. We also support adding without delay medium-lift helicopters to MINUSTAH’s aviation component, which will make the Mission’s forces more quickly deployable in large numbers to any location in the country in the event of a different scale of unrest than we have seen so far. We also support the Secretary-General’s call, echoed here today by the Special Representative, to ensure maximum visibility of MINUSTAH’s forces, an objective well-served by ensuring the Mission’s leaders retain the flexibility to redistribute their forces as necessary to respond to evolving security conditions.

2015 poses extraordinary challenges for Haiti, but also extraordinary opportunities. An opportunity to break from past electoral cycles marred by fraud and disenfranchisement, and the violence that both have historically engendered. An opportunity for Haiti’s political parties to put aside their differences and cooperate to ensure elections that place Haiti’s democracy on sounder footing. An opportunity to adopt more sustainable elections architecture. An opportunity for Haitians to take a giant step forward toward sustained political stability and self-sufficiency. As they seize these opportunities, the government and people of Haiti can continue to count on the utmost support of the United States. Thank you.

U.S. AMBASSADOR POWER'S REMARKS IN PORT-AU PRINCE, HAITI

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
January 23, 2015


Thank you. I am Samantha Power, the American Ambassador to the United Nations, and co-lead of this trip with my colleague, the Chilean Ambassador, Cristián Barros.

Each of the 15 individuals standing here have the privilege of representing countries on the UN Security Council and the privilege, in that role, of trying to support the Haitian people in their journey toward stability, prosperity and democracy.

The United Nations, as a community of nations and as MINUSTAH, and the 15 counties here each have stood with the Haitian people through good times and bad times.

Haiti has experienced many challenges throughout its long and rich and vibrant history. What always defines the Haitian people’s response is the spirit of resilience and determination.

We have just had a very important meeting with President Martelly and his Prime Minister and his Cabinet. Over the next two days we will meet with civil society, with opposition parties, with senators and with Haitians outside of Port-au-Prince in Cap-Haitien and here as well, in the capital.

In our meeting with President Martelly, we expressed our collective appreciation for his efforts before the Parliament lapsed to try to (inaudible) consensus in order to maintain the functioning of the Parliament and to pass electoral legislation.

This Council also expressed to President Martelly and his ministers the same disappointment that the Haitian people probably feel, that these efforts to seek consensus and to find a path forward did not prevent the Parliament from lapsing and did not produce the necessary compromise.

We support the President in his efforts to find a solution to the political stalemate and his efforts to ensure fair, transparent and inclusive elections in 2015.

Haiti has made tremendous progress in recent years in terms of health and education, and the President described much of that progress and more, in terms of the development of his country.

The democratic contract between the government and the governed is a critical part of Haiti’s development and we, on the UN Security Council, want to offer Haiti all of the support we can to ensure that elections take place, as they need to, in 2015, and to ensure that all Haitians are invested in the democracy and in the economy and in the development of this rich country.

We are very encouraged by the effort at consultation with the opposition, with civil society, that the President has made, and out of this meeting, even more encouraged by his determination to continue those consultations even after the lapsing of the Parliament.

And it is clear that even as this political stalemate frustrates people in this country, it is not getting in the way of the government continuing to focus on health, on the economy and on the other functions that the Haitian people count on the President and his ministers to advance.

And my last point is simply that we are very pleased that the Provisional Election Council[i] has been formed, which is of course a critical and necessary step to the holding of elections and we hope it is just the beginning of the kinds of mechanisms that can evolve here in this untraditional period where the Parliament is not functioning.

(Of mic)

Simply to say that we…were pleased by the creation of the Provisional Election --

(Of mic)

It is an example of the kind of compromise among civil society, the opposition and the government that will create a path forward.

And lastly, you have our full support on behalf, again, of the broader international community. We are privileged to be here to see what more the United Nations and each of our nations can do to help the Haitian people through another difficult chapter, but one we are confident that they will come out stronger for having been through on the other side. Mèrci.

SECRETARY KERRY, CHILEAN FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ MAKE REMARKS AT SIGNING CEREMONY

FROM:  THE STATE DEPARTMENT 

Remarks With Chilean Foreign Minister Munoz at a Signing Ceremony

Remarks

John Kerry

Secretary of State

Benjamin Franklin Room

Washington, DC

June 30, 2014

---

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, thank you very much for joining us. We’ve just come from a wonderful lunch with President Bachelet and her delegation, and we discussed the very strong relationship between the United States and Chile. And to that end, Foreign Minister Munoz and I are going to be signing memoranda of understanding on small business cooperation, on international development cooperation, and a declaration on the intent on trilateral cooperation in the Caribbean. Afterwards, my colleagues from the Department of Homeland Security will sign a joint statement to combat trafficking in persons, and with Finance Minister Arenas, an agreement on customs mutual assistance that will facilitate trade while at the same time keeping our countries secure.

