[…] Today during remarks at the United Nations General Assembly’s special session on Pakistan, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the establishment of the Pakistan Relief Fund. Created by the United States Government through the Department of State, the Fund serves as a mechanism for the public to contribute money to the ongoing efforts in Pakistan.

[…] The United States has and continues to take swift action to help. And on behalf of President Obama and the American people, I want to state our resolve to help Pakistan meet the immediacy of this crisis and then to recover from it. I want the people of Pakistan to know that the United States will stand with you during this crisis.

[…] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the establishment of the Pakistan Relief Fund. Created by the United States Government through the Department of State, the Fund serves as a mechanism for the public to contribute money to the ongoing efforts in Pakistan.

[…] The United States has responded immediately and generously to Pakistan’s call for assistance following the tragic and devastating floods that began July 29. To date, the United States is providing approximately $150 million to support relief efforts in Pakistan.

[…] Assistance to humanitarians is both a moral issue and a practical imperative for global security. Yet even when aid workers are buttressed by supportive national governments and parties to conflict, their work carries grave risks. Amid flood waters in Pakistan, humanitarians are called to address hardship on a scale that is nearly without precedent, and serve bravely despite facing the very same dangers themselves.

[…] More than ever before, the world is – seems engulfed by humanitarian crises, overwhelming suffering as a result of conflict, hurricanes, earthquakes, and really enormous dangers faced by those trying to help people in need.

[…] The earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010, killed hundreds of thousands of people, left more than a million homeless, and caused significant damage to Port-au-Prince, as well as other cities and settlements. In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the Haitian people, countries, organizations, and individuals around the world were united in responding to urgent humanitarian needs.

[…] The U.S. Department of Agriculture will donate more than 100,000 tons of agricultural commodities valued at nearly $170 million in fiscal year 2010 under the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced February 26. “I am proud of the assistance we provide to the world’s hungry children through the McGovern-Dole Program,” Vilsack said.

[…] The role of U.S. foreign assistance in improving global health, feeding the hungry, responding to climate change and providing humanitarian aid is to save lives and enhance livelihoods, but also to make people less vulnerable to poverty and the chaos that extreme poverty breeds, says Rajiv Shah, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

[…] In a February 1 budget request to the U.S. Congress, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the total request “breaks down to $16.4 billion for State [Department] operations and $36.4 billion for foreign assistance.” The Obama administration’s total proposed budget for fiscal year 2011, which begins October 1, reflecting spending for the domestic economy, defense operations, and all other programs, including the State Department, comes to just more than $3.8 trillion.

[…] Former U.S. President Bill Clinton has agreed to lead a U.N. program that will offer jobs to Haitian youth as part of the clean-up and recovery following last week's earthquake. Last spring U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon asked Mr. Clinton to become his Special Envoy for Haiti. Now the former president has agreed to take on an additional role — promoting the U.N.'s jobs for cash program.

[…] Army Lieutenant General Ken Keen, the deputy commander of the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) who happened to be in Port-au-Prince at the time of the earthquake and is the coordinator of operations there, said in an interview January 17 that the principal purpose of U.S. military forces in Haiti is to provide humanitarian assistance, “but the security component is going to be an increasing part of that.

[…] Tons of food, water and medical supplies are reaching the survivors of last week’s earthquake in Haiti and U.S. military personnel are on the ground to speed the distribution of aid and maintain security. “We’re moving … from help being on the way to delivering that help,” said National Security Council Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. Over the weekend, emergency workers succeeded in overcoming many of the challenges that kept millions of frustrated Haitians waiting for relief to arrive.

[…] Clinton flew into Port-au-Prince on a U.S. Coast Guard C-130 transport plane from Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen in Puerto Rico along with Rajiv Shah, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and relief supplies. Every military flight into Haiti carries relief supplies and carries out those needing medical attention in advanced treatment facilities.

[…] As of 1700 hours local time on January 17, U.S. Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams had rescued 30 individuals from collapsed buildings, including one individual rescued at approximately 1615 hours local time and three individuals rescued overnight from the Caribbean Market. To date, international USAR teams have rescued a total of 62 individuals throughout Port-au-Prince.

