My latest from WND -- S.P.
The federal government’s portfolio of international health-care initiatives has grown so enormous that the Obama administration is infusing another quarter-billion dollars simply to help operate this global bureaucracy.
The estimated return on this taxpayer-funded venture: 250 new support staff.
My latest from WND. -- S.P.
The Obama administration during the partial government shutdown concealed a plan to funnel millions into yet another project in Afghanistan, where U.S. taxpayers are helping farmers grow wheat instead of illicit crops used in narcotics production.
Iranians and Pakistanis could particularly benefit from the endeavor, according to contracting documents WND discovered via routine database research.
The U.S. Agency for International Development explicitly identified Iran and Pakistan as long-time recipients of food products exported from the targeted provinces of Helmand, Kandahar and Zabul, which likewise have helped satisfy Afghanistan’s nationwide food requirements.
Read more at WND.com...
Although the House and Senate remain
in a stalemate over what to cut or keep in the controversial Farm Bill, the
Obama administration is proceeding with its own plan for farmers – in and around Kenya.
The East Africa Regional Construction initiative overall could cost U.S. taxpayers $210 million.
Pack-house and cold-storage facility construction “appropriate to the Kenyan rural environment” is the first step, according to a Request for Proposals from contractors that U.S. Trade & Aid Monitor discovered via routine database research.
In the request, the U.S. Agency for International Development identified only the Kenyan endeavor, which aims to help farmers properly store products such as broccoli, sweet corn, potatoes and peppers.
The Kenyan project is just one facet of a broader initiative. The agency said it expects to award up to four design and construction contracts – each with a maximum value of $75 million – across East Africa over five years.
However, it did not disclose the specific cost of the initiative’s Kenyan segment.
USAID said the project will be advantageous for Kenyan farmers in Kitui County, as the new facility will expand the ability of small growers and farmer associations to ship their products to “other domestic or export markets.”
This “marketing flexibility” will allow them to sell produce at a more appropriate time, as the new cooling and storage facilities will make it unnecessary to sell produce immediately after harvest.
The construction initiative comes as Obama separately has vowed to send many hundreds of millions of dollars in additional aid to African energy programs.
Similarly, during the “President and First Lady’s Africa Trip,” as the White House touts the purportedly $100 million visit, Obama unveiled the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.
The fellowship, beginning next year, “will bring more than 500 young African leaders to the United States each year for leadership training and mentoring,” the administration announced.
Program fellows – whose numbers Obama hopes to double in subsequent years – will gain access to millions of dollars in business and NGO start-up grants through the U.S. African Development Foundation and the U.S. Department of State, it said.
One year ago, the Monitor reported the administration’s spending on Kenya had become so voluminous that USAID was asking for more contractors to oversee the work.
A recent report said the agency – after covering up its propaganda plan to sway U.S. and international media views on U.S. assistance to Kenya – has repackaged its contractor-support plan.
Although USAID admittedly cannot adequately manage the numerous initiatives it has launched in Kenya, cost-wise, overall aid dropped from a high of $830 million in FY 2009 to $460 million in FY 2013.
Nonetheless, the monitor has continued to reveal new programs unfolding under Obama, including:
This article oriignally was published July 3 via WND.com. Under agreement with WND, rights have reverted back to the author, Steve Peacock.
My latest from WND...
Although the House and Senate remain in a stalemate over what to cut or keep in the controversial Farm Bill, the Obama administration is proceeding with its own plan for farmers – in Kenya.
The East Africa Regional Construction initiative overall could cost U.S. taxpayers $210 million.
Pack-house and cold-storage facility construction “appropriate to the Kenyan rural environment” is the first step, according to a Request for Proposals from contractors that WND discovered via routine database research.
2172 House Rayburn Office Building Washington, DC 20515 | Jun 12, 2013 10:00am
Chairman Royce on the hearing: “Modernizing U.S. international food aid to help more people facing starvation, more quickly, at a lower cost is common sense, especially given our national debt. By reforming food aid, we can reach more people in need, while at the same time saving hundreds of millions of dollars. At this hearing, the Committee will hear from two top food aid experts about the best approaches to improving our current, inefficient system of food aid delivery.”
The Honorable Andrew Natsios
Executive Professor
The George H.W. Bush School of Government and Public Service
Texas A&M University
(Former Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development)
The Honorable Dan Glickman
Executive Director
Aspen Institute Congressional Program
(Former Secretary of Agriculture)
The U.S.-funded construction of an Afghan National Army slaughterhouse -- whose estimated cost reaches upwards of $100 million -- is coming closer to fruition, as contractor bids are due this Saturday (July 21) . The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers project, as spelled out in a 1,300+ page solicitation released earlier this year, will provide a modern, climate-controlled facility to help the U.S. achieve its policy goal of making the Afghanistan military more self-sufficient. The facility will be located in the Deh-e-Sabz District, Kabul Province.
Source document: Solicitation #W5J9JE-12-R-0078.