22 Sept – Oxfam reaction – Obama speech – MDG Summit
Oxfam America President Raymond C. Offenheiser: ―President Obama showed bold
leadership among his UN peers today when he announced the first-ever US global
development policy during his UN MDG Summit speech. This is a substantive move by
the Obama administration toward fulfilling US development promises and helping
millions escape poverty. But let’s not forget -- while President Obama stood at the
podium to deliver his UN address, a child died from malaria every 45 seconds. Those
numbers will repeat until the President’s words are turned into action.
―Obama’s landmark directive—the first issued by a US National Security Council—fills a
much-needed void by clearly defining that the US mission for fighting global poverty is to
promote broad-based economic growth and democratic governance. Obama has
underlined that fighting global poverty is a strategic imperative, as poverty poses a
fundamental threat to our efforts to build a secure, prosperous, and just world. Oxfam is
pleased to hear that this new policy will establish a US Global Development Strategy
and Interagency Policy Committee to ensure coherence across the US government.
―Most important, President Obama issued a clear mandate that country ownership—that
is letting governments and citizens in poor countries set their development priorities
themselves—is how the his administration will pursue the fight against poverty. That fight
is more likely to succeed if it is driven by people’s needs on the ground, instead of by
what Washington thinks is best. Making that happen will require fixing conflicting
mandates, changing our ways of providing foreign aid, and making our assistance more
transparent and accountable to recipients and taxpayers alike. The US is doing its part
to combat corruption by requiring its oil, gas, and mining companies to reveal all the
payments they make to foreign governments.
―We applaud the administration for placing country ownership at the heart of the Global
Health Initiative, Feed the Future, and USAID’s Implementation & Procurement Reform.
But to ensure these initiatives’ success, the administration and Congress need to fix the
tangled web of competing and sometimes contradictory mandates that undermine their
potential. That has to begin with an overhaul of our Cold-War era foreign assistance
legislation. And to further elevate development, the President should exercise his
commitment to include the USAID Administrator in meetings of the National Security
Council whenever possible.
―We also commend President Obama for his determination to hold our nation
accountable for keeping our development promises. We encourage him to demonstrate
his commitment to working more closely with other donors by contributing the US’s full
share to the Global Fund and other organizations with a proven track record for
prioritizing poor countries’ own plans.
―Oxfam urges other world leaders to follow the US example and issue plans that will hold
them accountable to meeting their past aid pledges as well. If today’s leaders invest in
the MDGs and meet their development promises, it would mean that five years from
now, millions more mothers will survive childbirth, children will survive infancy, boys and
girls can go to school, adults can earn enough to care for and feed their families, and
countries can better grow their way out of poverty."
For interviews and information, contact Kristina Field +1 202 725 3279
kfield@oxfamamerica.org