[…] At this moment, we're moving forward with one of the largest relief efforts in our history -- to save lives and to deliver relief that averts an even larger catastrophe. The two leaders with me today will ensure that this is matched by a historic effort that extends beyond our government, because America has no greater resource than the strength and the compassion of the American people.

[…] Good afternoon, everybody. I wanted to just make a brief statement on the latest situation in Haiti so that the American people are fully up to date on our efforts there. This morning I spoke with President Préval of Haiti, who has been in regular contact with our ambassador on the ground. I expressed to President Préval my deepest condolences for the people of Haiti and our strong support for the relief efforts that are underway.

[…] Good morning. I think if this rhythm tends to kind of work for you, we’ll do – for the foreseeable future and we’ll figure out weekends as we go along. But we’ll do some sort of, kind of morning catch-up. And then today at roughly 11:30, we will also have an operational briefing with Raj Shah and Cheryl Mills, and then we’ll come back late in the day and do one additional update and other issues as we did

[…] As fast as an Air Force team from the 1st Special Operations Wing established a working control tower for continuous flight operations and nighttime use of runways on January 14, heavy-lift military cargo jets from the United States and other nations began landing, unloading relief supplies as military ground crews maneuvered forklifts piled high with pallets of goods — generators, vehicles, fuel, communications equipment, food, fresh water,
medical equipment and supplies, and shelters.

[…] The first wave of American search-and-rescue teams, disaster relief experts, military forces and supplies are at work in Haiti, beginning what President Obama says will be a massive U.S. relief effort in response to the January 12 earthquake, which caused losses that he called “nothing less than devastating.” “None of this will seem quick enough if you have a loved one who’s trapped, if you’re sleeping on the streets, if you can’t feed your children.

[…] The losses that have been suffered in Haiti are nothing less than devastating, and responding to a disaster of this magnitude will require every element of our national capacity -- our diplomacy and development assistance; the power of our military; and, most importantly, the compassion of our country. And this morning, I’m joined by several members of my national security team who are leading this coordinated response.

[…] The Obama administration is beginning its response to the January 12 earthquake that hit Haiti, sending search-and-rescue personnel and equipment to help the Haitian government with its immediate efforts to rescue earthquake survivors who may be trapped in debris. Shortly after the earthquake struck, President Obama issued a statement saying, “My thoughts and prayers go out to those who have been affected by this earthquake. We are closely monitoring the situation and we stand ready to assist the people of Haiti.”

[…] The U.S. Agency for International Development has sworn in a new administrator, Dr. Rajiv Shah, at a ceremony January 7 in Washington. In an exclusive interview with Voice of America, Shah talked about the Obama administration’s plans to deepen its partnerships overseas and listen more to the countries the agency serves. A 36-year-old medical doctor by training, Shah comes to USAID with expertise in agriculture. He previously served as the director of agricultural development with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and later in a top post at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

[…] Like many of you, I have seen the transformative power of development. I have seen the passion and commitment of aid workers who devote their careers to this difficult undertaking. I’ve seen American development at work in a village in Indonesia, where new mothers and their infants were receiving nutritional and medical counseling through a family planning program supported by USAID.

[…] By 2050, global food production will have to double from current levels to keep up with a hungry world, but the delicately balanced ecosystem that produces food in abundance is already under considerable stress as climate change erodes crop production, says U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This increased demand will have to be met under increasing water scarcity, heightened salinity, and more erratic weather and climate patterns,” Vilsack said at the international climate change conference held in Copenhagen.

[…] The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has approved grants worth $2.4 billion to fight the diseases during the next two years. The amount represents a slight decrease in funding levels, though the three killer diseases show little sign of abatement. The $2.4 billion figure approved by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is $350 million less than last year’s amount, which was set before the full effects of the world economic slump were known.

[…] Hall, who is the executive director of the Washington-based Alliance to End Hunger, discussed food security policy with America.gov on the eve of the November 16–18 World Summit on Food Security in Rome. “There is no reason why we should have the kind of hunger in the world that we have today,” he said, with “well over 1 billion people who are chronically hungry, many to the point of starving.”

[…] Franklin C. Moore, deputy assistant administrator in the Africa Bureau at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and USAID’s coordinator for food security, made that point in a November 13 interview with America.gov just before leaving for the Rome summit, which is being sponsored by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Moore is part of the U.S. delegation attending the event, which more than 60 heads of state and government are expected to attend.