The MOU on small business, on business cooperation, cements an already strong partnership with Chile, and it does so in a way that will advance economic opportunities for small businesses, and it will also promote access for women through the Women’s Entrepreneurship of the Americas initiative. We really look forward, as we talked about at lunch and we also talked about with President Obama today, to the opportunity to expand an already strong economic relationship and long-term both security and friendship relationship with Chile in order to develop other economies in the Pacific region as well as throughout Latin America.
Our declaration of intent on the cooperation on the trilateral effort is really a pledge to continue and upgrade our development in Haiti, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. So the United States and Chile come to this memorandum of understanding signing today with a clear intent to continue to grow our own relationship and to try to strengthen the relationships with other countries in Latin America, particularly with a view to trying to achieve our shared goals on a global basis. Chile is a great partner globally, and we appreciate enormously the cooperation that we have received and that we give each other.

Heraldo.

FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Let me first say that we’re very pleased with the president, President Bachelet, to come to Washington for this bilateral meeting with President Obama with you to sign these agreements that I think underline the fact that we have a key bilateral relationship and that this is a mature and high-quality relationship that we highly value. And I think that the agreements that we’re signing today point towards sort of a new association. We already have a free trade agreement, we already have a high-quality relationship, but we’re signaling here that we want to go into new grounds.
And that new association has to do with cooperation, not only among ourselves but in third countries like in the Caribbean, like we’re signing today, with small and medium enterprises that are absolutely fundamental to create jobs. In our country, most of the jobs are created by small and medium enterprises, and we appreciate cooperation in that area. The fact that we are also singing agreements with regard to education, science and technology, innovation, energy, which are all the areas that I think point towards this new association between our two countries.

I want to also say that the customs agreement point towards the common interests in security, in securing our borders, but at the same time facilitating trade, because this is one of our interests. We value also your mentioning our projecting ourselves towards the Pacific and the Asia region. This is a horizon of the future. We are part of the Pacific. We’re both members of APEC. And Chile, within the Pacific Alliance, is making a further commitment to deepen our ties with our countries, our colleagues of the region to project ourselves together with the rest of the Latin American region so that Chile can aspire to be a bridge to the Pacific. It can be a port to the Pacific not only to the countries that face the Pacific but also those on the Atlantic side.
So this has been a very positive visit. President Bachelet is satisfied with the conversations that we had. And I think we have a road ahead of us to comply with the commitments, including those, Mr. Secretary, that both of us made at the Our Ocean Conference that you led that will be held in Chile next year, where I hope the countries that came with commitments will comply with what they promised. I think this will be not only for the benefit of our oceans, of our biodiversity, but the economic future of our countries. If we ecologically value what we have, I think we are making a commitment towards future generations.

So thank you very much for hosting us, and thank you to President Obama because President Bachelet has been very satisfied with this visit. Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you. Thank you, Heraldo.

STAFF: Secretary Kerry and Minister Munoz will now sign the Memorandum of Understanding for International Development Cooperation.

(The memorandum was signed.)

STAFF: The second signing will be the Memorandum of Understanding on Promoting Entrepreneurship and the Growth of Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises. Witnessing the signing of the MOU are U.S. Small Business Administration Maria Contrares-Sweet and Chilean Minister of Economy, Development, and Tourism Luis Felipe Cespedes.
(The memorandum was signed.)

STAFF: The third signing will be the Joint Declaration of Intent for the Development of Trilateral Cooperation in Countries in the Caribbean. This declaration of intent on trilateral cooperation evidences our pledge to contribute to development in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Jamaica.

(The memorandum was signed.)

SECRETARY KERRY: Whatever we signed is legally binding now. (Laughter.)
FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ: We cannot repent.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, sir. Well done.
(Applause.)

STAFF: Now Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Foreign Minister Munoz will sign the Joint Statement between the United States Department of Homeland Security and the Chilean Ministry of Interior and Public Security on Combating Trafficking in Persons. The joint statement will increase cooperation among enforcement agencies with an aim to target, disrupt, dismantle and deter human trafficking criminal enterprises, enhance bilateral exchanges of information related to human trafficking and share experiences regarding the protection of vulnerable populations.
(Applause.)

