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U.S. to donate more than U.S.$1 million to Mexican health organizations


ASSOCIATED PRESS

3:46 p.m. March 7, 2006

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico – The United States will donate more than $1 million to Mexican border health organizations dealing with HIV, tuberculosis and other health problems, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico announced here Tuesday.
“The United States has made the global fight against HIV/AIDS a major priority of its foreign policy,” U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza said. “This is not only for humanitarian reasons, but because the spread of HIV threatens the prosperity, stability and development of nations all over the world.”

The money will support binational health initiatives and support the work of government and non-governmental organizations in the Mexican border cities of Ciudad Juarez, Tijuana, Agua Prieta and Monterrey, Garza said.

In Ciudad Juarez, the funds will support advocacy and educational programs for people living with tuberculosis and HIV. In Tijuana, the money will fund “Puentes de Esperanza,” or “Bridges of Hope,” a program which focuses on combating multi-drug resistant tuberculosis strains.

The border city of Agua Prieta, across from Douglas, Arizona, will receive a grant to buy emergency medical equipment, while Monterrey's Instituto Nuevo Amanecer, an organization which works with disabled youth, will get funds to bolster a job training program.