Government Donors
United States of America
- ©Olga Bogatyrenko
- View of the Capitol and its reflection in Washington DC at night
In 2007 voluntary contributions from the United States to UNESCO amounted to USD 3.3 million
Voluntary contributions have increased since the United States re-joined UNESCO in 2003. During its 19-year absence, the United States nevertheless continued to make voluntary contributions to a number of UNESCO’s activities.
As outlined in its strategic plans, the American development assistance programme serves purposes such as (1) international peace and security;(2) freedom, human rights, democratic institutions, and economic development; (3) humanitarian needs; (4) quality of people’s lives through sustainable development focused on improving health, nutrition, and education.
The US support to UNESCO is generally provided by two major sources:
The United States Department of StateThe United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
The US Department of State
The Department of State makes annual voluntary contribution to UNESCO that are focused mainly on cooperation with the
World Heritage Centre and the
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. Since 2006, the annual contribution has also been supporting the
International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).
In the past two years, several projects handled under funds-in-trust were signed, notably an agreement for USD 1 million in favour of the
protection of cultural heritage in Kosovo. Agreements have also been signed in support of
HIV preventive education in Asia with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and in favour of the establishment of a UNESCO
Cultural Heritage database.
USAID
The United States international development cooperation is mainly implemented by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The Agency’s strategic objectives are economic growth, agriculture and trade; global health; democracy, conflict prevention and humanitarian assistance, which are seen as essential to sustainable poverty reduction and meeting specific
Millenium Development Goals.
USAID cooperation for development focuses on
education, and funding is mostly provided on a decentralized level. The education strategy affirms USAID’s commitment to promoting equitable access to quality basic education, with particular stress on girls’ education. It also emphasizes focused efforts in workforce development and higher education. USAID asks field agencies engaged in development co-operation to work with local partners to avoid overlaps, to increase overall effectiveness, and to support host country ownership.
In cooperation with UNESCO, large-scale initiatives in the following fields have been undertaken by USAID:
Teacher education in Ethiopia and PakistanBasic education in IraqTechnical support to UNESCO’s action in favour of Education for All
Among United States' priorities in UNESCO are:
Education Democracy, including civic education and press freedom Access to potable water and natural hazards mitigation
Geographic priorities:
The US shares 61% of its development cooperation in
Africa and
Middle East.
Highlights:
Strengthening Teacher Education in Pakistan
Transatlantic Slave Trade (TST) Education Project
Related Links:
U.S. Contributions to UNESCO - site of the US Mission to UNESCO
International Contributions for Scientific, Educational, and Cultural Activities" (ICSECA)
The U.S. National Science Foundation Establishes the First Grant Agreement with UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission for Ocean Carbon Research Support(April, 2008)