STAFF: Finally, Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske and Minister of Finance Alberto Arenas will sign the Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Chile regarding Mutual Assistance between their Customs Administrations. This agreement provides the legal framework to assist countries in the prevention, detection and investigation of custom offenses. Chile is the seventieth country to sign a customs mutual assistance agreement with the United States. The signing of the agreement will build on bilateral efforts to cooperate on law enforcement and facilitate trade and travel.
(Applause.)

STAFF: Thank you. This concludes our signing ceremony. We look forward to working together closely on issues ranging from economic development to security.

U.S. CONGRATULATES PEOPLE OF HAITI ON THEIR INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 

Haiti's Independence Day

Press Statement

John Kerry
Secretary of State

Washington, DC

January 1, 2014

---

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Haiti as you celebrate the 210th anniversary of your independence.

I spent more than 30 years representing Massachusetts as Lieutenant Governor and Senator, and I am proud to this day that my state is home to the third largest Haitian-American community in the United States. I was proud that my daughter’s first work as a doctor was in Haiti where she experienced firsthand the determination and resilience of proud Haitians who cared so deeply about their country’s future. Having known and worked so closely with this exceptional community, I hold a special appreciation for Haiti’s journey.

I was proud to introduce bipartisan legislation in the Senate to help Haiti rebuild and develop in a way that creates an opportunity to emerge better off and better prepared. And that’s why I worked closely with dozens of families in Massachusetts to expedite adoptions of Haitian orphans that had already been underway before the earthquake. As Secretary of State, I will continue to make Haiti a priority.

The United States joins you today in commemorating the courage and spirit of independence of all Haitians as well as the ties of friendship and family that bind our peoples together.
On this special day, I extend best wishes and reiterate our strong commitment to help all Haitians as they chart a path toward greater peace, security and, prosperity.

ECONOMIC SECURITY IN HAITI

Map:  Haiti.  Credit:  CIA World Factbook.

FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT

Fast Facts on the U.S. Government's Work in Haiti: Economic Security
Fact Sheet
Office of the Haiti Special Coordinator
January 22, 2013
 
The Challenge


Even before the earthquake, Haiti faced significant challenges to economic security. Its economy is primarily driven by informal micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), which generate up to 80 percent of new jobs. However, informal MSMEs have difficulties accessing financing from formal institutions, thus limiting their ability to grow. The wide-scale damage caused by the earthquake further exacerbated the situation, disrupting businesses and destroying stores and other infrastructure. Estimates indicate that 40 percent of the Haitian population is unemployed.

USG Strategy

Economic security is predicated on people having secure livelihoods. The U.S. Government is helping the Haitian government in its goal of creating jobs, with a corresponding increase in household incomes, savings, and other assets―resulting in increased economic security. To achieve this goal, the U.S. Government is:
Helping the Government of Haiti to attract foreign direct investment;
Supporting value chains related to foreign direct investment and U.S. Government investments, such as energy, health, and housing;
Working with local financial institutions and investment opportunities to increase access to finance; and
Supporting efforts to increase tax and customs revenue generation. Since 2008, U.S. trade preferences for Haiti have contributed to the creation of 8,000 apparel sector jobs.
Accomplishments

The U.S. Department of Treasury is providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Finance to improve budgeting, tax collection, and debt management in the public sector. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is carrying out the private-sector U.S. Government strategy by creating jobs in targeted sectors and increasing access to capital from formal sources to stimulate growth and job opportunities. So far, we have:
Provided support valued at more than $12million to more than 30 microfinance institutions to increase lending to underserved populations and MSMEs in several sectors.
Contributed to more than 15,000 agricultural loans for farmers to improve crop production and agricultural cooperatives to access markets directly. Crops include mango, cocoa, plantain, corn, rice, and beans.
Partnered with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to launch the first mobile money service in Haiti. After reaching 5 million transactions as of June 2012, the initiative is now focused on facilitating mobile money use by various stakeholders, including the Government of Haiti and the private sector, in order to ensure sustainability.
Supported a business plan competition, leveraging private investments and using a grant matching mechanism of up to $200,000 for each competition winner to enable the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to scale up their entrepreneurial ideas. Through this competition 22 SMEs received Technical Assistance, of which four were selected to receive matching funds to expand their operations. These businesses will create more than 240 additional jobs.
Finalized four new Development Credit Authority (DCA) guarantees, which will stimulate up to $30 million in loans by local commercial banks, microfinance institutions and credit unions. The guarantees will exist over a nine-year period and contribute to rebuilding the private sector by increasing local lending to MSMEs and out-of-reach populations.
　

U.S. GOVERNMENT INVESTS IN HAITI

Map:  Haiti.  Credit:  CIA World Factbook.

