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| NCGA Chairman Fred Yoder,
right, joined Jack Hawkins, director of Volunteers for Prosperity,
center, and Desiree T. Sayle, presidential aide and director
of USA Freedom Corps, left, Monday to discuss NCGA’s involvement
in President George W. Bush’s Volunteers for Prosperity program. |
NCGA Members to Share Expertise Through Volunteers for Prosperity
Program
(8-3-04)
Under an initiative announced Monday, members of the National
Corn Growers Association (NCGA) will share their agriculture production
expertise with farmers in developing nations around the world.
NCGA Chairman Fred Yoder
joined Desiree Sayle, deputy assistant to the president and director
of USA Freedom Corps, in announcing
NCGA’s participation in Volunteers for Prosperity, a program
launched by President George W. Bush to encourage skilled American
professionals to support U.S. efforts for global health and economic
growth.
Yoder said NCGA looks
forward to building a strong relationship with the group and
is eager to participate in its projects. “We
will encourage our members to answer the president’s call
to service by helping growers in developing countries improve their
agricultural practices,” Yoder said. “Reducing global
hunger and poverty not only is a moral obligation for those with
the capacity to help, but it also helps the donors themselves by
promoting international security, growth of markets and reciprocal
trade.”
Sayle said the Bush
administration appreciates NCGA’s commitment
to helping citizens of developing countries. “In doing so,
(NCGA is) answering the president’s call to service for all
Americans to help a neighbor in need and extend American compassion
around the world,” She said.
The Volunteers for Prosperity initiative is coordinated by USA
Freedom Corps and administered by the U.S. Agency for International
Development. The project provides opportunities for highly-skilled
American professionals in a variety of fields to volunteer for
a flexible term in developing countries. More than 130 organizations
have joined the Volunteers for Prosperity network since it was
created by President Bush in September 2003.
Yoder said NCGA supports building business and industry relationships
around the world and believes in the improvement of farming production
practices in developing nations. NCGA has participated in many
international trade missions, sharing the benefits of technological
advancements in agricultural science and biotechnology.
For more information on the Volunteers for Prosperity program,
log on to http://www.volunteersforprosperity.gov/