Ceremony to Award Grant for Ambassador’s Fund for Refugees

Remarks
Ambassador Roger A. Meece
American Cultural Center
7 August 2007, 10h00

Distinguished guests,

I am extremely pleased to be here today to award a grant from the Ambassador’s Fund for Refugees.  These grants allow ambassadors to respond to critical gaps in refugee assistance and protection that have not been addressed by UNHCR or other international organizations or NGOs.  This is the third year that Embassy Kinshasa has been able to award a grant through this program, and the first time we have funded a refugee project in Equateur Province.

Since February of this year, UNHCR has helped more than 1,000 refugees return home to Buburu from the Republic of Congo.  They expect to assist another 6,000 before the end of the year.  Unfortunately, given the sad history of conflict in this area, the health and education sectors have suffered greatly.  One small step in allowing refugees to return to the area and to begin a new life there is to make education available to their children.

This grant will be given to the NGO Actions and Interventions for Development and Education to rehabilitate a secondary school in Buburu that will serve an estimated 3,000 students.  The funds will provide for construction of nine rooms, four latrines, and a well for clean water.  All of the construction will be finished by the end of the year, making it possible for students to pursue a quality education that will help them to rebuild their community.

UNHCR will now show a brief presentation on the situation in Buburu, after which Mr. Lukusa and I will officially sign the documents to transfer these much-needed funds.  Thank you to the UNHCR for all its work to assist refugees in the DRC and thank you to AIDES for the important work they are doing for the children of Equateur.  Finally, thank you all for joining us today.