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

U.S. Government Investments in Haiti's Rebuilding and Renewal
Fact Sheet
Office of the Haiti Special Coordinator
January 11, 2013

In early 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made Haiti a foreign policy priority and committed to working to change the way we partnered with Haiti. For more than three and a half years, the U.S. Government (USG) has worked closely to be a good partner to the government and people of Haiti. After the devastating earthquake of 2010, the U.S. worked to support the Government of Haiti (GOH) and meet the most immediate life saving and life sustaining needs on the ground. For some time the U.S. pursued two tracks of engagement and has ensured that they complement one another: the first to address immediate humanitarian and emergency aid needs; and the second to continue to pursue a strategy to promote long-term sustainable development in Haiti.

Below is a high-level overview of some of the U.S. contributions to help Haiti on a path to economic prosperity and political stability.

Government Stability and Capacity Building: The United States and other donors supported the Government of Haiti’s free and fair presidential and legislative elections in late 2010 and early 2011. These elections paved the way for the complete re-establishment of all three branches of government. The U.S. provided capacity building support, including the provision of experts to work within the Government of Haiti and the provision of temporary office space. As a result, the Government of Haiti has been able to lead more effectively in many areas of governance, including efforts to: combat crime; prepare for emergency responses to Hurricanes Tomas, Tropical Storms Isaac and Sandy; collect taxes; increase transparency; alleviate housing shortages; promote foreign direct investments; and expand basic services for Haitians, including in education and health services.

Energy: Only 12 percent of the population has regular legal access to electricity. The Martelly Administration has made access to energy one of its priorities and views it as a necessary step in Haiti’s economic development.
The U.S. Government, through USAID, is funding the services of an experienced management firm to help improve the commercial and operational sustainability of Haiti's electric utility EDH. The firm is working with the utility to expand active customers by a third. Progress to date shows significant improvements in the utility’s financial performance and service delivery, having added over 20,000 households and business as active customers.
The USG is helping to improve the reliability of electricity in Port-au-Prince through renovation of five electricity sub-stations. The project is expected to be complete by the end of February 2013.
The USG commissioned a 10 mega-watt power plant in the north, contributing to reliable power for the tenants of the Caracol Industrial Park as well as houses around the park. The first households in the northern town of Caracol, which never had electricity before, were connected to the grid of the power plant in October 2012, designed to provide reliable power to residences and industry.
The USG also launched a competitive tender in December 2012 [available online at www.FBO.gov] to design, build, and operate Haiti’s first industrial scale solar facility. This is part of an ongoing effort to work with Haitian partners to harness renewable energy opportunities.

Housing: The United States has worked to address immediate shelter needs, including the removal of rubble to make space for shelter, as well as the construction of permanent housing settlements.
To date, the Government of Haiti, the international community, private firms, and individual households have removed approximately 7.4 million cubic meters of rubble, or 74 percent of the rubble created by the earthquake. The USG has removed one third of this total. USAID-funded programs helped some 65,700 households (roughly 328,000 individuals) find safer housing through the construction of temporary shelters (29,000), rental vouchers, and housing repairs (6,000).
The United States is currently constructing two new settlements, with construction underway of 750 homes in the north near Caracol and 156 homes near Port-au-Prince in the Saint Marc region. The next five settlements of approximately 1,250 houses, where all engineering designs, environmental studies and water tests have been completed and tenders are due to be launched shortly, will be developed together with a diverse set of partners such as the Qatar Haiti Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the American Red Cross, enabling the United States to leverage resources for greater impact.
Business and agricultural loans: Eighty percent of the credit available in Haiti is used by only ten percent of the borrowers.
The United States has partnered with Haiti’s existing banks, credit unions, and other lenders to provide credit guarantees and help design new ways to lend to entrepreneurs and farmers.
The United States has supported efforts to computerize data and processes for loan officers, in order to support approximately $21.7 million in loans disbursed to over 6,500 businesses.
Agriculture: With more than 60 percent of Haitians reliant on agriculture for income, the United States has expanded its support in the sector through its global food security initiative, Feed the Future.
To date the United States has worked with more than 9,700 farmers, introducing improved seeds, fertilizer, and technologies.
2012 results include a 58 percent increase in rice yields, 341 percent increase in corn, 100 percent increase in bean yields, and 21 percent increase in plantain yields. Our goal is to increase incomes for 100,000 farmers in three geographical focus regions over five years.
Additionally, Feed the Future just launched the bean planting season at a cost of another $1 million, which will provide farmers with seeds and other inputs.
Transformation of Haiti’s North: The United States is partnering with the Government of Haiti, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the private sector to create access to jobs, housing, electrification, transportation, and agricultural development in Haiti’s north. These types of investments, when married with the entrepreneurial spirit of the Haitian people, are helping to catalyze growth in the region. As part of this partnership, by 2015, the United States will have helped create:
New housing settlements for over 13,000 people complete with electricity, water, social services, and job opportunities nearby;
15,000 new formal jobs at the Caracol Industrial Park, one of the Caribbean’s largest industrial parks, which is projected to grow to 20,000 jobs by 2016;
Reliable electricity to up to 100,000 people and businesses that currently have none; and,
Rehabilitated health clinics and reference hospitals in regional towns.
The first tenant of the Caracol Industrial Park, Sae-A, one of the largest garment manufacturers in the world, already has 1,300 employees, most of them women who have never had a formal sector job before. Many are graduates of a new, nearby vocational training center that the USG built and supports. Sae-A is on track to reach the goal of creating 20,000 jobs by 2016. A second tenant, a Haitian company, has moved in September of 2012 and a third tenant is due to start operations shortly. Additionally, a new U.S.-funded power plant opened this year to serve the industrial park and surrounding communities. Nine buildings, including factories, warehouses, and offices, have been built. At least twelve new buildings are scheduled for completion in 2013, more than doubling the industrial park’s capacity.