[…] Dr. Raj Shah is a leader in the development community, an innovative and results-oriented manager, and someone who understands the importance of providing people around the world with the tools they need to lift themselves out of poverty and chart their own destinies.
By nominating Raj to lead the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

[…] USAID said the program, which builds on USAID’s historical successes in disease surveillance, training and outbreak response, aims to pre-empt or combat, at their sources, newly emerging diseases of animal origin that could threaten human health. Examples of such diseases include HIV/AIDS, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), H5N1 avian influenza and the 2009 H1N1 swine influenza virus.

[…] As part of her first visit to Pakistan as secretary of state, Hillary Rodham Clinton announced millions of dollars in U.S. assistance to benefit a variety of the country’s programs and institutions, ranging from humanitarian, education and security assistance to microloans and a cellular-phone social network. The secretary has said she wants to “turn the page” in the relationship between Pakistan and the United States beyond their security cooperation and efforts to combat violent extremism.

[…] A major U.S. foundation is giving $120 million in grants to nine organizations to help small farmers in developing countries. “Helping the poorest smallholder farmers grow more crops and get them to market is the world’s single most powerful lever to reduce hunger and poverty,” said Bill Gates, founder of the Microsoft Corporation and co-chairman of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He spoke at an international symposium on food and agriculture in Des Moines, Iowa, October 15.

[…] The United States continues to provide a range of humanitarian assistance across East Asia and the Pacific following a tsunami, earthquakes, typhoons, flooding from torrential rains and mud-soaked landslides.
Through direct support and through international relief agencies like the Red Cross, the United States is providing emergency relief funds; disaster response teams; U.S. military support from the Navy, Marines and Air Force; and relief supplies including food, water, temporary shelters and medical supplies.

[…] The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is sending two disaster assessment teams to American Samoa, along with a team from the U.S. Coast Guard, to assess the impact of an earthquake, the ensuing tsunami and extensive flooding, the White House says. “We also stand ready to help our friends in neighboring Samoa and throughout the region, and we’ll continue to monitor the situation closely as we keep the many people who’ve been touched by this tragedy in our thoughts and in our prayers,” President Obama said September 30.

[…] The United States is tripling annual aid to Pakistan to help the Pakistani people achieve greater security and prosperity, President Obama says. The U.S. Senate approved legislation September 24 to authorize U.S. aid totaling $7.5 billion spread equally over five years. Its approval came as the Friends of Democratic Pakistan, founded by 13 nations including the United States, met on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

[…] The United States is getting back into the work of helping poor, developing countries increase their agricultural output, a policy it abandoned nearly three decades ago, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said. “We moved away from investments in agricultural productivity, toward emergency food aid [in 1981],” Clinton said in a speech at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York September 25. “Revitalizing global agriculture will not be easy.

[…] The board of directors of the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), chaired by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, approved a five-year, $540 million compact grant to the Republic of Senegal to reduce poverty through economic growth. The compact, according to a September 7 MCC announcement, will focus on road rehabilitation and food security initiatives in some of the poorest regions of Senegal.

[…] Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has terminated millions of dollars in nonhumanitarian assistance to Honduras over the ouster of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya. “The secretary of state has made the decision, consistent with U.S. legislation, recognizing the need for strong measures in light of the continued resistance to the adoption of the San Jose Accord by the de facto regime and continuing failure to restore democratic, constitutional rule to Honduras,” State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said in a prepared statement September 3.

[…] U.S. officials marked the first World Humanitarian Day by announcing an additional $160 million to support global aid work and calling for governments and parties in conflict areas around the world to pay attention to the safety of humanitarian workers. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in an August 19 statement that World Humanitarian Day is being observed to increase public awareness of the activities of aid groups and volunteers, as well as to honor their efforts to help the world’s most vulnerable people.

The success of our collective response to humanitarian crises rests on the selfless commitment and dedication of professional humanitarian aid workers. Increasingly however, aid workers themselves are targets of attack – in 2008 alone a record 260 humanitarian aid workers were killed, kidnapped or seriously injured in violent attacks. We call upon all governments and parties in conflict to give their highest attention to the safety and security of humanitarian personnel.