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 Our foreign assistance system is outdated and designed in a way that prevents us from reaching these achievable goals.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 Second, it is outdated and inefficient and too often does not reach women in developing countries – who are most likely to invest in their children and most likely to reduce poverty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 672 signatures

Number	Date	Name
672	March 13, 2010	Arbil López
671	March 12, 2010	David Romportl
670	March 12, 2010	erin yarrobino
669	March 11, 2010	Anonymous
668	March 10, 2010	Robert Fournier
667	March 10, 2010	Harry Engle
666	March 10, 2010	Linda Brebner
665	March 10, 2010	Lisa DeFrancesco
664	March 10, 2010	Brady Root
663	March 10, 2010	Julie Rodgers
662	March 10, 2010	Christina Massey
661	March 10, 2010	Christina Massey
660	March 10, 2010	Jo Anne London
659	March 09, 2010	Eddie Floyd II
658	March 09, 2010	Julia Burwell
657	March 09, 2010	les roberts
656	March 09, 2010	Matthew Aarsvold
655	March 09, 2010	Anonymous
654	March 09, 2010	Anonymous
653	March 09, 2010	Amie Steffen
652	March 09, 2010	Twik Simms
651	March 09, 2010	Marian Cooley
650	March 09, 2010	alejandra santaolalla
649	March 09, 2010	Cheryl Greenwald
648	March 09, 2010	Carol Curtis

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