Health Services: Prior to the earthquake, the United States was providing access to health care for approximately 50 percent of the Haitian population; after the earthquake, the United States has been able to maintain this level of care. The United States provides a basic package of health services (primarily maternal and child health) and more sophisticated HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment services.
The Haitian Ministry of Health and Population is working to achieve a sustainable network of health facilities. To help them realize this goal, the United States entered into the Health Partnership Framework with the Haitian government, which promotes sustainability by emphasizing country ownership and leadership, and includes a five-year plan that encompasses contributions of the government, civil society, the private sector, and other donors.
The United States supports 251 primary care and 52 secondary care sites nationwide.
The United States increased the number of eligible patients on anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment from 60 percent in March 2012 to 65 percent in June 2012. We are working with the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria to reach universal coverage of ARVs for all eligible patients by June 2015.
The United States recently convened the two largest umbrella networks of disabled people organizations to coordinate a single national strategy and move forward with plans to strengthen local advocacy groups. In addition, work is underway to establish four to six disabled service centers nationwide and to build government capacity to promote inclusion of people with disabilities in policy and legislation.
Through June 2012, the United States provided expertise and more than $95 million during the emergency phase of the cholera response.
Education: President Martelly has identified free and universal education as one of the key priorities of his administration.
Since January 2010, the United States has constructed more than 600 semi-permanent furnished classrooms and provided teaching and learning kits enabling more than 60,000 children and 1,200 teachers to return to school.
Over the next two years, the United States will partner with the Haitian Ministry of Education to develop and test an instructional model in over 300 schools, reaching 28,000 students, and training 900 teachers.
Improving Access to Justice and Legal Assistance: The rule of law, as supported by justice and security institutions, is a basic foundation of citizen security and economic growth. The United States is committed to supporting a responsive, just, and effective Government in Haiti. Our efforts include:
Supporting the formation of the Superior Judicial Council (CSJP), a new body which will provide oversight of the judiciary – a major step towards judicial independence in Haiti;
Providing legal assistance to over 2,700 individuals in Cite Soleil, Martissant, Saint-Marc, and Petit-Goave since October 2011;
Renovating corrections facilities; and
Providing equipment and technical assistance to reduce pre-trial detention and improve case management in targeted jurisdictions.
Strengthening the Security Sector: The Haitian National Police (HNP) is Haiti’s sole indigenous security force. Improving and expanding the capacity of the HNP is critical to the Government of Haiti’s ability to maintain public order and protect vulnerable populations.
The United States is supporting the recruitment and training of new officers, bolstering the counternarcotics unit, and providing communications equipment.
The UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) also helps promote a secure and stable environment in Haiti. U.S. support includes 100 UN police officers, 10 corrections officers, and nine military officers seconded to MINUSTAH.
Protecting Human Rights and Vulnerable Populations: Increasing protection of human rights and vulnerable populations is key to U.S. assistance in Haiti. The United States is funding a number of initiatives to provide services to victims of abuse, and empower vulnerable populations. Efforts include:
Supporting economic opportunities for women and survivors of sexual violence through microcredit and short-term jobs programs; and
Providing job skills training, health services, and reintegration and repatriation assistance to Haitian migrants.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AWARDS $2.2 MILLION GRANT TO HELP WORKERS IN HAITI AND PERU

Photo:  Sewing Machine.  Credit:  Wikimedia Commons.



FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
 
US Department of Labor awards $2.2 million grant for projects to strengthen worker organizations in Haiti and Peru

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today announced a $2.2 million grant award to strengthen worker organizations in Haiti and Peru. The grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs will fund projects implemented by the American Center for International Labor Solidarity, also known as the Solidarity Center.

"Supporting the ability to organize and protect their rights is important to leveling the playing field for all workers," said Labor Secretary Hilda Solis. This grant will help organizations in Haiti and Peru engage in productive, effective negotiations with governments and employers on behalf of vulnerable workers."

The projects will improve the capacity of worker organizations in both countries to better protect the rights of vulnerable workers and to engage in effective advocacy and dialogue. In Haiti, the Solidarity Center will work with the apparel export sector, focusing particularly on issues related to freedom of association, sexual harassment and forced overtime. In Peru, the project will focus on responding to the needs of temporary and fixed-term contract workers.

Since 1995, ILAB has worked with other governments and international organizations to improve working conditions around the world. ILAB's Office of Trade and Labor Affairs has funded technical assistance projects to improve worker rights, livelihoods and labor law compliance in more than 72 countries around the world.

THE U.S. AIR FORCE: IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT WAR

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
A U.S. Air Force combat controller prepares to contact the special tactics operation center by radio while conducting a drop zone survey in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 24, 2010, during Operation Unified Response. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Jeremy Lock)

Tech. Sgt. Lem Torres, 38th Rescue Squadron pararecueman, and a young boy are lifted to safety from the roof of the child’s flooded home after Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Manuel J. Martinez)

ISAAC AND THE HURRICANE HUNTERS

Photo Credit:  NASA
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

'Hurricane Hunters' Track Isaac as Southcom, Northcom Prepare
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 23, 2012 - With Tropical Storm Isaac bearing down on the Dominican Republic and Haiti and threatening to strengthen over the eastern Caribbean, the "Hurricane Hunters" from the Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron are in the air, relaying critical data to National Weather Service forecasters in Miami.

Meanwhile, staffs at both the U.S. Southern and Northern Commands are monitoring the storm closely and ensuring they are ready to provide support to civilian authorities, including the U.S. Agency for International Development and Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Three six-person crews from the 53rd WRS and their maintainers and support staff deployed to St. Croix from Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., last weekend, Air Force Lt. Col. Jon Talbot, the squadron's chief meteorologist, told American Forces Press Service. Operating out of the international airport there, they began flying their specially equipped C-130J Hercules aircraft through the storm Aug. 21.

On a typical mission that can run up to 12 hours, the aircrews crisscross the storm in what the teams call an "alpha pattern," he explained. Sophisticated onboard instruments and small canisters dropped by parachute to the ocean's surface collect accurate measurements of the storm's location and intensity.

That information is fed continuously to the National Hurricane Center via an onboard satellite link. In addition, the aircraft sends automated messages every 10 minutes, relaying barometric pressure, wind speed and direction, and other measurements.

"The reason this data is critical is because, with satellites, you can track where storms are and get a general picture, but you can't peer into the storm and physically measure what is happening at the ocean's surface," Talbot said. "That is the important piece of information you need to know when it comes to providing warnings to the public. The emergency management community needs to know what is going on near the surface of the ocean, because those are the winds that are going to come ashore."

With about six missions already under their belts during the past three days, Talbot said, the pace will pick up considerably as Isaac moves west toward the United States. "Currently, we are doing about three missions a day, but that will go up to four or five when the storm comes within 300 miles of the U.S. coastline," he said.

The Hurricane Hunters expect to move west along with the storm, redeploying to Keesler Air Force Base to resume those missions beginning this weekend. In the event that the crews have to evacuate Keesler, Talbot said, they already have alternate operating sites lined up. "We track these things pretty closely, because if we end up having to jump from here, we still have to continue flying and providing that data while we are evacuating our own resources," he said. "It becomes a big, tangled web, but it always works out pretty well."

As a precaution, aircraft and ships are being moved out of the storm's possible path and other assets are being secured, according to Southcom spokesman Army Lt. Col. Darryl Wright. Planning teams are busy running rehearsal meetings and preparing to verify personnel and resource requests, if USAID issues them, he said.

Wright emphasized that military support, if provided, would be part of a coordinated U.S. response led by civilian authorities. "We conduct close coordination and planning and provide DOD support to relief efforts upon request," he said. "Through this close coordination, we ensure that we respond with the most efficient means available to the U.S. government."

In terms of disaster response, Wright said efficiency is typically more important than speed in reducing suffering and saving lives.

