DHAKA, JANUARY 15 - The U.S. Government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided $100,000 to assist Bangladeshis affected by the recent cold wave. The USAID-funded Strengthening Household Ability to Respond to Development Opportunities (SHOUHARDO II) implemented by CARE Bangladesh will purchase and distribute 20,000 blankets (two blankets per 10,000 households) in five districts: Dinajpur, Sirajgonj, Pabna, Jamalpur, and Mymensingh.
The SHOUHARDO II program operates in the North-Char, the Mid-Char, the Haor belt, and the Cox's Bazar coastal areas, reaching 370,000 households in 11 of the poorest and most marginalized districts.
The U.S. Government, through USAID, has provided over $6 billion in development assistance to Bangladesh since 1971. In 2012, USAID provided more than $200 million to improve the lives of people in Bangladesh. USAID supports programs in Bangladesh that: expand food security and economic opportunity, promote democratic institutions and practices, improve health and education services, and increase resiliency to climate change through adaptation and low carbon development