[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 119 (Thursday, September 10, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1686-E1687]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      BROTHER'S BROTHER FOUNDATION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. WILLIAM J. COYNE

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 10, 1998

  Mr. COYNE. Mr. Speaker, as Congress moves forward with consideration 
of the 1999 Foreign Operations bill, I'd like to call my colleagues' 
attention to the successful programs of the Brother's Brother 
Foundation (BBF), based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Using both federal 
and private funds, the BBF promotes international health and education 
through the efficient and effective distribution and provision of 
donated medical, educational, and agricultural resources.
  An example of the international aid provided by the Brother's Brother 
Foundation is its public-private partnership to provide much-needed 
books to developing countries. BBF used U.S. government funding to ship 
half of the 40,000,000 privately donated books it received to 50 
countries. The requested books are valued at $340 million, and range 
from children's picture books to medical school texts. In the 
Philippines, for example, the program has been in operation for ten 
years, providing more than 8 million books for use by 15 million 
students in 38,000 schools and libraries. BBF works with U.S. 
Philippine Rotary Clubs to coordinate the collection and distribution 
of the books.
  Another example of the important work that the Brother's Brother 
Foundation does is provide agricultural assistance to developing 
countries. BBF shipped 7,000 tons of donated corn and vegetable seed to 
20 needy countries, including many new states like Armenia. This seed 
planted 22,000 square miles of farm land. The seed and the volunteer 
farming technical assistance that was provided with it helped to 
improve agriculture efficiency and increase rural family incomes. In 
the Republic of Georgia, for example, U.S. Agency for International 
Development representatives reported that ``Production yields expanded 
2 to 3 times.'' U.S. government funding provided 75 percent of the cost 
of shipping this seed overseas.
  The value of non-profit organizations like the Brother's Brother 
Foundation are immeasurable. Their efforts are essential for the 
success of public-private partnerships. I ask my

[[Page E1687]]

colleagues to remember the Brother's Brother Foundation and 
organizations like it when voting on international development programs 
in the 1999 Foreign Operations bill.

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