Tell Congress and the President to Reform Foreign Assistance!

Efficient. Effective. Fair. Equal for men AND women. Shouldn't America's foreign assistance system be all of these?

Over a billion people worldwide live on a dollar a day or less - and women are most likely to be among them. This is a problem that affects all of humanity - when women are poor, entire communities suffer because they are not free to earn an income, feed their families, or protect themselves and their children from violence.

U.S. international assistance has the potential to be a major force for good - in fact, when done right it has eradicated entire diseases, alleviated poverty, and sent countless girls to school. The problem? Our foreign assistance system is outdated and designed in a way that prevents us from reaching these achievable goals. This is bad news for women struggling to escape poverty: they cannot benefit from resources that would dramatically change their families' lives.

The result? Our money is not being used efficiently and we are missing out on the biggest opportunity we have to improve the world and restore America's image in it.

Right now there is a political 'perfect storm' to take advantage of this opportunity. President Obama and Congress have a unique chance to do what has not been done in over 40 years: transform our assistance programs to meet current realities and to be a powerful force for good. But they need to know that Americans care about this issue and want to see our international assistance dollars used right.

Sign the Petition Asking President Obama and Congress to Reform Foreign Assistance!

Dear President Obama and the U.S Congress, I call on you to reform America’s foreign assistance system. U.S. foreign assistance has the potential to be a major force for good. In fact, when done right, it has eradicated entire diseases, reduced poverty, and sent countless girls to school. But our current foreign assistance system is designed in a way that prevents us from reaching these achievable goals. First, it does not make reducing poverty as important as diplomacy and defense. Second, it is outdated and inefficient and too often does not reach women in developing countries – who are most likely to invest in their children and most likely to reduce poverty in their communities. The result? We are missing out on the biggest opportunity we have to improve the world and restore America's image in it. Right now, we have a once in a life time opportunity to transform this outdated system by reforming our foreign assistance to fight poverty, invest in women, and listen to local voices. Not only will modernizing foreign assistance make it more efficient and effective, but it also will improve America’s standing in the world, which has declined sharply over the last decade. Please take advantage of this opportunity to transform our assistance programs to meet current realities, alleviate poverty, create opportunity, encourage stability in the developing world, and be a powerful force for good. Sincerely,

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Learn more about why we need to reform foreign assistance and what we can do: www.WomenThrive.org/foreignassistance.

0-25 of 1540 signatures

Number	Date	Name
1540	July 28, 2010	Ishraat Masood
1539	July 25, 2010	Elayne Feinsod
1538	July 22, 2010	Raymond Del Colle
1537	July 22, 2010	Zindy Coss
1536	July 22, 2010	Jane Speller
1535	July 22, 2010	Jean Naples
1534	July 21, 2010	Albert Betchel
1533	July 21, 2010	Agnieszka Straková
1532	July 20, 2010	Amanda Clemm
1531	July 14, 2010	kansiime julius
1530	July 14, 2010	musinguzi Polycarp
1529	July 09, 2010	Judith Rosen
1528	July 01, 2010	Dahlia Romanow
1527	July 01, 2010	Katherine Kappel Haba
1526	June 28, 2010	Christi Savage
1525	June 26, 2010	Eleanor Inglis
1524	June 24, 2010	Marleena Eyre
1523	June 14, 2010	Aissatou B. DIOP
1522	June 11, 2010	Federico Lambea
1521	May 27, 2010	Gabriela Sonam
1520	May 26, 2010	Lorelei VerLee
1519	May 25, 2010	EMILY ODERA
1518	May 23, 2010	Valerie Mossman-Celestin
1517	May 13, 2010	Stephanie Bosco-Ruggiero
1516	May 07, 2010	Susan Beckett

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