The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced an additional 18 .5 Million United States Dollars in funding to support the people of Zambia, including the country’s fight against COVID-19 and HIV/AIDS.
USAID Administrator, Samantha Power announced this yesterday, when she met with President Hakainde Hichilema to discuss U.S. support for Zambia and President Hichilema’s far-reaching agenda of democratic and economic reforms.
Administrator Power was pleased to welcome President Hichilema on his first visit to the United States as President of Zambia after his victory in the August 2021 election.
She conveyed to him the support of the Biden-Harris Administration and USAID in strengthening the U.S.-Zambia partnership, and in his efforts to expand economic opportunities, reduce inequality, end the COVID-19 pandemic, deliver responsive and transparent governance, and advance democracy and human rights.
Administrator Power and President Hichilema discussed the President’s early efforts to tackle corruption, sustain and create jobs, and address trafficking in persons, as well as ways to build on USAID’s long-standing work in Zambia to meet the new challenges facing the country.
In view of President Hichilema’s early efforts to strengthen democratic institutions and freedom of expression, since his inauguration on August 24, Administrator Power announced $1.25 million to help bolster Zambia’s new democratic openings.
“This funding will advance USAID’s activities to strengthen the foundations of freedom of expression and assembly, and will help safeguard a space for activists, human rights defenders, oppositional voices, and independent and new media,” Administrator Power stated.
Administrator Power also highlighted USAID’s recent announcement of $6.7 million from the American Rescue Plan for strengthening the Zambian government’s response to the pandemic.
She disclosed that since 2020, the United States has provided more than $33.9 million to fight COVID-19 in Zambia in addition to providing vaccines to fully vaccinate over 300,000 Zambians.
“U.S. assistance has supported Zambia’s outbreak response, outreach, and communications on COVID-19 prevention measures and vaccine delivery,” she added.
She further announced an additional $9.6 million from the American Rescue Plan to help mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and HIV/AIDS programs in Zambia, saying that since 2020, the United States has provided more than $734.3 million to fight HIV/AIDS in Zambia.
Administrator Power announced another $1 million in FY 20 Power Africa Clean Energy funds to strengthen Zambia’s energy sector by continuing and amplifying support for sector reforms to facilitate investment, off-grid networks to expand access to electricity, and health facility electrification to improve health services and benefit neighboring communities.
After the meeting Administrator Power and President Hichilema discussed the dramatic circumstances that led to his landslide victory in the August 12 presidential election.
President Hichilema explained that as a longtime opposition leader, he had been arrested 15 times and faced significant persecution for his political activity.
He added that as Election Day approached observers expressed significant concerns about the prospects for a free and fair election.
“Yet as the entire world witnessed, the Zambian people came out in force, determined to exercise their rights and to send a message about the direction they wanted for their country. The result was a historic turnout powered by millions of first-time voters, young people, and women,” President Hichilema narrated.
President Hichilema added that Zambian civil society also played a critical role in ensuring that Zambians were able to have their voices heard and in successfully monitoring the electoral process.
This is contained in a statement issued to ZANIS in Lusaka today, by USAID Spokesperson, Rebecca Chalif.
I know HH will put measures in place that will makes us stop the dependence of foreign countries through prudent economic management and adherence to the rule of law.
KEEP SIMON MITI AWAY FROM THAT MONEY.
AND HH WIILL ALWAYS SEEK APPROVAL FROM THE WEST. HE WILL NEVER MAKE INDEPENDENT DECISIONS. BEST PRACTICES ARE BETTER THAN COPY AND PADTE PRACTICES
Way to go! In one trip, likely costing $500k in taxpayers money, he has managed to obtain $18m in return.
Yes we eventually need to be on our 2-feet as a sovereign nation but we can’t pretend that we don’t need this aid money right now. The problem is not the aid but how you use the money… use it wisely and prudently so that you will never need the same aid tomorrow and in perpetuity.
This is what we have been receiving in the past…. So how special should we treat this one?.
And the question still stands… Where the hell do these guys get this money to burn on us and not their own?
If this money is extracted from drug and prostitute dealers then no wonder we don’t progress no matter how much they give us. And they’re even the least concerned even if it gets stolen. Just thinking…….. Kwati shaku dubai
BOOOM! Another tangible result !
Do the math… to you CRITICS, who were accussing HH for wasting tax-payers money, even when he decided to fly by commercial plane ! 18 mil right there !!!. We know…We know…, because of your emptiness and incoherentness, you will turn around and sure you will find something, just to blame HH, due to your hate for him.
Suck it up…give him the 10years he needs and will fix MOST of the issues. He is a true humble person than the former. He is Not taking vengence on those who persecuted him. Caderism is gone. Kwacha has Appreciated. Zambia is Internationally recogned as a role model for democracy. 18mil. ETC.
