THE MONTHLY GLEANER | FEBRUARY 13 - MARCH 15, 2025 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 3 Will Mr. Keith Roberts, whose last known address is 31 Gols Road, Upper Darby, PA, 19082 anyone knowing of his whereabouts kindly contact the Family Court, 55A Duke Street, Kingston, Telephone # (876) 633-7107. NOTICE Kimone Francis/ Senior Staff Reporter FORMER US Ambassador Luis G. Moreno is defending the role played by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Jamaica, insisting that funding from the agency was used to do “much more” than strengthening advocacy for the LGBT community. Moreno, a 35-year career diplomat who served in Jamaica under the Barack Obama administration from 2015 to 2017, said people are choosing to focus on the work done by USAID for LGBT rights because this is a hot-button issue in Jamaica. He said the level of homophobia is high in Jamaica, noting that hostility and violence against gay people have been significant. “What we wanted to do was to create dialogue and have people speak to each other, exchange points of view, and also to promote equality in Jamaica like what was our policy throughout the world under the Obama administration,” Moreno told The Gleaner on Sunday. His comments follow criticisms levelled against the agency by Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace, who listed Jamaica among countries she said benefited wrongfully from USAID. Mace claimed that USAID was being used to fund and promote agendas which run counter to an America first policy. Last week, the South Carolina representative mentioned in a House Oversight and Government Reform hearing that USAID had allocated US$1.5 million (J$225 million) to strengthen support for LGBT rights in Jamaica. The agency has been a lightning rod for Republican critics and has landed in the cross hairs of the Donald Trump administration, which has been direct about gutting its programmes and reeling back global support for vulnerable communities in mostly developing countries. USAID is an independent government agency and the principal US organisation responsible for administering tens of billions of dollars in humanitarian aid overseas each year. It has been doing so for six decades. Nearly all foreign assistance has been frozen by Trump, who said the agency is being run by “radical lunatics”. Moreno, however, dismissed such claims, asserting that USAID’s work had positively impacted Jamaica and many countries worldwide. “We were very active in PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) between treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS. We also did a lot of economic development for small businesses. We did good [for] governments,” said Moreno, recalling that USAID sponsored the leadership debate between Dr Andrew Holness and Portia Simpson Miller in the run-up to the 2016 general election. USAID’S INVOLVEMENT IN JA In addition, Moreno highlighted USAID’s involvement in anti-corruption initiatives as well as support for the Electoral Commission of Jamaica and disaster response efforts. “During a couple of storms, we’ve had what we call DART (disaster assistance and recovery) teams from USAID. We did coordination meetings. We did things like working with the JDF (Jamaica Defence Force) and US SOUTHCOM (Southern Command) aircraft to transport JDF to places where there were natural disasters in the region. “It’s such a force for good and for helping people. I don’t see how anyone could be against it. It’s just mind-boggling,” said Moreno. He said criticisms of the agency are “very shortsighted”, pointing to, as an example, the more than US$1 billion in contracts provided to American farmers to supply food globally to people in need. He said as a result of the order halting USAID activities, food sat on ships rotting, leaving the people in Sudan, the Congo and Gaza who benefit from these programmes to starve. “All these people saying America first, it is kind of America first because what we’re doing is we’re showing the world what the United States is, and if we don’t do these things, China, Russia and Iran – the Middle East – they’re going to fill that vacuum and they’re going to have the influence,” he said. Critics of the Trump administration’s decision to clamp USAID have argued that the US runs the risk of ceding soft power to other major foreign powers many of which, they say, offer aid with strings attached. Moreno added that USAID ran programmes that targeted at-risk youth who could fall prey to terrorist groups as well as programmes in Central America to create economic conditions that prevent citizens from wanting to leave and immigrate northwards. He noted that these programmes are long-term and are not designed to work overnight, but said sometimes “unfortunately, in the US, we get tunnel vision and have to see instant results”. “The most tragic thing about this is that USAID is being portrayed as being corrupt, as being political [and] all these things. I can assure you, I spent 35 years working side by side, shoulder to shoulder with USAID officers, offices and programmes. It’s nothing of the sort,” the former ambassador asserted. He warned that such misconceptions, especially those spread on social media, harm both global development efforts