In one of her last meetings as Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton hosted more than 200 representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civic society, and business houses in order to celebrate the power of partnerships.
The meeting not only ended with a pledge of $80 million in partnership between the private and public sectors, but it also offered a rich and informative review of achievements through partnerships over the last four years.
When Clinton took office in 2009, she focused on partnership as the most important tool for USA’s foreign policy as it collaborated with partners to seize opportunities and reduce threats around the globe.
She engaged with and encouraged strategic collaborations between her office, civil society, NGOs, private sector, and faith-based organizations in order to make significant advances in enhancing the impact of development, in improving diplomacy, and in addressing key issues such as human rights, climate change, women’s empowerment, economic statecraft, and innovation and entrepreneurship, among others.
For example, through the Global Partnership Initiative (S/GPI), launched by Clinton, the office of the Secretary of State has mobilized $650 million and partnered with 1100 parties to advance US foreign policy agenda.
The Secretary’s International Fund for Women and Girls, within the Office of Global Women’s Issues, has successfully created strategic partnerships that can improve women and girls’ lives around the world. 4 million women and young children in many developing countries die due to indoor air-pollution from using cookstoves.
By launching partnerships like the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, Mrs. Clinton’s office has been able to address this critical issue. The US role has involved the government, with 10 federal agencies contributing $114 million and technical expertise. Millions of families in Ghana, Bangladesh, China, Nigeria, and Uganda have benefitted from the initiative’s establishment of international clean cookstove standards, research, and thriving cookstove businesses.
Mrs. Clinton emphasized that sustained partnerships in various fields will continue to improve lives of millions of people around the world. More challenges can be met by successful partnerships. She outlined some ongoing and upcoming collaborations that will improve the relationship between development and diplomacy.
The ‘Alliance for Affordable Internet’ will focus on providing open, affordable, and shared access to internet service; the Arcus Foundation will match the Secretary Office’s Global Equality Fund with a $1 million commitment to protect the human rights of gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual people around the world; and ‘wPower’, a multi-million dollar program, will encourage women entrepreneurs in the area of clean energy.
Such partnerships and collaborations will help the United States maintain and develop its role as a major power in the sphere of global welfare and development. Mrs. Clinton’s pioneering role in the Office of Secretary of State will remain a trailblazer in USA’s foreign aid and service sector.
– Mantra Roy
Source: Business Fights Poverty