Promised cash may never arrive: UN

[rodeodance]

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,11847606%255E1702,00.html

Promised cash may never arrive: UN

By Evelyn Leopold at the United Nations

04jan05

SOME of the more than $US2 billion ($2.56bn) pledged in international aid for tsunami victims might never materialise, the United Nations warned today.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and emergency relief co-ordinator Jan Egeland expressed their gratitude for the promises of help from 45 nations.
But both said said they were concerned that some of the money would not be handed over.

"If we go by past history, yes, I do have concern," Mr Annan said.......

[whistle]

1. Not if it goes through Halliburton....

....or any of the multitude of fundamentalist Christian relief organizations who believe that the tsunami was God's way of ridding the world of the heathen non-believers and lost souls.

[merwin]

2. Yes, sadly, pledging does not equal giving. We pledge money a lot here

and never pony up the dough.

[outergeorge]

3. So do contributions from nations typically go to the UN?

Where do they donate their money to? They say they are going to give $*** but where do they contribute it to?

[central scrutinizer]

4. Sadly, much will disappear

through "administrative expenses" or outright theft. The bigger the disaster, the riper the pickings for "entrepreneurs". I would recommend only giving money to organizations with proven track records of actually doing what they say they will do. We donated to the tsunami relief fund of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. The Red Cross/Red Crescent is probably also trustworthy.

[Mist]

5. I donated to Doctors Without Borders

I think they're trustworthy.

[Nancy Waterman]

6. Tonight on Democracy Now

Amy Goodman focused on the Indonesian government and how it represses and abuses the people. I was left with the impression that the military may steal much of the relief aid and that it is the Indonesian military that is blocking some of the distribution. I am hoping that all this focus on that part of the world will start to bring up what kind of government they have and how our government has supported this repressive regime. Evidently Acheh Province has a lot of resistance to the government and is very repressed and closed to the world normally.

[SoCalDem]

8. Too bad the reporters who are right there couldn't be used as a conduit

to get money directly to the people involved..

[quaoar]

7. Much of the aid that was pledged

last year after the earthquake in Bam, Iran, never materialized.

[karlrschneider]

9. How much of the Chimp-promised $15B for AIDS in Africa ever got paid?

I think not much...

[LynnTheDem]

10. Not one single penny to date.

Nada.

Same with the Iranians re their earthquake disaster.

As usual with bush, his lips flap flap flap, but his promises don't mean shit.

[ZR2]

13. Wrong answer

http://www.avert.org/pepfar.htm

[LynnTheDem]

15. Wanna bet?

NOT ONE PENNY has been PAID OUT.

Funds have been appropriated, but they have not been paid out. Or not as of last week.

Quote:

And back in 2002, Mr. Bush announced his Millennium Challenge account to give African countries development assistance of up to $5 billion a year, but the account has yet to disburse a single dollar.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/30/opinion/30thu2.html?incamp=article_popular_1

Jeffrey Sachs on Charlie Rose, Dec 22, 2004:

…in 2002, March 2002, made a policy announcement that they were going to have a Millennium Challenge Account. This was March 2002 at a big international gathering. President`s repeated many times how proud he is of this initiative. It`s now two-and-a-half years later. They haven`t dispersed one penny…

http://adamsmithee.blogs.com/blog/2004/12/

[ZR2]

17. That is development assistance

NOT money to combat AIDS which HAS been paid out.

[LynnTheDem]

20. bush's Millennium Challenge account, $15 billion over 5 years.

That is what's being referred to.

[ZR2]

22. Actually, it's not called that

What is the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief?
The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, often known as PEPFAR, is a U.S. five year $15 billion global initiative to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

When did PEPFAR start?
In his State of the Union Address in January 2003, President Bush made a commitment to substantially increase US support to addressing the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.1

“I ask the Congress to commit $15 billion over the next five years, to turn the tide against AIDS in the most afflicted nations of Africa and the Caribbean” - President Bush.

In May 2003, the US Congress approved, and President Bush signed into law, the “United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Act of 2003” (PL108-25).2 This legislation approved expenditure of up to $15 billion over 5 years and it provides the legal and policy framework for the expenditure.

[LynnTheDem]

24. NOTHING has been paid out on bush's $15 billion promise to Africa.

Not one single penny.