Northcom, too, is in a monitoring mode. But with the storm expected to intensify late this weekend when it hits the Atlantic and the Florida Straits, the command deployed a defense coordinating officer and element to Puerto Rico on Aug. 20 to support FEMA, John Cornelio, Northcom's media operations chief, told American Forces Press Service.

The element of about 20 people is assessing the situation and standing ready to provide assistance, if requested. "We have learned the value of being forward enough to cut down on the response time, if required," Cornelio said.

With Isaac's path still anyone's guess, officials say it's too soon to know whether it will hit Tampa, site of next week's Republican National Convention. Northcom has a team deployed there to support the Secret Service during the convention, Cornelio reported.

HAITI AND CHOLERA

Map Credit:  U.S. State Department
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Fast Facts on the U.S. Government's Work in Haiti: Cholera
Fact Sheet
Office of the Haiti Special Coordinator
July 25, 2012
The Challenge
On October 21, 2010, the Haitian Ministry of Health and Population (MSPP) confirmed cases of cholera for the first time in at least a century.

Accomplishments
At the request of the Government of Haiti, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)—already helping Haiti to build sustainable health systems to detect and combat the spread of communicable diseases in the aftermath of the devastating January 2010 earthquake—immediately began working with the MSPP and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to lessen the severity of the outbreak.

Through June 2012, the U.S. Government (USG) provided expertise and more than $95 million to prevent additional cholera cases and support the response by:
Distributing products to purify drinking water, soap for washing hands and household items, and oral rehydration salts to prevent dehydration in people with acute, watery diarrhea.
Working side-by-side with MSPP and other partners to establish a national system for tracking cases of cholera.
Supporting staff and commodities for 45 cholera treatment facilities and 117 oral rehydration posts through cooperative agreements with USAID, CDC, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) partners, other non-governmental organizations, and MSPP.
Developing cholera education materials to train more than 6,000 community health workers who are funded to conduct educational activities and outreach on cholera prevention and treatment in communities throughout Haiti.
Improving access to clean water in communities by providing support to drill new wells, repair others, and promote safe water practices.
Evaluating the effectiveness of large-scale distributions of hygiene items in collaboration with Haiti’s National Direction for Potable Water and Sanitation (DINEPA) and the U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
As of June 2012, Haiti has reported approximately 554,114 cases of cholera and an estimated 7,249 deaths. Though deaths from cholera were high in the first few months of the epidemic, Haitian-led, internationally-supported efforts have helped to significantly reduce fatality rates.

Challenges Ahead
Access to clean water and availability of sanitation systems are limited in Haiti, and cholera is likely to persist until access to adequate water and sanitation improves. The USG is committed to strengthening the Haitian healthcare system to contain the future outbreaks and treat the Haitian people. In line with MSPP’s desire to integrate cholera prevention and treatment into overall health programming, the USG is working more broadly on the prevention and treatment of all causes of diarrheal diseases. To reduce vulnerability to cholera and other diarrheal diseases, we are supporting the Haitian government and USG partners in improving access to treated drinking water at the community and household levels in both urban and rural communities. In addition, the USG, in collaboration with PAHO, UNICEF, and the Haitian government, helped launch the Coalition on Water and Sanitation for the Elimination of Cholera on the island of Hispaniola. This initiative calls for major investments in safe water, sanitation, and hygiene, particularly in Haiti.

SOUTHCOM COMMANDER SAYS EVENTS IN SOUTH AMERICAN NATIONS AFFECT NATIONAL SECURITY

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE 
Marines attached to a Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force guard an extraction point in the marshes of Santo Tomas, Guatemala, Dec. 6, 2011, as a part of Amphibious-Southern Partnership Station 2012, an annual deployment of U.S. military teams to the U.S. Southern Command region. Partnership is a cornerstone of U.S. military engagement in the Southern Command area of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Isaiah Sellers III.  



Regional Challenges Drive Southcom's Agenda
By Donna Miles
MIAMI, June 18, 2012 - Air Force Gen. Douglas M. Fraser, commander of U.S. Southern Command, regularly tells members of Congress, audiences around the region and members of his command that events in South America, Central America and the Caribbean affect U.S. national security.

"The hemisphere is our shared home," Fraser noted in his Command Strategy 2020 "Partnership for the Americas" document issued in July.

"We are all Americans" in the region, he added.

While a mere glance at a map underscores the obvious physical connection among the hemisphere's nations, Fraser cited other bonds that cross economic, cultural, ideological and security lines.

"Latin America and the Caribbean are vitally important to the security and future of the United States," he said. "The nations of the region are inextricably linked, and we face common challenges to our security and stability."

