Sunday, October 17, 2010

Sagamore's Indiana-Africa Connections Project

Senator Richard G. Lugar (R.-Ind.) will speak at the Sagamore Institute on 21 October as part of the Indianapolis-based think tank's unveiling of its Indiana-Africa Connections Project. This database lists more than 250 Indiana individuals and organizations who regularly engage with sub-Saharan Africa. The event will be from 10:30 a.m. to noon.

Senator Lugar's experience as Ranking Member and former Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and advocate for improving Africa's economy and health care makes him an ideal partner with Sagamore in showcasing Indiana's role as an important global citizen.

Through leadership on crucial legislation such as the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, PEPFAR, the African Growth and Opportunity Act and Tropical Rain Forest Conservation Act, and a heavy interest in energy and hunger security, Senator Lugar has shown time and again the need for a strong and healthy relationship between the United States and countries throughout the African continent.

Sagamore worked with University of Indianapolis graduate students to compile the database, which includes entries such as the Bryantsville Hunger Relief Project, a farm that sends corn to South African countries, and The Institute for Affordable Transportation, an Indianapolis-based group that manufactures and distributes low-cost utility vehicles to individuals in developing countries. (NOTE: such groups also are listed on the Nationalities Council's international links pages.)

Sagamore Institute is an Indianapolis-based nonpartisan research group that brings policymakers and practitioners together to turn ideas into action.

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1 comment:

Terry White said...

It does not appear that either of two significant sub-Sahara African linkages with organizations based here in Winona Lake, Indiana, are part of your database.

ICDI (Integrated Community Development International) is a very vigorous program focusing on well drilling, agricultural development, AIDS prevention, radio broadcasting, microenterprise, and orphan care.

The other, Project Hope and Charite, focuses on orphan care, supporting healthcare, education, and opportunity for AIDS orphans. It operates throughout Central African Republic, but is based in the capital city of Bangui.