Broken Promises & Betrayals
http://www.africaaction.org/action/brokenprom0309.htm

[ZR2]

30. Did you happen to notice that article is dated

September 2003...and is dealing with something that didn't even begin until 2004 ?

[LynnTheDem]

31. Hmmm

DU's "search by author" is a really great feature.

And so I edit out my post as just a waste of time. DAMN them FACTS!

Buh bye. :)

[diamond14]

18. according to YOUR link, bush* sent about ZERO funding to Africa for AIDS

bush* PROMISED $ 15 BILLION to Africa to fight the AIDS epidemic....from YOUR link, it's apparent that bush* never made ONE BILLION, and of that pittance, bush* siphoned it all off for US Federal Agencies budgets, tuberculosis and malaria, and "encouraging faithfulness"...bush* is a criminal and a liar...


here's -snips- from YOUR link:
_________________________________________________

2004....."Of the overall total, $850 million was “new” money.", and that money was not totally for AIDS, it INCLUDED tuberculosis, malaria, AND "Modifying behaviour by encouraging abstinence and faithfulness"....and those 'new' funds also support the bloated administrative funding of THREE Major US Federal Agencies:

"The expenditure of money is coordinated by Ambassador Tobias’ office, but is distributed through a number of government agencies which include the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Defence.11

Within HHS a number of different agencies are involved including the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resource and Services Administration (HRSA), the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)."

[ZR2]

19. Some more from "my" link

I guess you missed this part:

The first “new” money of $350 million was made available by Congress in February 2004, and within a few months $114 million had been made available through Track 1 and $232 through Track 2.16

Through Track 1 grants were provided for four main areas of activity.

Modifying behaviour by encouraging abstinence and faithfulness ($4.9 million)

Providing care for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children ($4.7 million)

Providing ARV therapy for those infected with HIV ($92 million)

Preventing HIV transmission through unsafe medical injection ($13 million)

[ZR2]

21. Some more from "my" link

The second distribution of “new” money was $550 million made available by Congress in June 2004.

This money was distributed as Track 2 funding for each countries first annual operational plan.

Who has received Track 2 grants?
It is difficult to determine who has received Track 2 grants because much of this money is being allocated at individual country level. Some information is however available through the US Embassies and the USAID Missions of the individual focus countries.

Do we at least know how much Track 2 money is provided for each country?
The Global AID Coordinator has given the following figures for the funding for each focus country in FY 2004, as well as figures for FY 2005.18

Country FY 2004 total budget
($ millions) FY 2005 total budget
requested ($ millions)
Botswana 17.9 34.7
Côte d'Ivoire 13.0 25.6
Ethiopia 41.0 78.7
Guyana 9.3 18.3
Haiti 20.3 40.3
Kenya 71.4 139.1
Mozambique 25.5 49.5
Namibia 21.2 42.1
Nigeria 55.5 109.0
Rwanda 28.2 64.1
South Africa 65.4 129.1
Tanzania 45.8 89.7
Uganda 80.6 159.2
Vietnam 10.0 to be decided
Zambia 57.9 120.8
Total 563 1,100

[LynnTheDem]

26. That is APPROPRIATED. NOT paid out.

There IS a difference between BUDGETING for something and actually DISPERSING the funds.

NOT ONE PENNY has been paid out on bush's $15 billion promise to Africa.

[LynnTheDem]

23. The $15 billion promise to Africa; not one penny has been

paid out.

[ZR2]

28. No it is not.

The Millinium Challenge is a totally seperate thing from the money promised to help combat AIDS in Africa.

[LynnTheDem]

29. bush promised "new money"; the $15 billion over 5 years Africa Aids fund.

In 2002.

As of Dec. 23, 2004, not a single penny of that $15 billion "new money" had been dispersed.

[amazona]

11. way to make friends and influence people

I guess Annan has good reason to make this statement but I wonder if he realizes how it is going to play in the U.S.

[newscott]

12. All he has to do is point to Bam.

After the earthquake, worldwide promises were about a billion dollars.

Only about 17 million in relief aid ever materialized.

[amazona]

14. Ok got it

Thanks, you are right.

[Deja Q]

16. Just like PBS pledge month.

:shrug:

[goforit]

25. And soooooo right Annan is.

Our pathetic,deplorable morals displayed by F*cked-up politicians.

Welcome to America.

[m0nkeyneck]

27. They are referring to all nations who pledged, not just the US; correct?