FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 11, 2000
Contact: Jennifer Greeson 

Arkansas' Heifer Project Awarded $2.7 Million Contract

Washington – Heifer Project International (HPI), based in Morrilton and Little Rock, Arkansas, has been awarded a $2.7 million contract from the U.S. Agency on International Development, U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln announced today.

The Heifer Project helps developing countries create enterprises that promote self-sufficiency and economic development. Through this contract, awarded through USAID's Dairy Directive Program, Heifer Project will partner with Missouri-based Agriculture Business Systems to help Kenya privatize its milk production and distribution processes. Currently, the country is dependent on foreign aid for these activities.

"Programs like this one at the USAID help communities help themselves, which is critical to improving the health of people worldwide and stabilizing the global economy," said Lincoln. "I'm proud that the Heifer Project plays such a role in boosting the quality of life for developing nations and believe we should do all we can to support self-sufficiency in other countries, while providing opportunities for Arkansas' organizations."

Lincoln fought to prevent the Dairy Directive program from being side-tracked within USAID and used for purposes that Congress did not intend. Now that the contract has been awarded, Lincoln said she would watch to see that the USAID administers it quickly.

A nonprofit organization, the Heifer Project works in partnership with congregations, civic groups and individual donors to help communities in foreign nations become self-reliant. HPI sends 20 different kinds of food- and income-producing animals to projects in the U.S. and other countries, as well as offering intensive training in animal management, environmentally-sound farming and community development. Since HPI began in 1944, at least four million families in 118 countries have enjoyed better health and greater economic stability.

"The Heifer Project is a great example of the old adage; if you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. If you teach a man to fish, he'll eat for a lifetime," Lincoln said.