![The United States is pleased to announce an initial contribution of over $171 million toward the 2013 operations of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). This year’s initial contribution funded through the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, will support UNHCR efforts worldwide. This funding includes support for refugees returning to countries such as Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo; local integration and resettlement; and protection and life-saving assistance. U.S. funding supports the provision of water, shelter, food, healthcare, and education to refugees, internally displaced persons, and other persons under UNHCR’s care and protection in countries such as Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, Georgia, Colombia, South Sudan, and Kenya. Full Text
[UN Photo]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/e3743a778eb9f181e74e44589a9ba982/tumblr_mi3ytlwtGM1r391tko1_250.jpg)
The United States is pleased to announce an initial contribution of over $171 million toward the 2013 operations of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). This year’s initial contribution funded through the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, will support UNHCR efforts worldwide. This funding includes support for refugees returning to countries such as Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo; local integration and resettlement; and protection and life-saving assistance. U.S. funding supports the provision of water, shelter, food, healthcare, and education to refugees, internally displaced persons, and other persons under UNHCR’s care and protection in countries such as Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, Georgia, Colombia, South Sudan, and Kenya. Full Text
[UN Photo]
Today is the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C). An estimated 100 to 145 million women have undergone this brutal procedure, and about 3 million girls are at risk each year. Starting now, watch a live webcast of a panel of experts who will discuss successful efforts and solutions to address this issue. http://goo.gl/wX3xd
U.S. contributions to the IAEA’s Program of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT) have funded expert missions to assess national capabilities to detect and treat cancer in 28 countries worldwide. Learn more about PACT and how you can help this World Cancer Day: http://cancer.iaea.org/index.asp
![‘Since joining the Council in 2009, I would say quite honestly, the U.S. has helped to transform the Council into a more balanced and credible organization. It’s helped focus the global spotlight on grave human rights violations’.
- Paula Schriefer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of International Organization Affairs, US Department of State [Watch Video]
UN Photo](http://25.media.tumblr.com/eb069a9c14e4e89c6eebcbba417305b4/tumblr_mhk5ubf5IK1r391tko1_250.jpg)
‘Since joining the Council in 2009, I would say quite honestly, the U.S. has helped to transform the Council into a more balanced and credible organization. It’s helped focus the global spotlight on grave human rights violations’.
- Paula Schriefer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of International Organization Affairs, US Department of State [Watch Video]
UN Photo
Although many good projects in agricultural development make one hopeful for the future in Malawi, the country does still have some emergency situations that need attention. Dry spells and prolonged drought have created serious food shortages in some areas of the country. In coordination with the Government of Malawi, other UN agencies, and NGOS, the World Food Program (WFP) is providing emergency assistance to almost two million people in the country.. Of course children are at highest risk, and need special help. In the photos you can see a Food Distribution Center at Salima, and a Community based Management for Acute Malnutrition project at Mangochi Hospital where malnourished children are checked-in, weighed, assessed and provided with the necessary care and supplemental feeding.
The school uniforms are similar to the ones worn by kids in Tanzania, but this pilot School Feeding program at the Ching’Ombe school in Malawi is different. It is particularly effective because it not only draws children to attend school with the promise of a meal, it also provides incomes to local farmers. Instead of providing the school with food, the Malawi Ministry of Education and the WFP give the school funds with which to buy their food from local farmers. The schools sign contracts with the local farmers’ organizations to supply specific quantities of fresh food, and they design a nutritious school menu according to what produce is availble. This reduces transportations and makes for fresher, tastier meals, as we were able to attest –the lunch of rice, vegetables and even meat looked really tasty, with a fresh mango for dessert. After just two weeks the head teacher at Ching’Ombe school reported a 10% increase in attendance as the children enjoyed the fresh meals. The farmers say they are “interested in selling good vegetables and are glad that we can sell them to the school and our kids will eat them.”
Only 4% of farmers in Malawi benefit from irrigation - that is why the refurbishing of the Linkangala irrigation scheme that Ambassador Lane visited is so important. The 5 kilometers of canals, dams and locks were originally built by the government of Malawi in 1964, but had fallen into disrepair. With funding from the International Fund of Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Bank the canals are now back in working order. The scheme was managed and maintaned by the government, but now it will be handed over to a local Water Users’ Association. The effects of renewed irrigation are already being felt: the rice harvest at Linkangala is up to 3,000 kgs per hectare from 1,500. As one farmer told the Ambassador, “we are able to send our children to school, we have better houses, a television, and some of us even have motorbikes!”
“Why it Matters that Ireland is on the UN Human Rights Council:
A Preview of Upcoming Issues”
Paula Schriefer, Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of State speaks to a group at Belvedere House, St Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, Dublin.
See DAS Schriefer’s bio: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/190784
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton holds a Townterview at the Newseum in Washington, DC on January 29, 2013 at 9:30 AM. A “Townterview” is a mix of a town hall and a television interview. The concept was first introduced by the Secretary when she entered office as a way to broaden People to People engagement. This is her 59th town hall and an opportunity to engage with young people around the world in advance of her last day as Secretary of State on Friday, February 1st. Follow Secrertary Clinton’s Global Town Hall | live streaming on state.gov | live tweeting @StateDeptLive
On January 24, 2013, Ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe, U.S. Representative to the UN Human Rights Council, discussed “The Human Rights Council: How relevant is it and what is the role of the United States?”at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy.
DipNote Blog from David Lane, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Agencies in Rome: Reporting on the U.S. Fight Against World Hunger
"the terrorist attacks in the desert of Algeria, the threat posed by Iran and its nuclear program, the internal challenges with which Arab societies today are grappling to make their governments more democratic and more responsive to the needs of their people, all make the Middle East a region that must command our enduring attention and active engagement…"
"We applaud France’s commitment to addressing the broad spectrum of human rights. We welcome France’s announcement of an action plan to combat racism and anti-Semitism…"
U.S. Opening Statement, Conference on Disarmament Plenary by Ambassador Laura E. Kennedy, U.S. Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament and U.S. Special Representative for Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention Issues. Geneva. January 22, 2013.
