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Washington D.C. 20002
Tel: +1-202-408-8506/8507
Fax: +1-202-408-8509
info@intlhc.org
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IHC News
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USAID Administrator Sworn in by Secretary of State
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Henrietta H. Fore sworn-in as USAID Administrator
On December 13, 2007 Henrietta H. Fore was sworn in by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as the 15th Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Fore concurrently serves as the Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance and chairs the National Security Council’s Policy Coordinating Committee on Development. She was designated by President Bush as Acting Administrator of USAID and by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as Acting Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance on May 7, 2007. Prior to this appointment, Fore served as the Undersecretary for Management in the U.S. Department of State from August 2005 to November 2007, and as a Director of the U.S. Mint in the U.S. Department of Treasury from August 2001 to August 2005. In addition, she served as a Presidential appointee at USAID from 1989 to 1993, first as Assistant Administrator to Private Enterprise and then Assistant Administrator for Asia. During this period, she founded and served as the first Chairman of the United States Asia Environmental Partnership, a coalition of business, government and community organizations in the United States and 31 Asian nations. Fore was also a founder of the Financial Services Volunteer Corp.
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IHC Participates in the NAR Conference in Las Vegas
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IHC Awarded a $30,000 Grant from the Reaume Foundation
Bob Dubinsky and Jack Howley represented the IHC at the National Association of Realtors (NAR) annual conference and expo in Las Vegas, Nevada November 12-15, 2007. Thirty thousand real estate professionals attended the conference. More than 10% of those attending live outside the United States. Sixty eight real estate organizations from around the world were present as well as the International Consortium of Real Estate Associations (ICREA) which is setting up an Internet based system for selling real property internationally. Dubinsky reported to the NAR International Operations Committee and to ICREA on the activities of the IHC. Dubinsky and Howley also made a presentation to the Reaume Foundation requesting funding for participation in the UN-Habitat World Urban Forum which will take place in Nanjing, China in October 2008. The Foundation approved a grant of $30,000 to the IHC. Five additional associations become affiliates of NAR: the National Association of Realtors of India, the Belize National Association of Realtors, Confederation Europeenne de l’Immobilier, the Real Estate Sales and Marketing Association (Thailand) and the Real Estate Information Center (Thailand). The new president of NAR is Richard F. “Dick” Gaylord from Long Beach, California.
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IHC Publishes Report on the Millennium Challenge Corporation |
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IHC Report Assesses MCC’s Approach to Project Evaluation
The International Housing Coalition’s (IHC) recently published a report that assesses how the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) uses rates of return analyses to assess proposals from qualifying countries requesting the award of a compact and evaluates the usefulness of this approach in estimating economic growth and poverty alleviation potential. The report, Urban Investments and Rates of Return: Assessing MCC’s Approach to Project Evaluation, supports the IHC’s efforts to focus more attention and resources on the issues of urbanization and poor housing in the developing world. The mission of the IHC is to raise the priority of housing and urban investments on the international development agenda. Click here to download the MCC report.
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IHC Advocacy Program
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2007 Legislative Priorities
The IHC continues to aggressively advocate in Congress for its four 2007 legislative priorities. An update on the issues as of August 1, 2007 follows:
- Authorize and Fund the Africa Housing and Infrastructure Facility (AHIF): The AHIF did not get approved by the House or Senate Appropriations Committees.
- Support Water for the Poor Programs: The House and Senate Appropriations Committees approved $300 million for water programs.
- Increased Funding for OPIC's Administrative Budget: The House and Senate Appropriations Committees increased the funding for OPIC's administrative budget.
- Funding For UN HABITAT: The House Appropriations Committees approved $900,000 for UN-HABITAT; the Senate $1 million.
The FY 2008 appropiation for State, Foreign Operations and related programs will be resolved in a House-Senate Conference in the fall.
The IHC Policy Committee meets on a monthly basis. All IHC members are invited to Policy Committee meetings. Please email Bob Dubinsky at Dubinsky@intlhc.org with your questions or suggestions.
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Advocacy with USAID
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USAID's 2007 Operational Plan Guidance
The IHC undertook a detailed analysis of USAID's 2007 Operational Plan Guidance and recommended modifications to USAID and the State Department's F Bureau. The Guidance prescribes the activities USAID will fund and how their results will be monitored. The IHC concluded that mention of housing and housing-related topics was incidental at best, and the Guidance failed to recognize that housing development and upgrading have important linkages with many different Program Elements and Sub Elements in the Guidance. Based on this analysis, the IHC decided to propose to USAID that a new Program Element, HOUSING, be added to the Guidance and to undertake an advocacy effort on behalf of housing.
On March 7 in a letter to Ambassador Tobias the IHC expressed its concern about the Guidance. In a letter dated April 19 Ambassador Tobias responded and argued that the Guidance allowed missions to invest in housing. The IHC does not believe this to be the case. On May 9 the IHC met with Jacqueline Schafer, Assistant Administrator for Economic Growth and Trade (EGAT), to discuss the matter and present the IHC's analysis to her. Overall the discussion was positive and useful. The IHC formally submitted its analysis and proposal to the F Bureau on June 1, and plans to meet with F Bureau staff to discuss how housing can be given more recognition.
If you would like to receive a copy of the IHC's analysis and proposal, email Dubinsky@intlhc.org
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One billion people are estimated to live in slums - hundreds of millions existing in desperate poverty without the access to potable water, adequate sanitation or basic security.
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