PADF reaches 10.2 million in FY 2010
More than 10
million people in 22 Latin American and
Caribbean countries were
supported through programs managed by the
Pan
American
Development Foundation (PADF) and its
partners during 2010 fiscal
year.
“PADF and its
partners
nearly doubled the number of people they
reached during the year as we
worked to overcome the challenges of our most
disadvantaged
neighbors,” says John Sanbrailo, Executive
Director. “I applaud
their efforts and the support of our donors who
together achieved this
record number.”
PADF, which has a fiscal year from
Oct. 1 to Sept. 30,
focuses on creating sustainable economic
opportunities, strengthening
civil society and responding to natural
disasters.
Responding to
disasters & humanitarian crises
“It’s unfortunate
that natural disasters and
humanitarian crises resulted in an increase in
our activities,
particularly the devastating earthquakes in
Haiti and Chile,” says
Sanbrailo. “Fortunately, we were able to
respond to both quakes, as
well as other humanitarian needs in the
region.”
In Haiti, more than 2.3 million
people
were assisted after the deadly Jan. 12
earthquake through a
combination of immediate relief (such as food,
water and shelter) and
recovery activities (including inspecting homes
to ensure their
safety). PADF was a first responder to the
quake and leveraged its
nearly 30 years of experience on the island to
assist the
population.
“PADF is continuing its long-term
commitment to Haiti,”
says Sanbrailo. “Our formula of engaging the
community,
strengthening the capacity of key government
agencies and bringing in
both public and private sector support will
ensure that Haitians have
sustainable programs.”
For
more information on PADF’s work in Haiti,
please visit: www.ImUnitedforHaiti.org
In Chile, PADF
responded to the 8.8
earthquake that occurred on Feb. 27, which was
felt in six of the
country’s provinces. PADF relief assisted more
than 516,000
people.
Sustainable
development
PADF’s economic development programs
also saw an increase in beneficiaries in Haiti,
Colombia and
elsewhere.
In
Colombia, programs to support internally
displaced persons (IDPs)
assisted more than 77,000 people during the
fiscal year. PADF’s
programs include employment training, preschool
education, housing
services and more. Colombia has the largest
number of IDPs in the
Western Hemisphere. PADF’s IDP activities are
one of 11 programs in
that country.
In
Haiti, an innovative program called Community
Driven
Development—which organizes residents and other
stakeholders to
decide their economic priorities—benefited more
than
150,000.
Strengthening civil
society
For nearly 50 years, PADF has worked
with approximately 5,000 civil society
organizations. In 2010, it
continued its efforts to strengthen civil
society through training,
seminars, subgrants and other activities. It
has civil society
programs in Venezuela, Haiti, the Dominican
Republic, Colombia and
elsewhere.
“PADF’s work to strengthen civil
society is consistent
with the Organization of American States’
Inter-American Democratic
Charter,” says Sanbrailo, referring to the 2001
document passed by
the OAS that serves as its blueprint for
supporting democratic
institutions.
It
only works with NGOs that are not affiliated
with political parties
and does not get involved in the electoral
process.
Private sector
support
The
fiscal year saw continued support from the
public and private sectors,
businesses and individuals.
“The private
sector played a pivotal role in PADF’s
initiatives in the region,” says
Sanbrailo.
Chevron was PADF’s largest corporate
supporter, with assistance in Colombia, Haiti
and elsewhere. Royal
Caribbean Cruises Ltd. provided assistance to
projects in Jamaica,
Colombia, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and
elsewhere. Caterpillar
supported projects, including a major canal
cleaning initiative in
Port-au-Prince. More than a 50 companies
supported PADF in fiscal year
2010.