About the Author: Anne C. Richard serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration.
In the past five years in Afghanistan, there have been impressive gains in key health indicators, and a dramatic decrease in infant and child mortality rates due to the efforts of the Afghan Ministry of Public Health, with the support of the United States and the international community. Now many more Afghan women survive pregnancy and childbirth. These dramatic improvements serve as a good reminder to the international community that with sound investments to tackle Afghanistan's still-daunting humanitarian and development needs, progress has been and will continue to be achieved.
Today, I had the honor of joining with the Afghan Minister of Public Health, Dr. Suraya Dalil, who has a very impressive resume, working most recently at UNICEF, to sign a Memorandum of Understanding that serves as another step forward for Afghanistan. In the Memorandum, our countries have… more »
Ambassador Susan Jacobs, Special Advisor for International Children's Issues, will hold a conversation with Ernie Allen, President and CEO, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, on international parental child abductions. The conversation will highlight how the Bureau of Consular Affairs, Office of Children's Issues and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children work to prevent international abductions and to assist families after an abduction or wrongful retention has occurred. The discussion will be moderated by Cheryl Benton, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs,… more »
On a stifling hot March evening in Kumasi, Ghana's second largest city, I joined Peace Corps volunteers David Kalpakchian and Hannah Braun and Ghanaian volunteers to hand out and hang up insecticide-treated nets (ITN). We know that insecticide-treated nets are a highly effective way to protect people from malaria infection. Because of this, Ghana is working to achieve "universal" coverage, meaning one ITN is available for every two people. This effort is important to the kayayei and other groups whose socioeconomic and transient status make them much less likely to have access to ITNs.
Malaria does not threaten boys and girls in the United States, but in Ghana and across Africa, the lives of could-be future presidents, scientists and nurses are lost prematurely, and their hope for making an impact on the world is greatly diminished. In Ghana, where malaria is a leading… more »
The Asia-Pacific is home to half the world's population, more than half the world's GDP and nearly half of its trade. It is home to key allies and emerging powers. It is also home to booming middle classes and growing economic opportunities and is a region experiencing reductions in poverty without parallel in human history.
I recently traveled to the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia, where I saw firsthand how, in the words of Secretary Clinton, "It's becoming increasingly clear that in the 21st century, the world's strategic and economic center of gravity will be the Asia-Pacific."
While this region is experiencing many gains, there are also many challenges, including arms proliferation, piracy, trafficking and smuggling, natural disasters and regional tensions between powerful countries. A top priority for our Bureau's engagement with partners… more »
About the Author: Mai Ichihara serves as a Public Diplomacy Intern for the Offices of Japanese and Korean Affairs in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
Recently the Department of State hosted a Cherry Blossom Centennial event that highlighted the role of youth and women in foreign affairs and diplomacy. I was lucky enough to sit among the Cherry Blossom Princesses who represented all 50 states and even a few foreign embassies here in Washington, and the National Cherry Blossom Festival Goodwill Ambassadors. I was one of many young women gathered in the auditorium mulling questions such as: How can a young person with few resources, few connections, and no real experience be a catalyst for global change? Can society accept and actually appreciate a working mom?… more »
DipNote is the official blog of the U.S. Department of State —a place to share stories, discuss experiences, and inspire new ideas on the important foreign policy issues of the day. more »
Across the eastern Horn of Africa, more than 11 million people -- a number greater than the populations of Houston and New York City combined -- are now in need of emergency assistance to survive. Learn more about the current crisis, including how you can help.
May 23: The State Department, through its office of the U.S.-Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), is pleased to announce $1.5 million in funding to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to support open governance and political participation in the Middle East and North Africa. more »
May 23: Today, Russia was invited to join the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) at a ceremony hosted by its parent body, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris. ã more »
![An Afghan doctor checks on a newly born baby at the Malalai Maternity Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, in November 2011. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0425_Afghan_Doctor_Baby_m.jpg)
![Children peek from beneath mosquito netting in sub-Saharan Africa. [Photo Gilbert Awekofua]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2009_0424_mosquito_netting_m.jpg)
![Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro is greeted by naval officials during his visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on February 15, 2012 [U.S. Embassy Kuala Lumpur photo/ Public Domain]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0425_shapiro_m.jpg)
![With the Jefferson Memorial in the background, cherry blossoms bloom along the Tidal Basin in Washington, March 19, 2012. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0424_cherry_blossoms_m.jpg)
