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If you watched the news last month, you probably saw President Obama land in Africa for a whirlwind tour of Kenya and Ethiopia.
Did you spot the lady who handed President Obama corn at the Faffa Foods Factory (pictured above)? Or see the young woman who shared her innovation at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit?
In addition to diplomatic business with members of the African Union, the president met with beneficiaries of USAID-supported programs to highlight the faces behind the American peoples international development work.
In our opinion, these are some pretty important people who dont always sit at center stage. Weve included a handful of their stories below.
The work that happens when the spotlights are off is what brings us closer to ending extreme poverty. Devoted researcher Dr. Suniti Solomon committed her life to transforming the face of HIV in India, and her impact inspired the stirring tribute weve also included this week. Its a story worth reading.
Stories underlie our shared humanity. They teach us about what we value. They are windows to the world. USAIDs new storytelling hub was launched last month to bring powerful stories like that of Dr. Solomon to the forefront of our communications. This week, wed also like to offer insight into our approach. Because we all know that stories can inspire us to great things. In the tremendous fight to end extreme poverty, we could all use a little inspiration. |
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Highlights
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Gifty, The Mom Who Is Growing Giant Change
Meet Gifty, the farmer who might call her uptick in corn production a miracle. You can imagine how elated Gifty was to meet President Obama at the Faffa Food Factory in Ethiopia. Gifty's smile is unique, but her story is not. She is one of 218,000 small farmers in this East African country who benefit annually from Feed the Future - the U.S. Government's global hunger and food security initiative. Her story begins with a whopper of a crop yield and grows as she shares the bounty. |
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Innovation Turns On The Light
What about June Muli, the woman who got a hug from the President during the Power Africa Innovation Fair? Shes increasing access to solar power across Africa so that people like Teresia Olotai of Tanzania can charge their cell phones at home. Having power at home is a game changer for Teresia. Until recently, she was one of the 90 percent of rural Tanzanians who did not have power. |
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Remembering an HIV heroine
Physician-scientist-researcher-humanitarian. Dr. Suniti Solomon was not only an advocate, but also a leader who took on taboos to treat HIV in India. In this heartfelt tribute, USAID technical adviser and nurse, Margaret McCluskey, writes about her memories of Dr. Solomon - who passed away last month. We hope that the legacy of Dr. Solomon will inspire the next generation of heroes and heroines to rise to the surface. |
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Trash to Treasure
A tidal wave of public-private investment in Africa is changing lives one family at a time. Creative programs like the Off-Grid Energy Challenge give entrepreneurs a chance to develop, scale-up or grow the use of sustainable power technologies. One challenge prize-winner, Amos Nguru, is even turning human waste into power. |
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Thank a Humanitarian
In just over a decade, the number of people in need of humanitarian aid has more than doubled. The mega-emergencies we now face are man-made crises that are a product of todays turbulent times. - Jeremy Konyndyk, Director of USAIDs Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance
Explore the ways that USAID responds to international conflict, crisis and natural disaster in a photo essay created for World Humanitarian Day. |
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Storytelling from our perspective
Curious about how the USAID team thinks about telling the story of our work around the world? Content Division Chief Kelly Ramundo sheds light on our approach on Devexs Global Views blog and highlights five crucial keys to powerful storytelling. Read her entry. |
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A favorite trip tweet
Wearing @USAID cap, Pres Obama visits food factory in Addis Ababa supported by Feed the Future. Mark Knoller
Check out our full social media recap of the Presidents trip to Africa. |
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