House Approves Bill Assisting Orphans and Vulnerable Children

On June 14, the House approved, by voice vote, a bill (H.R. 4061) to provide assistance for orphans and other vulnerable children in developing countries. The House International Relations Committee approved the measure on March 31 (see The Source, 4/2/04).

Sponsored by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), the Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act contains a number of findings, including:

• According to a report developed by UNAIDS, UNICEF, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), there were more than 110 million orphans living in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean in 2001;
• Assessments carried out by the International Labor Organization found that orphans are much more likely than non-orphans to work in commercial agriculture, the domestic service industry, the commercial sex industry, as street vendors, or in industries that violate internationally recognized rights of children;
• One-third of children born to an HIV-infected mother develop HIV/AIDS. Few of these children have access to HIV/AIDS medications;
• Globally more than 11.8 million young people ages 15 to 24 were living with HIV/AIDS in 2001, and each day another 6,000 young people became infected. New estimates indicate that more than 70 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases among this age group in sub-Saharan Africa are young women and girls; and
• As their parents fall ill from HIV/AIDS, children generally must take on an increasing number of responsibilities. Girls take responsibility for more household chores, often drop out of school, and care for their parents.

H.R. 4061 would authorize such sums as necessary through FY2006 to provide grants for programs providing basic care, HIV/AIDS treatment, social and psychological support, educational opportunities, and inheritance rights assistance for children in developing countries. The measure also would establish a new Office of Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children within USAID to coordinate assistance programs.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) said that by 2010, “It is estimated that there will be 25 million children orphaned as a result of HIV/AIDS. Entire villages are already being affected by this pandemic. This bill recognizes that the United States Government will need to establish improved capacity to deliver assistance to such orphans and vulnerable children through partnerships with private voluntary organizations, including faith-based organizations.”

Rep. Lee agreed. “We have a moral duty, quite frankly, to provide for these children, these children who are really now victims of circumstance. As the world’s most prosperous nation, we have an obligation to act. I am hopeful that as we pass this bill this evening we can encourage the other body to act quickly and to move this initiative forward so that we can get it enacted into law before the end of the 108th Congress.”