Church Leaders Urge U.S. Congress to Support U.S. Foreign Aid Reform Bill

WASHINGTON, May 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. church bodies, convened by
the Christian anti-hunger advocacy group Bread for the World, are petitioning
Congress to pass the Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009 (H.R.
2139). The bipartisan bill starts the process of overhauling U.S. foreign
assistance programs to make them more efficient and focused on fighting
poverty.

"People of faith want our country's foreign assistance to do the best job
possible of helping hungry and poor people around the world," said Rev. David
Beckmann, president of Bread for the World. "U.S. foreign assistance is
helping save millions of lives, improving agricultural productivity and
increasing school enrollment. But more lives can be saved and more can be done
if we improve how we deliver foreign aid."

Bread for the World and other faith groups are calling on millions of their
constituents to urge their U.S. representatives to cosponsor H.R. 2139. As
part of the effort, church leaders around the nation are sending joint letters
to legislators in their congressional districts.

Reforming the outdated foreign assistance system is the focus of Bread for the
World's 2009 Offering of Letters legislative campaign. The effort has rallied
nearly 50 Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith bodies and agencies, who have
issued a joint statement on U.S. foreign assistance reform.

"In the Abrahamic tradition, the willingness to fight poverty and other
barriers to human dignity is one of the marks of a wise nation...Today, U.S.
foreign aid is essential not only to meet humanitarian necessity and promote
economic growth and progress, but also to build a world of stability and
security for generations to come," they said in their statement.

The historic H.R. 2139 requires the president to develop and implement a
comprehensive national strategy for global development, improve evaluation of
development programs, and increase the transparency of U.S. foreign assistance
to developing countries. Currently U.S. global development policies and
programs are scattered across 12 departments, 25 agencies, and nearly 60
government offices.

"A more efficient foreign assistance system -- with better coordination,
better accountability, and better clarity -- means that people will get help
faster and more effectively," said Rev. Beckmann. "If we want to assure all
God's children the dignity of daily bread, we have to work with our heads and
not only with our hearts."

SOURCE Bread for the World

Shawnda Hines, +1-301-960-4913, shines@bread.org, or Bill Malone,
+1-202-464-8180, bmalone@bread.org, both of Bread for the World