With globalization unfolding at lightning speed over the past decade, transforming commerce, culture, trade and technology, it's had a profound impact on security as well, the general noted in his 2012 Southcom posture statement, released in March.

Fraser said he's particularly concerned about "the parallel globalization of organized crime, violence, murder and kidnapping related to illicit trafficking."

He noted that in many parts of the hemisphere, particularly in Central America, transnational organized crime has evolved to become a "volatile and potentially destabilizing threat to both citizen and regional security."

These sophisticated networks operate across national borders and dividing lines for U.S. geographic combatant commands, demanding an unprecedented level of cooperation among those attempting to counter them -- regionally, nationally and across U.S. agencies, he said.

"The challenge for United States Southern Command is to find creative ways to enhance the interagency, public-private and partner-nation cooperation as we plan, train and operate with regional military to address the predominant security concerns in the region," Fraser said.

Fraser recognized other persistent challenges facing the region, including poverty, crime, corruption, institutional weakness, illicit trafficking and terrorism. "These challenges complicate our collective efforts to secure the hemisphere," he stated in his 2020 command strategy. "At the same time, security helps provide the very means to address these issues."

He cited the vulnerability of much of Latin America and the Caribbean to humanitarian crises, mass migrations and natural disasters.

Southcom works closely with partner nations to strengthen their humanitarian assistance and disaster relief capabilities, Fraser told the House Armed Services Committee in May. "And we remain ready to respond should our assistance be requested," he added.

Meanwhile, Southcom watches for potential geopolitical turbulence that could affect U.S. citizens and military personnel in the region, he said in his posture statement. He cited Cuba, Haiti, Bolivia and Venezuela as areas of particular interest.

Frasier noted the yet-to-be-seen long-term effects of Cuba's market reforms under Raul Castro's leadership. Haiti, while making slow but steady progress, remains vulnerable to natural disasters and economic hardship, the general said.

Meanwhile, he added, public demonstrations in Bolivia related to low wages, high food prices and energy shortages are likely to continue until the Bolivian government addresses these issues. And in Venezuela, Fraser recognized continuing uncertainty about President Hugo Chavez' health, as well as continued economic instability and escalating violence that he said place increasing demands on that country's government.

Adding to the list of concerns, Fraser pointed to Hezbollah supporters operating throughout South America and the fact that the region has become home to a small number of violent extremist organizations.

"We remain vigilant for the potential radicalization of homegrown extremists," he said. Fraser noted that Sunni extremists, while small in number, are actively involved in radicalization efforts.

Jamaica's Shaykh Abdullah al-Faisal, for example, was convicted in the United Kingdom for inciting terrorism, he said. Al-Qaida senior operative Adnan el-Shukrijumah has held valid passports for the United States as well as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, where he has family and associates. And despite recent convictions in the 2007 plot to attack the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, one of the alleged co-conspirators remains at large in Guyana.

Meanwhile, Fraser noted, Iran represents a troublesome influence in the region, attempting to circumvent international sanctions through ties with Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua and Cuba. "We take Iranian activity in the hemisphere seriously, and we monitor its activities closely," he said.

In presenting his command priorities, Fraser emphasized four major objectives:

-- Strengthen regional partnerships;
-- Increase partner capability;
-- Confront regional challenges; and
-- Support humanitarian and disaster response, as required.

Fraser called partnership-building "the cornerstone of our strategic approach." It ensures the forward defense of the United States, he said, by promoting capable regional militaries that share in the responsibility of hemispheric security and stability.

"What we focus on in the region is building partner capacity and security cooperation, collaboratively, with willing nations," Navy Vice Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, Southcom's military deputy commander, told American Forces Press Service at the command's headquarters here. "We endeavor to plan extensively with them, ensuring that our efforts to help build their security in ways they believe are helpful to them."

These efforts are coordinated closely with the State Department and with full respect for each partner nation's sovereignty, Kernan said.

"We truly want to be the security partner of choice," said Army Maj. Gen. Gerald W. Ketchum, director of the command's theater engagement directorate, who oversees many of the programs designed to build those partnerships. "And as we work to build them, we want those partnerships to be enduring."

In establishing new ties and strengthening existing ones, Kernan said, Southcom is demonstrating the deep U.S. commitment to the region.

"We have to pursue a persistent, welcomed presence with countries in the region," he said. "That is what builds lasting relations and mutual respect. We need to be able to stand alongside our partners and talk about collectively addressing common security problems."

Fraser said efforts to strengthen and enhance partner nations' ability to respond to domestic and regional threats -- individually and collectively -- will pay off in long-term security for the region.

"We envision a hemisphere characterized by nations working together to address the emerging security challenges of the coming decade," he said.