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This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.
Remarks by J. Brady Anderson,
National 4H Dairy Conference
USAID Administrator
October 4, 2000
Thank you, Sara.
It is certainly a pleasure to be here in Wisconsin, America's Dairyland.
I am delighted to be here during the National 4-H Dairy Conference, and I congratulate you on your marvelous achievements.
When I was growing up in Arkansas, 4-H was mostly about cows and plows, but today, you're into water quality, recycling, nutrition, designing web pages, mock legislatures, and organizing community clean-ups, just to name a few. A tremendous diversification of activities, yet you haven't lost your agricultural heritage.
Pledging your hands to service is a key component to the 4-H philosophy. You, along with your partners, are building a world in which youth and adults learn, grow and work together as catalysts for positive change. I commend you for that.
My agency, the U.S. Agency for International Development, is also about bringing positive change to communities around the world.
USAID is perhaps best known worldwide for its work in humanitarian assistance and primary health services. I am very proud of the pioneering work we have done to stem the spread of AIDS in Africa, to combat polio, malaria and TB, to get children immunized, to afford pregnant women and babies the health care they desperately need.
I'm also proud of USAID's response to natural disasters like Hurricane Mitch in Central America and last year's earthquake in Turkey. I'm especially pleased we were able to avert famine in Ethiopia, saving the lives of hundreds of thousands.
Just as important is the work we do to help build democracies -- the rule of law, promoting an independent media, and improving the business climate. Countries, which are more developed make, better trading partners. It is this work that affects American and American businesses the most.
We seek to develop strong, stable economic institutions in developing countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the former Soviet Union. These institutions in turn encourage trade and investment-creating new opportunities and markets for American companies.
So, how does foreign assistance relate to America's farmers?
The majority of people in the poorest countries derive their livelihoods from agriculture, as in the last century. Therefore, improving agriculture is necessary for economic growth.
And economic growth in developing countries will lead to reduced poverty, increased food security and higher standards of living including better health and education.
By sharing our knowledge and experience with people who need it the most, we help these countries and help them to grow economically. This in turn opens new markets for American companies.
Let me give an example of the type of work USAID does overseas:
- A hog farmer from Iowa went to Albania to teach farmers better ways to raise hogs. It turns out that Albanian farmers were losing up to half of their litter because the sows sat down too fast, crushing some of their piglets. Today, thanks to USAID and a farmer from Iowa, Albanian farmers have learned to restrict their sows' movements-and they are losing far fewer piglets.
- In Romania, Larry Johnson, our senior agribusiness advisor, is teaching plum grower how to access the internet, not only to show them the market value of a liter of plum concentrate but that they need to improve their product in order to be competitive in a global market.
Through USAID's dairy development program every year American dairy producers and companies receive grants to help developing countries expand their capacity in the dairy sector.
What do we do?
The answer is a lot: farmer training, strengthening or forming producer associations, and creating private agricultural extensions and entrepreneurs in developing countries.
Because USAID is committed to supporting dairy farmers -- not just here in America but all over the world -- I am pleased that today we are awarding $5.3 million to help farmers here in the U.S. assist people living in Africa and the Mid-East.
- Agricultural Business Systems of Madison has been awarded $2.7 million to help Kenyans privatize their milk distribution systems as well as help farmers with milk collection, cooling, marketing, and processing.
- And, Land O'Lakes, $2.6 million to work with Palestinian farmers in the West Bank improve the quality of their dairy products as well as provide milk to disadvantaged children.
USAID knows that American dairy farmers are the best in the world -- and we think farmers in developing countries can learn a lot from people like you.
So as you can see that 4H and USAID are very similar: you are working to build stronger communities here in America, and we're working to build stronger communities around the globe.
Perhaps someday you will have the opportunity to share what you've learned here with a farmer in Kenya or in Albania -- and help make this world a better place for everyone.
I wish you success in your future endeavors as members of this organization, your commitment will make your communities better places for everyone. I wish you luck.
Thank you.
This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.
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Last Updated on: July 12, 2001 |
