USAID boosting program to prevent child deaths

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Agency for International Development is ramping up a program to keep kids around the world from dying.

USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah says the agency will be realigning $2.9 billion of investment in the next two years, in an effort to get life-saving medicines, vaccines and health resources to the places where they’re needed most. Shah believes it’ll “save the lives of up to 500,000 children.”

It’s part of the Child Survival Call to Action, a global initiative that was launched two years ago with a goal of ending preventable child deaths by 2035. Shah says there’s been extraordinary progress since then.

Shah says the effort “has won strong bipartisan support at a time in Washington when bipartisan cooperation is sometimes difficult to come by.” It also has gained support from other countries, foundations, institutions and corporations worldwide, including Coca Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Bayer, Merck, Johns Hopkins and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Sound:

%@AP Links

140-w-37-(David Melendy, AP correspondent, with Rajiv Shah, administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID))–The United States Agency for International Development is ramping up a program to keep kids from dying. AP correspondent David Melendy has the details. (25 Jun 2014)

<

141-a-13-(Rajiv Shah (rah-JEEV’ shah), administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in teleconference)-“to 500,000 children”-USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah says the agency is launching a nearly $3 billion initiative to dramatically reduce child deaths. ((cut used in wrap)) (25 Jun 2014)

<

142-a-12-(Rajiv Shah (rah-JEEV’ shah), administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in teleconference)-“and accelerated significantly”-USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah says there’s been significant progress in reducing child death rates since the Child Survival Call to Action two years ago. (25 Jun 2014)

<

143-a-12-(Rajiv Shah (rah-JEEV’ shah), administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in teleconference)-“members of Congress”-USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah says the program has bipartisan support in the U.S. and support from countries and institutions around the world. (25 Jun 2014)

<

144-a-07-(Rajiv Shah (rah-JEEV’ shah), administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in teleconference)-“day in 1990”-USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah says efforts to reduce the death rates of children and new mothers are making a huge difference. (25 Jun 2014)

<

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up