[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Page 13430]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 NOMINATION OF LORI A. FORMAN TO BE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR OF AID FOR 
                           ASIA AND NEAR EAST

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I come to the floor, as I did earlier 
this spring, to commend the efforts of a South Dakotan who is having a 
direct impact on America's international interests. Last Thursday 
evening, I was proud when the Senate confirmed Lori A. Forman, born and 
raised in Sioux Falls, SD, to be Assistant Administrator of USAID for 
Asia and the Near East. She is the first South Dakotan nominated and 
confirmed to serve in the Bush Administration.
  The Assistant Administrator for Asia and the Near East, ANE, has a 
tremendous responsibility. Stretching from Morocco in the West to the 
Philippines in the East, the ANE region is large and diverse and covers 
a wide range of issues of critical importance to the U.S., including 
the challenges posed by terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of 
mass destruction.
  The region is also home to vital economic interests. As a market for 
U.S. goods and services, it is second only to Europe. Countries in the 
region provide 50 percent of the oil consumed in the United States and 
control vital shipping lanes for the world's commerce. As the world 
witnessed with the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997, instability in this 
region has direct and significant ramifications for global economic 
interests.
  Furthermore, the region poses a development challenge for the United 
States. According to the World Bank, the ANE region accounts for more 
than two-thirds of the world's extremely poor. And those poor are 
succumbing more and more to the threat of infectious disease, 
especially HIV/AIDS. In India alone, there are 1,500 additional cases 
of HIV daily.
  In such an important region, USAID requires a talented and 
experienced Assistant Administrator. Our interests there are too vital 
and the costs of failure too high for us to accept anyone but the 
finest.
  I can think of no better candidate than Lori Forman. She has written 
extensively on the development challenges in Asia. Her writings are 
based on years of experience--in both the governmental and non-
governmental sectors--as a development practitioner throughout Asia. 
She knows the region and Washington, ensuring that assistance will get 
to the people for whom it is intended, not become tied up in 
bureaucratic wrangling here.
  Lori has an additional asset which has served her well in her 
career--and will continue to serve her well. Though she has been 
engaged in Asia policy for much of the last 25 years, she is from the 
Great State of South Dakota. In South Dakota we pride ourselves on 
humility, self-reliance and hard work, traits that are valuable, even 
crucial, to anyone in the development field.
  Americans from each and every state are having a positive impact on 
the lives of people the world over. I am particularly proud when 
individuals from


South Dakota have done such a fine job. Lori Forman's efforts make me 
proud, America stronger and the world better.

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