Bally at work
First presidential outing and the Zambia briefcase gets credited with and collects $18 million! A sign of revitalized confidence in the ‘new dawn’ and the team HH that bagged it should be applauded while obviously the political doom prophets will focus on spinning lies out of envy as they ‘hurt’ from not being the ones in limelight! Better days are sure coming to the Zambian people!!!!!!
Let Zambians benefit from this aid unlike
Previous government where only the top
Brass benefitted.Let Bally come back and
Give some thing to Zambians to make them
Happy in form of reduction as to give people
Confidence in this government.
So USAID gave $33.9million to the PF government for Covid-19 strategy? And we still have only 3% of the population vaccinated? So that $33.9million clearly disappeared in PF pockets! Hello ACC immediate action please!
I don’t support these giftings it is a disease that contaminates the minds of Zambians that they expect someone to give, it is not good at all it does more destruction to the self image of the people of Zambia .
Zambia doesn’t need those tokens Zambia needs to do business with equal partners stop it, it is not good why receive gifts if you have all the gold and all the now lucrative copper at the world market.
Doesn’t the world know who brought aids disease to Africa.
With all the natural resources and now UPND are happy with begging and donations….Africa no wonder we never develop….seeking donations and eating bread crumbs falling from a white man’s table when we can make a table of our own.
……..no wonder African Americans hate Africans here in the USA
Donations from the west are a ticking time bomb. This government needs to be careful. Americans are equally suffering, most of them are homeless, they fail to put food on their tables but then why donate to Africa?
Haiti needs this money more we do as Africans, Haiti is in more problems than us. So it would make sense to help out the earthquake ridden country.
No funding to countries which will not implement gay rights in Joe Biden’s voice
THE PROBLEM IS THAT MOST OF THE MONEY IS SPENT ON US CITIZENS WORKNG ON PROJECTS IN ZAMBIA AND NGOs ORGANISING WORKSHOPS AND BUYING FANCY SUVs.
YES SOME MONEY IS SPENT ON DRUGS etc BUT VERY LITTLE CASH GOES TO ORDINARY ZAMBIANS.
AND HOW MANY PHYSICAL PROJECTS LIKE BRIDGES OR POWER STATIONS etc HAVE THE WESTERN COUNTRIES EVER SUPPORTED?
NONE !!
BUT THE MUCH MALIGNED CHINESE HAVE BUILT COUNTLESS STADIA, HOSPITALS AND SO ON ……
THE QUESTION IS WHY AND YET OVER THE YEARS THE WEST HAS BENEFITTED MORE FROM ZAMBIA.
WE ASK AMERICA AND PARTICULARLY BRITAIN TO GIVE US MORE THAN COSMETICS EVEN AS WE ARE BEGGARS.
THE PROBLEM IS THAT MOST OF THE MONEY IS SPENT ON US CITIZENS WORKNG ON PROJECTS IN ZAMBIA AND NGOs ORGANISING WORKSHOPS AND BUYING FANCY SUVs.
YES SOME MONEY IS SPENT ON DRUGS etc BUT VERY LITTLE CASH GOES TO ORDINARY ZAMBIANS.
AND HOW MANY PHYSICAL PROJECTS LIKE BRIDGES OR POWER STATIONS etc HAVE THE WESTERN COUNTRIES EVER SUPPORTED?
NONE !!
BUT THE MUCH MALIGNED CHINESE HAVE BUILT COUNTLESS STADIA, HOSPITALS AND SO ON ………..
THE QUESTION IS WHY AND YET OVER THE YEARS THE WEST HAS BENEFITTED MO,RE FROM ZAMBIA.
WE ASK AMERICA AND PARTICULARLY BRITAIN TO GIVE US MORE THAN COSMETICS EVEN AS WE ARE BEGGARS.
@ ‘ZAMBIA FIRST’… those Chinese projects you refer to are not free. They come at exorbitant and inflated costs and they are the reason we find ourselves in this debt mess.
The PF govt were not honest and transparent about this. But what was happening is, the Chinese would give us a huge loan with high interest and collateral being our land or another public property; our govt would then give the contract to a Chinese company at inflated cost while pocketing the difference. So in essence the money was going back to China with interest. Wake up my friend!
So you think US aid has no strings attached to it?
That is not free you have to give them your freedom and be puppet , nothing is for free in this .
Don’t receive a gift you don’t know the trap you are in.
Zambia you will sell your birth rights like Esau.
Receivers are slaves of givers you cannot have freedom with gifts under your armpits stop it HH stop it , It is stinking
“I’m beggin’, beggin’ you
So, put your loving hand out, baby
I’m beggin’, beggin’ you
So, put your loving hand out, darling”…and some people started celebrating.
Grant with conditionalities. We don’t want the poison vaccine. As for me I will never agree to poison vaccine. My body can defend itself I’m not in the high risk group