USAID reopens mission in yemen
Yemen-USA, Politics, 5/3/2003

Following a seven-year absence, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is reopening its mission in Yemen, with a focus on basic health care, primary education, and income and food security in selected poor rural areas of the country.

According to a May 2 press release, USAID's Yemen office, under the direction of Douglas Heisler, will also support the country's decentralization policy and democratic institutions by providing training for local government officials and assisting with elections.

The press release said the office, closed since 1996, was reopened in response to Yemen's assistance in the global war against terrorism, and would have a budget of $10 to $20 million.

Following is the text of the USAID press release on the reopening of its mission in Yemen:

Douglas Heisler was sworn in today as the U.S. Agency for International Development Representative (USAID) to the Republic of Yemen at the USAID headquarters in Washington, D.C. by Administrator Andrew S. Natsios.

Dr. Heisler will oversee a $10 to $20 million portfolio in Yemen. The new USAID program focuses on basic health care, primary education and increased income and food security in selected poor rural areas. USAID will also support the government of Yemen's decentralization policy and democratic institutions through training for local government officials and election assistance.

USAID closed its Mission in Yemen in 1996 pursuant to restrictions on foreign aid. More recently, the Government of Yemen has supported the international response to terrorism following the September 11, 2001 attacks and the Al-Qaeda bombing of the USS Cole. The new USAID Office in Yemen will provide a development assistance component to the war on terrorism that is expected to produce positive results in Yemen.

Dr. Heisler has been with USAID for more than fifteen years, most recently as the leader of the Population, Health and Nutrition Team in the Bureau for Asia and the Near East in USAID headquarters in Washington, D.C. He joined the Foreign Service in 1987. His last overseas post was in South Africa where he focused on basic shelter and community development. He has also worked throughout North Africa and the Near East during an assignment to the USAID Regional Housing and Urban Development Office in Tunisia. Dr. Heisler began his overseas career as a senior advisor in the Riyadh Development Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Heisler is from Philadelphia. He earned a B.S. in pre-medical studies from the University of Notre Dame, an M.S. in Housing and Urban Planning from Cornell University, and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Demography from the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining USAID he served in Philadelphia city government in urban planning and redevelopment. Dr. Heisler resides in Falls Church, Virginia and Chestertown, Maryland with his wife, Cheri Rassas. He has a daughter, Nadia Rassas and a son, Skandar Rassas.

Previous Stories:
  Germany: Washington, Sanaa request extraditing arrested Yemenis   (1/13/2003)
  US started evacuating its citizens from Jableh, Yemen   (1/1/2003)
  American- Yemeni military talks partners for the long run   (12/24/2002)

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