Remarks by Chief Assistant to the Acting Deputy Administrator Max Primorac for USAID-Qatar Fund for Development MOU Signing

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Remarks (As Prepared)

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Good morning, and good evening, distinguished guests. I’d like to extend a special welcome to Deputy Director General Ali Abdulla Al-Dabbagh and to our other distinguished guests. It is my pleasure to join you all to inaugurate this new partnership.

The U.S. and Qatar continue to coordinate closely on a wide range of regional and global issues — and the strategic partnership between our two countries could not be stronger. Today, I am honored to sign this Memorandum of Understanding between USAID and the Qatar Fund for Development, which will expand our cooperation in the development and humanitarian spheres.

The MOU we’re signing today codifies the relationship between our two agencies and allows us to put our shared values into action. It lays out specific areas of cooperation, with a focus on education, energy, infrastructure, and relieving human suffering.

This agreement is the culmination of a series of fruitful discussions over the past two years. It gives us the chance to set strategic goals, share lessons learned, and conduct joint assessments. Above all, it opens a new dialogue with an important U.S. ally.

The Qatar Fund for Development is one of the most important foreign aid agencies in the Middle East. The fund has contributed to a large number of sustainable development projects not just in the region, but around the globe. With USAID’s long-standing presence and technical expertise, I am confident that we will find avenues of collaboration that improve standards of living for citizens in our partner countries.

Together, USAID and the Qatar Fund will provide aid to people suffering some of the most intractable conflicts. And we will explore opportunities to expand access to energy and electricity in countries where we have development and national security interests.

This new partnership will broaden our ability to improve lives in an increasingly interconnected world.

Thank you, Deputy Director General Al-Dabbagh, and our distinguished guests, for being here today, albeit virtually. We look forward to future discussions as we continue to identify areas for collaboration, and move together into action.