Press Releases 2008
U.S., Pakistan Sign Two Amendments to Bilateral Agreements to Support Agriculture, Health
August 19, 2008
Islamabad – The governments of the United States of America and Pakistan today signed two amendments to their bilateral agreements on U.S. development assistance to Pakistan. The amendments establish the basis for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide $15.4 million more to projects that strengthen Pakistan’s agricultural production and that improve the health of Pakistani mothers and children.
“Today’s agreement is another sign of the Unites States’ commitment to Pakistan,” said USAID/Pakistan Acting Mission Director Edward Birgells. “This money will go to projects that directly reach and benefit the Pakistani people.”
Signed by Mr. Edward Birgells and Mr. Junaid Iqbal Chaudhary, Acting Secretary for Economic Affairs Division, the amendments provide approximately $8.9 million to agriculture projects that help Pakistani farmers adopt techniques to increase productivity. Past USAID projects in agriculture have increased participating farmer’s incomes by more than 19 percent.
The remaining $6.5 million will be placed into a USAID maternal and child health program that trains Pakistani health professionals and renovates health facilities, providing life-saving care to Pakistani mothers, newborns and children.
Since 2002 United States has provided more than $2 billion to Pakistan to improve health, education, economic growth and democratic governance and to reconstruct areas affected by the October 2005 earthquake.