and the US’s standing in the world. kimone.francis@gleanerjm.com MORE THAN GAY RIGHTS Former US Ambassador Moreno laments shortsightedness of USAID critics, says agency did far more work in Ja Former US Ambassador to Jamaica Luis G. Moreno. FILE Kimone Francis/Senior Staff Reporter A UNITED States congresswoman has listed Jamaica among countries she says are benefiting wrongfully from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funding, asserting that agendas which run counter to an America first policy are being promoted. Republican Nancy Mace, the South Carolina representative, used last Wednesday’s House Oversight and Government Reform hearing to rail against the US$50-billion agency established six decades ago to administer civilian foreign aid and development assistance. Mace argued that USAID, which the Donald Trump administration has moved to disband triggering panic globally, has long strayed from its mission to effectively and efficiently administer aid to advance American interest. “It has become rotten to its core, sacrificing the prudent use of taxpayer dollars at the altar of advancing radical, sinister, social and political agendas abroad,” Mace said. The congresswoman listed several countries in which she said USAID funding is being used to further these agendas, questioning whether they served America’s interest. Mace said USAID, which had a significant number of its programmes halted globally, funded discriminatory diverse, equity and inclusive initiatives and“extreme gender ideology to marginalise real bona fide biological women”. She said that for decades, while Americans suffered at home, USAID“pillaged and plundered”the American treasury by funding “some of the stupidest, just dumbest” initiatives. She questioned whether the use of US tax dollars in several countries put America first. “USAID awarded US$1.5 million (J$225 million) to fund strengthening community support structures to upscale LGBT rights advocacy in Jamaica. Does this advance our interest?” Mace asked of a panel of three governors. Two of the governors answered in the negative while one held no position. The question fell among a slew posed to the panel. She charged that the US foreign assistance system is “badly broken” and insisted that this would end now. USAID suspended its programme globally on January 24, following an order from the US Department of State, though several implementing agencies have been granted limited waivers to continue with those considered life-saving humanitarian assistance. CONTINUANCE OF PROGRAMME Last Wednesday, USAID wrote to the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, instructing that its Faculty of Medical Sciences, through Health Connect Jamaica (HCJ), could continue with its programme to expand access and utilisation of high-quality HIV-specific primary health services. USAID granted US$4 million to the programme, 10 per cent of which went to UWI to oversee its operations. The funding was to cover four years, from 2024 to 2028, and to focus on HIV and global health initiatives. However, it forbade the university, in the February 5 letter to Mona Campus Principal Professor Densil Williams, from undertaking work outside of life-saving humanitarian assistance for HIV. “UWI/HCJ will not undertake activities related to abortion services, family planning, conferences, administrative costs outside the scope outlined in the attachment, or programmes centred on gender; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); transgender surgeries; or other forms of non-lifesaving assistance,” the letter said. It is not clear if HCJ had ever focused on or promoted programmes outside of its work to assist HIV patients. “For purposes of this limited waiver, life-saving humanitarian assistance applies only to: Delivery of life-saving HIV care and treatment services through support for health workers (doctors, nurses, and other clinical and community health workers, etc.) delivering or monitoring HIV care and treatment to ensure continuity of service provision. These workers deliver care at hospitals, primary healthcare clinics, faith-based clinics, and community settings … . “This limited waiver does not apply to activities that involve abortions, family planning, conferences, administrative costs other than those covered by above, gender or DEI ideology programs, transgender surgeries, or other non-lifesaving assistance,” the document outlined. On Friday, a federal judge handed President Donald Trump and billionaire supporter Elon Musk their first significant setback in efforts to dismantle USAID. US District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, ruled to temporarily halt plans to remove thousands of USAID staff members from their positions. The judge also blocked an order that would have forced thousands of USAID workers stationed overseas to take administrative leave and relocate their families back to the US within 30 days, at the government’s expense. The judge stated that these actions would unnecessarily expose US workers, along with their families, to undue risk and financial burden. kimone.francis@gleanerjm.com Republican Nancy Mace questions USAID’s use of US tax dollars in Jamaica Nancy Mace AP
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